PCJ – Chapter 137 The Pig-killing Spell

The originally fierce wild boar was now extremely weak, letting out painful and miserable cries. It was no different from an ordinary pig now.

“Dad, if they help us carry the wild boar, do we have to share some of the meat with them?” Zhang Jiaohua asked, looking at the wild boar wrapped in hemp rope as if it were already a pile of fresh meat.

“This boar is so big; we can’t finish eating it ourselves. Even if we don’t ask others for help, we’ll have to share some with other families. Kids shouldn’t be stingy,” Zhang Youping said with a smile, patting Jiaohua’s head.

“We can sell it for money, lots of money,” Zhang Jiaohua’s eyes blinked.

“How do you plan to bring it back? Even if we manage to bring it back, we’ll still need to hire a butcher to slaughter it. I can’t handle it alone, even just for scalding the skin and removing the hair,” Zhang Youping chuckled, understanding that Jiaohua was reluctant to share the wild boar meat. He took off the bamboo basket from Zhang Jiaohua’s back and looked through it. “Are these the herbs you picked? Didn’t you go looking for wild ginseng? Didn’t find any?”

Hearing his father mention this, Zhang Jiaohua immediately forgot about having to share some of the wild boar meat and laughed, “Of course I found some. I found a really good one.”

Zhang Jiaohua took out a wild ginseng from the bottom of the basket and opened the newspaper to show his father, “Dad, look, it’s a big one. The old Taoist priest said that the older the wild ginseng, the better its medicinal effects. This must be a very old wild ginseng.”

Although Zhang Youping didn’t know many herbs, he recognized wild ginseng and was amazed to see such a cleanly processed wild ginseng. He hadn’t expected Jiaohua to actually find wild ginseng. In fact, he had considered buying wild ginseng for Jiaohua, but when he inquired at the pharmacy in town, the price was too high. Although Jiaohua had earned some money, it was still unaffordable. With the upcoming trip to Guangdong, they needed money for travel expenses, so Zhang Youping didn’t dare to spend their current savings. He thought about buying wild ginseng for Jiaohua to improve his health once he and his wife had made some money in Guangdong. Now that Jiaohua had found wild ginseng himself, it was the best outcome.

Zhang Youping couldn’t tell how old the ginseng was, so he quickly wrapped it in the newspaper and put it back at the bottom of the basket.

“Where did you find this?” Zhang Youping asked.

Zhang Jiaohua was about to answer but remembered that he had found it deep in the forest, so he stammered.

Zhang Youping could guess what was going on and glared at Jiaohua, “Do you know how dangerous it is in the deep forest? It’s a good thing you only encountered a wild boar. If it had been something else, how would you have escaped?”

He wasn’t aware that Jiaohua had been chased by a pack of wolves. If he had known, he would have been even more worried.

After waiting for a while, Liu Qiaoye arrived, but she came alone, pushing a squeaky wheelbarrow.

“Didn’t you call for help?” Zhang Youping was stunned to see his wife with the wheelbarrow.

“Why call for help? We can bring the wild boar back ourselves,” Liu Qiaoye had her own plan.

It was already November, and although there was still a long time until the New Year, such a large wild boar could be made into smoked meat, eliminating the need to slaughter a pig for the New Year. A wild boar weighing four to five hundred jin could yield three to four hundred jin of meat, which would last a long time.

Although some of the smoked meat would be given away, most of it would be stored for their own use, allowing Jiaohua to eat meat regularly. A wheelbarrow was enough to transport the wild boar home. Of course, Liu Qiaoye had factored in some elements, such as how to load the boar. She had considered the strength of Jin Hu and the others, who were always around Jiaohua and had proven harmless.

“How can I load this wild boar onto the wheelbarrow by myself?” Zhang Youping frowned.

“Jiaohua, didn’t you say you dragged the wild boar here by yourself? You and your father lift it onto the wheelbarrow,” Liu Qiaoye smiled knowingly at Jiaohua.

Knowing he couldn’t fool his parents, Jiaohua stopped pretending. “Fine, I can do it myself.”

Jiaohua walked over, grabbed the nearly severed tail of the wild boar bitten by the mountain leopard, and the boar floated up as if guided by Jiaohua, easily loading it onto the wheelbarrow. In reality, it was thanks to the help of Jin Hu and the others.

