Chapter 6: A Provocation from the Matriarch

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“Qiyue, I’ve been regularly drying the beast pelts in the pack; you can take them out and use them directly. We’ve dried the pelts left behind by Grandpa Xiongjia, keeping them as replacements,” Bao Xue’er said as she took the pelts out from the pack. She also handed Qiyue a small parcel. “This was found when clearing the foundation. Perhaps your father beast mother didn’t have the chance to pass it on to you before she passed.”

Qiyue opened the parcel to find a small jar. Pouring out the contents, she saw some crystal stones—currency on this continent—clear stones, and a black stone plaque engraved with patterns. The front bore the image of a qilin, and the back depicted a flourishing tree. This must be the token of her father beast.

Running her fingers over the stone plaque, Qiyue spoke gratefully, “Sister Xue, thank you. This is a memento left by my father beast mother. Thank you so much!”

Bao Xue’er smiled shyly, “Don’t mention it. It was always meant to be yours.”

Qiyue carefully put the crystals and the stone plaque back into the jar and placed it in a corner of the house, then continued sorting through the items Bao Xue’er had brought. There were some simple stone tools, pottery, and over ten pieces of various-sized beast pelts.

As she finished tidying up, a loud roar came from outside the door, “Qiyue, come out!”

Puzzled, Qiyue glanced at Ling’er and Bao Xue’er before stepping outside. There stood the clan matriarch, Hu Jia, at the courtyard gate. Like her daughter, she had fiery red long hair, and her amber eyes sparkled with sharpness, disdain, and suspicion.

“Matriarch is looking for me?” Qiyue asked, confused by Hu Jia’s angry expression.

“Are you trying to seduce the clan leader? Look at yourself now—whether or not you’re disfigured, you’re not worthy. What? Got kicked by Shide and now you’re taking it out on me…” Hu Jia began berating Qiyue immediately upon seeing her.

“Stop!” Qiyue shouted, startling Hu Jia into silence. “Matriarch, I respect you as an elder, but please retract your words! First, I never tried to seduce the clan leader; he is my elder, not my peer. Second, Shide didn’t kick me—I voluntarily requested to terminate the contract. I have no use for a beast who breaks an oath before I’m even dead. Third, I will be leaving in three months, and whether I return is uncertain, but likely not. So please do not disturb my life. I don’t want any more trouble in these last three months.”

“Three years ago…” Hu Jia started, but Qiyue cut her off, “I lost my memory and don’t know what happened three years ago. I don’t want to pursue it.”

Hu Jia looked at Qiyue suspiciously. Did she really not want to investigate? It was Tiger Li’er who approached her to request help back then, and she arranged for her nephew to drug and take Qiyue away. Yet her nephew was uneasy and brought her back after a month, though no one understood why she remained unconscious. Could she have truly forgotten such a significant event?

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Seeing Hu Jia’s disbelief, Qiyue said, “Matriarch, I am now a mother. All I want is to live peacefully with my child and find the father quickly to help my child complete the transformation. Nothing else matters. Whether I remember the past or not, I have no wish to pursue it. It really has no meaning for me.”

“Hope your words mean something!” Hu Jia snapped fiercely before turning and leaving.

Wolf Ling’er, seeing Hu Jia and the surrounding onlookers disperse, though some still whispered from afar, vented her frustration, “What kind of things are these?”

“Ling’er, don’t say anything more. I’m leaving in three months. You’ll still live here, so be careful what you say,” Qiyue warned.

Ling’er stuck out her tongue and swallowed what she wanted to say.

“Ling’er, listen to Sister Yue; we can’t afford to provoke those people,” Bao Xue’er came over to advise.

“All right, I won’t say anything,” Ling’er murmured softly, then asked, “So what do we do next?”

“Tiger Yue will be back soon. Let’s go eat at my place. You and your child don’t eat much. Stay with us for these three months. It’ll be easier for you, too,” Bao Xue’er suggested to Qiyue.

Qiyue considered it and agreed, though she felt a bit embarrassed about imposing on them. “I don’t mind staying together, but I feel it’s too much trouble for you.”

“It’s nothing. Tiger Yue and I have been together for ten years without children. Having you come will make things livelier. Think of it as keeping me company,” Bao Xue’er said, a hint of loneliness flickering in her eyes.

“Well, don’t pressure yourself too much. Relax and eat a balanced diet. Maybe you’ll conceive soon,” Qiyue comforted her.

“I want that too! I want to eat lunch at Sister Xue’s place,” Ling’er said excitedly.

Just then, Wolf En approached. “Ling’er, it’s time to go home for dinner.” Wolf En resembled Ling’er somewhat, with gray long hair and gray eyes. His fur was coarser, and at two meters tall, though only two years older, he seemed much more mature.

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“Brother, I’ll be having lunch at Bao Xue’er’s place these few days. Remember to bring me the food money,” Ling’er said, then ignored Wolf En, taking Qiyue and Bao Xue’er toward Bao Xue’er’s home.

Wolf En shook his head helplessly, unable to do anything with his little sister. He hurried back to fetch ten kilograms of meat to send over.

Not long after the three arrived, Tiger Yue returned, carrying a small beast pelt pack in his mouth and slinging a roughly two-hundred-kilogram antlered deer on his shoulder. Though Qiyue had memories from her previous life on the Beastman continent, she was still amazed by the sheer size of the deer. She knew many species in this world were much larger than those on Earth, some with mutations she still needed to get used to.

Tiger Yue dropped the deer, transformed back into human form, and handed Qiyue the pelt bundle containing milk fruits.

“Thank you!” Qiyue sincerely thanked him, looking at the milk fruits in the pelt.

“You’re welcome! I came across them on the way and picked some,” Tiger Yue said, scratching his head sheepishly.

“Qiyue, now that Tiger Yue has caught a young deer, how do you want to prepare it? Roast or stew?” Bao Xue’er asked, looking to Qiyue for her opinion.

Qiyue replied casually, “Roast the meat, simmer the bones into soup.”

“Bones can be eaten? We usually just throw those away,” Ling’er looked at Qiyue in surprise. Her own tribe never ate bones; only the young beastmen used bones to grind their teeth when teething.

“The best bones are the thigh bones. Break them into two or three sections and simmer over low heat for soup. It helps supplement calcium,” Qiyue explained offhandedly.

“What’s calcium?” Ling’er didn’t understand.

Oops, Qiyue realized she had said too much and quickly simplified her explanation, “Uh, it means eating bones to help strengthen bones. The soup made from bones contains nutrients that are good for our bones. In our tribe, many older beastmen suffer from back and leg pain due to lack of bone nutrition. If they drink more bone soup, it should alleviate some of the pain.”