Chapter 176 Discovering New Fruit
He had only been learning for a short time when he had piled up firewood taller than a person onto the cart.
Taozi pulled the cart home, while Brother Liu was still chopping firewood in the mountains.
"Girl, you should go back with Taozi."
Brother Liu had been reluctant to let me work with them, but a thought flashed through my mind, and I replied loudly, "Okay, then Taozi and I will go first. There are wolves on this mountain, so be careful, Brother Liu."
Upon hearing this, Brother Liu's eyes widened considerably.
He didn't even need to ask me if it was true or not; he knew it was true, since wolves often stayed at my house.
I laughed and left all four dogs on the mountain, then followed Taozi home.
Taozi unloaded the firewood and piled it on top of the previous woodpile. I ran to the side room and found three willow baskets.
Since they don't need me to chop wood, I'll just pick some mushrooms while they do.
After unloading a cartload of firewood, we returned to the mountain. Brother Liu breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Taozi and me come back.
"I'm finally back. I don't even dare to bend over, for fear that a wolf might jump on me from behind."
Seeing how scared Brother Liu was, I couldn't help but laugh: "Hahaha, didn't you leave the four dogs on the mountain? They're familiar with the wolf pack, they won't let the wolves eat you."
"Oh, you didn't even tell me you were leaving."
Brother Liu laughed when he heard that the dog could help him.
I walked through the woods carrying a willow basket, brushing aside the floating leaves on the surface, and found quite a few poplar mushrooms.
The poplar mushrooms this year are the same size as last year, and they look incredibly delicious, just like the "delicious Chinese mushrooms" in short videos.
By nightfall, I had filled three willow baskets, and I had also carried firewood home three times.
When the last load of firewood was piled on the woodpile, the woodpile was already very tall, almost taller than the wall.
This firewood should last me for at least two years.
In the evening, I made braised pork with vermicelli, stir-fried cured pork with green peppers, and steamed three large eggplants for a cold salad.
The food tastes better when there are many people eating together, and the group almost finished all the dishes.
The next morning, after a final check on Brother Gao's wound, it was found that it was much better than the day he arrived. All the redness and swelling had subsided, and the wound was healing towards the center.
As everyone packed up to leave, they reminded Sister-in-law Gao again how to take each packet of medicine and what precautions to take.
After everyone expressed their gratitude and left, my little courtyard finally returned to peace.
Looking at the sturdy chicken coop that had been built, the stack of firewood that was as high as a wall, and the clean yard, I felt extremely satisfied.
These are all results I achieved with minimal effort. If I were to do them all by myself, it would definitely take me half a month.
Take the blankets of the four people inside the house out to air them in the yard, spray them with alcohol, and then spray them with disinfectant.
Perhaps because I've been living alone for so long, I suddenly feel a bit uncomfortable with others touching my bedding. I feel more at ease disinfecting and drying everything.
I won't use these four blankets anymore; I'll just fold them up and save them for when guests come to stay next time.
Back inside, everything was clean and tidy. Except for the four dogs, which hadn't been washed, the rest of the house was spotless. Sister-in-law Gao was really kind of her.
Lying on the sofa, enjoying the long-awaited space all to myself, I decided to do nothing but rest today.
After a day of lying down, I have to get back to working on my own.
Only after everyone left did I remember that I hadn't picked the apples and pears on the mountain, so I put on long sleeves and pulled a cart and a box to go up the mountain to pick pears.
The apples with no bruises or scratches were picked, and the ones that looked good were placed in boxes and stored directly in the basement to be eaten slowly.
Those that are slightly damaged on the outside are washed clean, sliced, and placed in baskets in the yard to dry.
After harvesting the apples and pears, we also need to store some of the crabapples that cover the hillsides.
Crabapples also come in different varieties, with the heart-shaped variety being the most delicious. Pick some of the best-looking heart-shaped crabapples, fill a whole box, and store them in the basement.
I originally planned to dry some crabapples like last year, but I was too lazy to slice them, so this year I'm going to dry the whole fruit.
Wash the crabapples thoroughly, steam them in a steamer, and then dry them directly in the yard. Once dried, they become whole, round dried fruits that taste even better than crabapple slices.
The fruit harvest on the mountain is almost over, the weather is getting colder, the leaves on the trees are starting to turn yellow, and another autumn is upon us.
Following my memory, I walked to the wildflower patch from last year and collected all the red petals.
The courtyard was covered with flower petals, and roses and jasmine flowers planted under the window were dug out with shovels.
The roses and jasmine were grown from seeds, and this year they only sprouted seedlings and haven't started blooming yet.
The weather in the north is too cold; flowers will freeze to death if left outside. Digging them up and planting them in pots, then keeping them indoors in a warm place, will allow them to safely survive the entire cold winter.
I didn't notice when I planted them, but I found them when I dug them up. There were 12 big flowers in total.
After transplanting, several pots of flowers were placed in the entryway, the east room, and the breeding room to fill all the spaces.
Once the flower petals dried in the yard are collected, you can buy them all over the mountains for free.
I prefer picking fruits that grow freely in the mountains rather than growing and harvesting my own vegetables.
It not only has a natural flavor, but more importantly, it allows me to experience the joy of getting something for free.
Carrying the two largest baskets, we first went to the back hill to pick hazelnuts. After picking all the hazelnuts, the two baskets were full.
After arriving home, I dumped the hazelnuts into the box with a clatter, ate a quick lunch, and then, carrying a basket and a few dogs, headed towards the back of the mountain.
The back mountain seems very mysterious; apart from the hazelnut area, the rest of the area has not been explored.
Last year's autumn harvest was slow, and not long after we talked about hazelnuts and mushrooms, winter came. This year it came a little earlier, and I finally had some free time to explore further afield.
The hillside where we picked hazelnuts was quite steep. We carefully walked through the hazelnut grove and entered a tall pine forest.
The dense pine needles blocked out the light from above, making the woods somewhat dim, and I couldn't help but feel a chill down my spine.
I had to shout the names of several dogs to get them to come to me before I felt a little more at ease.
After walking for more than 20 minutes, there was still no end in sight. Apart from some moldy pine mushrooms, there was nothing else in the field.
I decided to change direction and head towards the mountaintop.
I could vaguely see some light ahead, so it seemed there was an open space or another grove of trees in front of me.
quickened my pace toward the light, and before I even got there I could see that the lower trees in the light were covered with red fruit.
A surge of excitement welled up inside me. Although I couldn't guess what kind of fruit it was, I just prayed it wasn't a sand pear.
Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be hawthorn!
Yes, many people have a hawthorn tree in their yard. Why didn't I think of hawthorn?
The hawthorn trees here are not tall, and their leaves are sparse, but they are full of fruit.
It was worth the long journey; I'm so glad I harvested so many hawthorns.
I finally have one more fruit to my collection, and hawthorn can also be used as a medicine or spice.
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