Chapter 31 Vivian's Cold Noodles, Vivian Returns
The harvest festival is about to be held, and this year's event is taking place in a small mountain village.
Before the festival, the three villages would jointly go hunting in the mountains to prepare for the sacrificial ceremony. In addition, the construction of the tunnel had almost emptied the coffers of several villages, so this hunt was bound to be a big one.
Barnett has already started thinking about candidates in the village, and young people like Ray are not even in the running.
The stone statue has been buried, the matter is over, and the tunnel can finally be used.
It was rare for the villagers from the three villages to get together, so when they met relatives or close friends, they would simply walk together to town to buy things. One oxcart and mule cart after another carried villagers from each village to town.
The only downside to this tunnel is that it's not wide enough. It only allows one-way traffic, so there are often long queues when there are many cars.
However, since only villagers from a few villages currently use this road, the aforementioned situation will not occur immediately.
After watching the commotion, Ray and Neil headed back. Lamb returned Luna to Farah and then went straight to Ray's house.
"Brother, the pine nuts and chestnuts on the mountain are ripe. When shall we go pick them together?"
Are there these things in the woods?
Lai was a little confused. The woods near the village were all broad-leaved forests. He had always thought that the climate here was more like the southern temperate climate and that there were no nut trees.
"Not in the woods, but on the mountain, the place you went with Rhys and the others last time."
Lamb explained.
Ray was somewhat disapproving.
"It's too far away, and there are magical beasts on the mountain. It's not safe for just a few people to go."
“We go with the hunting team, stay overnight at the foot of the mountain, and come back the next day. We only pick the fruit near the foot of the mountain, so there won’t be any problems.”
Lamb spoke eloquently, clearly having done his research beforehand.
"Where did you know that?"
“George’s uncle took him there, and he told me about it. Brother, let’s go! The pine nuts on the other side of the mountain are huge and fragrant, and there are so many chestnuts that they fall to the ground and nobody picks them up!”
Lamb gave an exaggerated description, as if he had already been there.
"Alright, go back and ask Uncle Hagrid and Aunt Linda. If they agree to let you go, I'll go with you."
"Okay! Brother, you can't go back on your word."
"Um."
It doesn't really matter whether Lei goes or not.
But pine nuts and chestnuts are a waste if nobody wants them, so it's better to keep them. Who knows, maybe there will be other good finds over there...
"Brother, can I bring one more person?"
"Okay, but the parents over there need to know too."
"Yes, definitely."
At noon, Lai made cold noodles and left Lamb at home to eat.
Now that everyone had plenty of food, and Lamb was craving Rye's cooking, he didn't refuse. He turned around, found an axe, and went to the yard to help Rye chop the pile of tree stumps into firewood of suitable thickness.
Their main principle is to never take advantage of others.
The fact that the Hagrids were able to raise such a son speaks volumes about their character.
Lai didn't hold back either, rolling out extra dough so that all three of them could have a full meal.
Prepare all the side dishes, such as shredded scallions, cucumber, and shredded meat, by chopping them into small pieces. After cooking the noodles, rinse them twice with cold water and mix them all together.
Various seasonings are added on top, and then hot oil is poured over it, immediately bringing out the aroma of chili and sesame, making it incredibly delicious.
Of course, refreshing pickled vegetables are a must.
Lai chopped up some chili peppers, cowpeas, radishes, and cabbage and placed them on the dining table.
"Dinner's ready."
Ray called out to the outside, and Lamb and Neil put down what they were doing and washed their hands in the basin of water drying in the yard.
The noodles were served, one large bowl in front of each person.
"There's more in the bowl if it's not enough, eat up!"
For a moment, the only sound at the dinner table was the sound of people eating noodles.
"Brother, your kimchi is really good. I was wondering why there was an extra side dish on the table at home. It turns out you made it. No wonder it tastes so good."
Lamb showered Rai with compliments, but it didn't move Rai. Neil, on the other hand, was quite pleased with himself.
"I'll give you some more if you finish what's in your bowl."
"Okay, thank you, brother."
Lamb happily ate another big bowl, and Neil also ate more than usual, which was unprecedented for him.
After dinner, the three of them digested their food indoors, while Rye watched Lamb and Neil play Connect Four. In the afternoon, Lamb and Rye finished chopping the remaining six logs before leaving Rye's house.
On the other side, Vivian looked at the tunnel in front of her, which seemed completely out of place and felt extremely unreal.
What exactly happened in the village during the three years she was away?
The sound of horses' hooves echoing through the tunnel on the stone road made a "clattering" sound.
The shape and structure of the tunnel support are rare even in Eaton City, and building such a mountain tunnel is no simple task.
All the brainstorming that arose from this doubt finally vanished the moment I entered the village.
The village is still the same village I remember, and the villagers are still the same familiar faces; nothing else has changed.
After entering the village, Vivian began to lead the horse, all the way back to that familiar building.
"Mom, I'm home!"
Linda rushed out as soon as she heard the noise and gave Vivian a big hug.
"Vivian, my daughter, you're finally back!"
Hagrid, Brian, Kelly, Luna, and all her family members who were still at home came to the yard to greet her. Vivian gave each of them a hug.
"Tie the horse up first."
Hagrid said. Brian tied the horse to the newly built shed and filled it with hay.
The family returned to the house, where a warm and lively atmosphere filled the air.
When Lamb got home, he sensed something was off. Little Luna wasn't playing in the yard, and smoke was rising from the roof of the house prematurely.
He entered the house in confusion and found a woman with red hair sitting in the living room.
"Lamb."
“Vivi…Vivi…”
Before he could even finish speaking, Linda slapped him across the face.
"Call me 'sister'."
"elder sister!"
Lamb rushed over and hugged Vivian.
"Little Lamb has grown so tall in just a few years! He can even lift his sister up now."
"My sister is still so beautiful."
Lamb and Vivian were more than ten years apart in age. Vivian had taken care of him when he was young, and the two had a very good relationship.
"Look what gift I brought you."
"good!"
Vivian's return caused a minor stir in the village.
She awakened an extremely high talent for fire magic at a very young age.
Linda couldn't bear to see her leave home at such a young age to live alone at the church school, so Hagrid shuttled between the small mountain village and Rosen town to take her to study magic.
Later, Victor and his wife moved here, and Vivian had grown up. Hagrid asked Mr. Victor to use his connections to send her to the free church magic school in Eton.
Finally, she entered the city lord's mansion's mage guard team with excellent grades.
Similarly, in return, she would also set aside time each year to teach magic at church.
Vivian was the most outstanding mage to emerge from the village, and the pride of the entire village. Even the mayor of Rosen Town treated her with great respect.
The day after she arrived home, a constant stream of people began visiting Hagrid's house. Some were villagers, others were strangers. She only had some free time in the evenings.
"Are Ray and Neil alright?"
Vivian asked Lamb.
"fine."
Lamb began to tell the story of what had happened to Ray and Neil.
Vivian felt a mix of heartache, frowning, and comfort.
"I'll go check on them; you don't need to come with me."
"good."
Afterwards, Vivian took a blue package to Ray's house.
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