Chapter 8: Braised Pork Knuckle During the Rainy Season, Selling Blueprints, The Case of the Missing Red Wild Bird...
After daybreak, the people from the three villages divided the game, said goodbye, and left.
Lai and the others sat on the edge of the mule cart, which was filled with two magical beasts and other prey, all covered with tarpaulins.
The dozen or so people chatted and laughed all the way back to the small mountain village.
They parked the car in the courtyard of the clan elder's house, where Kari, the leader of the hunt, distributed the prey on the spot.
Lai received a long-toothed beast, about twenty pounds of goo-goo meat for the two of them, and some fruit.
Monsters are valuable, so the village will send people to sell them directly to the town, and the money will be distributed.
Temuqi refused everything he was given, picked up the sixth-tier magical beast, and left.
No one stopped them, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
After the distribution was completed, everyone dispersed and went home.
Ray followed behind Brian and Reese, carrying a leather bag on his back.
Rhys seemed to notice Ray's curiosity and began to explain.
"Temuqi hunted that sixth-tier magical beast alone. Moreover, he only went along because the clan elder had promised him a magical beast beforehand."
"Was he a knight before?"
"No, no, Lai, you've been studying in the city for too long, you don't know the situation."
Rhys looked around, and only spoke softly when they reached a secluded spot.
"Temuki was half dwarf, and his father was said to be an excellent dwarf warrior."
"He is indeed very good with an axe, and his forging skills are also quite good."
Brian interrupted.
He was clearly also very interested in Temujin.
"He used to live in Eaton City, but then I don't know why he moved to our village."
Reese continued.
"Old Gug saw him in Eton."
Old Gug was the neighbor of the Leigh family, and his children all lived in Eaton.
"He does sound very impressive."
Lai Yi hadn't expected Temuji to have such an identity, so it wasn't surprising that he could handle Wolf Fang.
The three chatted about other things for a while before arriving at Hagrid's house.
Ray picked up Neil and took him home.
Hagrid was worried about Neil's safety and let him stay here temporarily.
"Brother, tell me about the hunting trip."
Neil looked at Ray with sparkling eyes and insisted on carrying Ray's leather bag up the mountain.
Leie adopted a laissez-faire approach, focusing on ensuring the children were well-fed and clothed, while ignoring all other trivial matters.
"Up in the mountain..."
When the two brothers returned home, Ray satisfied Neil's curiosity and answered all his questions.
In the afternoon, the sky became overcast, and soon a light drizzle began to fall.
After taking a bath, Lai sat under the eaves and washed the clothes he had worn while hunting.
From afar, you can see the elder's son, Kari, the leader of the hunt, walking towards his house in the light rain.
Kari gave Lai 20 silver coins and a small jar of sugar, declined Lai's invitation, and then hurried to the next family he was going hunting with.
Lai didn't expect that a seventh-tier magical beast would sell for nearly three gold coins.
Monsters are divided into eight levels. An eighth-level monster's combat power is equivalent to that of an ordinary lion. The lower the level, the stronger the monster.
Temuqi's ability to hunt a sixth-tier magical beast independently demonstrates his formidable strength.
Lai finished washing the clothes and put away the silver coins.
As the rain intensified, Lei decided to stay home and work out with Neil, researching food options.
When it came time to divide the meat, Ray didn't take the offal. Kari gave him a pork knuckle and a piece of front rib meat (from the back near the neck).
In the end, all that was left were four hooves, a Gulu beast head, and a large piece of Gulu beast hide.
Reese took half the animal hide, and Ray took the four hooves that nobody wanted.
If it weren't so obvious, Lai really would have liked to just take the beast head away.
Neil fetched the water and watched as Ray skewered the pork knuckle and four hooves one by one and roasted them over the fire.
"elder brother?"
Neil couldn't understand Ray's behavior at all.
Does his brother want to eat it?
Neil's pupils trembled.
In the village, hooves and the like are usually used to feed dogs. Has his family become that poor?
Lei watched Neil's changing expressions with amusement, but offered no explanation and continued to work on the hooves.
"Neil, go and boil ten bird eggs."
"You cooked so much? We can't finish it, bro."
"If you can finish it, then listen to me."
"good."
