Although wolf meat might not be the most palatable, in these times, any meat is welcome when your stomach is empty.
Heto Village has fewer than two hundred households, and each family receives a little over two catties of meat and offal.
This is considered a tremendous stroke of luck in Heto Village.
In the past, during festivals, most people would only buy a small amount of pork, a token gesture.
While the villagers were joyfully collecting their meat, Chen Xiaobei was busy at home.
Before heading to the county town to sell the wolves, he first inspected the repeating crossbows submitted by the team members last night.
Then, he tallied the number of arrows.
Damn it, over two hundred were used last night. A bunch of wasteful brats.
Of course, some were shot into the air and later retrieved, but the arrowheads were deformed and needed to be ground down before they could be used again.
However, this was a laborious task that required patient work.
After the inventory, Lidong arrived.
Carrying a wolf leg in one hand and a wolf hide in the other, he said, "Brother Xiaobei, this meat is for your family."
Chen Xiaobei looked slightly surprised, knowing that under normal circumstances, he wouldn't receive this much. "Brother Lidong, this is a bit too much. With so many people in the village, it's not right for me to receive special treatment."
Lidong chuckled, "This is what the brothers discussed. Without your leadership, forget about getting meat; we would have been wolf fodder ourselves." Su Dan Fiction Network
Alright, if that's the case, it's better to accept than to refuse.
Chen Xiaobei smiled at Cui Hongyu, who then stepped forward and took the wolf leg.
Lidong casually handed over the wolf hide as well.
"Hongyu, this wolf hide is a good thing; it's warm for making fur coats. Brother Xiaobei often goes into the mountains, so he can use it."
Chen Xiaobei, however, shook his head. "No, that's not right. We agreed to make a few fur coats for the village guard team brothers."
"No, Brother Xiaobei, this is just a small token of appreciation from the guard team brothers," Lidong insisted again.
Chen Xiaobei's stance was firm. "No, giving me the wolf leg is already special treatment. I can't take a hide as well. How about this: have Hongyu make the fur coats, and once they're done, place them in the guard post. Whoever is on duty can wear them."
These words filled Lidong with deep respect for Chen Xiaobei.
Logically, Chen Xiaobei could have taken not just one hide, but all of them, and the team members wouldn't have said a word, especially since the meat had already been distributed to everyone and the repeating crossbows were provided free of charge.
But now, he was actively offering them for the guards to wear. This showed genuine care for the team members. With such a good leader, Heto Village had a bright future.
"Alright, then we'll see about it once the fur coats are made," Lidong mumbled and turned to leave.
Cui Hongyu put down the wolf leg and examined the wolf hide, sighing. "Ah, it's a shame. There are several holes, but they can be mended."
Chen Xiaobei heard this and laughed, scolding, "A bunch of wasteful brats. I told them to aim for the legs, but they wouldn't listen. I'll scold them later."
His words made Cui Hongyu chuckle.
She walked to the wall, turned the wolf hide inside out, and hung it up. "Wolf hides need to be dried a lot to get rid of the fishy smell."
Indeed, it was hard to imagine that a wolf hide could have such a strong odor. A faint, fishy smell permeated the entire yard.
As the scent spread, the small animals in the yard became restless.
The first to react were the two wild wolves, already awake in the west courtyard. Although their limbs and mouths were bound, they still twisted their bodies with sharp eyes.
It seemed the scent of their companion had agitated them, making them restless.
As they stirred, the four puppies immediately sprang into action. Despite their small size, their noses were keen. This was natural, as we often praise someone with a keen sense of smell by calling them a "dog's nose."
The four puppies first rushed into the west courtyard, approaching the two wolves. They crouched low, emitting low growls, appearing ready for battle.
Seeing this, Chen Xiaobei couldn't help but smile. It seemed dogs and wolves were natural adversaries. However, these puppies were only two or three months old at most; in a real fight, a wolf could swallow them whole.
After barking at the two wolves for a while, the four puppies returned and barked furiously at the wolf hide hanging on the wall.
The goat and the donkey, however, became visibly uneasy upon smelling the wolf's blood. The goat, in particular, began to circle its post, bleating incessantly.
Chen Xiaobei had a thought. "Hongyu, why don't you take the wolf hide to Da Chun's courtyard to dry? Look how scared the sheep is."
Hearing him, Cui Hongyu immediately understood. She stepped forward and took down the wolf hide. "I never expected a wolf hide could frighten a sheep so much."
Perhaps this was what was meant by the cycle of mutual restraint.
Chen Xiaobei tidied up, set up the donkey cart, loaded the two wild wolves, and set off for the county town.
For safety, Chen Xiaobei brought a repeating crossbow, just in case the wild wolves went berserk on the way, he could shoot them directly.
Meanwhile, at Chen Ping's house.
San Jin quietly arrived after collecting his meat.
This time, Chen Ping was exceptionally hospitable, even brewing a pot of tea that his grandfather only drank during the New Year.
After some small talk, they got straight to the point.
"San Jin, you mentioned you had an idea last night. What did you mean?"
Chen San Jin grinned. "Brother, you were the village guard captain. You should know what a repeating crossbow is, right?"
His words bewildered Chen Ping. "What… what do you mean?"
"Brother, repeating crossbows are weapons found only in the army. For a commoner to privately possess even a military saber can result in exile. Let alone him having so many repeating crossbows. If you report him to the county yamen, ten repeating crossbows… I think even if it's not the extermination of his entire clan, his head will surely be on the chopping block."
Upon hearing this, Chen Ping's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but chuckle.
"Yes, how could I have forgotten about that? You're right. Illegally possessing military weapons is against the law. Ten repeating crossbows, hehe."
Thinking of Cui Hongyu's charming demeanor, Chen Ping felt a prickling sensation in his heart.
"Let's head to the county town now. Oh, and we'll take the donkey cart."
Chen Ping had never returned the donkey cart provided by the government to the village to Chen Xiaobei. Of course, Chen Xiaobei wasn't in a hurry to get it back, as donkeys needed to eat grass.
Chen Xiaobei arrived at the Liu manor. This time, the gatekeepers were Liu Ziming and Liu Ziliang. Upon seeing Chen Xiaobei, they greeted him enthusiastically.
"Second brothers, please inform Steward Liu for me. I have two live wolves here, see if he's interested."
The Liu brothers exchanged glances, filled with surprise. Could Chen Xiaobei, a mere farmer, capture such creatures alive?
Liu Ziming stepped forward, glanced at the donkey cart, and immediately burst into laughter.