Chapter 37 Charcoal-grilled Pig Trotters
Old Dao has temporarily settled down at home.
His leg, bitten by 460, did need some rest. He had a low-grade fever once, but thankfully he pulled through. The crisp autumn air and low humidity provided a good environment for his wound to heal.
There was a recessed rectangular corner in the living room, roughly eight square meters in size, directly opposite their small square dining table. Lu An guessed that it was originally supposed to be the kitchen, but he didn't know why the owner of the house had rebuilt the kitchen outside during the construction process. Zhao Xuan found a curtain, hung it up on both sides, and it was just enough to cover up the small recessed area. He put a bed inside, made up with bedding, and it served as Lao Dao's temporary bedroom.
It wasn't that Zhao Xuan didn't want Lao Dao to sleep in the bedroom, it's just that, apart from their own bedroom, all the other rooms were crammed full by her. She couldn't very well put him to sleep in the bathroom, could she?
Old Dao was quite satisfied with his small room. After years of traveling around, he didn't have high demands for food and sleep.
To prevent 460 and Lao Dao from causing further trouble, 460's large leather sofa was moved to the bottom of the stairs, opposite Lao Dao's spot. 460 was quite satisfied; the stairs provided shelter from the wind, and the weather was getting colder.
It will take some time for 460 to accept Lao Dao, after all, its ability to recognize people is really too poor.
Lu An and Lao Dao were much closer than Zhao Xuan. After two years apart, they had both changed a bit. Lao Dao looked more weathered, while Lu An had become more muscular. Although they didn't recognize each other immediately and even got into a fight, the two had no ill feelings towards each other.
After the three of them finished dinner, they would sit around the table and talk. He talked about things outside: In the first year or two after the collapse of society, resources were still plentiful. At that time, there were often camps or remnants of government forces in various places. He could easily obtain gasoline, bottled water, and military compressed rations that would keep him from getting hungry for several days after just one pack. He traveled from the south to the north, and then back from the north to the south. He was an absolutely formidable person. After the apocalypse, he relied on his agility to deal with unfamiliar groups and camps. He suffered some losses, but his life was never in danger. Many camps wanted him to stay, but he never stayed long, just like he did in the camp where Lu An and Zhao Xuan were.
Later, fewer and fewer people were around. He often passed through vast deserted towns and wildernesses, sometimes going for dozens of days without seeing a single person. His motorcycle broke down, so he had no choice but to switch to a bicycle. Then the bicycle tires went flat, so he had to ride the bicycle without tire rims to travel between unfamiliar places.
Those who survived the last five years after the apocalypse were no ordinary people. Some built strong fortresses and settled in one place, while others went in groups and ruthlessly plundered other survivors.
Old Dao encountered all sorts of people, and after finding nothing in the vast northern land, he decided to return to the south and search again.
If he hadn't run into Lu An and his companion again, he probably would have erased the young couple from his mind long ago, given how many people he's met.
Old Dao always carried several kilograms of food spices in his satchel, the flavor of which was similar to five-spice and cumin powder. These were gifts from bandits he had rescued during his travels. The spice powder was clearly homemade, made from dozens of spices collected after the apocalypse, packaged in sealed bags wrapped in thick moisture-proof paper. Old Dao often used some to barter for supplies. This kind of compound seasoning powder was rare in the humid south; he treated it like gold.
He also took out some and gave it to Zhao Xuan, who accepted it somewhat shyly. She had already discussed it with Lu An; after all, Lao Dao's injury was an unexpected accident, and they were responsible for it—but the temptation of the compound seasoning powder was simply too great!
Zhao Xuan still had some spices such as cinnamon, star anise, and bay leaves. These things could be preserved for a long time as long as they didn't get moldy. However, she had long since run out of compound spices. These things were difficult to preserve, and powdered ones would become unusable if they got damp. She treasured even the little bit of cumin powder she had collected, let alone compound spices.
For this hard-won jar of spices, Zhao Xuan specially brought out four pig trotters that she had been treasuring for a long time.
