Chapter Bonanza (5/10)

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

Lang Rong asked, “Bing, are you thinking about something?”

Among the other beastmen, Lin Qiu sat quietly peeling fruit, showing not a hint of aggression.

So gentle with them, yet so aloof toward him. Lang Bing’s expression slowly hardened; he was unhappy.

In his mind, he kept following the scene Lin Qiu had described: countless tail grasses, innumerable medicinal herbs. Settled on Wolf Mountain for generations, they wouldn’t need to forage—they’d only need to hunt…

What if—what if they could raise their own prey? Then perhaps the scattered sub-tribes could return. Lang Bing’s breathing grew shallow.

But even though they’d done their absolute best to cultivate such a large plot of tail grass,  wouldn’t it still only be enough to last half a snow season?

For beastmen to live like this—how could that ever be possible?

“Bing…”

Two faces drew closer, both filled with concern.

Lang Bing took a deep breath and clenched his fists. “I think Lang Qiu is really good.”

Lang Rong: “Huh?” He didn’t get it.

Lang Kim: “He needs the King to carry him out hunting—how is that impressive…?” 

He accidentally spoke too loudly, so Lang Rong hurriedly covered his mouth. Lin Qiu paused his knife and made a slit in the yam.

When the other beastmen arrived, he acted as if he hadn’t heard them and continued peeling the yam with meticulous care. Though the skin Lang An had peeled was a bit thick, at least he hadn’t cut into the flesh of the yam.

But it didn’t matter—it was a yam Xiao Lang had dug up.

Over by Lang An and Xiao Lang, Lang An furrowed his brow and said, “I’ll go.” 

Lang Kim: “Mmm-mmm-mmm!”

Lang Rong glared at Lang An, withdrew his hand, and warned, “Don’t talk nonsense.” He let go, and Lang An sat down obediently.

“I wasn’t talking nonsense—everyone saw it. It’s a fact that Lang Qiu is weak… Aow!” 

“A fact?” Lang An withdrew his hand. “I’m gonna show you the real deal.”

Lang Kim turned to his little buddy for help.

One was pretending to be well-behaved, the other was lost in thought—so he was the only one who got hit twice. Lang An is clearly the gentlest of them all!

Now they’re all taking Lang Qiu’s side!

“You’ve had your fill—do you want to be put in confinement like Uncle Lang Mu?”

Lang Rong lifted his slightly pale face, looking polite and well-behaved—just like a likable, well-mannered child. “Uncle An, it was all Lang Kim who said it. He also said that Qiu always has a cold expression and isn’t a good wolf at all.”

“!”

A gust of wind swept past, and Lang Kim quickly covered his forehead.

“Awoo!”

Lang An pinched Xiao Lang’s cheek. “Do you think covering your forehead will stop me from hitting you? I’m warning you—don’t go blabbing. If our King hears you, hmm…” 

Lang Kim wilted. “I didn’t say anything…”

Lang Rong nodded. “I’ll vouch for him.” 

“Then you were stirring up trouble just now!”

The two started fighting, while Lang An walked slowly over to Lang Bing, who was still staring blankly off into space. Back by the stream, Lang An said, “That Xiao Lang is just being a troublemaker—he’s got too much time on his hands.”

Qiu went out to find food for the tribe. What’s wrong with the Chief carrying him on his back? If Qiu won’t do it, they’ll be stuck eating nothing but these few kinds of stews from now on.

“Qiu, what should we eat later?” Lang An asked kindly.

Lin Qiu: “How about grilled fish?”

Everyone in the tribe brought out their small clay cooking pots.

What Lin Qiu meant by “grilled fish” was different from what they had in mind.

Originally, they would simply roast the fish over the fire as usual, then place it on a bed of various wild vegetables.

As the hot oil sizzled in the large clay cooking pot, all sorts of seasonings—scallions, ginger, garlic, Sichuan peppercorns, and a kind of yellow seed—were scattered over the already fragrant, slightly charred fish. The aroma, so overpowering it made the beastmen sneeze uncontrollably, filled the air.

All the young wolves were drawn to the scene; even though the smell was making their noses itch, they refused to leave. Lang Kim’s chopsticks clattered as he worked, and he swallowed hard, peering into the clay cooking pot. “Achoo! Is it ready yet? Is it ready yet?”

Lang An was just as hungry, but he had to act like a grown wolf in front of the little ones.

