Suspicions

Up in front, Lu Jiao tossed the wild boar onto the ground with a thump. Inside the east bedroom, the four little ones heard the noise and dashed outside. The sight of the boar on the ground shocked them. They stood by the door as they were too stunned to leave. 

Outside the Xie family's gates, a lot of nearby villagers heard the clamor and rushed over for the show.

"Oh my, what a big boar."

"Did Yunjin's wife catch that? She has such a skill?"

"I heard that she made a trap to capture it."

"What kind of trap is that great?"

"The hunters from our village can't even get a boar this big."

"Who cares about the others? The point is that she caught it."

There were all sorts of voices in the crowd. Someone raised their voice and asked Lu Jiao, "Yunjin's wife, are you going to kill this boar?"

Those words unlocked lots of people's imaginations. Even Lady Zhao started to have some selfish thoughts. 

If Lu Jiao killed the boar, then they could take some of that meat back home. It's been so long since people here ate meat. 

Though the Xie Village was established right by the mountains, since most villagers did not know how to read, they didn't recognize the stuff that was found on the mountains. Therefore, they didn't dare to touch most of the things there. 

The only thing the villagers could count on were the agriculture in the field. However, since the Xie Village was next to the mountains, the humidity was high and the sunlight was never direct. Therefore, they rarely had a full harvest. 

Because of these factors, the Xie Village was very poor. So poor that many families couldn't eat a full meal. They didn't even have enough grains, let alone eat meat. 

Lu Jiao scanned the villagers who stood around the gates. A portion of the people here weren't very nice, but the majority of them were good enough. Though some of them had fought against the original host before, they've always been nice towards Xie Yunjin and the four children. 

Xie Yunjin was born into the Xie Village. The Village will always be his roots even if he does leave in the future. 

This was a generation that focused on filial ties. If they didn't emphasize their care for their clan, Xie Yunjin may get impeached even if he does become an official in the palace. 

Xie Yunjin had plans to go through the Imperial Examination, become the number one Scholar, then later the First Assistant. So, the Xie Village was important to him. Plus, if the four children wanted to leave here one day, their reputation was very important. 

Lu Jiao thought about it and smiled at everyone by the gate. In a bright voice, she announced, "Since everyone wants to eat meat, then I will ask someone to kill this boar."

Just then, she looked over to Lady Zhao, "Laifu's wife, I remember that Xie Hu knew how to kill a boar. Can you ask him to kill this boar for me?"

Lady Zhao nodded happily, "Alright, alright."

She looked up to her daughter-in-law, who stood outside the gates, and ordered, "Chunyan, go get your man and ask him to help Yunjin's wife with the boar."

Xie Hu's wife was named Lin Chunyan. After marrying Xie Hu, she hasn't borne any children and thus had to live with her head down at her in-law's. She never dared to disobey her mother-in-law's words. After she heard Lady Zhao's words, she instantly responded, "Yes, mother."

Lu Jiao glanced around the villagers outside the gate and said, "After we kill the boar, whoever wants meat can come and get some. Since we are all neighbors, I won't ask for much in return - only 15 copper coins per pound."

Pork on the market were normally 20 copper coins per pound. Since wild boars were rarer, the market rate was sometimes even higher. 

Who knew that Yunjin's wife would give them a discount right off the bat? Each villager was overjoyed. 

"Alright, I will come and get a pound."

"My family will also get a pound so we can satisfy our cravings."

Everyone happily went home first to come back later. Of course, there were some people who were not happy. 

Widow Li was very displeased and said angrily, "Yunjin's wife, we are all neighbors from the same village. How can you charge us when you've got such a big boar?"

Widow Li's words gathered some support. Some others chimed in, "Yeah, we all live in the same village. Why would she charge us?"

Lu Jiao raised her head to look at Widow Li, who was outside the gate. This woman was the mother of Shen Xiu, who was after Xie Yunjin. Not only did this mother have an evil tongue, she was also cheap and greedy. Her behavior was not exactly good.

Rumor had it that a lot of men from the village had relationships with her. All because she wanted to gain something from those men. 

Lu Jiao snickered and stared at Widow Li, "My Yunjin is gravely wounded. As neighbors, how come I don't see you coming over with silver to help him with treatment? I have a critically ill person at home, and four little ones to feed, how come I don't see you helping out one bit?"

Lu Jiao's words gained some support. Outside the gates, many started to curse at Widow Li. That woman truly was good for nothing. 

"Doesn't she want any face? Her greed has no limit."

"She's hungry for others' meat. She sure didn't consider that family's situation at all. How shameless."

Those people's words made Lu Jiao feel a little better. With a kind tone, she said, "I can also sell this wild boar to a restaurant for at least three taels of silver. Once I kill this boar, I can only get half of what I could gain. But as a member of this village, I should not forget my roots. The days have been hard for everyone. Since I hunted down this boar, I should benefit a little from it. So, if you guys still want it, it will be 15 copper coins per pound. You can come later to buy it."

Afterward, Lu Jiao did not pay any attention to the others. It was late. Xie Yunjin and the four little ones haven't eaten breakfast yet. 

Lady Zhao took some eggs and followed Lu Jiao into the kitchen. There, she placed the eggs down.

"Ignore that short-sighted woman. She lives as if she's never seen anything good in her life. She wants to take home even the weed by the road, let alone meat."

Lu Jiao nodded, "Yes, I won't pay attention to her. The more attention you give her, the further she crosses the line."

After some chit-chat, Lady Zhao left. Behind her, Lu Jiao boiled a pot of water for Xie Hu to use with the boar. She then made some cornmeal porridge and added boiled eggs to it. Lady Zhao gifted her 20 eggs. Lu Jiao boiled six of them - one for each person in the family. 

Once breakfast was made, Xie Lu came over to help her kill the boar. A lot of kids gathered in the garden, this included the four little ones who ran out of the house to watch. 

Lu Jiao didn't mind any of this. She made some sugar water and brought it to the east bedroom. Xie Yunjin was hurt badly and needed to stay hydrated. Of course, she didn't forget to add some spiritual stream water in there to help condition his body. 

Xie Yunjin was still very fragile. If he didn't make the effort to get better, it would be difficult to go through surgery. So, he must heal well enough before surgery can smoothly occur. 

Inside the room, Xie Yunjin heard the commotion outside. It was like New Year's or something.

By now, he had already learned that Lu Jiao caught a wild boar this morning. 

Xie Yunjin remembered how Lu Jiao caught two wild chickens and a rabbit yesterday. She even found two ganoderma. Today, she went out and managed to catch a boar. 

Was there that much good stuff up in the mountains?

Xie Yunjin narrowed his eyes. The more he thought about it, the stranger he found Lu Jiao to be. 

Outside the door, Lu Jiao arrived with sugar water, "You must be thirsty. Drink some water. Breakfast is cooking. Once it's done I'll bring it in and feed you."

Xie Yunjin didn't speak. After Lu Jiao fed him the water, he looked up and stared at Lu Jiao, "How did you catch a wild boar?"

The stare made Lu Jiao nervous. However, when she spoke, her tone was nonchalant, "I made a trap. The wild boar ran into the trap and was stabbed to death by bamboo sticks. I carried it back."

"Yesterday, you got a rabbit, chickens and ganoderma. Today, you got a wild boar. How come I never knew of this skill of yours?"