Chapter 29: The Scene Caused by the Pig’s Blood

Seeing that Lin Luoxi finally believed him, Xie Hanchuan felt an inexplicable sense of relief wash over him.

However, upon hearing Lin Luoxi’s insistence, he quickly waved his hands to indicate he didn’t want her to worry.

“If you really don’t want to take any, then I can’t trust you to help me,” Lin Luoxi squinted at him, her expression serious.

“Fine, nine to one it is,” Xie Hanchuan replied, finding Lin Luoxi’s insistence both amusing and perplexing.

“Great, it’s a deal!” Lin Luoxi said cheerfully, stepping closer to extend her hand.

“What?” Xie Hanchuan looked at her outstretched hand, puzzled, before raising his gaze to her face.

Realizing this was ancient times, Lin Luoxi awkwardly retracted her hand and pretended to scratch her head.

“The time is getting late; you should head down the mountain now,” he suggested.

“The smell of blood is too strong here; it’ll attract predators.”

“After dark, it’s dangerous for a girl like you to be alone in the mountains.”

As Xie Hanchuan pointed to the sun setting behind the mountains, he kindly reminded her.

“Hmm, should I help you carry the wild boar down to the foot of the mountain?” Lin Luoxi offered, glancing at the severed head of the boar with some hesitation.

“No need, I plan to take a shortcut down; it’s faster,” Xie Hanchuan explained, aware that people from the village always took the shortcut when they caught something.

“Then can I go with you?” Lin Luoxi pressed on, feeling increasingly uncomfortable about the situation.

“Hehe, you should really hurry back. Otherwise, your big brother is going to worry,” Xie Hanchuan chuckled as he observed Lin Luoxi’s sudden change in demeanor.

“Alright, thank you, Xie Hanchuan. I look forward to our next collaboration,” Lin Luoxi replied, a perfect plan forming in her mind.

Since he had declined her help, she felt more at ease heading back down the mountain.

After bidding farewell to Xie Hanchuan, Lin Luoxi hurried home, making it back before sunset.

Once she reached a position where she no longer felt his gaze, she quickly accessed her spatial storage and retrieved her backpack.

As she stepped out of the forest with her backpack, a gust of wind made her shiver.

She realized that during the struggle with the wild boar, she had broken into a cold sweat, and the evening breeze was making her feel chilly.

“Ah, Luoxi, where have you been? Why are you covered in blood?” a village elder queried, noticing Lin Luoxi’s blood-soaked appearance, his eyes shifting toward her backpack.

When they saw that her basket contained only unwanted weeds, their expressions shifted.

“Auntie, I—I was foraging for wild vegetables in the mountains when I encountered a wild boar. I—I almost lost my life! If it weren’t for the young man from the Xie family, I might not have made it back…” Lin Luoxi responded, noticing the greedy light in the villager’s eyes.

She quickly pretended to be so frightened that she started to cry, shaking her basket to reveal its contents.

“What? A wild boar? Little girl, you’re really lucky! Even we adults stay far away from wild boars…” The commotion Lin Luoxi created successfully drew the attention of several other villagers who soon began to gather around her.

Seeing Lin Luoxi covered in blood and hearing that she had nearly lost her life to a wild boar, the villagers’ expressions were filled with sympathy and concern.

Some even concluded that Lin Luoxi’s family had forced her up the mountain to forage for wild vegetables, condemning the Lin family for their cruelty and suggesting they deserved whatever misfortune came their way.

Thus, the villagers, who had initially harbored greedy thoughts upon seeing Lin Luoxi’s bloodied appearance, quickly transformed their expressions into ones of pity after hearing her story.

Amidst the sympathetic gazes of the onlookers, Lin Luoxi returned home.

“Sis, are you hurt?” Lin Wencheng, who was standing at the door, felt as if his legs were about to give way when he saw Lin Luoxi approaching in a blood-soaked state.

Noticing his shaky demeanor, Lin Luoxi hurried over to support him.

“Big Brother, this blood isn’t mine; it’s…” As she helped Lin Wencheng into the house, she whispered into his ear.

“Luoxi, what happened to you?” Lin Dayou, who was in the yard drying herbs, dropped the medicinal plants in shock as he approached Lin Luoxi, terrified by her appearance.

He stumbled over, reaching out a trembling hand, hesitant to touch her in case he hit a wound.

“Luoxi!” a shaky voice called from the kitchen. Lin Wang, who had been busy cooking, emerged after hearing Lin Dayou’s distressed tone.

Upon seeing the blood on Lin Luoxi, she gasped, her body shaking as she struggled to stay conscious.

“Mom and Dad, I’m fine! This blood isn’t mine…” Lin Luoxi quickly reassured her parents, repeating what she had told Lin Wencheng.

“What? You say this blood isn’t yours??” This time, it was Lin Linyin who spoke up, moving closer to examine Lin Luoxi. She breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Lin Luoxi’s face was still relatively normal.

“Luoxi, don’t hide anything from us. If you’re not hurt, then where did all this blood come from?” It couldn’t possibly belong to the wild beast, could it?

“Mom, Dad, Big Brother, let’s talk inside,” Lin Luoxi suggested, pulling her family toward the main room.

She had sensed someone following her back home and guessed they were looking to glean information or thought she had caught something to hide…

“Mom and Dad, I was with Big Brother when I went deep into the mountains and found plenty of herbs that San Di needed. I dug them up with all my might, and just as I got ready to get up…” Lin Luoxi spoke candidly, recounting everything to her family.

She even included the part about encountering Xie Hanchuan in the mountains and his offer to help sell the wild boar.

“You’re saying Xie Hanchuan will bring the money tomorrow morning?” Lin Dayou felt like he was listening to a fantastical tale, unable to believe how unreal it sounded.

“Yes, Mom, Dad, if you don’t believe me, you’ll know by tomorrow morning!” With the lingering smell of blood, Lin Luoxi could hardly wait to wash up.

“Luoxi, I’ll boil some hot water for you; you should go wash up first,” Lin Wencheng said, noticing Lin Luoxi frequently sniffing her clothes, knowing exactly what she wanted.

“Okay, thank you, Big Brother! I knew you’d take care of me.” Lin Luoxi didn’t wait for Lin Dayou to ask any more questions and hurried outside to wash up.

The family was poor, and they only had a single wooden bucket for bathing.

Fortunately, there was a well; otherwise, they would be stuck waiting forever if they had to rely solely on that bucket.

“Dad let’s not ask too many questions. Although Luoxi isn’t injured, she must have been terrified. What we need to do is show her we care…”