Chapter 126: Smart Kitty

Eleven taels, five qian, and ten wen.

Two taels, two qian of silver.

Yan Huaiwen hesitated for a moment before adding another line at the end.

—Obtained by my younger brother Tianyou from hunting wild boars.

With the final stroke, a sense of satisfaction spread across Yan Huaiwen’s brow.

Just as his eldest uncle was about to put away the ledger, Yan Yu stood nearby, itching with curiosity.

She hated how small and short she was. Even though her uncle allowed her to stay close, she couldn’t just climb onto the cart. Standing beside it, her forehead wasn’t even as high as the small table on the cart.

Want to see what Uncle wrote? Dream on!

No problem. If her eyes weren’t enough, she still had a mouth.

“Uncle, what did you write?” Yan Yu asked, feigning innocence.

Yan Huaiwen replied casually, “Just some records.”

Yan Yu: That’s way too perfunctory!!!

“Where did your father go?” Yan Huaiwen asked.

Yan Yu perked up and obediently replied, “Dad took Sanbao into the mountains to graze and said he’d bring back some water too.”

Yan Huaiwen pondered for a moment and said, “Tomorrow morning, we’ll make bone broth. You, Heng’er, and Da Ya will all help.”

“Okay, Uncle,” Yan Yu responded cutely.

“Xiao’er.” Yan Huaiwen lowered his voice. “If things get chaotic tomorrow and people start fighting over supplies, don’t worry about the goods. Just stay away and be careful not to get hurt.”

“Uncle, don’t worry! I’ll bring the Young Scouts along. Anyone who misbehaves will get disciplined!” Yan Yu fiercely waved her tiny fists.

Yan Huaiwen fell silent for a moment.

Patiently, he explained to her, “Those are refugees, not bandits. You must not use your bows and crossbows against them. Do you understand the difference?”

Yan Yu nodded solemnly and said word by word, “I understand. Bandits are bad people, and we can kill them. Refugees are like us; they left home because they couldn’t survive there.”

“Uncle, we know. We won’t use the bamboo crossbows.”

Only then did Yan Huaiwen feel reassured. He asked her, “If someone comes to exchange for character practice sheets tomorrow, are you prepared?”

Yan Yu blinked. “Do I even need to prepare? I write big characters, and Uncle has praised my handwriting. I’ll just give them that.”

Yan Huaiwen couldn’t help but smile. “You can pick some simple and recognizable ones, then write down their names. If someone only comes to exchange once, at least they’ll remember what their name looks like and barely be able to write it.”

Yan Yu found that very reasonable. Learning to write their names first—oh, and simple numbers too. At the very least, they’d be able to read their work record.

“Uncle, what about Fengnian? How should I write his name?”

Yan Huaiwen thought for a moment and said, “Tell him to come find me. I’ll check his progress.”

—

Yan Lao’er was riding—or rather, lying—on the back of the ox.

He watched the trees around him blur past.

The jagged rocks were mere embellishments in the deep mountains, unable to divert Sanbao from its optimal path.

Several bags hung from the sides of the ox, filled with meat and bones.

He brought the latter along due to his frugality—planning to wash them at the water source so that he wouldn’t have to waste water when making broth tomorrow.

At this moment, their mechanical cat was perched atop his head, firmly gripping his hair. Every so often, it lifted a paw to lick itself, maintaining impeccable balance.

When they arrived at their destination, the cat was the first to leap down.

It meowed twice, and Sanbao mooed in response before moving closer.

How the two of them exchanged information remained a mystery, but somehow, a single meow and a single moo were enough to communicate.

Yan Lao’er slid off the ox slowly, only feeling secure once his feet touched the ground.

He supported his sore lower back.

Sanbao had already emptied its stomach of water and was now completely hollow.

The meat had been salted and cured, so he took out a piece at a time for feeding while semi-drying the rest.

He washed the bones clean.

Then, he led Sanbao to rinse its hooves, spread out a clean cloth, and let Sanbao step on the bones…

Crunch! Crunch!

The bones fractured, ensuring the marrow inside remained intact.

Only Sanbao could control its strength so precisely.

Once everything was done, Yan Lao’er felt at ease.

He wrapped the bones up and hung them back onto Sanbao.

“Kitty, come here.” He pressed against Sanbao’s side.

Sanbao turned to look at him, seeming to sense his emotions. Its tail swished harder, brushing against him repeatedly.

Then, a cat descended from the sky, landing on his shoulder before burrowing into his arms.

Both arrogant and relaxed.

Yan Lao’er held it tightly. Alone in the deep mountains at night—if not for these two mechanical beasts, he wouldn’t have dared come.

“Sanbao, lie down. I’m getting on.” Yan Lao’er ordered softly.

Sanbao bent its legs and crouched down.

Yan Lao’er clutched the squirming cat tightly and climbed back onto the ox.

He still felt safer up there.

Suddenly, the cat let out a sharp cry and darted off, nearly toppling him.

Just as he regained his balance, he saw his cat viciously grab a long snake and flick its paw. The snake went flying…

Yan Lao’er: Amazing!

“Sanbao, hurry up. Rinse out your belly, fill it with water, and let’s go.” Urgency crept into Yan Lao’er’s voice.

Being bound to a first-level authority master, Sanbao executed the command perfectly.

Lowering its head, it began to gurgle and slurp up water. Yan Lao’er felt a faint vibration and was about to lean down to examine it when—

Whoosh!

Water sprayed!

Yan Lao’er was dumbfounded.

To quote his daughter: “Wow! A new function unlocked!”

The water pressure was intense, shooting straight out before finally falling.

Then, Sanbao resumed filling up.

While Sanbao drank, the cat suddenly leaped into the water, emerging with a fish in its mouth.

Then a second. A third…

For as long as Sanbao drank, the cat caught fish.

Neatly arranged fresh fish quickly lost their orderly formation as they flopped about.

The cat tirelessly set them straight.

Then it meowed at Yan Lao’er.

Yan Lao’er pointed to himself. “Me? These are for me?”

The cat shook its head furiously, as if trying to shake off the water along with the denial…

After shaking itself dry, the cat stood still for a moment. Yan Lao’er watched as its damp fur fluffed up rapidly.

Yan Lao’er: …

The cat pointed at its belly with a paw.

He understood. But he didn’t want to understand!

A smart mechanical beast, this smart?!

It was… it was… flattering its owner too well!

Li Xuemei did love eating fish, and pregnant women needed extra nutrition.

Irritated, he accused, “Aren’t you an exploration beast? Why are you doubling as a household assistant?”

The cat tilted its head, as if sympathizing with an idiot.

It darted up a tree, hopped a few times, and returned just as quickly.

Laying down wild fruits beside the fish, it even adjusted the fishes’ positions.

Seeing that Yan Lao’er still hadn’t reacted, the cat’s jewel-like eyes shimmered.

Then it ran off again and returned with some mugwort.

Yan Lao’er was half-understanding. The cat tilted its head; unconsciously, he mirrored the movement.

The cat gave up, forcibly stuffing fish into his arms.

Yan Lao’er scrambled to catch the flopping, lively fish.

“Alright, alright! Stop catching them—I’ll do it myself.”