Chapter 455: Warm Nights and Clever Wolves

Xia Qing added fireplaces inside the cabin after learning this would be an unusually cold winter. There was one in both the first and second floor living rooms. The chimney could be opened and closed, venting smoke outdoors when in use, and kept shut when not needed to keep out wandering animals and evolved bugs.

Right now Xia Qing ached all over and her mind felt foggy, but she still forced herself to toss a few dry pine logs into the fireplace. She splashed on some oil and got the flames roaring. The temperature had dropped, and Old Goat’s wool was still damp. She had to dry it or else he might catch cold sleeping through the night.

After taking care of Old Goat, Xia Qing set her alarm and collapsed onto the lounge chair beside him, pulling a thin quilt over herself and drifting off by the warm glow of the fire.

Across the living room, Alpha cracked open those extravagant gold eyes from where he lounged on the tatami. He watched the flickering flames, wary at first, but when nothing seemed amiss, he rose and padded over to curl up beside Old Goat, settling down to sleep.

Lame Wolf and his sister were spooked by the firelight. They bared their fangs and whined low, but Er Gou walked over, putting his body between them and the fire. He tapped their noses with his own. Instantly the siblings calmed down, flopping on their backs like they used to as pups, playfully tumbling around Er Gou.

When the alarm blared again, Alpha flicked his ears. Across the room, Lame Wolf, his sister, and Er Gou looked up from their games, but Old Goat was still lost in sweet dreams.

Xia Qing slowly opened her eyes, silenced the alarm and dragged her aching body into the bathroom. “Crippled Wolf, Big Black, time’s up. You two ought to come out now.”

The two wolves struggled out of the bath barrel, shaking themselves vigorously to dry off. Their legs still trembled a bit as they left the bathroom. To Xia Qing’s surprise, Er Gou then led Lame Wolf and his sister right in for a turn, all three squeezing together into the bath barrel.

That barrel really was spacious enough for two animals to soak comfortably, but with three wolves in there it looked awfully cramped. At least it saved Xia Qing some trouble—no need to add any more spring water for now.

Xia Qing sat in the bathroom doorway for a while, watching. Whenever Lame Wolf and his sister started to howl and struggle, Er Gou would let out two soft, patient whines and nuzzle their heads with his own. Every time, the siblings quieted right down.

It was Xia Qing’s first time seeing Er Gou take care of the other wolves—it really did look like Lame Wolf and his sister were his own pups. It was a rare sight, but her eyelids grew heavy. She practically crawled back to the lounge chair beside the fireplace, pulled the thin quilt over herself and was asleep in seconds.

When Black Wolf came out of the bathroom, he simply padded over and lay down at Alpha’s side, dozing off. Crippled Wolf glanced between the fireplace, Alpha, and the tatami a couple of times, then, legs trembling, dragged the straw mat from the tatami all the way to the fireplace.

Alpha opened his eyes to watch, then got up and made himself comfy on the mat by the fire, falling asleep again. Crippled Wolf sprawled at Alpha’s side, staring thoughtfully at the fire until his eyes drifted closed.

An hour later, the alarm chased Xia Qing out of sleep again. She realized her pain had eased a lot. She went to the bathroom, called out the three wolves squished together, and added a generous amount of spring water to the barrel, heating it up to just the right temperature.

That packet of pesticide had already served one person, one sheep, and six wolves. The effects were pretty much gone, but there were still two Huge Wolves outside. Xia Qing didn’t dare skip their bath—especially the one with those icy blue eyes. She couldn’t risk it getting upset and tearing up the cabin.

Once the water was ready, Xia Qing came out to find the pack sprawled in front of the fireplace. She checked Old Goat’s fur, pleased to see it dry at last, then picked up Er Gou and set him on her lounge chair. Only then did she wake Alpha. “Your Majesty, the bath is ready. Could you call in the two wolves outside for their turn?”

Alpha opened his gold eyes to glance at Xia Qing, then shut them again. Crippled Wolf, pressed tight to Alpha’s side, looked at Xia Qing with something like calculation in his eyes.

Xia Qing repeated her request to Crippled Wolf, but he made no move to summon the wolves outside. Suddenly, she understood: the two outside wolves weren’t here for a bath. They were here to protect the pack.

Last time, when an intruder broke in during bath time, Alpha must have decided the human in charge of security wasn’t reliable. So this time, he brought along two extra wolves to stand guard and keep everyone safe while they soaked.

“Your Majesty, you’re really the most thoughtful of wolves. With those two Huge Wolves on patrol, we can all sleep easy tonight.” Xia Qing rubbed Alpha’s slightly damp fur, bumped foreheads with him, then gently lifted a corner of the curtain to peek into the yard.

Her gaze landed directly on the ice-blue eyes of the handsome Huge Wolf. Xia Qing found herself liking this wolf more and more.

Now this was a truly tall, handsome, and dependable wolf… Xia Qing yawned, waved at it, let the curtain drop back down, and headed upstairs for some real sleep.

It was just after eleven at night. After two naps and a warm bath, Xia Qing finally made it to her bedroom to burrow into her own cozy blankets.

By a little after four in the morning, Xia Qing heard the camera’s beeping alarm in the Territory. Checking her phone, she saw the two Huge Wolves had left.

Looked like Alpha, having bathed first, had fully recovered and didn’t need guards any longer. He must’ve sent the Huge Wolves back to the Wolf Pack’s territory.

Xia Qing yawned and went back to sleep.

As sunrise neared, the layered clouds over the eastern sky faded to pale. Xia Qing finished washing up and skipped downstairs. She saw Old Goat still fast asleep while Crippled Wolf sat beside the bicycle, pawing curiously at the pedal. All the other wolves were gone.

As she turned to leave, something caught her eye. The bicycle’s seat was now nothing but a bare wooden plank. Where had that thick padded cushion, stuffed with fresh cotton, gone?

Xia Qing glanced around the room and spotted the cushion lying on the tatami, dirty and torn, the string snapped and the fabric ripped. She didn’t even have to ask; Crippled Wolf was the culprit. The others never showed much interest in the bike.

Xia Qing walked over, ruffled Crippled Wolf’s head, pulled open the blackout curtains to check the empty yard, then grabbed the sewing kit from the living room drawer. She sat down on the bare tatami and got to work patching up the seat cushion.

Crippled Wolf squatted beside her, his eyes following every movement of needle and thread with intense focus.

In a low voice, Xia Qing explained, “This is a needle, and this is thread. You use them to sew up anything that gets torn. Wouldn’t work for you, though—the needle’s just too fine.”

Once the cushion was fixed, Xia Qing taught Crippled Wolf how to hold the handlebars with his front paws and pedal with his back paws. Crippled Wolf, being even smarter than Old Goat, picked it up in no time.

Leaving him to it, Xia Qing headed upstairs and fetched a hefty two-pound hunk of snake meat from the fridge. Coming back down, she found Crippled Wolf perched on the bike, looking utterly delighted at the newly lit headlamp.

Seeing that expression, Xia Qing figured she could raise the trade price—maybe ask for an extra Yi Stone before handing over the bike!