The three of them looked at the bones at Ji Yuan's feet. The size of his belly was a bit exaggerated. This wild boar was not a small one. There were at least dozens of kilograms of meat after removing the bones. Even taking into account the shrinkage after roasting, there was still a lot of meat. The three of them together probably ate less than ten kilograms at most.
The three of them looked at Ji Yuan's not-so-obvious belly and found it even more ridiculous, but the man close to Ji Yuan still spoke quickly.
"Oh, haha, as long as you can eat it, sir. Meat is to be eaten after it's cooked."
The man in charge of the barbecue, who was obviously the leader, pointed at the wild boar on the grill and spoke before the young man next to him could say anything.
"Yes, yes, as long as you can eat it! Oh, there is still one front leg that has not been touched. If you can eat it, just eat it."
On the grill where the wild boar was tied, there was a pig's head, a front leg, and a spine with some meat attached. Although Ji Yuan could still eat it, even he would feel satisfied after eating such a large half wild boar. He smiled and shook his head.
"I have eaten very happily. I haven't eaten like this for a long time. Thank you all for the hospitality!"
While laughing, Ji Yuan shook his hands, and all the grease on his hands fell to the ground. There was no stain or oil on his fingernails. He then reached into his sleeve and took out two pieces of silver.
“I don’t know how to sell this cooked wild boar meat.”
Ji Yuan could see that the three men had originally planned to roast the pork and dry it for easy carrying. If he just ate some as a meal, others would definitely not have any objections. But he was in a good mood and didn't control his mouth, and almost ate it all. Ji Yuan felt a little guilty about that.
However, when they saw Ji Yuan take out the silver, the two older men opposite immediately shook their heads and waved their hands.
"No, no, no, no, no, the master is a great scholar. A lecture is enough to defeat a mere wild boar. This kind of animal can be caught again. The master's golden words may not be listened to everywhere!"
"Yes, Mr. Ji, it's just some pork. We are still upset that we didn't treat you well. If I had known that I would meet you today, I would not have drunk all the wine yesterday! Now I just regret that there is no wine. Oh, right, here is a spine, a front leg and a pig's head. Just eat to your heart's content, sir!"
Hearing that the other party refused to take the money and just wanted to have no wine, Ji Yuan could no longer hold back and immediately stood up and said.
"If you hadn't mentioned it, I would have forgotten that I actually had some luggage in the woods behind. I didn't bring it with me just to be on the lookout for others. I hope you won't blame me for my vague words at the beginning. I still have some good wine in my luggage. Please wait for a moment. I'll go get the wine and be back soon!"
The man in the middle didn't hesitate at all and just stood up and bowed.
"Sir, just go ahead. If the wine is heavy, would you like me to follow you and help carry it?"
"No, no, no, as long as you trust me, I'll be back soon!"
After saying this, Ji Yuan turned around and left towards the forest.
Watching Ji Yuan disappear at the entrance of the woods, the young man who had been holding back on words finally couldn't help it.
"My two brothers, Mr. Ji is such a big eater. We originally planned to prepare this wild boar as food for ten days, but he ate almost all of it in one meal. He wants to give you money, why don't you take it? The silver just now, should it be half an ounce?"
The two men looked in the direction of the woods, then looked at the young man together. The man grilling the meat smiled and patted him on the shoulder.
"Xiao Qi, can an ordinary person eat so much meat?"
The young man quickly shook his head.
"How is that possible!"
"Then let me ask you again, when Mr. Ji was talking about Yin Gong just now, what did he say Yin Gong represented?"
The young man frowned, a little confused.
"Wenquxing, what's wrong? He is still pointing out the stars to us. Is there any problem?"
The other man couldn't help but laugh.
"Xiao Qi, I forgot what Mr. Ji showed us. Can you help me recall it?"
"You can forget it so quickly, isn't it..."
The young man raised his head and pointed towards the sky, but immediately stopped moving, his eyes widened, his mouth slightly opened, and he didn't know where to point his finger.
"Where are the stars..."
"Hey, Xiao Qi, how can we see the stars in broad daylight?"
"But just now Mr. Ji..."
At this point, the young man had come to his senses and looked at his two brothers with an exaggerated expression. The man grilling the meat then nodded and patted the young man on the shoulder again.
"Xiao Qi, you are still a little immature. Mr. Ji is knowledgeable and well-spoken. He is definitely not an ordinary person. For the sake of good fortune and misfortune, how can you neglect him?"
The three of them waited for a long time, and Ji Yuan had returned with a smile on his face. In his hands were a few emerald green bamboo tubes with ropes, which seemed to be the so-called wine jugs.
"Come on, come on, you treat me to some meat, and I'll treat you to some wine."
"There really is wine, that's great!" "Hahaha, sir, please take a seat quickly, this pig's head is perfect to go with wine!"
The three men were still enthusiastic and came over to help Ji Yuan get the wine and asked him to sit down.
Ji Yuan handed the bamboo tube in his hand to the three people respectively, one for each of the four people. Then he was the first one to pull out the cork, and immediately a scent of wine wafted out.
