After breakfast, the two rode their bicycles out of town, watched by their grandmother and the two children.

This commune is very close to the county seat; it takes a little over an hour to walk there, and at most twenty-five minutes by bicycle.

The dirt road was bumpy, and even though Shen Fenghua was careful, she still felt like her bottom was going to go numb from all the jolting.

Seeing Shen Fenghua grimacing, Qi Ye wanted to laugh, "Is it that painful?"

"Of course! When will you arrive?"

"It's almost here, it's just around the corner."

As they were talking, they passed a small pond, went around a grove of trees, and walked for about three minutes. Suddenly, the small village came into view, and Shen Fenghua was shocked.

What she saw was a continuous range of hills, one after another.

The word "supplies" immediately popped into my mind.

They say people live off the land and water, so this village can't be too poor.

Shen Fenghua glanced at it and asked Qi Ye, "Do you think there's prey in there?"

“Of course,” Qi Ye said as he and Shen Fenghua drove side by side. “This mountain isn’t high, but it covered a very large area back then. Our troops stationed here would come here to hunt once a year in the autumn.”

"hunt?"

This was a new topic, and Shen Fenghua became interested. "How so?"

“Wild boars are considered one of the four pests. If no one manages them, they often become a plague. Before the troops stationed here hunted, the wild boars would come down from the mountains and cause trouble every autumn harvest and when the mountains were blocked by heavy snow in winter.”

Not only do they ruin crops, they also take lives.

There was a wild boar before, which, due to heavy snow blocking the mountain passes and the lack of food, had no choice but to come down the mountain in search of food and broke into a farmer's house. In the end, the whole family died tragically, with no one surviving, including the infants in their swaddling clothes...

Sigh, we can't even mention it.

The villagers were terrified by the massacre of the entire family. Even the brigade leader was horrified. Unable to do anything about it, he could only report it up the chain of command to the county. And so, the county's security patrols caught criminals and petty thieves without much trouble.

Sending them to fight those blue-faced, fanged wild boars is like sending them to their deaths.

After much deliberation, the county official in charge of security simply brought the entire company over.

Those in the military have all seen real guns and live ammunition on the battlefield. Dealing with a wild boar is not as easy as cutting melons and vegetables, but at least it won't result in a large number of deaths.

Qi Ye explained, "It's a win-win situation. The brigade can obtain a source of meat, and the safety of the village is also guaranteed."

"So how is the meat divided?"

"The military takes the lion's share, after all, bullets and such cost money."

Shen Fenghua understood and nodded knowingly. As they were talking, they arrived at their destination.

The appearance of the two bicycles caused a stir, but the children were still quite wary of strangers. It was the aunties sitting under the willow tree who spoke up, "Young man, where are you going?"

"I've come to find Carpenter Zhang to pick up the things I ordered."

"Oh, you're looking for Carpenter Zhang? Do you know the way?" The woman was quite helpful, and stood up upon hearing this. "Would you like me to show you the way?"

Qi Ye politely declined, "Thank you, Auntie. I know the way. I had water at Zhang the carpenter's house when I came here to hunt wild boar before."

"Oh, then you can go ahead."

The aunt immediately stopped thinking about it and sat down to continue chatting.

Carpenter Zhang is loading the things Qi Ye requested onto the oxcart.

Seeing Qi Ye approach, he grinned from ear to ear. This was his big customer. Although these jobs were all arranged through the brigade and he didn't get paid, only work points, weren't those all large items recorded in the register?

There are also many small items. If he thinks the customer is nice, he might casually give them a table, chair, or stool. Then the customer across from him might also think that Zhang the carpenter is a warm-hearted person, so it wouldn't be unreasonable to give him some local produce or other small gifts as a token of appreciation for his hard work.

Right?

"Comrade Qi!"

Carpenter Zhang stepped forward and shook hands with Qi Ye, saying, "Uncle Zhang."

Carpenter Zhang looked at Shen Fenghua beside Qi Ye, "This is..."

"This is my wife, her surname is Shen, Uncle Zhang can just call her Xiao Shen."

"Oh, come in, Xiao Shen, let's come in and talk slowly."

Qi Ye took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. "Uncle Zhang, have one."

Uncle Zhang was a little embarrassed to accept the gift with his calloused hands, but Qi Ye put it in his hands. The carpenter Zhang took it shyly, smelled it carefully, and then, not wanting to take it away, stuck it on his ear.

Shen Fenghua was welcomed inside by the women of the Zhang family. As soon as she entered, Shen Fenghua's eyes lit up. "Aunt Zhang, did Uncle Zhang make all of this?"

"Oh, how could that be? He does the work on the wood, but I do all the bamboo weaving with my daughter and daughter-in-law. It helps to supplement our household income."

"Then," Shen Fenghua looked at these exquisite little trinkets, "can I trade some with Auntie?"

"certainly!"

There's no reason to rush to push business away.

Seeing that Qi Ye was generous, Aunt Zhang naturally wouldn't underestimate Shen Fenghua and pulled her aside to introduce her to everyone.

Shen Fenghua looked around and was quite satisfied. "Do you have any in stock?"

"Yes, these can be taken away at any time."

"Okay, then I'll take one of these frames, and nine matching round bamboo woven frames."

The frame is made of bamboo, which not only looks exceptionally sturdy but also emits a pleasant bamboo fragrance when you get close. The round bamboo weave is adorable, and the edges and corners are all neatly finished without a single splinter.

It's great for drying green beans or something.

"good!"

Finally, Shen Fenghua picked out some more baskets. Then, the chirping sound from the corner caught her attention. When she saw the fluffy little chicks, her eyes lit up instantly. "Auntie, you raise chickens?"

"Hey, these aren't raised, they're my daughter-in-law's secret skill—hatching chicks. We can exchange them for something later."

Good heavens, the Zhang family is truly skilled craftsmen.

"Then catch three for me too."

“Three is a bit too few,” Aunt Zhang suggested earnestly. “These things are very fragile; they’ll die at the drop of a hat. Chicks are cheap, so if you raise five, even if two die, you won’t lose money.”

Thinking about it, it's true. Shen Fenghua asked for five chickens, and Aunt Zhang even gave her a chicken coop as a gift.

Finally, Shen Fenghua set her sights on the dried mushrooms, peanuts, and sesame seeds that Aunt Zhang had been drying.

Shen Fenghua: "!!!"

This trip was definitely worthwhile; the Zhang family is truly a treasure trove!

Shen Fenghua excitedly pulled Aunt Zhang aside to talk, "Auntie, to be honest, I've taken a liking to quite a few things in your house. How about we negotiate a price?"

Aunt Zhang: "!!!"

No wonder! She was wondering why the magpies were making such a racket so early in the morning; it turned out that a distinguished guest had arrived.

"What price are we talking about?" Aunt Zhang said happily. "Come on, let's chat for a bit. You look kind, maybe you're some distant niece of mine!"

Shen Fenghua instantly understood. Hmm~ Old ginger is spicier!