Chapter 151 Two-in-one (including nutrient solution plus more) Three conspicuous bags +...
How to say it, at this moment Lin Shu really wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
Although she likes to tease honest people and see them blush and bewildered, and she also likes to express her emotions boldly, but... this definitely does not include doing these things in front of a child.
Asking is shameful.
The question is, what is wrong with the flowers of the motherland?
She was confused just now, thinking only of the new wild duck, and accidentally forgot about Xiao Pu.
When people are emotionally agitated, it is easy to make mistakes, just like she is now.
However, there was no crack in the ground for Lin Shu to hide in. She could only rely on her thick skin and jumped off Zhou Ye as if nothing had happened. She smiled at the stunned Lin Xiaopu, "Xiaopu is also very capable. If you hadn't shot the duck's wing first, Ah Ye would not have been able to hit it just now. So this duck is yours together. This duck hunting contest, the two of you are tied."
Lin Xiaopu thought to herself: My sister is really amazing. She was being affectionate with Brother Aye in front of her, and she remained calm after being seen by her. She even pretended nothing happened!
She was deeply shocked. Her sister must have been so happy that she forgot she was there, but—
Is Sister actually so passionate in front of Brother Aye in private?!
But whenever her elder sister mentioned Brother A Ye in front of her, she was always very reserved, as if she would never let Brother A Ye take advantage of her easily.
But...in private, it was actually the opposite?
But whatever her sister does is right, and she is actually a little envious of her brother Aye.
Brother Aye is so happy!
If she were a man, she would be so happy to have a beauty like Ajie throw herself into her arms and kiss her actively with her little lips pouting!
Zhou Ye did feel sweet in his heart, but this scene was seen by Lin Xiaopu. Although it was sweet, it was still a bit embarrassing.
Ah Shu's movements just now were so fast that even he didn't expect her to jump on him, so naturally he couldn't remind Ah Shu in time.
"This wild duck is considered to be hunted by you." Zhou Ye said to Lin Xiaopu, and actually followed Lin Shu to change the subject.
Seeing this, Lin Xiaopu quickly put away his inexperienced look and said, "Brother Aye, just listen to my sister. This wild duck will be hunted by you and me together."
The incident just now was just covered like that.
Regardless of Lin Xiaopu's other advantages, there is no doubt that he has good judgment.
At the beginning, when Lin Shu hadn't exchanged glances with Zhou Ye and was just looking at Zhou Ye's figure with admiration, the little guy knew to create an opportunity for Lin Shu and Zhou Ye to be alone.
At the moment, she is naturally a sensible and good sister. She understands everything in her heart, but never asks any more questions.
"Are you still hunting wild ducks?" Lin Shu asked, looking up at the sun in the sky, unable to open her eyes because of the glare.
Time passed quickly and it was already noon. They had been hunting wild ducks here for the whole morning.
Lin Xiaopu thought about it and said decisively: "No more hunting, let's go back."
Lin Shu looked at her with some surprise. Based on Xiao Pu's previous enthusiasm, she thought she would stay until dark before going back.
Lin Xiaopu coughed lightly and explained, "Sister, I want to eat ice jelly. Let's go back and make some."
Lin Shu nodded, she wanted to eat too.
Although they had brought water with them, drinking water was no match for the ice jelly chilled with mountain spring water. However, she guessed that Xiao Pu hadn't gone back just for the ice jelly, but rather to show off the wild duck she had hunted.
Humph, doesn’t she know that kids of this age love to show off?
There weren't many villagers out for a stroll at noon, but even if only one or two saw it, given how gossipy the villagers were, it would surely spread throughout the village in no time.
On the way back, the three of them picked a large wild taro leaf and each of them held one on their head to block the sun.
Zhou Ye didn't want to push the leaf. He was used to the sun and wind, and the sun wouldn't crack his skin. Unlike Ah Shu, whose skin was delicate and would crack and peel if exposed to too much sun. But Ah Shu insisted that he push one too, so he did.
As for the three wild ducks, Zhou Ye tied the ducks' feet with straw ropes and held them upside down in his hands. Zhou Ye held two of them, and Lin Xiaopu held the one he had hunted first.
The three of them carried the wild ducks and swaggered back to Tianshui Village, looking like three conspicuous bags.
The villagers of Tianshui Village who were either splashing water in front of their doors or enjoying the cool air under the trees were all very surprised when they saw the wild ducks in the hands of several people, and they all stared at the wild ducks.
Wild duck?!
Still three wild ducks!
