Chapter 8

After eating and drinking their fill, Cheng Duo shared his thoughts with Yong-ge. But Yong-ge shook his head after listening and said, "Do you know how far it is from our village, Yang Village, to the nearest market?"

Of course, Cheng Duo had no idea about the distance, and Yong-ge didn't expect him to answer. Yong-ge replied, "We set off from the first crow of the rooster in the morning and walk until the sun is halfway up the mountain. We have to hurry back after buying things, or else we'll have to travel at night."

Cheng Duo made a rough calculation in modern time: Setting off from the first crow of the rooster would be around 2:30 to 3:00 in the early morning; the sun hanging halfway up the mountain should be around 8 or 9 in the morning… That's quite a long distance.

Although this distance is just an hour's drive in modern times, here they rely on walking for transportation and shouting for communication in ancient times. The mountain roads are rugged, and he can't possibly arrange for a cart or something. If they encounter any issues on the way, he would have to figure out how to bring the cattle back…

Alternatively, if he doesn't rush, he can stay there overnight. But he's going to buy supplies after all, and carrying big and small bags over such a long distance is quite a hassle.

"What do you suggest then?" He can't just give up on buying things.

"It's simple. There are nearby villages where you can find what you need. I'll find someone to take you there," Yong-ge said with a bit of pride. He lowered his head and pointed to the pile of offal he had deliberately collected, saying, "If you don't want to pay, you can use these as compensation."

"Okay." Cheng Duo paused for a moment. To be honest, the offal of wild chickens is much smaller than that of domestic chickens, and he doesn't have flour or salt for cleaning them. He usually just digs a hole and buries them.

It turns out that someone actually wants this stuff. No wonder when Yong-ge plucked the chickens, he specifically collected all the offal using a large leaf.

"Wait here…" After Cheng Duo agreed, Yong-ge picked up a straw stem from the roadside, wrapped the offal in it, and then quickly ran off with the chicken leg he had just obtained.

Yong-ge ran back to his own house and peeked around the shabby courtyard gate. He found that only his father was in the yard, weaving bamboo baskets. It seemed like his two brothers were not at home.

"Father," Yong-ge called out and presented the bamboo tube he had hidden behind his back, as if presenting a treasure. "Look at what this is!"

"Where did you get the chicken leg?" Li Wang was startled and instinctively looked inside the house. Although he knew his two reckless sons were not at home, he still lowered his voice, "How many times have I told you, if you get something, just eat it outside. Why bring it back?"

"Father, I already ate outside. This is for you to eat," Yong-ge said. His father says the same thing every time, and he's gotten used to it.

"I'm getting old. What do I need a chicken leg for?" Li Wang declined.

"Father, just have it…"

The father and son pushed each other back and forth for a while. In the end, considering that Li Da and Li Er could come back at any time and to save time, they decided to eat the chicken leg together.

To be honest, a wild chicken leg isn't that big. It's just enough for the two of them to taste. Looking at Yong-ge's innocent and satisfied face, Li Wang couldn't help but sigh inwardly. If he had raised his sons properly, how could Yong-ge have ended up suffering with him?

Perhaps because of his difficult life, Li Wang looked even older than his older brother Li Mancang. Before reaching fifty, his temples were already turning white. In addition, his right leg, which he couldn't straighten after breaking it, made him appear somewhat listless.

Actually, if it weren't for Yong-ge still needing him, Li Wang would have lost all hope.

"Father…" When Yong-ge saw his father sighing again, he originally wanted to tell him that he had also obtained a silver ingot, hoping to make his father happy. But then he thought, he can explain the chicken leg, but how should he explain the source of the silver ingot?

If he tells the truth, his father would surely worry…

Unable to find an excuse, Yong-ge decided not to say anything. He buried the large bone left from the chicken leg in the ground and went back into the house to get a worn-out sickle.

"Father, can I take this old bamboo basket? Village Head Li asked me to help someone with gardening. The field is full of weeds, so I'm taking it to carry the grass," Yong-ge said, planning to use the old basket since his father had made a new one.

He didn't cut the grass for free either. After filling a basket, he would take it to the households that raised cattle and sheep. Although they didn't want to give money, they were willing to exchange beans or a few vegetables.

"Why use the old one? Take the new one. It's not much effort for me to make a few bamboo baskets. The main household gave you a chicken leg, so give them a good one," Li Wang kindly suggested. These bamboo baskets were made by every household in the village, and they couldn't even sell them if they wanted to.

He knew that the chicken leg must have been given by the family Yong-ge worked for. Since others had given chicken legs, it wasn't worth exchanging them for a bamboo basket. "If it's not enough, come back and tell me," he added.

"Father, there's no need…"

"What do you mean, no need? Take it!" Li Wang insisted.

Seeing that his father was getting angry, Yong-ge reluctantly took a new basket and said, "Okay, Father, I'm going out."

Li Wang nodded, "Alright, finish your work and come back early."

