"Wake up!"
Early in the morning on the 8th, Xiulan woke up and shook Lin Heng.
"Oh, sleep a little longer, there's no rush." Lin Heng waved his hand and said.
"Didn't you say you wanted to go see the red leaves?" Xiulan pinched his face.
"It will be the same if you go later." Lin Heng hugged her and said.
Xiulan looked at him helplessly, went to the bathroom and came back to continue resting.
Lin Heng suddenly felt a little sleepy today, and it was already nine o'clock when he woke up.
He opened his eyes and saw Xiulan looking at him with big eyes: "Now that you are awake, let's get up."
"Okay." Lin Heng quickly got up and went to the toilet. When he came out, Xiulan had already put on her clothes and came to the yard.
Her hair was simply tied behind her back. She wore a dark red sweatshirt on her upper body and black pants on her lower body. She was doing her daily exercise in the yard.
After completing his training, Lin Heng practiced archery for a while. He felt a little rusty after not using it for several days.
Today is Sunday and Xiaoxia doesn’t have to be sent to school. After breakfast, Lin Heng and Xiulan took the three children up the mountain.
It would be very cold in the morning if the sun didn't come out. They walked up the mountain road looking for some delicious food.
"Dad, look at this, isn't it?"
Xiaoxia came over excitedly holding a small branch.
There is an insect egg the size of a little finger egg on the branch, with brown and white intersecting patterns, like a small egg.
"Yes, that's it, the chili can." Lin Heng nodded with a smile.
In addition to playing, their main purpose in going up the mountain today was to look for nutritious peppers and kudzu worms.
"Mom, I found two!" After a while, Lu Ming also came over with two twigs.
"I found it too, Dad!" Du Heng also found it and brought it over to ask for praise.
Lu Ming and Du Heng have also grown a lot in this year. Their speaking, comprehension and motor skills have greatly improved.
Although they are not as good as their sister, they can run, jump and climb trees. They don’t need Lin Heng and Xiulan to carry them to play, because they can walk by themselves.
Today I heard that we were going up the mountain to find something delicious, and the three of us ran faster than each other.
"Come on, let's see who can get the most." Lin Heng said with a smile.
There were four plastic bottles in the basket that Xiulan was carrying. Each of them had their name written on it, and whoever found it would put it in the bottle.
"Needless to say, it must be me. Lu Ming and Du Heng are both newbies. I can beat you two by myself." Xiaoxia came back with two cans of spicy food and said with a smile.
"Sister is the noob!"
"My sister is a big idiot!"
Lu Ming and Du Heng retorted unconvincedly.
"Hehe, then let's compete. The loser will be ridden like a horse. I don't bully the weak. You two can compete with me."
Xiaoxia pinched her waist with her hands and snorted softly, not at all scared. She bullied her two younger brothers at home and thought it was easy to control them.
"Let's compete, brother. The two of us can definitely surpass her." Du Heng said, holding his brother's hand.
"Well, let's surpass her, ride her like a horse, and spank her." Lu Ming nodded deeply.
Lin Heng and Xiulan were watching from the side and thought it was fun. Xiulan even said, "Then your father and I will be the referees."
As long as the children don't do anything dangerous, she is very tolerant of such playful activities.
"good!"
The three children answered in unison, and then looked around with the big eyes they inherited from their mother.
"Honey, it's over there." While paying attention to the child, Xiulan gave Lin Heng instructions.
There are a lot of these foreign chili cans, and you can see them on the roadside from time to time. She just found out that they are edible.
But she could accept it because bee pupae and silkworm pupae are all the same.
"There are some kudzu worms over there. Take them and I'll get them." Lin Heng handed the can of chili peppers he picked up to Xiulan and said.
In this way, the five people walked up the mountain, looking for kudzu vines and kudzu worms along the way.
Lin Heng and Xiulan naturally discovered the most, followed by Xiaoxia. Although Luming and Du Heng were already very powerful, they were still far behind their sister.
However, the two little guys were very persistent and kept searching everywhere, with a lot of Bidens pilosa stuck on their shoes and hair.
After a while they arrived at their own persimmon tree. Unlike last year, the persimmons on the tree this year were very sparse.
"I'll pick some. Do you want to eat them?" Lin Heng looked at the three children.
"I eat daddy!" Xiaoxia said, raising her hand.
Lu Ming and Du Heng did not answer, but just kept looking for chili cans on the small tree nearby, trying their best to surpass their sister.
Lin Heng climbed up the tree and picked five softer persimmons to share with his wife and children.
