My happy life in a courtyard house with triplets.

Chapter 8: The Pig-Slaughtering Feast

The group carried the heavy fish home, chatting and laughing all the way, filling the country lane with joy.

Ye Shuqin suddenly remembered something, looked down at the hopping Ye Mingyu, and asked with a smile, "Xiaoyu, Grandpa specifically asked you to call us back, is there something wrong?"

Ye Mingyu tilted his little face up and replied in a clear voice, "Auntie, my dad, my second uncle, and my third uncle hunted a huge wild boar from the mountain! It was really big! Grandpa said that the wild boar is going to be eaten by Grandpa's savior!" As he spoke, he stretched out his little finger and pointed straight at Zhang Lei next to him.

Seeing this, Ye Shuqin reached out and gently patted Ye Mingyu's hand, scolding him, "Xiaoyu, that's rude. You should call him Uncle Zhang."

Ye Mingyu quickly withdrew his hand and bowed apologetically to Zhang Lei, saying, "Uncle Zhang, I'm sorry. Grandpa said he wanted to host a thank-you banquet for you!"

Zhang Lei suddenly realized that Ye Shouhe had sent his three sons up the mountain to hunt. A warm feeling welled up in his heart. It seemed that the Ye family's words of gratitude were truly put into practice.

As the group was talking, a woman carrying a bamboo basket walked towards them. She glanced at the three Ye sisters and Zhang Lei's group, her brows furrowing immediately. She paused, spat fiercely at the roadside, and muttered under her breath, "What bad luck! Running into these three jinxes as soon as I step out the door."

Though the voice was soft, it clearly reached Zhang Lei and Ye Shuhua's ears. Ye Shuhua, known for her fiery temper, immediately bristled upon hearing this. Hands on her hips, she stepped forward like a tigress with her quills raised, and roared, "Zhang the Old Woman! Does your mouth need a beating? If you dare spout any more nonsense, believe me, I'll tear your mouth apart!"

"Little sister, stop it!" Ye Shuqin quickly grabbed Ye Shuhua's arm, afraid that she would really rush up and cause trouble. She then walked quickly to Granny Zhang, her face full of apology, and said in a low voice, "Aunt Zhang, my little sister is young and doesn't know any better. Please don't take it to heart."

As soon as Granny Zhang saw Ye Shuqin approaching, she looked at her as if she had seen a plague god. A trace of panic flashed across her face. Without bothering to reply, she picked up her basket and hurried away.

Watching Granny Zhang flee in panic, Zhang Lei was filled with doubt. He was about to ask what had happened when he saw that the three Ye sisters' faces had darkened, and the atmosphere instantly became somewhat oppressive.

Ye Shuqin noticed his gaze, forced a smile, and quickly changed the subject: "Brother Zhang, let's go back quickly, my dad and the others must be getting impatient."

Seeing this, Zhang Lei didn't dare to ask any more questions. He could only nod, pick up the fish, and follow the others quickly toward the Ye family's location.

As soon as the group arrived at the Ye family's gate, they saw that the three Ye brothers had already processed the wild boar, and there was a large basin of fresh pig's blood on the ground. Ye Shuqin's mother, Zhang Yulan, along with Ye Shuqin's three sisters-in-law, were busy at work, some chopping meat and others chopping vegetables, creating a lively scene in the yard.

At this moment, Ye Shouhe came up and, seeing the heavy catch in Zhang Lei and the others' hands, joked with a smile, "Goodness, you guys have fished out all the fish in the river! How many are there?!"

Ye Mingyu immediately broke free from Ye Shouhe's hand, ran up to him as if to take credit, and said loudly with his little face upturned, "Grandpa, Grandpa, this is the fish that my aunt and the others caught, it's huge!" As he spoke, he brought the biggest fish he was holding in his arms to Ye Shouhe's face, his little face full of pride and smugness.

Ye Shouhe quickly reached out and took the fish from the child, worried that he might tire him out. He hurriedly said, "Xiaoyu, put it down quickly. This fish is slippery. Don't get your clothes dirty or tire yourself out."

