"I want to go back!"

Chen Mai didn't care; it was mainly up to Chen Liang. However, Chen Liang made up his mind immediately: he wanted to go back.

They had just come down the mountain, and the reason for suggesting going up was simply to let Xu Hongxia experience the joy of picking raspberries. Now that Xu Hongxia was planning to go back, they might as well go back too.

Furthermore, pheasant feathers can be used to make shuttlecocks. The last shuttlecock he made was when he slaughtered a chicken for the New Year, and it had been kicked until all the feathers were gone. Now he can make a new one.

Chen Ming casually picked some wild grass and tied it to the pheasant's beak and wings. Then he put the pheasant on the basket and covered it with some wild vegetables.

To avoid running into other people in the village later. Although everyone tacitly agreed that anything they found on the mountain would be taken home by themselves.

However, while some wild vegetables and fruits are one thing, if others see wild rabbits or pheasants, some envious people will deliberately report them or simply steal some of them.

So it's safer to do some camouflage, since these wild vegetables are edible anyway. We'll make some pheasant soup first, then blanch the wild vegetables in the broth; that'll make a delicious dish.

......

Huang Qinqin was idly cracking sunflower seeds. She always felt that sunflower seeds tasted best when eaten while watching something exciting.

Seeing that Xu Weiguo and the others had returned so quickly, they asked curiously, "Mom and Dad, Uncle, why are you back so soon? Didn't you say you were going to pick raspberries?"

"Sister-in-law, we caught a pheasant! So we rushed back!"

Xu Hongxia rushed to Huang Qinqin's side and whispered something. Although her voice was soft, Huang Qinqin could still feel Xu Hongxia's joy.

Smiling, she praised, "Hongxia, you're amazing! Who found the pheasant?"

Xu Hongxia proudly puffed out her chest and said with pride, "It was me! I was the first to discover it!"

Xu Hongxia: o(￣▽￣)d

Huang Qinqin gave Xu Hongxia a thumbs up and said, "Hongxia deserves the most credit. I'll have your second aunt give you a big chicken leg later."

"Hehe~ It's okay. I don't like eating chicken drumsticks. The big drumsticks can be given to my two younger brothers. I like eating chicken wings."

Xu Fang had just come out of the kitchen when she heard Xu Hongxia's words. She smiled and said, "No problem, Auntie will put out a pair of chicken wings for you later."

The two families had a lively lunch and then started chatting.

"Did Chen Mai and Chen Liang go to school?"

Xu Weiguo noticed that his two nephews seemed to always be at home. Today they said it was the weekend and they didn't have to go to school, but the last two times he came over, they were also at home.

Chen Ming touched his nose somewhat awkwardly, and said breathlessly, "No..."

Chen Ming knew that if his children could go to school, they might be able to find jobs in the city later, but his family simply didn't have the money, so neither of them had ever received an education...

When Xu Fang saw that Xu Weiguo's face darkened after hearing this, she quickly explained to Chen Ming: "Brother, it's not that A-Ming doesn't want them to go to school, it's just that the family can't afford it, and the school is very far from the village."

“We had considered sending them to primary school before, but the school is located in the Second Brigade, which is more than an hour's walk away, so we didn't send them there.”

Xu Weiguo also knew that Chen Ming's circumstances were not good. After all, he had raised several younger brothers and sisters on his own, and they had all gotten married in the last two years.

It's easy to imagine how difficult their lives must have been in the past few years. But the more Xu Weiguo thought about it, the darker his face became. Knowing was one thing, but whether he could accept it was another.

Seeing that Xu Weiguo's expression was getting increasingly grim, Zhang Yumei was afraid that he would scold Chen Ming, so she changed the subject and said, "It's okay, it's not too late to go now. Afang, do you want to consider letting Chen Mai and Chen Liang go to school in the city?"

"You can stay at our house then. Anyway, we have plenty of empty rooms, it's a waste to leave them empty."

Xu Fang was indeed quite interested in Zhang Yumei's suggestion, but she didn't know if Chen Ming would mind. She looked at Chen Ming and then said, "Thank you, sister-in-law. Let's discuss it with the child first."

Xu Weiguo's expression had improved considerably after hearing Zhang Yumei's words, but when Xu Fang said they needed to discuss it further, his face darkened again. His ability to change his expression so quickly was truly astounding.

"What's there to discuss? Do you really intend to let your two children remain illiterate?!"

Xu Weiguo didn't understand. It was obvious that only by studying could one find a way out, so what was there to discuss?

Xu Weiguo probably didn't see anything wrong with Chen Mai and Chen Liang staying at the Xu family's house. But Huang Qinqin could probably guess Xu Fang's concerns.

Although Xu Weiguo is their maternal uncle, the two families have only recently become acquainted. Xu Fang's family is also relatively poor, and she is probably worried that the children will feel like they are living under someone else's roof if they stay at the Xu family's house.

It wasn't that Xu Weiguo and his family were afraid of mistreating the children; it was just that the family's circumstances were what they were, and poor families often have a stronger sense of pride. That's why Xu Fang said she needed to discuss it with the children.

Huang Qinqin came to the rescue, saying, "Second Aunt, you can discuss it slowly. There's no rush. School is still on summer vacation and there's still more than half a month before it starts."

"Dad, I know you like your two cousins ​​more and want to bring them to stay at our house for a while, but don't rush it. After all, they've only just met us, so don't scare them."

Xu Weiguo would show a bad attitude towards Chen Ming and Xu Fang, but he wouldn't show it towards Huang Qinqin, after all, she was his daughter-in-law, and it wasn't appropriate to show her any displeasure.

So he took the opportunity to back down and said to Xu Fang, "Well, you two should discuss it properly first. If you have any problems, you can come to my house and ask your sister-in-law for help."

"Okay, I understand, big brother."

Xu Fang felt fortunate to have Huang Qinqin, otherwise the meeting might have ended badly.

Chen Ming quietly took Xu Fang's hand under the table, signaling her not to worry and that he was alright.

Aside from this topic, everyone had a very pleasant conversation.

Around 3 PM, it was almost time for Xu Weiguo to go back. Xu Fang packed them some dried vegetables and dried longan.

When Zhang Yumei saw the large bag of dried longan, she quickly told her to take it back: "Keep this for yourselves, it's very good for your health."

"These aren't worth much; we just dry them ourselves. We have them every year, and we can't even finish them all. Sister-in-law, you can take them home and eat them."

"One bag contains shelled fruit, which can be used to make soup or steep in water. The ones with shells are for snacking. However, don't eat too many at once, as it can cause internal heat and mouth blisters."

Zhang Yumei and Huang Qinqin asked in shock, "Did you dry all of these in your own home?!"