Neil obediently went to boil the bird eggs, while Lai used a knife to cut off the unwanted parts of the pork knuckle and trotters, washed them, and set them aside.
Next, the modified iron pot was brought out.
The iron pot was modified quickly, and the next day Temuqi had the village children notify Laiyi to pick it up.
Lai washed the meat several times with hot water, cut off a piece of fatty meat, and started cooking.
After boiling, set the pot aside to cool. By this time, the bird eggs will also be cooked.
He put the pork knuckle and chopped trotters into cold water, scallions, ginger, and wine and started boiling them. After an hour, he took them out and washed them with cold water.
Then, I set up the iron pot and scooped out a large spoonful of the oil that had been rendered last time.
After the oil was heated, a few more spoonfuls of sugar were added. Once the syrup turned golden brown, it was put back into the pot.
This step mainly involves caramelizing the sugar.
Neil watched with a pang of sympathy as Lai dug out the candy, but he didn't stop him.
You know, a jar of candy like this would be a presentable gift during the holidays.
With the caramelized sugar applied, the pork knuckle achieved a beautiful caramel color, and Lai Yi immediately added a large bowl of water.
After the water boils, add all the spices, cover the pot and leave it alone.
Perhaps because it was a cloudy day, it got dark very quickly, and the rain got heavier and heavier.
Ray found a waterproof, tattered piece of waxed cloth, and he and Neil braved the rain to add another layer of waterproofing to the doghouse. They also properly settled the family's red wildebeest.
The aroma of the braised pork knuckle in the pot grew increasingly rich, and the two men swallowed hard as they waited. They had already peeled the bird eggs and tossed them into the pot.
Ray used a fork to test if the pork knuckle was cooked. He didn't use much force, and the fork easily pierced the pork knuckle.
The pork hock was finally cooked through, and the trotters became very tender.
Lai put the pork knuckle, trotters, and bird eggs together in a large basin and served it on the table.
Neil waited obediently like a puppy as Ray used a clean dagger to cut the elbow.
Ray picked up a large piece of leg meat, soaked in broth, and gave it to Neil.
"Eat."
"Um!"
"Brother, is this really edible?"
Neil asked, pointing to the hoof.
"Try a piece."
Lai picked up a small piece of the tendon and gave it to him.
Neil took a small bite first, then a big bite.
The soft and chewy texture combined with the sweet and savory thick broth creates an explosion of flavor in your mouth.
"Brother, how do you know how to make so many delicious dishes?"
"I learned it from books."
Because of his magical talent, Ray had been attending a free magic school sponsored by the church in town before Victor and his wife died, so Neil didn't suspect anything.
He was just a child at the time, and because of his introverted personality, he didn't know that his brother could use magic; he only knew that his brother was studying in the city.
Eat more.
"Why."
The two buried themselves in the meat, and eventually simply started gnawing on the trotters with their hands, breaking open bread to dip in the braised meat sauce.
I enjoyed the meal very much.
"I wish I could eat braised pork every day."
Neil remarked.
"That day will come."
The two fed the leftover bones to the big yellow dog and cleaned up the scraps.
I quickly drifted off to sleep amidst the rumbling thunder and the pattering rain.
Ray rarely dreams of apocalyptic scenarios anymore.
His not-so-wealthy life kept him busy all the time.
Living off the land or water is a viable way to make a living.
However, this is not a safe world.
The eight races are often at odds, and the Eton Forest, which is right next to the small mountain village, is also rife with undercurrents.
Lay lacked both sufficient strength and any powerful backing. All he could do was strive to enhance his own abilities and accumulate more wealth.
He still has a lot to do, but fortunately, he has plenty of time.
The continuous thunderstorms signal the official arrival of the plum rain season, with rain falling intermittently, sometimes heavy and sometimes light.
The clothes that Lai washed hadn't dried after a week, and there was a faint damp smell. He washed them again, much to his dismay.
Neil went to school without fail, while Rye stayed home and cooked all sorts of food.
The red rockbirds at home are very helpful; they find three or four eggs every day.
Over this period of time, the two brothers still managed to save quite a bit despite eating every day.
Since they spoil easily if left for too long, Lai simply washed them clean, pickled them in a jar, and made them into salted bird eggs.
A few days later, Neil told him that Timur had asked him to fetch something.
