By then, dusk had begun to fall. Nearly everyone in Baicao Town had stepped outside to take care of their chores.
The town was remote and had little contact with the outside world. Everyone knew one another.
The three had barely entered town when someone called out to them. "A Niu, A Yong, A Mu, you're back! Looks like you had a good haul this time."
"Third Auntie." The three exchanged greetings with her. A Yong, dressed in a brown short jacket, glanced at the medicine pot in her hands and said, "Your father-in-law's been bedridden for quite a while. Come by later and take some wild boar offal to help build him up."
Third Auntie hurriedly replied, "Thank you so much! No one's slaughtered a pig in town lately, so it's been hard to show the old man some filial care... Would you like some salted duck eggs? I pickled them myself..."
As they spoke, several children came bouncing out of an alley nearby. They were chasing a rotten human head, kicking it back and forth and laughing merrily.
The children spotted the game and immediately scooped up the head, then ran over to gawk at the hunters' catch. "Xiao Ni's dad, did you catch all of these? You're amazing!"
"Why didn't you catch one of those pretty chickens? I want a new shuttlecock..."
"What do you know? This is a wild boar! Look how fierce it is!"
"When I grow up, I'm going into the mountains to hunt too!"
"Xiao Ni's dad, why doesn't Xiao Ni ever come out and play with us?"
A Yong laughed. "He just likes his peace and quiet... We'll render the pork fat later and bring you some cracklings."
"Yay!"
The children were delighted. They immediately forgot that Xiao Ni never played with