Chapter 155: Chapter 155: Bullying with Numbers

Su Qing smacked the tiger right on its big forehead, leaving it completely stunned. In its entire life, no other animal had ever dared to slap its head. It was the king of this mountain forest; all other creatures fled for their lives at the mere sight of it. It had even beaten and chased off the large black bear that invaded its territory last time.

Yet this creature before it had actually slapped its head!

The tiger felt its authority had been challenged, and it was absolutely furious. But it couldn’t even let out a roar, and its whole body trembled with rage.

Su Qing found this amusing. ’This tiger sure has a temper.’

So, Su Qing took out another piece of wild boar meat and dangled it back and forth right under the tiger’s nose. Then, with a taunting tone that practically begged for a slap, she said, "Smells good, doesn’t it?"

The enticing aroma of the wild boar meat wafted relentlessly into the tiger’s nostrils. It was so tantalizing that saliva dripped from its mouth, its eyes glued to the piece of meat.

It could see and smell the meat, but it couldn’t have a bite. The torment was simply indescribable.

"WHIMPER... WHIMPER..." The tiger struggled to let out a few whimpers that seemed to carry a hint of pleading.

Su Qing raised an eyebrow and took a few steps back. With a single thought, the vines binding the tiger receded. The moment it was free, the tiger lunged at Su Qing again, only to be instantly wrapped up by the vines like a green rice dumpling.

After this happened a few more times, the tiger finally understood that it was no match for Su Qing. As long as it showed any malice toward her, it would inevitably be bound by those pesky vines. So, the next time it was freed, the tiger didn’t dare to pounce. Instead, it obediently prostrated itself on the ground, its eyes fixed on the wild boar meat in Su Qing’s hand as it drooled.

Seeing this, Su Qing’s eyes curved into crescents as she smiled. She tossed the piece of wild boar meat toward the tiger’s mouth.

After gulping down the wild boar meat in one bite, the tiger didn’t pounce on Su Qing as it had before. Instead, it actually started wagging its tail at her. Su Qing knew that for now, the tiger didn’t dare show any hostility toward her.

It didn’t dare, but that didn’t mean it had lost its will to.

After all, this tiger had grown up in the deep mountain forests, and its wild nature was difficult to tame. Su Qing had no doubt that if the tiger ever became certain it could defeat her, it would tear her to shreds without hesitation.

Su Qing tossed the tiger two more pieces of wild boar meat and said, "Alright, you eat up. I need to make my own meal. You interrupted me earlier, and I’m still starving."

With that, Su Qing ignored the tiger and went about roasting a fish for herself.

After finishing the two pieces of wild boar meat, the tiger drank some water from the pool. It didn’t leave, but instead lay down a short distance from Su Qing, wagging its tail as it watched her roast the fish.

Su Qing finished roasting her fish and ate it at a leisurely pace. Gently patting her slightly overstuffed belly, she looked over at the tiger. "You’re still here?"

The tiger didn’t understand her words, but seeing her walk over, it gave another ingratiating wag of its tail. As she drew near, it even rubbed its big head against her leg.

Su Qing gave the tiger’s big head a good ruffle and couldn’t help but feel a surge of delight. ’This feels amazing.’

Su Qing then gave its head a thorough ruffling, leaving its fur in a complete mess. The tiger didn’t get annoyed at all. When it saw Su Qing go to the edge of the pool, it shook its head and trotted happily after her. Seeing that she was fishing, it once again stood guard at her side.

After storing enough fish in her space, Su Qing stopped. She turned and saw the tiger was still there. "You’re really not leaving? If you’re not going to, then you might as well stay and be my mount."

The tiger tilted its head and looked at Su Qing. Without another word, she walked right up, swung herself over, and sat on its back.

Startled by suddenly having Su Qing on its back, the tiger’s first instinct was to throw her off. But something seemed to give it pause. It merely lowered its head, let out a reluctant growl, and tacitly accepted her action.

Seeing this, Su Qing laughed and gave the tiger’s big head another ruffle. "Since you’re willing to be my mount, you’ll need a name," she said with a grin. "From now on, I’ll call you—"

After a moment’s thought, Su Qing said, "How about I call you A Jin?"

The tiger’s fur was glossy and smooth, and its yellow coat shone brilliantly like gold under the sun. That’s why Su Qing chose the name; it was easy to remember and unpretentious.

"No objection? I’ll take that as a yes, then," Su Qing said, her eyes crinkling with a smile as she took advantage of the tiger’s inability to understand her. She patted its neck. "Let’s go, A Jin. Time for a proper tour of the place."

With A Jin temporarily tamed, Su Qing’s next few days were quite relaxing. Using A Jin as her mount, she explored its entire territory. While she didn’t find any hundred-year-old Chicken Blood Vine, she did manage to find some that were fifty to sixty years old, along with some nicely-aged Polygonum multiflorum, Huang Jing, and Dendrobium.

Of course, Su Qing treated A Jin well during this time. She fed it a rotating diet of wild chicken, wild rabbit, and wild boar meat from her storage space. As a result, when Su Qing prepared to leave its territory, A Jin was extremely reluctant to see her go and seemed intent on following her.

"A Jin." After these few days together, the tiger had grown accustomed to its name. Hearing Su Qing call, it looked up at her with big, watery eyes. Su Qing gently patted its large head. "You belong here; you can’t come with me," she said softly. "You need to stay here and continue being the king of the mountain. I promise, I’ll come back and visit when I have time, okay?"

Although A Jin couldn’t understand her words, it understood her meaning: she wasn’t letting it follow her anymore. A Jin grew listless, its ears and tail drooping. It looked just like a poor, abandoned little creature.

Su Qing didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. She took out a piece of wild boar meat and fed it to A Jin, saying, "I really do promise I’ll come back and see you when I get the chance. I’ll even bring you delicious treats, alright? Now be good."

Su Qing had to coax it for a long while before A Jin finally stopped being so clingy. She wrapped her arms around A Jin’s neck, nuzzled its head, and said, "Don’t worry. I will definitely come back to see you."

With that, Su Qing waved to A Jin and turned to leave.

However, before she had gotten far, a series of howls suddenly rang out in the distance.

"ROAR—" A Jin’s roar was filled with fury. When Su Qing turned to look, she saw it sprinting off in a specific direction.

Su Qing’s first thought was that another animal had invaded A Jin’s territory. She immediately hurried after it.

"ROAR—"

"GROWL—"

By the time Su Qing arrived on the scene, she saw three black bears ganging up on A Jin.

Su Qing was instantly infuriated. ’So, not only have these black bears come looking for trouble, but they’re also ganging up on him? Unacceptable!’