Ma Dahua saw things much better than her mother-in-law. Putting aside her husband, her two sons were among the best in the army. What could possibly happen if they just went hunting in the mountains?

Although her husband Qin Feng retired from the army long ago, he has never stopped exercising over the years. Compared to his peers, he is five to ten years younger. If any dangerous situation occurs, her husband will be fine even if someone else gets hurt.

Qin Xiaoxiao was bored at home with nothing to do, and her eyes were glazed over. It was Ma Dahua who couldn't stand it anymore and pulled her into the house to help her make clothes, which made her more energetic.

Qin Xiaoxiao didn't know how to sew, so Ma Dahua patiently taught her. And it has to be said, Qin Xiaoxiao was quite good with her hands. The fabric she cut out according to the pattern Ma Dahua gave her looked quite decent. Then, with Ma Dahua's skillful sewing, a piece of clothing was made.

Looking at the clothes she had made, which she had contributed half of, Qin Xiaoxiao was filled with excitement and wished she could cut up all the fabric in her space to make clothes.

That day, Qin Xiaoxiao was busy from morning till night, her enthusiasm undiminished. She managed to make a set of clothes for both Old Madam Qin and Qin Aiguo, and even made a pair of pants for Qin Ye.

Despite ruining most of the fabric in the house, Ma Dahua wasn't annoyed. She cheerfully followed behind Qin Xiaoxiao, operating the sewing machine, and even had the mood to let Qin Xiaoxiao try it herself.

That evening, Qin Xiaoxiao stayed in the main room. Qin Aiguo and Qin Xiaoxiao each flanked Old Madam Qin, with Qin Xiaoxiao even reaching out to hold Old Madam Qin's hand before she would go to sleep.

On the other side, Qin Aiguo was not to be outdone. Just as Qin Xiaoxiao was about to fall asleep, he also reached out his big hand into his wife's bed.

Of course, Qin Xiaoxiao had no idea that her grandfather was jealous and vying for her favor; otherwise, she would have definitely made fun of Qin Aiguo.

In the middle of the night, there was a knock on the Qin family's door. Qin Xiaoxiao was immediately startled, scrambled to her feet, put on her shoes, grabbed the wooden stick standing at the door, and rushed out.

Qin Aiguo calmly put on his shoes and even had the mood to comfort his wife.

"You go to sleep. The boss and the others should be back by now. We can talk about it tomorrow."

Hearing her husband say that, Mrs. Qin felt relieved and lay back down, no longer caring about what was happening outside.

Qin Aiguo slowly walked into the courtyard. Ma Dahua had already gotten up and was standing next to Qin Xiaoxiao. Neither of them went to open the door, but stood in the courtyard waiting for Qin Aiguo.

"Master." Qin Xiaoxiao turned around and called Qin Aiguo softly.

Qin Aiguo gave her a reassuring look and called out, "Who is it?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Qin Feng's voice came in, "Dad, open the door, it's me."

Upon hearing Qin Feng's voice, Qin Xiaoxiao breathed a sigh of relief, threw the stick aside, and hurriedly went to open the door.

Qin Aiguo watched his eldest granddaughter's retreating figure with satisfaction, his smile wide and his eyes bulging.

After welcoming the father and his two sons inside, Ma Dahua glanced at them and, seeing that her husband and sons were all well, turned around and went to the kitchen with peace of mind.

Qin Xiaoxiao watched as Qin Feng, Qin Ye, and Qin Wei dragged two large sacks into the house. She quickly closed the door and followed the three into the yard. "What's this?"

Qin Feng wiped his sweat and laughed, "I caught five wild boars. It'll be hard to deal with them tonight, so I'll leave them at the village office for now. These are the pheasants and rabbits your brother caught."

Your second brother had a lucky day; he caught a dozen or so wild rabbits, enough for the whole family.

Your older brother caught five pheasants and two roe deer. He didn't share them; he brought them all home. We won't be short of meat this winter, so enjoy them to your heart's content.

