Volume 1 Chapter 87: Doubts

  Back at Xiao Yang's home, his mother was busy in the kitchen, but his father was not at home. I was a bit puzzled, wasn't he anxious to come back? Xiao Yang asked his mother, and she said that his father had gone to find their clan elder.

  "Huh? Isn't it the village head? Why is there also a clan head? I asked Xiao Yang in confusion: "Don't you have a village head here?" He smiled: "Yes, but the clan head is even more important. The clan head is the oldest elder in the whole village who takes charge, and usually doesn't interfere with things. Only when something very important happens will they look for the clan head to discuss it."

  "A burst of inspiration in her mind: 'Something very important? Are you talking about the treasure we found?' 'I don't know,' Xiao Yang furrowed his brow, 'Let's ask my dad when he gets back!'"

  With nothing to do, several of us girls came to the kitchen to help Mrs. Xiao, but she kept waving her hand and said no need to help. However, I insisted on staying. The old-fashioned stove had two pots, one large and one small, with a blazing fire burning in it.

  Xiao Yu Zheng was sitting there burning fire, I hurried over and said to Xiao Yu: "Little sister, sister is here to help you burn the fire, okay?" Xiao Yu saw me and smiled, agreeing and making room for me. We burned the fire on one side and chatted on the other. The little girl was lovely and very sensible, knowing how to help her mother with work at such a young age. I kept praising her, teasing her until she burst out laughing.

  Qiao Wei and Bao'er watched Xiao Mama cook while curiously asking questions. The pot was frying millet cakes, and Xiao Mama asked if we liked to eat them? We looked at the golden millet cakes and smelled the fragrance, our mouths were already watering for this ultimate delicacy.

  Then Xiao's mom made a braised wild chicken, and Xiao's mom smiled and said: "This wild chicken was caught by his dad in the mountains a few days ago. Yangyang didn't want to eat it, saying he would wait for his classmates to come and then cook it." "Are there many wild chickens on the mountain?" Bao'er asked. "Not that many, you have to be lucky," Xiao's mom said. "Tomorrow I'll ask Yangyang to take you guys to the mountains to play, and see if you can catch any." Xiao's mom really knew how to read people's minds.

  At dinner time, Xiao's father had not returned yet, and we were all anxious. Xiao's mother also felt strange: "What's going on today? Why did he go to find the clan elder? Yangyang, go take a look and call Dad back for dinner!" Xiao Yang responded with a sound and went out, followed by Lu Qi. I had a faint feeling that something big was going to happen, definitely related to the treasure we found. In such a remote mountain village, it's unlikely there would be any treasure! Shaking my head, maybe I'm overthinking.

  Sitting in the courtyard, it had already darkened, and the mountain wind was blowing cold. Xiaomama pulled the lamp at the door bright, and the dim light drove away some of the chilliness. We chatted while waiting for them. After more than half an hour, they finally returned. Xiao Yang and Lu Qi were in front, looking excited, while Xiao Baba was behind, his face serious. Was there really something big? I stared at Lu Qi, silently asking him. He quickly came to my side and whispered: "Something fun is coming up. Let's talk about it later." Seeing that they had all returned, Xiaomama hurried into the kitchen to prepare dinner. We girls also helped bring dishes.

  Here is the translation:

  While eating, Xiao's dad regained his enthusiasm and kept calling out to us, but never mentioned anything about finding the clan leader. Xiao's mom tried to ask him several times, but he just laughed it off each time. The more Xiao's dad acted like this, the more I felt that something was up. Looking at Xiao Yang, she was also quietly eating and not saying a word. The delicious flavor of the wild chicken, the freshness of the fish, and the sweetness of the millet cakes made me temporarily give up thinking and just enjoy my meal. After all, we were guests in someone else's home, so even the usually talkative Pang Yu and Bao Er were being well-behaved and only eating with big mouths. Occasionally, they would let out a satisfied exclamation: "Wow, this is delicious!" Seeing that we were enjoying our food, Xiao's mom was also delighted and couldn't stop smiling.

  After dinner, it was a good harvest again. Of course, it's our girls' business now. Xiao Mama has been defeated by our persistence, and we want to help her, so she can only follow us.

  After finishing the cleanup, we came to Xiao Yang's room. As soon as Xiao Yang entered the door, he closed it and signaled everyone to speak softly. I knew that important things were going to be said. So everyone sat casually on the bed or stools.

  "Xiao Yang, what's going on?" I asked softly. "Is it related to that gemstone?" Xiao Yang nodded: "We just went to the clan leader's house to call Dad when we overheard their conversation outside. It seems that this gemstone is some kind of ominous object that hasn't appeared in many years. Whenever it appears, it will definitely bring fatal disaster. This is also written in our ancestors' teachings."

  Lu Qi said on the side: "Not only that, this gem seems to be related to some ancient cave. I guess it should be an ancient tomb or a treasure cave. Didn't you say there was a mountain stronghold here before? Maybe it's the treasure left by the leader of that stronghold!" Wow! There really is a treasure! Too incredible! The few of them were already stunned. I took a deep breath, and indeed, this person's sixth sense was quite accurate.

  "What was that fun thing you just said, where are we going to play?" I asked Lu Qi. Lu Qi blinked his peach blossom eyes and smiled slyly: "How about it, Xiao Ruoruo's heart is racing? Then we'll go on an adventure tomorrow, how about it?" "Adventure?" Pang Yu got excited, "Where are we going on an adventure? Is it that ancient cave or something?" "Brilliant!" Lu Qi gave a thumbs up, "We're going to explore the mountain caves."

  "But aren't caves dark? Won't there be snakes or wild beasts inside?" Chou Hui was a bit worried. "I'm most afraid of snakes." Bao Er also became fearful, "Let's not play any adventure games anymore! We can just catch some wild stuff nearby tomorrow!" Hehe, she still had the wild chicken from last night on her mind.

  Xiao Yang hesitated: "Or, I'll ask my dad! We don't know what's going on specifically. Just in case something happens, it's good to be prepared. Xiao Ruo, what do you think?" Xiao Yang looked at me expectantly, as if my decision was very important. I leaned against Qiao Wei's back and closed my eyes to think. It's just a mountain cave, there shouldn't be any danger, right? Even if there is, the three of us, Lu Qi, Xiao Yang, and I, should be able to handle it. With my current skills, plus the techniques Muo taught me, such as the "Ding Shen Fa" and "Xiao Yao Bu", I should be able to hold my own. And this is a great opportunity for me to show off my skills! Thinking of this, I opened my eyes and said lazily: "It's just climbing mountains and crawling through caves, no big deal. We can play on our own, no need to tell Uncle about it, so he won't worry. As for that gemstone thing, let's just pretend it never happened! We're here to have fun, if we see wild chickens, we'll catch them, if we see mountain caves, we'll explore them!" Xiao Yang thought for a moment and agreed with me. So we dispersed and went to sleep separately.