Chapter 35: A Comparison

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

“What’s going on? Who’s making a racket outside?”

At this moment, the mayor’s son dragged two men in.

Seeing the two of them, the mayor subconsciously frowned. “Sun Er, Wang Gou, it’s you again. What trouble did you get into this time?”

Sun Er and Wang Gou were from Boyu Village and Dazhuang Village respectively. Both of them were famous in their village for being hooligans.

They idled around all day and caused trouble.

Sun Er hurriedly said, “Sir, Mayor, look at what you’re saying. We didn’t cause any trouble. We’re here to expose some people’s lies instead!”

As he spoke, he pointed a finger at Wei Chiyu and Zhou Xiaoli.

“Sir, they didn’t kill those wolves at all. They took advantage of our absence and pulled our wolves away. Sir, don’t be fooled by them!”

The mayor clearly trusted Wei Chiyu and Zhou Xiaoli more than these two hooligans.

“You mean to say that you killed these wolves? And Young Master Wei and Miss Zhou pulled the wolves’ corpses down the mountain when you left?” he said.

Just from the rising tone of the mayor’s voice, one could hear his suspicion.

“Alright, alright. Go do what you need to do!”

As he spoke, he was about to chase the two of them away.

Sun Er and the other immediately resisted.

“You have to believe us, mayor. Everything we say is the truth.”

“If you don’t believe me, take a look at the wounds on those wolves’ bodies. Aren’t they bite wounds? We set up a trap and incited the wolves to kill each other.”

The two of them explained anxiously; their arguments filled with righteous indignation.

From how they were acting, even Zhou Xiaoli felt that she had indeed stolen credits from them.

The mayor was skeptical, but he obligingly went to investigate the corpses of the wolves.

It was as Sun Er and Wang Gou had said. Those wolves were covered in bite wounds.

He could not help but be suspicious of the true account of the event.

He hesitated upon seeing how sure Sun Er and Wang Gou were of the bite marks on the wolves.

Zhou Xiaoli guessed that when she and Wei Chiyu were looking for the wolf cub, the two of them had unintentionally discovered the corpses of those wolves.

It was just as Zhou Xiaoli had guessed.

Just as Zhou Xiaoli and Sun Er were looking for the wolf cub, Sun Er and Wang Gou found the corpses of the wolves.

They didn’t even look carefully before they went off to find something to transport all the wolves down the mountain in excitement.

However, just as they found some vines and wooden sticks, they bumped into Zhou Xiaoli and Wei Chiyu who were loading the wolves onto their cart.

As they were afraid of Wei Chiyu, the two of them did not dare to step forward rashly. After a final discussion, they decided to put on a show today.

They were certain that Zhou Xiaoli and Wei Chiyu had chanced upon the wolves’ corpse like them, which was why they dared to be so arrogant.

After looking at the wounds, the mayor did not know who to believe.

At this moment, Zhou Xiaoli opened her mouth and asked, “You guys said that you set a trap and made the wolves kill each other?”

The two of them, who did not know what Zhou Xiaoli wanted to do, looked at each other and nodded. “Ah, right.”

Zhou Xiaoli nodded.

“Oh, I see. Then the way we hunt is different. Mayor, please take a closer look. Are there many wolves with arrow wounds to their heart?”

As soon as Zhou Xiaoli stopped speaking, the mayor indeed found arrow wounds on the wolves. Moreover, each arrow was fatal and pierced through the heart.

“Yes.”

The mayor replied.

“That’s right. When the wolves were fighting, we didn’t just watch. Several wolves were killed by Wei Chiyu, which was why almost all the wolves were wiped out,” Zhou Xiaoli continued.

Seeing this, Wang Gou and Sun Er immediately shouted again.

“Ah, yes, yes, we used arrows too. We just didn’t think it was necessary to say it, so we didn’t. Mayor, they must have seen the arrow wounds when they pulled the corpses back!”

These two people were determined to win the argument. There was no evidence to prove who had killed the wolves; that was why they were fearless and pestered the mayor.

