Afterwards, Gu Qian spread the fur on the ground, deftly gutted the rabbit, and went to clean it himself.
Qiu Ling'er never expected that after leaving the Qiu family, they would not only be able to eat noodles and meat, but also have new clothes to wear. Such a life was something they never dared to dream of before.
Qiu Yan kneaded the dough to make noodles, while Gu Qian finished processing the wild rabbit, neatly chopped it into several pieces, and started stewing it in a pot.
Just as Qiu Yan was about to stew the meat, she realized that she didn't have any seasonings at home.
Helpless, she had no choice but to bite the bullet and go to the Ye family's house again to borrow some salt, peppercorns, and scallions.
The iron pot was bubbling away, steaming hot, and the villagers passing by couldn't help but stop and linger because of the delicious aroma of the meat.
Having not been able to eat meat for many years, they are satisfied to be able to smell its aroma.
After the meat stew was ready, Qiu Yan handed a bowl to Qiu Xu, saying, "Go and take a bowl to Aunt Ye and the others."
Gu Qian glanced at Qiu Yan in agreement, and was about to say "I'll go deliver it," but he swallowed the rest of his words.
If it really was him who sent it, I'm afraid I'd have to bring it back untouched.
When Qiu Xu returned, the four of them sat around the iron pot and ate rabbit meat noodles.
Finally, there was meat to eat! Qiu Ling'er picked up a piece of rabbit meat with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth. The texture was soft, fresh, and not greasy, filling her mouth with fragrance. She felt like her tongue was almost not her own.
Qiu Xu had just delivered the rabbit meat when Ye Shi brought over a piece of cured meat.
The Ye couple are outsiders and do not own any land in the village. They now make a living by hunting.
This is also why Qiu Yan was able to meet Li Zheng deep in the mountains today.
When Ye saw Gu Qian, she was surprised for a moment. "Why haven't you left yet?" She saw him chatting with Qiu Yan early yesterday morning. She didn't expect that he could become familiar with Qiu Yan so quickly.
Gu Qian answered irrelevantly, "Master's wife, Master..."
Today, he chased Li Zheng all the way to the mountains and forests, trying to persuade him to leave, but... that's what Qiu Yan saw.
“He’s fine!” Madam Ye glanced at Gu Xiaoran, who was fast asleep in the east room. “The father is being unreasonable, and the child suffers as a result. Wenshu is married, and there’s still an empty room in the house. If you really have nowhere to stay, just make do there for the night and leave first thing tomorrow morning.”
Upon hearing the words "Wen Shu got married," Gu Qian looked up at the east room and felt a pang of pain in his heart.
Not for love, but for this cruel fate.
He nodded slightly and, together with Qiu Yan, saw Ye Shi out of the courtyard.
Before leaving, Madam Ye did not forget to give Gu Qian a word of advice.
"Qiu Yan is already pitiful enough. If you dare to bully her, I'll be the first to not let you off the hook."
Gu Qian hurriedly replied, "What kind of person does Master's wife take me for?" Qiu Yan, with her temperament, would never tolerate being bullied.
After finishing his meal, he used the pheasant and rabbit he had hunted later as a bargaining chip to spend the night in the west room.
Since they didn't have beds, they used straw as bedding, which was still much better than sleeping in the open.
Qiu Yan didn't want to stay, but this man was too shameless. She was already a light sleeper, but tonight she slept even more lightly.
When I woke up the next day, the two of them were no longer in the west room.
Qiu Yan finally had some peace and quiet.
Besides the rabbit they ate, they still had three at home. Adding the pheasant, Qiu Yan decided to first go to Xingyue Tower to ask if the young manager there accepted wild game.
These wild game might boost his business.
If they don't buy it, she'll set up a stall at the market to sell it; it's wild game, so it should sell well.
Of course, she didn't forget to bring the herbs she had gathered.
After tying up the pheasants and rabbits, she put them into a small basket, and packed the herbs into a bundle.
Ever since buying new clothes, Qiu Yan has been taking her younger siblings to the mountains every day, but they haven't worn them yet. Wearing the new clothes, Qiu Yan feels that her younger siblings look much more energetic.
Indeed, clothes make the man.
As she passed the village entrance, she noticed that Zhao Zheng and Qiu Hui were walking side by side.
When Qiu Hui saw Qiu Yan coming over and noticed the new clothes on the three of them, as well as the pheasant and rabbit that Qiu Yan was carrying, she was consumed by jealousy.
Why do all these men like Qiu Yan? Now, some men are even giving her gifts.
She deliberately leaned closer to Zhao Zheng, "Brother Zhao Zheng, the Qiu family has more than one daughter. I'm willing to marry you in place of my sister."
After saying that, she gave Qiu Yan a smug smile.
Zhao Zheng also saw Qiu Yan. He was holding his breath, unable to breathe, and seeing that Qiu Yan didn't even glance at him and walked straight ahead, he directly blocked her path.
"Xiaoyan, you deliberately provoked me yesterday, didn't you?" He selectively ignored the prey in Qiu Yan's hands; he knew that this prey was brought back by the man beside Qiu Yan.
"Zhao Zheng, I made myself very clear yesterday. There is no possibility between us anymore!" Qiu Yan said, then pulled her sister-in-law along as they continued walking.
Qiu Hui couldn't stand Qiu Yan's attitude towards Zhao Zheng. "Qiu Yan, how can you talk to Brother Zhao Zheng like that? What did he do to wrong you?" She had just reached out to take Zhao Zheng's arm when he pulled away, leaving her looking embarrassed.
Zhao Zheng closed his eyes briefly, took a few steps, and said, "I'll take you!"
"No need!" Qiu Yan was eager to sever ties with Zhao Zheng and would never accept his help.
Zhao Zheng left dejectedly, his face filled with grief. Only Qiu Hui remained standing there, stamping her foot in anger.
Compared to two days ago, Qiu Yan and the other two walked much faster.
These past few days of morning runs have definitely paid off.
Upon entering Xingyue Tower, Qiu Yan discovered that the restaurant had been completely renovated.
There were no leftover dishes on the table, and the trash in the corner was gone. But this waiter… was still as lazy and unambitious as ever.
Business is a little better than before, but there are no customers dining nearby; most are just passing merchants who don't know much about the business.
Seeing the waiter sitting there in a daze, Qiu Yan gently tapped the counter, just like last time. Only then did the waiter realize that someone had arrived.
"Girls, it's you again. Oh, we still have some wood ear mushrooms left in our restaurant, so we don't need to buy any this time." He only glanced at Qiu Yan briefly, speaking lazily as if he hadn't eaten breakfast.
After he finished speaking, he continued to stare blankly.
This waiter... is a long story. "Waiter, we're not here to sell wood ear mushrooms, we're here to sell wild game."
"Wild game?" The waiter looked up, showing some interest, and went inside to call out Zhou Zifang.
Zhou Zifang was somewhat surprised when he saw Qiu Yan again, especially when he saw the wild game she had brought.
It seems that living in a mountain village has its advantages.
"I wondered what kind of wild game it was, but it turns out to be pheasants and rabbits." This girl's mind is quite different from ordinary people; she only thinks about making money.
"Young shopkeeper, do you buy these pheasants and rabbits?"
Just then, two burly men entered the room; they appeared to be merchants coming and going from the surrounding area.
As soon as Zhou Zifang saw the guests arrive, he hurriedly greeted them warmly, "Please come in, sir."
At the same time, he didn't forget to pat the counter.
"Lin Shu, hurry up, we have guests."
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