In the meantime, He Anran went to the thatched hut and lay down on a pile of thick straw, covering himself with some of it. He tossed around and couldn't sleep, thinking of everything that happened today.

Ever since he knew that his uncle planned to arrange marriage from him, He Anran was in great panic. He was aware that a person with a good family background will never want to marry someone like him. 

It was when He Anran returned from the field that he overheard the conversation coming from behind the uncle’s house door: “Didn’t you see his hair? Is he even a human? Who knows what evil intentions he is harboring in his heart! Quickly get him away, otherwise, I will have nightmares every night I go to sleep.”

The woman didn't give the man in the room a chance to speak and started howling: “Why don't you think about your son? How much his education cost and the price of paper and ink! How many silvers are in your hand? You don't care about your own family and take care of other people's houses.” 

The uncle's wife became more infuriated and howled even louder: “If you don't marry this jinx out and don't give us any slivers, you may as well just drag me out and bury me in the coffin.” 

jinx - a person that brings bad luck

Every time He Zishu made a commotion, she wouldn’t stop until her husband softens up and admits his wrongs, it was the same case this very evening.

It wasn’t that He Anran didn’t see that coming, he wasn’t stupid, he just didn’t want to think deeply about it and get himself upset.

But the brutal realization that it was already happening and soon he would be taken, made him start running away without realizing it. He didn’t get very far because in his heart he knew that there was no escape route for him. 

He was a ger who was called a jinx so where could he go? 

The more He Anran thought about it, the more helpless he felt. He ran to the river where he used to play as a child and began to cry until there were no more tears to shed. What’s more, he ended up being exposed by someone.

Eventually, after giving Li Xuejian herbal medicine, with no other choice left, He Anran came back to his hut embarrassed and also surrendered to the fate that awaits him.

The next morning, on the other side of the village, a loud banging at the door woke up Li Xuejian. He immediately got up and shouted from his room: “Who's there?”

The visitor replied immediately: “It's me, Uncle Chen!” The old man's voice rang. 

“Where did you go yesterday? I came to give you some food but there was no one in the house.” He was worried that Li Xuejian once again went to the mountain but without coming back this time.  

But when Uncle Chen's eyes fell on the scar on Li Xuejian's face, he froze for a moment: “Ah? What happened to you!?”

Li Xuejian felt a little complicated but there was no point concealing the truth: “I fought with the tiger.” He waved his hand and it looked as if fighting with a tiger was not a big deal.

Uncle Chen's fingers that were holding the bowl stiffened: “Xue Jian, what did you say?” The old man couldn't believe what he was hearing.

How could he survive the tiger's attack? 

Uncle Chen knew that this child wouldn't lie to him and looking at Li Xuejian's face meant that he really did it.

Li Xuejian gave the other person some time to digest the news. 

He touched the old man's shoulder and spoke resolutely: “I have thought this through. There is no money and no food at home and hunting can quickly resolve this problem.” 

Seeing that Uncle Chen still wasn’t convinced that it was a good idea, Li Xuejian’s tone become more gentle: “I can’t rely on uncle all my life to feed me.” He took a bowl from the elder’s hands and gestured to sit at the table with him.

The meal provided by Uncle Chen was very simple. All kinds of coarse grains, sweet potato, and rice were mixed together. He swallowed everything in a couple of breaths. 

Only then did Li Xuejian drop the bomb: “I not only fight with the tiger but also killed it.”

Uncle Chen breathed in sharply and leaned against the table as white as a sheet, looking as though he would faint at any moment.

Li Xuejian made a mental note to not stimulate the old man too much in the future. He had a hunch that his heart can't handle that kind of pounding.

Uncle Chen failed in struggling to maintain his calm face, he was not only shocked but also scared witless by Li Xuejian. There were some people who have the luck to get through the tiger’s attack. As for killing one, he never in all his life met with such a courageous person. 

Even Li Xuejian’s father who was an experienced hunter didn’t dare to approach this dangerous animal. Now, it seemed that he was surpassed by no one else but his son. 

The way Uncle Chen looked at Li Xuejian changed and he grunted under his breath: “The choice is yours, this old man won’t say anything about it.”

He didn’t have a right to interfere with what Li Xuejian wanted to do for a living, the boy was not a child anymore. For some reason, he had trust in his skill and strength.

Li Xuejian felt relieved: “Thank you, Uncle.” 

It was difficult for anyone to have the place in Li Xuejian’s heart but maybe it was because the old man was the first person he saw after crossing over and was constantly looking after his wellbeing, Li Xuejian couldn’t stay indifferent and started to consider him as his true elder that he should take care of.

Uncle Chen didn’t leave but instead helped Li Xuejian to skin the tiger. They both sat on the stools in the kitchen and talked while working. 

During the conversation, Li Xuejian realized that his knowledge was limited when it comes to traditional medicine. It turned out that almost every tiger part from nose to its tail including, eyes, brain, flesh, fat, blood, and organs has been used to treat a variety of illnesses and cure diseases of many kinds.

After carefully removing the skin and claws, Li Xuejian didn’t dare to touch the rest of a fear that he wouldn’t handle it properly and it will lose value. He directly put the tiger into a cart and covered it with bamboo canes to make it look low-key and casual.

Li Xuejian thought that it was better to avoid robbers along the road, not that he was afraid of them, but only the fool would try to pick a fight without having to.

There was no more time that could be wasted if Li Xuejian wanted to come back home before dark so he bid goodbye to Uncle Chen and set off to the county town.