“Hey, you beastman—you clearly want me to be her husband, yet you don’t want me to be her husband. How contradictory!”
“…” So what if it’s contradictory? Yun Jiao likes me being contradictory.
Lei Xiao glared at him and continued, “I’m just stating the truth. Even if Yun Jiao accepts you in the future, it won’t shake my position as her first husband.”
“I couldn’t replace you even if I wanted to. But that’s only while you’re alive. If you die, wouldn’t I, the second husband, become Yun Jiao’s first husband?”
“Heh… Don’t worry. Even if you die, I won’t. If you have time to worry about me, better worry about yourself—you’re much weaker than I am.”
“Wanna compare?”
“Fine, let’s compare!”
The two males bristled, dropping their work at once.
Luckily, Yun Jiao was asleep—if she saw this, she’d surely waver again about finding a second husband.
Mu Bai didn’t even have an official position yet, and he was already fighting. What would happen once he did?
Just as the two were about to transform into beast form and battle for three hundred rounds, the ground trembled slightly. They looked up to see an elephant charging over: “Is Yun Jiao here?”
Lei Xiao frowned: “Yun Jiao is asleep. Don’t bother her unless it’s important.”
Xiang Bi replied: “I don’t want to bother her either, but the shaman is calling for her!”
Lei Xiao: “…In the middle of the night, what does the shaman want with her?”
“It’s all because that female Bai Wei is making a fuss.” Xiang Bi was thoroughly annoyed with Bai Wei. Males couldn’t strike females, but surely he could complain a little?
So Xiang Bi exaggerated the story, adding fuel to the fire as he described what had happened.
Lei Xiao and Mu Bai both darkened their expressions, silently agreeing to find a chance to give Shi Yi a beating.
The females weren’t wrong—if there was fault, it lay with the males. And Shi Yi was Bai Wei’s mate.
Since the shaman had summoned her, Lei Xiao, unwilling as he was, had no choice but to wake Yun Jiao.
Yun Jiao wasn’t cranky upon waking. Hearing it was the shaman calling, she immediately mounted Lei Xiao and followed Xiang Bi.
Before long, Xiang Bi led them to the chief’s cave. By the time they arrived, Hu Niu had already returned.
Bai Wei glared at Yun Jiao with venomous eyes, as if Yun Jiao had killed her parents.
Yun Jiao, having already heard the story from Xiang Bi, didn’t spare her a glance. She simply stepped forward: “Greetings, Master. Greetings, Chief.”
The chief smiled and nodded.
The shaman said: “Xiang Bi has already told you, hasn’t he?”
Yun Jiao nodded: “I don’t know why Master has called me here?”
Could it be to act as referee for Hu Niu and Bai Wei, letting them fight again?
The shaman replied calmly: “Bai Wei refuses to accept my decision. I suddenly realized that many females in the tribe probably don’t accept it either. So I called you here to make everyone convinced. Lei Xiao, Xiang Bi, and Shi Yi—go summon all the females in the tribe. Tell them Yun Jiao and Bai Wei will compete, and whoever wins will be my successor.”
The three males nodded and hurried off to carry out the order.
Yun Jiao and Bai Wei were going to compete? In no time, the news spread like wildfire through the tribe. The females flocked to watch the spectacle. Many males followed as well. Soon, the chief’s cave was packed with beastmen. There weren’t many females in the tribe—just over forty, including the underaged. But there were more than a hundred males!
The chief’s cave couldn’t possibly hold them all. To let everyone see, the shaman led Yun Jiao and Bai Wei outside to an open clearing.
The view was wide, and everyone could watch.
The shaman looked over the gathered beastmen and raised her voice: “I believe you all know why you’ve been called here. After today, I don’t want to hear anyone whispering behind my back about why Yun Jiao was chosen. If I hear it again, don’t come to me for treatment when you’re sick or injured.”
Most of the females, upon hearing this, looked at each other and then quietly averted their gazes, guilt written in their eyes.
Bai Wei grew even angrier. What did Aunt mean by this?
The competition hadn’t even started, yet she was already implying Bai Wei was inferior to Yun Jiao?
Bai Wei snapped impatiently: “Aunt, just say what we’re competing in already!”
“Then I won’t waste words. The competition begins now. I will present a medicinal herb. Each of you must tell me its name, its effects, and its contraindications.”
With that, the shaman picked up the first herb.
Bai Wei snorted and answered first: “That’s *Sanqi* (Panax notoginseng). It treats wounds.”
The shaman turned to Yun Jiao: “Yun Jiao, what do you say?”
Yun Jiao sighed, feeling as if a college student were bullying a kindergarten child. But since the shaman was standing up for her, she couldn’t act ungrateful. She organized her words, trying to explain in terms the beastmen could understand: “It is indeed *Sanqi*. But it’s not just for wounds in such a simple way. Its function is to stop bleeding and reduce swelling, easing pain and inflammation. However, one must be careful—don’t use it before sleeping, as it excites the spirit and makes it hard to rest. Beastmen with weak stomachs, those prone to diarrhea, should avoid it altogether.”
(In truth, people with weak digestion shouldn’t take *Sanqi* alone; it’s best consumed with rice soup. But since this world had no rice, let alone rice soup, Yun Jiao could only advise against using it.)
The shaman nodded in satisfaction.
Bai Wei hadn’t expected Yun Jiao to speak so thoroughly. She immediately retorted: “Just because you say so? How do you know all that?”
Yun Jiao smiled: “That’s my business. It has nothing to do with you, does it?”
“You… hmph!” Bai Wei turned to the shaman: “But I wasn’t wrong either. You told me the same thing before.”
“Then let’s call it a tie,” the shaman said without arguing further. She picked up the second herb, then the third, the fourth.
Though the watching beastmen didn’t understand herbs, they could clearly tell: Bai Wei’s answers were always brief, while Yun Jiao’s were detailed and thorough.
As the test went on, Bai Wei grew more hesitant, stammering and faltering.
Yun Jiao, on the other hand, remained calm and composed, speaking slowly and in ever greater detail.
The difference in strength was obvious.
Bai Wei noticed it too, and gradually began to panic. The more flustered she became, the less detailed her answers were.
Until the shaman picked up another herb.
Bai Wei’s eyes lit up. Without thinking, she said: “I remember this one clearly—it’s *Huang Bai Hua*. It clears heat and toxins, prevents wounds from worsening, and can be used for fevers and heat illnesses. It has no contraindications.”
Yun Jiao’s eye twitched. She was speechless.
Bai Wei looked at her smugly: “Yun Jiao, you’ve lost. When I was little, Aunt brewed *Huang Bai Hua* tea for me, and I made sure to remember it. I know it better than you.”
“…” Better, really?
Big sister, haven’t you heard the saying *all medicine carries some poison*? No herb is without contraindications. Even the plant beastmen call *Huang Bai Hua*—known in modern times as honeysuckle—has its risks.
And besides…
Yun Jiao shook her head helplessly: “Leaving aside the fact that your explanation wasn’t detailed, this herb isn’t *Huang Bai Hua* at all. It’s a deadly poisonous plant called *Duan Chang Cao*—‘Heartbreak Grass.’ It looks very similar to *Huang Bai Hua*, but you’ve mistaken it.”