I Overhear Animals' Thoughts to Feed My Family

Chapter 6: Chapter 6: Returning to the Village

Zhao Wenwu stood motionless, his eyes warily scanning the surroundings. He had the feeling he was being watched.

The brown horse beside him also sensed the danger in the air. It grew restless, struggling violently until the rope tethering it was pulled taut.

"Settle down, and be quiet! If you behave, I won’t fart on you!"

Zhao Wenwu had been holding in a fart, planning to get back at the brown horse. But before the urge came, an unknown danger arrived instead.

It was too dark to see his surroundings clearly, and a chill crept into his heart. But remembering his promise to Zhao Wendong, his feet seemed to take root.

He couldn’t run. He had to wait right here for his brother and father until they returned. His brother had said that whether their lives could be saved all depended on whether he could guard the horse-drawn sleigh.

Therefore, he, Zhao Wenwu, would not leave even if it meant death.

AWOOOO—!

Just as the moon emerged from the clouds, a mournful howl echoed. In the moonlight, a dark shadow suddenly burst from the darkness, rushing swiftly toward Zhao Wenwu.

Zhao Wenwu saw it clearly—it was a wolf. A lone wolf, its eyes glowing with a faint green light, glinting with a cold, bloodthirsty hunger.

When the brown horse saw the wolf pouncing, it reared up on its front hooves and let out a terrified neigh. Zhao Wenwu’s eyes instantly turned bloodshot, but he still didn’t run. Instead, he pulled his fists from the front of his pants and charged the wolf, yelling.

"Come on! I’m not afraid of you!"

"You bad wolf, I’ll beat you to death!"

’Shouldn’t this person turn and run?’

The lone wolf was a bit hesitant at Zhao Wenwu’s abnormal behavior, and its sprinting form faltered for a moment.

"BANG!"

In the instant it paused, a gunshot rang out.

The lone wolf’s body was thrown back as if struck by a heavy blow. It howled miserably and rolled on the ground twice before gradually going still.

"Third Brother!"

Zhao Wenwu looked with delight in the direction of the gunshot.

A figure carrying a rifle emerged, striding quickly through the night. Who else could it be but his third brother, Zhao Wendong?

When he got closer and saw Zhao Dashan on Zhao Wendong’s back, Zhao Wenwu was even happier.

"Dad!"

He moved to hug Zhao Dashan, but Zhao Wendong quickly stopped him.

"Second Brother, don’t touch Dad!"

"Oh, okay! Did Dad crap his pants? Why are you holding them up!"

Zhao Wendong: ...

Zhao Dashan: ...

After untying the ropes and placing Zhao Dashan on the sleigh, Zhao Wendong first helped him fasten his pants, then shot his father a strange look.

’My dad isn’t the quiet type. Why is he just staring at me without saying a word?’

"Is there a flower growing on my face? Why are you staring at me like that?"

"Who... who the hell are you! What... what have you done to my son?"

"You’re not running a fever, so why are you talking nonsense? I’m your son, Zhao Wendong. You don’t recognize your own son anymore?"

Zhao Dashan shook his head. "Impossible, absolutely impossible! It’s so dark and so far away, even I couldn’t have hit that wolf. There’s no way you could have. Besides, I didn’t even spot the wolf. How did you?"

Zhao Wendong scratched his head.

"Dad, is it possible that you’re just getting old, and I’m a genius?"

"Heh, genius my ass. My son is useless, aside from having a somewhat fair complexion!"

"Great Immortal, please stop this farce. Which ancestor has possessed my son’s body? I beg you to be merciful..."

Zhao Wendong cut him off directly.

"Stop, stop, stop. Let’s talk about this when we get home. I’m going to go get that wolf first."

The moment the kill was mentioned, Zhao Dashan immediately cast his suspicions aside, a happy smile spreading across his face.

He’d come out on this trip and gotten nothing, and he’d nearly died in a mountain crevice. He originally thought it was a total loss.

He never expected Zhao Wendong to suddenly become as powerful as Sun Wukong, the Monkey King born from a stone. Not only had he saved him, but he’d also taken down a wolf.

With this wolf, their family’s life would become much easier. They could survive for another seven or eight days.

Zhao Wendong reloaded the rifle. After that one shot, the crack in the stock had grown larger. The gun probably couldn’t be used anymore; it would likely fall apart completely after another shot or two.

He raised the rifle and slowly approached the lone wolf. Animals could sometimes be more cunning than people. Even without hearing its thoughts, Zhao Wendong didn’t dare to be careless.

His life wasn’t just his own anymore; it belonged to all eight members of his family!

Only after confirming the wolf was completely dead did Zhao Wendong lower the gun and drag it back.

It was a strong, adult gray wolf, a little on the thin side, likely having not eaten in a long time. It weighed a little over a hundred pounds.

When Zhao Dashan saw that the bullet had struck the gray wolf precisely in the heart, the look he gave Zhao Wendong became even more suspicious.

