Chapter 117: Overnight in the Forest

"Grandpa, Zhuzhu wants to go up the mountain! It's comfortable up there!"

The old man was so eager to pick stars and moons for his granddaughter, let alone go up the mountain.

He immediately responded, "Okay, let's go up the mountain, let's go up the mountain now!"

The whole family got busy while talking and soon finished two baskets of things.

But they couldn't completely abandon their family, so in the end the old man took Tai Jizu, Yang Lihua, Tai Yonglu, Tai Yongyue and others up the mountain.

It was already dark at this time, and the old man didn't want to waste any more words, so he took everyone around the back of the village and went up the East Mountain.

As soon as Zhuzhu entered the forest, she stopped looking depressed and became cheerful.

The Tai family was all happy, and no one noticed the dark shadow following them...

If the forest during the day is like a lively young man, then the forest at night is like a wild beast that can pounce at any time.

Even though this place was only the outskirts of the continuous mountains and forests, and the old man had brought a bow and arrow and a hatchet, the Tai family still didn't dare to go too far.

Fortunately, the valley I often visited before was flat, with sparse trees and mountain springs.

Now it has become the best temporary camp for the Tai family.

Tai Jizu took out wooden tripods of different thicknesses and other items from the wicker basket, and quickly lit the bonfire without having to collect firewood.

The light dispelled the heaviness of the night, and the warmth isolated the still somewhat chilly night wind.

It was also the first time for Tai Yonglu and Tai Yongyue to camp in the mountains, and they were extremely excited.

The two followed the adults and helped carry the chopped down trees and propped them up to make a temporary shack.

Yang Lihua hung the clay pot she brought from home over the campfire to heat it up. Inside was the meat porridge cooked by Liu Dongniang.

Soon, the meat porridge began to bubble and the fragrance spread far away.

Zhuzhu was held in her grandfather's arms, wrapped in a warm jacket.

She couldn't help but struggle to get down and ran around the campfire, without any sign of illness left.

The old man breathed a sigh of relief and suddenly felt that it was a mistake to build a new yard at home. If he had known that his granddaughter liked to go into the mountains so much, he should have built a wooden house in the mountains.

But it’s not too late now. We can add a few more days to the construction period before the craftsmen leave.

Zhuzhu had no idea what her grandfather was planning, and she was following her brother and making things worse.

When her brothers were pulling up the small tree, she wanted to help, but she ended up not exerting any strength at all and ended up falling on her butt!

Tai Yonglu quickly went forward and hugged her, coaxing her, "Don't cry, sister. I'll go put down a trap and catch a rabbit for you. We'll roast it and eat it!"

This reminded Zhuzhu, and she immediately clapped her chubby hands and shouted, "Roasted rabbit, Zhuzhu wants to eat roasted rabbit!"

The old man was listening and it was too late for him to cover his granddaughter's mouth.

But this time, no one knew what went wrong. The old man waited anxiously for a long time. His grandchildren were already drinking meat porridge from their bowls, but still no rabbit volunteered to die.

He really didn't know whether to be happy or worried.

Fortunately, the rabbit, perhaps fearing that he would lose the flavor of his porridge in this state, finally ran out of the woods before he could pick up the bowl of porridge and crashed into the tree roots with a thud.

The old man secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

He said that his granddaughter's wishes have always come true, but sometimes they come true a little late...

Tai Jizu also had some guesses, but he still walked over with the hatchet and tried several times before he brought the rabbit back.

Tai Yonglu and Tai Yongyue couldn't help but cheer.

"Ah, there's a rabbit, a rabbit!"

"Roast rabbit, woo woo, roast rabbit!"

Tai Jizu smiled and tapped them twice, then instructed them to take a piece of burning wood to light the way and go to the downstream of the spring to skin and clean the rabbit.

In a short while, the whole family gathered around the campfire, talking and drooling at the roasting rabbit.

The snow-white rabbit meat was kissed by the flames and slowly turned brown. Occasionally, some fat dripped into the bonfire and quickly turned into a wisp of green smoke, making the aroma of the meat even more intense.

The rabbit was finally roasted before the three children's appetite could cause a disaster.

Tai Jizu tore off the two hind legs and gave one to the old man and the other to Zhuzhu.

The two front legs were given to Tai Yonglu and Tai Yongyue. The couple simply ate a few bites of meat from the rabbit's back, and needless to say, the rest went into the stomachs of the two boys.

Grandpa Tai ate slowly, thinking that his granddaughter didn't have enough to eat, and passed the food in his hand to her.

Unexpectedly, I heard the barking of dogs on the path I came from.

Tai Yonglu and Tai Yongyue jumped up immediately and shouted in surprise.

“Sesame balls, it must be sesame balls!”

“Sesame balls are coming!”

Sure enough, after a while, the black curly-haired sesame ball ran over, staring at the black bean eyes, barking, and wagging its tail wildly.

There was a big black horse following behind it with a clatter!

These two clowns actually took the initiative to chase after me!

The three children were very happy, but Mr. Tai and his wife Tai Jizu were worried.

My family probably thought the dog and horse were lost...

Tai Jizu said, "Dad, I have to go back. Otherwise, my second brother and the others will be looking for me everywhere!"

Before the old man could say anything, Sesame Ball started barking and nodding his head from time to time looking in the direction he came from.

Zhuzhu held it and said to her grandfather in a childish voice, "Grandpa, Zhimaqiu said that the family saw them going into the mountains."

The old man was very surprised and asked in a low voice, "Zhuzhu, can you understand the cry of Zhimaqiu?"

Zhuzhu blinked her big eyes, very confused, and replied, "I don't understand, but that's what it said!"

The old man was confused. Thinking that Zhimaqiu and Dahei were both close to his granddaughter, he simply treated it as a tacit understanding.

Tai Jizu didn't have to make another trip to the village, he just led the big black horse to eat grass and drink water.

Yang Lihua expanded the temporary shack, laid out the cashmere mats and quilts she brought from home, and even moved a bonfire to the entrance of the shack.

After Zhuzhu had eaten and drunk her fill, she played with the sesame ball for a while and then started yawning non-stop.

Yang Lihua put the fat girl into bed, called the two naughty boys who were still excited, and forced them to sleep together.

Zhimaqiu also squeezed into the shack, wagging his tail, and nestled at Zhuzhu's feet, which could barely be considered as nestling in Yang Lihua's arms.

As the night deepens, the forest becomes quieter.

The old man and Tai Jizu sat by the campfire and talked quietly. Old man Tai told his son, "Go back tomorrow and tell the craftsmen that we should build a small wooden house here.

"Zhuzhu likes to go into the mountains, so I occasionally bring her here to stay for a few days. If there are hunters who are camping out, I can also lend her my place."

Tai Jizu quickly nodded in agreement, "Okay, Dad, I'll tell my second brother tomorrow. This forest has no owner, and there's no shortage of wood, so it just takes a little more labor."

"Then you go to sleep first, and take over my watch in the second half of the night."

"I know, Dad."

After the father and son had discussed it, Tai Jizu leaned against the side of the shack and fell asleep under a tattered fur coat.

The old man held the hatchet, added a few wooden blocks to the fire, and then looked at the dark woods around him while puffing on his pipe...