TSWPF -Chapter 304 Ah Huang

No matter what Liu Zhimou said, the village head stubbornly refused to take their money.

Ever since he learned that Liu Zhimou and the others were coming back, his family hadn’t slaughtered their pig during the New Year. They had kept raising it until now, and this time they could finally butcher it and treat everyone to a proper feast.

The village head was so resolute that Liu Zhimou had no choice but to let it go.

Still, he decided he would seriously think about what he could do to help the villagers in other ways.

“Then it’s settled.” The village head smiled broadly, rubbing his hands together, and stopped circling around that topic, smoothly shifting the conversation elsewhere.

The village head and the others stayed at Liu Zhimou’s place until after the meal, then slowly made their way home.

He glanced at Old Li, who was walking beside him, and said with a chuckle that Liu Zhimou had truly made something of himself, and their whole village was basking in his reflected glory.

Thinking of Liu Zhimou becoming an official, a faint smile also appeared on Old Li’s face.

“I heard Xiao Feng is doing pretty well in his studies too. Hopefully he can be like his brother-in-law and have a good future,” Old Li said. His way of thinking was very traditional. Even though Liu Zhimou had achieved success, he wasn’t his biological grandson after all, didn’t carry the Li surname, and wouldn’t forever bring honor and protection to the Li descendants.

But his own grandson was different. If he achieved great things in the future, it would be the pride of the Li clan.

The village head nodded in strong agreement. “With Mr. Luo teaching him, Xiao Feng won’t turn out badly.” Xiao Feng was from the Li family; if he succeeded, they would be even happier.

Future generations would also know that the Li clan once had an ancestor who became a high-ranking official.

Old Li nodded. Indeed, Mr. Luo had once been the imperial tutor—his learning was certainly not lacking.

He had never imagined that Liu Zhimou’s family background would be so powerful, or that his granddaughter would marry into such a prominent family. Truly…

The village head glanced at Old Li again, reached out and patted his shoulder, and said earnestly, “You must keep your wife in check from now on. Don’t let her act foolishly like before. You can see it clearly too—Xiao Ling isn’t a hard-hearted child. As long as you don’t cross her, she won’t ignore you.”

Li Qingling was someone who loved and hated clearly. If others treated her poorly, she wouldn’t force her warmth onto their cold indifference. But if someone showed her a bit of kindness, she would repay it tenfold.

People like that were actually the easiest to get along with, and the most grateful.

Old Li felt ashamed by the village head’s words. He nodded heavily, saying he would manage his wife well and wouldn’t let her make mistakes again.

Before, he had indulged her too much, which was why she had acted so recklessly.

After being taught a hard lesson, he had finally awakened. If he wanted the Old Li family to prosper, he had to keep her under control.

Seeing him nod, the village head said no more. At the fork in the road, the two went their separate ways.

…

After riding in a carriage all day, Li Qingling and the others were truly exhausted. After dinner, they each returned to their rooms to rest.

In the middle of the night, Li Qingling suddenly woke up. Tilting her head, she listened and heard the courtyard gate banging loudly.

What was going on?

She frowned and gently nudged Liu Zhimou. When she saw him open his eyes, she whispered that someone was knocking at the door.

Someone knocking?

At this hour of the night—who would come knocking? Could something urgent have happened?

Thinking of this, Liu Zhimou hurriedly got out of bed and headed outside. Li Qingling quickly followed.

They grabbed some sticks and held them in their hands. As they hurried into the courtyard, they heard a familiar howl.

“Ah Huang?” Li Qingling called out tentatively. Could it really be Ah Huang?

As soon as she called out, Ah Huang’s howl sounded again.

Now Li Qingling was certain—it really was Ah Huang.

With a bang, she dropped the stick and ran to the courtyard gate, quickly reaching out to open it.

The moment she opened the gate, a huge figure hugged her to the ground, smearing her face with slobber.

Li Qingling pushed at Ah Huang’s head and laughed. “Ah Huang, stop… stop…” She called out for a long while before Ah Huang finally stopped on his own, allowing her to climb up from the ground.

She hugged Ah Huang’s head, met his big eyes, and asked how he knew they had come back.

She had originally planned to make a trip to Song Mountain herself to look for him and Ah Bai!

Who would’ve thought that before she could go, this fellow would run back on his own.

“Awwoo…” I was afraid you’d come back and not find me, so I came back every few days to check.

This time, as soon as I returned, I smelled your scent and knew you were back.

I was really, really happy.

Hearing this, Li Qingling felt both touched and guilty. She hadn’t expected Ah Huang to run back so often just to look for them.

When it came to feelings, humans really weren’t as pure as animals.

Animals, once they recognized someone, stayed loyal for life. Humans, on the other hand, often neglected the people and things around them because of so many factors.