These four zombie pig trotters, frozen from spring all the way to autumn, were originally intended for Zhao Xuan to use in stewing pig trotter soup in winter. However, while there are many kinds of warming soups, charcoal-grilled pig trotters only taste good when sprinkled with barbecue seasoning!
Early in the morning, Zhao Xuan took out four pig trotters, thawed them, burned off the hair on them with fire, and then threw the three-piece set of scallions, ginger and garlic to remove the fishy smell into the casserole, poured in water, put in the four pig trotters, and started to simmer.
Old Dao's leg wasn't fully healed yet, but he couldn't stay still and would always hobble out for a stroll. Lu An's hand had fully recovered after a few days of rest, and he had finished feeding the pigs early in the morning, waiting for Zhao Xuan to go patrol the fields together.
People say that a storm is brewing, but Zhao Xuan didn't feel any wind that day.
It was a rare quiet day. The world was quiet except for the creaking of the tricycle and the laughter of the two men. So when they arrived at the edge of the field, they saw the rice that had already sprouted ears under the blue sky and white clouds lying in all directions, large swathes of rice lying on the ground. Some rice plants were incomplete, and many more had been uprooted and roughly thrown aside. The scene was a mess.
Zhao Xuan's heart was also in turmoil.
She didn't even have time to stop smiling, staring at everything in shock with one corner of her mouth curved and the other pupil wide open.
Both she and Lu An had anticipated that their crops might fail or even fail completely. Farming always involves a few bad years, but compared to other places, bad years in the mountains are generally better: droughts usually don't last too long, and floods won't destroy everything, since mountainous areas have strong flood control and drainage capabilities, and locust plagues don't exist. In short, apart from the rugged and difficult roads, the harvest is still guaranteed when farming in the mountains.
But she forgot about the wild boar, a natural disaster unique to the mountains.
Zhao Xuan jumped off the truck bed, her steps a little unsteady. She walked into the field, picked up a rice stalk, and tried to put it back in the soil, but the rice stalk had already broken. Even if she put it in the soil, the rice stalk would still slump to the ground.
Her eyes suddenly reddened.
The rice she had painstakingly planted, enduring the scorching sun and insect bites, was destroyed overnight, just as it was about to be harvested. Barefoot, she stepped into the icy paddy field and silently began to collect the rice that seemed salvageable.
After watching for a while, Lu An also took off his shoes and socks and joined in picking up the rice.
The delicate rice plants are not sure if they can survive if planted again. The weather is getting colder every day. The autumn rice harvest is usually less than the summer rice harvest, and now this commotion may result in a total crop failure.
Lu An followed behind Zhao Xuan, picking up rice stalks. Zhao Xuan was silent at first, then sobbed, and finally saw her holding a rice stalk covered in mud, opening her mouth and crying sadly.
Lu An felt both sorry for her and amused. He pulled her close and held her, her face covered in tears, in his arms.
He knew that Zhao Xuan felt sorry for the two of them. Growing rice was really too hard. They had suffered so much, only to end up with no harvest. This was undoubtedly a huge blow.
This year's harvest is enough for them to last until next year's bumper harvest. Zhao Xuan felt sorry for Lu An. It was she who suggested double-cropping rice, but Lu An suffered the most. He had to spread manure, and he had to get up early every day to inspect the fields. He put much more effort into this field than she did.
"There's no major problem. We have enough food stored up this year. We'll think about how to protect ourselves from wild boars next year..." Lu An comforted her in a low voice.
The two worked in the fields for most of the day. When Lao Dao, who had finished his stroll, returned home and found no trace of them, he went to look for them in the fields. When he staggered to the fields with his cane, he saw Zhao Xuan with teary eyes and Lu An following behind. The two young men were working hard to clean up the messy fields, while Lu An kept turning around to check on Zhao Xuan's condition.
"Oh, the rice has all been eaten by pigs..." Old Dao muttered.
Just as the rice was filling out, the surrounding fields were barren. The Yao family harvested their crops, leaving only their five acres of lush green rice. Wouldn't the wild boars that wandered down the mountain be targeting these few acres of land?
