Chapter 25: With Keen Interest Part 1

With Keen Interest: Take off your clothes? Let This Wolf take a good look.

Perhaps because she had finally made contact with the outside world—even if rescue wasn’t immediate—Ji Yingran felt a sense of certainty in her heart.

Once a person held out hope for rescue, their body relaxed considerably, and their mood lightened.

She even walked with a bounce in her step, occasionally humming a little tune.

The Snow Wolf naturally noticed the change in the human and looked over curiously.

The person, who had originally been facing away from the wolf, suddenly hopped and spun around. “Haha, caught you again! Wolfie, you were peeking at me.”

The Snow Wolf froze for a moment, then hastily averted her gaze.

Ji Yingran trotted over, reached out to ruffle the wolf’s head, and then quickly scampered away.

The Snow Wolf let out a displeased whine and growled lowly.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Ji Yingran apologized swiftly. “I know, I know. I shouldn’t keep petting your head. I won’t do it next time, I promise.”

It was an empty promise. Before long, Ji Yingran seized another opportunity and ruffled the wolf’s big head once more.

From initial low growls at the start, the Snow Wolf now simply ignored her.

She lay there with her chin resting on her paws, eyes closed in rest, treating Ji Yingran like so much air.

Ji Yingran squatted in front of her, petting and pinching here and there, utterly fascinated by every part of the wolf’s body.

Finally, after five minutes, the wolf grew thoroughly annoyed. She lifted a paw and smacked her twice with a firm pat-pat.

This incessant Two-Legged Beast—she had put up with her for so long, and she was still petting! How long had it been?

Ji Yingran paused after the smack, behaving herself for all of half an hour before shamelessly sidling up again.

The Snow Wolf shot her a speechless, disdainful look.

Utterly oblivious, Ji Yingran kept petting, even sitting cross-legged beside the wolf. After all, squatting for so long made her legs go numb.

She grabbed a tuft of fur from the Snow Wolf’s back, measuring its length. The fur there was about as long as her index finger—proper long-haired wolf territory. With its fluffy texture, all bunched together, it felt wonderful to the touch.

The back fur wasn’t quite as nice as the belly fur, though. The belly was covered in short, velvety fuzz, and with that soft, pudgy underside, the sensation was simply divine.

Unfortunately, this wolf didn’t like having her belly touched any more than her rear—it was a no-go zone. What a pity.

She could, however, sneak in the occasional pet.

Ji Yingran was in the midst of executing her stealth plan, her hand inching slowly toward the wolf’s belly. She was just about to make contact when an intense gaze locked onto her.

The wolf twisted her head to stare at the person sitting behind her—and at that eager, ready hand.

Ji Yingran naturally withdrew her hand, pretending nothing had happened.

“Whine!”

The Snow Wolf was furious.

This rude Human—what was she trying to do now? Where was that hand headed?

Ji Yingran touched her nose and tossed her long hair, fidgeting with little gestures while avoiding the wolf’s eyes.

The Snow Wolf’s whines continued unabated. Feeling guilty, Ji Yingran didn’t dare sit by the wolf anymore. She pretended to busy herself in the little kitchen area, fussing around pointlessly.

The Snow Wolf fixed her with an unfriendly glare as the human faked her chores.

Ji Yingran started off pretending, but soon enough, she found something genuinely important.

Where to store the satellite phone safely?

Keeping it in her pocket all the time wasn’t ideal. The satellite phone was durable and wouldn’t break unless smashed or dropped violently, but there was always that one-in-a-million chance.

She needed a secure spot for it.

Ji Yingran poked around the mountain cave, considering options, and finally settled on placing it between her three backpacks. She wrapped it in an extra towel and tucked it into the innermost layer for maximum safety.

She had arranged with the rescue center to check in once every seven days to confirm she was safe.

Until the scheduled time—or until the weather improved—she absolutely wouldn’t turn it on casually and waste battery. Battery meant hope for rescue; without it, the thing would be nothing but a useless brick.

With the satellite phone secured, Ji Yingran glanced at the gas canister in the corner. Today, she had gone all out, cooking eight dishes, and the canister was visibly nearly empty.

One meal had guzzled a full canister!

She shook the remaining half-canister in her hand and sighed. She still had a long time stuck here—fuel was absolutely essential.

Ji Yingran poked her head outside. The wind and snow had stopped, the clouds parting slowly as the sun peeked through faintly.

This weather changed by the hour: sunshine one moment, snow the next, wind after that.

With conditions clear now, she needed to head to the hot spring and gather some burnable vegetation. Otherwise, once the last half-canister ran out, she’d have no fuel at all. She couldn’t very well burn the backpacks…

Well, in a pinch, maybe she could. She had three, after all—burning two wouldn’t be the end of the world.

Ji Yingran crouched beside the Snow Wolf, speaking in a soft, coaxing voice. “Wolfie.”

The Snow Wolf had her eyes closed, seemingly asleep, but her twitching ears betrayed that she was wide awake.

“The sun’s out again. Shall we go for a walk, stretch our legs, and work off that big meal? You ate so much—don’t you feel like you need some exercise?”

The Snow Wolf’s ears flicked slightly, but her eyes stayed shut.

Ji Yingran pinched an ear. It dodged. She pinched again; it dodged again. And again…

The Snow Wolf didn’t open her eyes, but a low growl rumbled out.

Wise to the warning, Ji Yingran withdrew her hand and unleashed her ultimate weapon. “This has to do with tasty food, Wolfie. Are you sure you don’t want to hear about it?”

