Chapter 55: An Unexpected Gain

Sanbao easily shook off their pursuers.

They arrived at the designated location.

The men from the village gradually returned.

A group of sturdy men exchanged glances before bursting into laughter.

“Er Lengzi, you’re pretty good! Ran fast enough!”

“When it comes to fighting, you have to look at the Qi brothers. The way they swung those sticks—truly impressive!”

“Haha, Brother Wang, where’s your shoe? Did it fly off? Hahaha!”

“Ow! No wonder my feet are burning…”

They were all about the same age, childhood playmates who used to chase cats and tease dogs in the village. Who would have thought they’d grow up only to experience the same kind of barefooted sprint—this time running for their lives from beasts.

Yan Lao’er glanced at the grain cart behind them, frowning. “Alright, enough laughing, guys. What do we do with this cart of grain? Are those whose families were taken still there?”

The thrill of snatching the grain had been great, but now Qi Si and Qi Wu were left scratching their heads. “Second Brother Yan, those people ran off ages ago.”

Elder Luo chuckled, “They’re not completely brainless. After the commotion we caused, they wouldn’t just stand around waiting.”

“We pulled a cart away, and plenty of people chased after us. Those old folks and women were left unguarded. You guys ran too fast to see it, but when I looked back—damn! The women went wild! They clawed those bastards’ faces, knocked one guy down, biting his arms and legs. It was terrifying!”

The others felt lucky they hadn’t seen it firsthand.

“…Then people started grabbing the leftover grain. Maybe they were afraid those who left would come back, because before long, they all scattered.”

Yan Lao’er: Did a good deed, but now the grain was in their hands.

When in doubt—ask Lao Yan.

“Big Brother, look, the guys were just too capable. They brought back a whole cart of grain. What should we do? Can we still find those people?”

Yan Huaiwen looked him over from head to toe—good, no injuries.

“We’ll keep it.”

Yan Lao’er: Huh?

A modern, law-abiding middle-aged man who had always turned in lost items to the police was momentarily dumbfounded.

“I understand your intention to return what isn’t ours,” Yan Huaiwen acknowledged his brother’s goodwill.

But the reality was, they couldn’t afford to delay their journey for these people.

“Even if we went back, we wouldn’t find them. Even if we did, we wouldn’t recognize them.”

Yan Huaiwen spoke solemnly. “We took ill-gotten wealth, not the grain of the common folk. This distinction, Tianyou, you must understand.

“Not coveting, yet seeking to return it, is a noble act. But keeping it without guilt is also acceptable. We have no shame in our hearts.”

Village Chief Luo decided to distribute the grain among the families.

The villagers were overjoyed.

They hadn’t overthought things when they acted. They just couldn’t stand the cruelty and black-heartedness of those people and wanted to create enough chaos to let the captives escape.

What happened to them afterward wasn’t their concern. What—were they supposed to save them and then take care of them for life?

As for the biggest contributors to snatching the cart, Qi Si and Qi Wu, they admitted, “At the time, we figured if we took too little, they might not chase us. But if we hauled a whole cart, those bastards would definitely come after us…”

Village Chief Luo also decided, “Keep those sticks. We might need them again.”

Besides, these sticks had been taken from Yan’s double-decker cart. Finding wood as sturdy and well-sized wouldn’t be easy.

Qi Wu approached, “Second Brother Yan, if we find the right wood along the way, I can make you an identical rack. I brought all my tools.”

Yan Lao’er glanced around. “Qi Wu, don’t worry about the rack for now. We’re about to enter the mountains, and I think our cart will be a hassle. We might need to modify it. Let me think it over first—there’ll be plenty for you to do.”

Qi Wu chuckled, “Alright then! I’ll follow your lead. Just tell me what to do!”

—

That night, Yan Lao’er decided everyone should have some meat.

Top-quality ingredients often required no elaborate cooking.

Snake jerky was one such delicacy.

The grain they’d seized contained both brown and polished rice. Every household got brown rice, while Village Chief Luo gave all the polished rice to the Yan family.

Village Chief Luo: Yep, I’m that kind of biased village chief.

Yan Lao’er generously contributed some, celebrating their success.

His family provided the polished rice, and every household brought water. Together, they cooked three huge pots of fragrant white rice porridge.

They chopped the snake jerky into tiny bits and stirred it into the porridge.

Instantly—snake meat rice porridge!

The aroma—heavenly!

Even newly weaned babies were crying from hunger.

One mother carefully skimmed off a bowl of porridge oil, cooled it down, and fed it to her little one.

The child went from crying to smiling in an instant.

Each person got a bowl of steaming hot meat porridge.

Whatever was left in the pot—claimed by the village men.

They used mantou buns to wipe the pot clean.

Yan Yu stared at the bottom of her empty bowl—she really wanted to lick it.

She glanced at her mother, then mimicked the villagers, using a mantou to wipe it clean.

Not a single drop wasted!

That day, the giant snake was finally completely eaten by the whole village.

Maybe it was the satisfaction of doing good, or maybe it was the meat porridge, but everyone felt energized.

Even the night watch was in high demand.

Yan Lao’er couldn’t get a spot, so he had to head back.

Only to run straight into his brother’s interrogation.

“Tianyou, what is this? Where did you get it?”

Yan Huaiwen held an object that gleamed with a cold metallic sheen—his crossbow.

Yan Lao’er: Huh?!

Caught off guard.

Frozen on the spot.

“Uh, bro, how did you find that? It’s dangerous—give it back, I need to put it away.” He tried to play it off.

“Do you even know what this is?” Yan Huaiwen asked, face dark.

“It’s just for hunting,” Yan Lao’er dodged the question.

Yan Huaiwen nearly threw the crossbow at him.

“This is a military crossbow—used in the army. Tell me honestly, where did you get it?”

Yan Lao’er had no choice but to start making things up. “Oh, uh, from someone who said it’s been in their family for generations. The arrows too. Light, portable, long-range. I had to beg them for ages before they agreed to sell it to me.”

“A military weapon like this isn’t something an ordinary person can just have,” Yan Huaiwen doubted.

“Maybe their ancestors were special. Could’ve been a general or something,” Yan Lao’er insisted.

He stuck to the story—bought fair and square.

Yan Huaiwen was livid. This good-for-nothing!

Illegal dealing in military weapons was a serious crime.

“Hey, isn’t that the treasure Dad won?” Yan Yu suddenly piped up, eyes gleaming mischievously. “He wouldn’t even let me look at it! Hmph! It’s all dark and ugly—what’s so special about it?”

Yan Huaiwen narrowed his eyes. “Er Ya, come here.”

Yan Yu trotted over.

“Do you know where this came from?”

“Of course! Dad won it in a bet—” She suddenly clamped her hands over her mouth, glancing at her father, then whispered to her uncle, “Uncle, Dad told me not to tell anyone.”

“Won it?!” Yan Huaiwen ground his teeth.

Now he didn’t know whether to be relieved that the crossbow wasn’t bought or furious that his brother’s gambling problem clearly had deep roots.