Chapter 41: Qing Shan Has a Clever Scheme: Go to Town to Trade for Money and Provisions!

The three of them sprang into action at once.

Skinning, gutting, cutting.

They borrowed a gleaming boning knife from the battalion, and in Lu Qingshan's hands it seemed to have a life of its own; each slash landed precisely on joints and the gaps of flesh and skin, producing crisp "shwaa—", "ka‑chack" sounds.

His movements were steady and precise, bearing a kind of cruel‑almost‑masterful aesthetic honed over years.

Just now, learning the craft beside the village commune's cutting board, he could already put it to use.

In his previous life, he hadn't shied away from such work for survival.

Zhao Tiezhu's strength was astonishing; he held the slick, cold boar body down firmly.

On his raised arm, the twisted blue veins sprawled like old tree roots, casting rugged shadows in the dim oil‑lamp light.

The large chunks of meat they cut off weighed dozens to hundreds of jin each, bearing stark white bones and thick layers of fat.

He lifted them with no effort, though the white breath puffing from his nostrils grew heavier, showing he was giving his all.

Liu Fugui wielded a small, sharp skinning knife, deftly handling the removal of bones from tricky spots and cutting the meat into small pieces.

His motions, initially clumsy, grew increasingly skillful, his gaze focused.

Fine beads of sweat seeped from his forehead, mingling with grease and blood, sliding down his cheek without a chance to wipe.

In the courtyard, a rich, full‑bodied, even slightly sweet‑and‑fishy scent of blood quickly spread, stronger than that at the village office.

The odor forcefully dispelled the biting cold of the winter night, mingling with the primal, enticing scent of pork lard, penetrating everyone's nostrils.

Blocks of pork with thick, snow‑white fat were swiftly cut and neatly stacked on a clean straw mat laid out beforehand.

The fat was three to four finger‑thick, glistening with a slick, alluring sheen in the flickering oil‑lamp light, like fine mutton‑fat white jade.

Beneath lay fresh‑red, firm lean meat, its grain clear, brimming with the elasticity of life.

Soon, a true "mountain of meat" rose on the straw mat, its visual impact staggering, exuding an astonishing aura of abundance.

Lin Yue'e, cradling Xiao Xue, stood quietly in the doorway's shadow, watching.

Her gaze was complicated.

At first, confronting the bloody scene, she felt a discomfort and slight Fear born of a woman's instinct.

Later, watching the piles of meat grow taller and taller, eventually occupying almost half the courtyard.

Her gaze gradually steadied, becoming grounded.

Even a bright glimmer, unprecedented, named "Hope," flickered within it.

The light burned so intensely it seemed ready to melt away all the past dark, cold, desperate memories.

This meat was what her man had exchanged his life for, trading it from the man‑eating old forest!

It is the iron proof that this once‑dilapidated household has completely escaped hunger and is heading toward better days!

They are not merely meat; they are security, a guarantee of the future!

Xiao Xue seemed also drawn to this unprecedented, striking scene.

Her big eyes stared unblinking at the three men bustling in the courtyard, especially at her father.

The figure, drenched in blood and sweat, standing tall.

At this moment, in her small, naive eyes, he appeared unusually towering, exuding a reassuring strength.

When Lu Qingshan occasionally looked up, sweat sliding from his temple, a gentle smile blooming on his blood‑scented face, she would instinctively curl into her mother's warm embrace, her little face pressed against her mother's lapel.

Yet those dark, round eyes remained curious, with a hint of naive admiration, stealing glances at her father.

Soon, per their earlier agreement, Zhao Tiezhu and Liu Fugui received their allotted portions of meat.

When truly faced with the two piles of pork that nearly formed a small hill, both men were blissfully perplexed, so excited they were at a loss for what to do.

Zhao Tiezhu stared at his share, stammering, his dark face flushing bright red: "Q‑Qing Shan brother… this… this is too much…"

These roughly two hundred jin of meat are enough for my old lady to have medicine for several years! This kindness I won't be able to repay in this lifetime!

Liu Fugui's eyes reddened with emotion, his voice trembling with tears: "Qing Shan brother… I… I…"

One hundred seventy‑eighty jin! His two younger siblings won't have to starve this winter! They'll have full bellies!

Lu Qingshan gave each a hearty pat on the shoulder, cutting off their gratitude.