When you break open the pink persimmon, you'll see an orange-red, runny egg-like flesh inside. The flesh is sweet and sticky, and very satisfying.
"This is so delicious." Xiaoxia was very happy as the food was all around her lips.
Xiulan ate one and was about to ask her two sons if they wanted some, when she saw them jumping for joy under a small tree in the distance: "Wow, we found so many spicy cans."
"Mom and Dad, there is a tree of chili cans here. We found them all."
"One, two, three, four, five... so many..."
The cheers of the two people attracted Lin Heng and the others. When they got closer, they saw that it was indeed a tree full of red chili peppers. There were at least a dozen or twenty of them growing on this small tree.
"It's rare to find so many at one time." Lin Heng was also a little shocked, but he had also seen dozens of jackfruits on a tree.
Lin Heng picked all of them for them and put them into plastic bottles. Now their total harvest was more than Xiaoxia's.
"We already have more than you, stinky sister!" Lu Ming and Du Heng showed off with their hands on their hips.
"It won't end until we get home. I will surpass you, two silly brothers." Xiaoxia responded unwillingly.
Xiulan gave the persimmons to Luming and Du Heng, and after they finished eating, everyone continued to climb the mountain.
They were still looking for things along the way and walked very slowly. It was already past eleven o'clock when they reached the top of the mountain.
There was not much wind on the top of the mountain and the sun was very warm. Lin Heng and Xiulan found a spacious place and started to set up.
They took their food and prepared to have a picnic here, bringing the children along.
After putting the things down, they first spread out a mat for eating, and the three children all enthusiastically helped Xiulan.
Lin Heng took some charcoal and started a fire nearby. Although he was in the forest, he was not too scared. He just had to be careful.
When the charcoal was ignited, he put out the flame and shouted to the three children, "Help me find some stones."
"Here I come!"
"I found it!"
After hearing Lin Heng's words, the three of them quickly found the stones and moved them over.
Lin Heng also went to find stones. After surrounding the charcoal, he first boiled a pot of tea and then put the iron plate on it.
Xiulan poured some oil on it and then put the meat she had cut at home on it and fried it.
"Let's have tea first." Lin Heng took out a disposable cup and poured a cup for everyone.
"Would you like to try some chili peppers first?" Xiulan asked.
"Sure, I'll do it." Lin Heng nodded.
He took out the can of chili peppers he had picked up, cut a hole in it, and picked out the bugs inside. Soon he had filled a plastic cup.
"Just fry it directly." Lin Heng handed it to Xiulan after he was done.
Xiulan took out the fried meat and shared it with the children, then started frying the chili eggs.
Throw it in and it will be dead in an instant. Roll it a few times and it will be fried. Now you can sprinkle some salt on it and eat it.
"I'll go first." Lin Heng picked up the chopsticks and started eating. The sweetness and fragrance of the food made him give a thumbs up.
"I want to eat it second!" Lu Ming saw Lin Heng eating and wanted to eat it too.
The three children were not afraid. They just took it and put it in their mouths. After a few bites, they all wanted more.
“It tastes better when it’s fried thoroughly and as crispy as a scorpion,” Xiulan commented after eating it.
"Actually, it's also good when grilled," said Lin Heng.
They ate their food while the children chattered beside them.
Through the gaps between the trees, you can see the colorful forest below the mountain, and the slowly flowing Shiban River also looks very green.
Their staple food is the oil-dregs steamed buns brought from home, which taste very delicious when eaten directly after being heated.
"Dad, what are we going to do this afternoon?"
After dinner, Xiaoxia sat on Lin Heng's lap and asked.
"Go to the ditch over there and look for Pueraria lobata and Gastrodia elata. When you find them, go home." Lin Heng looked at her and responded.
"Then can we continue looking for the foreign chili can?" Xiaoxia asked again.
"Of course." Lin Heng nodded with a smile.
After packing up their things and putting out the fire, they set off and walked towards the ditch.
I didn’t bring the dog today, mainly because Xiongba’s foot was injured and he needs to rest.
When you get to this side of the ravine, you can see the racks formed by the continuous kudzu vines, and it is easy to find kudzu worms here.
After all, the more kudzu vines there are, the more insects there will naturally be.
Lin Heng was looking for kudzu worms inside, while Xiulan and her three children were outside looking for chili jars.
After being busy for nearly two hours, Xiulan suddenly said, "Honey, there's a big yam over here. Do you want to dig it?"
"Coming." Lin Heng walked out and went over there.
