30 – Don’t Recognise

That night, Lu Qing finally had a good night’s sleep.

The next morning, after breakfast, he took Xiao Yan to the riverside to fish.

This time, there were far fewer people at the riverbank. It was no longer the previous bustling scene of seven or eight people crowding one fishing spot.

After all, it was the busy farming season, with much work to be done in the fields. How could anyone possibly fish every day?

Fishing was ultimately just a pastime, at most occasionally improving one’s meals. It was not nearly as important as the grain in the fields, which was the farmers’ lifeline.

This time, Lu Qing did not go to that special fish spot.

That kind of special fish, it’s fine to catch it occasionally.

If you catch a few every other day, even a fool would know something was off.

Moreover, even if he caught one now, he had nowhere to process it.

He couldn’t keep asking Old Doctor Chen to help sell them every time.

As for eating them himself, he couldn’t bear to.

Ever since learning the value of those special fish, Lu Qing planned to make them an important source of income.

So, he intended to go after them periodically, or after he had gained a certain level of self-protection.

Lu Qing chose another white light fishing spot he had found during his first trip to the riverbank.

After making some repairs to the spot, Lu Qing started fishing.

Compared to the previous two trips, this one was uneventful.

After an hour, he had caught a half bucket of fish.

The fish varied in size, with the largest being a two or three-pound grass carp, and the smallest still being the small whitefish.

With a half bucket of fish in hand, Lu Qing began to pack up.

These should be enough to feed that Black Night Spirit Fox for a few nights.

Returning home with the fish, after Xiao Yan had fallen asleep that night, Lu Qing again heard that familiar scratching at the door.

This time, he wasn’t flustered. He fetched the pre-prepared fish from the kitchen and calmly opened the house’s main door.

As the door opened, he saw the little black beast standing in the middle of the courtyard.

However, this time it was noticeably more composed.

Although it still had a wary look in its eyes, it didn’t have its fur standing on end like last night.

“Been waiting for you.”

Lu Qing smiled, trying to make his aura as calm and friendly as possible.

Then, he brought out a wooden basin filled with fish from behind him, slowly walking toward the courtyard.

Seeing him come out, the black beast immediately retreated a few steps, making a faint warning sound.

Lu Qing stopped right away, “Don’t be nervous, I mean no harm.”

He gently set the wooden basin on the ground and slowly backed away.

Only after he had returned inside did the black beast relax, sniffing the air a few times before darting to the basin.

In the next moment, it grabbed the largest fish in its mouth and disappeared, running off somewhere to eat.

Lu Qing wasn’t surprised and waited quietly inside the door.

Sure enough, after a while, the little beast reappeared in the courtyard, grabbing another fish before vanishing again.

That little thing was quite cautious.

Lu Qing chuckled, not interested in watching a wild beast eat.

There were many small fish in the bucket, and it would take quite some time for the little beast to come and go, eating them all. He didn’t want to keep waiting.

Shutting the door, he returned to his room, feeling completely relaxed.

This matter had been perfectly resolved.

Although he had to give up some fish, for someone who enjoyed fishing, those fish were no big deal.

Every time he went fishing, he would catch more than he could eat in a short period.

Having this Black Night Spirit Fox help consume them wasn’t a bad thing.

It was like in the countryside, where leftovers and bones that couldn’t be finished would be given to cats and dogs.

Feeling relaxed, Lu Qing had another good night’s sleep that night.

The next morning, he found the wooden basin empty.

Over two pounds of fish, all eaten. That little beast had quite an appetite.

After cleaning and putting away the basin, Lu Qing started making breakfast.

After finishing their meal, Lu Qing and Xiao Yan prepared to visit Old Doctor Chen.

With more than a pound of freshly butchered small fish, Lu Qing headed out with Xiao Yan.

The old doctor mentioned last time that he liked eating small fish, and it just so happened Lu Qing had caught a lot of them yesterday, so he brought some along.

Walking on the uphill path, Lu Qing’s face showed a hint of anticipation.

