Chapter 27

Chapter 27

If they really wanted to catch rabbits, they couldn't stay in the area everyone usually frequented. Besides, today, with Liao Chengze, Shen Guoqing, Shen Zhenhua, and Shen Wenyi—four adults with several kids up the mountain—they could venture further than usual.

Upon hearing that Liao Chengze was an officer, Zhao Xuehai looked at him as if he were some rare, extraordinary treasure, stuck close to him the whole way, chattering and asking all sorts of questions.

Liao Chengze was quite patient. As long as it didn't involve military secrets, he answered almost every question, even encouraging Zhao Xuehai to enlist in a few years. Zhao Xuehai laughed gleefully, sending the birds in the woods fluttering away in a panic.

Shen Wendong couldn't help but remind his friend, "You'll scare all the little animals away like that." At this point, forget rabbits and pheasants; they might not even find a single mouse.

Zhao Xuehai chuckled, giving Shen Banyue a very 'martial arts master'-style salute with clasped fists. "Xiao Yue the Hero, today I'm supporting Uncle Liao. He's definitely going to win." No matter how amazing Xiao Yue the Hero was, she surely couldn't outmatch Uncle Liao, who had actually been on the battlefield!

Shen Banyue glanced at him and said with indifference, "Oh."

She really didn't care much whether this little brat supported her or not.

Lin Mian disagreed, with a stern little face. "Sister Yue is definitely more amazing."

Xiao Dizi naturally supported her sister unconditionally. "Sister, amazing!" she said, waving her tiny, chubby fist at Zhao Xuehai.

Zhao Xuehai grinned mischievously, nudging his buddy with his shoulder. "What about you, Dongzi? Who do you support?"

Shen Zhenhua also looked at his son, eager to stir the pot. "Son, you definitely support your old man, right? Besides those two, there are three other grown men here."

Shen Wendong looked up, glanced at his dear father, and was blunt. "You're not up to it." From childhood till now, he'd never seen his dad catch anything. Shen Wendong had a very clear understanding of his father's "abilities."

Shen Zhenhua let out a disgruntled "Hey!" and rubbed his precious son's head helplessly. "You little rascal!"

Zhao Xuehai kept bumping Shen Wendong with his shoulder. "So, who do you think is more capable?"

Shen Guoqing and Shen Wenyi also joined in, egging them on.

Shen Wendong glanced at Liao Chengze. This unfamiliar uncle was tall and strong, and indeed looked really impressive. However, he still believed in Xiao Yue more. After all, his dad was also tall and big, yet he wasn't as good as Xiao Yue, was he?

"Xiao Yue. I support Xiao Yue."

Zhao Xuehai let out a disappointed "Ah!" "But Uncle Liao looks so capable!" He looked up at Liao Chengze. "Uncle Liao, now I'm the only one supporting you."

Liao Chengze laughed heartily and patted his head. "Alright, thank you, Uncle Liao. I promise not to let you down!"

The group made their way, stopping here and there. Although their goal was to catch rabbits, they wouldn't pass up other things they encountered along the way, like mushrooms and wild berries. They gathered whatever they came across.

Perhaps because they ventured a bit deeper, they even came across an untouched wild chestnut tree. The ground was littered with spiky burrs, and plenty still hung on the tree.

These were fragrant, quite filling, and were edible, making them very popular in the village. In fact, the chestnut trees closer to the village had long been stripped bare.

The kids gathered the fallen burrs from under the tree. Some were dry, and with a good stomp, the outer spiky shell would crack open, revealing the brown chestnut inside. Shen Banyue, being strong, took charge of stomping the burrs open. Xiao Dizi squatted nearby, specifically responsible for picking up these "disarmed" chestnuts.

The other boys found small sticks to use as "chopsticks" to pick up the ones that were too tough to crack.

Shen Banyue figured it was too much trouble to carry the shells back. After stomping all the easy ones open, she turned her attention to the stubborn ones.

At first, lacking experience, she used too much force and flattened a "spiky ball" with one stomp. Not only did the shell shatter, but even the chestnut meat inside was crushed into pulp.

Xiao Dizi looked at the flattened, unrecognizable mess, then up at Shen Banyue, letting out a puzzled "Huh?" Shen Banyue swiftly used her foot to sweep the thing into the dirt, "destroying the evidence."

"That one was bad. Can't eat it."

She seriously tried to fool the little one.

The little one blinked, suddenly stood up, walked over, and stomped the ground twice with a firm "thump, thump," nodding emphatically. "Bad."

Shen Banyue: "..."

Later, Shen Banyue gained experience and controlled her strength, making stomping much easier. Soon, the boys realized there didn't seem to be any "spiky balls" she couldn't crack open.

Every single one, Shen Banyue could stomp open.

She even poured out the ones they had already collected and stomped them again. Quickly, the "spiky ball" gathering team turned into a chestnut gathering team.

While the spiky shells could be taken back, dried, and used as firewood, there were plenty of pine needles, fern leaves, and various mountain grasses and branches near the foothills that could serve as fuel. Carrying these heavy shells back from so far wasn't really worth it. Since they could get the chestnuts out, everyone was more than happy to do so.

So, by the time the adults had knocked down all the chestnuts from the tree, they found the kids had already cleaned all the chestnuts they'd gathered.

"Wow, you little ones are quite capable," Shen Wenyi remarked.

