Not far from where she stood, the map displayed two pheasants moving back and forth through a thicket, their heads lowered as they pecked at insects hidden among the grass.
Song Xiaoyu’s eyes lit up.
I don’t care whether you’re brothers or sisters. Since you’ve crossed paths with me today, you’d better obediently become steamed chicken, roast chicken, or a delicious chicken pot.
Memorizing the location shown on the map, she swiftly exited the space.
After emptying the miscellaneous items from her basket, she crouched low and crept toward her targets with silent, careful steps.
As she drew closer, she realized they were a plump hen and a spirited rooster.
Perfect.
The hen could be used to make a nourishing soup for her father’s injured legs, while the rooster would become a fragrant chicken pot, one of her favorite dishes.
Lifting the basket high, she aimed directly at the hen.
Thump!
The basket came down like a mountain, trapping the hen securely underneath.
Startled, the bird flapped and squawked frantically.
Song Xiaoyu grinned.
Tonight’s chicken soup was secured.
Now only the rooster remained.
Narrowing her eyes, she spread her arms and blocked its path.
The rooster immediately sensed danger.
After hearing its companion’s panicked cries, it puffed up its feathers, raised its bright red comb, and launched itself forward.
Its target was the gap between Song Xiaoyu’s legs.
Unfortunately for the rooster, it had chosen the wrong opponent.
In her previous life, Song Xiaoyu had been a highly trained special operations soldier.
The instant the bird moved, she reacted.
Her hands shot out with lightning speed.
Before the rooster could escape, she had already grabbed it firmly by the neck.
A length of hemp rope quickly bound its legs together.
Then she tossed it into the basket.
With both pheasants secured, Song Xiaoyu happily began making her way back down the mountain.
Along the path, she discovered two clusters of mushrooms growing beneath the roots of an old tree.
Most plants had already withered from the cold by the eleventh lunar month, so finding fresh mushrooms was a pleasant surprise.
She carefully dug them up and placed them in her basket.
Not far away, she also found several patches of wild green onions.
Wild onions could survive through all four seasons and were perfect for seasoning food.
By the time she returned home, the village was already filled with curling trails of cooking smoke.
“Father! Mother! Brother Wen! Brother Wu! I’m back!”
Her voice arrived before she did.
Outside the thatched hut, Song Wen was busy chopping firewood.
Hearing her call, he looked up and saw his little sister carrying a basket while leaning slightly forward under its weight.
Immediately, he threw down his axe and hurried over.
Since she had only been gone a short time, he naturally assumed the basket was empty.
In fact, he had been planning to search for her as soon as he finished chopping wood.
“Little Sister, did you fill your basket with rocks?” he asked in confusion after taking it from her. “Why is it so heavy?”
In his eyes, Song Xiaoyu might be fifteen years old, but she was still the same little sister he had always protected.
Gathering a pile of stones seemed entirely possible.
Song Xiaoyu rolled her eyes dramatically.
“Brother Wen, do you think so little of me?”
“Why would I climb the back hill just to bring back rocks?”
“We can’t eat stones.”
Song Wu emerged from the hut carrying an armful of rotten wood.
Hearing the conversation, he laughed.
“Brother Wen, if Little Sister wanted to collect something useless, she’d bring back rotten wood like this. At least it can be used as firewood. Bringing back rocks would be even more pointless.”
Song Xiaoyu puffed out her cheeks.
These two really are brothers.
Neither one seemed particularly bright.
Rather than argue, she simply waited.
A moment later, Song Wu brushed aside the dry grass covering the basket.
Then he froze.
“My heavens!”
His shout startled everyone.
“Mother! Come out quickly! Little Sister brought back two chickens!”
Inside the hut, Zhou Rong thought she had misheard.
Yet when she stepped outside, she indeed saw two live birds inside the basket.
Her expression immediately changed.
“Xiaoyu…”
She grabbed her daughter’s hand.
“Tell Mother honestly. Whose chickens did you steal?”
“Even if our family is poor, we can’t become thieves.”
“Come with me right now. We’ll return them and apologize. As long as you admit your mistake, you’re still a good child.”
Without giving her daughter a chance to explain, she started pulling her away.
“Mother!”
Song Xiaoyu quickly stopped her.
“Do I really seem like the kind of person who would steal?”
“Take a closer look. These are pheasants, not domestic chickens.”
“The feathers are completely different.”
Only then did Zhou Rong pause.
Seeing her daughter’s serious expression, she carefully examined the birds.
Afterward, she brought them to Song Beichen for confirmation.
The moment he looked at them, he nodded.
“They really are pheasants.”
Only then did Zhou Rong finally relax.
“Mother, your injuries haven’t fully healed yet.”
Song Xiaoyu took the birds from her hands.
“Go rest. I’ll make dinner tonight.”
“Little Sister is right.”
Song Wen immediately agreed.
“Mother, you’ve worked all afternoon already.”
“Brother Wu and I can help Little Sister.”
With that, he guided Zhou Rong to a stool and seated her there before rushing off to start a fire.
Watching her children bustle around, Zhou Rong smiled so broadly that she could barely close her mouth.
Having such thoughtful children was truly a blessing.
“Little Sister, give me the pheasants.”
Song Wu walked over with a knife.
“A young lady shouldn’t be killing chickens.”
Song Xiaoyu shook her head.
“There’s no need. I can handle it myself.”
The next moment—
Crack!
Crack!
Two crisp sounds rang out.
Song Wu’s eyes widened.
Both pheasants had their necks snapped cleanly by his little sister’s bare hands.
A chill ran down his spine.
Little Sister’s strength is terrifying.
Afterward, Song Xiaoyu cleaned the birds and removed the internal organs.
A pot of water was heated and poured over the carcasses, making the feathers easy to pluck.
Meanwhile, Zhou Rong could not sit still.
Using the half sack of coarse flour delivered earlier by Village Chief Wang’s wife, she began kneading dough.
Some would become steamed buns.
The rest would be rolled into thick hand-pulled noodles.
Earlier that afternoon, Village Chief Wang had learned that the family had received no food after the separation.
Unable to bear watching them starve, he had instructed his wife to deliver half a sack of flour along with a basket of sweet potatoes.
Although Zhou Rong had initially wanted to refuse, she could not bear seeing her children go hungry.
She silently vowed to repay the kindness once their situation improved.
Night soon fell.
Not far away, Xiao Zou quietly sneaked over to the thatched hut.
Hiding behind a tree, she stretched her neck and peered inside.
She had been waiting to see when the first branch would break down and return to beg for forgiveness.
Only then could Song Xiaoyu be sold to the Liu family, allowing the fifty taels of silver to fall into the hands of the third branch.
In her imagination, the first branch should have been hungry, miserable, and desperate.
Instead, she saw something completely different.
Song Xiaoyu was handling two whole pheasants.
Xiao Zou’s eyes nearly popped out of her head.
Two chickens?!
So that was it!
The first branch must have secretly hidden money and resources for themselves.
Otherwise, how could they possibly be living so comfortably immediately after separating from the family?
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became.
She had been wondering why the usually obedient Song Beichen had suddenly developed a backbone.
Now she was convinced.
It had to be Zhou Rong’s influence.
That woman must have been secretly encouraging him all along.
Filled with jealousy and resentment, Xiao Zou turned and hurried back toward the old Song family residence.
She could not wait to report what she had discovered.