RYEY – Chapter 198 New Favorite

Wang Xiangyang and the others looked up at the sky and saw a massive snow-white eagle circling above. They didn’t know where to hide and were terrified, but Li Huan grew excited. This must be the Snow-white Eagle that Cheng Qiao had told him about.

Could it be that Cheng Qiao had tamed the Snow-white Eagle? In Li Huan’s mind, a flash of the eagle bowing before Cheng Qiao appeared, and he couldn’t help but smile.

Seeing Li Huan grinning foolishly without hiding, Wang Xiangyang wanted to grab him, but Li Huan’s eyes were fixed on the Snow-white Eagle, and he began walking forward.

Zhao Guoliang was already lost. A man from the capital, it was his first time in the mountains, and with heavy snow sealing the peaks, he immediately got confused about directions and regretted it immensely.

As he panicked, he also heard the eagle’s cry. Looking up, he saw Snow-white Eagle’s eyes shining and hurriedly ran in the direction the eagle indicated.

Snow fell in thick sheets, almost burying Zhao Guoliang, but he ignored it and got up. This Snow-white Eagle was clearly trained by humans, so following it was the only way out of the mountains.

Snow-white Eagle circled twice before diving straight toward a spot, where a fleeing pig burst from the snow, charging straight toward where Cheng Qiao stood.

The eagle flapped its massive wings, nearly sending the pig tumbling down the mountain. Luckily, the snow was deep enough to stop it from falling.

Seeing Snow-white Eagle dive, Zhao Guoliang’s excitement grew. He knew the eagle had caught prey and would soon take off. He had to hurry.

He never ignored any sign—whether falling snow or the eagle’s cries, they all pointed him down the mountain.

Li Huan did the same. He guessed Cheng Qiao had gone up the mountain and used Snow-white Eagle to help find the escaped pig, carrying the timber storage and following the eagle.

Wang Xiangyang and the others had no choice but to follow Li Huan. Cheng Qiao surely never expected a single Snow-white Eagle to bring both all the people and the pig down safely.

Cheng Qiao, hiding in her space, leisurely drank malted milk and fed some to little Cheng Li. When she saw an animal approaching, she smiled.

“Son, the pig is coming. Mama will tie it up. You wait here, okay?”

Little Cheng Li cooed in agreement. Cheng Qiao stepped out of the space. The pig, running happily, was startled by her sudden appearance and squealed, trying to turn around—but Snow-white Eagle followed closely behind.

“Got you.”

Cheng Qiao quickly contained the pig in her space to prevent it from running away again. She placed a basin of well water in front of Snow-white Eagle as a reward.

After drinking, just as Cheng Qiao was about to leave, Snow-white Eagle bit her clothes.

“Do you want to follow me?”

The eagle tilted its head. The person smelled interesting—a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity it couldn’t pass up.

“This is my little red-headed snake. Can you promise not to hurt it?”

Eagles and snakes were natural enemies. If Snow-white Eagle entered the space, what would happen to the red-headed viper? Cheng Qiao pulled the snake out.

The red-headed viper, seeing its enemy in a new environment, bristled, trembling but still striking a defensive posture.

Snow-white Eagle looked at the snake with disdain but understood it belonged to Cheng Qiao. If it wanted to follow her, it had to agree to her conditions.

Feeling the eagle’s hostility disappear, the red-headed viper relaxed. Cheng Qiao knew Snow-white Eagle had agreed and returned both the snake and the eagle to the space.

Seeing Snow-white Eagle head straight for the well, Cheng Qiao blocked it. How could it drink water she had already given? She fetched another bucket from the well and poured it into a wooden basin—two basins a day.

Cheng Qiao tied a hemp rope around the pig’s neck, holding the other end, and appeared on the mountain path, humming a song.

When Li Huan arrived, he saw Zhao Guoliang standing ahead, looking around in confusion, and immediately called out. Zhao Guoliang turned, his eyes lighting up at the sight of Li Huan.

“Village Head, sorry, I didn’t find the pig.”

“Uncle Zhao, why be so stubborn? Which is more important, a person or a pig? It’s not worth risking a life for a pig.”

Zhao Guoliang nodded but still felt uneasy. The pig wasn’t cheap, and he couldn’t pay for it. Besides, meat wasn’t something money alone could buy—you needed a ticket.

Wang Xiangyang and the others arrived too. Seeing Zhao Guoliang, they nodded in satisfaction. Finding the man was enough—losing a life for a pig would be unacceptable.

Carefully, everyone descended the mountain. Unfortunately, this year they wouldn’t have pig-feast dishes. Though they had enjoyed such dishes from a wild boar before, wild boar meat didn’t compare to domestic pigs.

“The pig… our pig!”

Zhao Guoliang suddenly pointed at a pig at the foot of the mountain, shouting excitedly. Li Huan looked over and saw Cheng Qiao holding the child, standing about five meters from the pig.

“Qiao, why are you here?”

“Li Huan, I originally wanted to go up the mountain to find you, but the pig was just standing there. I tied it with the hemp rope and secured it to a tree.”

“Cheng Qiao, thank you! You really saved my life. And thanks to you all for risking your lives to find me. I swear, when I can return, I will reward you greatly.”

Zhao Guoliang, emotional, wanted to shake Cheng Qiao’s hand but restrained himself. He was no longer a university professor—he couldn’t cause trouble for her.

The threshing ground grew lively again. Children’s eyes were glued to the blood sausages and pig feast, their noses twitching as drool dripped down.

Cheng Qiao took out soda from the supply store for Li Le and Xuhui. They alternated bites of meat and sips of soda happily. Xuhui’s belly was already round from eating.

Gou Sheng sat next to Xuhui, enviously watching him hold the soda bottle. Eventually, he couldn’t resist and pulled out a bag of tofu skin from his pocket, hoping to trade.

Xuhui generously handed over the soda bottle, leaving the tofu skin. With so much delicious food from Mother Cheng, Gou Sheng could enjoy the tofu skin alone.

“Brother Goudan… no, Brother Xuhui, when did I get a proper name? I don’t want to be called Gou Sheng.”

“Go tell your father to give you a formal name. You’ll need it for school.”

“My father can’t name me… maybe I should ask your grandfather on Mother Cheng’s side.”

“Okay, I’ll talk to my mother about it.”

“Goudan, I think calling you Goudan is easier. Xuhui… it feels awkward.”

Niqiu wiped his nose with a dirty sleeve. He wasn’t jealous—he just thought “Goudan” sounded natural. Saying “Xuhui, Xuhui” while pouting was too troublesome.