“Chief, I want to join the Picking team.”

In the tribe, the males were responsible for hunting, while the females would go out on designated days to gather fruits and edible plants to store for the winter.

However, the original host was lazy and refused to work, and with the support of her family, the chief had exempted her from joining the Picking team.

During winter, while the other beastmen received food rations, the original host, who hadn’t contributed, had to rely on her family’s help.

Hu Jiao Jiao wasn’t exactly lacking food, but in a tribe filled with many eyes, she couldn’t take things from her space too openly. She needed a plausible reason, like claiming she found something while out gathering.

She definitely didn’t want to reveal that she had an entire space of supplies.

“You want to join the Picking team?” The chief looked at Hu Jiao Jiao with a surprised expression.

Before, Hu Jiao Jiao had always cried and refused to go, and now she was voluntarily asking to join the Picking team?

“Yes, Chief, I hope you’ll allow it,” Hu Jiao Jiao nodded.

This wasn’t a big issue, of course.

“Alright, the next time the team goes out of the tribe to gather, I’ll have someone call for you.”

Whatever her motives were, trading the fire-starting stones for it was definitely a win for him.

“Thank you, Chief!”

Even though she was certain the chief would agree, Hu Jiao Jiao was still happy and smiled.

She pulled out two stones from her pocket.

“Chief, these are the fire-starting stones. Let me show you how they work.”

As she spoke, she struck the two flint stones together in her palm, causing sparks to fall. Then she took out the tinder she had prepared beforehand to catch the sparks. Holding it in her palm, she gently blew on it, and soon, smoke appeared followed by a small flame.

“It’s lit! It really works!”

“What kind of stone is this? It’s amazing!”

“Hu Jiao Jiao have really gotten lucky. How could she stumble upon something this valuable…”

Among the crowd, some were envious, some jealous, and others dismissed Hu Jiao Jiao altogether.

After demonstrating, Hu Jiao Jiao handed the flint stones to the chief.

She had initially planned to find the chief herself, but it turned out that Xiong Hua had helped by bringing him over.

Seeing this, the other orcs were filled with envy but had no choice but to leave, shaking their heads.

The chief examined the fire-starting stones, and his gaze toward Hu Jiao Jiao subtly changed.

He glanced over at Long Yu and Long Yao, who hadn’t left yet, and smiled approvingly. “Hu Jiao Jiao, take good care of your five little cubs. Be kind to them. If you ever face any difficulties, feel free to come to me.”

Perhaps it was because he had accepted something from her, or maybe it was because he noticed the change in her behavior, but unlike the others, the chief held no prejudice against Hu Jiao Jiao.

“Thank you for your kindness, Chief. I’ll definitely take good care of them and make sure they grow up healthy and strong,” Hu Jiao Jiao responded earnestly.

She couldn’t help but feel a little sentimental.

It seemed that the chief was a decent person. Even for a female like the original host, he was willing to lend a helping hand.

Although the chief kept the fire-making method to himself, he managed the tribe well. Thinking of his eventual sacrifice in the story, Hu Jiao Jiao couldn’t help but feel a sense of regret.

“Little sister, you’re amazing!” After the chief left, Hu Qinggao praised Hu Jiao Jiao with a face full of joy.

Hu Qinggao had delicate features and a pair of fox-like eyes that added a hint of mischief to his gentle face. His handsome smile was as warm as a spring breeze, making him look like a man straight out of a painting.

Hu Jiao Jiao stared at her second brother’s stunning looks in awe. No wonder he was a fox; he was so handsome. She wondered which female would be lucky enough to marry him in the future…

“Little sister, what’s wrong? Is there something on my face?” Hu Qinggao touched his face, looking puzzled.

Hu Jiao Jiao quickly shook her head and changed the subject.

“No… I was just wondering, how did you know I was here, second brother?”

“I just got back from hunting and wanted to bring you something to eat. Then I heard Xiong Hua calling your name, so I rushed over, worried that you might get bullied.”

As he spoke, Hu Qinggao suddenly remembered something.

He walked a short distance away and soon returned with three wild chickens, their wings flapping and their legs broken.

“Thanks to your reminder, I almost forgot about the prey.”

Hu Jiao Jiao smiled faintly. It seemed that her second brother was just as described in the book—handsome but absent-minded and careless, which didn’t match his looks at all.

Hu Qinggao scratched his head and pushed the wild chickens toward Hu Jiao Jiao. “Little sister, take these home to eat. If it’s not enough, I’ll catch more tomorrow!”

The fox tribe wasn’t skilled in combat, and their hunting capabilities were limited to smaller prey. Even so, whenever Hu Qinggao caught something substantial, he would always deliver it to the original host first.

Thinking of this, Hu Jiao Jiao quickly waved her hand and refused.

“Second brother, I don’t need them. We still have plenty of meat at home, thanks to what Long Mo brought back yesterday.”

Upon hearing this, Hu Qinggao frowned with disdain.

“Long Mo? How much prey could that useless man possibly bring back?”

In the past, every time Long Mo brought home prey, her little sister would finish it all by the next day. That’s why Hu Qinggao had come today to make sure she didn’t go hungry.

Hu Jiao Jiao pursed her lips and smiled sweetly, “Second brother, why don’t you come with me and see for yourself?”

The original host often complained about Long Mo to her family, which made Hu Qinggao very biased against him.

Since she wanted to win over the villain Long Mo, she couldn’t afford to let her brothers hold her back.

Knowing that explanations wouldn’t work, she decided to let Hu Qinggao witness it firsthand.

“Fine, let’s go,” Hu Qinggao agreed.

He was curious to see how much prey Long Mo had caught.

Hu Jiao Jiao turned to fetch Long Yu and Long Yao, but the two little ones were nowhere to be seen.

Smiling helplessly, she walked back home with Hu Qinggao.

…

Inside the wooden house, Long Xiu, the only one who had stayed behind, gripped the wooden stick in his hands tightly when he heard footsteps outside.

“Second brother, we’re back!” Long Ling’er’s voice followed.

Only then did Long Xiu relax, his ears twitching as he frowned and asked, “Why are you two the only ones back?”

He could tell from the footsteps that only two of them had returned.

“Just two?” Long Zhong’s scarred face twitched. He turned around and saw that Long Yao had disappeared.

Grinding his teeth, he muttered, “That little brat must have run off again.”

“What happened? Didn’t it work?” Long Xiu quickly picked up on something wrong and asked.

Last night, he had overheard the Vicious female’s plan, but since he was blind, he hadn’t been able to follow them and had stayed home, waiting for news.

“Of course, it worked. You wouldn’t believe how pitiful Xiong Qiu looked. His house was burned down, and he even ate Long Yao’s… uh, poop,” Long Ling’er eagerly recounted the scene to Long Xiu.

The more Long Xiu listened, the more puzzled he looked.

Poop?

That hadn’t been part of the plan!

“But… I’m sure Xiong Hua won’t let mother off that easily,” Long Ling’er said, her mood suddenly dropping.

Just as she finished speaking, footsteps sounded outside again.

The three little cubs tensed up instinctively. Could it be that Xiong Hua had returned for revenge?