Zhang Youping tried pushing the wheelbarrow. Although he could move it, it was very heavy. Suddenly, he felt a lightness in his hands as if the wheelbarrow had become lighter, but he wasn’t too surprised, having grown accustomed to such occurrences.

Liu Qiaoye shouldered her bamboo basket, while Jiaohua, with his hands free, walked leisurely.

“You little rascal, don’t think today’s incident is over just because you brought back a wild boar. We’ll settle this when we get home,” Liu Qiaoye warned.

Hearing this, Jiaohua pulled a long face, but once they got home, Liu Qiaoye was too busy to scold him.

Zhang Youping borrowed butchering tools from the village butcher, Master Tu, and a scalding trough from a neighbor. The wild boar, tied up tightly by Jiaohua, couldn’t struggle at all. Zhang Youping decided to slaughter the boar himself.

However, Liu Qiaoye called over Zhang Manyin and his wife for help. Although not a professional butcher, Zhang Manyin, given his age, was familiar with the process of slaughtering and scalding a pig.

When Liu Qiaoye called them over, she only mentioned that Jiaohua had found a wild boar in the mountains without specifying its size. They assumed it was a boar weighing around a hundred jin at most. When they saw the four to five hundred jin wild boar in the yard, they were astonished.

“Jiaohua, did you really find this wild boar?” Zhang Manyin found it hard to believe.

“Yes. The boar ran down from the mountain and hit a rock. I tied it up with a rope and came back to call Mom and Dad,” Jiaohua recited the story his mother had taught him.

“This is really… really…” Zhang Manyin was at a loss for words.

Ma Donghua, on the other hand, was worried, “Jiaohua, how could you go into the mountains alone? Don’t you know how dangerous it is? What if the boar had hit you instead of the rock? And you two, why didn’t you keep an eye on Jiaohua? If something had happened, you wouldn’t have time to cry.”

“Mom, we were called over to help at Sixth Uncle’s house today. Qiaoye took Jiaohua along, but he sneaked off when she wasn’t looking. By the time she finished and went to look for him, he was gone. Qiaoye came home right away, but he had already been gone for a while. When we went to the mountains, he had already returned,” Zhang Youping quickly explained. The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law relationship is often delicate, and a single wrong word can cause friction. As both son and husband, Zhang Youping had to use his wits to defuse the situation.

Ma Donghua was worried about her grandson, but her words might sound harsh to Liu Qiaoye, so Zhang Youping took the blame, ensuring both women felt understood.

Liu Qiaoye, being reasonable, didn’t take offense at her mother-in-law’s words, “It’s my fault. I was too busy with the crowd and forgot about Jiaohua.”

Ma Donghua realized her tone might have been off, “I know no one wanted this to happen, but it’s so dangerous. Not long ago, a pack of wolves was spotted on the opposite mountain. I’m worried that once it snows and they can’t find food, they might come into the village.”

Zhang Manyin, annoyed by his wife’s nagging, said, “What’s the point of talking about it now? The blood’s almost drained. Go boil some water. Don’t let us finish here while your water is still cold.”

In the countryside, pigs are traditionally slaughtered by stabbing the neck to reach the heart and drain the blood. This method ensures most of the blood is drained, making the pork white rather than blood-red. It also helps in making smoked meat.

But slaughtering a four to five hundred jin pig, even a domestic one, isn’t easy. The larger the pig, the more it struggles. The thicker skin and meat make it hard to kill with one stab, which is considered unlucky. An experienced butcher aims to kill with one stab, but it often takes multiple attempts for less skilled butchers.

Zhang Youping measured the boar’s neck several times but didn’t make a move. He wasn’t confident.

“Dad, why aren’t you killing it? Are you afraid of hurting the boar?” Zhang Jiaohua teased.

“It’s a boar, not a pig. Do you think I can kill it as easily as chopping vegetables? The knife must be precise,” Zhang Youping replied, not revealing his hesitation.

Master Tu was hesitant to come and help because he wasn’t skilled at butchering such a large boar. He had butchered a pig for his own family when he was young, but it didn’t go well. Since then, he only butchered small pigs and left the large ones to professionals. He wasn’t confident in killing this wild boar with one stab and had no intention of taking on the task, even if begged.

Master Tu handed the knife to Zhang Youping, advising him to be quick. Zhang Youping felt pressured and sweated profusely.

Finally, Zhang Manyin stepped up, “You two hold the boar’s legs. I’ll do it.”