Chapter 340- Fierce and Ominous Top VS Pretend Weak but Actually a Big Boss (06)
Mu Jin gave Wu Po a gentle smile as he held the leaf-wrapped roasted meat in his hands, eating it in small bites.
However, his thoughts wandered. ‘As expected, food in this primitive society is rather monotonous’ he mused. ‘Improving our quality of life feels urgent. At the very least, I’d love to have some soup for breakfast.’
While he couldn’t care for everyone else’s preferences, he did enjoy the idea of living well with his lover. He wondered whether Wu Po would go hunting today. Mu Jin was still deeply curious about this world, particularly the lush vegetation. He suspected the wilderness might hold plenty of delicious plants waiting to be discovered.
Just as they finished breakfast, the chief of the Pingshan Tribe arrived. Accompanying him was Wu Yan, a member of the hunting team who had been on patrol near the entrance the day before.
Wu Yan had reported to the chief the previous evening, claiming that Wu Po seemed to have brought a woman back to the tribe. The chief initially intended to visit right away but encountered Wu He, who had just returned from the priest with medicinal herbs. Wu He immediately refuted Wu Yan’s statement, clarifying that Wu Po had brought back a man, not a woman.
Since it was a man, the situation was deemed less urgent. Moreover, it was late, and people generally avoided interacting with Wu Po due to the ominous rumors surrounding him. The chief decided it could wait until the next day and postponed the visit until morning.
It was Mu Jin’s first time meeting the Pingshan Tribe’s chief—a muscular, middle-aged man with a stern expression and an air of authority befitting his position.
Mu Jin didn’t feel any animosity toward the chief. On the contrary, he found the man to be relatively fair. When many tribe members had previously labeled Wu Po as cursed and called for his execution or abandonment, it was the chief who refused. Instead, he had Wu Po placed in the communal cave and left under the care of others.
Though such an arrangement was akin to leaving a child to fend for himself, it was still better than outright killing him or casting him out of the tribe. Had it not been for the chief’s decision, Wu Po wouldn’t have survived to this day.
However, the tall, thin young man standing beside the chief—his chin marked with a scar—clearly didn’t share the same goodwill. The way he looked at Wu Po was anything but friendly.
Wu Yan followed the chief into the cave, and upon seeing Mu Jin, he confirmed what Wu He had said the previous day. The person before him, although small in stature, with fair, delicate skin and strikingly good looks, was clearly a man, not a woman.
Men with such fair and refined features were rare, and even the chief couldn’t help but glance at Mu Jin a couple more times before turning to Wu Po and asking, “Wu Po, who is this person?”
“He’s my mate. I saved him in the forest yesterday. He’s alone, so now he belongs to me,” Wu Po replied firmly.
The chief, though acknowledging Wu Po’s statement, still turned to Mu Jin and asked, “You don’t have a tribe?”
Mu Jin nodded smoothly, going along with the situation. Although his man’s words came across as rather assertive, Mu Jin judged Wu Po by a completely different standard from others.
In his eyes, anything his lover did was seen through a lens as thick as eight hundred meters of rose-colored glass.
Right now, he could only think: ‘My man is absolutely right—of course, I belong to him! Please declare your claim like this more often!’
Regardless of his inner thoughts, Mu Jin’s expression remained calm and composed. His demeanor gave off an impression of obedience, and coupled with his petite frame, it naturally created the illusion of someone soft and easy to take advantage of.
Unsurprisingly, both the chief and Wu Yan interpreted him this way. The chief didn’t see any issue with Mu Jin’s choice.
From Mu Jin’s appearance, it was evident he lacked the ability to hunt independently, so it was only natural for someone like him to seek a strong mate. Judging by Wu Po’s physique and presence, he certainly fit the bill.
However, Wu Yan felt displeased upon getting a clear look at Mu Jin’s face. He sneered at Wu Po and said coldly, “What gives you the right to call him your mate? Just because you saved him doesn’t mean that’s how it works here.”
“If he’s to join the tribe, he’ll become a member of the Pingshan Tribe. We can settle his debt to you with hunting spoils.”
