Chapter 27: Entering the Mountains to Gather Medicinal Herbs

“They’re poor and can barely get by,” Lin Daguang shook his head and recounted the situation he had observed at Lin Dayou’s home to Lin Laotou.

“Old man, do you suspect that Lin Dayou was behind this?” Lin Laotou, sitting beside him, asked in confusion.

“Who else could it be?” Lin Laotou concluded that the theft must be attributed to Lin Dayou.

“That’s impossible! When I beat him yesterday, he looked so weak; how could he have done all this without attracting our attention?” This time, Lin Laotou was speaking the truth.

While Lin Dayou lacked the strength, they hadn’t even considered Lin Luoxi, who was outside their radar.

However, Lin Luoxi was still seen as a simple-minded girl in the eyes of outsiders, lacking any conditions to commit such acts.

Listening from outside the house, Lin Luodi’s resentment towards Lin Luoxi grew deeper. Her intuition told her that the theft was definitely related to Lin Luoxi.

Lin Luoxi couldn’t stand seeing her family better off than hers, which was why she had come to steal the dowry that was supposed to be prepared for her.

Lin Luoxi was oblivious to the wild speculations at Lin Daguang’s house.

Right now, she was in the mountains, focused solely on gathering medicinal herbs while also hoping to catch some game to take home for her little cat to regain some strength.

“Second Sister, it’s all my fault for letting the murderer roam free,” Lin Wenqian immediately apologized to Lin Luoxi on their way.

As an older brother, he felt powerless to seek justice for his sister against the Old Lin family and felt a pang of guilt inside.

“Big Brother, you don’t have to blame yourself. I’ll take care of my own revenge; let her be anxious for a while,” Lin Luoxi comforted Lin Wenqian in return.

“Let’s go! It’s getting late; we need to hurry and find medicinal herbs.” Lin Luoxi looked up at the sun overhead and took the lead up the mountain.

As soon as they reached the mountain peak, Lin Luoxi spotted the medicinal herbs she was after, took out a small hoe from her basket, and began her work.

“Second Sister, what are you digging up these wild herbs for?” Lin Wenqian, unfamiliar with the herbs, thought Lin Luoxi was merely collecting weeds.

“To you, these may look like weeds, but to me, they are treasures,” Lin Luoxi rolled her eyes at Lin Wenqian.

Fortunately, she had a natural talent for traditional Chinese medicine; otherwise, she might also mistake these blood-activating herbs for mere wild plants.

“Oh, then I’ll help you dig!” Seeing Lin Luoxi so enthusiastic, he took out his hoe and started digging too.

“Hey, hey, Big Brother, it’s not done like that! If you dig like that, there won’t be any left to harvest next year…”

“You should look for the bigger roots and leave the smaller ones to continue growing…” She patiently taught Lin Wenqian the right way to dig up the herbs.

“Got it! I understand now.” Lin Wenqian hadn’t realized there was so much to consider when gathering herbs.

However, these herbs were useful for Lin Wentao, so he dug with all his might.

As long as he dug quickly, Lin Wentao would wake up sooner.

“Cluck, cluck, cluck…” Just as Lin Luoxi and the others were engrossed in their work, their noise startled a few hidden wild chickens.

The chickens flapped their wings and flew off in a different direction.

“Wild chickens! Wild chickens!” Lin Wenqian, seeing the chickens fly away, could only stare in disbelief, frantically pointing at the escaping birds.

As Lin Wenqian exclaimed, his shout only startled the wild chickens further, causing them to fly away even faster.

Lin Luoxi glanced helplessly at her older brother. She bent down, picked up a nearby stone, took aim, and accurately hit one of the wild chickens that had begun to veer off.

“I got it! I actually hit one!” Lin Wenqian stared in disbelief as Lin Luoxi’s few stones struck down the three wild chickens, tumbling to the ground. He was utterly shocked.

It was said that wild chickens were the hardest to catch, yet his little sister had managed to do so with just a few stones—how impressive!

“What are you standing there for? Hurry up and go collect them!” Lin Luoxi urged Lin Wenqian, who was still in a daze.

“Oh, right! I’ll go right now…” Lin Wenqian rushed excitedly toward where the chickens had fallen, thrilled at the prospect of finally being able to eat some game.

“Second Sister, look! The three wild chickens are still alive!” They were just grounded because Lin Luoxi had injured their wings.

Fortunately, he reached them just in time; otherwise, the chickens would have indeed escaped.

“Hmm, put them at the bottom of the basket and cover them with the medicinal herbs,” Lin Luoxi instructed Lin Wenqian, her face lacking pride. Instead, she focused on ensuring they would be safe.

“Okay!” In Lin Wenqian’s eyes, Lin Luoxi now radiated a sense of mastery. Whatever she said, he would follow her lead.

“Let’s go; we still need several more types of herbs, and we should search while there’s still light.” The thought of not having enough herbs made Lin Luoxi feel a bit anxious.

The mountains had seen too many visits from people, leading to a significant reduction in the plants available for gathering—which meant that to find the remaining herbs, they would have to venture deeper into the mountains.

“Second Sister, it’s getting late. Should we just come back tomorrow?” Lin Wenqian hesitated as he noticed the sun beginning to angle lower in the sky.

Though it was relatively safe near the mountain’s edge, danger lurked once night fell, with wild beasts coming out to roam.

“Big Brother, why don’t you take these herbs down the mountain? I want to head further in by myself,” Lin Luoxi suggested, seeing her brother’s concern.

“No way! How could I let you go into the mountain alone? Mom and Dad would definitely scold me if they found out. Even if they didn’t scold me, I can’t let you go in there alone!” Lin Wenqian was taken aback by Lin Luoxi’s words, almost stuttering in his reply.

“Big Brother, I’m not going in for fun. All these herbs I gathered today are for Third Brother.”

“If we want Third Brother to recover quickly, we need a complete set of herbs to maximize their effectiveness.”

“Besides, Big Brother, you saw my skills earlier, right? I can take care of myself.”

Lin Luoxi, who normally wasn’t one to explain herself to others, found that in this warm family setting, she was willing to be more patient and open up.

“No! I’m coming with you!” The dilemma of weighing the herbs for his brother against the safety of his sister was quite pressing for Lin Wenqian.

“Big Brother, think about it. We’ve already been out for a while. Mom and Dad must be worried sick. If you go in with me, they’ll surely come looking for us. You should go back and reassure them…”

Lin Luoxi was determined to head into the depths of the mountains alone, which prompted her to persuade Lin Wenqian earnestly.

“Second Sister, about that…” Lin Wenqian wanted to say something more, but Lin Luoxi’s sudden action left him speechless, watching in shock as she threw a punch.

“Crack!” A tree trunk as thick as a bowl snapped in half from Lin Luoxi’s strike, the sound silencing Lin Wenqian’s unending objections.