The once bustling ditch fell silent instantly. Although there were moon and stars in the sky, the moonlight was hazy, making it impossible to see the specific situation in the ditch.

Xu Errui and Xiaoman jumped down from the tree and were about to go over, but Jiang Zhi and Xiaoman's grandfather called them back.

Although Jiang Zhi came up with the idea and administered the medicine, she herself didn't dare to believe how effective those few sticks laced with the medicine would be, so she decided to be on the safe side.

If the two boars are just unconscious, and we rashly go over and bump into them, it could cause a big problem.

Let those wild boars lie there for a while. If they're going to die, let them die completely; if they're going to live, let them get up and run. We can't risk our lives with humans.

Since we had to wait a while, and everyone was tired after a long day and quite hungry, we decided to eat something first.

So, the group climbed down from the tree, found a clean spot far from the ditch, sat down, and lit a pile of chopped branches and sawdust to bake flatbread.

While eating, it kept its ears open to any sounds coming from the other side of the ditch, ready to swiftly climb the tree at the first sign of a wild boar returning.

An injured wild boar is as fierce as a tiger; no one dares to mess with it.

No one was in the mood to eat, and they just swallowed it down hastily.

After listening for a while without any movement, Xiaoman and Errui went down into the ditch again.

This time, the two men used torches for illumination. The previously murky stream was now clear, revealing only broken ropes and sticks, messy footprints, and a few puddles of pig excrement.

At the other end of the ditch, Jiang Zhi, Chun Feng, and Xiao Man Ye anxiously watched as the torchlight gradually faded into the distance.

Just as only a tiny spark remained in their sight, Xiaoman's voice rang out from afar.

He shouted excitedly, "Come quick! The wild boar is really dead! Really dead! Hahaha, what a huge wild boar!"

What a huge wild boar!

Two wild boars lay in the water, one in front of the other, and were still warm to the touch, indicating they were not quite dead.

Time waits for no one. The meat is lying in the middle of nowhere, and who knows what else might come out of it? We have to find a way to get it back.

Grandpa Xiaoman pulled his gleaming woodcutter's knife from his belt, shoved it into Xiaoman's hand, his eyes wide open, his face contorted in a ferocious grimace, and roared through gritted teeth, "Quickly, cut off their heads!"

To express his excitement, he even waved his hand, nearly injuring Xiaoman, who had just received the knife.

"Quick, chop it, chop it... cough cough cough cough!" Little Man finally choked on his saliva.

Bleed the pig while it's still warm, otherwise the meat will have a strong, unpleasant smell.

So Xiaoman and Xu Errui each guarded a wild boar and started hacking at it with their knives.

For a moment, the ditch was filled with the splattering sounds of knives piercing flesh.

The wild boar, weighing several hundred pounds, had a neck as thick as a water bucket. After a flurry of hacking, the boar's head was still intact, but Xiaoman's face was covered in blood, foam, and bone fragments.

Chunfeng took the knife and continued hacking, her stance startling even Xiaomanye.

The granddaughter-in-law used to be gentle and quiet. Although she had to work after Dazhu was injured, when did she become so capable?

Jiang Zhi felt a little sorry for her. After Xu Errui came back, he stammered that Sister Chunfeng had suffered a lot and was quite formidable!

Just think about the torment Chunfeng suffered after remarrying; it would change a person completely, let alone someone as ruthless as her who dared to cut off her own finger with a knife.

Several men took turns chopping off the pig's head, the blood staining the entire ditch red, the stench of blood making people want to vomit.

Fortunately, it was in this ditch, making it convenient to wash hands and knives.

Now the problem is how to get it back!

The wild boar was poisoned, but the poison was a natural plant, not a chemical agent that cannot be metabolized.

Aconite was originally used as a medicine to treat diseases. Its toxins can be broken down by high temperatures and have no effect on humans. Therefore, Li Shizhen recorded it in ancient books as a hunting technique, and all the meat had to be taken back to eat.

The two wild boars must have weighed about 800 pounds each; even if you cut off their heads, you couldn't carry them away.

