Chapter 12: The Beast God's Gift

“Father Beast, why weren’t you with Mother Beast back then?” Chi’er couldn’t understand why Father Beast had left, leaving Mother Beast alone in the cave.

“Chi’er, when Father Beast finds you all, will you let him explain everything?” Feng Yu wanted to face Qi Yue and give her an explanation, so he changed the subject, asking, “What did your mother do today?”

“She spent half the morning cleaning the house and half the afternoon shopping. She also bought a lot of grass seeds,” Chi’er answered honestly.

“What does your mother need so many grass seeds for?” Feng Yu thought about how that female had done so much while he wasn’t by her side, and he felt a wave of melancholy. Ever since he learned Qi Yue was his only mate, he had regarded her as his own female.

“Mother didn’t say. Maybe she’ll tell me tomorrow. She also had someone make clothes for her out of snake skin today, and she bought a big piece of snake skin to make clothes for me after I transform,” Chi’er said happily, as if he were already wearing new clothes.

“Your mother likes snake skin? Father Beast will bring you more next time,” Feng Yu immediately tried to please the mother and son.

“Father Beast, I heard from Mother that you’d better not hunt by yourself. She’d be happier if you traded with others instead,” Chi’er said, recalling some females talking in the tailor’s shop. Without realizing it, he applied their words to Hu Yue, thinking Mother wouldn’t want Father Beast to risk poisoning.

“By the way, Chi’er, you said your mother is in the Lu Yu tribe. What is her name?” Feng Yu felt a pang of frustration, realizing he still didn’t know the name of his own mate. He had searched outside for over a year and visited the Lu Yu tribe two or three times but had never heard anything about her.

“Father Beast doesn’t know Mother’s name?” Chi’er found this very strange.

“Father Beast stayed with your mother for about a month three years ago, but she fainted the next day, and they never introduced themselves,” Feng Yu explained.

“Oh, I heard other females call Mother Qi Yue,” Chi’er said. Since Mother fainted the day after meeting Father Beast, would Father Beast like her?

“Qi Yue? Father Beast visited the Lu Yu tribe two or three times looking for her but never heard anything,” Feng Yu asked curiously.

“I don’t know about that. I only know many females don’t like Mother,” Chi’er yawned, feeling sleepy again. “Father Beast, I’m going to sleep.”

“Sleep well, Chi’er. Take good care of your mother,” Feng Yu reminded him once more. Yet he couldn’t fall asleep himself. That female was strong, but her situation in the tribe was harsh. Why had such a fragile young female appeared there back then? He should have followed those two beasts to see which tribe they belonged to.

Years ago, due to certain reasons, Feng Yu had ended his paired contract with Feng Zhu upon returning to the tribe. Over the years, he occasionally thought of the little female in the cave—not out of affection, but out of a sense of obligation. Several times he had left the tribe to check on her, simply to know if she was safe, driven by responsibility, but no news ever came.

Their meeting had truly been accidental, yet it resulted in a cub. Apparently, Feng Zhu’s decade-long infertility wasn’t solely her fault. Otherwise, where did Chi’er come from? Chi’er was a precious gift from the Beast God.

He didn’t know what Chi’er’s beast form was. After all, Qi Yue was a foreign female, and the elders wouldn’t accept a hybrid like Chi’er. As clan chief, he had been groomed as the heir, so he always felt Feng Yan was his responsibility. But now, given the clan rules, he could only settle the mother and son in another tribe. He just didn’t know what Qi Yue thought about this. Honestly, he wasn’t as intent on being chief as before; if his younger brother or another beast became chief, that would be fine too.

From then on, every night Feng Yu would have a father-son talk with Chi’er, learning what Qi Yue had done that day and who had bullied them.

Shortly after Chi’er drifted off to sleep, a milky white glow enveloped Qi Yue’s body, lasting for fifteen minutes before fading away—this was a gift from the Beast God.

At dawn, Qi Yue awoke to birdsong and stretched lazily. She had slept deeply and must have been very tired yesterday.

She fed Chi’er two milky fruits, then got up to wash. While washing, she wondered what to do today.

Since that beast was coming, there was no need to worry about Chi’er’s transformation. Should she stay in this tribe? Honestly, she didn’t want to. Huli’er, Hu Jia, Shi De, and the beast who had abducted her—if they were ordinary males or females, she could avoid them, but they weren’t. One was the chief’s daughter, another the matriarch, one the grand elder’s nephew, and another was closely linked to Huli’er.

Though it had only been one day, she already felt out of place in this society. To live comfortably, she would have to make many things, which might become reasons for them to harm her secretly.

Why live so oppressed? She would leave. After all, she was an orphan here.

She decided not to make the things she usually needed just yet. She could gather materials now, then make them after leaving—spider silk, hemp thread, vine thread, some wooden boxes to catch colorful spiders, and then store the boxes in Chi’er’s space. She would teach Bao Xue’er and the others how to cultivate millet, rice, and wheat after she left.

According to her memory, this tribe had already developed pottery. She could trade for more covered ceramic jars to store prepared food, making it convenient to eat while traveling. She also needed many small jars for pickling and storing spices, so she could later pickle kimchi, salted vegetables, and salted eggs.

She would also stock up on salt, an essential item for preserving leftover meat.

Lost in thought, Qi Yue was startled by Chi’er’s cries overhead: “Chirp, chirp.”

Bao Xue’er approached and nudged her. “What are you thinking about? You look so distracted.”

“Snow Sister, you’re here! I’m thinking about how much I need to collect these days,” Qi Yue said, turning to grab a beast skin bag to sling over her shoulder.

“Let’s go. The meal is ready. Today we’ll first gather spider silk, and have lunch in the mulberry forest,” Bao Xue’er said, taking Qi Yue’s hand as they headed home.

“Brother Hu Yue, before you go hunting, could you make one more trip to the trading street? See if they have those grass seeds we bought yesterday. If they do, please buy some for us,” Qi Yue said while eating breakfast.

“Qi Yue, what on earth are those seeds for? You want so many?” Bao Xue’er had been wanting to ask since yesterday.

“Snow Sister, I’ll tell you when I leave. You know the situation my son and I are in here. Let others think I’m just collecting items for the Luo Jia Festival,” Qi Yue said, knowing this matter couldn’t be disclosed now. Whether good or bad, it couldn’t cause a stir.

“All right. No rush. You’ll tell me when you want to. We’re going to gather spider silk today. Later, if there’s time, we’ll have Hu Yue gather palm leaves and green vine for you,” Bao Xue’er said, trusting Qi Yue. Since childhood, Qi Yue had never spoken ill of others or harmed anyone.

“Thank you both!” Qi Yue looked at the two gratefully.