"It's right there. Go and take a look and you'll know." Zhang Qiurui pointed to several wild boar cubs hiding under a big tree.
"Ah! Grandma, my aunt caught five wild boar cubs." Zhang Mingqi followed her aunt's finger and walked to the big tree to take a look. She immediately shouted in surprise and excitement.
Then she quickly covered her mouth and looked around. Seeing that there was no one else around, she put her hand down.
"What wild boar? Qiurui, did you catch a wild boar? What's going on?" Zhou Guihua stepped forward to take a look. When she saw that her little girl had really caught a few wild boars, an excited look appeared on her face. She lowered her voice and whispered in Zhang Qiurui's ear.
"When I was chasing pheasants before, I happened to see these five little wild boars in the bushes. I thought they were a sow with her little ones looking for food, so I was so scared that I climbed up a tree.
But after waiting for a while, I didn't see the big wild boar. Instead, I heard several gunshots nearby. I suspected that the large hunting team had lost the sow and the five little wild boars.
"My sister-in-law and I happened to find some taro, so I used it to lure the five little wild boars under a tree. Then I cast out my fishing net and caught all five in one go," Zhang Qiurui explained with a smug look on his face, a sly glint in his eyes.
"You are so brave, but you didn't meet anyone from other groups on the way, did you?" Zhou Guihua was very happy when she heard that her daughter was so lucky. She found more than 100 kilograms of meat after only half a day in the mountains. But then she started to worry about her safety.
Don't show off your wealth. If a large group of people see it, they won't say anything, but they will inevitably feel unbalanced for catching five wild boar cubs at once. They will take the opportunity to cause trouble. Although they are not afraid, they can't stand the disgust of others, which makes them feel uncomfortable.
"Mom, the bold will die of overeating and the timid will die of starvation. Don't worry, I'm always careful in doing things. I paid attention to my surroundings along the way and didn't run into other people. Moreover, I also covered myself up, so even if someone passed by, they might not notice me." Zhang Qiurui answered confidently.
"Let's go, carry them home on our backs." Zhou Guihua then carried the two little piglets in the basket on her back, and separated the little wild boars in the fishing net into two parts, with each person carrying one, and Zhang Mingqi carried two on his back.
"Second sister-in-law, are you feeling unwell again?" Although she caught five wild boars, her second sister-in-law did not show much joy on her face. Instead, her brows were furrowed and her face was a little pale. She could not help but ask with concern.
"It's okay, maybe I'm a little tired lately." Xie Lin forced a smile, but the fatigue in his eyes was hard to hide.
"Hey! Second brother's wife, you don't have to go up the mountain to work these days. Just cook and take care of the children at home! It's better for Minghua to go with us to work in the mountains than for you." Zhou Guihua, who was walking in front, frowned when she heard what Xie Lin said. She was a little unhappy about the health condition of the second brother's wife. Not only did she not give birth to a son, but she was also sick and unable to work. She also fell ill from time to time and spent money on treatment.
Xie Lin felt mixed emotions when she heard this. She knew that her mother-in-law disliked her a little, but relatively speaking, her mother-in-law was much more reasonable than other mothers-in-law. Others would either scold her, complain, or say something unbearable to the ears.
At least her mother-in-law was fair and consistent to her and her elder sister-in-law, only complaining occasionally. She also didn't arrange for her to go to the brigade to earn work points, but just let her stay at home to cook, take care of the children, and do some easy work.
This comforted Xie Lin somewhat. She knew how difficult it was for a daughter-in-law, especially one from the countryside, to gain full acceptance and love from her mother-in-law in those days.
Although her mother-in-law occasionally complained, she was extremely lucky compared to the harsh criticism and cold eyes that other daughters-in-law in the village suffered.
Although Zhou Guihua complained, she knew in her heart how difficult it was for Xie Lin. She sighed and softened her tone a little: "Your illness is also caused by not eating well."
"Second sister-in-law, what's wrong with you? Is it incurable?" In his original body's memory, Zhang Qiurui knew that his second sister-in-law's body gradually became weak after giving birth to his fourth niece Mingxia.
At that time, medical conditions were limited, and food was in short supply at home, so the child's nutrition was insufficient and he developed a chronic illness.
Although life has gradually improved over the years, my second sister-in-law's health has never fully recovered. She often feels weak, catches colds, has fever, and occasionally has a cough that doesn't stop.
As Zhang Qiurui spoke, he recalled the memories of his original body, and felt more sympathy and understanding for his second sister-in-law Xie Lin.
"The last time I went to the county health center for a check-up, they said it was caused by insufficient qi and blood, which means that the nutrition was not enough." Xie Lin shook his head slightly, a trace of helplessness and fatigue flashing in his eyes.
Zhang Qiurui knew that in this era of material scarcity, it was not easy to have enough food and clothing, let alone pursue balanced nutrition and nourish the body.
Because of the lack of medical care nowadays, many people who are sick mostly just go to see a barefoot doctor.
In many brigades, the people are very poor. They just endure minor illnesses and can only wait to die if they have serious illnesses. This situation is quite common.
Even if you go to the health center to see a doctor and get medicine, basically the antipyretics they give are ABC, and the standard tetracycline.
For example, people born in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s basically have tetracycline teeth.
"Second sister-in-law, don't be discouraged. Our family is much better off now than before. I will definitely find a way to nourish your body and keep you healthy." Zhang Qiurui's words were firm. In this era, health is a luxury for everyone, but she was unwilling to let her second sister-in-law give up hope.
Her second sister-in-law is only in her early thirties. If she doesn't take good care of herself while she is still young, her life span will be shortened and there is a high probability that she will die young in the future.
No wonder that in this day and age, the average life expectancy is around 40 or 50 years old.
They are making trouble because they have nothing to eat.
After walking for half an hour, they went down the mountain and went home, but did not meet any large group of people.
After returning home, he immediately asked Ming Ren to lock the door and moved the little wild cubs to the backyard.
"Mom, should we raise this wild boar cub?" Zhang Qiurui asked after returning home.
“I can’t raise it. Once it grows up, I’ll take it to the food station and price it. They’ll know it’s a wild boar at first glance, and it’ll be hard to explain.
So, I can only kill them and eat them myself." Zhou Guihua shook her head and looked at the five little wild boars with a look of pity on her face.
"Kill it now? Should we raise it first? Raise it over the winter and then kill it? It will have grown a lot of meat by then." Zhang Mingqi also felt it was a pity. She was reluctant to kill the wild boar when it could still grow meat.
"No, if we raise the wild boar until it's half grown and then slaughter it, it will definitely cause a big noise.
In addition, when processing wild boar and pork, the smell will spread out in the middle of winter. If people find out, it will be another troublesome thing.
We'll finish these five wild boar cubs today. We'll salt the excess meat and make bacon for later consumption." Zhou Guihua hesitated for a moment, then made a decisive decision.
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