Early the next morning, Wang Guoqing took the small cloth bag he had packed and went to work in town.
The small bag contained rabbit-shaped chili sauce, several steamed buns, and a few changes of clothes that Lin Xue had prepared for him.
Once they leave, they won't be back for at least ten days to half a month.
"Sherry?"
"Third son's wife?"
Just after seeing Wang Guoqing off, Old Mrs. Wang came running over, all excited.
"Mother, Yaqin is here too!"
When Grandma Wang got closer, Lin Xue saw the little girl who had followed behind her.
"Quickly, come inside and we'll talk!"
"Mancang Yating, come out quickly! Your sister Yaqin is here!"
As Lin Xue directed people to go inside, she searched for her two little ones.
"Mother, is Sister Yaqin here?"
A soft, sweet voice came from the direction of the backyard.
The first one to run out was little Ya Ting, who was holding a small twig in her hand, one end of which was clearly punctured.
"Sister Yaqin, come and see what we caught!"
Next came little Wang Mancang, who was holding a piece of vegetable leaf in his hand and carefully escorting her all the way.
"Did you two catch some bugs?"
Seeing the two children's appearance, the adults began to guess what was going on.
"Why did you catch such an old one? This thing might lay eggs if you fed it to a chicken!"
Grandma Wang also glanced at it; the leaf of vegetables that little Wang Mancang was holding in his hands was covered with about a dozen green caterpillars of various sizes.
"If you don't fill the granary, take the little bugs to Grandma's house. Remember to put them in Grandma's chicken coop. That way, the hens will lay more eggs if they eat them!"
Fortunately, Lin Xue wasn't afraid of insects; otherwise, the sight of those plump little green worms wriggling around would probably scare away many girls.
"Third Aunt, let me take Gou Dan and Er Ya over there!"
Wang Yaqin was worried about the two little ones walking such a long way by themselves, so she quickly followed them.
"Yaqin, you stay here with your younger siblings. Your third sister-in-law and I are going to the mountains to pick some mushrooms. If we don't come back, don't bring the two children here!"
Wang Yaqin is currently in junior high school, and today is the weekend, so she didn't go to school.
The old lady then entrusted her with the task of taking care of the children, but she was worried about leaving her at Lin Xue's house, fearing that if someone from the Lin family came, they might harm the children again.
She had originally planned for Wang Yaqin to take the two children to stay at the old house.
"Yes, I know!"
From afar, Lin Xue could still hear Wang Yaqin's voice answering her grandmother. After watching the children walk away, Lin Xue finally asked.
"Mother, are you coming up the mountain with me today?"
Normally, Lin Xue would gather pig feed at the foot of the mountain. But ever since she hunted prey in the mountains, she would go there whenever she had free time.
No one could persuade her otherwise; no one could stop her from eating meat.
Grandma Wang couldn't do anything about her. In the past, she would send anything good to her parents' home, but now she doesn't send anything there anymore. Instead, she runs to the mountains every day.
Her heart was always filled with anxiety, fearing that Lin Xue might encounter wild animals on the mountain.
If something were to happen, they wouldn't be able to provide timely assistance.
"Well, I haven't been up the mountain for a while. Today, since Xueqin is home, I'll go with you to pick some mushrooms!"
"I'll dry some mushrooms later, so we can save them for when we don't have any vegetables in the winter!"
Grandma Wang put down the basket on her back and helped Lin Xue tidy up the house. Then the two of them walked together towards the back mountain.
"Mom, I've found several spots on the back hill where mushrooms are growing really well these past few days. I'll take you there later, and we're sure to pick lots of mushrooms today!"
Lin Xue mentally recalled the places she had visited in the past few days and selected a few relatively safe places with plenty of mushrooms, planning to take the old lady to pick them together.
"Alright, then you'll lead the way today! Let's try to fill the baskets to the brim before we head back!"
The large basket that Grandma Wang was carrying was quite big; it was all hand-woven by the farmers themselves, and it was large and could hold a lot.
"Hahaha, Mother!"
"I'm just worried you won't be able to carry it all. Let alone one basket, I can fill two or three baskets for you!"
Lin Xue led Old Mrs. Wang along the back paths, which she had discovered over the past few days.
Not many people have walked on it before, so it's not very smooth.
"Mom, be careful when you walk. There are a lot of tree roots here, so be careful not to trip!"
Lin Xue led the way with a sickle, and the old lady followed behind.
Soon they arrived at the first spot chosen by Lin Xue, where clusters of mushrooms could be seen scattered among the fallen leaves and branches.
"Mother, let me first use a branch to beat around the area to keep out any snakes. You can start picking from this patch behind me!"
Lin Xue took a tree branch and tapped it a few times in the grass.
They say you have to stir up trouble to alert the enemy. If she were alone, it would be fine, but now that she has an old lady with her, she can't bear the responsibility if something happens.
"No wonder you can find prey in the mountains; your meticulousness is unmatched!"
The old lady could tell from Lin Xue's behavior that her third daughter-in-law was not the kind of reckless person.
Judging from her careful little face, she's bound to catch pheasants and rabbits.
Thinking about it but not stopping, he quickly picked all the mushrooms he could see and put them into his basket.
"Of course, if you don't observe carefully when hunting, how can you find the prey's tracks?"
"Mom, I saw a pheasant. You stay here, I'll go catch it!"
Before Lin Xue could even finish her smug remark, she unexpectedly caught a glimpse of a colorful shadow out of the corner of her eye.
She darted out like an arrow, picked up a small pebble from the ground, and shot it at the colorful figure.
Oh my god!
How come her third daughter-in-law is so fast? She ran so far away in a flash.
"Cluck cluck! Cluck cluck!"
Just as they tied the pheasant's claws with rope, they heard the sound of a hen laying an egg.
"Mom, there seem to be some hens nearby. I need to go look for them. You keep an eye on this rooster!"
This time, Lin Xue didn't kill the pheasants directly, but chose to capture them alive.
We don't know if we'll catch any other prey later. If we kill them all, they won't be fresh if we can't finish them in one meal.
Lin Xue isn't picky about food, but she doesn't like eating leftovers.
As long as it's freshly made, whether it's simple fare or a lavish meal, she can eat it with great relish.
Of course, a balanced diet of meat and vegetables is best!
When an old lady Wang had a wild rooster stuffed into her arms, she instinctively tightened her grip, afraid that the rooster would break free and fly away.
Then I thought, with its claws tied, where could this wild rooster possibly fly to?
So he put it into the basket that Lin Xue had tossed aside, and stopped picking mushrooms altogether, shading his eyes with his hand as he looked in the direction Lin Xue had left.
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