"Aye boy, where did you get these wild ducks?" an aunt asked curiously.
Zhou Ye replied, "Aunt, Xiao Pu and I went hunting on the other side of the river."
"Oh my god, you really hunted them all by yourselves! Did you hunt all three? What did you use? I didn't even see what you brought with you."
It's no wonder the aunt was surprised and curious. No one in the village had ever hunted wild ducks. Even the hunters in other villages who made a living by hunting rarely hunted wild ducks. They mostly hunted pheasants and rabbits, which ran on the ground. Those that flew in the sky were extremely difficult to hunt.
I don’t know what this wild duck tastes like, and how it differs from the domestic ducks they raise.
Zhou Ye replied concisely: "I hunted them with a homemade bamboo slingshot. There were two small ones among them."
When this was said, the village woman who asked the question dropped her jaw in shock. "What? Did little Pu hunt it?"
Lin Xiaopu blushed as she explained, "One of the three was hunted by me, the one I'm holding in my hand, and the other one was hunted by me and Brother Aye together."
Village woman:!!
That's not the point. The point is that a nine-year-old girl like Lin Xiaopu could actually hunt wild ducks by herself?!
They were not shocked when Zhou Ye hunted wild ducks. After all, this young man has always been capable. But Lin Xiaopu?
Not only was the aunt shocked, but the villagers who asked questions later were also amazed.
It was surprising enough that wild ducks could be hunted with a bamboo slingshot, but I didn’t expect that one of these three wild ducks was hunted by a female hunter from Lin Laoer’s family!
When the three of them returned to the courtyard, Lin Zhaodi, Li Chunmiao, and even He Guixiang, their biological mother, all had the same reaction after learning about this.
The three of them actually hunted wild ducks, and one of them was hunted by Lin Xiaopu??!!
"Oh my God, Xiao Pu, did you really hunt that thing in your hand? Did you use that bamboo slingshot?" Li Chunmiao asked with his eyes wide open.
Her son Yin Gen also fiddles with the bamboo slingshot every day, so why doesn’t he have the ability to do this?
Although many families in Tianshui Village raise ducks, and ducks are cheaper than chickens at the market, this is a wild duck, a rare creature. If you sell it at the market, fifty or sixty coins is not enough, and you may even get a hundred coins!
Thinking of this, Li Chunmiao felt that Lin Xiaopu was an amazing girl. When he compared her with the troublemaker in his own family, he felt even more disgusted with her.
Just as she was muttering this, her husband Wang Yingen came running in with a group of little kids, making a lot of noise. Before they even entered the courtyard, they shouted, "Lin Xiaopu! Lin Xiaopu, I heard you hunted wild ducks. Is that true?!"
In shock, he even forgot to call Sister Xiaopu and directly called Lin Xiaopu's name.
Wang Yingen was well-informed and rushed over as soon as he got the news.
He was not the only one who was shocked. The group of kids who usually played with him were also stunned.
When a group of little kids saw the three wild ducks lying in the yard with their own eyes, they all excitedly surrounded them and stared at them.
What a wild duck!
Lin Xiaopu crossed his arms, held his head high, and said, "Don't doubt it. The wild duck with a bloody hole in its head from a stone was hunted by me. I used the bamboo slingshot we play with every day."
"Oh my god, Sister Pu, you are so amazing!"
"Sister Xiao Pu, can you teach me? I also want to hunt wild ducks!"
"This wild duck must be delicious when stewed. I've never eaten wild duck before..."
"I don't even have a bamboo slingshot. When are you going to give me one, Sister Pu? I've been doing really well lately!"
"Sister Xiao Pu, I will listen to you from now on. Can you give me a bamboo slingshot tomorrow?!"
“…”
Lin Xiaopu can now deal with this group of kids with ease. She won't promise anything that she shouldn't, but she treats the things she can decide on her own as the carrot hanging in front of the donkey. As long as Wang Yingen and his group of kids listen to her, they will get her reward.
"Don't you know how busy my brother A-ye is? He doesn't have the time to make so many bamboo slingshots. So, didn't I tell you that you should compete in bamboo slingshots every day? After half a month, I will give a bamboo slingshot to the one with the best performance. After another half a month, the second best performance will also get a bamboo slingshot. If you keep going like this, even the one with the worst aim among you will be able to get a bamboo slingshot, but it will take a long time. If you don't want to get it so late, then you have to work hard on your own."
In the past, Lin Xiaopu only said that he would give away bamboo slingshots if they performed well, but he did not give such an exact time. This was equivalent to giving those who did not have bamboo slingshots a reassurance.
