Chapter 62: Restocking Supplies
Ding! [Check-in successful. You’ve received a protective talisman made from the Wolf King’s fang. It can ward off evil, ensure safety, and allow the wearer to turn danger into safety once.]
Hearing the reward from her latest sign-in, Ning Xiyue felt a wave of happiness wash over her, sweeping away her worries and gloom.
Yes — her brother could be saved.
He had saved Little Gray’s life, and now Little Gray would save his. Good people truly do get rewarded.
“Yueyue, did you just say Little Gray is a wolf?”
Ning Qingyuan circled around Little Gray, eyeing him skeptically. It was hard to believe this harmless creature was one of those fierce wolves.
“Mm-hmm. Look at its face — doesn’t it look like a wolf? And it doesn’t bark ‘woof woof,’ it howls ‘awoo.’”
Ning Xiyue nodded firmly. Truthfully, she hadn’t recognized Little Gray as a wolf either — he looked just like a local mutt. But the system’s unmistakable notification left her no choice but to believe it. After all, the wolf fang from her check-in was already in her hands.
“Hmm… I guess it does look a bit wolf-like,” Ning Qingyuan said, the more he looked, the more convinced he became that his sister was right.
“Brother, here — this is for you. It’s a wolf fang I found on the mountain, and I made it into a protective charm just for you. You have to wear it all the time and never take it off.”
The charm Ning Xiyue held was the wolf fang talisman she had just received — a sharp, curved tooth strung on a black cord.
“Awooo~”
On the ground, Little Gray howled when he saw the wolf fang necklace in Ning Xiyue’s hand, his eyes filled with awe and reverence.
Ning Xiyue was slightly startled by the sight.
Well, well… this little fellow was really quite smart — he could recognize something valuable.
And because of that intelligence, Ning Xiyue found herself less afraid of him. Animals, after all, were much better than some malicious people.
Ning Qingyuan wiped his hands on his clothes before carefully accepting the necklace, his face breaking into a huge smile. “Ah, thank you, little sister! This fang looks so cool. I promise I’ll wear it all the time.”
It was the first time Ning Qingyuan had ever received a gift from his sister, and in his heart, he was screaming like a groundhog.
Ahhh! His little sister had given him a gift — and she had even made it with her own hands! He was going to show it off to their eldest brother. Ha! Eldest brother doesn’t have one — I’m the most loved brother!
He stroked the fang lovingly before putting it around his neck. “Yueyue, does it look good?”
“Mm-hmm. My brother looks so handsome.” Ning Xiyue praised without hesitation.
Ning Qingyuan touched the fang on his chest and grinned foolishly.
The two of them sat in the educated youth courtyard chatting for a while — mostly about their daily lives, their current situations, and how their parents were doing at home.
When they touched on the topic of family, Ning Xiyue reminded him about studying. “Oh, right, Brother. Dad told me to remind you not to slack off on your studies. Don’t return all your high school knowledge to the teacher. He’s going to quiz you when you go home for New Year. If you can’t answer, he’ll kick you out of the house.”
This, at least, was something Ning Xiyue wasn’t too worried about.
When Ning Qingyuan left for the countryside, he had brought his high school textbooks with him — on their father Ning Hai’s advice.
Their father, a college-educated intellectual who had enjoyed the benefits of higher education, knew how important studying was. What’s more, factory jobs required entrance exams. So, with great foresight, he had told Ning Qingyuan to bring his books and never stop studying, so that when a good opportunity arose, he’d be ready for it.
Ning Qingyuan had kept this in mind and spent his free time after work reading his books diligently.
Now, hearing his sister’s reminder, he patted his chest confidently. “Don’t worry, I read every day. I promise Dad won’t kick me out.”
“Wait here, little sister.”
With that, he dashed off into the house.
Ning Xiyue and Little Gray looked at each other in confusion. Little Gray wagged his tail and sat by her feet, rubbing his head against her leg affectionately.
Ning Xiyue, summoning her courage, reached out to stroke Little Gray’s fur.
It was so soft and smooth.
Little Gray seemed to enjoy the touch, showing no signs of aggression.
Eventually, Ning Xiyue simply scooped Little Gray into her lap and petted him while she waited.
Ning Qingyuan still hadn’t come out, and Ning Xiyue was getting bored. She opened up the system to check it and considered whether she should give her brother another piece of cured meat — he was a pretty good brother after all.
“Huh?”
The check-in location on Little Gray’s body was actually refreshable.
Ning Xiyue carefully examined the system map. Sure enough, Little Gray’s sign-in point showed it would be available again in 24 hours.
