In the end, the two of them brought two pieces of pig head meat, each weighing over a pound, to Li Da Niu's house for a meal.
"You're already here, no need to be so polite."
Sister-in-law Li took Tang Tang's hand, her face beaming with a smile.
Glancing back at the increasingly heroic Tang Wen, she secretly marveled: This brother truly has skills. I've never heard of anyone bringing meat when going to someone else's house for a meal.
It's a pity we don't have a younger sister or anything; otherwise, marrying her off to Brother Tang Wen would surely bring endless blessings.
Before dinner, Tang Wen and Li Da Niu each picked up an unsharpened longsword, ready for a sparring session.
"Brother, be careful!"
As soon as the words fell, the longsword came slashing down from above.
Clang!
Tang Wen raised his sword to parry, blocking the heavy strike.
Li Da Niu was surprised: Little Tang's strength has increased again! His upward slash is at a disadvantage in terms of technique, but he actually managed to match me.
Li Da Niu became cautious, his strikes coming faster and tighter.
He wasn't good at defense, and although Tang Wen might be stronger than him, a fast attack would do the trick.
Clang, clang, clang
After the initial flurry, Tang Wen gradually adapted to Li Da Niu's rhythm.
His strength was greater than his opponent's, and his speed was even faster.
Even though he was on the defensive, he could steadily block every attack, occasionally countering with a slash that would force Li Da Niu back. He easily controlled the pace of the match.
After a quarter of an hour.
Li Da Niu was the first to jump out of the circle, panting heavily, "No more! Brother Tang Wen, you're improving so fast! I can hardly keep up. We'll have to practice together often from now on. Otherwise, I'll be left behind."
"Brother Li, you flatter me. Alright, we'll spar every day from now on!"
Tang Wen was more than willing.
Just during the sparring session, his experience points had soared. [Wind-splitting Saber, Mastery (109→167/1000)]
At this rate, with less than 20 more sessions, his saber technique would level up.
Spar every day?
Li Da Niu felt a pang of bitterness in his heart. He wanted to refuse, but seeing his wife and maid looking at him with admiration, he had to puff out his chest, "Alright, it's settled!"
Li Da Niu was a man of dignity. When dinner was served, besides the pig head meat Tang Wen had brought, there was a dish of stir-fried potatoes, a dish of steamed sweet potatoes, a dish of scrambled eggs, a plate of roasted meat slices, and a large bucket of foxtail millet rice.
"Don't be shy, Little Sister Tang, eat more! Brother, have a drink." Li Da Niu brought out half a jar of sweet potato wine and poured a cup.
Tang Tang and the Li family maid, who had been used to a hard life, were seeing such a lavish spread for the first time.
They were slightly dazed.
By the end of the meal, everyone had become much more familiar.
During the meal, Sister-in-law Li mentioned several times to Tang Tang about finding a wife for Tang Wen...
The sweet potato wine had a strong aftereffect. Tang Wen stopped after just three cups.
Li Da Niu, who was quite fond of alcohol, finished the remaining half jar by himself.
Fortunately, he had a good tolerance and, after drinking, was still able to see the two of them off.
It was dark.
Tang Wen carried the Iron Bow and arrows, walking ahead.
Tang Tang held onto her brother's sleeve, slowly making their way home.
Today, they had eaten pig head meat, scrambled eggs, roasted meat...
This kind of life, she hadn't even dared to dream of.
Suddenly, her neck felt cold. The young lady looked up, and icy flakes fell on her forehead.
"It's snowing!"
Tang Wen's voice was grave.
They had enough firewood at home, but the grain and meat were far from enough to last the winter.
"Hmm." Tang Tang frowned, letting go of her brother's sleeve to tuck it in properly.
Winter was harsh and deadly for the poor.
"Who knows how many will freeze to death."
Every year, such tragedies occurred, and there were even instances where entire families perished from the cold.
Returning home and looking at the two knives in the house, Tang Wen said, "Sister, let me teach you how to wield a knife."
Tang Tang, who was tending the fire, thought for a moment and nodded.
