Hunter Zhang chimed in, “That’s really impressive! Such a big wild boar—eldest sister-in-law, you’re going to make a fortune! Everyone, stop standing around. There’s too much blood here; we need to leave quickly, or it’ll attract other beasts. If a pack of wolves shows up, we’re done for!”

At Hunter Zhang’s reminder, the group quickly stepped forward to help.

Since they hadn’t brought any rope, Shen Anning quickly cut a few thick bamboo poles to make it easier to carry the wild boar.

Two men at the front each grabbed one of the boar’s tusks, while the man at the back held its tail. Meanwhile, four others used bamboo poles to lift the animal.

Since they were all strong young men, carrying the boar wasn’t much trouble.

Lu Wenguang noticed that Shen Qingwan still had foxes and rabbits in her basket, so he quickly offered to carry them.

Although Shen Qingwan could carry them herself, she was more than happy to have someone help.

Meanwhile, Old Man Lu had been waiting at the foot of the mountain, and news of Shen Qingwan entering the forest had spread throughout the village in no time.

Auntie Wang from next door brought her daughter-in-law, Chen Zhaodi, along to see the excitement.

Seeing Old Man Lu still waiting there, she couldn’t help but ask, “Brother Lu, did your eldest daughter-in-law really go up the mountain alone? Is your family struggling to put food on the table? Even though you’ve split up the family, she’s still a widow raising two children—life can’t be easy for her. Back when she first married in, she had a good temperament, but after all these years, it’s only natural for her to feel some resentment. You should be more understanding.”

Auntie Wang was a kind-hearted woman and well-known in the village for being meddlesome, especially as she got older.

That’s why she couldn’t resist nagging a little.

Old Man Lu felt a little embarrassed by her words, but Chen Zhaodi, who knew exactly what kind of person Shen Qingwan was, stepped in to smooth things over.

“Oh, Mother, you know as well as I do—Wenzhao’s wife sends all the good stuff to her maiden family. Otherwise, their life wouldn’t be this tough. Look at those two children—so skinny, hardly any flesh on them! Even if Uncle Zhiyuan gives her grain, she probably won’t let the kids eat it.”

Chen Zhaodi didn’t like Shen Qingwan at all.

As a mother herself, she couldn’t stand seeing someone mistreat their own children.

Shen Qingwan had a terrible reputation in the village.

Many women, both young and old, had argued with her before.

People gossiped about her behind her back, but she never cared—she only thought about sending whatever she could to her maiden family.

As for her children, as long as they didn’t starve to death, she was fine letting them go hungry.

Old Man Lu sighed, about to say something when he saw Auntie Zhang from across the way approaching with a crowd of onlookers.

He dreaded these gossiping women and was trying to think of an excuse to leave when someone suddenly shouted, “Oh my! Look, they’re back!”

“Heavens! What on earth are they carrying?”

“It’s a wild boar! My goodness, I’ve never seen one this big before!”

The villagers crowded around to get a closer look at the massive wild boar being carried down the mountain.

Old Man Lu was so shocked that his smoking pipe nearly slipped from his hands.

“Father! Sister-in-law took down a wild boar—look! She also got a fox and some rabbits!” Lu Wenguang grinned from ear to ear.

Seeing him about to take out the fox and rabbits for everyone to see, Old Man Lu quickly stopped him.

Lu Wenguang realized that with so many people around, it wasn’t a good idea to show them off.

Though the villagers wouldn’t steal, envy could still cause trouble.

“Is this really the eldest daughter-in-law’s doing? That’s incredible!”

The village women chattered excitedly.

The men who had gone up the mountain with her exaggerated their stories as if they had personally witnessed Shen Qingwan taking down the wild boar.

Shen Qingwan knew she couldn’t hide the truth, so she simply repeated the explanation she had given earlier.

“It was just luck today. There’s too much meat on this boar for my family to eat alone. If anyone wants to buy some, come to my house later. I’ll sell it at the lowest price.”

At her words, many villagers expressed interest, but few could actually afford it—pork was a luxury in those times.

Old Man Lu gathered everyone to help carry the wild boar back.

After setting it down, the men prepared to leave, but Shen Qingwan quickly stopped them.

“We’re slaughtering the boar soon, and I’ll make sure everyone who helped gets a portion of the meat as thanks for their hard work.”

The men initially refused—pork was expensive—but Hunter Zhang persuaded them to stay and help with the butchering.

On the way down the mountain, Shen Qingwan asked Hunter Zhang to handle the slaughter, and he agreed without hesitation.

A dozen strong men worked together—chopping wood, fetching water, and setting up a large pot in the yard. In no time, everything was ready.

Once the water was boiling, they began removing the boar’s hair.

Shen Qingwan wasn’t much help with that, so she also asked Hunter Zhang to skin the fox and rabbits.

Skinning was a skill in itself, and though she could do it, she knew she wasn’t as skilled as he was.

“Eldest sister-in-law, this fox pelt is valuable! If you take it to the county, it could fetch a good price. But these rabbits have mixed fur colors and probably aren’t worth much. Instead of selling them, you might as well keep them to make winter clothes.”

Hunter Zhang spoke as he carefully handled the fox skin.

Shen Qingwan nodded in agreement.

“Alright, I’ll take Uncle Zhang’s advice and keep the rabbit skins.”

In truth, she never intended to sell the pelts.

She just needed a reason to explain where her money was coming from.

Whether or not she actually sold the fox pelt—and for how much—was entirely up to her.

Hunter Zhang chuckled at her easygoing attitude.

Once the wild boar was cleaned, he began butchering it.

His knife was incredibly sharp, making the process oddly satisfying to watch.

Wild boar meat was firmer and redder than domestic pork—and tastier, too.

Market prices for pork were about 35 wen per jin (a unit of weight), and wild boar meat was usually more expensive, selling for 40 to 50 wen per jin.

However, Shen Qingwan decided to sell it to the villagers at only 30 wen per jin—cheaper than the market price.

Even so, few villagers could afford it.

Just as Shen Qingwan announced the price, Zhang Qiao’er arrived, having heard that she had caught a wild boar.

She had come to see for herself.