Chapter 43 A Close Call
Hearing the noise, the tiger shifted its gaze to the firelight, then slowly landed on the faces of the father and son.
It opened its huge mouth and let out a deafening roar.
The father and son looked extremely pale, almost scared out of their wits as they watched their daughter/little sister being only a meter away from the worm's mouth!
I haven't seen a tiger in so many years, why did it have to appear at this time of year!
"Little sister, climb the tree, quick!"
Brother Li pulled out his belt from his waist, shook it twice in his hand, and it turned into a nine-section whip.
"Second brother, I'll distract Big Bug. You protect your little sister and get out of here quickly."
"no!"
The brother and sister spoke in unison. Li Banxia gripped the dagger in her hand and watched as the worm opened its blood-red mouth and yawned.
Immediately afterwards, a soft, babyish "woof" came from the bushes behind Li Banxia.
Li Banxia turned her stiff neck and looked back with a clattering sound.
A little tiger cub emerged dazedly from the bushes. Upon seeing the big tiger, it howled and staggered over, but its path veered off course, and it bumped headfirst into Li Banxia's calf.
The tiger roared, and sweat poured down Li Banxia's forehead. He dared not move.
She didn't move, and the worm stood still in the same spot.
The father and his two daughters watched as the little milk jug staggered and swayed as it walked to the big worm's side.
The big worm slapped the little milk jug with its claw, sending it flying far away.
The little milk pot clumsily got up and howled at the big worm, its limbs bobbing on the ground. The big worm barked at it, and the little milk pot instantly became obedient.
The big worm strode over, opened its mouth, picked up the little milk bottle, and hopped away.
The father and his two daughters were speechless.
It was a close call; it turned out that the big worm had come out looking for Little Milk Pot, and the spot where Li Banxia was standing happened to be Little Milk Pot's hiding place.
Are you alright?
Li's father walked over to Li Banxia in a few steps and looked her up, down, left, and right.
Li Banxia shook her head. "It's okay. It just looked at me, growled twice, but didn't attack me."
"Good, good, good." Mr. Li let out a long breath, his voice trembling with lingering fear.
"Smack!"
Li Erge reached out and slapped Li Banxia on the back of the head, glaring at her fiercely. "Li Banxia, how old are you? You've even learned to lie! What did you say when you went up the mountain? You said you'd only stay on the outer circle and be back in two hours, but look what happened?! Where are we? We're more than ten miles away from our home!"
Li Banxia hissed, her eyes wide with surprise when she heard her second brother say that they were already so far from home.
"Did I walk that far without realizing it?"
Brother Li raised his hand in an annoyed tone, "Are you asking for a beating?!"
"No, Second Brother, let me explain."
Li Banxia searched for the herbs further inwards after failing to find them on the outskirts. When she finally found them, she realized she was lost. On her way back, she encountered another large patch of...
"Uncle Li, Second Brother, Banxia!"
Li Banxia's words were interrupted by a young man whose voice was filled with excitement. He stood not far away, watching the three of them happily, and then turned around to call out, "They're alright, there's no big bug! Come on over."
The father and his two daughters exchanged a glance and looked in the direction where the torches were gathered.
The neighbors who came to help didn't leave; they were hiding in the distance, watching from afar.
"Don't let them come any closer, let's go over there."
Li's father looked at Li Banxia and called him "Second Brother Li," saying, "Help your little sister carry the basket on her back."
Li Erge hummed in agreement and reached for the basket on Li Banxia's back. When he picked it up, the weight was wrong.
"Thank you, Second Brother."
Li Banxia glanced at him, and Li Erge glanced at her sideways, weighed the basket in his hand, put it on his back, and then wrapped the nine-section whip back around his waist.
The four people, two in front and two behind, joined the others.
A group of people surrounded Li Banxia and asked, "Xia girl, are you alright?"
"What just happened? Li Banxia, did you really run into a tiger?"
"...How did we end up so deep in here? Are you lost?"
Li Banxia greeted them with a smile and answered their questions one by one, saying, "I'm fine."
"Look, the big worm came out to find the little tiger cub, it didn't attack me..."
"Yeah, I'm lost."
The group was relieved to be safe and said that it was good that nothing had happened, and that it was getting late so they should hurry home.
We chatted and laughed on the way back, and soon arrived at the familiar foot of the mountain.
The father and his two daughters thanked each of them in turn.
Brother Li said, "I'll treat you to a drink later. Thank you so much for your help today."
"Second brother, you're being too polite. We're all neighbors, we're all family."
"Yes, everyone needs to ask for help sometimes. Don't worry about it, we're leaving now..."
The three watched the group leave before hurrying home.
When they arrived home, Li's mother, Li's second sister-in-law, and Li's third sister-in-law were all waiting in the yard. They saw the torches waiting for them at the gate.
"Xiaxia!"
Seeing her daughter's disheveled state, Li's mother's eyes instantly reddened. "What happened? You..."
Li's mother looked her daughter over and, after confirming that she was not injured, felt relieved.
The next second, they heard Li Ersao exclaim, "Little sister, what happened to your hand?"
Li's mother's gaze slid down to her daughter's hand, which was covered in mud and blood, and she gasped, "What happened? How did your hand get hurt? What did you bump into?"
"Mom, it's nothing, it's just a scrape I got while digging for herbs. It looks bad, but it's just a small injury..."
Li Banxia looked to her second brother for help, who then carried a basket into their parents' room.
Li Banxia: "...Mom, I've washed it clean and I'll show you."
"I'll go fetch water," said Sister-in-law Li San hurriedly.
"you say!"
Li's mother looked at Li's father.
Mr. Li, "..."
He coughed lightly and glanced quickly at Li Banxia, "Xiaxia encountered a tiger..."
"What!" Li's mother's voice rose.
When Li Sansao brought over the water, she heard the word "big worm" and her hand instantly went limp, knocking the basin over to the ground.
It made a "clang" sound.
She looked at Li Banxia with surprise in her eyes, her lips trembling, her face pale, "Little sister, you, you..."
"Third Sister-in-law, I'm fine. The tiger didn't attack me. It must have come out to find its cubs. Once it found them, it went back to the deep mountains," Li Banxia quickly reassured Third Sister-in-law.
Li Sansao still looked shaken. She tried to force a smile, but it looked worse than crying. "That's good, that's good... Dad, Mom, I... I'll go tell Brother Guangbai to let him come and see my little sister."
After saying that, he turned and walked away.
Li Ersao watched Li Sansao's retreating figure, her eyes filled with sympathy.
Li's mother sighed softly.
He pulled Li Banxia to wash her hands, and after washing them clean, they went back inside to apply gentian violet.
Li Ersao went to the kitchen, ladled out a bowl of ginger soup, and brought it to Li Banxia, saying, "It's very cold in the mountains, drink some to ward off the chill."
"Thank you, Second Sister-in-law."
Li Ersao smiled.
"It's getting late, let's stay home for the night and head back early tomorrow morning," said Li's mother.
Li Banxia nodded, "Then I'll go to the dealership later and make a call to tell the boss and his wife."
“I’ve already called, and Su Youfu answered the phone.”
Li Erge picked up where Li Banxia left off, and his expression turned somewhat unpleasant when he mentioned Su Youfu.
"Did Su Youfu answer it?" Li Banxia frowned. "Where are the boss and his wife?"
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