From Hoarding to Time-Travel: My Supplies Saved Him

Ancient Wen Heng tossed the worms he’d dug up, along with clumps of dirt, into a broken bowl he had brought over.

Seeing Jin Qianqian keeping her distance, he couldn’t resist teasing her a bit.

He held the broken bowl filled with wriggling worms out in front of her. "Look, don’t you girls like small animals? Isn’t this adorable?"

Jin Qianqian gritted her teeth, trying her best not to show her fear. "It certainly is adorable. It looks just like you. Look at that sneaky, shrinking movement—it’s exactly how you look right now."

Ancient Wen Heng: "..."

Gule Shun, who had come over to watch the fun, curiously poked a worm with his finger. Watching it contract, he began to laugh. "I think it’s way cuter than Seventh Uncle! Look, it can even transform!"

Ancient Wen Heng, who had just been rated lower than a worm: "..."

Jin Qianqian clutched her stomach, laughing. "Our Little Leshun certainly has a good eye. This worm is something even your Seventh Uncle can’t compete with."

After Little Leshun’s interruption, Jin Qianqian found the worms in the bowl a bit more tolerable. She pointed at them and told Little Leshun, "These worms are very useful. Just wait and watch how your Seventh Aunt uses them to get you a big fish."

Little Leshun looked at her, bewildered. "You can trade worms for big fish?"

Jin Qianqian nodded confidently. "You definitely can."

Gule Shun turned and ran off. Before Ancient Wen Heng and Jin Qianqian could figure out why, they heard the boy shouting, "Dad! Hurry and come dig for worms with me! You can trade worms for fish!..."

Jin Qianqian was stunned, but Ancient Wen Heng burst out laughing. "Now let’s see how you’re going to get out of this one. ’Trade worms for fish?’ That kid actually believed you. Don’t forget to take him to make the trade later."

It took Jin Qianqian a moment to find her voice. "I meant you can *catch* fish with worms! I just simplified it because I thought he was too little to understand. What kind of wild ideas is that kid imagining?"

Ancient Wen Heng, his hands covered in dirt, nudged her with his shoulder. "Well, let’s not just stand here. We’d better hurry up and catch a few more fish. Otherwise, what are you going to use to trade for his worm later?"

Jin Qianqian: "..."

***

Ancient Wen Heng reached out and took the fishing rod from Jin Qianqian’s hands, motioning for her to stand back and wait.

Jin Qianqian looked at the crowd of onlookers and felt quite wronged. ’These fish just keep biting *my* hook,’ she thought. ’Reeling them in is exhausting, you know!’

"Gu Yuan Yu, you can’t be doing that! Is this you getting angry out of shame?" said Gu Kaishan, chewing on the end of a reed. "Just because you’re watching your wife pull them up one after another, you can’t just snatch her fishing rod."

"That’s right, Lao Gouqi! There’s no shame in depending on your wife for food. You can’t bully her like that."

Ancient Wen Heng nonchalantly brandished the fishing rod. "Getting to eat fish thanks to my wife is a skill in its own right. If you’re all so envious and jealous, you should hurry on home and get your wives to catch a few fish for you."

"Besides, we’ve already caught enough fish to eat. I just wanted a turn to play, and it saves my wife’s hands from getting tired."

"Hey, uh, Seventh... how did you make this fishhook? And this line, it’s transparent and looks really strong. Can you let your big brother here borrow it for a bit?" Gu Yuanshui asked with a fawning smile, completely forgetting how he had stood by and watched coldly when his own wife had been making trouble before.

Before Ancient Wen Heng could speak, Liu Heizi and his friends cut in. "Gu Yuanshui, didn’t you see us guys already lining up here? Look, I’ve even brought my own worms. If you want a turn, get to the back of the line and wait."

"What do you think you’re doing? We’re blood brothers. Obviously, a brother gets to be first in line."

"I really don’t like the sound of that," Gu Kaishan said, stepping forward with his hands on his hips. "We’re all close clansmen here. Are you trying to say that clan brothers don’t count as brothers?"

Gu Yuanshui looked at the village’s infamous loafers, inwardly cursing Seventh for getting involved with such people. But he didn’t dare offend them aloud. "That’s not what I meant. There’s just a natural order to things. No matter how you put it, Seventh and I are brothers, born from the same mother..."

"Don’t give us that nonsense. If we’re going by seniority, you’d have to call me Uncle. So what is it? We’re only counting brotherly ties and not generational ones now?"

The usually slick-tongued Gu Yuanshui was at a loss for words. ’They’re just digging one conversational trap after another,’ he thought. ’How is anyone supposed to talk to them?’

He glanced up at Ancient Wen Heng, only to see that his back was turned, showing no sign of any intention to help him. Gu Yuanshui let out a cold snort and stalked away without a backward glance.

"What’s with that guy? Gu Yuan Yu, we’re not bullying your brother, but that fellow is just too rude, bossing people around right in our faces. You can’t go back on your word now," Gu Kaishan said, his hands already itching as he watched Ancient Wen Heng land another fish.

Ancient Wen Heng silently unhooked the fish and passed the rod to him. "Perfect timing, I’m out of the worms I dug. You can borrow the rod for now, Uncle Kai Shan. Do you know how to use it?"

Gu Kaishan took it excitedly, nodding vigorously. "Of course, of course! We’ve been standing here watching you for ages. You just bait the hook and cast the line, right? We get it."

Ancient Wen Heng said, "Alright, but be careful when you get a bite. These fish might not look huge, but they put up a surprisingly strong fight. Don’t let one pull you into the water."

Gu Kaishan said, "Won’t happen, won’t happen. I’m plenty strong. Hey, look at your other rod over there—did you get another one?"

Ancient Wen Heng: "..."

Jin Qianqian found a few tough blades of grass and threaded the caught fish onto them one by one. Looking at the long string of fish, she felt a great sense of accomplishment.

The fish in this lake were both plentiful and foolish, with each one weighing between two and five pounds.

But just then, Ancient Wen Heng had to be a wet blanket. "That’s a lot. Can we even finish all of them?"

But Jin Qianqian already had a plan. "If we can’t finish them, we can give some to Dad and the others. Add in a few of the clan elders, and it should be just the right amount."

"Don’t you forget, there’s still someone waiting to trade a worm for one of your fish." Ancient Wen Heng pointed directly in front of her. Gule Shun was clutching a limp worm in his hand and trotting happily toward them.

Jin Qianqian quickly ducked behind Ancient Wen Heng. "You have to be the one to take that worm and trade him a big fish for it."

Ancient Wen Heng had been the one baiting the hooks the whole time. Only after he threaded a worm on would Jin Qianqian cast the line; she absolutely refused to touch them herself.

Gule Shun’s eyes sparkled as he stared at the big fish they were holding. "Seventh Aunt, you really traded worms for this many fish! Where’s the trading spot? I found a worm too!"

Hong Daya, who had followed him over, was pressing her lips together to keep from laughing. She had already pieced together the story behind the "worm for fish" trade from her son’s jumbled account.

She had followed him because she was curious to see how his Aunt Seven was going to set Little Leshun straight this time.

Jin Qianqian pointed at Ancient Wen Heng. "You’ll have to ask your Seventh Uncle about that. He’s the real expert."

Ancient Wen Heng: "..." ’This woman is such a troll, she never misses a chance to set me up.’

"Seventh Uncle?"

Faced with Little Leshun’s questioning gaze, Ancient Wen Heng had no choice but to crouch down and patiently explain everything to him.