Chapter 55: Working Together
Editor: Atlas Studios
Mu Shi felt that if they weren’t so cowardly, his father wouldn’t have taken on so many attacks, and his mother wouldn’t have been forced to pick up her saber. Therefore, he hated them and despised them even more.
Nevertheless, these people were all his mother’s family and part of his clan.
So, Mu Shi still brought them out of the mountain.
Nearhill Village was burned down. Other than a few houses, everything else was burned down by the barbarians who had escaped.
That event resulted in 33 deaths in Nearhill Village, including his parents’.
Nearhill Village was in a desperate situation. This was only resolved when Liu He brought Liu Daqian and the others to beg Mu Shi to bring the young men in the village into the mountain. That way, they could at least find a little something to eat from Chef Mountain and survive this winter.
Although Mu Shi did not like them, he still agreed.
However, the people who were brought into the mountain did not know how to restrain themselves, refusing to let off even the cubs. As a hunter, Mu Shi believed in not overhunting, and would let go of the young ones and pregnant mothers caught.
Moreover, instead of simply eating the prey themselves, the villagers even brought the prey to the town and county to sell. Because there was a lot of prey, the price was lowered. This undoubtedly dealt a heavy blow to the hunters of Mingshui County and Mu Shi.
Therefore, after the new year, Mu Shi directly left. Liu He felt very guilty and forced the juniors to kneel in front of the Mu family’s door, but Mu Shi ignored them.
This was also one of the reasons why Mu Shi left Nearhill Village and went into Chef Mountain back then. If not for this, he probably wouldn’t have been able to save Shu Wanniang by chance.
It was because he had saved Shu Wanniang, that he brought her back to Nearhill Village.
Feeling guilty, Liu He and the elders made the people of Nearhill Village make an agreement involving Mu Shi. Unless there was a danger of the village being destroyed, they were not allowed to disturb the Mu family. Also, the villagers of Nearhill Village were not allowed to slander the Mu family outside, nor were they allowed to coerce the Mu family to bring them into the mountain or gain any benefits from them.
In order to execute the agreement better, Liu He asked everyone not to have any dealings involving benefits with the Mu family. If there were no benefits, there would be no disputes.
Therefore, even though he could clearly exchange meat for grains with the villagers here, Mu Shi always had to go to town to buy rice and noodles. As a result, although the people of Nearhill Village were very greedy for meat, no one would come to ask for or exchange for prey.
They didn’t even accept Mu Shi’s prey during festive seasons.
Now, Mu Shi still had a faint relationship with the villagers and did not interact with them at all. Other than entering the mountains and the market every day, he would stay at home with his wife and children.
The reason why the tension between the two sides had eased over the years was mostly because of Mu Yangling and Little Bowen.
As the two children often went to the village to play, they slowly became familiar with the villagers. However, this was only between the villagers and the two children.
Mu Shi and Shu Wanniang rarely appeared in front of everyone.
Tears welled up in Mu Yangling’s eyes as she asked her father, “Then do you still blame them?”
Mu Shi snorted. “Not anymore.”
However, Mu Yangling was not convinced.
“If you want to help those children, go ahead. Don’t worry too much.” Mu Shi stroked her head and said sadly, “Who asked our family to be so kind-hearted?”
Mu Yangling: “…”
Little Bowen didn’t understand most of it, but he understood the last sentence. He nodded seriously. “That’s right. We’re all very kind.”
“Mother, look at them! Father has led Little Brother astray.”
Shu Wanniang covered her mouth and laughed.
Although Mu Shi said that he didn’t care, he still brought his daughter into the mountain to scout and mark out a safe area. He said, “Don’t go any deeper. I don’t know if that black bear and female tiger are still around. Be more vigilant when you bring them into the mountain. Once there are any abnormalities, bring them out of the mountain immediately.”
Mu Yangling nodded. “Father, don’t worry. Safety first. I’ll definitely be careful.”
