Chapter 12
"Village Chief, Aunt Chen."
Worried that they would be busy with farm work in the afternoon and not want to take up too much of their time, Shu Wanxiu greeted them and then got straight to the point, explaining the cause and effect of the matter in a few words.
"You could say its rabbit burrow was built right in front of our house, but I've cleared all the grass around the house and never found a rabbit burrow there."
To say it died of illness wouldn't seem like the behavior of a sick rabbit. Seeing it inexplicably run into its own doorstep and die is truly unbelievable. After much thought, I speculate that perhaps a hunter chased and frightened it, causing it to panic and run away in a panic…”
"We don't know if anyone in the village knows how to hunt, so we came to ask you two for help. If it is someone else's game, please return it on our behalf."
Pang Zhishan rubbed his face a couple of times to wake himself up completely, then leaned over and picked up the wild rabbit in the basket to examine it closely.
Just as the girl from the Shu family said, from the outside, there was only one wound on the forehead.
He carefully put the rabbit back into the basket and said, "What do you mean by 'return'? It wasn't shot, wounded, or caught by someone else. Since it ran into your house on its own and accidentally died, it's yours."
After the case was closed, Pang Zhishan drank a bowl of cold water, put on his straw hat, carried his farm tools, and went out to tend to his family's few plots of land.
Shu Wanxiu was stunned. She had imagined several ways Pang Zhishan would handle the situation, but she never expected him to be so decisive, awarding such a large, fat rabbit to her family with just one sentence.
Chen Sanhe came over and helped her cover the rabbit with plantain, sincerely congratulating her: "You've survived a great calamity, and good fortune is sure to follow. You've encountered such good things even while staying at home, so I think your luck won't get any worse in the future. Take good care of your health and live your lives carefully."
Shu Wanxiu recovered her senses and thanked her.
Carrying the basket, she was about to turn back and think of a way to deal with the rabbit and bring over a bowl of meat when Chen Sanhe suddenly remembered something and called out to her repeatedly.
"Rabbit fur is a good thing, it's perfect for keeping warm, so please don't make jokes about it."
"Go to the blacksmith shop and find Xun Yi. Besides running the blacksmith shop, he goes hunting in the mountains in his spare time. He is the only person in the village who knows how to tan animal hides."
They were indeed without winter clothes and bedding, so Shu Wanxiu listened to advice, went out, turned a corner, and groped her way to the blacksmith's shop.
They encountered several villagers on their way to work, and Shu Wanxiu led Shu Shouyi to greet them one by one.
When someone asked her what she was doing carrying a basket of plantains, she said that she had been working under the sun lately and sweat was always getting into her eyes, which made them feel uncomfortable. So she picked some plantains to take home and boil them in water to drink.
These are all true. She has drunk the water boiled with plantain several times in the past two days. She just didn't mention that there was a rabbit hidden under the basket.
Before they knew it, the number of houses around them decreased, and the faint clanging of blacksmithing reached their ears.
Last time, Shu Shouyi saw Xun the blacksmith and was terrified. He hid behind the stove and didn't dare to come out while they were talking. Today, he had to meet him because he needed his help. Before entering the house, Shu Wanxiu comforted him and led him closer.
She stopped a short distance from the door as usual and called out, "Brother Xun? Are you there?"
The sound of hammering in the furnace stopped after a while, and Shu Wanxiu heard a clear male voice ask, "Who is it?"
Shu Wanxiu paused.
Before, she would answer whose daughter or whose sister she was; now…
"I am Shu Wanxiu, who lives in the mountains. I have something to discuss with you, Brother Xun."
There was a moment of silence inside.
"Come in and speak."
The clanging sound started again. Shu Wanxiu pushed aside the plantain covering the bamboo basket and led Shu Shouyi inside.
Stepping into the room, one could immediately sense the temperature had risen considerably. The tall, burly man she remembered from last time stood beside the source of heat—a red-hot stove.
Shu Wanxiu glanced at him briefly, and seeing that he was neatly dressed, she breathed a sigh of relief and got down to business.
"I heard from Aunt Chen that you know how to tan animal hides. This afternoon, a rabbit suddenly ran into my door and died. I would like to ask you to help me tan the hide of this rabbit."
"I don't know what price you usually charge for tanning animal hides. We... can't afford much in terms of payment, so we can only give you most of the rabbit meat from this rabbit."
"Is this alright?"
Shu Wanxiu was not good at bargaining. On the way here, she had already decided on the highest reward she could offer. If the blacksmith Xun did not approve, she would say "excuse me" and turn back to the mountain.
The man, a man of few words, looked up at her calmly, his hands still moving, and said his first words to her since she entered the room: "Pick it up and take a look."
This means having the will.
Shu Wanxiu quickly let go of Shu Shouyi and, as he wished, picked up the rabbit to show him.
He showed her both sides, her belly and back, and Shu Wanxiu saw him nod almost imperceptibly.
Hesitating whether to speak up and confirm with him again, I heard him say, "I don't need any rabbit meat."
Shu Wanxiu tightened her grip on the bamboo basket, her heart sinking.
Xun Yi finally stopped hammering the iron for a long time and put the knife-shaped iron block, which had cooled down considerably, back into the red-hot furnace.
With his back to Shu Wanxiu and the other woman, he said, "I'm short of firewood. Go up the mountain and cut down two camphor trees as big as bowls as payment."
The conditions are excellent, unexpectedly good.
Compared to eating real, nourishing meat, doing some physical labor is really nothing.
The problem is...
Shu Wanxiu thought for a moment and said in a consultative tone, "I don't have a machete. How about this? I'll borrow one from you, and I'll cut down four trees as big as bowls for you in three days."
It's better to borrow from the person in front of you than to shamelessly go to other people in the village to borrow a wood-chopping knife.
This time, she received a reply as soon as she spoke.
"The machete is on the table, take it yourself."
Since entering the room, Shu Wanxiu hadn't looked around after seeing where Xun Yi was, but now she started to take a serious look around.
As soon as she moved, Shu Shouyi became less reserved and began to observe the small kitchen with both eyes.
Xun Yi picked up the towel draped around his neck and wiped his face, letting them look at him as they pleased.
Shu Wanxiu looked around and found that everything in the room, whether it was hanging on the walls, placed on the table, or piled in baskets, was brand new.
The difference is that the items on the table are smaller, all of them are sickles, machetes, etc., and even the handles are made.
She scratched her head, a rare occurrence for her, and hesitated before saying, "Wouldn't that be inappropriate? They're all new. Could you give me your old, commonly used woodcutter's knife, or tell me where it is, and I'll go get it?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