"Definitely more capable than you."

As an elder, Shen Zhenhua commented. Shen Wenyi choked, opened his mouth, and finally blurted out, "I know your son is outstanding."

Shen Zhenhua chuckled, wearing an expression that said, "That's just the fact." Shen Wendong, however, glanced at Shen Banyue somewhat sheepishly and said, "It's all thanks to Xiao Yue being amazing and stomping all the chestnuts out."

Zhao Xuehai, being a foodie, licked his lips. "Chestnuts stewed with pork are the best."

The adults all laughed.

Shen Guoqing teased, "Is there anything that *doesn't* taste good stewed with pork?"

Zhao Xuehai scratched his head. "Well, that's true."

As they were chatting and laughing, Shen Banyue suddenly looked off into the distance. There seemed to be some noise coming from that direction.

Soon after, Liao Chengze also reacted. He warned the others in a low voice, "There seems to be something over there."

His serious expression put the others on alert. Shen Zhenhua reacted fastest, scooping up his son. Shen Wenyi followed suit, grabbing Zhao Xuehai. Shen Guoqing looked at the remaining three kids and picked up Lin Mian.

Liao Chengze bent down, about to pick up Shen Banyue and Xiao Dizi, but Shen Banyue was faster. She grabbed Xiao Dizi and darted off. "Uncle Liao, I'm strong and run fast. Don't worry about me."

Seeing her charge straight toward the source of the disturbance, Liao Chengze was startled. Without a second thought for the others, he yelled instructions to the others and hurried after her.

As she got closer, Shen Banyue heard a strange chorus of cries—like wolves but not quite, like dogs but not exactly, mixed with what sounded like pig squeals.

Assessing the terrain, she swung Xiao Dizi onto her back. "Hold on tight to sister." Then, pulling a cloth strip from her pocket, she swiftly wrapped it around her back a couple of times, securely tying Xiao Dizi in place. Once the knot was tied, she used her hands and feet to agilely scramble up a nearby large tree.

Pushing aside the lush leaves of the evergreen plants, Shen Banyue looked down not far away. When she clearly saw the scene below, her eyes widened in shock.

Not far below was a slope. In the muddy pit at the bottom, two massive wild boars were surrounded by a pack of creatures that looked like wolves but not quite, like dogs but not exactly. Over a dozen of these things had tightly encircled the two boars in two rings. The five or six in front were constantly charging at the boars, tearing at their thick, tough hides. The seven or eight on the outer ring watched intently, growling low, ready to pounce and replace the attackers at any moment.

Behind her came the rustling sound of leaves shaking. Shen Banyue didn't turn around; she knew it was Liao Chengze who had caught up.

Liao Chengze stepped onto a branch on the other side, lowering his voice. "Those are dholes, the 'chái' in 'chái láng hǔ bào' (jackals, wolves, tigers, leopards). These things are fiercer than wolves and like to use attrition tactics. Don't be fooled by the boars being much bigger and having thick hides. Being bitten in turns like this, they won't last long."

Shen Banyue finally looked back at Liao Chengze.

Anyone else would have immediately stopped a child from watching such a bloody scene, pulling them away to run back. Unexpectedly, he was actually explaining it.

Liao Chengze probably understood the meaning in her gaze and whispered, "You're a kid with too much guts and run too fast. If I didn't tell you, you might later wonder if these things were dogs. Better to tell you." Then he added a reminder, "Turn sideways a bit, block Xiao Dizi."

Shen Banyue complied, shifting her body. Xiao Dizi, probably sensing the tense atmosphere, called out softly, "Sister?"

Shen Banyue turned her head and made a "shh" gesture. The kid immediately covered his mouth with both hands and fell silent.

The standoff below continued. The two wild boars were hard-pressed on all sides, yelping in pain as they were bitten, while two dholes had also been killed by the boars. The ones on the periphery quickly "filled the gaps" and charged forward, and the mud pit became a scene of bloody chaos.

"These things are too fierce. We can't handle them. Be careful and quietly retreat back the way we came."

Though Liao Chengze appeared calm on the surface, his back was already slick with cold sweat. Before climbing the tree, he hadn't expected to witness such a scene. He felt immensely grateful for the child's fearless, "newborn calf not afraid of the tiger" boldness. If it had been someone more timid, any sound of fright might have doomed them all today.

He dared not show a hint of fear, hoping to gently steer the child back.

Shen Banyue had no intention of getting involved in the fight between the two groups of animals either. She nodded and silently climbed down the tree. Liao Chengze followed closely behind. As they landed one after the other, they both looked at each other and gestured for the other to retreat first.

A strange feeling flickered through Liao Chengze's mind—he inexplicably felt as if he were on a mission with a comrade. Before he could dwell on it, he whispered, "You run first."

Shen Banyue also realized it: she was a child now—it really wasn't appropriate for her to cover the rear—even though, as a child, she would actually be safer doing so.

She nodded and took off. However, just as she did, someone came running from the opposite direction, asking while running, "What's going on up ahead?"

It was Shen Wenyi.

Both Shen Banyue and Liao Chengze had undergone professional training and possessed rich practical experience. Even though they hadn't known what lay ahead, they had moved almost without making a sound. But Shen Wenyi was different—his personality was naturally careless. His footsteps were heavy as he ran over, and he wasn't keeping his voice down.

Crap!

Shen Banyue abruptly turned her head.