In the afternoon, He Ruixue came to the funeral home and found that Jiang Yanxu brought more things than her. He was carrying two bags in his hands and a sack on his back.

It doesn't feel like we're going to play in the mountains, it feels more like we're going to escape.

The two of them got on the bus and waited on the main road for a long time before finally seeing a fellow villager driving a bullock cart. They approached him, talked to him for a while, and gave him a few cents before getting on the bus.

After walking around a lot, they arrived at the foot of the mountain. Before He Ruixue could catch her breath, they had to start climbing.

She threw all her bags to Jiang Yanxu, but she was still exhausted. She sat on a tree stump halfway and wiped her sweat with a handkerchief. "Wait a minute, let's rest for a while before going up the mountain."

Jiang Yanxu glanced at the sky and said, "The sun will soon set. When it gets dark, the road will be even harder to walk on. Come, hold my hand and I'll take you up."

She stretched out her hand helplessly, but it was held by a larger hand, and she stood up with his strength.

The two continued to climb up, one in front and the other behind. After passing through several woods, they saw a winding stone staircase going up.

Going up the stairs, several houses appeared in front of us.

There are three rooms in the house. The one in the middle can be seen as a Taoist temple, where a statue of the ancestor is enshrined. Below it are an altar, incense burner and cushions, all covered with a layer of dust.

On the left is the bedroom. The mountain air is damp, and the stone house is strong but not moisture-proof. A circle of moss has grown at the base of the wall.

There is a big kang right opposite the door, and you can sleep on it by just clearing the fire.

The room on the right was the kitchen built later, with only the water tank and stove remaining.

Jiang Yanxu took the iron pot and kitchen knife out of the sack and placed them on the stove. He then went around to pick up some dead pine branches as firewood and fumigated the stove and kang to remove the musty smell.

A small stream flows behind the house, with clumps of bamboo growing beside the stream. Further back is a steep cliff, as if someone had split the mountain in half, forming a natural barrier.

It is a place that is easy to defend but difficult to attack.

Jiang Yanxu worked efficiently. He picked up bamboo leaves and made a simple broom. He first swept the kang inside and out, and then cleared away the dust and dirt in the room.

Then he took out a rag and wiped the doors, windows, tables and stoves, even the incense burner. After wiping, he respectfully lit three incense sticks inside again.

He brought a thin quilt, mattress, sheets and quilt cover, which made He Ruixue, who had thought there would be two rooms, look very stupid. However, the sheets she brought came in handy. The kang was very big and only one sheet was not enough to cover the whole bed.

After the bed was made, Jiang Yanxu told He Ruixue to sit down and rest for a while, then ran outside to cut a bamboo, split it vertically into long thin strips, and used the bamboo pole as the frame to quickly weave a simple bamboo basket, which he placed on the head of the kang.

"Put your bag in there. It'll be there for now. When I have some free time, I'll make you a bamboo box."

"Okay, come over and rest for a while too. It's still early. We're here for a vacation, so there's no need to rush."

"I'm not tired. I used to run up and down the mountain every day for exercise. This is nothing."

He planned to cook before it got dark.

He went to the kitchen and steamed the rice he brought with him, then took out the seasonings and arranged them one by one. Then he hurried to the back mountain to look for and picked a handful of wild vegetables.

When he came back, he happened to see a gray figure rushing out of the bamboo forest. He reached forward quickly and saw a fat bamboo rat struggling in his hands.

Jiang Yanxu lifted it up by the tail and weighed it. It weighed about four pounds. "Not bad, an unexpected catch."

He ate this thing a lot when he was a child. He took a knife to the river to process it and peeled off the skin in a few strokes.

Set the giblets aside and bring back to the kitchen to chop into small pieces.

First, add ginger and garlic and stir-fry with lard, then add water to cover the meat, add a small spoonful of salt. If the pot is not big enough, use a ceramic pot and simmer slowly on a small stove.

During this period, he was not idle. He used the remaining materials from weaving bamboo baskets to make a fish trap. The basket was cylindrical with an inverted conical opening on the top to ensure that the fish could only go in but not out.

He put the innards of bamboo rats into the fish basket as bait and found a place with lush aquatic plants and slow water flow to set up the fish basket.

The rice was almost cooked at this time. He poured out the water, continued to steam it in the big pot, and turned to pick vegetables.

He Ruixue was watching from the side, sitting there without moving, and kept praising him, "It smells so good." "You are so capable." "Is there anything you can't do?"

Maximize his emotional value!

Jiang Yanxu had no intention of asking her for help, but he just couldn't stand her leisurely look, so he took the time to come over and wipe the soot off her face, then smiled as he watched her run to the water to wash her face.

By the time the meal was ready and served, the night had completely driven away the light. A candle was burning on the table, and the two of them ate by candlelight.

Bamboo rats are tender and not tough, with delicate texture. They are chewier than bullfrogs, but not as tough as rabbit meat. They have a light bamboo fragrance and are not fishy. They are delicious without any extra seasoning.

The meat skin is soft, chewy and can be easily removed from the bones with just a bite. It is a very unique taste for He Ruixue.

She had eaten several bamboo rats in her previous life, but none of them were as authentic as those freshly caught from the bamboo forest.

He took several pieces in a row and said, "This is delicious."

Seeing that she really liked it, Jiang Yanxu was also happy, "My taste used to be the same as yours. I didn't like pheasants and rabbits, but I loved bamboo rats. I almost ate all the ones nearby.

They've learned to be smart and hide when they see me, so they've become harder to catch. This time, maybe because I haven't been here for a long time, this stupid one forgot its lesson and dared to move around outside again."

If we don’t catch it, who else should we catch?

He Ruixue turned to pick up the wild vegetables next to her, including amaranth, shepherd's purse, chrysanthemum... a hodgepodge.

But Jiang Yanxu's cooking skills are good. The fire is strong and the stir-fried vegetables are green and not watery. They are tender and crispy in the mouth.

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