"A ruse?" Baoyu frowned. "Sister, how do you know it was a ruse?"
Speaking of this, Zhou Chenyu was almost fooled by Qian Rushan's crocodile tears. She really thought that he had been beaten up by his father and had turned over a new leaf. It was only when he was about to stab his stomach that he looked up and observed them.
It was that furtive glance that gave her a sense of déjà vu.
Isn't this exactly the same tactic she uses when she tries to gain sympathy?
Zhou Chenyu casually dismissed it as a mere intuition, then became puzzled, "But what I don't understand is, why would Qian Rushan suddenly come to atone for his sins? What do you think he's up to behind the scenes?"
Baoyu scoffed, "What kind of trick is that bastard up to? He must be trying to lull us into a false sense of security with this kind of scheme, and then catch us off guard and wipe us all out in one fell swoop."
“We’re not evenly matched. It would be easy for him to make things difficult for us. There’s no need for all this trouble.” Zhou Chenyu frowned in deep thought, recalling the words of the gossipy women who were watching the commotion.
Could it be that he has really fallen for her?
Zhou Chenyu shuddered. She must be overthinking it. She couldn't be interested in this kind of bad romance. If someone like Qian Rushan got tired of her, the person he liked would be in danger of losing their life.
The siblings unloaded the game from the cart. Li Xiuju came out with well water, splashed a ladleful onto the blood, washed it clean, and cursed:
“Let him atone for his sins if he wants to, but how can he threaten to kill himself? If he really dies at our doorstep, we won’t be able to have a peaceful Mid-Autumn Festival. I don’t think he’s truly here to atone for his sins; he’s just doing it because of his father’s authority.”
What was Qian Rushan's true purpose in atoning for his sins?
Zhou Chenyu couldn't understand it at all, but she wasn't afraid. She had never been afraid before, and now that she had a powerful backer, she was even less afraid.
Zhou Chenyu smiled faintly, not wanting Qian Rushan to spoil the joy of their successful return. He took the water ladle from Li Xiuju's hand and said, "Grandma, Baoyu and I have been traveling all day and only ate two rice balls on the way. We're starving. Besides, we haven't had anything good to eat in the mountains for so long. We're looking forward to your cooking when we get home."
"Yes, yes, yes!" Baoyu stopped unloading the cart and looked over with great interest. "Mother, let's not talk about money anymore. What are we having for dinner tonight?"
Li Xiuju was not a short-tempered person. She was so frightened by Qian Rushan that she was busy cursing and forgot that Chenyu and Baoyu had been on the mountain for several days. They had finally come down the mountain to reunite as a family, and she should have prepared a good feast to welcome them back.
Li Xiuju calmed down, took down the things drying on the winnowing basket, and smiled at them, "These are wild loquats that my mother and Hongmei dug up in the mountains. Hongmei said that her family often digs these to make soup, with meat or bones, and the soup has a rich aroma. We haven't eaten these wild loquats since we picked them, so I'll make some tonight and try it out."
After saying that, Li Xiuju happily went into the courtyard and began to prepare dinner for the evening.
Wild loquat?
Zhou Chenyu remembered that loquats should be round fruits with flesh, so why was it a bunch of yellow tree roots?
Will anything you randomly dig up in the mountains be poisonous?
Zhou Chenyu was still worried, so she went over to take a look. As she got closer, she smelled a strong coconut aroma and suddenly realized, "Isn't this the five-finger peach root that's often used in soup?"
This is great for making soup.
She had only ever bought it in the market, where it cost several tens of yuan per kilogram. She had heard that the five-finger peach roots circulating in the market were often treated with sulfur to make them look better, which made them prone to turning sour.
Wild five-finger peach doesn't look very appealing, but it has an extremely rich flavor.
Zhou Chenyu didn't believe in those things at first, but after smelling one just now, she found that the wild ones indeed had a more natural and purer taste.
There are such good things on the mountain in Zhoujia Village?
Zhou Chenyu's lips curled up, as if he had discovered a new business opportunity. Could he make a soup recipe list and explore the soup market in Qingshui Town?
"It's not impossible."
Zhou Chenyu and Baoyu unloaded everything from the cart, keeping only some dried fish. They planned to sell the rest of the pheasants, rabbits, and deer before the Mid-Autumn Festival.
The chicken coop at home was already full of domestic chickens and ducks, so we had to find another empty storage room in the yard to put them in.
After settling their prey, Zhou Chenyu and Baoyu took turns taking a refreshing bath. When she came out, Baoyu was squatting in front of the stove, already eating a roasted sweet potato. "Sister, you really came out at the wrong time. If you had come out earlier, you might have been able to eat one."
Zhou Chenyu looked at the peeled sweet potato in his hand. Even from two meters away, she could still smell the aroma of roasted sweet potato. "Won't you leave me any of the good stuff?"
She rushed over, hoping to get a few bites.
Baoyu deliberately dangled in front of her, then took a bite and made a satisfied sound.
"You little rascal, you never stop for a moment." Li Xiuju took a moment to poke Baoyu's forehead and waved to Zhou Chenyu, "Don't listen to his nonsense, Mother has saved one for you."
Zhou Chenyu glared at him, then happily picked up the sweet potato.
The sweet potatoes are roasted directly over charcoal until the skin is completely charred. But once you peel off that charcoal skin, you'll find a slightly reddish, translucent sweet potato steaming hot, which makes it even more fragrant.
Zhou Chenyu blew on it to cool it down a bit, took a bite, and although it was still a little hot, it tasted sweet and sticky, with some honey seeping into the gaps between her teeth. It was so delicious that she couldn't stop eating it.
The siblings finished the fist-sized sweet potato in just a few bites, and then wanted more.
Li Xiuju interrupted their thoughts and ordered, "One sweet potato is enough for each of you. Tonight, I'll cook a few dishes, so you'll need to eat a few more bowls of rice."
Hearing this, Hongmei, who was passing by the window, peered inside and said with a smile, "Auntie, you've cooked so many dishes tonight, it must be because Chenyu and Baoyu have returned, right?"
"That's right, they're back for the Mid-Autumn Festival, and our family can get together." Li Xiuju ladled out the wild loquat and lean pork soup she had just cooked and couldn't wait to share it. "Hongmei, the wild loquats you took me to dig, I'm cooking them tonight. I wonder if they'll taste the same as yours?"
Hongmei was pleased that her recommendation was well-received and replied, "Auntie, your cooking skills are excellent, of course it's perfect."
"You young people have such sweet talk, you're all so charming. This old lady is almost completely bewildered by your sweet talk." Li Xiuju ladled out the soup and took it outside.
After Li Xiuju left, Hongmei stopped smiling and became serious, secretly saying, "Chenyu, Baoyu, it's only when you siblings come home that Auntie is willing to eat meat a few times. You don't know, while you were away, she always managed to eat some vegetables and porridge. At her age, she's only concerned with saving money and doesn't know how to take care of herself at all. You should talk to her about it."
"Is that so?" Zhou Chenyu glanced outside, and Baoyu said helplessly, "That's just how Mother is, she saves on everything."
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