"Family brothers, don't be fussy."

"We earned this together with our lives; it's deserved."

In the courtyard remained the largest pile of meat, all the offal, and the four thick, intact Wild Boar hides.

These are Lu Qingshan's spoils.

"Qing Shan brother, what will you do with this meat…?"

Liu Fugui rubbed his frozen, reddened, grease‑slicked hands, staring at the mountain‑high pork that truly belonged to the "Lu Family."

His eyes flickered with uncontainable excitement, and a trace of unavoidable worry.

So much meat! How much will it cost!

But if it spoils, it'll break my heart!

Lu Qingshan wiped the sweat from his temple, glanced upward at the last sliver of light that had vanished beyond the sky.

"Set aside some meat and offal for ourselves."

His gaze remained steady as it swept over the intermingled lean and fatty cuts, his mind already calculating.

"Marinate another portion, store it carefully; it'll keep for a long time."

"The rest, plus these few hides," he said, looking at Zhao Tiezhu and Liu Fugui, his tone decisive.

"Tomorrow morning the carriage arrives; we'll head to the town's Supply and Marketing Cooperative."

"Exchange everything for cash and vouchers."

Exchange cash!

Exchange vouchers!

Zhao Tiezhu and Liu Fugui's eyes widened to perfect circles in an instant, and their breathing involuntarily quickened a few beats!

Bringing back this much meat from the hunt is already a sky‑splitting fortune, like incense burning high at the ancestral tomb with green smoke!

If it could be exchanged for real cash and banknotes…

Then the days would truly have a huge prospect!

That's money! Grain coupons and cloth coupons!

"Supply and Marketing Cooperative… can they… can they take it? All at once… this much?" Zhao Tiezhu's simple voice carried obvious worry and uncertainty.

The Supply and Marketing Cooperative does buy mountain produce and game, but handing over several hundred jin of Wild Boar meat at once is something the whole Wan Gou Zhen—no, probably the entire county—rarely sees!

Could they be caught for speculation and profiteering?

"Give it a try." Lu Qingshan said calmly, yet with a reassuring certainty.

"You two can also bring the meat you can't finish now, which you want to exchange for cash or coupons, tomorrow together."

"Around the New Year, pork is hard currency; there's no shortage of takers."

"Even if the Supply and Marketing Cooperative route is blocked, the town isn't limited to just them buying things."

He brushed the grease off his hands, his gaze sharp as a hawk, sweeping over the black night beyond the courtyard wall.

"Can a living person be forced to die of a full bladder? There's always a way."

"First tidy up all the meat, be careful, and move it into the house."

He said in a low voice, "The blood scent is too strong; leaving it outside overnight isn't safe and easily attracts unsavory things, whether beasts or people."

"Tomorrow, after exchanging for cash and buying grain and supplies, life can truly become steady."

Just as Lu Qingshan and the others were carefully moving the cut pork into the house for storage, the reflected light from the snow‑covered ground shone.

In a dark corner outside the Lu Family courtyard wall, a furtive figure stared intently at the mountain of meat piled inside the yard, as well as the few thick pig hides.

It was Ma Liu!

He had just collected his family's share of meat from the village office, passed by the Lu Family gate, intending to watch the commotion, but was stunned by the scene peeking through the doorway.

Good boy!

Besides the one allotted to the team, there were actually three more in the Lu Family yard!

And judging by the way it's cut, it must be six or seven hundred jin of prime meat?!

There are also those few whole, glossy, slick big pig hides!

Ma Liu's eyes instantly reddened, a greedy flame blazing fiercely within them, almost spitting out.

He clenched his fists tightly, his heart pounding wildly with jealousy and greed.

Lu the Scabby, that damn dog, what kind of rotten luck did he get?!

So much meat! So many good things!

Why does he get it all by himself?!

He licked his cracked lips, his gaze coldly sweeping over the three busy silhouettes in the yard.

Lu the Scabby, Zhao the Simple, Liu the Monkey…

There are many people; now it's just him alone—acting now wouldn't be wise.

Ma Liu slipped silently back into the shadows, like a coiled venomous snake, suppressing his inner restlessness.

No rush, no rush…

With so much meat, Lu Qingshan will definitely move it outward.

When he's isolated… there will always be a chance to strike!

He gave a grim, spiteful smile and vanished silently into deeper darkness.