Chapter 18: None of them are useful

"Did you all smell it? It smells like stewed chicken to me." Deng Jiao said while eating the corn porridge in her hand.

"I smell it. It's coming from the backyard. The smell has been lingering for a long time. I heard that they went up the mountain today. Maybe they caught something good." Zhu Fuqiang said with a sneer.

"Really? Yesterday we said we should unite and help each other, but they didn't even bother to bring us a bowl of delicious food today." Lin Yue got angry when she thought of the three male educated youth who came with her. They were so selfish.

"Are they taking advantage of the group? If people find out, will something bad happen? Don't let them implicate us." Su Niannian said innocently from the side.

"Originally, it was counted, but our brigade has an unwritten rule that if you kill small animals like pheasants, rabbits, and fish, as long as there are not many of them, it's okay to eat them yourself, but if you kill large animals like roe deer and wild boars, you have to hand them in.

So, there's really nothing wrong with them eating pheasants, and even if there is, who can prove that they are eating pheasants and not domestic chickens? "Zheng Aiguo glanced at Su Niannian. This female educated youth didn't have good intentions in what she just said.

"Oh, that's good. I'm just afraid that the three of them will make a mistake and implicate us." Su Niannian still said very innocently, but she still felt a little sorry in her heart.

Li Zhaodi ate her porridge and whispered, "I saw they got a lot of firewood today, but they piled it all against the wall of their house. They didn't put it in our shed at all."

"Oh, who are they guarding against? Can anyone steal a few broken firewood?"

"It's obvious who they're guarding against. They're guarding against us, the same educated youths' home they live in."

"These three people are really too much. Can we use their firewood? Besides, even if we do, what will happen? We are all comrades and should help each other. How can they be so selfish?"

"Alright, there's no point in talking for so long. They have better conditions than us. We can't even catch up. Let's finish our meal and rest."

Deng Jiao felt that none of these people's words hit the point. If they really wanted to eat, they could just go to the backyard and ask for some. How could they have the nerve to not give it to them after asking for it? They just knew how to chatter here. None of them were any use to any purpose.

If Shi Luo knew what Deng Jiao was thinking, he would definitely say it was a good idea.

It’s a pity that Shi Luo had already finished his bath and fell asleep on the warm kang.

For the next twenty days, Luo and the other two continued to go up the mountain together. During this period, the three of them had basically no rest. Not only did they stockpile most of the firewood for the winter, they also got a lot of mountain products.

I got several bags of walnuts, pine nuts, chestnuts, and dates.

I also got a few baskets of wild apples, wild pears, and wild persimmons.

Li Zhe also shot five pheasants and three rabbits.

Xie Chen also got four pheasants and four rabbits.

They didn't eat any of this, but smoked and air-dried it for preservation.

Shi Luo's harvest was smaller than the other two, only two pheasants and two rabbits, but he picked up more pheasant eggs than Li Zhe and Xie Chen.

Shi Luo ate one rabbit and dried the rest for preservation.

The three of them also dug a small cellar in their respective rooms to store these fruits and mountain products.

Fortunately, the cellar does not take up the space of the house, otherwise the house would not be enough for them.

"I heard the large hunting party will be back tomorrow, and we can divide the meat then."

Xie Chen was butchering the roe deer in his hand by the river and continued,

"Let's go to the commune tomorrow. I'll send some of my smoked chicken and rabbit back home. I think we can get some meat when we get back."

"Okay, I'll send some home too. Oh, don't you say I'm lucky, Shi Luo? You were just standing there and this stupid roe deer crashed into the tree next to you and died. Others wait for rabbits by the tree, but you wait for roe deer by the tree."

Li Zhe was very envious. This roe deer was the biggest prey the three of them had encountered in the past twenty days since they entered the mountains.

"It's not like you don't have a share. Once Xie Chen is done, we can have one for each of the three of us."

Shi Luo also felt that he was lucky. Not only this roe deer, but even the pheasants and rabbits he had caught were killed at his feet.

"Shi Luo, you're so nice. After I buy the salt tomorrow, I'll make you the most delicious kimchi."

Li Zhe looked at the roe deer, which weighed about 60 to 70 kilograms. He was even happier to think that he could get at least 20 kilograms. Thinking about the meat distribution tomorrow, he continued to ask,

"By the way, Xie Chen, do you think we will get a share of the meat tomorrow?"

"We don't have work points, so forget about getting any meat. But after the brigade has distributed all the meat, we should be able to buy any leftovers with money. The meat in the brigade is definitely cheaper than in the commune. Even if it's not, it's worth it without the meat coupons."

"That's great! I wonder if the hunting team can get some wild sheep. Eating mutton hotpot and drinking mutton soup when it's cold would be such a treat."

Not only sheep, Shi Luo also hopes that the hunting team can get cattle and deer. Although he has all these meats in his space, he cannot eat them openly in the space, which makes him feel unhappy.

"Okay, I've divided the meat into portions, one for each person. Don't worry about the head. Once Li Zhe's hole is dug, bury it quickly. It's almost dark, let's go back quickly. We'll have to make several trips to get so much stuff."

Li Zhe said urgingly as he put the meat into the backpack.

After the three of them got the things ready, they still had to make four or five trips to get everything back to the Youth League Home.

The three of them first put the mountain products and meat into the cellar before slowly coming out to stack firewood.

"Shi Luo, what are you going to eat tonight? Why don't you just join us?" Xie Chen was stacking firewood outside, and Li Zhe had already gone into the house to cook.

"No need, I have some noodles. Just cut up some meat and cook them. Oh, and have you decided where to go to make the pickled vegetables?"

"I've negotiated with Uncle Yangzi next door. We'll pay one cent per pound, and I have to give him another pound of sugar coupons. His family planted a lot this year, and with the bonus from the brigade, he can give us more than 200 pounds of cabbage. I'll give you 70 pounds later."

"Is it just cabbage? We can't just eat cabbage."

"The captain's family can also exchange it for two hundred kilograms of radishes for us, also at one cent a kilogram, but they have to add two feet of cloth coupons. Is sixty kilograms enough for you?"

"That's enough. Now it really proves the saying that 'a simple life is safe and sound. '" Shi Luo said with emotion.

"Do you have enough food to last until next year's food distribution? Li Zhe and I plan to go to the brigade headquarters tomorrow to exchange some food."

"It's not enough to eat. Can't I change it after I finish eating?" There is enough food. There is plenty in the space, but I can't say it.

"I'm afraid we won't be able to exchange it in the future. The new food we've distributed in the past few months is enough for every household. If they run out of food in the future, the team leader will definitely give priority to exchanging it with the villagers."

"Okay, let's go tomorrow morning. The hunting team shouldn't be back until noon or afternoon. The captain will definitely be free tomorrow morning."

"Then it's settled. I'm going to eat." Xie Chen put the last piece of wood away and went into the house to eat.

Shi Luo slowly finished arranging the firewood and went into the house.

After Shi Luo returned to the house, he didn't actually cook the noodles, but took out a bowl of mutton soup steamed bun from the space. There was no other way. He felt a little greedy when people talked about mutton during the day, and now it was just right to eat a bowl of mutton soup steamed bun to satisfy his craving.