Little Miss Fortune: I Will Bring Prosperity to My Tang Family!-Chapter 92: The Giant Forest and Xiao Bai

Chapter 86

The Giant Forest and Xiao Bai

The next morning, the plump little girl woke up early to water the vegetable patches diligently. Yesterday, her father had remarked that she was getting too chubby, and upon looking at herself, she agreed. So, she decided to exercise in the morning by helping her grandfather water the more than ten vegetable plots. Additionally, she planned to ask her uncles to join her in the forest in the afternoon to find a heifer for Xiao Zhong. She hoped the celestial beings would hear her request.

"Wouldn’t it be better if I went with you? Why bother those guys?" Hui Song asked his granddaughter after she told him about her plan to invite her uncles to the forest.

"Grandfather, you need to help Uncle watch the shop. If Uncle sneaks off to eat all the pork, what will we sell? Besides, winter is coming soon, and my uncles will surely want to go hunting. We need to stock up on supplies too," Xiaolin replied.

"Alright, it’s up to you. But we’ll hunt for our household’s supplies ourselves,"

"I’ll follow your lead,"

After breakfast, the chubby girl waved goodbye to her father, grandfather, and uncle, who had to attend to their daily business. Xiaolin then went to find her large friend who was lounging on a bamboo platform behind the house. When he learned that she planned to go into the forest, he wanted to join as well and sent his sons and nephews to help Tianchen with the work.

The three boys initially wanted to join the forest adventure but changed their minds upon seeing that many adults were going; they didn’t want to be a nuisance. Huan Tan, who was watching the fat cows graze, turned to see the chubby girl climbing onto the platform.

"Why are you visiting for so long this time?" Xiaolin asked the man who had been avoiding work and enjoying a vacation for nearly a month.

"Because next year, I won’t have time to travel. The capital city has a high demand for charcoal briquettes and sugarcane. So, I plan to expand my sugarcane fields and start growing corn. It’ll take a while to get everything settled because I’ve never grown corn before. The crop residues can also be used to make charcoal briquettes,"

"Coconut shells can be used too. I was thinking of asking Father to buy a coconut grove so we can conveniently collect them for use,"

"A coconut grove? I thought there were only a few trees," Huan Tan asked, intrigued. It would be great if he could use coconut shells for charcoal.

"There’s a whole grove, probably close to a hundred mu,"

"Can you show me? Let’s go quickly," Huan Tan said, grabbing the chubby girl and running to find a cart. He shouted to his wife, who was carrying their little grandson outside, leaving Huan Qingqing looking after them in surprise.

"Ahhh!"

Xiaolin clung tightly to the cart’s edge as her large friend sped through the rough terrain, her bangs flying wildly. The road was bumpy, and there were deep potholes. Each time the cart hit a pothole, her chubby body bounced around, almost falling out of the cart. By the time they reached the coconut grove, Xiaolin had gripped the cart so tightly that there were nearly imprints of her hands on it, her heart pounding with excitement and relief that she hadn’t been thrown out.

Huan Tan stood gazing at the vast coconut grove with a wide, almost manic smile. He didn’t notice the little piglet behind him, glaring at his broad back with her hair all tousled. Xiaolin, with a frown on her face, approached Huan Tan, who was still grinning like a madman, and bit his arm hard.

"Chomp!!"

"Yowch!!"

Huan Tan yanked his arm back and jumped away, rubbing the small, neat teeth marks now adorning his arm. He looked up to see the owner of those teeth standing with her arms crossed, chin raised defiantly.

"Why did you bite me?"

"Who told you to drive like that? What if I had fallen out?" The chubby girl turned away and walked into the coconut grove, not forgetting to turn around and tell the rest behind her to follow. Huan Tan trailed after the round little figure, still rubbing his bitten arm and muttering softly, fearing another attack from the little piglet.

Huan Tan followed the round figure while patting his arm with the scar of teeth. Xiaolin then pointed at the short aromatic coconut tree for her uncle to get as many as he could.

The uncle and niece duo did not bring a knife so it took them quite a while to collect enough coconuts to nearly fill the cart. Xiaolin then ordered her personal cart-puller to head toward the small beach hut, stopping briefly to greet the Fang family before continuing.

"Hey, Uncle Tan, Little Xiaolin," Lei San was the first to spot them and quickly called out.

"Uncle, I brought some coconuts for you, and I have a favor to ask," the chubby girl announced as she climbed down from the cart and approached her uncles. Huan Tan grumbled inwardly that he was the one who had gathered the coconuts.

