Chapter 20: Young Tiger
“Perfect, the pressure from one fierce tiger isn’t enough.”
Xu Mingwei burst into laughter.
He had only used pure strength to fight the male tiger just now; if he had used his internal Qi and Martial Skills, he could have easily toyed with it.
The male tiger turned and roared at the female tiger.
The female tiger responded.
Then, the male and female tigers flanked Xu Mingwei from two directions.
Their movements were very skilled, indicating it wasn't their first time ambushing and hunting other wild beasts like this.
The male tiger pounced first, while the female tiger slowly closed in.
As Xu Mingwei fought the male tiger, one-third of his attention remained on the female tiger.
It would pounce at times, and at others, flick its tail.
But not once did it succeed.
Xu Mingwei began to use the Moves of the Small Dragon Elephant Skill, combined with internal Qi, each Move possessing a force of nearly six thousand catties.
The two fierce tigers were incredibly strong; they endured several punches.
“Good, this is how it should be!”
Xu Mingwei no longer held back, unleashing all his movement techniques and Martial Skills.
Bang, bang, bang~
His punches were fierce, whistling through the air.
The sound of his fists broke through the void, shaking the surroundings.
After about a quarter of an hour, Xu Mingwei punched the tiger couple to death.
He showed no mercy.
This was the most primitive struggle; it was either him or them.
If he had been defeated, it might have been him who died there today.
“This fur is good; such a large hide should sell for four to five hundred taels.”
Ordinary ones usually fetched just over three hundred taels.
Xu Mingwei pulled out his dagger and skillfully began to skin them.
If he brought the complete corpses back, their value would naturally be higher, but they would be difficult to carry and would easily expose his strength.
After he finished, Xu Mingwei carefully packed the pelts, and his satchel suddenly bulged.
Just as he was about to leave, he looked back at the cave.
Curiosity led him to explore inside.
The cave wasn't large; the ground was only five to six meters from the ceiling, and in some lower spots, only a little over two meters.
“Drip—drip—”
Xu Mingwei followed the sound and saw a small pool of water.
Water droplets continuously fell into the pool from above.
His Eagle Eye allowed him to see as clearly in the dark as in daylight, which was quite miraculous.
He looked around.
He saw a pile of grass on a stone platform, thinking it must be where the fierce tigers rested.
“Rustle, rustle, rustle~”
A sound came from the dry grass pile.
Xu Mingwei walked over and saw a small, cat-sized creature, its eyes not yet open, digging through the dry grass and twigs.
“Is this a young tiger?”
“Its fur is actually white; could it be a rare variant?”
Xu Mingwei was a little surprised and doubtful, but then he sighed slightly, thinking that if he had known the female tiger had just given birth, he might have spared her.
Without the female tiger, this cub would have a hard time surviving.
“Oh, right, Xue Ji wanted a small animal. This is perfect to bring back. I just don’t know if it will be untamable when it grows up.”
“Never mind, I’ll worry about that later.”
“At worst, if it goes mad, I’ll just kill it.”
He would be able to Breakthrough to the first-rate Martial Artist realm before the year-end sacrifice, making it even easier then.
Xu Mingwei picked up the small white tiger, initially thinking of putting it in his satchel, but then, remembering it contained the pelts of its parents, he felt it wasn’t appropriate and simply tucked it into his embrace.
“I’ve gained something from this trip, so I’ll head back now.”
Xu Mingwei slung his longbow and quiver over his back and returned the way he came.
Upon returning to the Xu Family, it was just about lunchtime.
Xu Chuan had taught Xu Mingshu and Xu Mingxian Martial Skills that morning, then went out for a while, and returned to supervise their calligraphy practice.
“You’re back so early today.”
“Father.”
Xu Mingwei said with a smile, “This time, I encountered two very formidable fierce tigers, much larger than usual. I got two tiger hides. Father, do you think we should keep them for our own use or sell them in Qingjiang County?”
“I estimate each hide can sell for over five hundred taels.”