He pushed the little wolves aside. The flames beneath each small clay cooking pot were nearly extinguished by the aroma wafting from the pots. He swallowed hard. “It’s not ready yet—the fire’s just been lit.”

It was difficult to place the small clay cooking pots directly on the hearth, so they used a makeshift stove built from stones instead. By now, the fire beneath the pots had caught, and the oil inside was glistening and bubbling.

Green onions, ginger, wild garlic, Sichuan peppercorns, and some chopped wild greens for seasoning—the longer they simmered, the more intense and intoxicating the aroma became.

“Lang An, An! I’m starving!!!” The beastman rolled around in frustration. “Don’t shout!”

Lang An and the others cooking weren’t doing much better. Standing guard over the two small clay cooking pots, they kept looking away, afraid that a moment’s distraction would make them reach out.

“Qiu, is it ready to eat?” Lang An asked, struggling to keep his composure. “Qiu! Uncle Qiu! Is it ready to eat?”

Lang Kim ran over to Lin Qiu with a bowl in hand, calling “Uncle Qiu” with more affection than he’d shown his own father. Lang Rong pursed his lips, swallowed hard, and stared at his little friend in bewilderment.

Wait, just a moment ago he wasn’t even acknowledging the guy, and now he’s completely changed his tune? 

Lang Bing commented coldly, “Shameless.”

Lang Rong kept swallowing and nodded vigorously.

“But… it really smells so good…”

Lin Qiu glanced at the little wolves huddled around him as if they were afraid of getting burned and said, “Want some?”

“Mm-hmm!” It wasn’t just Lang Kim—all the little wolves, who knew they could only eat the grilled fish if Lin Qiu gave the go-ahead, crowded around him, so hungry they were on the verge of tears. Lin Qiu asked, “You weren’t happy about me making your King carry me?”

“We were happy! We were!”

“That was Lang Kim’s idea—it had nothing to do with us!”

“We’d be happy to let the King carry you for as long as you like!”

“If the King doesn’t want to, we’ll tie him up and bring him here! Uncle Qiu, I’m so hungry…”

Lin Qiu’s expression remained cool and composed—he was a serious man, but sometimes he had a bit of a dark sense of humor.

Seeing that the young wolves were truly on the verge of tears, Lin Qiu cleared his throat. As several of them—including Lang An—turned to him with the same pleading gaze, he felt it was best not to tease them any further. He said, “One small clay cooking pot for every five beastmen.”

As soon as he finished speaking, even Lang Mo and the others sat down.

“One bowl of mashed yam per person—eat it with that.” With no rice, this would have to do for now.

Everyone acted properly but quickly scooped the yam into their bowls, then fixed their eyes on Lin Qiu.

Lin Qiu said, “Eat slowly—let the flavors soak into the food in the clay cooking pot. It’ll taste better that way.”

The clay cooking pot before Lin Qiu was filled with oil and broth that had seeped into the fish and vegetables. He said, “Go ahead and eat.”

Clatter, clatter—chopsticks clashed.

Xiao Lang quickly plunged his chopsticks into the clay cooking pot; his bowl was already piled high, yet he kept scooping more from the pot.

Lin Qiu remained silent, thinking to himself: It didn’t seem realistic to expect everyone to eat the grilled fish quietly at a time like this. It wasn’t until the grilled fish in the pot was all gone that the young wolves finally grunted at each other, turned their backs on one another, and began shoveling the fish into their mouths voraciously.

They were fighting over the food as if they were sworn enemies.

The grilled fish was already crispy on the outside and tender on the inside; when doused with hot oil, the aroma of the spices seeped into the flesh. Though it hadn’t been cooked for long, it was full of flavor. 

At the first bite, the beastman froze.

In the bowl lay a clay cooking pot that had been snatched so thoroughly that it contained nothing but broth. He grabbed it and poured the last bit back into the pot.

“Awoo! Awoo!” Even though it was scalding hot, he wouldn’t let go. 

Lin Qiu: “……”

“Maybe I shouldn’t make this next time.”

“Woof woof woof!!!” He buried his head in the food, unable to speak properly. Afraid Lin Qiu wouldn’t make it again, he quickly swallowed what was in his mouth and said urgently:

“You have to make it!”

“You should make it!”

Is this what it feels like to cry from hunger?

That’s exactly how everyone looked right now.