"What favor? I’d be happy to help," Guo Lu said excitedly. He was sure his little niece was going to lead them to some delicious food.

"I want to go into the forest, Uncle. Can you take me, please?"

"Of course! I haven’t been in the forest for a while. How about we hunt some wild boar?" Wu Zhong suggested, tired of seafood and craving some juicy roasted pork.

"Great! I want some grilled pork intestines."

What was initially a plan to ask her uncles to join her in the forest in the afternoon turned into an impromptu hunting trip. Everyone abandoned their work, grabbed their weapons, and prepared to head into the forest. Before they left, Xiaolin made sure to distribute some coconuts to the other workers. The uncles then went back to their homes to get ready, planning to meet at the forest edge.

Once Xiaolin and Huan Tan were ready, they stood waiting at the edge of the forest. Before long, her uncles arrived, and they all set off into the woods, chatting and sharing jokes that made the chubby girl laugh nonstop.

Xiaolin led her uncles toward the part of the forest where she had found the lingzhi mushrooms. She had never ventured deeper than that spot and was curious to see if there were other treasures to be discovered. Additionally, she thought that Xiao Zhong might have come from that direction.

"Is this the right way, Xiaolin?" Guo Lu asked his round little niece, who was leading the way, as he looked up at the towering trees around them.

"This forest feels strange," Chang Sen remarked, echoing the unease. He had lived in the village for nearly thirty years but had never walked this path before.

"This is the area where I found the valuable things that made my family wealthy," Xiaolin declared, marching determinedly ahead, her eyes scanning the surroundings for any potential finds.

"Are you talking about the rare herbs that A’Rong mentioned?" Tian Yi asked in excitement.

"Rare herbs?" Huan Tan inquired, puzzled. Tianrong had never mentioned to him that they had found any valuable herbs.

"Yes, since then, I haven’t come back to this place. I only walked around the outskirts and found a patch of sweet potatoes," Xiaolin explained.

"Oh, Little Xiaolin is truly lucky,"

They walked for a long while without finding anything, not even small animals. Xiaolin sighed, beginning to think that her luck might have run out since they hadn’t found anything of value this time. The group agreed to take a break under one of the giant trees. They took out their water flasks and drank to quench their thirst.

Xiaolin, feeling a bit down, decided to explore the area around their resting spot. She saw some bushes nearby and decided to take a look. Her uncles, noticing she wasn’t venturing far, didn’t say anything to stop her.

"We must have walked about five kilometers by now," Huan Tan remarked, slightly out of breath. He often had to carry the chubby girl on his back, and they had taken frequent breaks along the way, so he wasn’t overly tired.

"This is the deepest I’ve ever gone into the forest," Lei San said, glancing around the quiet woods. There were no small animals to be seen, only leaves rustling occasionally in the breeze.

"This forest is strange. These giant trees seem ancient, like they’ve been here for hundreds of years," Chang Sen said, looking up at the towering trees with interest.

While the men were discussing the giant trees, Xiaolin pushed through the bushes and looked to the other side. She saw a vast grassland filled with grazing herbivores. Close to her was a herd of long-haired cattle, almost a hundred of them.

"So this is where Xiao Zhong comes from," Xiaolin thought, amazed by the sight of the long-haired cattle. She started thinking about how to bring a female cow back home without being charged by the herd. Getting gored by one of those sharp horns would be no laughing matter.

"Or should I bring Xiao Zhong here? He can be with his friends," she mused, tears welling up at the thought of returning Xiao Zhong to his herd.

Just then, a small white calf, about four to five months old with tiny budding horns, wandered close to the bushes where she was hiding.

The little calf’s ears twitched at the sound of something, and it looked up to meet Xiaolin’s round eyes. Both human and calf stared at each other for a while before the calf, seemingly recognizing a friend, approached and nuzzled Xiaolin affectionately.

Moooo

"Wh..why are you nuzzling me? Aren’t you scared?" Xiaolin patted the calf’s head, watching it rub its head against her belly.

"Do you have parents? Wait, are you a boy or a girl?" Xiaolin moved to check the calf’s hindquarters. Seeing that it was a female, her eyes sparkled.

Moo~

The calf continued to rub against the chubby girl. Though Xiaolin couldn’t understand the calf’s language, she wanted to get to know it better. If it had parents, she didn’t want to take it away from its family. Xiaolin sat down and spoke to the calf, which looked at her with big, curious eyes.

