Chapter 14: Even Pork Gets Tiring If You Eat It Too Often

“Really? You’re not lying to me, are you?” Xu Yuanyuan stood to the side, deliberately craning her neck to peer into the cave. Even in broad daylight, she couldn’t make out what was inside.

Even so, it was still far safer than being forced to stay behind to catch wild boars.

Xu Qingmo answered calmly, “Of course it’s true. Everyone here can testify.”

Afraid that Xu Qingmo might change her mind, Xu Yuanyuan placed her basket in the grass behind a tree. Worried it might be discovered, she pulled up some weeds and used them to cover the wild rabbits.

These two rabbits were her dinner for tonight. She couldn’t let anyone steal them.

Once everything was ready, Xu Yuanyuan waved her fist at Grandpa Liu and the others. “These two rabbits are mine. No one is allowed to take them. Otherwise, I’ll make your lives miserable.”

Grandpa Liu told her to relax. “We may be poor, but we’re not bad people. We’d never take something that doesn’t belong to us and hide it at home.”

Xu Yuanyuan felt mocked and cursed at him angrily.

Grandpa Liu’s son urged her, “Can you hurry up? Once it gets dark, more wild animals will show up. If you run into wolves, no one will be able to save you.”

Xu Yuanyuan was very fat, and when she ran, the flesh on her body trembled.

On top of that, her leg was injured, making her even slower.

She shot him a glare, said nothing more, and walked straight into the cave.

Her figure was quickly swallowed by the dim light inside. Xu Qingmo reminded Grandpa Liu and the others,
“In a moment, the wild boars will be driven out by Xu Yuanyuan. Get your hunting guns ready. Kill as many as you can, but make sure you stay safe.”

Xu Qingmo was clear-headed, like a leader among them, calmly arranging everything.

Even though she was very young, her words made everyone feel reassured.

Only then did Grandpa Liu’s son realize that the cave was actually a wild boar’s lair.

Xu Yuanyuan was in for a terrifying run.

“Oh heavens! Why are there so many wild boars? Xu Qingmo, you damn girl—you’re afraid I might survive, so you sent me in here to die—” A shrill scream rang out as chaotic hoofbeats echoed from inside the cave.

Xu Yuanyuan cursed nonstop as she ran out.

She was no longer limping like when she went in. Now she was running so fast she almost left afterimages behind her.

But no matter how fast she was, the wild boars behind her were faster.

Seven or eight wild boars rushed out in total. At the front was an adult female boar, weighing around two hundred jin. Behind her were medium and small ones.

It seemed the other boars had gone out to forage, leaving one large boar behind to guard the piglets.

Xu Qingmo had originally intended to help Xu Yuanyuan, but after hearing the vile curses she shouted, Xu Qingmo tightened her grip on the wooden stick and hesitated, making no move.

The wild boar, apparently startled, thrust its sharp tusks straight into Xu Yuanyuan’s backside.

“Ow—heavens above! My butt! It hurts, it hurts, it hurts!”

With a violent toss of its head, the wild boar flung Xu Yuanyuan more than two meters away into the open ground.

Fortunately, she had plenty of flesh to cushion the fall, so she didn’t hit the ground too badly.

The smell of blood stimulated the boar. It scraped the ground with its hooves twice, preparing to attack her again.

Xu Yuanyuan was so frightened that she wet her pants. In a panic, she screamed for help, “Help! Save me! I don’t want to die! Are you all dead? Why aren’t you helping me?”

Grandpa Liu raised his hunting gun and aimed at the boar’s head. Bang! The gunshot rang out, but the bullet missed, only piercing the boar’s ear.

The boar let out a painful howl and immediately turned toward Grandpa Liu and the others.

It charged at them at incredible speed. Grandpa Liu and Grandpa Wang fired two more shots at its head.

One shot missed, while the other blasted through the boar’s left eye. The boar went completely berserk and charged straight at Grandpa Liu.

Being advanced in age, Grandpa Liu couldn’t dodge in time. The boar rammed into his leg, flipping him to the ground.

Xu Qingmo grabbed the wooden stick in her hand and leapt forward. Just one second before the boar could launch a second attack on Grandpa Liu, flames burst forth along the stick. She drove it straight through the back of the boar’s neck and out through its throat.

The wild boar didn’t even have time to cry out before it collapsed heavily right in front of Grandpa Liu.

It was like a small mountain crashing down, sending a tremor through the ground.

Grandpa Liu wiped away cold sweat. He had a strong feeling that if Xu Qingmo hadn’t arrived in time, even if he didn’t die today, he would have been crippled.

“Dad, are you okay?” Grandpa Liu’s son was drenched in sweat as he rushed over to check him.

A patch of skin on Grandpa Liu’s calf had been scraped open, blood flowing freely. Fortunately, it was only a surface wound and would heal with time.

He shook his head. “I’m fine. Hurry and kill two more of the small boars.”

Grandpa Liu’s son raised his gun. Together with Grandpa Wang and Grandpa Wang’s son, the three of them worked together and killed one medium-sized boar and one small boar.

The two boars together weighed around one hundred twenty to one hundred thirty jin.

Although they couldn’t compare to the one Xu Qingmo had killed, everyone was still very happy.

The remaining boars scattered and fled in all directions.

Once the surroundings were finally safe, Grandpa Wang looked deeply at Xu Qingmo. The power she had just unleashed, and the way she had pierced an adult wild boar’s throat with a wooden stick—something even he couldn’t have done in his prime.

A five-year-old little girl, yet she was this formidable.

Grandpa Wang firmly believed that the last time Xu Qingmo had hunted a wild boar alone, it hadn’t been luck.

It was pure strength.

Xu Qingmo lifted the basket out of the grass. Grandpa Liu’s son took the initiative to carry it on his back.

Xu Qingmo didn’t refuse the kindness. She walked to the adult wild boar, grabbed one of its legs, and dragged it forward.

Once again, everyone was so shocked their mouths fell open. A wild boar weighing over two hundred jin—two grown men would struggle to lift it together—yet Xu Qingmo dragged it away with one hand, and she even looked relaxed doing so.

Grandpa Wang and his son hoisted the large and small boars onto their shoulders. Grandpa Wang’s son carried his father as well, and they all headed down the mountain together.

They had all seen many strange things in the mountains, so no one asked any questions.

Xu Yuanyuan was left behind, completely ignored.

After resting for a long while, she finally twisted her body and crawled to her feet, muttering curses at Xu Qingmo under her breath. She only dared whisper, afraid that if she spoke too loudly, Xu Qingmo would hear her.

Grandpa Liu told his son to walk faster and keep pace with Xu Qingmo.

Intentionally striking up a conversation, Grandpa Liu asked, “Momo, how do you feel right now? Are you tired?”

Xu Qingmo replied, “Not tired.”

She truly wasn’t. The spiritual spring water Wang Jing had given her had rapidly and greatly improved her physical condition. Even if she went back now to hunt two more adult wild boars, it would be no problem.

Grandpa Liu spoke again, “Momo, would you be interested in joining us to hunt wild boars and wolves together?”

Xu Qingmo tilted her head and asked curiously, “Is wolf meat tasty?”

This body of hers needed a lot of meat to replenish energy. In the 1970s, being able to eat wild boar meat every day was already a sign of wealth.

But eating it every single day, every single meal, would still get tiring.

Changing flavors wasn’t a bad idea.

Grandpa Liu and his son were both stunned. Xu Qingmo’s first reaction wasn’t fear—it was asking whether it tasted good.

Sure enough, she was still a child at heart.