The three cubs nervously looked towards the door.

A shadow zipped inside, circling around them.

“Is Xiaowu (Long Yao) back? Why does it smell so strange…”

Long Xiu quickly recognized it was Long Yao by the sound. But something was off with the smell…

“It’s Xiaowu. He had diarrhea today,” Long Ling’er pinched her nose with one hand and grabbed Long Yao’s dragon body with the other, dragging him towards the door. “Xiaowu, you stink! Go clean yourself, or else mother won’t give you any meat today…”

Cough, cough, cough… Long Xiu’s face stiffened, coughing as he sniffed the air.

Long Yu walked in, expertly covering his nose.

Seeing that there was no one behind Long Yu, Long Ling’er was about to ask where their mother was when they heard Hu Jiao Jiao’s voice from outside, “Cubs, mother’s back, and your second uncle has come to visit too.”

Second uncle!

The very one who looked so good, always brought food, but only let them smell it while watching from the side—Fox Uncle No. 2!

The five cubs simultaneously frowned.

They had no fondness for Hu Qinggao—none for the entire fox family.

All five chose to stay inside the wooden house.

Hu Jiao Jiao, arriving quickly, saw Long Yu enter the house. Knowing they didn’t want to come out, she led Hu Qinggao into the yard to look at the meat.

“Did Long Mo, that useless one, really catch all this prey?”

Hu Qinggao was shocked, his mouth agape as he looked at the yard, full of hanging meat.

Yesterday, their parents mentioned this when they returned, but neither he nor their younger brothers believed it—until now.

“Second brother, Long Mo is not useless. Please don’t call him that anymore,” Hu Jiao Jiao corrected him seriously. She definitely didn’t want the main villain hearing that—things could end very badly for her.

“Alright, alright, I won’t call him useless anymore.”

As a brother completely devoted to his sister, Hu Qinggao agreed without question. He then asked, “But why didn’t he bring more prey in the past? Was he deliberately mistreating you?”

“No, second brother. He brought a lot of game before, but it was taken by some of the tribe’s beastmen. Yesterday, I found out and made them return it,” Hu Jiao Jiao explained, recounting the events from the previous day.

Upon hearing this, Hu Qinggao’s face turned red with anger.

“Who? Who dared to steal from you? I’ll go break their legs!”

The handsome man instantly transformed into an angry warrior.

Hu Jiao Jiao awkwardly pulled him back, laughing. “It’s fine, second brother. They won’t dare to do it again.”

Right now, her priority was the cubs and the original body’s family. She didn’t want to stir up trouble over old issues, but if those beastmen dared cross her again, she certainly wouldn’t let it slide.

After much persuasion, she finally calmed Hu Qinggao down.

Insisting on leaving behind three wild chickens, Hu Qinggao handed them over. Hearing the chickens clucking, the five cubs peeked their heads out from the wooden house. Long Zhong stared unblinkingly at the chickens, his throat bobbing as if swallowing.

Hu Jiao Jiao noticed Long Zhong’s reaction, then it hit her.

Oh right, Long Zhong was the only fox cub among the five, and foxes… well, they do like chicken.

She smiled to herself, deciding not to refuse the gift, accepting the chickens. She also gave Hu Qinggao a large chunk of meat to take back.

Knowing Hu Jiao Jiao didn’t lack food, Hu Qinggao didn’t bother refusing.

This was, after all, a gift from his sister. He couldn’t wait to show it off to his brothers.

Just as he was about to leave, Hu Qinggao noticed a few pieces of animal hides hanging behind the meat.

“Little sister, what are you doing with those hides?” he asked, sounding unsure.

Hu Jiao Jiao glanced at them—those were the hides she had cleaned yesterday.

“Oh, I’m drying them to make clothes for the cubs.”

Yesterday, she had skinned six hides. Except for the one she personally skinned, which was incomplete due to her inexperience, and the white fox hide, which was damaged, the rest were in good condition. The cubs were small, so the hides were more than enough to make clothes.

Hu Qinggao’s expression turned strange.

“Little sister… that’s not how you treat hides. If you dry them like that, they’ll become stiff and uncomfortable to wear.” He explained, amused.

Hu Jiao Jiao froze, her smile stiffening. “Is that so…”

She hurried to touch the hides, and sure enough, they were hard and stiff, nothing like the soft hides she was used to wearing.

Frowning slightly, she regretted not asking the beastmen how to properly treat hides beforehand.

She had assumed washing them clean would be enough.

Seeing her disappointment, Hu Qinggao quickly reassured her, “It’s no big deal, little sister. If these hides are ruined, they’re ruined. I’ll bring you more if you need them!”

“Thank you, second brother, but no need. Next time, please teach me how to properly treat hides!” Hu Jiao Jiao shook her head. She didn’t want to be the type to always rely on others. If she didn’t know how to do something, she’d learn from her mistakes.

“Of course!” Hu Qinggao agreed eagerly, happy to teach her.

After sending him off, Hu Jiao Jiao looked at the hardened hides with a hint of regret.

These hides may not be suitable for clothing, but she could still make a few pairs of shoes. The beasts around here didn’t seem to wear shoes, and she and the cubs were all barefoot.

She wasn’t used to walking around without shoes.

So, without wasting time, she got to work. While the cubs were out playing, Hu Jiao Jiao entered her storage space, found some thread and needles, and started making shoes, relying on her memories of watching her grandmother sew shoes when she was a child.

Besides the needles and thread, she also found some cloth. After some thought, she decided to use the softer fabric for the inner lining of the shoes and wrap the hides on the outside. This way, the shoes would be both soft and durable, and the appearance wouldn’t raise any suspicion.

The original body had never done any manual labor, so her fingers were long and delicate, like those of a noble lady from ancient times. But for Hu Jiao Jiao, making shoes was an easy task.

In no time, she had crafted four small pairs of shoes.

Long Yao hadn’t yet transformed, so she didn’t know his shoe size, and thus didn’t make him a pair.

Looking at the four neatly crafted shoes in her hands, Hu Jiao Jiao was quite satisfied. The workmanship was decent, though the materials were ordinary, giving the shoes a plain appearance. But they would do just fine for everyday wear.

After finishing the cubs’ shoes, she started working on her own.

But focusing on needlework for so long had left Hu Jiao Jiao tired, and before finishing her own pair, she dozed off on a stone stool in the courtyard.

When she woke up, she was drenched in cold sweat.

She quickly lifted her head to check the sky. The sun was almost directly overhead, and her face felt hot, like a cooked apple.

Her hands, however, were cold and clammy from sweat.

Patting her cheeks to shake off the sleep, the coolness of her hands helped clear her mind.

She had a nightmare!