Then, when he saw Zhao Wendong pull out a sickle and deftly begin to bleed the wolf, Zhao Dashan closed his eyes in despair.

’It’s over. He’s so practiced at this. My youngest son has definitely been possessed by an old demon. There’s no other explanation!’

Normally, a wolf’s pelt should be skinned as soon as possible, but they didn’t have the tools or the time to process it. Zhao Wendong tied the wolf’s carcass securely to keep it from falling off the sleigh, then cracked the whip.

"Giddy-up!"

The old horse knew the way. Without Zhao Wendong needing to steer, the brown horse galloped quickly toward Dragon King Pond, much faster than on the way out. It was still grumbling to itself about the two Zhao brothers.

[That scared the living daylights out of me! I was almost wolf-food. I’m never going out with these two jinxes again!]

Zhao Wendong: ...

Meanwhile, Dragon King Pond Village was in an uproar.

At the home of the old accountant, Third Master Zhao, a kerosene lamp was lit—a rare luxury. The room was buzzing with voices, packed with curious villagers.

Zhao Weiguo, Dragon King Pond Village’s brigade leader and party secretary, sat on the kang, his face ashen, silently smoking his pipe.

Third Master Zhao’s resonant voice, full of vigor, echoed through the air with accusations.

"Wenjun! I watched you boys grow up! I won’t say anything about Wenwu, since he’s a bit slow in the head, but Wendong is really going down the wrong path!"

"Slacking off work every day was one thing, but now he’s resorted to outright robbery! I’m an old man! How can he torment me like this!"

"He even stuffed a foot-wiping rag in my mouth! The little Japs didn’t even treat me this badly back in the day! He’s crueler than the little Japs!"

"I can endure a little injury, a little humiliation, but that horse is the lifeline of our production brigade!"

"The whole village depends on that horse for work next spring! Now that it’s lost weight, what if we can’t meet the production quota next year?"

"We’ve barely survived this winter. What if there’s no grain left next year? The whole village, old and young, will starve to death!"

As he spoke, Third Master Zhao became truly emotional, and his eyes reddened.

Across from him, Zhao Wenjun, who had an honest and simple face, already looked weathered by life despite being only in his twenties.

Third Master Zhao’s words made him so ashamed he couldn’t lift his head. He clenched his fists tightly. His third brother, Zhao Wendong, was really getting more and more out of line!

’At a time like this, when our family and the village are on the brink of starvation, how can he be so unreliable? What kind of trouble is he causing!’

’When he gets back, I’m going to give him a harsh beating. If Zhao Wendong doesn’t straighten up after this, I’ll just pretend I don’t have this brother and wash my hands of him!’

Zhao Wenjun gritted his teeth, secretly making his decision.

Many of the villagers also began to speak up, denouncing Zhao Wendong.

"Wendong has been lazy since he was a kid. No idea who he takes after!"

"It’s because Dashan and his wife spoil him!"

"And his grandpa and grandma."

"If you ask me, Zhao Wendong is just a bad seed."

Hearing that last sentence, Chen Yanmei, who had been silent all this time, could no longer hold back. She shot to her feet, her sharp gaze sweeping over the crowd with a fiery look.

"Which one of you forgot to tie your pants and let your mouth run loose? Who said my youngest son is a bad seed? Step forward and let me have a look at you!"

No one responded.

"My sons didn’t go out to fool around. What’s wrong with saving Dashan? Is a son not allowed to save his own father anymore?"

Little Tuanzi, nestled in her arms, also cried out fiercely, "That’s right! My Third Brother isn’t a bad seed, you are! My Third Brother said he’d get me meat to eat!"

Laughter immediately rippled through the crowd.

"Your family was the first to run out of food. You’re about to starve, and you’re still thinking about meat. What nonsense is this!"

"Exactly. The snow has sealed the mountains. Who would dare claim they can find game in the mountains now? Dashan is the village’s veteran Hunter, and what has he caught all winter?"

"Just one pheasant, I think!"

Zhao Weiguo tapped his tobacco pipe.

"Alright, that’s enough out of all of you!"

"Dashan’s wife," he said, "let’s not even talk about whether Dashan was really in danger, or how Wendong would have known! Even if Dashan was in danger, taking the brigade’s horse without permission is a mistake on Zhao Wendong’s part!"

"When Zhao Wendong and the others get back, they must be severely punished!"

"And if the brigade’s horse has lost weight, your family must compensate for it. If you have no food, then have Zhao Wendong chop himself up to feed it."

Just as Zhao Weiguo finished speaking, someone shouted from outside the door.

"They’re back! Zhao Wendong and the others are back!"

WHOOSH~

The entire roomful of people instantly rushed outside, leaving only the extremely anxious Third Master Zhao, who was pacing in circles and cursing.

"Where are my shoes? Where the hell did my shoes go?"