The couple quickly gathered two large woven baskets full of dry grass. The sun had already set, and the temperature in the woods had dropped considerably. Chen Lan and Xu Mingxuan, the couple, felt that two baskets of dry grass would be enough to make a bed. Since a cold snap was setting in and it was getting chilly, they didn't linger outside and immediately returned to the cave. They divided their tasks as usual: Chen Lan was responsible for making the bed, and Xu Mingxuan for starting the fire.
Chen Lan decided to set up the sleeping area right in the center of the cave. She took out some dry branches from the system's inventory and spread them evenly on the ground as a base layer. Then, she distributed the two large baskets of dry grass evenly on top of the branches. From the system's inventory, she also brought out two quilts and bedsheets. She spread both quilts on the dry grass, then added the bedsheets, followed by two pillows and a large comforter.
Chen Lan quickly finished making the bed. She then took all the dry branches she had cut earlier and placed them neatly in a pile by the side of the cave entrance, making it convenient for adding firewood later. Xu Mingxuan started a large bonfire in the narrow passage leading into the cave, about two meters from the inside. The fire was already burning brightly.
The couple had been busy all day. Chen Lan was feeling too tired to do much else, so she simply bought some braised food from the system. They ate a few warm, baked cornmeal steamed buns with the braised food and drank some water from their portable water bottles. Afterward, the couple decided to go to bed early for the night.
Before sleeping, Chen Lan was still murmuring to Xu Mingxuan, "Brother Mingxuan, do you think wolves will really run into the cave tonight?"
Xu Mingxuan comforted her, "Lan'er, please don't think like that. Relax. I'll keep watch. As long as the fire doesn't go out, we'll be fine! Just go to sleep peacefully."
Chen Lan, lulled by Xu Mingxuan's reassurance, drifted off to sleep. In the middle of the night, Chen Lan was awakened by the sound of chilling wolf howls. The sound of wolves howling was different from other wild animals; it was shrill and prolonged. In the vast, quiet wilderness and peaceful forest at night, if one wolf howled, others would join in, their cries echoing through the surroundings, sending shivers down one's spine.
Just as she was deeply asleep, dreaming a sweet dream, Chen Lan was suddenly startled awake by a deafening noise. She was still groggy, but upon hearing the wolf howls, her hair stood on end. She sprang up from the makeshift bed, her eyes wide open. She saw that Xu Mingxuan had already put on his cotton coat and miner's cap, and was unhurriedly adding firewood to the bonfire.
Sensing movement behind him, Xu Mingxuan turned his head and whispered, "Lan'er, the wolf howls woke you up, didn't they? Don't be afraid. Go back to sleep. I'll watch the fire. As long as the fire in our cave doesn't go out, they won't dare to come in."
Hearing Xu Mingxuan's words, Chen Lan also came to her senses. She felt even less inclined to truly go back to sleep. So, she took out several more miner's caps from the system's inventory, put one on her head and turned on the switch. She also turned on the switches for the remaining miner's caps, casting several strong beams of light towards the outside of the cave, illuminating the scene outside as brightly as day.
At this moment, Chen Lan could clearly see several grayish-yellow wolves crouching at the cave entrance, staring intently at the entrance with their eerie green eyes. Like in legends, wolves resembled dogs, with pointed snouts and erect ears. She didn't see their tails and wondered if, as in legends, their tails were bushy but not curled.
As the wolves at the cave entrance saw Chen Lan looking at them, some bared their sharp fangs and stuck out their long, blood-red tongues. Others stretched their front legs forward, adopting a stance as if ready to charge into the cave at any moment, prepared to pounce on their prey. Their two emerald green eyes emitted a cunning glow.
This made Chen Lan's scalp tingle. The couple then found themselves in a standoff with a pack of wolves outside the cave. They didn't know exactly how many wolves were outside, but judging by the continuous howling, there were likely more than a dozen or twenty. Chen Lan felt that this standoff wasn't a solution. Would they have to stay awake all night until dawn? Even at dawn, the wolves might not retreat, as they were among the most persistent animals in the animal kingdom, never easily giving up on a prey they had targeted.
She then turned back and used her mind to open the system, intending to search for anesthetic or hallucinogenic powders. Suddenly, she remembered two packets of powder that her eldest son and two younger brothers had given her the night before they left for Suifenhe. One packet, she recalled, was powdered Datura, which had anesthetic properties, and the other was an insect repellent. They had said that insects and snakes were common in the deep mountains and forests, and they were also worried about her and Xiangxi encountering bad people on the road. They had specifically asked their master, Doctor Guo, for these for her self-defense.
At the time, although deeply touched by her brothers' and son's concern, Chen Lan hadn't paid much attention, believing that with the system as a cheat, she could handle any situation. So, she had casually put them into the system's inventory. She never imagined that they would actually come in handy at this moment.
Without further delay, Chen Lan took out the two packets of powder wrapped in brown paper from the system's inventory. Indeed, one of the paper packets had the words "Powdered Datura" written on it. She promptly put the insect repellent powder back into the system's inventory.
She then took out a crossbow and six carbon steel arrows from the system's inventory. She wet the arrowheads of the six carbon steel arrows with water from her water bottle. Then, holding her breath, she quickly opened the paper packet containing the powdered Datura, coated all six carbon steel arrowheads with the powdered Datura, and then quickly rewrapped the powder packet. She then swiftly nocked the six carbon steel arrows, adjusted the infrared tracking sight, and with a sudden turn, aimed at the outside of the cave and pressed the launch button.
Immediately afterward, several thuds were heard, followed by even more shrill howls from the pack of wolves.
By the time Xu Mingxuan picked up the crossbow from the ground, ready to hunt again, the cunning wolves had already retreated from the cave entrance. Due to the narrowness of the entrance and the distance to the outside, the crossbow was now useless.
Chen Lan was unwilling to remain in this standoff with the wolves outside all night, waiting for their fate. So, while adding firewood to the bonfire, she began to ponder.
At this moment, Xu Mingxuan, while unhurriedly adding firewood, asked, "Lan'er, is that paper packet you left on the ground something important? Do you want to put it away safely so you don't forget it? If it's not important, I'll throw it into the fire and burn it?"