Ha! That was great — she could get a protective charm for every member of her family.
In the “bad” script, the original host’s entire family was doomed to be cannon fodder. But after using the foresight ability earlier and seeing Ning Qingyuan’s future, Ning Xiyue knew their fates in the real script weren’t much better either.
She needed to get them all properly equipped as soon as possible.
“Little Gray, you’re such a treasure. How about coming home with me today? You can stay at my place for a few days. I’ll feed you meat.”
She pulled a piece of cured meat from her bag and, when no one was watching, fed it to Little Gray.
“Awooo~”
After eating the meat, Little Gray wagged his tail excitedly like a puppy, rolling around in her arms, rubbing against her and licking her, his eyes full of affection.
…Was he treating her like a wolf mom now?
The sudden thought startled Ning Xiyue, and she quickly shook her head.
Ning Qingyuan returned, carrying several large bundles, holding one tightly against his body to keep it from slipping. “Sis, come give me a hand, it’s about to fall.”
Ning Xiyue quickly ran over and took two of the bags from him to lighten the load. “Brother, what’s all this stuff?”
“These are all local specialties I was planning to mail back to you. Since you’re here, you can just take them with you. This bag is dried wood ear mushrooms, this one’s dried mushrooms, and this one’s pine nuts and hazelnuts — all gathered from the mountains when I had free time.”
He stacked all the bags by Ning Xiyue’s basket and pointed them out one by one. Then, lowering his voice, he added:
“And this bag has a dried wild rabbit. I found a rabbit’s nest while working, and at night, Little Gray and I raided it. We caught two. We each ate half a roasted rabbit, and I saved this one for you. I hid it in a cave and had Little Gray guard it until it was dried. It’ll keep for a long time — you can eat it slowly.”
Seeing the pile of things he’d prepared, Ning Xiyue’s eyes stung. Her brother was too kind — saving all the good things for her.
“Why didn’t you keep any for yourself? There’s so much here — why give it all to me?”
“Just take it. If you run out, tell me, and I’ll find more. Don’t worry about me — I’ll never let myself go without.”
“Should I pack it into your basket?” Ning Qingyuan asked, glancing at her for permission.
He had no idea what she was carrying and why she didn’t want him to help.
“I’ll do it myself — I have something for you in there.”
Suddenly, Ning Xiyue felt embarrassed about the bag of candy she’d brought. Her brother had prepared so much; she needed to add more.
With her back to him, she loosened the straps on the basket and slipped two pieces of cured meat and a jar of malted milk powder inside before fully opening it and pulling back the cloth on top.
“These are for you — most of them are things I brought from home. A few days before I left for the countryside, Mom gave me some money and ration tickets to buy supplies.”
She also pulled out half the money and ration tickets their mother had given her and handed them to him. “These are for us. Mom asked me to bring them to you.”
Ning Qingyuan frowned and refused. “Take them back and keep them safe. I have enough to eat. Don’t think I don’t know — you’re just trying to split them with me.”
“Brother, just take them.”
He refused, and they argued back and forth, eventually compromising — he accepted some soon-to-expire tickets, a bag of candy, a piece of cured meat, and the salve Ning Xiyue had made.
The rest he made her take home, along with ten soft eggs from a wild pheasant’s nest.
Looking at her once-empty basket now packed full, Ning Xiyue couldn’t help but smile helplessly.
Her second brother was truly generous — when he had something, he really shared it.
She had come here for a visit, but it felt like a supply run.
Laughing at herself inwardly, she thought, What a bandit I am!
It was about time to meet Aunt Yangliu as they had agreed. “Brother, it’s getting late. I should go — one of the aunties from our production team is waiting for me.”
“I’ll walk you back.”
Ning Qingyuan locked the door and prepared to escort her, with Little Gray trotting obediently beside them.
Not far from the gate, they ran into a strikingly pretty female comrade from the educated youth courtyard.
“Comrade Ning, where are you going? And this is…?”
“Comrade Liu, you’re done with work? Let me introduce you — this is my younger sister, Ning Xiyue.”
“Hello, little sister — oh, no, hello, Xiyue. I’m Liu Hongmei, one of the educated youth here.”
“Hello.” Ning Xiyue nodded politely in return.
After the brief exchange, Ning Qingyuan led Ning Xiyue away without a second glance.
A mischievous smile curled at Ning Xiyue’s lips.
She had noticed something interesting — when Liu Hongmei had first looked at her, there was a trace of hostility in her eyes. But after hearing Ning Qingyuan’s introduction, that hostility vanished, replaced by delight and joy.
