"Okay. No more catching." Ningxia washed his hands and feet and climbed up from the river bank.

"Aren't you going to catch him anymore?" Lin Yi still felt a little unsatisfied.

"We can't catch them anymore. They've all run away. Let's pack up and go back to make lunch."

After squatting by the river for a long time, Ningxia finally killed and cleaned the eels. Lin Yi also killed two under Ningxia's guidance. Although the performance was not very good, he learned it at least.

"Sister Xia Xia, something's wrong. There's a movement at the gate." Lin Yi looked alert. He stopped Ningxia and Sangsang, took out the crossbow from his bag and held it in his hand. His skills were not very good, but his posture was quite intimidating.

A few people came up from the ridge of the field by the river and were about to go home through the woods. Through the rustling trees, Lin Yi discovered something was wrong.

Ningxia smiled and touched his face, which was twitching with nervousness. "That's your Uncle Li Gang and the others."

Lin Yi suddenly relaxed and almost fell to the ground. "How...how did you know?"

"The number of people is the same, and the heights match. Look, that clown over there is still waving at us. His gesture looks like Xiaojie." Ningxia nodded towards the yard and walked inside while speaking.

“Ningxia!”

"Ningxia girl!"

“Sangsang!”

Before she got close, several men rushed over and Ningxia was a little frightened by their enthusiasm.

Xiaojie picked up Sangsang and said, "Sangsang, do you miss Brother Xiaojie?"

Sangsang smiled sweetly and hugged Xiaojie's neck, "I miss you."

On the other side, Lao Liao pulled Lin Yi to show their spoils, "Boy, you haven't seen so many wild animals, look, there are also wild boars!"

Lin Yi's eyes really lit up, "Uncle Liao, you guys are awesome!" That's great, Sister Xia Xia was just worried about not having anything to eat for two days, and now he's here.

"That's right, don't you see who your Uncle Liao is? I'm telling you..."

"Ningxia, I'm bothering you again." Although he said it was a trouble, Li Gang's face showed pride. He frequently looked at Xiaomu and Lao Chen who were moving meat into the yard.

Ningxia covered her mouth and smiled, "What's the trouble? You guys are so capable. I wish you could stay here."

"Well, it's a small matter. We have almost got a general understanding of the situation around the mountain this time, and have almost collected the samples required by the research institute. I can stay here for two days before leaving, so don't mind." Li Gang felt a little embarrassed when he said this. Originally, he meant to come here for a meal to reward himself.

Old Liao, that plague god, insisted on coming to stay for two days, saying that they had just moved to Ningxia and were unfamiliar with the place and must have a lot of work to do, so he asked Li Gang to come and help. Li Gang was convinced. It was not because he wanted Ningxia to cook, but because he felt sorry for the girl who had to take care of two children alone.

Ningxia laughed even more happily after hearing this, "Welcome!"

A group of people entered the yard in a mighty procession, and several of them looked around.

"Ningxia, your yard is well-maintained!" Old Liao went straight to the stove under the grape trellis and touched it with his hand. "Did you re-mud the back?"

Ningxia nodded, "Yeah, adding a stove hole makes it more convenient."

Seeing Lao Chen and Xiao Mu carrying the meat and about to put it on the ground, Ningxia hurriedly stopped them, "Wait!"

Lin Yi, who was standing by, ran into the kitchen and brought out the largest basin.

"What's wrong, Ningxia?" Although Old Chen was puzzled, he stopped throwing the meat.

Ningxia looked at the dirty meat distressedly and said, "I'll find a basin to put it in."

Xiao Mu chuckled and said, "No need. Eat the clean ones and just wash the dirty ones."

"Why are you talking so much? Just put it in the pot!" Li Gang yelled immediately, otherwise he was afraid Ningxia would have a heart attack. They were used to being rough around the edges, and except for him and Lao Liao, they were all city kids. They should be taught a lesson. It was really embarrassing.

Ningxia stepped forward to help take the meat, examining each piece carefully, even though most of it was already very dirty. "Is this... pork?!" Ningxia was a little surprised.

Lao Liao stepped forward and said, "Yeah, I encountered a wild boar cub, over 100 pounds, a little small."

Ningxia rummaged through the trash and found pheasants and wild rabbits. She even saw two large, white and tender field frogs trapped underneath, which made her feel a little amused.

"Brother, did you come here directly after coming down from the mountain?"

"How could that be!" Old Chen put his arm around Lin Yi's shoulders. "We went back home to take a shower and change clothes before coming here."

Lin Yi looked at the other person's dirty face and hesitated to speak.

"By the way, Sister Ningxia, look what good things I brought you!" Xiao Jie said as he ran out of the yard, and soon came back holding a tree that was not much taller than Sangsang.

"Sichuan pepper!" Ningxia was very surprised!

Xiao Jie put the tree on the ground and said, "We saw a big pepper tree on the mountain. I picked it from the nearby one. It has already produced fruits and the roots are still attached. The squad leader said it can be grown, so I brought it to you."

Ningxia was almost crying. They only had two seasonings, sugar and salt, and now there was also a peppercorn. Recalling the crispy and numbing taste in her mouth, Ningxia felt that a better life was beckoning to her.

"And this!" Xiao Jie took off the bag on his back and carefully took out a large plant with soil on it.

Ningxia recognized him as soon as he showed up, "Leek? You can do it, young man!"

Xiao Jie smiled embarrassedly and followed Lin Yi into the house to plant chives.

"Brother Li Gang, you guys haven't eaten yet, right? I'll cook right away!" Ningxia didn't care that she hadn't changed her clothes after returning from the river. They must have not had a good meal for a few days, so she cooked the meal first and then talked about other things.

Li Gang, feeling hungry for a long time, was too embarrassed to refuse and quickly took out the things in his bag. "Ningxia, this is our rations for the next few days. Thank you for your help."

Ningxia looked at the large bag of rice in front of him but didn't take it. "Squad leader, I have some food here."

"Alright, keep it. We carried all your food here. Don't I know how much you have? If we really eat all your food, the three of you will probably starve for half a month before you can survive this scorching sun month."

Ningxia didn't hesitate to accept it after hearing this. They knew their own situation best, so there was no need to pretend to be rich.

Ningxia took out the big steamer and steamed a large pot of multi-grain rice, so that she had time to think about what dish to cook.

Several grown men looked at each other, and stayed there, not knowing what to do.

Lin Yi stepped forward and said, "Uncle, let's plant the peppercorns."

“Okay, okay!”

A group of seven people surrounded the skinny pepper tree and pointed and talked. Ningxia looked up and saw this scene and almost spit out laughter.

"Well...Xiao Jie and Sang Sang, come and help me. Old Liao can plant the trees by himself. Lin Yi, take Brother Li Gang and the others and do something else."

As soon as Ningxia finished speaking, the crowd dispersed. The courtyard, which had been silent for a few days, became lively again.

"Uncle Gang, what are we busy with?" Lin Yi brought a few people to the outside of the yard and looked at each other.

Li Gang touched his head and said, "Take us to the back of the house. Doesn't Maomao still have a place to live? I'll go see what's going on."

Lin Yi nodded and took them around to the back of the house.