Chapter 984  : Chapter 984   The Fledgling Flying (3)

“It’s alright; there’s no need to be embarrassed,” Gu Chengrui reassured her. He crouched down beside her. “Come up; I’ll carry you for a while. We need to leave this area quickly. We wouldn’t want to attract any wild beasts if we stay too long.”

Guoguo readily climbed onto his back.

They set off at a brisk pace, Chenchen trailing behind with Guoguo’s cloth bag full of medicinal herbs.

By the time they reached camp, the sun was dipping towards the horizon. Tiger and the others had already gathered a substantial pile of firewood.

Meanwhile, Zhou Ying had taken Third Fatty into the mountains to forage for wild vegetables and edible greens. Unfortunately, the season wasn’t ideal, and she wasn’t able to find anything. She resorted to retrieving a few radishes and Cherokee Rose Fruit from their interspace, leaving only the tender middles for Third Fatty to munch on during their return trip.

Third Fatty was playfully occupied with a sparrow whose legs were bound.

As they approached the camp, Gu Chengrui and his group arrived. Zhou Ying noticed they were laden with small prey and a hefty wild boar. She greeted them, “Well done; you’ve brought back quite a haul! We won’t be able to finish all this.”

“Mummy, Mummy, look! I caught the wild chicken and the hare! Here’s also a goose!” Chenchen rushed forward, eager to claim credit.

“Is that so?” Zhou Ying ruffled his hair with a smile.

Then, she spotted Guoguo trailing behind everyone, looking listless. Most concerning were her messy hair and torn clothes. Zhou Ying hurried over and asked, “Guoguo, what happened? Are you injured?”

“Just a scratch on her leg, but she managed to take down a wild boar. Here, let me help her with her wound,” Gu Chengrui explained as he carried her towards their tent.

Learning that Guoguo had killed a wild boar, Zhou Ying was momentarily stunned. She turned to Chenchen for confirmation. After understanding the situation, she decided not to press the issue. The path of cultivation was fraught with dangers, and Guoguo needed to adapt quickly.

“Chenchen,” Zhou Ying instructed, “keep an eye on Third Fatty. Don’t stray too far. Mummy needs to start cooking.”

“Okay, I want to eat the goose I caught!”

“Alright, just watch over Third Fatty,” Zhou Ying reminded him before turning her attention to the bounty on the ground. Seeing the snake and wild boar, she decided to make a pot of dragon and phoenix soup.

The remaining goose and hare would be roasted beggar-chicken style for later. As for the wild boar…

Zhou Ying addressed Lin Yitian and the others. “There’s a stream nearby. Take all the prey there and clean them. Discard the fur and entrails; we just need the meat.”

“Understood, Mistress,” Lin Yitian acknowledged for the group. Tiger and the others offered to take over the task and carried the prey towards the stream.

With everyone occupied, Zhou Ying started preparing the lotus leaves, mud, and seasonings for cooking.

Once they returned, dinner was served. She had cleaned and chopped the radishes and Cherokee Rose Fruit for a pickled side dish alongside a large bowl of dragon and phoenix soup. The last dish was roasted meat, but they didn’t cook all the pheasants and rabbits.

Instead, Zhou Ying sliced pork ribs and some streaky pork, skewered them, and roasted them over the fire.

After dinner, she marinated the remaining pork to preserve it as dried food.

Over the next two days, they ventured into the mountains again. The focus remained on training Guoguo and Chenchen. However, this time, they didn’t resort to excessive hunting.

Instead, Gu Chengrui stayed on the sidelines, guiding Guoguo and Chenchen as they battled the beasts. Of course, he and the others would intervene if they encountered genuine danger.

Meanwhile, besides caring for Third Fatty, Zhou Ying took full advantage of the opportunity to harvest a significant amount of high-quality wild medicinal herbs.