It’s clearly fish we’re already getting sick of, but how come once it’s grilled, topped with all kinds of herbs, and drizzled with oil—wow! It’s so delicious it’s divine!

The complex aromas of the various seasonings blend together, dancing on the tip of your tongue—it’s so good you’d almost want to swallow your tongue right along with it.

Crunch, crunch—

Xiao Lang chews on the fish bones.

“So good… woof, woof…” Words could no longer describe it; all that remained were unconscious woofs of delight.

Lin Qiu bit into a piece of fish, savoring the flavor.

It wasn’t the seasoning—it was the freshness of the fish that made it so good.

The herbs were all freshly picked straight from the ground, and their flavor was already incredibly rich. It was the first time the little wolves had eaten a dish with such a complex blend of seasonings, so it was only natural for them to be a bit overwhelmed.

Lang An swallowed the fish in his mouth and, leaning close to Lin Qiu, couldn’t help but ask, “Qiu, what are the other spices we need to find? I’ll have Lang Bei and the others help look for them.” It was so delicious that Lang An couldn’t resist grabbing a piece.

His mouth couldn’t stay idle—the moment it did, clear saliva started flowing.

Lang Qiu said the seasoning wasn’t enough, and it might not taste good, but this is so delicious it’s worthy of the Beast God, okay? Xiao Lang was sticking his head in his bowl.

Hearing the conversation, Xiao Lang pricked up his ears and hurriedly chimed in affectionately, “Uncle Qiu, we can help look for them!”   

“Right!”

“We’ll look!”  As Xiao Lang spoke, he quickly gave their captain a subtle nod.

Lang Bing silently devoured more than half of his portion in one go. With mashed yam still on his lips, he licked his lips and said, with a touch of reserve, “We’ll look.” 

Lin Qiu: “Great.”

The Priest’s Cave.

The Old Priest sat alone with a clay cooking pot, leisurely enjoying his lunch. Hearing Xiao Lang’s eager offer from below, he hummed, peeled the shell off a large shrimp, and ate it in one satisfying bite.

Xiao Lang, who never takes orders from anyone, was won over by a single meal of grilled fish.

What a loser!

A moment later, hearing footsteps coming up the mountain, the old priest immediately scooped the remaining food from the clay cooking pot into a bowl and ate it as fast as he could.

“Priest.” Lang Bing approached.

The old beastman, with the clay cooking pot all to himself, had a gleam flash in his eyes, but when he got closer, he saw the pot was completely empty, so he pursed his lips and moved a little farther away.

“You’re finally getting a day off—why did you come all the way up here?”

Lang Bing: “I want to take the cubs to gather medicinal herbs.”

The priest set down his bowl. “The tribe isn’t short on medicinal herbs; what we gather is already enough.”

He sighed and said, “If the market were still open like it used to be, then it might be worth growing them.” Not every tribe has a priest.

Some tribes have lost their lineage and lack a priest; they must pay a huge price just to find a priest from another tribe to help. In the past, when the market was still open, he could sell some of the medicinal powders he’d prepared and trade them for food. But now, that’s no longer possible… Lang Bing listened to the priest’s words, thought for a moment, and shook his head.

“I want to grow some of the herbs we use regularly. Let’s give it a try. If it works, we won’t have to waste energy gathering them in the future.”

The manpower freed up could be used for other tasks for the tribe—like pottery, building shelters, or perhaps other things… Qiu still needed to find spices and grass for making rope; Lang Bing felt he’d be able to handle it.

Their tribe wouldn’t remain in this stagnant state forever. Under Qiu’s influence, the tribe was coming back to life. The old priest said, “If you want to plant, go ahead.”

He was old and couldn’t handle much trouble, but he was glad to see the once-stagnant tribe start moving again.

“What about Qiu?”

“Sleeping.”

Lang Bing thought of the sub-beastman who, after finishing his fish, would head to the big cave and lie down in his bed of grass…

“Qiu’s still weak. Should we give him some more herbs?”

The old priest glared at him. “Do you think herbs are something you can just eat whenever you want?”

Lang Bing pursed his lips. He was just worried—Lang Qiu really was weak. His stamina wasn’t even a match for them, a pack of young wolves. The tribe still needed him.

Lang Bing eyed the leftover grilled fish in the old priest’s bowl and licked his lips. He wasn’t just being greedy.

He was just concerned about his kin.