Chapter 49

"Little one, are you eyeing my two golden loaches?"Lu Qing noticed the black little beast staring persistently towards the kitchen, prompting him to cover his forehead with his hand.

No need to guess; it was obvious.

Because those two golden loaches were right in the kitchen.

He recalled how the black little beast had been circling around him earlier, sniffing, likely detecting the scent of the golden loaches on him.

After all, just that evening, he had moved the two golden loaches into the water tank and covered it with a wooden plank to prevent them from jumping out at night.

The fishy smell, once attached, was hard to remove quickly.

Unexpectedly, this little one's nose was so keen that it could discern the scent of the golden loaches amidst a mix of various fish smells.

The black little beast did not respond, merely gazing at Lu Qing quietly.

But from their time together, Lu Qing understood its meaning.

It indeed wanted to eat those two golden loaches.

Lu Qing couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.

"Little one, let's make a deal. You can eat any fish here. If that's not enough, I'll get you more. But I need to keep those two golden loaches, okay?"

Lu Qing didn't care whether the little beast could understand his lengthy speech; he started negotiating with it.

However, the black little beast either pretended to be dumb or genuinely didn’t understand. 

It simply blinked its eyes and continued staring fixedly in the direction of the kitchen behind Lu Qing.

Alright, Lu Qing understood now that the little one was determined to eat the golden loaches.

Knowing there was no room for negotiation, Lu Qing had to compromise.

"One. I can only give you one. The other one, I need it. I can't give it to you."

Lu Qing raised one finger, speaking seriously.

The black little beast stared at Lu Qing for a moment, then finally nodded.

"You really can understand me!"

Seeing the black little beast's action, Lu Qing could no longer doubt.

He had suspected before but was never sure.

Now, witnessing its behavior, he could confirm.

This little guy had understood him all along and had been pretending to be dumb!

Upon hearing Lu Qing's words, the black little beast resumed its earlier naive and calm expression, acting as if it had no idea what he was saying.

But Lu Qing wouldn’t be fooled by it anymore.

Thinking about how he had been deceived by a small beast for so long, he found it both funny and frustrating.

Turning back to the kitchen, he lifted the plank covering the water tank and grabbed one of the golden loaches, then returned to the courtyard.

"I can only give you one. Do you want it or not?"

Seeing the golden loach struggling in Lu Qing's hand, the black little beast's eyes brightened.

Just as Lu Qing finished speaking, he felt a shadow flash before his eyes, and the golden loach in his hand disappeared.

When he focused again, the black little beast was already munching on the golden loach voraciously.

Watching it bite off the loach's head in one gulp, Lu Qing's heart ached.

That was worth hundreds of silver taels.

But seeing the black little beast eat happily, eyes squinting in joy, tail wagging cheerfully, he could only console himself.

Well, at least the little one had given him a valuable hundred-year-old ginseng last night. Feeding it something good in return was only fair.

The black little beast ate quickly. Before long, the nearly two-pound golden loach was entirely in its stomach.

After finishing the loach, the black little beast looked at Lu Qing again.

Lu Qing was startled and quickly said, "No more. I need the remaining one. I can't give it to you!"

The black little beast gave Lu Qing a sidelong glance, seemingly displeased by his stinginess, then walked over to the tub of fish and began eating leisurely.

Lu Qing: ...

So, you didn't dislike the small fish; you just wanted the tasty ones first.

Seeing that the black little beast did not continue demanding the remaining golden loach, he sighed in relief.

Luckily, the little one was reasonable. If it had tried to snatch the other golden loach, he wouldn’t have been able to stop it.

Watching the little beast eat happily, Lu Qing squatted down, thinking.

"Little one, do you really like eating such exotic fish?"

Now that he was sure the little beast could understand him, Lu Qing was eager to communicate.

The little beast looked up at him, its eyes sparkling.

Lu Qing hurriedly added, "I’m not saying I’ll give you the other golden loach. Don't misunderstand."

Hearing this, the little beast lowered its head and continued eating, ignoring him.

Lu Qing didn't mind. "However, just because I can't give you the other golden loach doesn’t mean I won't give you other exotic fish I catch in the future."

The little beast looked up again, puzzled.

"Little one, how about we make a deal?" Seeing its interest, Lu Qing continued, "If I catch any more exotic fish like the golden loach, as long as you bring me the same kind of plant root as last night, I’ll trade them with you. How about that?"

Last night's plant root? S~ᴇaʀᴄh the NƟvelFɪre.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

The little beast tilted its head, realizing Lu Qing meant the plant it had instinctively found special and dug up for him.

He seemed to like it a lot?

It remembered the plant grew in some places within its mountain territory.

Though digging it up was easy for the little beast, it didn't want to agree too readily.

Why should it, when he was so stingy about giving it another fish? Hmph!

The little beast pretended to hesitate for a while before reluctantly nodding.

Lu Qing had no idea a young beast could have such complex thoughts.

Seeing it agree, he was overjoyed.

If the little one could indeed find more hundred-year-old ginseng, he didn’t mind giving it all the exotic fish he caught.

After all, the ginseng was far more valuable to him than the exotic fish.

Thus, both man and beast felt they had struck a great deal and happily reached an agreement.

Though it had eaten a golden loach, the little beast still finished all the fish in the tub. Its belly was slightly bloated when it left.

Watching the little beast clumsily jump over the fence, Lu Qing shook his head with a smile.

It truly loved fish, preferring to overeat rather than leave any behind.

Once the little beast disappeared, Lu Qing took the wooden tub back to the kitchen to clean, then went to his room to sleep.

The night passed uneventfully.

The next morning, Lu Qing woke up, practiced several rounds of Health Nourishing Boxing, and felt refreshed.

Health Nourishing Boxing, created by his master, truly lived up to its name.

Just practicing for a few days, he already felt much stronger and more energetic.

After a simple yet nutritious breakfast, Lu Qing took Xiao Yan, carrying the remaining golden loach in a bucket, and headed to the Halfway House.

Climbing the mountain, Lu Qing felt a sense of anticipation.

According to his master's words before going into seclusion, the Vitality and Blood Replenishing Pill should be ready today.

With the help of the pill, he was confident that reaching the Qi and Blood stage was within his grasp.