Chapter 115: No Copper Coins

The wild boar piglets had run off, but they didn’t chase after them.

The harvest was good, and figuring out how to handle these three wild boars was now Yan Lao’er’s biggest concern.

He pinched the little paws of his cat and whispered, “You have a good nose for this.”

The cat meowed, walked from one of his shoulders to the other, then leaped onto a tree, looking down at them from above.

The Qi brothers found some vines, preparing to tie up the boars and carry them back.

One for each of the three brothers—just the right number.

Qi Da was naturally the one to carry the male boar. Qi Si and Qi Wu tied it to his back, and Qi Da tested the weight—it was manageable. His expression relaxed.

Qi Si and Qi Wu had even less difficulty since the sows were lighter.

“Yan Lao’er, shall we head back?” Qi Si called out.

Yan Lao’er wiped off his three arrows with some leaves before putting them away.

“What’s your plan for these wild boars when we get back?”

“What plan?” Qi Wu asked blankly.

“I mean, if someone wants to trade or buy some of the meat, is there anything you’d like in exchange? Or do you want to save up some silver?”

Qi Si said, “We’ll listen to you, Yan Lao’er.”

Qi Da also nodded firmly. “You decide.”

Yan Lao’er thought for a moment. “I know your appetites. If you want to keep them for yourselves, then if anyone else wants some, they can take from my share. My family won’t be able to eat all of it anyway—most of it would just be made into jerky.”

“But if you want to save up more silver for the future, we could sell some. It’s still a bit early to say, but eventually, we’ll reach Guanzhou, and settling down there will cost money.”

He left the decision to the Qi brothers.

The difference between having enough to eat and going hungry wasn’t just personal—it affected the entire family.

Qi Si glanced at his older and younger brothers, then smiled sheepishly.

“Yan Lao’er, actually, we’ve thought about it. When we parted ways with you yesterday, we started wondering—if we really did manage to hunt something, we couldn’t just fill our own bottomless stomachs.”

“Mother had a hard time raising us. Her eyes are nearly ruined from all the late nights. We want to do more for her, let her have some easier days.”

“And our sister-in-law, our two nieces—we want them to have a better life too.”

Qi Wu suddenly spoke up. “So they don’t have to worry anymore.”

Worry about running out of grain.

Worry about not having enough food for the boys.

Worry about how to scrape together more to eat…

Yan Lao’er was moved.

Honest men had their own calculations too.

Maybe they thought things through more slowly, but because they were straightforward, their reasoning was often even clearer.

“Alright, then let’s head back and figure out how to sell it. Do you need anything in particular? Running low on grain?”

Qi Da said, “Not much flour left.”

“Then we’ll trade for some flour.” Yan Lao’er nodded. “Your family eats steamed buns—you wouldn’t get as much out of rice.”

When the four of them returned, they quickly drew a crowd.

Someone asked, “There are wild boars in this mountain? I’ve never seen any! You guys have such good luck!”

Qi Wu answered honestly, “Not this mountain—the one over there.”

He even pointed it out clearly.

“Amazing! Four of you hunted three boars—those Qi brothers sure are strong!”

Qi Si said, “Yan Lao’er shot them. We didn’t do much.”

Yan Lao’er quickly added, “If the Qi brothers hadn’t held them down, I wouldn’t have been able to hit them.”

Hu Da laughed heartily. “You’re all being so modest! Just bringing back wild boars makes you impressive! Look at those tusks—practically reaching the sky!”

Luo San arrived late, eyes shining. “Yan Lao’er, hurry up! If we wait too long, the pig’s blood won’t taste good anymore!”

Luo Da shot his younger brother a glare and tried to smooth things over. “Yan Lao’er, need a hand?”

“Luo San, you’ll have to take care of these three boars. It’s a tough job, so I’ll make sure to thank you properly later. I’ll go grab some salt first—make sure to save plenty of blood for me.”

“No problem, Yan Lao’er! Don’t worry about it!” Luo San responded cheerfully.

With the Qi brothers and their older siblings helping, hoisting the boars up was easy. Then it was time for Luo San’s moment to shine.

No rush—first, he sharpened his knife.

Luo San was focused, honing his blade while Luo Da and Luo Er stood by with basins, ready to collect the blood.

The Qi brothers grinned as they waited. All of this meat was theirs—no outsiders involved, just them and Yan Lao’er. They couldn’t even calculate how much they’d get, but it would definitely be a lot.

Yan Lao’er came back with the salt, and his daughter arrived right behind him, having caught wind of the excitement.

“Dad! So many wild boars! That’s amazing!” Yan Yu cheered happily.

Yan Lao’er laughed. “Just luck. Who would’ve thought? But once we ran into them, we couldn’t let them get away. Wild boars always show up in groups—you should thank your Qi uncles for their hard work.”

“I’m telling Mom!” Yan Yu just wanted a quick look, and then she ran off.

“That kid… runs so fast.”

Seeing the crowd, Yan Lao’er called out, “Anyone who wants wild boar meat, trade me some flour! Or copper coins work too!”

“Huh? Yan Lao’er, you’re not taking anything else?”

“Not exactly, but for anything else, the price goes up!” Yan Lao’er grinned slyly.

The crowd laughed. He was blunt, but they all understood his reasoning.

“Look at your household—you’ve already got horse meat and now wild boar, and you’re still eyeing our goods? So stingy!” someone joked.

Yan Lao’er wasn’t offended and kept grinning. “What’s wrong with being stingy? That’s just good budgeting! And let’s be real—meat is always worth more than other stuff. If you don’t want to trade, step aside—don’t block my customers! If I lose business because of you, I’ll make you pay for it!”

They joked around, but quite a few people actually passed the word to the disaster victims.

“I… I want to buy… a pig’s heart.”

The speaker was an honest-looking man, carrying a sack in one hand and clutching some broken silver tightly in the other.

Gotta meet customer demands!

Yan Lao’er said, “Luo San, get this brother a pig’s heart.”

Then, he kindly asked, “Brother, will one be enough?”

“Yes! Yes!” The man quickly added, “How do I pay? How do I trade?”

Yan Lao’er thought for a moment. Pig hearts weren’t expensive—just a few copper coins—but the man had brought flour, meaning he preferred to trade.

“It’s not worth much, and I don’t have change for silver. How about this—however much the heart weighs, just give me that much flour. Sound good?”

The man’s face lit up with surprise.

Cheaper than he expected.

“Can I get two, then?” he asked cautiously.

“Sure, cut him two.” Yan Lao’er agreed without hesitation.

Luo San didn’t need further instructions—he immediately set aside two pig hearts.

With that first deal made, more people started showing up.

Offal was especially popular.

They practically traded away everything—the heart, liver, lungs, intestines, even pig brains… Nothing was left behind, not even the blood.

Yan Lao’er was speechless.

Everyone paid with flour. Not a single copper coin came in.

No copper coins—how was he supposed to report back to Old Yan?

And without money, how would his brother pay him?

As he was struggling with this dilemma, a lookout from Cloud-Piercing Mountain came running back with urgent news.

The chief of Cloud-Piercing Stronghold had returned—bringing a dozen mountain bandits with him!