Winning Hearts Was Just That Simple

This time, the six of them slunk out through the camp gates under the "escort" of Commandant Lin's gaze...

Along the way, everyone looked utterly bewildered and thoroughly pained... What grudge, what grievance had landed them in a mess like this?

"Sigh..."

Xu Sanlang looked Wang Qi over again and again before finally letting out a sigh laden with mixed feelings.

To be honest, they all thought Wang Qi was rather innocent.

But he had dragged them all down with him, hadn't he? So they could forget about giving Wang Qi any friendly looks!

Just then, Wang Qi felt that the atmosphere was too gloomy. Should he say something to liven things up?

He gave a dry cough and suggested, "How about... we take a walk along this river?"

The other five immediately stopped and turned deeply resentful gazes on him... Their expressions seemed to say: You still have the nerve to speak!

But Wang Qi felt he could still make his case, so he said, "The river is clear, and there are waterbirds all along its banks. That means there must be plenty of fish breeding in it."

Xu Sanlang had no interest in hearing any of this now. He said bluntly, "I don't know what you did to offend Commandant Lin, but you've made us brothers suffer along with you... So let me make this perfectly clear: forget about hunting anything. Just stay here quietly until the hour of the Dog, then get your ass back to bed!"

The hour of the Dog corresponded to seven to nine in the evening, which was indeed when most people in this era went to sleep.

Wang Qi still refused to give up. Instead, he coaxed them patiently. "But by the time we get back, there probably won't be anything left to eat, right? Don't you want some grilled fish and fish soup?"

Xu Sanlang hesitated slightly. Wang Qi had quite a point... They had clearly been exiled because this boy had dragged them into trouble, so they might as well make the little brat cook them a meal as compensation!

"Do you know how?" Xu Sanlang asked tentatively.

Wang Qi was a sharp one. He immediately saw through the Military Marquis's thoughts and nodded decisively. "Don't worry. What can't a kid from a mountain hunter's family do?"

"I'll go catch some fish now, but could you Military Marquis gather some dry firewood? We'll make do with a simple meal here on the riverbank."

The five Military Marquis exchanged glances. Although this seemed to mean they were taking orders from Wang Qi, there was no reason to pick a fight with their own stomachs, was there?

So they watched blankly as Wang Qi headed toward the river, then dawdled off to gather firewood.

At the riverbank, Wang Qi seemed to sense something and glanced back again, forming a few tentative conclusions... He had noticed that these Military Marquis did not seem particularly skilled at surviving in the wild.

Any child raised in an ordinary rural family should not have been so unfamiliar with such things... These Military Marquis were formidable, certainly, but they seemed rather ignorant of everyday practical matters.

Wang Qi mulled this over without rushing to a conclusion. He found a raised rock beside the stream and took his position, then pulled out the grass rope he always carried and tied it to the shaft of an arrow.

Although this would affect the arrow's accuracy... for Wang Qi, the difference was negligible within thirty paces.

Standing atop the rock, he looked down at the water below...

The sun was setting now, and the light among the trees had already grown dim.

Wang Qi was not worried. His eyes could still see everything clearly.

He had chosen a spot where the current was relatively gentle. Naturally, calmer water was more suitable for microorganisms and various kinds of algae to grow, so in theory, there should have been plenty of fish here.

His experience had not misled him. Before long, he spotted signs of fish swimming in the water, and quite a few at that... But he did not act rashly. His arrows could only hit targets close to the surface, so he had to be patient...

"Whoosh!"

He loosed an arrow!

Sorry, he was not a patient person. The moment he sighted a swiftly swimming fish, he shot straight at it.

The arrow plunged into the water and struck the fish squarely in the belly.

He hurriedly pulled on the rope, hauling up a sizable grass carp.

After pulling out the arrow, he tossed the plump fish onto the bank and left it flopping in its death throes while he began searching for another target.

His eyesight was superb. Whenever a swimming fish approached the surface, he spotted it at once, struck it with an arrow, hauled it up, and tossed it onto the bank.

Before long, more than a dozen dying fish lay scattered along the riverbank... This stretch of river was even richer than he had imagined.

But Wang Qi did not continue. He knew there were plenty of days ahead. He had already shot fifteen fish, enough for everyone to have two. It was a shame he had not brought an earthenware pot, or he could have cooked a delicious pot of fish soup.

Feeling a little regretful, he hopped down from the rock without prompting, took out his knife, and began cleaning the fish in the clear river water.

Only then did the Military Marquis return from gathering firewood, surprised to find that Wang Qi had already cleaned seven or eight large fish!

"Don't just stand there. If you've brought the dry firewood, build a fire. We can eat our fill of grilled fish tonight."

This time, the five did exactly as he said. Watching Wang Qi busily clean the fish, they felt rather awkward standing around doing nothing...

The fire was soon burning. By then, Wang Qi had skewered the cleaned fish on branches and planted them beside the fire to roast slowly.

Of course, he had not forgotten to rub on some of the salt he carried for seasoning... Grilled fish only needed a little salt to taste wonderfully fresh and delicious.

Soon, an enticing aroma spread through the air, making everyone's mouth water.

Once Wang Qi judged them nearly ready, the Military Marquis could no longer hold back and began grabbing them one after another... Beneath the crisp outer skin, the fish was white, tender, and delicate, cooked just right. It tasted sweet, fragrant, and wonderfully fresh.

One Military Marquis sighed with feeling. "This reminds me a little of when we accompanied Lord Lin on autumn hunts back in Chang'an... It would be even better with some wine."

As Wang Qi ate his own grilled fish, he said, "Then bring some wine tomorrow... Oh, and bring a few earthenware pots too, so we can make soup."

The scene immediately fell silent. For a moment, no one spoke... They had remembered that if Commandant Lin really disliked this boy so much, wouldn't they have to take him out every day and wait until the hour of the Dog before returning to camp?

Eating the grilled fish in their hands, they wiped the grease from the corners of their mouths and suddenly found themselves looking forward to it...

Xu Sanlang asked, "Wang Qi, hurry up and tell us. What else should we bring tomorrow?"

Wang Qi did not stand on ceremony. He immediately began counting on his fingers. "We'll need more salt and all sorts of seasonings. Otherwise, the flavor will be too monotonous."

"And we can't let the two Sword and Shield Company Military Marquis's sturdy physiques go to waste. Bring a couple of extra bamboo baskets for mountain produce. If we find any mountain delicacies, we can make a wonderfully tasty pot of soup."

"Also, it would be best to have a map of the area, even a rough one. We can't keep hunting in the same direction every day and pluck it bare. We'll need to plan a different route for each outing..."

On and on he went. In any case, all the five Military Marquis could do was nod as they ate.

Although they had originally decided to teach Wang Qi a lesson...

"This really is delicious..."

Every one of them felt the same way.