Ye Mingyu puffed out his little chest and said in a clear voice, "Grandpa, I'm not tired!"

Just then, Ye Zhenshan came out of the room. His eyes widened instantly when he saw the fish catch in the yard. He quickly walked over, circled the pile of fish twice, gave Zhang Lei a thumbs-up, and said with a smile, "Amazing! Xiao Lei, your fishing skills are truly impressive, almost as good as mine!"

Hearing Ye Zhenshan's words, Ye Shuhua immediately stood up and pointed out his shortcomings, saying with a sneer, "Grandpa, your fishing skills are worse than a stinky fish basket. You can't even catch a single fish after fishing for half a day, and you still have the nerve to say that!"

His granddaughter's public humiliation made Ye Zhenshan blush. He gently patted Ye Shuhua's head, feigning anger, and said, "Shuhua, what nonsense are you spouting! Your grandpa is the fishing king of our village. When I was young, I could catch half a bucketful in one go!"

Ye Shuhua pouted, wanting to say something more, but Ye Shouhe glared at her and said in a deep voice, "Don't talk back to your grandfather, you're so disrespectful."

Ye Shuhua then reluctantly shut her mouth, but a resentful smile still lingered on her lips.

Ye Zhenshan stopped arguing with his granddaughter, turned to Zhang Lei, and asked with a smile, "Xiao Lei, did you catch all these fish?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Ye Shuhua came closer, tugged at Ye Zhenshan's arm and shook it, loudly proclaiming, "Grandpa, I caught a third of these! Aren't you amazing!"

Seeing the disbelieving look in Ye Zhenshan's eyes, Ye Shuhua immediately pulled her two older sisters to her side and said hurriedly, "Grandpa, if you don't believe me, just ask Brother Zhang and my two sisters. Ask them if what I said is true!"

Seeing this, Zhang Lei smiled and chimed in, "Old man, that's true. Many of these fish were indeed caught by painting and calligraphy."

Hearing Zhang Lei's words, Ye Zhenshan looked completely incredulous.

Ye Shuqi, who was standing nearby, spoke up at the right moment: "Grandpa, it's all thanks to Brother Zhang for teaching us so well. He taught the three of us sisters fishing techniques, which is why we were able to catch so many fish."

Hearing this, Ye Zhenshan slowly nodded, his gaze towards Zhang Lei filled with admiration: "Little Lei, your fishing skills are pretty good. Let's have a competition another day."

Zhang Lei quickly waved his hand and declined with a smile: "Haha, Grandpa Ye, please don't say that. How could I compare to you? I just made it up on my own."

No sooner had these words been spoken than Ye Shuhua stepped forward to join the fun: "Brother Zhang, don't be afraid, just compete with him, he's definitely no match for you!"

Seeing Ye Shuhua's disrespectful behavior, Ye Shuqin quickly pulled her aside and said in a low voice, "Shuhua, stop talking."

As she spoke, she glanced at Ye Shouhe, who was glaring at them from the side.

Upon seeing this, Ye Shuhua immediately shrank back and dared not utter another word.

At this moment, Zhang Yulan came over and tried to smooth things over with a smile: "Shouhe, Dad, stop chatting and go inside to sit down. Dinner will be ready in a little while."

Ye Zhenshan agreed, then turned to Ye Shouhe and instructed, "Alright, alright, let's go inside and sit down first. Shouhe, call all the elders in the village over; we can have a lively meal together today."

Ye Shouhe nodded in agreement: "Father, I understand. I'll go call them in a bit."

Ye Zhenshan added, "Oh, and call Blind Chen over too."

Ye Shouhe nodded again: "Okay."

Zhang Lei followed Ye Zhenshan, Ye Shouhe and their group to the main hall and sat down.

Before long, the village elders arrived at the Ye family home one after another.

Zhang Lei sized up the newcomers and saw that they were all full of energy and spirit. He thought to himself, "No wonder it's Ye Family Village, where every family practices martial arts. Everyone here exudes an extraordinary aura."