Chapter 121 Bamboo Raft
March 1, 3034
The weather gradually became cooler, and the leaves of the surviving birch trees in the forest gradually turned yellow, and yellow fallen leaves occasionally drifted across the grassland in the wind.
Mu Xi's watch showed that the temperature had dropped to fifteen degrees. At this time, the animals in the mountains had begun to prepare to store food for the winter.
Carnivores also need to gain weight in the autumn so that they can survive the winter safely.
At this time of year, you can hear many animals roaring in the forest every day.
After Mu Xi twisted the hemp rope, he began to look for a place to set the trap.
Their main target is wild boars. A small wild boar weighs about 100 pounds, and a large one weighs more than 300 pounds.
The hemp rope specially used for traps was woven extra thickly and tied to a big tree. One end was fixed to the ground with a noose, and the other end was tied to a heavy object.
As long as the noose is around the wild boar's feet, the more it struggles, the tighter it will be. When the heavy object at the other end falls, the wild boar will be hung in mid-air.
Hanging wild boars high up can also prevent large beasts from stealing them.
The noose has to be covered with dead leaves. Animals nowadays are getting smarter and it is really impossible to catch them without covering it.
Mu Xi chose the location between the pine forest and palm trees where the wild boar had been seen before. The signs of activity in this area were most obvious.
After the trap for catching wild boars was set, Zhao Yeqing put the bamboo raft on the agenda.
If two people want to get on the bamboo raft, the buoyancy must be sufficient and the number of bamboos must be more.
For safety reasons, the two decided to make a double-decker bamboo raft, three meters long and one meter wide.
By adding an extra row of bamboo to the bottom for support, the buoyancy of the raft can be multiplied.
A bamboo raft of this specification requires about thirty bamboos, and it has to be fixed horizontally in the middle with bamboos.
A bamboo raft always feels less safe than a small boat because there is too much space on both sides.
Zhao Yeqing designed an extra row of railings on the left and right sides of the bamboo raft, so that there would be a little more sense of security.
The two of them moved the bamboo raft to the edge of the lake, so they didn't have to move it around.
After bringing all the tools to the lakeside, Mu Xi could only carry a dozen bamboos at a time, so he had to make another trip to get enough.
Zhao Yeqing first sawed the bamboo into appropriate lengths by the lake and started with the bottom layer.
The bamboos are arranged in a row, and the bamboo beams are connected together with long nails and bamboo rafts. To be on the safe side, each bamboo is tied to the beam and reinforced with wire.
Before she finished the lower layer, Mu Xi had already arrived with the second cart of bamboo.
The second cart of bamboo will be used to make the upper layer, which should be longer than the lower layer because it has an extra curved front.
The raft bow can reduce resistance, separate the water flow, and allow the raft to move forward smoothly.
The bending of the bamboo requires burning it and then shaping it, or cutting a row of crescent-shaped grooves on the bamboo to allow space for the bamboo to bend.
Roasting with fire is time-consuming and laborious, so Mu Xi chose the second method.
By the time Zhao Yeqing had finished finishing the lower layer, Mu Xi's front row had already been bent and secured with a crossbeam.
The lower beams are at the bottom, and the upper beams are on the surface. There is no obstruction between the two layers of bamboo rafts, and they are directly fixed with ropes and wires in the reserved position.
Mu Xi finally fixed the handrails on top and finished it, making it look quite realistic.
While Mu Xi was making the handrail, Zhao Yeqing used the remaining bamboo to make two small stools that could be placed on the bamboo raft for sitting.
"How is it?" She waved to Mu Xi to come and see her little stool.
I originally wanted to make a chair with a backrest, but unfortunately there was not enough material.
Mu Xi immediately sat on it to try it out, "I'll add a backrest to this one someday."
The two men placed the small stools on the bamboo raft and then worked together to push the raft into the lake, instantly rippling the calm lake surface.
Mu Xi went up first to test the buoyancy. The double-layer buoyancy was very strong, and he almost did not sink when he stood on it.
The connection in the middle was also very stable. Mu Xi used the bamboo pole to row forward about ten meters and then rowed back without any problem.
There was a rope connected to the bamboo raft. When it was almost reaching the shore, Mu Xi threw the rope to Zhao Yeqing, and she pulled the raft over in two or three pulls.
Mu Xi held the bamboo pole and inserted it into the ground on the shore to secure it, then reached out to Zhao Yeqing and pulled her up.
Seeing that she was sitting firmly on the mat, he pushed hard and let the bamboo raft move away from the shore.
The bamboo raft moved forward suddenly, and the slight sway caused water to splash up on both sides. Zhao Yeqing held on to the handrail beside him, and waited until the raft moved a few meters away before gradually stabilizing.
After paddling dozens of meters away from the shore, the bamboo raft stopped steadily and Zhao Yeqing stood up. The azure blue lake was all around her. The bamboo raft did not splash a ripple, as if it was standing on a clear blue mirror.
The bamboo rafts are ready, and this time the fishing rods are not as perfunctory as before.
We chose a piece of bamboo with extremely good toughness, two meters in length, with slots cut on it, and fixed the dyed hemp rope used for fishing line on it.
The baits include earthworms, grasshoppers and dough.
In addition to flour, cornmeal and shrimp powder are also added to the dough.
The shrimps are small lake shrimps caught when catching willow root fish. They are small in size but delicious. They are ground into shrimp powder and mixed into the dough.
All the ingredients are pure natural and pollution-free food. The lake shrimps are baked and then ground into powder. It has a fresh and fragrant smell, and the dog at home is about to pounce on it.
She was so greedy just by smelling it.
The dough bait needs to be made on the spot. Zhao Yeqing uses a small bamboo tube to scoop up lake water, mixes the prepared powder and water in proportion, stirs it into a ball, and then kneads it into small balls and hangs them on the fish hook.
Mu Xi first used earthworms to fish. Because the boat had just stopped, he had to wait until Zhao Yeqing prepared the dough before he caught the first fish.
It is a small silver male fish, only about six or seven centimeters long, suitable for frying and eating.
Small male fish are basically this size and will not grow any bigger. The fish is not a special species and can be bought.
However, the small male fish that we usually buy are made into dried fish. Fresh small male fish are not easy to transport, so they are still quite rare.
Mu Xi took the small fish down and put it into the bucket.
Zhao Yeqing prepared a pretty large portion of dough. She pinched a few into beef ball-sized pieces and threw them into the lake in front of her.
This is making a nest. Throwing the dough down will attract the surrounding fish to come here to eat. Wait until all the fish gather around before lowering the hook, which will make it easier to catch fish.
Zhao Yeqing washed the bait off her hands with lake water. The water was icy cold, so cold that she shuddered, as if it was ice water taken out of the refrigerator.
After washing my hands, I took out the prepared snacks from the basket. I had to be patient and wait for a while before making the nest.
She ate snacks and looked at the high mountains opposite. White was faintly visible on the top of the mountain.
The altitude here is just over 2,000 meters, and the mountain opposite is estimated to be 4,000 meters.
While she was eating snacks, Mu Xi had already caught two or three fish, including a small male fish and a naked carp.
After waiting for half an hour, she thought it was almost time, so she cast the first rod at the place where she had made the nest.
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