Upon seeing them, his previous indifference and irritability vanished. As if he had suddenly sheathed his claws, he complained to the two of them, "I must say, you guys are really slow. It's almost noon by the time you reach this short distance."
Jiang Xi snorted, her tone smug, and said, "Looks like some people won't be able to eat the wild boar I hunted today."
Although Yan Zheng was the one who ultimately killed her, she was the one who shot the first arrow. Jiang Xi thought that, rounding up, it could be considered that she was the one who shot it, since he and Yan Zheng were inseparable anyway.
Yan Jing'an's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he quickly looked behind the carriage. He saw the little pig on the carriage floor, gave Jiang Xi a thumbs up, and his previous expression completely disappeared. He even said shamelessly, "I knew I hadn't misjudged you. Your archery skills are getting better and better."
Jiang Xi completely ignored his arrogant tone, looked up and gestured to Lin: "How's the task I gave you?"
Yan Jing'an said reluctantly, "She's alright, her stamina is not bad. We can't let her do nothing, let's teach her first."
Hearing him say that, Jiang Xi knew that Lin had caught his eye, so she smiled without saying anything and urged Yan Jing'an to help Yan Zheng clean up the pig.
Then she went to find Lin, who was sitting on a rock, drawing something on the ground with a twig.
Jiang Xi walked over and realized that what she had drawn was a flower and a sun. The sun looked familiar, and after looking at it a couple more times, she realized that it was the pattern she had drawn on the ceramic cup.
She asked softly, "Are you alright?"
Lin looked at the flower she had drawn and nodded.
Jiang Xi gathered her thoughts and said, "Don't be angry. If you don't do this, you'll always be an outsider in this group."
This statement is straightforward yet sharp.
Jiang Xi sighed and said, "Admittedly, I also have selfish motives towards you. I did keep you here because I thought you could help me, but it wasn't entirely out of exploitation."
"Lin, after all, we had a less than honorable falling out. In this team, I'm the only one who accepts you, so you won't stay for long."
Lin was still drawing in her hands, but Jiang Xi knew she was listening.
"To be honest, from another perspective, none of us are confident that we can survive in this dangerous jungle with just our flesh and blood. So while helping each other, everyone needs to accumulate their own strength."
Jiang Xi had tried her best to be as straightforward as possible. Lin seemed to understand, and stopped drawing.
Jiang Xi continued, "Although Yan Jing'an can be a bit sharp-tongued and eccentric at times, he is truly capable. You should learn from him, learn his escape skills, and learn hunting skills from his older brother. I believe that one day you will understand my decision today."
She glanced at Lin: "Learn their skills, and then you won't have to go hungry."
"That way, no matter whether you live with us or not in the future, you will never go hungry or be controlled by wild animals again."
After she finished speaking, Lin looked up at her, his eyes filled with tears.
Before Jiang Xi could react, Lin suddenly hugged her and started sobbing.
Jiang Xi paused for a few seconds, then patted Lin on the back with amusement.
After venting his anger, Lin sat up straight and said, "Thank you, Xiaoxi. I... will study hard... to protect you."
Jiang Xi smiled and said, "I don't need protection. You just need to tell me which plants are edible."
Lin chuckled, her dimples deepening.
Jiang Xi watched the two people busy by the lake, sat up, dusted herself off, and handed her hand to Lin: "Let's go, let's go help too."
Halfway there, Jiang Xi suddenly stopped and stared at a spot on the lake. Lin followed her gaze curiously.
Jiang Xi made a shushing gesture and pointed to the lake, saying, "Look, swans."
Looking out, two swans float gracefully on the deep lake, creating ripples that blend into the springtime lake scene, a picture of tranquility and peace.
Jiang Xi murmured, "More than twenty years have passed, and I'm only seeing this scene now."
After the little pig finished cleaning up, Yan Jing'an dug up a sweet potato, and Yan Zheng filled a few baskets. They quickly walked to the rabbit traps on the hillsides in front of and behind the cave and set them up again.
Jiang Xi and Lin Ze took the pots and pans off the carriage and put them by the river. Then the two went to collect firewood. Jiang Xi went to the river to find a stone slab to start a fire and put the pot on. They first put the pot on and stewed the pork bones with meat on it.
After Yan Zheng returned, he started setting up the fish trap. Lin watched the whole time as he was setting it up, and she was very curious about what Jiang Xi was talking about when she said she was catching fish.
She had seen fish before, but in her memory, they swam too fast, and she never caught one.
So watching Yan Zheng catch fish aroused her great curiosity.
Seeing her eagerness to learn, Yan Zheng explained to her in a deep voice: "Put animal entrails in this fish cage. After the fish goes in through the opening of the cage, it will eat but can't get out because the opening is too small, and it will be trapped inside the cage."
Lin is very smart; she understood as soon as Yan Zheng explained it.
Then he was going to go fishing in the lake. He couldn't go into the water before because the river was too cold, but now the temperature was a bit higher. Yan Zheng thought for a moment and simply rolled up his trousers to his knees and took off his shoes and socks.
We used the traditional method of spearing fish directly with sword spears. Although the lake water was still a bit cold, the harvest was quite good.
Before long, Yan Zheng threw a black carp and a large yellow croaker ashore.
Hearing the commotion, Jiang Xi forgot about digging up a sweet potato and took out a dagger to start slicing the fish, preparing to grill it.
Lin followed suit, peeling the same things Jiang Xi did. Yan Jing'an also stopped digging for sweet potatoes and went to dig for lotus roots with Yan Zheng.
The lakeside suddenly became lively.
When the pork bone soup released its rich aroma, Jiang Xi tossed in a few peppercorns and sprinkled in a pinch of salt. She then chopped the snow-white lotus root into the soup, and the pork bones stirred the lotus root pieces as they tumbled around. Lin, standing to the side, swallowed hard.
Then several people started skewering fish meat, putting the thick, transparent strips of meat onto skewers and arranging them neatly one by one.
Seeing that the fire was almost ready, Jiang Xi rolled up her sleeves, found some stone slabs and stacked them into a grill, then placed the fish on the half-burning charcoal fire to roast.
If you put it directly on an open flame to grill, the meat will turn black, charred on the outside and raw on the inside. It must be slowly grilled on embers where there is no longer an open flame, so that the fish meat will not turn black.
Soon the fish meat turned snow-white, then yellow, and the skin became a glossy brownish-red, sizzling with oil. It was hard to tell whether it smelled like grilled fish or pork bones; in short, the aroma of food in the air was enticing to everyone.
After the grilled fish was ready, it was sprinkled with salt and plated. Everyone also had a bowl of lotus root and bone soup. They couldn't wait to cool it down and start eating.
The fish skewers were made entirely of fish belly meat with only a few large bones. The pork bones were also stewed to perfection, with tender and juicy meat. The four of them enjoyed the meal immensely.
While gnawing on a pork bone, Yan Jing'an didn't forget to say, "Save me another skewer of fish."
"Eating out is definitely more interesting than eating at home."
Lin drank the pork bone soup, his face flushed from the heat, a thin layer of sweat on his forehead, and said shyly, "It's really delicious."
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