During famine years, I had a divination slip in hand, and my whole family ate chicken, duck, fish, a

"Second girl, that's not how it works!"

The village head's wife lifted the curtain and came out of the house. She crossed her arms and leaned against the door frame, pouting as she said, "If your family hadn't cut off the wild boar's den, would the wolves on the mountain have been so hungry that they would have run into the village to eat people?"

Besides, your family made such a big fuss about slaughtering a pig; the aroma of the pork stew would reach other villages. How could the wolf not come running down that scent!

Ye Qingqing chuckled, "When my aunt was collecting pork from my family just now, she didn't have this kind of attitude."

When my family hunted wild boar, it wasn't just the whole family sneaking away to eat it; the entire village devoured the fatty pieces. If wolves could smell it, they'd know who was eating it!

If we can't reach an agreement, we'll flip the table!

She's not going to be a sucker!

The village head, relying on his age and seniority, lectured her.

"As the old saying goes, suffering a loss is a blessing! Second daughter, you are still young. You go up the mountain to hunt every day, and you hold the lives of many animals in your hands. You should accumulate more good karma."

Ye Qingqing sneered, "Suffering a loss is accumulating good karma? Then you should eat more, I don't like it!"

Ye Dazhuang pursed his lips deeply.

Because he was trying to suppress his laughter, his strong facial features became somewhat distorted.

I've never seen anyone so eloquent and yet not annoying.

On both sides, Ye Qingqing's aura was clearly dominant.

The village head and his wife are only interested in getting her family to pay up and reap the benefits without lifting a finger. No way!

If she has to bleed, it's because she wants to!

Ye Qingqing had already made up her mind: if the village head didn't summon the villagers to guard against the wolf attack, she would.

While I'm at it, I can also win people's hearts; it's not impossible that I could become a female village head in the future!

"Wolves become addicted once they've tasted human flesh."

Just as she was about to storm off, Ye Youliang tapped his large pipe on the sole of his shoe and said calmly,

"My family provides the food for the anti-wolf team. It's not like we can't afford it. In any case, I, as the father, am the one who makes the decisions for this family. So, we'll just have to accept the loss."

"There's only one rule: once the wolf is killed, it belongs to my family; no one else should expect to get a single bite."

A hint of surprise flashed in Ye Qingqing's clear black and white eyes.

This is the first time I've seen my dad so tough in front of the village!

His timid tone carried an undeniable air of unyielding strength.

"If you agree, I'll have Er Yatou and the others prepare right away."

Ye Youliang reached out to Ye Qingqing, who quickly helped him to his feet. Looking at the village head, she said, "If you don't agree, there's nothing I can do. Just take care of your own family."

The air went still for a moment.

"Since you've said that, what else can I say?"

Within seconds, the village headman's mind raced, and he quickly stood up, saying, "Let's do it this way, Brother Youliang!"

The anti-wolf team in Kaoshantun usually consists of thirty or forty young men who are stationed at different points in the village, and some take turns patrolling at night. They spend at least five or six hundred yuan a day on coarse grain buns and stewed vegetables.

After a few days, you can't survive without spending three to five taels of silver!

In previous years, every household would contribute, with those having grain contributing grain and those having vegetables contributing vegetables.

Out of a sense of face, the village's wealthy households and he, the village head, would also donate several hundred coins every year, a donation that pained him every year.

Ye Youliang's family has become rich, and they eat chicken, duck, fish and meat every day. They're going to have to pay a hefty price for him!

They're so arrogant! They killed two wild boars and forgot how they used to eat bran and wild vegetables. They're treating everyone in the village to a feast of pig slaughter!

"Honey, he didn't shed blood for nothing; he'll be waiting for the wolves later!"

The couple discussed it for a few moments, and the village head's wife said with a pained expression, "How much silver can a wolf sell for? I have a feeling Ye Youliang is ripping us off."

The village head glared at his wife and yelled, "You think you can catch a wolf? Our village guards against wolves every year, but when have we ever caught a single one? We can't even get a single wolf hair!"

The village head's wife clicked her tongue and said,

"Don't forget, those two wild boars of his were killed by that nephew named Dazhuang! If he can kill wild boars, can't he kill a wolf?"

"He's talking nonsense!"

The village head glared at his wife with disdain and said with a sneer,

"You think I don't know how powerful that Dazhuang is? He shot an arrow through a wild boar's head. That's something an ordinary person can do."

You think I casually agreed to let Ye Youliang get the wolf after I killed it? You don't know anything!

A wild boar is a wild boar, and a wolf is a wolf! A lone wolf is easy to hunt, but a pack of wolves is hard to catch. Wolves are very clever. Once they form a pack, they are like well-trained soldiers, resourceful and cunning. Even tigers, leopards, and bears are no match for them!

Even if Ye Dazhuang is incredibly skilled, he's still just one person. With the fire blazing brightly and people everywhere, wolves are terrified of fire. They'll know it's going to be difficult to break through and will turn tail and run. He'd be lucky to even touch a wolf's rear end!

"Oh, is that even a valid argument? No wonder you agreed!"

The village head's wife patted her chest and breathed a sigh of relief, tilting her head and pursing her lips, saying, "They call their family 'roe deer' and 'wild boar,' so they should be the ones to pay up!"

The village head rolled his eyes and lowered his voice,

"I said, go out for a bit later and do it this way and that way..."

"Snapped!"

The village head's wife slammed her hand on the table, quickly got off the kang (heated brick bed), and put on her shoes. "I knew it! Let's see how I mess things up for him!"

"Don't forget to head where there are lots of people!"

The village headman revealed a smug, cold smile.

……

Back home, sitting on the kang (heated brick bed), Ye Qingqing asked with great interest, "Dad, I argued with the village head for ages, but you resolved it with just one sentence! Amazing! How did you plan that?"

"What else can we do? Who doesn't fear the laughter of those who have and the scorn of those who don't? They'll laugh at you when you're poor, but they'll feel terrible when you become rich."

The village head and his wife have planned this all along to make our family suffer huge losses. If we don't pay, once the wolves wreak havoc on the village, they'll turn around and pin all the blame on us for what the wolves brought upon us.

"We're not taking the blame for this!"

Ye Youliang lit another cigarette, took a few puffs, and a shrewd and calculating look was hidden deep beneath his honest and unassuming face.

Standing nearby, Li Chunyan listened with a heart-wrenching pain, grimacing as she spoke.

"But we can't agree to all of them, can we? In previous years, every household pooled their resources to feed each other, Dad! There are thirty or forty young and strong people in the family, who are at the peak of their life. How much grain do they need to eat?"

The rice and flour we just bought…

Without saying a word, Ye Dali quickly poked his wife's lower back and said, stammering.

"Don't speak, listen to your father! Listen to your father!"

"I know, I'm just asking!"

Li Chunyan rolled her eyes at him as she turned around. The thought of having someone else cook the whole vat of rice and noodles felt like a knife tearing at her flesh.

"Father, I don't believe you'd willingly suffer this loss for nothing."

Ye Qingqing nudged her father's arm and asked with great interest, "Providing grain and meat is nothing, I'm just curious why the village head agreed to let us take the wolves we hunted!"

He didn't know how much a wolf could sell for.

The village head was cunning and shrewd, and she felt that her father's cunning couldn't be any less so.

The two sides were locked in a fierce battle of wits, but this was the only step she didn't understand!

"Hehehe...Silly girl, you think a pack of wolves is so easy to defeat!"

Ye Youliang looked at his daughter affectionately and chuckled, "I only said that because I knew deep down the village head thought we couldn't take it!"