Chapter Sixty: Assigned to Catch Rats

On top of the cage was a photograph: a mouse with fur as white as snow and only a touch of red on its nose. It was the size of an average adult woman's palm. Inside the cage, it first lay flat on the snow-white cotton, as if trying to blend in and escape notice; then it leapt toward the side with fewer people, but couldn't jump out. Agitated, it gnawed at the bars with its sharp teeth, lively and restless.

If the cage hadn't been made of metal, it probably wouldn't have held the mouse for long. Jiang Huan noticed that the snow-colored mouse had exceptionally sharp and sturdy incisors.

The post described this temporarily named "Snowfield Mouse" as a mutated species, capable of changing color according to its environment, but only between white and pale gray. It was highly intelligent, equivalent to a three or four-year-old child, alert and wary, lived in groups, carried diseases, and could corrode buildings much like termites.

Upon catching one, it was to be delivered to the relevant base department for extermination—three mice earned one contribution point. If brought in alive, each mouse was worth one point.

The reward was considerable, especially since the post also mentioned that these snowfield mice reproduced at a rate three times faster than ordinary mice.

If left unchecked, they would certainly become a deadly issue.

Jiang Huan decided to take on the task. She posted in Building Six: "After catching them, the contribution points will be shared. During the mouse hunt, I'll cover all three meals and gas, no extra payment needed. Anyone interested, sign up within the hour."

She also told her younger brother about it.

Jiang Xi disliked mice, but his sister explained that if these mice multiplied, they would invade their living areas and could even destroy buildings.

Encouraged, he agreed to join.

Jiang Huan and her brother set up a temporary meeting room on the sixteenth floor, and soon almost everyone from Building Six arrived. Even children could join, earning meal benefits without risking their lives. Everyone wanted to hear Jiang Huan’s plan.

She wrote the methods on the whiteboard: Rodenticide, mouse traps, glue boards, catchers, manual extermination.

"There are many ways to catch mice. Rodenticide is the most common. If we go to less populated areas, it's perfectly feasible to use it. However, its effect wanes over time, as mice learn to recognize the scent and avoid it. So, we'll only use it three times per location."

She clarified that each site would receive rodenticide three times.

"I need someone to make warning signs, using cardboard, paint, and nails to fix them, letting people know we've placed rodenticide. Of course, those taking children out must remind them not to eat anything unwrapped they find along the way."

Parents like Qiuqiu and Xiaolu nodded in agreement.

Jiang Huan continued, "Mouse traps are devices baited with food to lure the mice; once triggered, they automatically catch them. I have a few electronic traps, but I'd like to reserve those for ourselves."

Glue boards were similar, but outdoors they quickly froze and became useless, so she didn’t mention them.

At that moment, Old Zhang raised his hand. "I come from the countryside. There, we prepare a bucket with half a bucket of water, scatter rice grains on the surface—corn kernels or fried dough sticks work too. Place the bucket where mice frequent."

Jiang Huan nodded and added his method to the whiteboard. "Discounting children, we have fifteen people able to go out. We'll divide into three groups. Group One will handle the rodenticide, placing it in three rounds and collecting the mice afterwards to exchange for contribution points. Group Two will set up traps and Old Zhang’s bait buckets. Group Three, mainly children and those sensitive to cold, will stay behind and handle miscellaneous tasks—making warning signs, frying dough sticks, preparing bait. Parents should focus on making warning signs as a precaution."

"As for my brother and me, we have slingshots, crossbows, and thermal imaging gear, so we’ll form our own group to hunt mice at night. You may choose your group, but think it over carefully. Any opinions should be voiced here. There’s no need for another meeting."

Building Six residents quickly made their choices. Over the next two days, everyone prepared the first batch of bait, tools, and materials. On the third day, Group One, led by Wang Ping and escorted by Xiao Fang, headed out.

The communicator was temporarily with Wang Ping for convenience.

They were gone until dusk, White Frost had already waited downstairs, spraying everyone with disinfectant, washing hands on the first floor, dusting off clothes, then heading upstairs.

Wang Ping sent his report to Jiang Huan: they had caught over five hundred mice. Some burrows were too deep and narrow to reach.

They had earned over two hundred points; with four people, each got more than fifty.

The same group went out again the next day.

The third day, they returned early, having gathered two thousand mice to deliver. Each person earned five hundred points and exchanged them at the base for many needed supplies, making everyone envious. Those previously uninterested joined in as well.

Suddenly, throughout the city, people could be seen everywhere using all sorts of methods to trap mice.

Group Two's members had to guard their traps for a whole day, lest someone else claim them.

Eventually, they focused solely on remote, sparsely populated areas.

After returning, the Building Six group shared their experience, and Teacher Bai commented, "The last time I heard of such a scene was in my aunt’s recollections—not only mice but sparrows and mosquitoes, caught daily for a modest reward. Yet everyone was enthusiastic."

Several older residents remembered similar stories told by their elders when they were young.

For a moment, the group recalled past eras.

Jiang Huan, for her part, had no wish to return to those times. People were relatively simple then, but extremes abounded. She had tasted the conveniences of modern society; going back, she couldn’t bear it. Take the simplest example—the electric light. In the nineties, rural families still lacked electricity; the sixties and seventies were even worse.

Good food with no provenance—now, it’s so easy to fool people. Back then, you’d be questioned for generations.

When Group One went out, Group Two rested; when Group Two went out, Group One rested. When Jiang Huan and her brother insisted on going out alone, everyone else stayed, helping Group Three prepare tools and bait for the next round.

Jiang Huan and her brother sought a place where, according to reports, mouse noises were loud at night—it was on the other side of the city. They set out after lunch, arranged a makeshift sleeping area upon arrival, and by then, night had fallen and the temperature was dropping.

Jiang Huan shivered with cold and exercised to warm up.

Jiang Xi, by contrast, was comfortable—he wore a thermal suit.

Though Jiang Huan was used to relying on her brother, she wanted to try her luck and see if she could win a thermal suit herself.

She opened the loot boxer, bought one large box, five medium ones, and ten small boxes at once.

Then came the tense moment of opening the boxes. Gripping Jiang Xi’s hand, she went straight for the large box.

A brief flash of white light, and the contents appeared.

(End of chapter)