"Lord Chang Geng, what are we going to do with so much meat?" Jiang Zhi asked anxiously.

Xiaoman said energetically, "Let the two boys help me. We'll cut the pig open and chop it into pieces right here, then we can take it."

The old man used to slaughter pigs himself for the New Year, so he has experience in handling pork.

This is the only way: break it down into smaller parts and take whatever you can.

So, the group moved stones to create a platform in the water, placed firewood on it, and lit a bonfire.

Ripples spread across the water, and the firelight shone brightly. At this moment, Xiaoman seemed to be ten years younger, transforming into a butcher under the moon. Holding a wood-chopping knife that Xiaoman had already hacked into pieces, he deftly sliced ​​the bled wild boar into eight large pieces.

There's no time to process the heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys; we'll just focus on the meat.

Despite all this busy work, not a single person complained of being tired, and they didn't even have time to go home to deliver a message.

After the two wild boars were finally separated and carried up the hillside outside the ditch, the sky was already beginning to lighten.

Little Manye, pale-faced, staggered as he climbed out of the ditch, feeling dizzy and exhausted.

He was the most tired that night, even though the last wild boar was mostly divided between Xiaoman and Xu Errui, and Xiaoman also needed to give guidance throughout the process.

There are piles of meat strips; we need to carry them back quickly.

This time, Jiang Zhi and Chun Feng took the lead and went first, each carrying a basket filled with more than 100 pounds of meat.

Blood dripped down, mixed with mud, soaking their clothes from dry to dry, leaving them covered in red and black stains, making them look like beggars.

With meat on their backs, they had motivation. The two of them carried the meat without getting tired and ran as fast as they could.

As soon as they returned outside, Qiaoyun and Xiaoman's grandmother, who had been worried all night, came out to greet them: "Oh! You're finally back! We were so worried last night!"

Grandma Xiaoman knew that it was risky for this group of people to hunt wild boars, but they were all cautious people. Besides, her old man was there, so even if something happened, there would be someone to report it. They were just too busy to come back.

But I couldn't help feeling worried, and when I finally saw him, I complained a few times.

Qiaoyun's eyes were still red. She didn't dare let her mother-in-law know that she had cried again that night, so she could only lower her head and comfort the child.

She held Xiao Caixia in her arms and said, "Xiaxia, look what your grandma brought back for you! Meat! It's all meat! More meat than we can eat!"

After saying that, she chuckled again. "There's meat to eat! How wonderful!"

Xu Dazhu didn't sleep that night either. He was worried about how the rest of the group, apart from Xu Errui who was a strong laborer, would fight the wild boar.

Now that he's back, everyone's relieved. He collapsed weakly onto the kang (a heated brick bed): "I was so worried! He should have come back and given me some news!"

Chunfeng squeezed his hand: "Don't worry, we're all fine!"

Jiang Zhi and Chun Feng hadn't finished carrying the pork yet, so they had to make another trip. After drinking a few sips of water and grabbing some white flour cakes, they hurried off to pick up more people.

After several trips back and forth, the group finally managed to bring back the pork along with the offal.

Originally, the pig's stomach and intestines were supposed to be thrown away, since there was too much meat to eat and no good seasoning to cook with. But Grandpa Xiaoman disagreed: "These pig intestines can be washed, boiled, and fed to the chickens. The chickens will lay more eggs if they eat more meat!"

They couldn't bear to part with this or that, so they brought everything back, skin and all, and in the end, they didn't even give up the bones.

At first, everyone was all smiles as they looked at the room full of pork, but soon they started to worry.

It's the sweltering month of July now; without enough salt for curing, this meat will rot and infest with maggots within two days.

If salt is used, it is not a small amount. If we calculate based on 3 ounces of salt for 10 pounds of cured meat, at least more than 10 pounds of salt will be needed.

Not only is there not much salt available now, but it's also summer, which isn't the time to cure bacon.

The harsh reality shattered Jiang Zhi's freedom to eat meat, forcing her to find another way.