flstandardbreds Chapter 366 The Hunter's Little Darling 24
Chapter 366 The Hunter's Little Darling 24
“I am an only child. My parents died early. My father went hunting and encountered a tiger. He didn’t even leave a body. My mother remarried, but she is gone now.”
Tu Shen began to explain his family situation.
“I don’t have any younger siblings, just me. Before, I was the only one who didn’t have to worry about anything, but now that I have you, raising you won’t be a problem.” Tu Shen said this while frowning at Xie Qingyu’s bowl, thinking that she was eating too little.
"All the money in the house is under a blue brick under the bed in our room. I'll give it all to you later," Tu Shen said.
When he mentioned this, Xie Qingyu got excited. Everyone said hunters were poor, but no one knew that Tu Shen had money saved up.
"How much money do you have?" Xie Qingyu asked.
Tu Shen frowned, but still emphasized, "Our family currently has about thirty taels of silver ingots, and some copper coins, which amount to about two or three taels of silver."
Xie Qingyu was genuinely surprised when she heard the number.
"You've saved up so much?" Xie Qingyu's surprised expression pleased Tu Shen.
"Before, when I had nothing to do, I would go hunting. If I was lucky, I would catch a lot of game, and I would sell it down the mountain and save up quite a bit." Tu Shen said this with a low-key sense of seeking praise.
Xie Qingyu paused for a moment before saying, "You're very capable."
"So supporting you is definitely not a problem, and even if you have children later, we can afford to raise them. Just eat without worry, and tell me if there's anything you want. I'll bring it back for you when I go down the mountain." Tu Shen subtly hinted to Xie Qingyu that she didn't need to eat so little.
Unfortunately, Xie Qingyu didn't realize it.
“This money will last you a long time, and you don’t need to hunt too hard,” Xie Qingyu said.
Hunting is the easiest way to encounter danger.
Tu Shen felt a warmth in his heart after hearing this. He quickly shoveled some rice into his bowl and said, "Okay, I'll be careful."
It seems like it's been a long time since anyone said those words to him.
Sometimes when I go hunting with others, I hear such advice, but it's never said to him.
Tu Shen took a long time to calm down before finally managing a smile.
After finishing their meal, Tu Shen quickly washed the dishes and chopsticks, and then began to show Xie Qingyu around their home.
"This is our gate. The threshold isn't high; you can hold onto it to get in."
"The kitchen is on your right. You don't need to go inside; just knowing you're here is enough."
"There's a big tree on the roof of the west wing that blocks the sunlight, so it's the shadiest room in the house. Sometimes we put the game we hunt here and collect it before going down the mountain to sell it." Tu Shen treated Xie Qingyu as if she couldn't take care of herself, helping her walk around the room.
"And then there's the main house we're staying in. When you come in, there's the hall, and on the right is our room. For now, there's only a bed on the left, but it can be used for the children later." Tu Shen spoke very quickly, as if he were trying to cover something up.
Xie Qingyu nodded as Tu Shen introduced her, and then followed in his footsteps.
Finally, there's the place where Tu Shen hid his money.
Tu Shen led Xie Qingyu into the room, closed the door, and then stopped with Xie Qingyu by the bed.
After moving the bedside table aside, Tu Shen took Xie Qingyu's hand and guided her to the first brick under the bed. "This is where the money is hidden. Just pull it out by pulling up from both sides at the same time." As he spoke, Tu Shen guided Xie Qingyu's hand to pull it out, letting her feel how the brick was pulled out.
After the brick was pulled out, Tu Shen led Xie Qingyu to take out a box that was half the size of the brick and opened it.
"Here are whole pieces of silver weighing two taels or more, and in total, there are thirty taels in loose change. You can take them from here whenever you need them." Tu Shen placed the silver in Xie Qingyu's hand.
Xie Qingyu touched it, indicating that he should put it back.
After the blue bricks were put back in place, Tu Shen took out a box from the original chest in the room. "There are some loose silver coins in here, about two or three taels. There are also copper coins in here. Normally, if someone comes to sell something, you can take money from here. This was originally placed on the table by the bed, but it was put in the chest yesterday because there were too many people. I usually keep it here."
Tu Shen refers to the table placed beside the bed.
"I didn't realize you were so talented. Everyone says that hunters in the mountains are poor and have a hard life," Xie Qingyu teased.
“Life is tough for hunters, but I’m still young, so I should save some money as soon as possible.” Tu Shen didn’t say that life was indeed tough for hunters in the mountains. If the game they caught was small, it wouldn’t fetch a good price, and it would take a long time just to get it down the mountain. If they wanted to save it all together, they were afraid it would spoil.
If you want to fight the big guys, you have to go inside; it's all about risking your life.
Since there was no way to farm on the mountain, they had to trade their food from the mountains, selling their prey for flour, seasonings, and other basic foods to make a living.
Normally, it's already quite an achievement if the prey you hunt can feed your entire family.
Tu Shen was able to save money not only because he was strong and powerful, but also because he was always alone and had no worries, which made him bold.
If Xie Qingyu were here now, he wouldn't go even if he were asked to recklessly chase after prey into the deep mountains and forests.
However, he can't say that right now.
"I can support you," Tu Shen said again.
He looked at Xie Qingyu's clothes; he had basically found out about Xie Qingyu's situation.
It's obvious she had a good life before, so naturally, he wouldn't let her have a bad one while she's with him.
Tu Shen was already planning how many things he would buy for Xie Qingyu to bring back the next time he went down the mountain.
It's a pity that Xie Qingyu's eyesight is poor, so it's inconvenient to take her down the mountain when there's prey to sell; otherwise, she could choose it herself.
After they finished looking around the house, Tu Shen took Xie Qingyu outside.
"Should we bring something for Grandma?" Xie Qingyu asked.
The new bride is supposed to give gifts to her elders. Although Xie Qingyu hadn't prepared anything, she could still find some things in the box she brought if needed.
"No need." Tu Shen's tone didn't reveal his attitude, but it was clearly not very warm.
Xie Qingyu was naturally of the same mind as Tu Shen, and upon hearing this, she did not ask any further questions.
The closest house to them was the home of Tu Shen's second uncle.
Although it was the closest place, it still took quite a while to walk around. Due to the location limitations, the houses here are not very close to each other, but they are within a certain range, so that if there is any danger, the surrounding people can discover it in time.
"Big brother and sister-in-law are here!" Xie Qingyu heard the voice of her cousin from yesterday.
Then came Auntie's voice, "Brother Shen is here."
"Yes, Second Aunt." Tu Shen nodded.
"Your wife is beautiful." Second Uncle knew that Tu Shen would definitely come today and was at home now, so he expressed his approval of Xie Qingyu.
As soon as he said this, Xie Qingyu heard a rather old voice, "What's the use of being pretty? A blind person can't do anything. He'll just fall down if he tries to walk. What good is it to marry him? You can't put food on the table if you're pretty."
Judging from the voice, it's probably Tu Shen's grandmother.
"Mother, what are you saying!" Second Uncle scolded.
“Mother is only doing this for Shen’s own good, why are you in such a hurry?” Second Aunt said.