CHAPTER 17: CHAPTER 16: PREPARATIONS

Entering the mountains isn’t as simple as just saying it.

To do a good job, one must first sharpen their tools.

Early the next morning, Qin Yao didn’t go to the fields but went to the mountains first to dig up enough yams to last four days.

She had dug from that yam patch so many times that there weren’t many left.

Then she hid the yams and hoe in the bushes at the foot of the mountain, picked up a sickle, and went to the place where villagers usually gather firewood, chopped a full load of firewood, plus the stockpile from the previous days, which was enough for half a month’s use.

The sun was already high in the sky by the time Qin Yao got home, but she didn’t rest. A few yams filled her belly, she took all the money at home, forty copper coins, and hurried to the neighboring village.

The village wasn’t far from Liu Family Village, following the river downstream for an hour to get there.

Qin Yao walked fast and reached there in just over half an hour.

This was a larger village than Liu Family Village, called Lower River Village, and there was a blacksmith who made a living by crafting some farm tools for the surrounding villagers.

This village also had a well-known hunter, renowned across several villages. The men in the family were all hunters, and it was said that they had once caught a striped tiger, gaining them some fame in the Jinshi Town area.

Qin Yao first went to the blacksmith shop, where after some bargaining, she exchanged thirty coins for an old short knife.

Fortunately, the blade was still sharp, and the blacksmith helped sharpen it with a grinding stone, making it barely usable.

However, to Qin Yao, it felt a bit too light. She weighed it in her hand, swung it a few times with broad and open moves that seemed to have no technique, but the fierce wind was intimidating.

The blacksmith gave her a surprised look, "Young lady, you wield the knife quite well!"

Qin Yao put away the knife and gave him a gentle smile, "Master, do you know where the hunter’s house is?"

The blacksmith, being from the same village, of course knew. He pointed to a solitary house halfway up the eastern hillside.

Qin Yao nodded, "Thanks!" and turned to make her way there.

It was midday, the hunter’s house door was ajar, and when Qin Yao called out at the entrance, an energetic elderly woman came out, assuming she was there to buy meat, and waved her hand, saying there was no more meat, as it had all been taken to town.

Qin Yao quickly realized the person she was looking for wasn’t home and tentatively asked the elderly woman when the men would return.

"You’re not here to buy meat?" The elderly woman asked suspiciously.

Qin Yao nodded, "I came to see if I could borrow some hunting tools from your family. In return, I’ll give a tenth of what I hunt as commission, would that be possible?"

The elderly woman, hearing of someone coming to borrow hunting tools for the first time, was taken aback for a moment before saying she couldn’t decide and would have to wait for her sons to return.

So, Qin Yao sat down under a big tree at the hunter’s gate, taking the opportunity to get familiar with the newly bought short knife.

Qin Yao waited until the sun was setting.

The hunter family was surnamed Yang, with two brothers: the elder brother named Yang Da, the younger one Yang Er, each having a son and a daughter. It seemed they caught something big yesterday, and the whole family went to town to sell it at the restaurant, returning with a full load in the afternoon.

When they arrived home, Granny Yang told her sons about Qin Yao’s request.

The villagers were quite wary of outsiders, but Qin Yao was from the neighboring Liu Family Village, which they were familiar with.

The two brothers walked towards Qin Yao with suspicion, not outright refusing but worried she might damage their equipment.

However, their main concern was they didn’t believe Qin Yao could actually hunt anything.

She mentioned a tenth of the reward, but if she didn’t catch anything, wouldn’t it be a waste of their hunting gear?

"If I don’t catch anything, I’ll compensate for any damage according to the repair costs," Qin Yao promised sincerely.

Thinking that if the two brothers continued to disagree, she might have to resort to pleading for sympathy.

But luck seemed to be on her side, and seeing her in such a run-down state, the brothers’ hearts softened. They waved her inside to choose.

The Yang family were hunters by trade, with a wide array of hunting tools, all well-maintained.

Having reaped a big harvest yesterday, they weren’t planning to go hunting again soon, hoping to make another trip before winter set in and then stay holed up for the season.

The mountains here were not like the overly exploited mountains of later generations for tourism. Here, the mountains were teeming with man-eating beasts, venomous insects, and snakes.

Untouched, uncharted mountains meant that if you didn’t understand how to navigate, getting lost was a high possibility.

Every trip to the mountains involved life-threatening risks for the Yang brothers.

Therefore, they had also purchased a few acres of land, planning for the younger generation to become farmers. Farming, no matter how exhausting, was better than losing one’s life.

Qin Yao chose a bow, the one Yang Da usually used. It was the biggest, heaviest, and most powerful.

The four Yang youngsters followed Qin Yao curiously as she picked, thinking she was overestimating herself picking Yang Da’s bow.

Unexpectedly, Qin Yao picked up the bow and pulled the string to its full extent with just two fingers.

Apparently not satisfied, she expertly used the string winding tool to tighten the bowstring even more.

Seeing Qin Yao draw the bow again made Yang Da’s heart skip a beat, afraid she might break his beloved bow.

Qin Yao took an arrow from the quiver, placed it on the string, and tested it in the Yang family’s yard, making the entire Yang family nervously circle around her, fearing becoming her unintended target.

Qin Yao put away the bow and arrow with satisfaction, "I’ll take this one."

Though they allowed her to pick freely, she knew her limits and wouldn’t go overboard.

One bow, thirty arrows, combined with the short knife and ropes from home, seemed enough.

"Miss Qin, are you naturally strong?"

As he saw Qin Yao off, Yang Da curiously asked.

Qin Yao thought about it and nodded, making up a story, "I’ve been strong since childhood."

The Yang brothers looked at her in amazement and envy.

As they saw her to the village entrance, Yang Da worriedly said, "It’s getting dark, and there have been bandits roaming lately. As a young woman on a solitary journey, it’s not safe. How about I borrow a cow from the village chief to take you home?"

Qin Yao pointed to the bow and arrow on her back, "With these, I’m quite safe."

The brothers chuckled sheepishly, realizing they’d been foolish.

Qin Yao hurried back, finally making it to Liu Family Village before nightfall.

Whether it was good luck or her shabby appearance, she didn’t encounter any of the bandits the Yang brothers mentioned.

She even felt a bit hopeful, thinking there might be unexpected gains from such encounters.

Upon reaching Liu Family Village, Qin Yao didn’t rush home but stopped by the Liu Family’s old house along the way.

Seeing her with a bow and arrow on her back and a short knife in hand, the people at the old house were puzzled about what she intended to do.

Poverty had thickened her skin, and Qin Yao bluntly stated, "I’m really not suited for farming. I plan to enter the mountains tomorrow for three to five days, at most seven to eight. I hope my two brothers can help plant the remaining wheat seeds at home."

"Also, there are four kids at home. During my absence, I ask my two sisters-in-law to help look after them a bit."

Then she took out the last ten copper coins and handed them to the stunned Sister-in-law He.

"Sister-in-law, the food at home is only enough to feed the kids for four days. I’ll need your help with the rest. I know this isn’t enough, so whatever’s missing, I’ll repay when I get back."

Having said her piece, she decisively turned to leave.

Leaving the old and young at the Liu Family’s old house bewildered in the wind.

Mrs. Zhang reconsidered her opinions of Qin Yao from a few days ago. Now she thought, indeed, birds of a feather flock together. The new wife of the third son had a thick skin just like him!

No, she surpassed the master!