As Yong-ge left the house, he intended to find his buddies in the village. However, he coincidentally ran into a scholar in patched clothing and a cloth-wrapped hairdo on the narrow path.

As soon as the scholar saw Yong-ge, he showed disdain and frustration, saying, "A young ger showing his face every day, it's so inappropriate!"

Rolling his eyes, Yong-ge thought to himself that this guy couldn't even make ends meet in his own home, yet he had the leisure to criticize him! He didn't want to listen to the scholar's nagging, so he decided to turn around and take a different path.

In fact, the children and gers from farming families had to go out to work. The reason why this scholar named Liu specifically targeted Yong-ge was that he had seen him secretly going to twenty-li slope to find work last time. But due to his small physique, people immediately recognized him as a young ger and didn't give him any opportunities. As for the jobs that didn't require much physical effort, Yong-ge himself wasn't interested in them.

Taking advantage of his limited education, Scholar Liu liked to lecture people. Even though Yong-ge ignored him, Scholar Liu continued to prattle on about how "society is deteriorating, and people's hearts are no longer virtuous."

However, Scholar Liu received his retribution quickly. A clod of earth, seemingly coming out of nowhere, hit him on the head, causing him to cry out in pain.

Before Scholar Liu could see who threw it, more clods of earth came flying one after another—

Yong-ge covered his mouth and took pleasure in Scholar Liu's misfortune, saying, "Serves you right!"

"Scoundrel! Such behavior is disgraceful…" Scholar Liu angrily left, flicking his sleeve.

Yong-ge stood in place for a while, and soon enough, Shanzi emerged from under the eaves of a nearby house.

Shanzi was eleven years old, just like Yong-ge, and his family was as poor as could be. However, their poverty was due to his older brothers, while Yong-ge's family was struggling because his mother had fallen ill and exhausted their savings, in addition to having many children.

As the eldest in his family, Shanzi had four younger siblings. His mother passed away three years ago, and his father worked as a laborer in the twenty-li slope, only coming home once a month.

So the mountain boy became the pillar of the family. He was clever too, just like Yong-ge, running up and down the mountains, doing whatever work he could find to feed their mouths.

"I was just thinking of finding you. Are you free?" Yong-ge asked. Shanzi was different from him. They had two acres of land at home. His father couldn't come back from his temporary job, so he took care of planting with his next two oldest siblings.

"What's the matter?"

Yong-ge briefly explained the situation, and Shanzi hesitated a bit. "Is the person you're talking about the one who previously punched Aunt Guihua's cow to death?"

If he could knock down a cow with a single punch, what if the other person was dissatisfied and decided to hit him? He wasn't as tough as a cow…

"…" Yong-ge was somewhat speechless. How did the rumor spread so quickly?

"No, who told you that… The cow actually went crazy and charged at him. He just pinned it down; he didn't kill the cow…" Yong-ge briefly recounted the sequence of events and added objectively, "Actually, he's a good person. He looks fierce, but he doesn't randomly hit people."

"Really?" Shanzi was still a bit scared. He had heard that Yong-ge's two bully brothers were beaten. How could he not be afraid?

"Really, would I lie to you?" Yong-ge felt helpless and thought for a moment before saying, "Actually, he gave me a chicken leg today, a big one. If it weren't for me being a brother, I would have gone myself."

"Chicken leg…" When it came to chicken legs, Shanzi's mouth watered.

Yong-ge remembered Shanzi's younger siblings and decided to give him the package. "Forget it, take this package of chicken innards. It's up to you whether you go or not."

After all, Cheng Duo didn't seem to care about the package, and he could find his own way.

Shanzi was young, but he wasn't the type to live off others. He took the package with determination and said, "I'll go."

Although innards were not easy to handle, they were still meat, enough for him and his younger siblings to have a decent meal.

"Wait, let me take the stuff back home first."

Shanzi went home and quickly followed Yong-ge to Cheng Duo's home.

Before Shanzi came, he had thought that the rumors might have been exaggerated. But upon seeing Cheng Duo, he felt that this person was indeed quite frightening. Just by standing there, he felt like he was being stared at by a wolf, even scarier than a wolf…

It must be said that Shanzi's animal instincts were quite accurate. Fortunately, Cheng Duo didn't mind and nodded at him, trying to be gentle as he asked, "What's your name?"

"Shanzi…"

"Alright, I'll call you Shanzi, and you can call me… Brother Cheng." Cheng Duo instinctively glanced at Yong-ge, thinking he could also call him like that, but considering Yong-ge was a "ger," he didn't bring it up. Let it be.

However, it was this glance that made him notice the backpack and sickle behind Yong-ge. He was instantly satisfied with his diligent work attitude and casually reminded him, "We're leaving. Work hard and don't wander around."

He meant well, worried that Yong-ge might encounter wild animals in the mountains and get into danger.

But because his tone was too straightforward, it sounded different to Yong-ge's ears, like a landlord instructing his servant not to slack off…

Yong-ge: "…Got it."