Chapter Ten: Pickling Vegetables

“That’s right. With He watching, Mu Qing’s female wouldn’t really hit anyone.” Gong patted the shoulder of the male beside him with satisfaction.

The other females’ beast husbands: …But she clearly did hit him.

Still, they said nothing. They had all heard about Gong’s younger brother. They knew that Green Grass had borne offspring for other beast husbands, yet not a single tiger cub had been born.

After drugging and forcing the male to become a beast husband, she sent him out hunting every day, yet in the end, no cub was willing to be born for him.

If they were Gong, they would feel indignant for their brother too.

“All right, all right! Ali, look, Green Grass is crying.”

Even though He and the others thought Green Grass had acted wrongly, seeing her cry so pitifully, one female stepped forward to admonish Yun Li softly, “She’s just a male; is it really worth arguing over like this?”

Yun Li pulled her hand away from the female’s grasp and said, “Then you should be telling her to stop bothering me. Besides, this is my home. She came here deliberately to make me angry.”

“I didn’t. I wasn’t on purpose,” Green Grass said, her face full of grievance.

At this, Yun Li sneered coldly. “Then who was the one making snide remarks at first, saying how Mu Qing would never choose a female like you? He, you all, tell me, if you heard that in your own home, wouldn’t it make you uncomfortable?”

“That remark was Green Grass’s fault,” He said, casting a sharp glance at the female who had just tried to reason with Yun Li. They all knew Yun Li’s temper was bad; why provoke her?

Green Grass had only herself to blame.

They had come to make peace with Yun Li, not to quarrel or mediate.

Seeing He take her side, Yun Li’s anger eased somewhat, and she said more moderately, “I only didn’t kick her out just now because of you all. Otherwise, looking at her crying and whining, I would have thrown her out long ago.”

The original Yun Li was not so easily moved to tears by insecurity. Why should this shameless beast human, who took advantage and then played innocent, be allowed to strut before her?

If not for He and the others holding her back, Yun Li would have slapped her a few more times, just to vent for the original owner.

Humph!

“All right, all right! All for our sake, Ali, calm down.”

Seeing Yun Li quiet down as soon as she spoke, He breathed a sigh of relief and grew even more satisfied with Yun Li. Though her temper was far from good, at least she listened.

Thinking this way, He’s gaze toward Green Grass turned even more displeased. “Green Grass, don’t cry. You admitted you stole Ali’s chosen male, so how dare you cry here? Ali didn’t even do anything to you.”

Green Grass looked at He in disbelief. “But just now...” She had even slapped her.

Those who came with He were surely her close friends. Seeing Green Grass still wanting to argue, they grew impatient.

“What just now? We stopped Yun Li from hitting you. Can you just stop crying? Which female cries like you?”

“If you want to cry, go back and cry to your male. We came to see what Yun Li wants to do with these stone tools. If you hadn’t been coveting Yun Li’s male, she wouldn’t have scolded you.”

Green Grass grew anxious and hurriedly defended herself. “Mu Qing is just a serpent beast human. How could I possibly like a serpent beast human?”

“Oh? So you’re saying I have bad taste?” Yun Li’s words had just come out when He’s face darkened immediately. “Who said you have bad taste? Mu Qing is a blue-rank beast human. Even if he’s a serpent beast human, so what? He’s strong, can protect you, and take good care of you. Who dares say he’s not a good male?”

“Yeah, yeah. Green Grass, if you don’t like serpent beast humans, then don’t talk about Ali. Ali clearly has good taste.”

Bold indeed, to dare take a cold-blooded serpent beast human as a beast husband.

The other females all knew why He and Yun Li were so close.

After all, Mu Qing was one of the few blue-rank beast humans in the tribe. In the past, whenever a female clan leader wanted to ask Mu Qing for a favor, they would beg him humbly.

Now, finally, he had a female by his side. There was no need to worry that one day, he might leave because of the tribe’s prejudice against serpent beast humans. Plus, having his female at his side whispering sweet words was an asset.

The clan leader had even sent her own female to make friends with Yun Li. If Yun Li was willing to get close to He, the clan leader wouldn’t have to grovel for help anymore.

So, between Green Grass and Yun Li, He and the others naturally sided with Yun Li.

Green Grass wanted to say more, but He and the others no longer wished to listen.

“All right, all right. Green Grass, aren’t you going to see what Yun Li wants to do with these stone tools? If not, you can go back.”

Seeing their attitude, Green Grass could only swallow her grievances.

She never imagined that the Yun Li who once had no one to listen to her would now have people speaking up for her.

Thinking of how the female who was once inferior to her now lived better, Green Grass could not help but feel jealous—jealous that she lived better than her, jealous that her beast husband was stronger than hers, and spoiled her, letting her waste the family’s food at will.

“These wild vegetables are all dried out. Can they still be eaten?”

Seeing Yun Li boil wild vegetables for several days and then leave them on a stone to dry into dried vegetables, He and the others were shocked.

Their way of curing meat was to wash it while fresh, rub it with fist-sized salt rocks, then dry it outside and store it in stone jars.

This method was discovered during the dry season, realizing that dried meat could be stored for several days. The salt rock rubbed on the meat prevented bad odors during cold seasons.

Beast humans didn’t know salt killed bacteria, but they could tell meat quality, so the method was passed down.

But dried meat still looked like meat; dried wild vegetables were shriveled and dry. Who would believe they were still edible?

Yun Li nodded. “They’re edible. Should I ask A Qing to make some for you?”

He and the others exchanged glances and quickly shook their heads. “No, eating these probably isn’t good for health.”

Even if edible, He and her group weren’t lacking food at home.

Only females with few or weak males at home would resort to eating dried wild vegetables. Thinking back to when Yun Li had to fend for herself alone, their eyes showed a trace of sympathy.

“What’s wrong? These wild vegetables are just dried, not spoiled. If they were spoiled, why would I bother to cure them?”

Upon hearing Yun Li’s explanation, He and the others forced a smile but clearly didn’t believe these dried vegetables would be fine.

Yun Li was puzzled by their reaction. “If you don’t dry before curing, then how did you cure wild vegetables before?”

When she visited relatives in the countryside, they did it like this—blanch the vegetables, dry them, put them in brine, cover, and after a month or so, they’d have a dish.

Yun Li had heart disease and couldn’t eat salty pickled vegetables, but she had smelled the delicious aroma of cooked pickled vegetables. Her parents liked them, always bringing a jar or two when visiting relatives.