“Then you came back by yourself—where’s Ah Bai?” Li Qingling looked around, still not seeing Ah Bai, and asked again.

Ah Huang nudged Li Qingling’s waist with his big head, making soft sounds.

My wife is pregnant again. I didn’t let her come. If she knows you’re back, she’ll definitely come see you tomorrow night.

Li Qingling rubbed Ah Huang’s big head hard and said excitedly, “You’re going to be a dad again? That’s amazing!”

Hearing her praise, Ah Huang lifted his head proudly. Who was he? He was the king of the forest—how could he not be amazing?

His wife would have a harder time and wouldn’t be able to hunt, but that was fine. He could provide for her.

Seeing his smug expression, Li Qingling pressed her lips together and smiled, rubbing his head again.

Ah Huang was still the same—praise him twice and his tail would shoot right up.

“Awwoo…” Are you going to leave again?

Ah Huang looked at Li Qingling with his big eyes, a hint of caution in his expression.

Seeing that, Li Qingling’s nose stung, and she almost cried. Ah Huang didn’t want them to leave.

Actually, they didn’t want to leave Ah Huang either. They had raised him from when he was so small into such a huge creature—it really was hard to part with him.

But Li Qingling honestly told Ah Huang that they would have to leave again in a few days. As soon as she said that, Ah Huang’s head drooped.

They had only just come back for two days, and they were leaving again?

Ah Huang lay listlessly on the ground, looking at Li Qingling pitifully. His eyes clearly showed how unwilling he was to part with them.

Li Qingling patted Ah Huang’s head and asked if he wanted to go with them.

Ah Huang howled and circled Li Qingling twice, his joy obvious.

“Where are you going? Are there mountains and forests there too?” If there were, he could take Ah Bai along. He had missed Li Qingling and the others terribly, especially those little ones.

Li Qingling nodded vigorously, saying yes—there were lots and lots of mountains and forests. If he wanted to go live there with them, that would be perfect.

Ninghua County was very backward, even more so than this place. Once Ah Huang went there, he’d probably dash straight into the mountains to play.

Hearing that there were mountains and forests, Ah Huang nodded without hesitation, saying he would go with them.

He trusted Li Qingling and the others, and he really wanted to be with them. Going together was the best choice.

Seeing Ah Huang nod, Li Qingling’s smile grew even brighter. She hugged him and chattered on for a long time, only snapping back to herself when Liu Zhimou urged her to hurry back to bed and rest.

Ah Huang licked Li Qingling’s face again, then told her he was going back to Song Mountain to share the good news with Ah Bai so she could be happy too.

This was good news—Ah Bai would definitely be delighted to hear it.

Hearing this, Li Qingling finally loosened her hold on Ah Huang, rubbed his big head again, and reminded him to take extra care of Ah Bai during her pregnancy and absolutely not be fierce with her.

Ah Huang nodded obediently. He understood all of that. He wouldn’t bully Ah Bai—her safely giving birth to their cubs was the most important thing.

“Alright, stop lingering here. Hurry back and keep Ah Bai company. Tomorrow bring the two cubs over and we’ll properly see them.”

Ah Huang howled once more, nodded at Li Qingling, then ran over to Liu Zhimou and rubbed his big head against him before finally leaving, looking back every few steps.

Watching Ah Huang’s retreating figure, Li Qingling closed the courtyard gate and turned to Liu Zhimou with a smile curling at the corners of her lips. She said she never expected Ah Huang to come by every few days just to check if they had returned—thinking about it, it was really hard on him.

“Was Ah Huang’s surprise timely?” Liu Zhimou asked.

“Very timely. I’m really so grateful to him.”

Liu Zhimou took Li Qingling’s hand and gently led her back toward the room.

“In a few days, Ah Huang will come with us. It’ll be much easier to see him then.”

“Yes…”

Back in the room, Liu Zhimou worried that Li Qingling was too tired and didn’t dare harbor any improper thoughts. He pulled her into his arms, patted her back, and urged her to sleep.

Li Qingling yawned widely, said good night to Liu Zhimou, then closed her eyes and quickly fell asleep.

Early the next morning, before Li Qingling had even gotten up, she heard a loud knocking at the door. She hoarsely called out for them to wait a moment. After getting dressed, she hurried out of bed to open the door.

Lowering her head, she saw Li Qingning smiling up at her and asked what was going on.

Li Qingning excitedly asked if Ah Huang had really come back last night.

Li Qingling didn’t notice anything unusual about her. She nodded firmly and said yes—he came back in the middle of the night. Tonight he would bring Ah Bai over. If she wanted to see them, she could do so tonight.

Li Qingning jumped up and down several times on the spot in excitement, thanked Li Qingling, then turned around and ran off.