Mu Shi looked at his daughter in relief. “You’ve already grown up and have a mind of your own.” Although his daughter was becoming increasingly disobedient, Mu Shi was still very glad that his daughter was much smarter than others.
At least, he had never seen a nine-year-old child think of doing these.
When the time came, Mu Yangling brought 11 people into the mountain and divided them into two groups. One group had five people, and the other had six people. Liu Ting and Liu Yuan each led a group. When Mu Yangling brought them to the place, she said, “Spread out. Don’t be too far away, but don’t be too close either. Don’t destroy the vegetation and rocks on the ground. We’ll set up traps here today. Then, I’ll bring you to another place to catch rabbits. Remember, our main target is rabbits. If you see other prey, especially large ones, don’t panic. Come and tell me. If you shout loudly and I can’t make it there in time to save you, you’ll have to take responsibility for your lives.”
After the 11 of them agreed softly, Mu Yangling looked at Liu Ting and Liu Yuan. “Uncles, make the arrangements. One group will dig the traps, and the other will place the ropes.”
Mu Yangling taught them how to lay the traps one by one and then scouted the vicinity just in case. After they were done, she checked the traps once more. Then, she waved her hand and said, “Let’s head east. Be careful of the traps. Watch how I finish up and get rid of the traces. You have to remember that we are looking for the tracks left behind by the prey, but the prey will also do likewise. So, you have to remove your tracks when you leave. Otherwise, no matter how perfect your traps are, it will be in vain.”
As she spoke, Mu Yangling used a tree branch to gently cover up everyone’s tracks. When they left that area, Mu Yangling said, “Actually, it’s more suitable for five people to hunt around. It’ll inevitably be a burden if the group is too large.”
Liu Ting and company did not say a word. Since there were too many people in the village, it would take a long time to rotate if they formed teams of five people. Furthermore, with limited strength, their gains would be limited too.
Mu Yangling had obviously thought of this too, which was why she had requested to divide them into five groups.
Mu Yangling led everyone to lie on the grass, where there was a large open grassland in front of them. She pointed ahead and asked, “Do you see what’s there?”
Swallowing his saliva, Liu Ting said, “Rabbits.” There were many, many rabbits.
Mu Yangling rolled her eyes. “Of course I know they’re rabbits. I’m asking you to look around. There are many trees on both sides. On one side is where we’re lying now, and on the east is the river. In other words, we only need to outflank the rabbits from three sides to catch them. Did you bring all the nets as asked?”
Liu Ting was only stunned for a moment before he hurriedly replied, “Yes.” He gestured for her to look at the things in their hands.
Mu Yangling nodded. “Good. Later, the three of you will grab the nets and outflank them. The remaining two will follow me with a sack to put the caught rabbits inside.”
Liu Ting did not quite understand. The place was so big, and the net was only so small. How could it stop them?
“Come on, you’ll understand after doing it once.”
Rabbits were timid animals who would escape desperately at the slightest movement. Mu Yangling gave the men the branches she had chosen on the way. On the left and right, the two men each held in their hand a branch with leaves on the end. When they grabbed the net and surrounded it, they had to use the branch to stop the rabbits who wanted to escape, from both sides at the same time. Though actually, there was no need to truly stop them from escaping. What they hoped to achieve was that the constant disturbance would literally frighten them to deaths.
As Liu Ting and Liu Yuan were both steady people, Mu Yangling arranged for them to be at the back and west. Liu Dazhuang was in charge of the south side. Liu Li and Liu Yong were the most agile, so they followed Mu Yangling to catch rabbits inside.
“I’ll be in the south. Uncle Li, go to the west. Cousin Yong, go to the north. Remember, when you catch rabbits, you have to bend over. Immediately give up on those rabbits that have already run past you. Your main task is to catch the ones at the gaps. Let’s try it today. If this method doesn’t work, I’ll think of another one.”