If it weren't for the wild duck today, they would definitely be happy. Isn't it just a matter of waiting?
But after seeing the wild duck today, they were no longer willing to wait. They all wanted to get their bamboo slingshots and go hunt the wild ducks. Just like Wang Yingen, he was already thinking about hunting a wild duck for everyone to see.
Although they were eager to get the bamboo slingshot, no one made a fuss. They had already figured out Lin Xiaopu's temper. The more they made a fuss, the less people would like to see them, so they had no choice but to listen to her.
Seeing the greedy expressions on the faces of the others, Lin Xiaopu suddenly waved his hand and said, "There are three wild ducks. I can't decide on the other two, but I can decide on this one I hunted. Tomorrow, when my sister cooks the wild ducks, I'll leave a piece of duck meat for each of you. It's my treat!"
Wang Yingen and his companions did not expect such a good thing to happen, and they all cheered.
Sister Xiao Pu is so generous. This is duck meat, it’s meat!
Even those who raised ducks at home only had them during festivals. How could they get them on weekdays?! They never expected that just by following Sister Xiao Pu, they could actually eat duck meat, and wild duck meat at that!
When they meet kids from the neighboring village in the future, they can brag about this!
After hearing this, Lin Zhaodi immediately looked at Lin Shu and asked, "Ah Shu, are you really going to cook this wild duck tomorrow morning?"
"Eat it! Xiao Pu promised it himself. Anyone who sees the duck gets a share."
Lin Zhaodi's expression showed some disapproval. This was duck meat, a delicacy that was not always available during festivals. Now she had to cook it and share it with so many people?
Lin Shu smiled and said, "Aunt Lin, think about it this way. These ducks weren't bought. They were hunted by Aye and Xiaopu. They were already dead when they were hunted, and we can't let them go. If we don't eat them, they'll go bad. And there are three of them in total. This amount of duck meat is more than enough for everyone to share."
"That being said, this..." Now that she and Zhao San were building a house, she felt bad about using the stove and firewood from He Saozi's house. How could she cook the wild duck they hunted and treat others to a meal?
"Ashu, why don't you just cook and eat them yourself? They're just three wild ducks. They're small, and Ashu can eat them. How come you can't finish them?"
"How about this, Aunt Lin? I'll give you one, and this one will be considered as the one you bought from me. When the time comes to cook the three ducks together, I'll put one on a plate, and you can divide this one up when the time comes. I'll give the rest to Aye."
Lin Zhaodi reluctantly agreed after hearing this, but she knew that if the three ducks were cooked together, Ah Shu would definitely serve her a large plate, and she would get the better deal in the end.
If you want to cook the duck tomorrow, you can prepare the wild duck now.
Without saying a word, He Guixiang lit a fire in the big stove and boiled water in an iron pot.
Seeing Wang Yingen still squatting there watching the ducks, Li Chunmiao was reluctant to leave and could not help but scold him with a smile, "You little bastard, what are you doing here?"
She had heard everything Lin Xiaopu had just said. This girl was so generous that she actually wanted to share the duck meat with these naughty kids. Her son had done nothing, yet he got a piece of meat for free. As a mother, she was naturally happy.
"Sister He, Zhaodi, do you still need me here? If not, I'll go back first." Li Chunmiao asked. In the meantime, he took Wang Yingen, the disappointing one, back with him.
He Guixiang immediately glanced at Lin Shu, who was slightly startled, then smiled and said, "Aunt Li, please don't leave. The wild duck feathers are the hardest to deal with. You have to stay and help Aunt Li and Aunt Li. It's hard to say how long it will take them both to finish it."
He Guixiang and Lin Zhaodi also tried to persuade him to stay.
Only then did Li Chunmiao stay.
In the village, if you are asked to help out by the host family, you will get some benefits after finishing the work, especially for jobs like slaughtering pigs, chickens and ducks. For slaughtering pigs, you get the pig's offal, and for chickens and ducks, you get the chicken intestines and duck blood.
But Li Chunmiao didn't intend to take this benefit. He helped to pluck the duck feathers and then left.
When the wild ducks were brought back, their necks were tied tightly with straw ropes, so no duck blood was wasted. He Guixiang took out a bowl, tore off the straw rope wrapped around the duck's neck, and used a kitchen knife to make the wound on the duck's neck larger. Then, she and Lin Zhaodi added the duck blood.
The duck blood from the three wild ducks only fills up about half a bowl. Add a pinch of salt, stir well, and let it sit for about a quarter of an hour, and the duck blood will clot.
