The Li family rushed to the cave entrance and lifted the curtain.
Sure enough, not far away, Li Laosi and Liu Biaotou, along with Liu Yangjiayi, had already emerged from the woods.
The four men rolled around like snowmen, pulling two sleds that were full of stuff, clearly indicating that they had caught a big game.
The villagers in each cave jumped down like dumplings being dropped into a pot.
The children were also shouting and clamoring to go down and see what was going on.
Jiaxi and Jia'an were so angry they almost stomped the cave down, but Old Lady Li pulled them away, put a hat on each of their mouths, and then let them go down.
Jiayin was also very anxious, stretching out her little hand and shouting, "Grandma, I want some too! I want some too!"
Grandma Li quickly searched for a carrying basket. By the time she and her grandson got off the sled, the villagers had already surrounded it in layers.
"You're finally back. If you hadn't come back, the third brother would have brought people to look for you."
"Yes, I went there, but I ran into Mr. Wen and the others, so I came back."
"Who is Mr. Wen? Is he an outsider visiting the village?"
"Yes, they're here. Doctor Zhang knows them; they're not bad people."
"Fourth brother, did you guys raid a wild boar's den? You actually killed three, and they're so fat!"
The villagers were as excited as if it were Chinese New Year; the atmosphere was as lively as a boiling pot of soup.
They were talking to Li Laosi, one after another, chattering away so loudly it was confusing to listen to.
But Li Laosi and Liu Biaotou and others quickly learned about the changes in their home.
Seeing Old Lady Li carrying her child forward, Li Laosi stepped forward to greet his mother, kissed his daughter, and said with a smile, "Mother, we hunted three wild boars, enough to eat for the whole winter."
"It's good that you're back. The stuff isn't important. You said you'd be back in four or five days, but you've been gone for almost ten days! The whole family has been worried sick and hasn't been able to eat or sleep well. Don't go out again next time."
While complaining about her son, Old Lady Li didn't forget to pinch his arms and legs, afraid he might get hurt.
Finally, he pulled Jiayi over and looked him up and down again.
Jiayi beamed with pride as he showed off to his grandmother.
"Grandma, I tripped over a wild boar and slit its throat, and my master even praised me!"
"Silly boy, that's too dangerous. You can't do that again. Go and warm yourself up. I'll have your fourth aunt cook you something delicious tonight."
"Hey!" Jiayi kissed his sister and ran to find some hot water to drink.
Everything was great on the road; you could roast chicken or rabbit when you were hungry, but getting water wasn't easy.
Soon, everyone helped unload everything from the sled.
Twelve pheasants, seven or eight rabbits, a roe deer, and three wild boars—what a bountiful harvest!
The village chief puffed on his pipe twice and looked at Li Laosi and Liu Biaotou.
“We have a guest in the village, and he’s sick. The third and fourth sons’ wives are helping to take care of him. We’ll keep a few pheasants to make soup for the sick person, and the rabbit meat is tender, so we’ll share it with families with young children. As for the wild boar, we’ll stew half of it tonight for everyone to enjoy, and the other half can be divided among the families for everyday meals. The remaining two can be one for each of you. What do you think?”
"Okay, we'll listen to Uncle." Neither Liu the镖头 nor Li Laosi had any objections.
We've all worked hard together to get to where we are today; we're a unified whole.
These prey were hunted and brought back with great difficulty, but they couldn't keep them all to themselves.
In this way, everyone benefited, and they kept most of the money for their families, which was the best.
From then on, whenever the villagers hunted, they would naturally get a share.
And so the matter was settled. The villagers, young and old, all dressed like round balls, happily got to work.
The elderly people shovel snow to expand the open space and make it easier to work.
The children joined in the mischief, both frightened and unable to resist peeking at the men slaughtering and skinning pigs.
The women were busy fetching and boiling water. The stoves that had been built earlier came in handy again. The iron pots from each household were taken down and put back here, and soon they could stew meat.