The ears shot straight up.

Ji Yingran’s eyebrows arched. This trump card was foolproof—”tasty food” was like a magic keyword for the wolf, instantly perking her up. “I want to make more delicious things for you, Wolfie, but the gas canister’s almost empty. If we don’t get some firewood, I can’t cook anything good for you.”

The wolf opened her eyes.

Ji Yingran piled it on. “Once we get firewood, I guarantee tons of goodies. How about that fried pork cracklings from today? But making cracklings takes a lot of fire—no firewood, no go.”

“I know just the spot, too—plenty by the hot spring. But I wonder if Wolfie wants to go…”

“Never mind. Wolfie wants to sleep, so forget the food. Rest is more important anyway…”

No need to say more—the wolf was already raring to go.

Nailed it. Ji Yingran had the Snow Wolf completely wrapped around her finger; she was a pro at talking her into things.

Grabbing the backpack she’d prepared earlier, Ji Yingran hurried to keep up.

The Snow Wolf eyed the human suspiciously. Why was she so ready—pack all packed? Was she that sure This Wolf would agree?

Ji Yingran bounced ahead, positively eager. “Come on, Wolfie! Hurry up—why aren’t you following?”

The Snow Wolf stopped dead.

Ji Yingran stayed calm. Dealing with this wolf was easy. For instance: “The Head Wolf has to lead the way. Wolfie, if you don’t come, does that mean you don’t want to be Head Wolf anymore?”

The Snow Wolf’s eyes widened a fraction. Head Wolf. She was the Head Wolf.

Whoosh—she shot ahead.

The Head Wolf leads. This Wolf is the Head Wolf.

The Snow Wolf strode at the front, tail held high, sauntering with a catwalk sway. Her fluffy rear wiggled and jiggled, delightfully bouncy.

Ji Yingran let out a light laugh.

The wolf ahead heard it and glanced back.

“It’s nothing! I’m just happy. With such a strong Head Wolf like you leading the way, I feel so safe and secure!”

The Snow Wolf’s tail rose even higher, her chin lifting proudly in sync.

“Alright, enough showing off. Lead on.”

“Whine!”

“Fine, fine—you’re not showing off. My mistake. You’re steady, a mature and composed Head Wolf.”

The Snow Wolf snorted coldly. Of course. She was plenty steady.

She continued her butt-wiggling catwalk as Ji Yingran stifled her laughs.

Traveling through deep snow was always arduous. The trip to the hot spring took a full hour each way—not a short jaunt.

Half an hour in, Ji Yingran struggled to pull her leg free from the snow. Eyeing the wolf ahead, nefarious thoughts stirred.

She wanted a wolf-back ride. A perfectly reasonable desire.

“I’m so tired. Let’s rest a bit.” She grabbed the wolf’s tail.

“Whine!” The Snow Wolf hated having her tail tugged and bared her teeth threateningly.

The human ignored it, clutching tight and refusing to let go. This wolf had no patience—if she released her, the wolf might just leave without waiting.

The Snow Wolf tried to yank her tail free, but Ji Yingran simply looped it around her arm once and gripped it firmly.

Unable to pull it back—and now it was wrapped up—the Snow Wolf glared daggers.

“I don’t care. I need a break. I’m scared you’ll run off, so I’m holding the tail. As Head Wolf, you have to be responsible for your pack members.”

“You can’t ignore the weak, elderly, sick, and disabled. What kind of leader disregards the rest of the wolf pack? Right now, I’m the ‘weak’ one among them.”

“I need rest. The Head Wolf waits. Take responsibility—show some of that steady character.”

Ji Yingran began lecturing the wolf on her duties.

The Snow Wolf wouldn’t have it. Puffed up with anger, she swatted the human across the face with a paw.

Ji Yingran wasn’t fazed and held on.

In the end, after a standoff, the wolf plopped down in the snow beside her. The tail remained trapped in the human’s arm-wrap, unyielding.

Fuming, she swatted her again, but this shameless human just grinned through it.

Not qualified. Extremely not qualified.

“Wolfie,” Ji Yingran said, “do you find waiting for people annoying?”

Snow Wolf rolled her eyes. Of course. When had she ever not found it annoying?

Ji Yingran’s eyes sparkled with an idea. “Actually, I have a great solution. You won’t have to think people walk too slow, or rest with them. We can get to our destination super fast. Want to know what it is?”

Snow Wolf looked over. She actually seemed interested.

“You carry me on your back.”

The words hung in the air, and everything went quiet for a couple of seconds.

Snow Wolf shot her a disdainful look. Impossible. This Wolf would never carry a useless Two-Legged Beast like you. In your dreams!

“Aww, Wolfie, just carry me, please. I can’t walk anymore. I’m so tired.”

“Can’t you help me out? You’re such a beautiful wolf, so majestic and handsome…”

Snow Wolf’s ears perked up as she listened. When Ji Yingran praised her beauty, the wolf lifted her chin proudly to show it off. When called majestic and handsome, she straightened up tall to emphasize her prowess.

Utterly smug.

While Snow Wolf was basking in the compliments, Ji Yingran crept closer. Using the wolf’s back for support, she jumped on.

Snow Wolf suddenly felt a weight on her back. Her smug expression froze. She twisted her head around and saw the clumsy Two-Legged Beast… climbing. Climbing away.

Just as Ji Yingran successfully clambered onto her back, Snow Wolf gave a casual shake, sending the girl tumbling off.

Splat.

Ji Yingran face-planted into the snow, eating a mouthful of it.