However, Zhou Xiaoli would not indulge them in it.

“Are you saying that you were the ones who shot the arrows at the wolves?”

Sun Er felt guilty for a moment, but in the end, he nodded stubbornly. “That’s right! It’s me…”

“No, it was the two of us.”

In the end, he even pulled Wang Gou along in the lie.

Zhou Xiaoli nodded thoughtfully, “Alright.”

Then, she turned to look at the mayor. “Mayor, if someone is lying to get the bounty, what is the punishment for it?”

The mayor said, “Those who deceive would be sent to the magistrate office and receive 40 strokes of the cane.”

Hearing that they were looking at 40 strokes of the cane, Sun Er and Wang Gou panicked. However, when they thought about how the other party did not have any evidence too, they remained stubborn.

But at this moment, Zhou Xiaoli continued. “Actually, it’s very simple to prove who hunted these wolves.”

Zhou Xiaoli paused for a moment again before continuing, “As long as we compete in archery skills, we’ll know everything.”

The mayor nodded immediately. “Yes, that’s a good idea. The wolves that were shot had a shot clean through the heart. Not everyone has the ability to do so.”

“Let’s go. There’s an empty space behind the house. Let’s compete there.”

This time, Sun Er and Wang Gou were a little flustered, but they were already pushed into a corner, so they could only brace themselves for it.

The rules of the competition were very simple. It was to shoot the target.

“Sun Er! You first.”

“Ah?” Sun Er was stunned.

“What? I told you to go first.”

After being shouted at by the mayor, Sun Er coughed and stretched his shoulders. He walked forward with the bow and arrow.

He posed and aimed repeatedly.

He looked imposing but try as he might, he did not release his arrow.

The mayor couldn’t take it anymore. “Hurry up, why are you dawdling! If the target was a prey, it would have flown away a long time ago!”

“Ah, yes, right away, right away.”

Thus, Sun Er concentrated his energy in his core, took a deep breath, nocked the arrow, and wanted to draw the bow…

Hey, what’s up?

Everyone watched for a long time. They saw that Sun Er’s face had turned red but he was unable to draw his bow.

In the end, the arrow didn’t even move, let alone hit the target.

The second person to try was Wang Gou. He was not much better. After using all his strength, he managed to draw his bow.

However, the arrow flew out and accurately avoided the target.

There was no need to compete further for all present to know who was lying.

It would be a miracle if these two good-for-nothings could shoot an arrow through the wolf’s heart.

However, the mayor had always loved archery and martial arts. Hence, he was very interested in how the competition would result in.

In addition, only if Wei Chiyu competed would they be able to shut Sun Er’s mouth.

Wei Chiyu took the bow and arrow.

He didn’t have so many fancy foreplays. His movements were smooth as water as he nocked the arrow and drew his bow.

With a whoosh, the arrow whistled out and hit the bullseye. Everyone was stunned by it.

“My goodness, the arrow shot through the target!”

That was what the mayor’s son shouted out in surprise after running over to check the target.

Zhou Xiaoli clapped her hands at the side and whispered, “So cool!”

As she spoke, she stared at the bow and arrow with a burning gaze.

Wei Chiyu was slightly puzzled. “Cool?”

“That’s a good word. I’m praising you.” Zhou Xiaoli whispered.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

At this moment, the mayor clapped his hands and walked over with a hint of admiration in his eyes.

“Such mad skills! It’s a pity that you are not at the front line to kill the enemy with your ability.”

Wei Chiyu immediately said, “You must be joking, mayor. It’s just a small trick that I know how to do. It would only be useful when hunting in the mountains.”

Although Wei Chiyu said so, the mayor insisted on his opinion.

Sun Er and Wang Gou were prepared to escape when they saw Wei Chiyu draw his bow.

Unfortunately, the mayor caught them red-handed.

“The two of you have nothing to do all day. Since you like to cause trouble everywhere, it’s time for me to teach you a lesson!”