In the tribe, women were few and far between, so it wasn’t uncommon for men to pair up. A man as good-looking as Mu Jin would undoubtedly attract the attention of many skilled hunters who’d be willing to take him in for the sake of having someone pleasant to look at. Even if he wasn’t particularly capable, it wouldn’t matter much. Why should someone so attractive be monopolized by Wu Po?
Thinking along these lines, Wu Yan naturally refuted Wu Po’s claim without hesitation. Wu Yan had always harbored hostility toward Wu Po; otherwise, he wouldn’t have rushed to report to the chief the moment he suspected Wu Po had brought back a woman.
Wu Yan and Wu Po were both sons of Wu Chan.
After Wu Po’s father died, Wu Chan deemed Wu Po an ill omen and abandoned him. Due to the scarcity of women in the tribe and Wu Chan’s attractive appearance, she quickly found a new mate and later gave birth to Wu Yan.
Even though Wu Chan had abandoned Wu Po, she was still his mother. Wu Yan found it disgraceful that his half-brother, born of the same mother but a different father, was labeled as a harbinger of misfortune.
As a result, Wu Yan had despised Wu Po since childhood and frequently sought to trouble him. He often gathered groups of friends to bully Wu Po.
However, Wu Po was not the type to silently endure abuse. He would fiercely resist every time Wu Yan tried to bully him. Over the years, as Wu Po grew older, his combat prowess only increased.
Eventually, even with his gang of companions, Wu Yan could no longer take advantage of Wu Po. The scar on Wu Yan’s chin was a testament to their conflicts—it had been inflicted during a fierce altercation with Wu Po.
Once, Wu Yan pushed Wu Po too far, and Wu Po retaliated by pinning him to the ground and giving him a brutal beating. At that moment, Wu Yan thought he might actually die. He was bedridden for half a month and left with a permanent scar on his face.
This deepened Wu Yan’s hatred for Wu Po, but it also made him realize he wasn’t a match for his half-brother. Though he no longer dared to provoke Wu Po physically, his sarcastic jabs whenever they crossed paths never ceased.
The chief was well aware of the longstanding animosity between the two, but this wasn’t the time for quarrels. He turned to glare at Wu Yan, signaling him to behave.
Then the chief turned to Mu Jin and said, “You are welcome to join our tribe. If you have the ability to support yourself, you can live on your own for now and stay in the communal cave without taking a mate.”
When Wu Po heard the chief’s words, he immediately stepped forward, pulled Mu Jin into his arms, and held him tightly. Staring angrily at the chief, he declared, “He is mine!”
The chief looked like he wanted to say something, but Mu Jin gently patted Wu Po’s arm to calm him. Then he smiled at the chief and replied, “I chose to be with Wu Po willingly.”
Since Mu Jin had spoken so plainly, the chief didn’t argue further. However, even if Mu Jin wanted to stay with Wu Po, joining the Ping Shan tribe meant he was expected to contribute to the community.
For instance, even though Wu Po was ostracized as “unlucky” and not allowed to join the hunting party, he still had to regularly provide a portion of his prey to the tribe.
The chief’s gaze swept over Mu Jin’s small, slender frame. Deciding that putting him on the hunting team wouldn’t be practical, he instead suggested, “You can stay with Wu Po, but you’ll need to join the gathering team and work with everyone.”
“He doesn’t need to go,” Wu Po interjected abruptly.
The chief frowned, about to protest, but Wu Po continued, “I will increase my contributions. I’ll provide enough to cover his share too, so he doesn’t need to join the gathering team.”
Hearing this, the chief nodded in agreement. If Wu Po was willing to take responsibility for Mu Jin and pay the tribe’s dues on his behalf, there was no reason to object. Satisfied, the chief turned and left with Wu Yan.
However, before leaving, Wu Yan shot Wu Po a resentful glare, making his disdain abundantly clear.
Mu Jin sensed Wu Yan’s hostility and could imagine that life in the tribe hadn’t been easy for Wu Po. Yet, thanks to his sheer strength and resilience, Wu Po had managed to carve out a life for himself.
Recalling Wu Po’s earlier objection to him joining the gathering team, Mu Jin looked up at his partner curiously and asked, “Wu Po, why didn’t you want me to join the tribe’s gathering team?”