"If you don’t have a family, will you come live with me? But if you do have a family, you should go back to your herd."

The calf tilted its head before pushing through the bushes to follow Xiaolin. Seeing this, Xiaolin smiled broadly, deciding to believe that the calf wanted to come with her.

With a deft motion, the chubby hand of Xiaolin took out a rope she had prepared and looped it around the calf’s neck. She then led it back to where her uncles were chatting. The men, engrossed in their conversation, stood up in unison when they saw their round little niece leading a calf.

"Xiaolin! Where did you find this calf?" Huan Tan asked, stepping closer to inspect it. The calf, not afraid of people, wagged its tail contentedly.

"I found her over there. There’s a meadow with a herd of cattle behind those bushes." Xiaolin’s chubby finger pointed at the bush she just left. The excited big boys hurried over to take a look. When they saw the large herd of cattle grazing peacefully, their eyes widened in amazement.

Huan Tan quickly walked back to the chubby little girl. Xiaolin looked up at her large friend, confused by the strange expression on his face. Seeing the group around Wu Zhong still engrossed in watching the long-haired cattle, he knelt down and whispered to Xiaolin.

"Do you have some kind of blessing from the gods? Or maybe a deity is watching over you. How else could a wild cow follow you so easily?" Huan Tan asked. Xiaolin shook her head vigorously, her cheeks jiggling.

"I don’t know either. But ever since I came here, I’ve had good luck. I find valuable things in the forest, meet kind adults who take care of me, and I found Xiao Zhong and now this little one. Maybe I am blessed by the gods, as you said," Xiaolin replied, petting the affectionate calf that stayed close to her.

Huan Tan sat down on the ground, exhausted, staring at the calf in disbelief. When he reached out his hand, the calf nuzzled it like a puppy.

"This is too ridiculous. When I came here, I didn’t find anything good. Sigh!"

"Maybe it’s because I’m a good person. I like to give to others often,"

"Are you saying I’m a sinner?"

"Hehe, I didn’t say that," the chubby girl giggled, her eyes squinting in mirth.

After observing the herd of long-haired cattle for a while, the gluttonous men noticed a group of plump wild boars nearby. The sight was too tempting to ignore. Huan Tan stayed with Xiaolin and the calf while Wu Zhong’s group went to hunt the wild boars.

Xiaolin led the calf around to graze nearby. After a while, the hunting party returned with two wild boars, and they went back to fetch a third, making it three in total. The group then began their journey back to Shenlin Village, taking frequent breaks due to the weight of the boars and the long distance.

By the time they reached home, it was late afternoon. They hurried to singe the boar’s hair and butcher the animals. Chang Sen went to buy some alcohol, planning to have a small celebration.

Hui Ning and Huan Qingqing, carrying the chubby Tianyu, came out to see the new calf with interest. Hui Ning looked at her daughter, who, ever since recovering from an illness a year ago, had become astonishingly lucky.

"Are you going to name this one Xiao Bai?" Hui Ning asked her daughter knowingly.

"Hehe, Mother, I’m not good at naming things. It’s easier to name them based on their fur color, right?" the chubby girl said as she hugged her mother affectionately.

"Alright, then. Go on and put her in the pen, but be careful of Xiao Zhong. He might be territorial,"

"Yes, Mother. Come on, Xiao Bai. I’ll give you a bath tomorrow."

Moo~

The little calf obediently followed Xiaolin. She led Xiao Bai to Xiao Zhong, who was lazing under a tree. Upon hearing footsteps, Xiao Zhong turned and saw his young owner with the white long-haired calf. He immediately got up to inspect the newcomer. Xiaolin held her breath, worried that Xiao Zhong might not like Xiao Bai. However, after sniffing the calf for a moment, Xiao Zhong simply returned to his previous spot and resumed lying down.

"Xiao Zhong, you lazy cow! I brought Xiao Bai for you. Wait until she grows up and don’t do anything to her, okay?"

Xiao Zhong snorted as if annoyed by his owner’s chattering. Seeing this, Xiaolin sighed in relief and led Xiao Bai to the stream. After the long journey, she must be thirsty.

Xiao Bai drank eagerly, then grazed on the grass by the stream. Xiaolin tied her near Xiao Zhong since the rope she had was quite long. Watching the two cows for a while, the round girl then walked back to the house, looking forward to enjoying some juicy grilled pork.

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