Chapter 433: Chapter 429: Thoroughly Spineless

Even clay figurines have tempers, let alone living people.

Mr. Gu Sr. also felt that continuing like this just wouldn’t do.

The main issue was that his palate had become quite the picky one.

When you haven’t tasted good food, so long as it’s cooked, it’s alright. But once you’ve tasted the good stuff, whether the food is cooked or not becomes less important.

What’s important is whether it tastes good.

Speaking of which, Mr. Gu Sr. thought of Wen Ran.

He scratched his head, "Ouch! Where’s that girl Wen Ran? She still hasn’t come back?"

"Not yet," Cai Xiaowen felt like her intestines were shrinking from hunger, saying weakly, "But, I’m not really sure if she’s back or not either.

I’ve been so busy I haven’t really looked up."

That’s understandable.

The food was unappetizing just by looking at it, so Mr. Gu Sr. took a deep breath and decided it was best to avoid seeing it and getting annoyed.

"Alright, you have a point."

After looking around, Mr. Gu Sr. decided, "Since no one wants to eat, let’s hold off on the meal and look for Wen Ran first."

Everyone: "?"

They exchanged confused glances, not understanding why at a time like this, they wouldn’t try to fill their stomachs but instead go looking for Wen Ran.

Cai Xiaowen seemed to understand Mr. Gu Sr.’s intentions, hesitating before probing, "Master, could it be that you mean for Ranran to deal with that old hag?"

"Huh?" Xu Ying was the first to object, "No, no way.

Ranran’s approach is straightforward; if it’s with youth, a bit of a scuffle is fine.

But that old hag is elderly, and if things get physical, arms and legs break, with her troublesome nature, she’d cling onto us for sure.

We have no problem dealing with honorable folks, but deceitful ones are another story. If we get tangled up with someone like that, reputation damage is one thing.

What’s worse is having such an infuriating person always around in your life—you’ll go mad."

That’s quite logical.

Mr. Gu Sr. took a deep breath, "I understand. What you’ve thought of, I’ve surely considered too. But, we’re just out of options here."

He awkwardly said, "That troublesome girl, though she seems young, is full of tricks. Asking her for help can’t go wrong."

Sensible reasoning.

No one actually wanted to eat that food anyway, so they quickly agreed and, following Cai Xiaowen’s hunch, headed towards the water’s edge.

Sure enough, after walking just over 300 meters, they saw a faint silhouette near the water’s edge.

A person.

To be precise, it was Wen Ran standing there. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Xu Ying wasn’t quite sure, "Master, is Ranran roasting something to eat?"

Cai Xiaowen was already drooling, "Definitely, I don’t know what she’s caught, but it’s big, and I can even smell the aroma."

She swallowed a mouthful of saliva, "Smells so good~"

Their stomachs were already empty, and the aroma made them drool even more.

"I mean, we’re all from the same family, right? We can’t get beaten to death for sharing her meat, can we?"

"Then let’s eat," someone in the crowd was so determined for food they were willing to risk it all, "I refuse to believe I could get beaten to death."

As long as you don’t die, any meat eaten is a win.

While everyone was still torn, Mr. Gu Sr. had already wiped away his saliva and, with his short legs, gleefully led the charge.

Meat, meat, meat!

I’m coming!

To put it frankly, just a moment’s lapse of attention and suddenly you’re surrounded by hungry wolves.

"Oh my word!"

Wen Ran was stunned, "What are you guys doing? When it’s time to eat, why aren’t you eating and coming here instead? Looking for me?"

It seemed quite implausible after thinking about it.

"Such a big chunk of meat!"

Xu Ying boldly took off a piece of jade from around her neck, "Sister, you can’t finish it all, can you? How about we trade it for this piece of meat?"

The jade, still warm, fell into Wen Ran’s hand, leaving her more surprised.

Was this forceful bargaining?

"But I haven’t eaten yet."

"You eat yours," Xu Ying rubbed her hands, "I don’t want it all; just enough to fill up."

Okay.

If you’re putting it that way, it’s quite the deal.

"Deal!"

Afterwards, people were eager to offer anything valuable they had in exchange for Wen Ran’s meat.

At first, Wen Ran was somewhat hesitant, "Ah, this isn’t really proper."

"It’s great, why wouldn’t it be? You keep the stuff; we eat the meat. It’s a win-win!"

"True enough."

Wen Ran happily collected things while everyone wasn’t picky folks anyway, washed their hands by the water’s edge, and sat down on the ground to attack the venison.

Looking at them wolfing down the food, Wen Ran was puzzled, "Seriously, what’s going on? Did that old woman cut down on your lunch servings?"

That shouldn’t be right.

A helper cooking, getting so arrogant?

But turns out, yes, they really could.

"Don’t mention it," Cai Xiaowen chewed a mouthful of meat, then began to complain after savoring it, "She’s getting more outrageous. The breakfast was tolerable.

Today for lunch, it felt like she threw leftovers from days ago into the pot."

Wen Ran: "..."

She swallowed, thought a bit, and decided to speak up, "Honestly, it’s like the foolish one inviting trouble, opening the door wide for misfortune.

With such bullying, don’t you feel even a bit of anger?

Please don’t tell me you just let that old woman go so easily."

Everyone: "..."

How to put it, it felt like being slapped in the face, the sound was loud and painful.

Wen Ran fell silent too.

After a while, she laughed in frustration, "Seriously, it’s like kicking into cotton with you guys."

She took a bite of meat, "Do you even know? Your subsidies are quite substantial. That old woman might have picked food from you to feed a family of three, no, a family of five, perhaps even more.

Every meal is balanced with meat and eggs, dripping with grease."

Mr. Gu Sr. asked, "...Is that true?"

"What else?"

He smiled awkwardly, "Honestly, we didn’t realize."

Wen Ran shook her head, sighing, "Truthfully, are you really going to let a cooking granny lord over you?

If you agree, I won’t say a word. But if you disagree, I’ll step in."

Cai Xiaowen’s eyes lit up, "What do you plan to do?"

Plan?

Wen Ran smiled knowingly, "It’s all about a friendly chat, plus getting her to cough up everything she’s eaten over the years."