Normally, roe deer should be shared among the villagers, but during the winter hunting season, the unspoken rule is that wild boars are shared, and whoever catches the others keeps them. Others shouldn't be envious; if someone else catches one, that's their skill, and it's your fault for not being able to catch one.

Even so, they can't catch too many. One or two is fine, but if there are more, the villagers will complain.

Therefore, every year when hunting, Qin Feng always kept the game close to his bottom line, so as not to make others envious, but to ensure that his family received the greatest benefit.

The three of them went inside to wash their hands. Instead of going to Old Mrs. Qin's room, they sat down in the main room and waited for Ma Dahua's meal while talking to Qin Aiguo about going up the mountain.

Qin Xiaoxiao didn't say a word, just sat to the side and listened. Her well-behaved manner made everyone say, "She's an honest child."

Ma Dahua was quick and efficient, and soon brought out three large bowls of noodles.

"It's too late, the flatbread in the pan has gone hard. After heating up the flatbread, we'll have to heat up the dishes, which is too much trouble. You'll have to make do with noodles. Mom specially rolled them out for you tonight."

The piping hot noodles, topped with a sauce of chili peppers, eggs, and minced meat, smelled so good it made your mouth water.

Qin Xiaoxiao licked her lower lip and looked at Ma Dahua pitifully.

Ma Dahua chuckled and tapped Qin Xiaoxiao's forehead. "There's more, wait and see."

Qin Xiaoxiao's face lit up with joy, and she happily followed Ma Dahua to the kitchen.

Pointing to the two smaller bowls of noodles on the stove, Ma Dahua said, "Take them out and eat with your grandpa."

Qin Xiaoxiao happily carried the noodles out, then thought for a moment and turned back to ask Ma Dahua, "Auntie, what about you? Are you and Grandma still eating?"

Ma Dahua was happy that Qin Xiaoxiao cared about her and wouldn't eat alone. She smiled and replied, "Your grandma and I don't eat anything too late. Go eat by yourself, don't leave anything behind. Hurry up, the noodles won't taste good if they get soggy."

Qin Xiaoxiao didn't stand on ceremony this time. She quickly took the noodles to the main room, gave the extra portion to Qin Aiguo, and ate the smallest portion herself.

After finishing a bowl of noodles, Qin Xiaoxiao felt so comfortable that she wanted to hum softly, patting her stomach as she looked at Qin Ye.

Qin Ye had already finished eating. Seeing Qin Xiaoxiao looking at him, he said with a smile, "I know, don't worry, your rabbit is still here. I'll show it to you tomorrow. Go to sleep now, or you won't be able to get up tomorrow. You won't be invited when the village distributes pork."

Qin Xiaoxiao pouted and pulled Qin Aiguo back to sleep.

The next day, Qin Xiaoxiao didn't get up until 8:30. Qin Ye came over to wake her up, but Qin Aiguo and the old lady Qin wouldn't let him, pressing him firmly against the door and preventing him from coming in.

After Qin Xiaoxiao got up, she saw the two little rabbits that Qin Ye had prepared for her. One was all white with a few stray hairs, and the other had a black mouth and a white body.

Qin Xiaoxiao narrowed her eyes and licked her lower lip. "Brother, are you really going to let me raise these two rabbits?"

Qin Wei walked over and squatted down next to Qin Xiaoxiao. "Yes, I caught this for you. How is it? Do you like it?"

Qin Xiaoxiao nodded frantically, "I love it, I love it so much! Brother, do you think we should raise enough to make a whole plate of them for the New Year?"

Qin Wei's lips twitched violently twice. "You... want to kill someone and eat meat for the New Year?"

Qin Wei stared at Qin Xiaoxiao in disbelief, thinking to himself, "Why is a little girl like you always thinking about food? Shouldn't a girl say that a snow-white rabbit is cute and refuse to let it be killed? How come it's become a delicacy on the table for you?"

Qin Xiaoxiao nodded matter-of-factly, "Otherwise what? Why raise it if we're not going to kill it for meat? It's a waste of food."

Of course, she'd raise them to eat during the Lunar New Year. If they weren't so small and thin, she wouldn't have kept a single one.