At noon, the mother and daughter stewed a pot of fish soup, stir-fried some bamboo shoots, and steamed bamboo rice.
After finishing lunch early, we tidied up our things, putting away any unused pots, pans, and utensils into the stone chamber and hiding them by pressing a mechanism.
They're getting ready to go home!
The mother and daughter were dressed like refugees fleeing famine. Chen Hong used a bamboo pole as a carrying pole, with a burlap sack tied to the front and back.
The sack contained peeled bamboo shoots, weighing about 200 jin (approximately 100 kg).
On his back, he carried a bamboo basket containing bamboo fungus that was about 70-80% dried, and on top of that, another bamboo basket contained morel mushrooms that were about 30-40% dried.
Chen Hong was afraid that the basket would fall off while climbing mountains, so she carefully tied it tightly with a rope.
Yu Yang didn't leave empty-handed either. Chen Hong poked two small holes in a plastic box, threaded a rope through it to make a carrying strap, and made a lightweight little basket for Yu Yang.
It contained a large box of semi-dried bamboo fungus, but it wasn't heavy. The bamboo fungus took up space, and the whole box only weighed seven or eight pounds.
The mother and daughter marched quickly, only taking one break along the way, and finally emerged from the mountain at 5:30 pm.
His whole body was covered in cockleburs and burrs, his face was covered in dust, and he was sweating profusely, looking like a beggar who never washed his face by the overpass.
Chen Hong's hair was not smooth at all at this moment. It was messed up by the branches in the forest, and it looked like a crazy woman.
The mother and daughter followed the two dogs and trotted home, knowing they looked rather pathetic and trying to avoid people as quickly as possible to get home and wash up.
Unexpectedly, as soon as they arrived at the orchard, they encountered the village chief leading Xiaofeng to tidy up the greenhouse in the vegetable field, preparing to plow the land and plant another crop of vegetables.
When they saw Chen Hong and her daughter coming down from the mountain, they didn't recognize them at first, but they realized it was the mother and daughter when they got closer.
Xiao Feng watched them laugh heartily, but quickly stepped forward and took the load from Chen Hong's shoulders.
"Sister Chen Hong, what have you two been doing? What did you bring back?"
"Wow, it's so heavy! What's in the sack?"
As soon as the load was on his shoulder, Xiao Feng almost collapsed under its weight. He straightened his back with great effort and managed to shakily carry the load and walk quickly to the front.
The village chief also laughed heartily. He had known Chen Hong for seven or eight years, and this was the first time he had ever seen her so disheveled!
He chuckled and asked, "Did you hide in the mountains to avoid being invited to a banquet?"
No wonder your house was locked when I went there. Why did you bring the child into the mountains? Where did you stay last night?
Chen Hong took out a tissue to wipe her face, took the plastic box off her son's back, and handed him two tissues to wipe his sweat.
The village chief tried to take the basket off Chen Hong's back and carry it for her, but she dodged and refused.
"Uncle, let me carry it. It's not heavy at all. Come on, let's stop working and go home together!"
The four of them walked and chatted together, returning to Chen Hong's home.
Chen Hong opened the door, and although she had only been gone for two days, the house had not changed at all.
Pushing open the door, the furniture gleamed and remained spotless.
"Uncle, you and Xiaofeng, please help me move the mushrooms from the bamboo baskets and boxes to the storage room and dry them in the dryer."
The sack contained bamboo shoots. I kept one sack for my family, and Xiaofeng carried the other sack back to distribute among the families.
This thing was only found deep in the mountains; it's really heavy and difficult to handle. Everyone should try it out!
"You've gone deep into the mountains again? Oh my! How dare you be so bold?"
"And you even brought a child! I've discovered you're a real tiger!" The village chief was both surprised and a little worried.
Xiao Feng was pleasantly surprised: "Sister Chen Hong, why didn't you invite me when you went to the mountains to dig bamboo shoots?"
I also want to go into the mountains to see what good things there are. If you take me with you, we can definitely dig up an extra load.
The village chief and Chen Hong glared at him simultaneously: "You're dreaming!"
Village chief: "You're a man, how convenient is it for you to follow Chen Hong? You brainless idiot!"
Chen Hong: "My daughter and I finally have time to go on an adventure, why would we bring you along? You're just getting in the way!"
Xiao Feng shrank back, realizing that his words were thoughtless and based on assumptions.
No matter how close he was to Chen Hong's family, Chen Hong was still a single woman, and it wouldn't look good if word got out that a man and a woman alone together.
"What I mean is, Sister Chen Hong, you can invite me and Xiao Feng to go to the deep mountains next time. The more people there are, the more good things we can bring back. Besides, it's more lively with more people."
Chen Hong: How can I possibly have fun with you? You wish!
Chen Hong ignored him; she was eager to take a shower, change her clothes, and check on the chickens and ducks before making dinner.
Chen Hong led her son upstairs to take a shower and change clothes. After they came downstairs, the village chief had already helped her put a batch of mushrooms in the oven to dry.
He then laid out a mat on the floor of the storage room and spread it out to dry, waiting for her to come downstairs to go home.
"Chen Hong, you and the child pack up this bag of bamboo shoots. Xiao Feng and I will take this bag back with us. Please lock the gate!"
After seeing off the village chief and Xiaofeng, Chen Hong first went to the backyard to check on the chickens and ducks.
There is still food and water, but the water is frozen solid. I don't know if the chickens and ducks will get diarrhea if they peck at it and eat it.
I smashed the ice and poured it into the vegetable garden, and then added a new water tank for the chickens and ducks.
I went to the nest and picked out the eggs, and found that more than a dozen eggs had cracked from the cold.
Half of the eggs had turned into ice blocks, and the ones that hadn't cracked were impossible to knock. Chen Hong sighed; they must have been laid yesterday.
It's been frozen solid for two days!
Fortunately, it's still edible. Once it thaws, adding some scallions, chili peppers, and scrambled eggs will make it taste pretty much the same. In the countryside, we can't afford to waste a single thing.
Back in the kitchen, she placed the basket of eggs aside, with a bowl underneath.
When eggs come to room temperature, the egg white will definitely leak out. Once the egg white dries, it will stick like glue, making it difficult to clean later.
This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com