Chapter 54: West Mountain Village's Little Celebrity

Chen Wuji came down the mountain.

The village entrance became lively again.

Chen Wuji was quite puzzled—are all these villagers really that idle?

What's so interesting about him going hunting?

Chen Wuji glanced and saw that nearly half the village had come.

If he didn't know Chen Wuji had gone hunting, they'd almost get the illusion of returning home in glory.

"Oh my, that's a wolf—this kid Wuji really has impressive skill."

"He can bring back such a huge python; killing two wolves is nothing—Wuji's skill must be the best hunter for dozens of miles around."

"Certainly—I haven't heard of anyone else nearby bringing a python down the mountain!"

"Wuji, are you selling the wolf meat? Give auntie a bit to try—I haven't eaten it yet!"

……

Chen Wuji looked at the villagers chattering all around, feeling a bit dazed.

How strange—why is everyone praising him today?

Did those sarcastic folks not show up today?

He swept his gaze over the surrounding faces and suddenly understood the reason.

Yuan Laoer lost his ears and nose, so it's only natural everyone praises him.

"Sell, four wen per jin."

Chen Wuji pondered a bit and still gave a relatively low price.

Rumor has it wolf meat isn't tasty—it's fishy and coarse, requiring special treatment to remove the gaminess.

The only upside is its texture is decent, a bit firmer than dog meat.

But Chen Wuji hasn't tried it either; if someone wants to buy, he won't quibble over money.

"Give me a jin to try!" someone shouted.

"I'll have some too—Wuji's meat is cheaper than in town, and no need to run errands."

……

Chen Wuji smiled as he listened to the villagers chattering, then lowered the wolf from his shoulder.

"If it's too expensive, nobody will buy it."

"These villagers—what a bunch—now he's pretty much figured them out."

"They like to take advantage, so Chen Wuji lets them take advantage."

"He doesn't know if python meat is good, so he sold it cheap."

"But wolf meat, with rumors of being fishy and coarse, certainly wouldn't be popular in the city."

"Here it's cheap and people want it—why not?"

Chen Bushi and Chen Luozi also came.

"These two idlers, today unusually, are carrying poles on their shoulders, dressed like peddlers."

"\"Wuji, keep your hand steady—this wolf pelt is valuable; leave it for me, please don't ruin it. \" Chen Luozi shouted loudly, fearing Chen Wuji might shake and tear the skin."

"\"It's steady. What are you two up to? \" Chen Wuji asked casually while busy with his work."

"\"I'll tell you later. \" Chen Luozi glanced away and gave a perfunctory reply."

Seeing that, Chen Wuji didn't press further.

"Those two are almost certainly out on business again."

"Who knows which unlucky soul is stuck out in the wilderness today."

Chen Wuji had only half-skinned the pelt, then began distributing the meat to the crowd.

Without a scale, he just estimated the weight by hand.

"One jin here, three jin there—after a while, they almost sold the whole wolf."

Chen Wuji, who hadn't planned to fully skin the pelt, had to do the whole job.

Chen Wuji carefully gathered the scattered heap of copper coins.

The villagers still had considerable buying power; in small amounts they let him earn nearly two hundred wen.

Villagers who bought meat, seeing the sky darken, left one by one.

In the end, besides Chen Bushi and Chen Luozi, only two half-grown kids stood nearby, looking on eagerly.

Chen Wuji recognized these two kids—they're from the Yuan family, fatherless and motherless.

Their father and Yuan Laoer are paternal cousins from the same grandfather.

Actually, they're fairly close relatives.

Yet they ended up with nothing, nearly losing their lives, harmed by their own kin.

After their parents died one after another, the Yuan brothers split up their family's land and home, tearing down the rafters and tiles.

Yuan Laoer's brothers had grain and meat, could occasionally drink a little wine, but these two kids, whenever they came begging for food, were driven out—rumor says they were almost beaten to death once.

The two brothers scraped tree bark, dug into walls, and survived by hiding in kiln caves at night.

"\"Big Brother Wuji, can you sell these offal? \" the older child asked timidly."

"\"Sell. \" Chen Wuji nodded."

The older child furtively pulled a copper coin from his clothes: "\"I only have one wen—could we help you clean the intestines? You just need to sell us a bit… just a little. \""

Looking at them, Chen Wuji found it hard not to see himself in their situation.

"The rich have their ways, but the poor are all alike in their poverty."

"\"Give me the money! \" Chen Wuji reached out."

The older child timidly handed over the copper coins, and said firmly, "We will definitely wash the intestines and stomach clean, guaranteeing there will be no smell."

"Mm." Chen Wuji nodded, "The intestines and stomach aren't for sale; once you've cleaned them, bring them to me tomorrow, and take that half of the wild boar."

"Ah? I... I..." The older child was momentarily unable to react.

"The wolf ruined it; I'll sell it to you for one cash." Chen Wuji said.

The older child stared in shock, then suddenly grabbed his younger brother's neck and fell to his knees with a thud before Chen Wuji.

Chen Wuji jumped up abruptly, "Damn it, you two little rabbit bastards are trying to shorten my life, huh? Laborers are naturally stupid, you know? Get up!"

The two children stubbornly kowtowed at the empty air, then finally rose to their feet.

"A man's knees hold gold; don't just drop to your knees over nothing, kneeling for a bit of meat—are your knees and heads really that cheap?" Chen Wuji scolded.

The older child forced a very strained smile, "Brother Wuji, we didn't kowtow for this meat; we kowtowed for you. I'm inarticulate and don't know what to say, but you're the only one willing to give us a bite to eat—we… haven't eaten in four days."

"What charity? You paid for it with money—hurry home." Chen Wuji waved his hand, "Right, why is nobody willing to give you a bite to eat?"

"I don't know, but maybe it's because we have an uncle who is the village chief." The older child said.

Chen Wuji waved his hand, "Let's go, remember to wash the intestines and stomach clean for me."

"Mm!" The two children nodded vigorously.

Chen Bushi watched them carry off the wild boar and wolf's intestines and stomach, then said, "My own days are still a mess of zi, chou, yin, mao—where would all this kindness come from?"

"Who made me the same as them?" Chen Wuji shook his head, "At least I have the big guy helping me, so I haven't starved to death, but these two kids look like they're about to die—if I can help, I'll lend a hand."

"That kid is clever; helping is fine, but you need to keep an eye on him." Chen Bushi said.

Chen Wuji chuckled lightly, "You think I want to raise those two brats? Don't even look to see if I have the ability."

Lending a hand is possible, but raising them is absolutely out of the question.

The two women at home have just barely filled their stomachs and have a change of clothes—how could Chen Wuji possibly raise two half-grown brats unless he's gone mad!