“Then clean them and sell them. The money you get should be given to A Yuan; he needs to save more silver, just in case.”
“No problem.”
“Big Brother!” Xu Mingshu scurried over, tugging at his sleeve, and looked up expectantly, “Where’s the little animal I wanted?”
Xu Mingwei smiled and pulled a rather large creature from his bulging embrace.
“What a cute little white cat! I love it.”
Xu Chuan narrowed his eyes, then mused, “Is this a white tiger?”
“Father’s insight is truly sharp.”
Hearing “white tiger,” Xu Mingxian, who had initially been uninterested, also came closer to examine it carefully.
Because he had never seen a white tiger before.
“It’s so small,” Xu Mingxian said.
“It was just born not long ago; its eyes haven’t even opened yet. I didn’t know the female tiger had just given birth, otherwise, I would have spared her life.”
“Without its parents, it couldn’t possibly survive, which is why I brought it back.”
Xu Mingwei explained.
Xu Chuan nodded, saying, “Then let Xue Ji raise it.”
Xu Mingshu took the small white tiger, gently stroked it with her hand, and said softly, “Little White Tiger, from now on, you are my pet.”
Xu Mingwei smiled wryly.
“Fourth Sister, when it grows up, it will be bigger than you and very fierce. Be careful it doesn’t bite your head off,” Xu Mingxian taunted.
“Hmph, stinky little brother, Little White won’t do that, right, Little White?”
Xu Chuan examined it closely, then stepped forward to stroke it, saying, “Since you’ve named it, Xue Ji, you must be responsible for taking good care of it from now on.”
“I observe it should be almost two weeks old, so even without the female tiger’s milk, it’s fine.”
“I’ll write down some important points, and you can take care of it according to those.”
“Thank you, Father, Father is the best.” Xu Mingshu sweetly called out.
Xu Chuan rubbed her head, then wrote a page of notes and handed it to Xu Mingshu, who immediately skipped away happily.
Xu Mingxian looked at Xu Chuan and said, “Father, tigers are fierce wild beasts. Won’t it be dangerous to raise one?”
“What, are you worried about your Fourth Sister?”
“I’m not worried about her,” Xu Mingxian said haughtily, turning his head away.
“Don’t worry, Xue Ji will have no problem raising it,” Xu Chuan assured him with a smile. “Go practice your calligraphy. You can’t eat lunch until you finish those.”
“Yes, Father.”
Xu Mingwei was somewhat surprised by this, not knowing why his Father was so certain.
But he still chose to believe him.
“Oh, right, Father, there are also these two strange, hard fruits. I don’t know what they are. You are well-traveled and knowledgeable; please take a look.”
Xu Chuan nodded and took them, but he couldn't figure them out either, so he decided to put them aside for now.
Xu Mingwei returned to his room, hung up his bow and arrows, and then went to wash the bloodstains off the tiger hides and remove the Fishy smell.
Time flew by to noon the next day.
Seeing the tiger hides had dried, Xu Mingwei rode his horse to the County Seat.
In less than half an hour, he arrived at the city gate of Qingjiang County.
The city walls, over twenty meters high, were constructed from solid blocks of basalt, extending for over ten li on either side, stretching across the plain like a Dragon’s spine.
The grey walls were full of the mottled marks of time, and their base was covered in green moss.
In the very center were two large elm wood doors reinforced with iron plates, with bronze beast heads embedded in the door panels, holding copper rings the size of bowls. Each door was three to four meters wide, over ten meters high, and more than thirty centimeters thick, its surface painted red.
People came and went here, and carriages and horses passed through. Soldiers guarded the gate, specifically inspecting and verifying the identities of those entering and exiting.
After dismounting, Xu Mingwei led his horse forward.
People who were not registered residents of Qingjiang County had to pay an entry fee and obtain a temporary identification card to enter the city.
Merchants also had to register and pay commercial taxes.
Xu Mingwei, of course, did not need to; after briefly showing his identification, he led his horse into the city.