At this moment, the children had lost their initial excitement and looked a little listless, looking for chili jars like wilted flowers.
"Look, this vine is pretty good. I think this slope can be dug." Xiulan said, holding the yam vine.
Lin Heng looked at it and nodded, "Let's give it a try. I've found quite a few kudzu worms. Let's get them and go home."
He and Shirley still had energy, but the children were gone.
However, he gave up after digging half a meter because there were too many rocks underneath and it was destined to be a blade-shaped yam.
"Then let's go." Xiulan shook her head in disappointment.
"It's okay, we can plant some ourselves next year and use the yam beans we pick." Lin Heng said with a smile.
After picking up the yam beans, he chopped open all the bulging kudzu vines he found here and caught the kudzu worms inside.
After he finished and counted them, he found that the result of his work today was only seventy-eight, which was far less than the foreign chili cans.
When they got home, the children were full of energy again. They stopped for a while on the way to find some Gastrodia elata, and then went straight home.
When they arrived in the yard, Xiulan first tidied the clothes of the three children before opening the door to let them in.
Without exception, all three little ones lay down on the sofa. They were considered to have good physical strength. The city kids would probably be exhausted after climbing the mountain.
Lin Heng and Xiulan tidied up a bit and asked the three children to change their clothes and wash up.
"Mom, you come and testify for us to see who gets more."
After washing his face and changing his clothes, Lu Ming pulled his mother over to count the spicy cans.
Lin Heng also went to help. After the final count, Xiaoxia jumped up happily: "Good, I have more, more than my brother."
After she finished speaking, she came to the two brothers, looking down at them with a bright look: "Where did you agree to ride them as horses?"
"Just ride it, I will definitely have more than you next time." Lu Ming said unconvinced.
"That's right. I will definitely surpass you next time." Du Heng said viciously.
Then the two of them got on the sofa and knelt down to act like horses. The sister rode them around on the sofa, and Xiaoxia laughed happily.
Lin Heng and Xiulan didn't stop him. They drank some water and went to make dinner.
After the meal, the two of them picked out the insect eggs from the chili jar and froze them together with the kudzu worms, planning to make a big meal together in two days.
In the next few days, Lin Heng and Xiulan made persimmon cakes together. Although there were not many persimmons this year, there were still enough for making persimmon cakes.
After the rapeseed was planted at home, there was no more farm work, so Lin Heng always took his whole family with him when he went fishing.
The fish bite in autumn is the best among all the seasons, so you will get a good harvest if you go there. Lin Heng and his father each caught a big catfish weighing more than three kilograms.
The luckiest fisherman was the novice fisherman Lin Wei, who caught a six-jin grass carp one evening.
In such a peaceful life, the leaves fall and wither day by day, and those that are still on the trees become exceptionally yellow and red, like gold and blood, which make people intoxicated and unable to help but stare at them for the whole afternoon.
In mid-November, Xiulan soaked soybeans and Lin Heng helped her make tofu.
Stew the tofu and catfish together, then top them with plenty of chopped peppers and steam them. It tastes salty and spicy with the chopped peppers, the tenderness of the tofu, and the sweetness of the fish.
All of these combined together made a delicious dish that everyone loved, and everyone enjoyed the meal that night.
The kudzu worms and chili peppers that Lin Heng made were also well received by everyone. When they went to their eldest brother's house for dinner the next day, they also got a lot of them to eat.
During the slack season, they went to visit their grandmother, and Xiulan also returned to her parents' home.
After getting a car, Lin Heng would take Xiulan back to visit his parents-in-law whenever he had time, showing his filial piety to them.
In the second half of November, in addition to dining, gatherings and walks through the mountains, Lin Heng also asked someone to turn over the astragalus in his home and harvest the pasture.
He also went to the city to buy steel bars and brought back an electric welding machine. He built two greenhouses of more than 100 square meters on Hongfeng Mountain and another greenhouse in the field under the village road.
Within two days of finishing it, he covered it with plastic paper and started growing vegetables in it, and also planted some strawberries.
It is very joyful to grow things by yourself. When Lin Heng and his colleagues were planting, many people from the village came to watch and ask about the effects of these things.
Lin Heng had nothing to hide and told the villagers about it. They could actually guess what it was and wanted to know more about the construction cost of the greenhouse.
In the blink of an eye, the leaves fell off under the cold wind, and the mountains became bare again.
On the first day of December, Lin Heng originally planned to ask his elder brother to go to Sanchagou for a visit, but he received some very bad news that afternoon.
(End of this chapter)
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