The old doctor went to the city yesterday and helped him sell Red Moon Carps… He wondered how it went.

Although the old doctor said that Red Moon Carps are precious exotic fish that are always in high demand, Lu Qing still felt a bit nervous without seeing the money.

When they reached the small courtyard halfway up the mountain, Lu Qing saw that Old Doctor Chen had just finished his morning exercises.

“Grandpa Chen!” Xiao Yan ran up.

“Xiao Yan, I haven’t seen you for a day, did you miss Grandpa?”

The old doctor picked up the little one.

“Yes~” Xiao Yan answered sweetly.

“Hahaha…”

“Hello, Grandpa Chen.” Lu Qing also stepped forward to greet him.

“Hmm, you look good today. So, did that wild beast stop bothering you?”

In the old doctor’s opinion, his medicinal powder had always been highly effective; no matter what kind of beast, they would avoid it. He had given Lu Qing a large bag, so even tigers and leopards wouldn’t want to come near.

A mere unknown wild beast shouldn’t be an exception.

However, Lu Qing’s face showed a trace of embarrassment at this moment.

“Grandpa Chen, it seems the medicinal powder isn’t very effective. That beast still came to my house the past two nights.”

“Oh, how could that be?” Old Doctor Chen was taken aback.

“I don’t know either. It seems that the creature isn’t afraid of the powder.” Lu Qing answered honestly.

“So how did you make it leave?”

The old doctor looked at Lu Qing’s complexion again, confirming he hadn’t misjudged; Lu Qing didn’t look like he had stayed up all night.

“I didn’t use any special tactics. I found that it seemed to be after my fish, so I threw some fish out for it. It left after eating.”

“It likes fish?” The old doctor pondered, “What did the beast look like? Did you get a good look at it?”

“It was a small black beast, about two feet long, entirely black except for its four paws and neck, which were white. Grandpa Chen, do you know what kind of beast this is?”

“A small black beast about two feet long?” The old doctor thought for a moment and shook his head, “I’ve traveled far and wide for so many years, but I’ve never seen such a creature.”

“Even you don’t recognize it?” Lu Qing was surprised.

“How can you say that?” The old doctor laughed, “This world is vast and boundless, with countless creatures. Although I have traveled for decades, I’ve only seen a small part of it. Isn’t it normal to encounter unknown creatures?”

“You are right, Grandpa Chen.” Lu Qing nodded.

He initially hoped to get more information about the black beast from the old doctor but seemed to be disappointed.

“But according to you, the small beast seems quite intelligent. If it poses no threat to humans and just wants food, there’s no need to drive it away for now.”

The old doctor was knowledgeable and knew that some beings in this world were quite special. From Lu Qing’s description, the small black beast might be one of these.

“That’s what I was thinking too. Anyway, we have more fish than we can eat at home, so giving some to it is harmless.” Lu Qing smiled.

Even if he wanted to drive it away, he wouldn’t dare. That creature was formidable!

Xiao Yan, listening on the side for a while, finally understood a bit of what the two were discussing.

Her eyes lit up: “Brother, can Xiao Yan watch when you feed the small beast fish next time?”

“That might be a bit difficult.” Lu Qing said, “It seems to come only after you fall asleep.”

“Why?” The little one felt a bit hurt, “Does it dislike Xiao Yan?”

“I don’t know. Maybe it’s just shy. As it gets more familiar with us, it’ll want to meet you.”

“Brother, you should quickly become friends with it. Xiao Yan really wants to see what the small beast looks like.” Xiao Yan looked expectantly.

“I’ll try.”

What else could Lu Qing say? He could only nod and agree.

“By the way, Grandpa Chen, this is for you. I caught some small fish yesterday. Didn’t you say you wanted to eat them last time? I hope it’s enough.”

Lu Qing handed the prepared fresh small fish to the old doctor.

The old doctor looked at them and was quite satisfied: “Put them inside. By the way, I bought the things you asked me to buy. They’re in the house.”