Sharing The Spoils (Part 1)

Along the way, they could hear the intense barking of the dogs.

When Shen Niu and his group arrived, they saw Qian Huihong and his team cleaning up the hunting site, with a wild boar full of arrows lying on the ground.

Looking around, they noticed a few people carrying a wild boar that had been shot through the heart.

Shen Niu was surprised, not expecting this group of youngsters to be so capable, having managed to hunt two wild boars.

And they were both adult male boars.

He walked over and saw that the wild boar being carried had no injuries other than the arrow wound to the heart.

It had been killed with a single, precise shot.

It also had very little blood, indicating it had been taken down alone.

Shen Niu couldn't help but admire the skill of the person who killed the boar.

With this level of accuracy, the village wouldn't have to worry about hunting wild boars in the future.

Liang Hongyu picked up the bamboo arrows that were scattered on the ground, wiped the dirt off with her fingers, and placed them back into the quiver.

By this time, the sun had fully risen, and the fog had mostly cleared.

Liang Hongyu noticed two characters that were carved on the tail of the wooden bow.

She tilted the bow to look closer.

It was Huo Tianzhou's name.

Further down, there was an inscription of the crafting date.

No wonder all the arrows look more distinct by the passage of time.

When she returned, Wu Erlang was no longer slumped against the rock.

In order to avoid attracting other predators with the scent of blood, they covered the ground with dirt, and then they all worked together to carry the wild boars down the mountain.

...

Huo Tianzhou originally planned to go to town today to look for some odd jobs, but he ended up not going.

After finishing his chores at home, he put on his bamboo hat and headed out.

By the time he returned to the village, it was already mid-morning.

As he walked home, he noticed the villagers he passed were all talking excitedly and walking quickly along.

Huo Tianzhou listened closely and realized they were discussing a hunting event.

The village had organized a hunting expedition in the mountains, and any wild animals they caught would be taken to the butcher's house for slaughter.

The villagers seemed to be heading towards Butcher Ma's place.

Huo Tianzhou hesitated by the roadside, unsure whether to join them, when he heard someone calling his name from behind.

"Tianzhou!"

He turned around to see Tao Xia walking over and waving at him.

She was accompanied by Uncle Wu and Zhihao.

"Tianzhou!" Zhihao shouted while jumping up and down.

Uncle Wu gave Zhihao a light knock on the head, "Show some respect and call him uncle."

Zhihao rubbed his head in pain.

The only family member he was truly afraid of was his grandpa.

As he hopped over to Huo Tianzhou, he corrected himself, "Uncle Tianzhou!"

Remembering his family's advice, he rushed to Huo Tianzhou and stopped just in time.

"Tianzhou, why didn't you call me when you went to catch fish? I could fill up your small basket in no time."

He stood on tiptoe and craned his neck to look into the small fish basket at Huo Tianzhou's waist.

Huo Tianzhou lowered the basket for him to see.

"One, two, three, four, five..."

Zhihao counted the fish inside.

Tao Xia and Uncle Wu walked over and saw him leaning completely on Huo Tianzhou while peering into the basket.

Tao Xia pulled him away.

"Auntie, why did you do that? I hadn't finished counting."

"You can count them later. Let's go find your uncle first. Didn't you say you wanted to see the wild boar?"

Tao Xia turned her head to Huo Tianzhou and said, "Erlang and the others are back. They're at Uncle Ma's house to slaughter the boar. We were just heading over there. Tianzhou, why don't you come along?"

With a wild boar getting caught, there would be meat at home, and Zhihao loved eating meat.

Hearing this, he forgot about the fish and grabbed Huo Tianzhou's hand, saying, "Tianzhou will definitely come. I'll answer for him."

Uncle Wu raised his pipe, and Zhihao quickly ducked behind Huo Tianzhou, peeking at his grandpa.

"This rascal." Uncle Wu pointed at him with the pipe, "If I really wanted to teach you a lesson, do you think you could hide?"

Huo Tianzhou laughed and walked with them.

Along the way, they saw many people heading towards Butcher Ma's house.

When they arrived, the courtyard was packed with people, everyone chatting excitedly.

"Wow, it seems like everyone in the village who is free has come out," Tao Xia said, startled by the crowd.

It had never been this lively in previous years when they caught wild boars.

As she got closer and saw into the courtyard, she stammered in surprise, "Th-three! Dad, am I seeing this right?"

Uncle Wu was equally astonished and said with a smile, "Let's go in and take a look."

With the people in front blocking the view, Zhihao couldn't see anything.

He let go of Huo Tianzhou and squeezed his way in.

In the middle of the courtyard, three wild boars lay on the butcher's table, surrounded by people.

He looked around and shouted, "Aunt Liang!"

Liang Hongyu was standing in front of the kitchen while holding a bowl about to drink water.

Hearing the shout, she looked up and saw the chubby boy behind the crowd and motioning for her to come over.

"Who did you come with?" Liang Hongyu asked him.

"With Grandpa and the others." Zhihao ran up to her and looked up, "Aunt Liang, you caught wild boars! Three of them! Aunt Tao was so shocked that she forgot to come in."

Worried that he might run around and cause trouble, Tao Xia had been following him closely behind.