"This wine is called Dajiao Wine, produced in Tianbao Country. It's strong and mellow, and very rare. It's impossible to drink it here. As the saying goes, things are valuable because they are rare. I will use all of it as payment for my meat, hahaha."
"Sir, you are absolutely right. In this situation, a pound of wine is worth an ounce of gold!"
The three men took the wine and uncorked it one after another. They smelled the aroma of wine mixed with the fragrance of bamboo, which was very tempting. The bamboo looked like it had just been cut.
"Ji, I will drink first as a sign of respect!"
Ji Yuan had long been unable to resist the urge to drink. Before entering the forest, he took out the Qiandou pot and drank several sips. Now he also picked up the bamboo tube and drank from it. The other three looked at each other, and with saliva secreted quickly, they also picked up the bamboo tube and took a sip. Immediately, the strong liquor went down their throats, which was both stimulating and comfortable. After taking a sip of the wine, they broke out in sweat.
"Good wine! Good wine!" "Really good wine!"
“It’s delicious. It’s really delicious!”
These words were spoken sincerely, and Ji Yuan felt happier after hearing them. His nerves, which had been a little tense during these days, also relaxed a little.
"As long as you like it, haha."
The three of them simply cut the remaining pork bit by bit with a knife and ate it along with the strong liquor, which was a rare enjoyment.
The wine helped to liven up the mood and boosted courage, and gradually the three of them became more relaxed. When Ji Yuan was about to finish the wine in the bamboo tube, the oldest man, who had only drunk less than one-third of it, continued with a question during the break from the previous topic.
"Mr. Ji, you know a lot and have a lot of experience. Can you give us three some pointers?"
Ji Yuan took a sip of wine and didn't speak immediately. The man quickly added.
"Listening to what you said today, we all know that our ancestral country of Yue is about to undergo a great change. We are just ordinary hunters and do not have any great aspirations. We just want to live a stable life with enough food and clothing."
Ji Yuan swallowed the wine in his mouth and smiled.
"That's easy. Just give up the idea of joining the army at Zuyue Military Camp and go home to live a good life. With your abilities, you won't starve to death at the worst."
"this… "
The three of them looked at each other, feeling quite embarrassed.
"Sir, we didn't mean to hide this from you. It's just that after hearing what you said before, it's even harder to start talking..."
"Yes, and you don't need to tell me, sir, even if the South Camp is good, we will never join the army again!"
After chatting for such a long time and almost eating an entire wild boar, how could Ji Yuan not figure out what the three of them originally wanted to do? Now that the wine in his bamboo tube was dry, Ji Yuan patted his butt, stood up, and slightly bowed to the three people.
"I've eaten heartily and drunk heartily. Now that I'm full, it's time for me to say goodbye. Oh, by the way, if you want to cross the mountain in the southwest, don't take the canyon path, as this is where the evil spirits live. If you want to cross the forest and walk on the plain in the south, don't stay at night, as this is the place of the evil spirits. Try to cross it in the daytime. That's all I have to say. I'm saying goodbye!"
"Uh, sir, you are leaving now..."
"Sir, sir, wait a moment!"
Two of the three men stood up, and the man in the middle took out an oil-paper bag from the bag behind him, shook the dry food in it into the bag, then took a knife and quickly cut the remaining half of the wild boar head into slices, put the meat in the oil-paper bag, and then stood up and walked in front of Ji Yuan.
"I know you are an extraordinary person. We don't have anything valuable. This is just a small token of my appreciation. Please accept it!"
Seeing the oil paper bag handed to him by the man with both hands, Ji Yuan hesitated for a moment, but still took it. After thinking for a while, he reached his left hand into his right sleeve and took out three green fruits.
"I almost forgot. We've eaten so much meat and are feeling greasy. These dates are sweet and delicious, and they can help to relieve the greasy feeling. Let's have one each."
After stuffing the dates to the three people, Ji Yuan picked up the oil-paper bag and left in the northeast direction away from the river bank. When Ji Yuan was far away and could not be seen anymore, the man who gave the meat suddenly slapped his thigh hard.
"Oh! We are so stupid that we haven't even told you our names or family background. No wonder the master doesn't like us!"
"Ah? Oh! I was so busy listening to the teacher talking about worldly affairs that I forgot about this!"
Seeing his two brothers regretful, the young man hurriedly spoke.
"So let's go after them now?"
"Oh, forget it, I guess I can't catch up."
The man took a bite of the fruit in his hand in regret, and the fragrance immediately overflowed from his lips and teeth, and even the drunkenness from drinking too much was dispelled by this sweet taste...
At this time, Ji Yuan had already walked far away. Even if the three people really chased after him, they would definitely not be able to catch up. He held the oil paper bag in his hand, which was still warm. After weighing it for a while, he smiled and put it into his sleeve.
This meal by the river in the wilderness was not only a comfortable meal, but also a chance for Ji Yuan to understand the mentality of some people in Zu Yue. This was one of the things he wanted to understand in Zu Yue. Compared with the imperial court in the capital of Zu Yue and those so-called immortal masters and wizards who have boarded the ship of Zu Yue, Ji Yuan is more concerned about the affairs of the people.