The next day, Zhang Xingguo came over for dinner. "Hongmei, you go herd the sheep by yourself today. I'll prepare things at home. Ask someone to help set up the cold stove so you don't have to suffer cooking."

"Okay, let's set up two cold stoves, and it would be best to put up a shed on top of them."

"Why bother setting up a shed? It'll still be hot. Just put it up in the corner. Two sheds would be fine."

Zhang Hongmei was herding the sheep into the mountains. She figured she could look for a cave to put the corn stalks in. The space was a mess right now; it was uncomfortable to look at.

She drove the sheep to the edge of the sweet potato field. Now, even if the sheep ate a few bites of sweet potato vines, she wasn't afraid. So Zhang Hongmei left the sheep there with peace of mind and went around looking for them with the basket on her back.

Sure enough, they found a cave on the shady side of the mountain. They threw some stones inside, and when no animals came out, they went in without worry. The cave was quite large, probably several hundred square meters. They quickly unloaded all the straw, bean stalks, and rice straw, which immediately took up more than half of the cave.

They hurriedly ran back, fearing that wild animals might harm the sheep they had worked so hard to raise.

Back in the sweet potato field, the sheep were still grazing nearby and hadn't gone far. No other animals came by either. The traps they had dug hadn't caught any wild animals for quite some time.

I cut a basket of grass and spread it on the ground. I lay down comfortably on it, and finally, a part of my heartache was relieved.

I lay there in a daze for a while, then got up to go mushroom picking. I could herd the sheep over there so I could keep an eye on them.

The mushrooms were a bit old, but that didn't stop them from being eaten, so Zhang Hongmei kept picking them.

I didn't bring lunch today, so I took out a box of Black Forest cake from my online storage. It's been so long since I've had sweets, and it was really delicious. After finishing it, I couldn't resist taking out a few pieces of Dove chocolate to satisfy my craving.

After eating, we continued working. By the time we were almost back, we had picked two large bags of mushrooms. To save time, we tied the two bags together with a rope and draped them over the back of the ram. I carried a basket of grass on my back and herded the ram home.

I don't know why, but I rarely see animals in the mountains anymore. Could it be that they're afraid to come near me because I come here so often?

Little did she know that it was Zhang Xingguo who fired a few shots to intimidate the animals.

When I got home, I saw that the cold stove in the yard had been set up, but it couldn't be used today, so I cooked in the kitchen.

Zhang Xingguo ate the cold noodles with tomato and egg stir-fry, enjoying the delicious food so much that he didn't want to go back to work.

But thinking about how her son was fighting alone, she gave up the idea of ​​staying. This time, when her son came, she decided to come with him. She would come over herself after she finished this busy period.

After finishing her meal, Zhang Hongmei took a large bowl of noodles to the old lady's house and told her what Li Juying had said the day before.

The old lady ate her cold noodles while listening to Zhang Hongmei recount what she had overheard. After finishing, she put down her bowl and said, "I understand. That Zhang Hongqi is truly a scoundrel. And Wang Jianguo went too easy on his men last time, giving him the energy to scheme."

"Grandma, I heard that the head of the grain depot is Wang Jianguo's brother-in-law."

“I already knew last time. I’ll definitely teach him a lesson this time and send him back to farm.”

When Zhang Hongmei heard the old lady casually decide someone's fate, she thought she was really amazing.

After leaving the old lady's house, I went home.

I read books online in the evening. I've already finished reading the first-year junior high textbooks and the second-year junior high Chinese textbooks.

The next day was Saturday, so there was no school. Liu Erya carried a basket on her back and came to find Zhang Hongmei to go up the mountain together.

I told her about the mushrooms yesterday, and today we went mushroom picking together in the mountains.

Two little girls went into the mountains, and Er Lengzi followed along, carrying a fishing net.

The three of them picked mushrooms first, and each of them picked a bag full before going to the river.

Er Lengzi brought a casting net, and on the first cast, he actually caught fish—all large crucian carp, about the size of an adult man's palm, and they all looked quite plump.

“This pool is very deep. The net is already three meters high, but it hasn’t reached the bottom yet. You two be careful, and try not to come here again.”

"Got it, Brother Er Lengzi. Is there a big fish in that deep water?"

"There should be some, but we won't be able to catch any. This net is useless." Er Lengzi threw the net again, avoiding the spot where he had just cast it. This time there were six fish, but they weren't crucian carp; they were carp, each weighing more than two pounds.

Er Lengzi cast his net twice more, catching several fish each time. Finally, he caught a large grass carp, weighing four or five pounds, and it took him quite a while to finally get it ashore.

"We've got it. Let's go back. It's a waste to make too much and not be able to finish it. We'll come back in a few days."

The two of them naturally had no objections; they were satisfied to have caught several fish without having put in any effort.

Zhang Hongmei received the grass carp, two carp, two crucian carp, and one silver carp. That was quite a lot. She felt a little embarrassed.

“Take it if I give it to you. I know you’ll definitely send any good food to Grandma. If you don’t have enough, it won’t be enough for her.”

"Then I won't stand on ceremony, Brother Er Lengzi." I didn't invite them home for dinner, mainly because Zhang Xingguo and the others felt uncomfortable around.

I rushed home. Zhang Xingguo wouldn't be back for lunch. I ate a few bites quickly before cleaning the fish.

Actually, stewed fish tastes best with cornbread, but almost everyone here eats cornbread. So Zhang Hongmei made the dough. Let's steam some buns; it's not easy to have a good meal, so let's splurge a little.

If it were just Zhang Hongmei, she would definitely steam rice, but with others around, she didn't dare eat rice all the time. Although Zhang Shouyi told her not to be frugal, Zhang Hongmei subconsciously saved some food.

First, make a few cuts on the back of the cleaned fish, pour some white wine, rub salt on the outside, and put scallions and garlic into the fish's belly. Marinate for an hour.

The dough has risen well, so I steamed some buns, two sweet buns, and two eggplants. After covering the pot and lighting the fire, I don't need to worry about it anymore; I just need to add firewood occasionally.

Next, to stew the fish, first light the fire, put oil in the pot, and add Sichuan peppercorns and star anise. Coat the fish with flour, put it in the oil, and fry it until golden brown on both sides. Add soy sauce, vinegar, a little white wine, a little brown sugar, and water to cover the fish. After it boils, add salt. Then simmer over low heat.

That evening, Zhang Xingguo ate a large pot of braised fish and was so excited that he insisted on having some wine, which Zhang Hongmei didn't refuse. However, she only gave him one bowl, and that was it.

After finishing the meal and cleaning up, I took a carp and brought it to the old lady.

"Grandma, this is a gift from my brother Er Lengzi to you."

"You're both good kids. Hongmei, you can go to the water's edge if Erlengzi is with you, but if it's just the two of you girls, you can't go near the water's edge, do you hear me?"

"I know, Grandma. My brother Er Lengzi warned us and I'm listening to him."

"You little devil, I'm afraid you're too bold."