"Ah! So warm!"
It was the first time the siblings had heated the kang bed. The warmth seeped through the thick layer of dry grass, providing an unparalleled comfort.
To save firewood, Tang Tang decided to share the large kang bed with her brother, wrapped in a quilt.
She had made up her mind to sleep like this throughout the winter. Unless her brother got married, heating two kang beds would be too wasteful.
Lying on straw with a coarse linen quilt over them, the comfort was far from ideal.
They would have to visit the city sometime; surely, they could find cotton quilts there.
The next day, seeing the snow in the yard only half a hand deep, Tang Wen breathed a sigh of relief. Ignoring his sister's advice, he set out early to hunt.
As the saying goes, it's not the snow that's cold, but the melting of it.
If they waited until the snow melted and the weather turned truly cold, there was a risk that Mutated Beasts might come hunting near the camp.
Then, going out to hunt would be truly dangerous!
With the snow falling, few ventured outside.
The poor knew well that moving less in the snow was wise, as the cold made one hungry and prone to frostbite.
Moreover, the snow covered the ground, making it futile to search for anything; going out was a waste of time.
Tang Wen walked out the gate alone, quickly making his way deep into the forest. He planned to return late today, hoping to bag as much game as possible.
Soon, he arrived at the pond from the day before yesterday.
The two bodies had already disappeared from the spot.
The bloodstains on the ground were also covered by the heavy snow.
Though he wasn't afraid of anything, seeing the scene devoid of any traces, Tang Wen couldn't help but sigh in relief.
By the pond, there were chaotic animal footprints. He bent down to examine them.
On the ground were several relatively clear hoof prints, shaped like two crescent moons.
Without hesitation, he followed the footprints until he reached a depression.
This was a good sheltered spot, and Tang Wen guessed that his target was hiding here.
He climbed a tree, took out his binoculars, and looked down.
The depression was a blanket of white, with nothing in sight.
"Nothing? That doesn't make sense!"
Changing direction, he followed the trail of footprints, looking downward.
Hmm?
At the end of the footprints, the color of the snow had a slight yellow tint.
Pulling the binoculars open with both hands, the view became clearer.
A pair of curved horns, faintly visible.
"What's this? A goat, a Yellow Goat? 1, 2, 3..."
Taking out a prepared white cloth from his basket, Tang Wen draped it over himself and crouched, approaching the Yellow Goat.
Fifty meters, thirty meters...
"Baa!"
A male goat suddenly cried out. Tang Wen threw off the white cloth, sprang into action, and a Flying Knife shot straight into the goat's throat.
"Baa!"
After a scream, the goat sprayed blood and collapsed.
Without a second glance, Tang Wen pounced on the other goats.
Stones flew from his hands like rain, accurately hitting the joints of the goats' legs.
A half-grown male goat from another direction narrowly escaped, charging toward Tang Wen, about to collide with him.
Tang Wen slipped, sidestepped, and with a grab, firmly locked its neck!
"Go down!" With a thud, the goat was flipped onto the ground.
Two male goats, one dead, one captured.
The remaining five, including does and half-grown kids, had their legs injured by Tang Wen's Flying Stones and couldn't run fast.
After much effort, all seven Yellow Goats were caught, not a single one escaped.
Without delay, Tang Wen tied the dead sheep to the back of another Yellow Goat with a rope.
He then secured the necks of the other Yellow Goats, bound their mouths, and drove them toward the camp, alternating between prodding and herding.
Throughout the journey, Tang Wen remained vigilant, as he had ventured far from the camp that day. It wasn't until nightfall that he finally caught sight of the camp's gate.
In the sky, thick snowflakes began to fall.
Sweating yet chilled to the bone, Tang Wen longed to return home immediately and lie down on the warm kang.
However
, he couldn't bring all these Yellow Goats back to the camp at once.
That would be far too conspicuous!
As the snow fell softly, Tang Wen stood in the silent forest, frowning in thought.
At the camp entrance, a young woman leaned against the wall, cautiously peering outside…
(End of Chapter)