At Miao Qingsong's home, his parents were slurping porridge with worried expressions. He also has a 9-year-old sister who is still not in elementary school because they are poor.
The sound of hurried running could be heard outside. Miao Qingsong excitedly carried two burlap sacks and ran into the main room.
"Father, Mother, we can..."
"Have you been fooling around with that Lin Mo?!"
Before Miao Qingsong could finish speaking, Old Miao suddenly roared and slammed the earthenware bowl onto the wooden table with a loud "bang."
He jumped up, pointed at him, and launched into a tirade of profanities:
"Are you blind?! Can't you see what's going on at home?! How dare you skip work!"
"If you skip a day of work, all my hard work for the whole day will be for nothing! What were you thinking! What were you thinking!"
"Your sister is nine years old and still can't go to school! Don't you have any sense of propriety?!"
"Look at this jar, it's practically empty except for the northwest wind!"
"You dare skip work today! Do you think the team will lend us grain tomorrow? Our family can't afford even the slightest loss, don't you have any sense of responsibility?!"
Unable to vent his anger at the heavy burden of poverty, Old Miao paced around the house in a fit of rage, searching for something to beat Miao Qingsong.
Aunt Miao sighed and got up to stop her:
“My son is still young, he only misbehaved once, it’s not worth getting so angry, Lao Miao.”
I saw my parents, one was furious and the other was sighing.
Miao Qingsong was well aware of the difficulties his family was facing.
If it were yesterday, he would have thought he was incredibly bold to actually believe Lin Mo, who never makes a fuss about anything.
They were so overwhelmed by the harsh realities of life that they wanted to grasp at even the slightest glimmer of hope.
But today was different. Lin Mo wasn't lying to him; they really were chasing a wild rabbit.
"Dad, don't be angry, we really didn't mess around."
The naturally filial Miao Qingsong first comforted his father, then hurriedly untied the straw rope at the top of the bag and quietly pulled the rabbit out by its ears.
The rabbit, struggling and kicking desperately in Miao Qingsong's hands, made its appearance.
Old Miao and Aunt Miao were stunned on the spot.
"Wow, a wild rabbit!" Miao Yatou exclaimed excitedly as she smacked her lips on her coarse grain porridge.
Miao Qingsong smiled shyly and patiently continued to explain to his parents:
“Uncle Lin was a hunter when he was alive. We figured Lin Mo must have learned a few skills from him, so we wanted to learn from him too.”
“He really taught us. Today he taught us how to use the hillside to chase rabbits. This is the one we hunted together.”
"We hunted six in total, and he split the spoils with us."
Upon hearing this, Old Miao wondered if he had misheard.
Lin Mo, that scoundrel, has a terrible reputation in the village. How could he be so kind as to share the spoils with our son?
But there was no time to think about any of that. The moment he saw the shiny, grayish-yellow wild rabbit, his mouth was already watering.
"Quickly, quickly burn one to nourish your mother; she's suffered so much."
“You skipped work today. Your mother begged and pleaded with the team leader for ages before the team finally agreed to let her take your place. The woman can do the work of the men.”
"I'm exhausted."
These words broke Miao Qingsong's heart. Without saying another word, he hurried to the kitchen in the yard.
Boil water, and once it boils, put the rabbit in directly.
The rabbit couldn't withstand the sudden, intense shock; it died of fright before it was scalded to death.
Even after skinning the rabbit, they wouldn't throw away the fur. When they had time, they could tan the rabbit skin to make warm shoes and hats.
Fearing that her scheme would be discovered, Aunt Miao sneaked to the courtyard gate and peered around before locking it tightly.
The rabbit is roasted over the fire, and with just a sprinkle of salt, it becomes an incredibly delicious dish.
The rabbit skin on the stove quickly turned golden brown and fragrant. It was all lean meat with only a little fat on the skin, sizzling and frying under the fire.
The family of four watched eagerly as the roasted rabbit gradually cooked through; they simply couldn't wait any longer.
They devoured it as soon as it was served.
They were starving; even an iron man couldn't withstand drinking only water and thin porridge for a month or two.
The aroma of meat and its rich fat stimulated my salivary glands. I hurriedly tore off pieces of meat and stuffed them into my mouth, my saliva gushing out incessantly.
There was no time to wipe it clean.
The whole family was so moved by what they ate that they cried, their mouths dripping with saliva and their eyes filled with tears.
"Dad, Mom, Brother Lin said there are plenty of wild rabbits in the mountains, and he's telling everyone to go and chase them."
“Chasing rabbits is easy. Just find the rabbit hole, stuff it with some damp, dry straw, light it, and the rabbit will be smoked out.”
After eating until he was half full, Miao Qingsong relayed Lin Mo's words to his father.
In just a few words, he also clearly explained his rabbit-catching skills.
Upon hearing this, Lao Miao muttered to himself as he ate.
Why has that brat Lin Mo suddenly become so kind? He's even willing to share his hunting skills with others.
But right under his nose, he was indeed happily eating rabbit meat.
"Did he really tell you that?" Aunt Miao couldn't believe it either.
"Of course it's real! If it were fake, how come this rabbit is in our house?" Miao Qingsong patted his chest, firmly assuring Lin Mo:
"By the time this harvest is finished, the temperature will have dropped to almost zero. We can hardly count on the production team leaving us enough grain for the winter."
“We think we should listen to Lin Mo’s thoughts. If the team is really in the same situation as last year, with insufficient food and coal, we will have to rely on ourselves to store winter supplies.”
Turning his head to glance at his younger sister, whose face was covered in grease from eating, Miao Qingsong felt a pang of heartache in his eyes:
"We didn't make a new padded jacket for my little sister last year, are we going to make her stay on the kang (heated brick bed) all day long this year?"
Upon hearing about the new padded jacket, Miao Yatou's eyes lit up even more:
“Dad, Mom, Brother is right! Our old coats are so short they only cover half of the arms, we can’t wear them anymore.”
His words made sense, and the whole family fell into deep thought.
"Ahem." Old Miao's gaze returned to the wooden table. He hadn't noticed it before, but now that he looked up, the roasted rabbit was just a rack.
The rabbit head was still being held in Miao Ya's arms, and she was munching on it with her little mouth.
"Don't eat it. I'll pick up the rest and take it to your uncle. He hasn't had a dry mouth for months."
Miao Qingsong's stepfather was the son of his grandfather's brother, a very close blood relative.
He was so thin he was practically skin and bones; it looked like he might not survive the winter.
People these days value family ties. Anyone who is a little wealthy will always think about their poor relatives.
Old Miao put the remaining rabbit carcass into an earthenware basin, wrapped it tightly with an old steaming cloth, and then went out.
He came back a few minutes after going out, specifically to drag Miao Qingsong along.
“You should also talk to your cousin about the rabbit-catching thing.”
Upon hearing this, Miao Qingsong knew that his father had relented, and he quickly nodded repeatedly.
"good."
Meanwhile, Lin Mo had already returned home.
My younger sister, who is in the fourth grade of elementary school, has to come home for lunch every day, and my mother has to make a special trip back from the production team.
They brought back the food they had saved from eating for Xiaohua.
The mother and daughter glanced at Lin Mo with disappointment before silently continuing to slurp their porridge.
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