Lai went to his house when it wasn't raining.
"Everything is here."
A gleaming steamer, steamer basket, and lid were laid out on the floor. However, each of them had two letters engraved on it.
“These are things you created, and they should be engraved with your initials.”
Temuqi said in a very serious tone.
Lei was somewhat embarrassed.
This is really unnecessary!
"Actually, I have a question for you."
Temuqi was somewhat shy.
"What's up?"
"Ray asked."
"Could you sell me the right to use the blueprints?"
"Use it freely, it's fine."
Lei answered decisively.
"No, no, my father once said that any blueprint should be obtained through legitimate means, and any creation must belong to its creator. I think your steamer will have a big market in the future, so I want to buy the right to use it."
Temujin rarely spoke so much in one go.
Lei was a little embarrassed.
Huh? This development is really unexpected.
Is this the legendary perk for transmigrators? But he really doesn't want to!
Ray's brain shut down.
"May I?"
"Can......"
Temuji solemnly signed the agreement with Laiyi.
He gave Lai a gold coin and agreed to pay him two silver coins for every hundred steamers sold in the future, and refused to accept the remaining payment for the steamers and scimitars.
What embarrasses Rai the most is that he will have Rai's initials engraved on every steamer made by Timur in the future.
It was quite unexpected and outrageous.
A magical world that has only recently entered the agricultural era is surprisingly concerned about copyright.
Regarding this matter, Lei said that it's not his real name anyway.
The one who should be ashamed is Ray!
Yes, Ray!
One gold coin is enough for him to buy a cow, which will make it easier for him to go to the city in the future.
Lai carried the steamer back home.
That day, I steamed a tray of flower-shaped steamed buns and two bowls of steamed egg custard.
Neil stared at the bright orange sponge cake, his mouth watering in his ignorance.
The rain was still falling, and the dirt road was muddy, making hunting impossible.
The Lai family has been out of meat for a long time, but they have no shortage of vegetables.
Watching the incessant rain, I started to feel irritable, and I just hoped the sun would shine soon.
Instead of sunshine, an uninvited guest arrived at the house.
The Red Wild Bird of the Lei family is missing!
Here's what happened.
Yesterday morning, Neil went to the nest to collect the eggs as usual. However, he didn't find a single egg, and one of the red rockbirds was gone!
He quickly called Lai over, and the two of them searched around but couldn't find it.
Neil had always treated these four red rockbirds like treasures, feeding them every single meal. This angered him to the point that tears streamed down his face.
Fearing that the remaining three would also be stolen, they even considered keeping them in his house.
To comfort the heartbroken Neil, Ray had no choice but to put some straw around the fireplace and create a space for them.
Neil then wiped away his tears and went to school.
As the rain subsided, Neil returned home from school with a somewhat somber expression.
"Brother, Helen and Charlie's red rockbirds are also missing, and the dried fish that Helen's family is drying has also been stolen."
"The red wildebeest that Uncle Hagrid kept were the most damaged, and Luna cried so hard."
Ray suspected that a small carnivorous animal had escaped from the forest, and its behavior of specifically stealing red rockbirds reminded him of a weasel.
"elder brother!"
Lamb strode in aggressively.
"I'm so angry! All my pet red-billed ravens are gone!"
"Tell me in detail."
Ray asked him to sit down and poured him a glass of hot water.
"This morning, when my second sister-in-law was feeding the birds, she found that there were only three dead birds left in the nest. The rest were gone, and there was blood in the nest."
"I'm going to catch this bastard!"
Lamb grew angrier and angrier, and uttered a curse word.
"Brother, how's yours?"
"One is gone, but the rest are here."
Ray gestured for him to look at the fireplace.
"Brother, what did you say you did?"
"have no idea."
"It must be a wild animal."
Neil sighed and replied, resting his hands on his cheeks.
“I also suspect it’s a wild animal. Every family in the village keeps a few red rockbirds to lay eggs for us to eat. What are we going to do?”
"Brother, come with me to investigate tonight."
Lamb finally explained his purpose and looked at him expectantly.
Neil also had an expectant look in his eyes.
"All right."
Lei agreed.
We'll act tonight.
A note from the author:
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The planned mini-drama scene will be moved to the next chapter. Shh, posting it here would be a spoiler.
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