Ye Old Master was the first to react, quickly moving to Ye Anran’s side.
“Little girl, what did those wolves say to you? They won’t come back, right?”
Ye Anran replied, “Grandfather, they said I’m ‘Xiangxiang,’ so they won’t eat us. They were just thirsty and wanted some water. Now they’ve left.
Oh, and the alpha wolf also said the wild boar is a gift for us.”
Her eyes sparkled as she looked at Ye Old Master. He slapped his thigh and rushed outside.
At the gate, he greeted the stunned villagers.
“Thank you, Village Chief, and thank you, everyone.”
The villagers waved their hands, feeling a bit embarrassed. They had hesitated when the wolves charged at Old Ye’s house—after all, everyone had elderly and children at home.
The village had been struggling—most families survived on black flour cakes, and the poorest had to mix tree bark into a paste to eat with the black flour.
But now, there was a massive wild boar—probably two or three hundred pounds! With it, the families could survive the cold winter.
Ye Old Master exchanged a few words with the village chief, then ran toward the wild boar.
Ye San, Ye Si, and Ye Da also rushed out. Only Ye Er was being held back by Liu Xiuxiu, who refused to let him go.
Ye Er pushed her aside. “My brothers are out there. How can I stay hidden inside? Just take care of the children.”
He opened the door and went out.
Seeing that everyone was safe outside, the family finally relaxed.
Ye Anran was still savoring the soft fur of the big white wolf she had touched—how wonderful it would be to ride it through the forest!
She followed Ye Old Master toward the gate.
Ye Laopo saw Ye Er finally coming out and scolded him harshly.
“You coward! All the men are thinking of how to deal with the wolves, and you’re hiding inside like a useless fool! How can someone from the same womb be so selfish?”
Ye Er lowered his head and said nothing.
Meanwhile, the big white wolf, with the other wolves in tow, frolicked happily back into the mountains.
Two of the smaller wolves had tasted the spirit spring water; the others had missed it but dared not complain because of their leader.
The villagers, seeing the alpha wolf lead the pack away, ran to surround the wild boar.
By the time Ye Old Master and the others arrived, the boar was already encircled. Everyone began discussing how to butcher it.
Ye Laopo hurried over, hearing the village chief organizing the villagers to kill the boar.
She was adamant—this boar was a gift from the alpha wolf to her little granddaughter.
It would have been fine to share some with the villagers, but the chief planned to kill the boar and eat it all together.
Old Madam Ye stepped forward. “The wild boar was given by the alpha wolf to my little granddaughter. How can we just let the whole village take it?”
The village chief frowned. Old Madam Ye was usually reasonable, so why was she making such a fuss now?
The boar had been killed by the wolves in front of everyone. Even though the Ye family had been scared, the wolves hadn’t touched them—they left and returned to the mountains.
The boar hadn’t been brought into the Ye household. How could words alone make it theirs?
Even the children in the village wouldn’t believe that.
Zhao Laopo at the village entrance placed her hands on her hips. “Old Madam Ye, are you losing your mind? Everyone’s starving. Families have nothing to eat. Now there’s a wild boar in the village. How can you claim it all for yourself? I’d say the alpha wolf gave it to me!”
Ye Laopo wanted to argue further, but Ye Anran tugged her hand and shook her head.
“Grandmother, just give it to them. I’ll earn silver to buy meat for you later. Besides, the villagers wouldn’t believe it anyway—the village chief and many men went to deal with the wolves…”
Seeing the unfriendly stares from the villagers, Ye Laopo gave up. After all, it was her little granddaughter speaking.
Even if she believed the wolf meant the boar for their family, the villagers were hungry. If they forced the boar to stay, the four sons and Ye Old Master might not even be able to hold half of it, and the family would completely clash with the village.
Considering everything, Ye Laopo realized it wasn’t worth it. The villagers’ well-being was more important, and everyone was starving.
She nodded to the village chief. “I leave it up to you.”
The village chief smiled. “The boar was killed by the wolves, and no one lost anything. The wolves even broke Old Ye’s door. I’ll let Old Ye’s family have a slightly larger share—as a repair fee. Everyone okay with that?”
The villagers all nodded in agreement.
The village chief organized some literate men to weigh and divide the meat.
The innards and bones went into a communal pot to make soup, with everyone getting a bowl.
The rest of the meat was distributed according to household size. The village became lively and cheerful.
When it was Ye Laopo’s turn, the village chief intentionally gave her a larger share—for the scare the wolves had given her family and for the broken door.
Ye Laopo happily returned home with the meat.
The Ye family’s daughters-in-law, realizing the wolves had returned to the mountains, finally let the children out of hiding.
Ye Qing’an, only five years old, came out and immediately saw Ye Anran standing at the door.
Seeing Ye Anran being tenderly held and patted on the head by Old Madam Ye, his face fell.
“Grandmother, who is she? Don’t you love me anymore? Why are you holding her?”