Lin Zhaodi on the other end had quickly filled a bucket of cold water.
After the duck blood is released, soak all the wild ducks in cold water to wet all the duck feathers on their bodies so that they can be easily heated up later.
Li Chunmiao helped add firewood to the stove, and when he saw that the water in the pot was almost full, he took a ladle and scooped it into the wooden basin.
The water used to scald the duck feathers cannot be boiled, otherwise the duck skin will be burned, and once the duck skin is broken, it will be more difficult to pluck the feathers.
Li Chunmiao has experience in this area. When dense small bubbles appear in the iron pot and the water ripples on the surface begin to fluctuate obviously, the water temperature is almost right.
"Aunt Li, this pot is heavy, let me pour some water in it." Zhou Ye came over at some point and took the initiative to help pour the water.
Because he had burned his hand last time and was scolded by Lin Shu, Zhou Ye did not forget to wrap the handle of the pot with two layers of rags before picking up the pot.
He took the iron pot and the boiling water inside off the stove and poured it all into the large wooden basin used for washing clothes.
After helping to pour the boiling water, he made room for He Guixiang and the others. He said, "Plucking wild duck feathers is a delicate job. It takes a long time. Auntie, go get some bamboo stools and sit on them."
"Oh, okay." He Guixiang responded with a smile.
"Mother, Aunt He and Aunt Lin, let me bring you some stools!" Wang Yingen called out, and several boys each brought a bamboo stool, very attentive.
Lin Xiaopu was speechless for a while. This bamboo stool belonged to her family, so she was just being attentive to it.
"Okay, stop getting in the way here. If you have nothing else to do, let's go outside and shoot bamboo slingshots!"
As soon as Lin Xiaopu said this, Wang Yingen and others responded immediately.
The group of little kids ran away in the blink of an eye.
Lin Shu smiled and shook her head. While Aunt Lin went to scald the wild duck, she took over the job of boiling saltpeter. Since they had been gone for half a day, the brine in the earthenware pot had only been reduced to half, so there was still some left to boil.
"Ashu, I'll keep an eye on it for you. You go into the room and take a nap." Zhou Ye walked over and said.
Lin Shu secretly poked him and replied in a low voice: "No, didn't I just take a nap while leaning on you? I'm not sleepy now."
"Are you really not sleepy?"
"Really."
"If you're tired, just call me anytime." Zhou Ye stared at her for a long time, as if he couldn't see enough. Only after he had seen enough did he continue to do his bamboo work.
If there is nothing else to do, I will be able to finish making this bamboo rocking chair today.
Lin Shu did not keep an eye on the brine in the ceramic pot. As soon as she added firewood, she went to check on the duck feathers, then went back to add more firewood after a while.
Li Chunmiao handled many ducks, and He Guixiang and Lin Zhaodi followed her instructions. She added a handful of wood ash to the hot water in a large wooden basin before scalding the duck's feathers, making them easier to pluck. She completely immersed the duck in the hot water. Since the basin wasn't big enough, she used a wooden stick to stir it, ensuring that every surface of the duck was scalded and its feathers were thoroughly soaked.
When it is almost done, try to pluck the feathers on the duck's head. If you can pluck them easily, it means the wild duck is done.
There's a lot more to plucking a duck. First, remove the hard skin on the duck's feet and bill, then pluck the large, hard feathers from the wings. If you delay even a little, these feathers will be difficult to pluck.
Then, while the duck is still hot, start from the duck's head, which has the most fine hairs, and pluck the feathers along the duck's neck. When plucking the feathers, follow the direction of the feathers.
Lin Shu watched with great interest. Although the scalded wild duck had a strong duck smell, the plucking action was quite relaxing, especially Aunt Li's plucking action, which was so skillful, just like taking off the clothes of a wild duck.
Oh, it’s time to add more firewood to the stove.
Lin Shu added a handful of firewood and ran to watch the three people plucking duck feathers.
He Guixiang was amused by her pacing back and forth, "Ah Shu, what's so interesting about plucking duck feathers?"
"They look so good! When I think about how I'll make them into delicious dishes tomorrow morning, I find their shiny, naked appearance so tempting!"
Several people were amused by her words.
Zhou Ye, who was quietly doing bamboo work in the corner of the yard, was also smiling. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention to him, he smiled so much that his usually calm and serious brows softened, and affection slowly flowed between his brows.
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The author has something to say: Thank you for feeding me the nutrient solution!!!
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