Wild boars are incredibly destructive; it's no surprise they destroyed so many fields in one night. During his years of solitary wandering, he'd witnessed numerous natural disasters: droughts, torrential rains, insect infestations… The collapse of technology has made humanity exceptionally vulnerable. He'd also seen families starve to death due to a year's crop failure caused by natural disasters. Yet, the ecosystem had improved unprecedentedly in the last five years; not only wild boars, but even field mice and birds were taking a significant share of the harvest.
Old Dao smiled, but instead of greeting them, he staggered back.
He knew that Zhao Xuan's hamster contained a whole house full of food and supplies. The amount of rice harvested in the fall wouldn't affect their lives. People wouldn't starve in the mountains; they could survive even without growing food.
Zhao Xuan and Lu An worked until the afternoon, bundling the rice that was completely unable to survive into several large bundles and loading them onto a tricycle. They planned to use these seedlings to feed the pigs.
They remained silent the entire way. Zhao Xuan's eyes were red and swollen. Lu An rode very slowly. Finally, a breeze picked up, and a cool autumn wind blew in their faces. It was a very comfortable day, but the atmosphere between the two of them was tense.
When she got home, Zhao Xuan was still sitting on the back of the truck, lost in thought. She had been working for too long, and the wind had made her increasingly long hair disheveled. Her clothes were covered in mud, and with her unfocused eyes, she looked like she had gone mad.
Lu An carried her out of the car and led her home.
The moment the door was opened, a burst of delicious aroma wafted out, startling the two. Lu An watched as Zhao Xuan's eyes, which had been filled with despair, suddenly brightened.
Old Dao sat at the dining table, where dinner was already laid out and still steaming. When he saw the two young people return, he smiled broadly, just like a mother who had prepared a meal and was waiting for her children to come home.
This meal, which was neither quite lunch nor quite dinner, consisted of the four pig trotters that Zhao Xuan had stewed before leaving home that morning.
Old Dao cut the four stewed pig trotters in half, making eight pieces. Oil was still precious, so he didn't dare use all the oil in the oil jar on the stove. He only dared to add a little extra, and half-fried and half-deep-fried the eight pieces of pig trotter until they had a crispy, fragrant skin. Finally, he placed them on the charcoal fire, sprinkled on some barbecue seasoning, and made charcoal-grilled pig trotters.
Pan-frying the pig's trotters creates a crispy outer layer while retaining the moisture inside. Then, roasting them over charcoal removes excess oil, resulting in pig's trotters that are crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, rich but not greasy.
Old Dao used his chopsticks to place three large pieces of pig's trotters into Zhao Xuan's bowl, forming a mountain of meat: "Eat more meat, so you can grow taller!" Then, feeling that this didn't comfort her, he added, "This is your enemy..."
Zhao Xuan took a big, hard bite.
The fatty meat inside the crispy skin had melted into juicy goodness, but it wasn't just juicy; there were also chewy tendons and tender lean meat. The barbecue seasoning was so rich in flavor, and with the addition of scallions and diced red peppers, Zhao Xuan felt as if she had been transported back to the pre-apocalyptic world, to the happy times she and her college roommates spent all night eating barbecue on weekends.
She ate far too much grilled food in the apocalypse. When they were wandering, she and Lu An only brought a small pot, which they usually used to boil water for drinking. So other food had to be thrown into the fire to be grilled.
But back then, no roasted food could compare to this kind of braised, fried, roasted, and richly seasoned pig's trotters.
The delicious food made Zhao Xuan want to laugh, but then she thought of her rice, and an awkward expression of both crying and laughing appeared on her face.
Lao Dao and Lu An exchanged a smile, both showing a helpless expression.
This wasn't a hopeless disaster; they still had plenty of food stored up, enough to last until next year. Lu An figured that given Zhao Xuan's personality, she would still plant a second crop of rice next year. There were many factors that could cause a complete crop failure or reduced yield, but a good year could also bring a bumper harvest. For them, who depended on the weather for their livelihood, these events were all matters of probability. But the prerequisite for everything was that they needed to plant the crops; only after the crops were planted could there be a multitude of possibilities for the future.
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