There was nowhere to find cabbage or radishes at this time, but luckily we had picked a lot of wild vegetables on the way and dried them thoroughly.
Soak it in water, wash it clean, and it's good for stewing pork.
In less than an hour, the mountain stream was filled with steam and a fragrant aroma.
Uncle Zhao was worried that wild animals might come, so he arranged for some of the boys to keep watch.
The boys were delighted to be entrusted with such an important task. They carried their machetes and walked around, each holding their heads high and looking extremely proud.
Mr. Wen and his three companions were inside the cave, listening to the lively sounds below, and their hearts were also filled with excitement.
They had been in the mountains for five or six days, but this was the first time they had seen so many people. They felt a sense of wonder and joy at returning to the human world.
Mr. Wen then asked, "Sister-in-law Qiong, has Madam's fever subsided?"
Before the cold-faced Sister-in-law Qiong could respond, the beautiful woman who had been keeping her eyes closed spoke up.
"Senior brother, I'm fine now, it's not hot anymore. Go down and see them, and thank these people properly for me. In the future... I will definitely repay you and these villagers."
"Junior sister, don't say that." Mr. Wen also changed his form of address and lowered his voice to advise, "Things have already come to this, you should relax and take care of your health."
Madam Cui shook her head. "Senior brother, I was too cowardly before, which is why I was humiliated like that. I won't do it again. Don't try to persuade me; I know what I'm doing. It's just that you risked your life to turn back and save me, I..."
“No, junior sister, there’s no need for such formalities between us. I’ll go down and take a look first, you rest!” Mr. Wen seemed afraid that she might say something, so he quickly stopped her and then called to his attendant, “Wen Hai, come down with me.”
The attendant quickly went down the rattan ladder and stood below to catch Mr. Wen in case he fell.
When the master and servant arrived at the open space, the villagers greeted them warmly.
"Mr. Wen is here! We'll be able to eat pork soon!"
Mr. Wen smiled and nodded his thanks. The village chief then invited him forward and introduced him to Li Laosi and Liu Biaotou.
“These are our village’s two guardian deities. They went out to scout ahead and just came back.”
Li Laosi had just heard his mother mention that the family wanted Mr. Wen to tutor his nephew, so he was very polite, bowed first, and then started chatting with Mr. Wen.
They accidentally strayed a little off course, crossed three mountains, but didn't see any signs of life. Worried about their families, they hurried back.
Unexpectedly, before the family members even stepped out, they were greeted by Mr. Wen and his party.
A bonfire was lit in the thatched hut, and some people brought earthenware bowls and poured hot water.
The villagers who had no work to do all gathered around to listen to Li Laosi and Mr. Wen talking.
Mr. Wen sighed as he recalled the chaos outside.
"The outside world is in complete chaos. Half a month ago, the barbarians attacked Kyoto and then marched south. We left Kyoto a little late and were almost caught by the barbarians. We had no choice but to enter the forest."
"How many barbarian cavalry do they have? Have all the people in the capital and along the way fled?" Chief镖头 Liu pressed.
Mr. Wen's face paled further as he replied, "I don't know how many barbarians there are, but the sound of horses' hooves can be heard everywhere. It must be an attack by the entire tribe. Because the relocation of the capital was too sudden and the road was fraught with danger, many people did not have time to migrate south. Some were slaughtered by the barbarians, and others were captured by them."
He took a sip of hot water in frustration and couldn't help but curse, "Those good-for-nothings in the court, they squeeze the people's blood and sweat to support themselves, but when they need to protect the people, they run away faster than anyone else."
The village chief's face darkened upon hearing this, and he cursed, "Even the emperor has fled; who can we rely on?"
Everyone was still shaken. "Luckily we left early and went straight into the mountains, otherwise we'd be dead by now..."
"We originally thought we were suffering enough, but compared to those outside, we're actually doing quite well."
"What about when spring comes? We need to go out eventually."
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