Jiang Xi couldn't help but show an envious expression when she thought of the sheep and livestock raised by the ancestors in the murals.
She said, "It's easier to deal with if they're dead, but if they're alive, the real problem is how to catch them."
Yan Jing'an, standing to the side, said somewhat awkwardly, "Do you remember the medicine I used on your head in the cave?"
He nodded his head as he spoke.
It would have been better if he hadn't brought it up, because it made Jiang Xi angry. It was a great humiliation, and she was glad she had discovered it early.
Yan Zheng, who was standing to the side, also gave him a sharp look.
Thinking of the days he plotted against her, Jiang Xi gritted her teeth and said, "I'll never forget it, all thanks to you."
Yan Jing'an awkwardly rubbed his hands and said, "Actually, I had no choice at the time. You're so smart, if I didn't use some drugs, I would probably have been exposed in one night."
Although his words contained words of praise, Jiang Xi felt that he had humiliated her again.
She took a deep breath and told herself to stay calm.
Then, glancing sideways at Yan Jing'an, he asked, "What exactly is that thing?"
Yan Jing'an pondered for a moment and said, "It's a kind of anesthetic, but of course I only used a tiny bit on you."
Jiang Xi sneered: "Why should I thank you?"
Thank you for letting me sleep for two days straight, day and night.
Thinking about how the medicine was green, stinging and painful when applied, and making her feel drowsy, she asked again, "Isn't that an herbal medicine?"
Yan Jinan nodded: "The anesthetic we use here is made from those herbs. Just a certain dose is enough to knock a person out within ten seconds."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Xi's forehead twitched twice; this medicine was so potent.
Jiang Xi asked, "You want to use it to catch sheep?"
Yan Jinan nodded and said, "We'll make some wooden arrows and coat the arrowheads with this medicine, making sure to control the dosage."
As he spoke, he looked at Yan Zheng and said, "The wooden arrow didn't go in very deep. Your marksmanship is excellent. You only need to hit the prey's leg, and they will be paralyzed and fall to the ground in a few minutes."
That's a great idea.
Jiang Xi asked, "If the ewe is caught, the lambs won't have any milk to drink."
Yan Jing'an thought for a moment and said, "Then let's catch the lambs too."
Jiang Xi was speechless. You really are clever.
Yan Zheng thought for a moment and said, "After we sent that hunter up the mountain a while ago, that courtyard happened to be empty. We'll change the door later and let the sheep we caught stay in that courtyard for now."
After the bell was sent up, the weather warmed up a bit, and Yan Zheng chose a day to haul the skeleton up the mountain with Yan Jing'an and bury it. As a result, the hunter's yard was left empty.
That courtyard was the best preserved of the several, with no obvious damage to the walls, only the gate was somewhat rotten.
Now, it's a good time to change the door and use it to raise sheep.
Seemingly to assert its presence, the little creature inside the cloak chirped twice more and continued to paw at the ground.
This reminded Jiang Xi of the way her grandmother's cat kneaded its puppies. In fact, the newborn leopard cub was already about the size of a four- or five-month-old kitten.
So this little guy has quite a strong presence.
Jiang Xi was afraid it would get too hungry, so she didn't delay any longer and prepared to cook some root and yam porridge to give it some soup to tide it over through the night.
Then she thought of the sweet potatoes that Yan Jing'an had just dug up. She hadn't eaten sweet potatoes in the spring yet, and wondered if there was any difference. She decided to try them today.
Chop all the freshly dug root potatoes into small pieces before putting them in a pot to boil. Usually, root potatoes need to be boiled for about 10 minutes before the soup thickens and coats the sides of the pot.
The fresh potatoes today, after only five minutes of cooking, already felt incredibly sticky to Jiang Xi.
She quickly used a spoon to filter the broth, carefully ladling out a small half-bowl of the thick soup from the pot.
In a moment of coolness, Jiang Xi used a dagger to carve out a small spoon.
At first, the little guy was very uncooperative when it came to feeding him, opening his mouth and chirping, not giving Jiang Xi any face at all.
After waiting for two or three minutes, Jiang Xi came up with a solution. She smeared a little root and potato soup on the little guy's lips and then kept her eyes glued to the little guy's reaction.
Seemingly having tasted it, the little clouded leopard stuck out its pink tongue, licked it twice, and then opened its mouth wide and began to chirp.
Jiang Xi quickly fed it another spoonful. This time it finally ate, and the last half bowl of rice porridge went into the little guy's stomach.
Jiang Xi affectionately patted the little guy's head, muttering, "Little Black is such a good boy."
Yan Jing'an, who was making a bed with hay nearby, scoffed, "What a corny name, just like a dog's."
Jiang Xi, stroking Xiao Hei, said irritably, "I just called out to it casually. It's a leopard, not some dog."
Yan Zheng, who was tending the fire, turned his head and said, "If it were a dog, it would be easier to raise. It's still manageable now, but once it gets a bit bigger, this little thing will need to eat fresh meat every day."
Jiang Xi smiled and said, "Then you must teach him well. When you go out, take him with you. Maybe he can even hunt for himself."
Yan Zheng thought to himself, "This is a great idea. Other hunters are hunting dogs, but I'm a cheetah. It sounds pretty impressive."
Although the three planned to return early the next morning, they hadn't yet dug up the wild onions and taro on the mountain.
So, in the dark, Jiang Xi used a torch to light the way for Yan Zheng and Yan Jing'an, and the three of them went up the hillside to dig up the remaining half of the wild onions.
When the taro was dug up, it already had sprouts. Jiang Xi carefully protected it, afraid that she would damage the sprouts and make it impossible to grow when she took it back.
Before going to bed, Yan Jing'an placed a few more sweet potatoes in the rabbit trap on the back hill. Spring had arrived, and all sorts of small animals were starting to come out to forage. He hoped to have a good catch tomorrow.
The next morning, the three of them ate a simple breakfast and started loading the truck. Root potatoes, wild onions, and other vegetables filled the truck to the brim, making it a full load.
Yan Zheng hadn't held out much hope for the rabbit trap on the back hill, but to his surprise, two rabbits actually fell into it. They must have been starving all winter and were now desperately looking for food.
Yan Zheng originally intended to kill them and take them back, but Jiang Xi thought about it and stopped him.
She pursed her lips and said, "Let's try raising them. I think one male and one female would be perfect."
Yan Jing'an frowned: "Wild rabbits must have a hard time surviving, right? I've heard before that rabbits won't eat or drink once they're caged."
Jiang Xi had actually heard this saying before, but everything has to have a beginning.
"Why not give it a try? Maybe there'll be some difference between two-legged rabbits and real rabbits?"
"They love eating sweet potatoes so much, maybe we can feed them."
She knew it would be troublesome, since she would have to make a separate rabbit hutch for them. Rabbits can burrow, so the hutch material would be either bricks or stones.
But she still wanted to give it a try, since rabbits reproduce quickly, and if artificial breeding could be achieved, Yan Zheng wouldn't have to go out hunting every day anymore.
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