Chapter 374: Forty-Six?

"What's going on?" Han Cheng asked, furrowing his brow slightly and appearing anxious and worried.

"I don't know, they usually come back by now..." Tie Tou also seemed worried.

Besides Han Cheng, Tie Tou, the professional grass cutter and deer feeder, was closest to the deer.

Han Cheng put down the cloth and approached the gate with Tie Tou.

Shaman, Eldest Senior Brother, and the others from the Green Sparrow Tribe had also received the news, and everyone gathered at the gate.

The spacious deer pen, which was already large, seemed even emptier now due to the absence of the deer, spreading a sense of worry and anxiety throughout the Green Sparrow Tribe.

"When did the deer leave?" Han Cheng inquired.

"The same as usual," Tie Tou replied.

Han Cheng felt somewhat anxious.

Since the deer entered the Green Sparrow Tribe, they had only returned late twice—once after the spring of the third year of the Green Sparrow Tribe and once now.

It was winter now. Neither humans nor animals were as restless as they were in spring. Even if the stag was in high spirits, it shouldn't have been at this time, nor should it have lasted so long.

At this time, unlike in spring, animals should be migrating or hibernating, and the remaining ones would be seizing the last opportunity to gather winter supplies.

Whether it was the fierce beasts not uncommon in this era or the primitive humans not much simpler than wild beasts, the deer, which only ate grass, were just prey when confronted with them. No matter how they transformed, they would never become hunters.

"What about Fu Jiang?" Han Cheng asked again.

"They haven't come back together," Tie Tou replied.

Han Cheng's heart clenched again.

Fu Jiang, the stag, and the others were creatures he had come into contact with shortly after arriving here. To say there were no feelings involved would be a lie.

Moreover, with the development of agriculture in the Green Sparrow Tribe, the role of the deer has become increasingly important. Now that they hadn't returned, this...

Thinking like this, Han Cheng's heart settled slightly.

Fu Jiang was no longer alone; five Fu Jiang juniors were about the same size as her. Even if they encountered danger, they were not without the ability to fight.

Furthermore, even if they were defeated, considering the number of deer and Fu Jiang, not one should be missing.

Now that none had returned, things shouldn't be as bad as imagined.

Han Cheng comforted himself like this in his heart.

"Shaman, I'll go out and take a look..."

"Yes, go and take a look..."

Amidst the flickering firelight and the chilling atmosphere, Shang, Third Senior Brother, and others spoke up.

Everyone in the tribe highly valued the increasing number of deer herds, and their absence stirred everyone's hearts.

"We can't go..." Before Han Cheng could answer, Eldest Senior Brother was the first to express his opinion.

His reason was that the night was too dangerous, and safety came first.

"Divine Child..." Everyone turned their gaze to Han Cheng, waiting for him to decide.

Han Cheng fell silent for a moment.

To go out or not to go out was indeed a dilemma.

"Woo, woo, woo..."

"Yo, yo, yo..."

He didn't hesitate for long. Before he could decide, familiar calls came from the darkness outside the walls.

There were dogs and deer.

The oppressive atmosphere was suddenly shattered, and everyone felt relieved.

As the gate opened, the first to arrive was Fu Jiang, the fellow who spent all day with the deer herd, followed by five little Fu Jiangs. They bounded around Han Cheng, wagging their tails enthusiastically.

Seeing them jumping around lively, it was clear that nothing serious had happened.

While Fu Jiang and his gang circled Han Cheng, the Deer Lord also entered.

It rubbed its big face against Han Cheng's body, then silently walked towards the deer pen, followed by a group of swaggering little brothers.

After confirming that all the deer had returned, the gate was shut from the inside.

Han Cheng and the others went to the deer pen, lit a fire, and counted the number of deer to see if they had any injuries.

As the fire flickered and Han Cheng spoke, several deer inside the pen seemed uneasy and retreated to the corners.

Han Cheng furrowed his brows slightly. It seemed the deer had indeed suffered some attack; otherwise, they wouldn't have been so panicked in the presence of familiar people like themselves.

"One, two, three..." Han Cheng calmly began counting the deer.

"Forty-six?" Han Cheng exclaimed in surprise.

"Divine Child, are some missing?" someone nearby asked urgently.

Han Cheng shook his head, not speaking. According to this result, not only were there no missing deer in his tribe but there were more.

Thinking like this, Han Cheng inwardly criticized his arithmetic skills, which seemed to worsen. He couldn't even count properly anymore.

Counting all the big and small deer, including Fu Jiang and the three sheep mingling with the deer herd, there should be forty-one. So where did the forty-six come from?

Still forty-six?

Han Cheng widened his eyes.

What was going on? How did so many more deer suddenly appear?

"Shaman, there are forty-six deer."

Even after counting four times and still getting forty-six, Han Cheng, who was somewhat incredulous, called Shi Tou, the best at arithmetic in the tribe, to count.

The result was still forty-six!

What on earth was going on?

Not only was Han Cheng puzzled, but also the other tribe members who knew the reason.

Considering today's situation, many of them had mentally prepared for a reduction in the deer herd.

But now the result was that not only were there no fewer deer, but there were also five more!

This result was truly unbelievable.

Could it be that five deers gave birth today?

So not only did the deer herd return late, but there were also five more deer?

As Han Cheng thought like this, his gaze wandered among the deer herd, but he didn't see any fawns that looked like they were just born today.

Was it them?

Han Cheng's gaze fell on several deer that seemed somewhat out of place and less calm than the others.

Counting them, there were exactly five.

"Did you lure them here?"

Surprised and delighted, Han Cheng approached the deer lord resting on the ground, turned its head, and asked.

In response to Han Cheng's question, the deer lord only snorted arrogantly.

"Hahaha..."

Han Cheng couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Just like humans, social animals also had the habit of sticking together.

In his future life, Han Cheng remembered when another flock enticed away several pigeons he raised. But he never expected the Deer Lord to lure five adult deer back here.

"What a skill!"

After confirming that all five deer were female, Han Cheng patted the stag's head and praised it with a thumbs up.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay