After parting ways with Chen Ahua, Su Nanxi led the group down the mountain.
They returned home laden with their spoils: vegetables, a pheasant they'd caught on the way, and meat—that was enough!
When they arrived at the river, everyone was overjoyed to see the water. They couldn't wait to dive in and swim around. They had all experienced the coolness of the water before, and now just seeing the water made them want to cool off!
Su Nanxi dared not let them go swimming, but only told them to wash their faces, hands and feet to refresh themselves.
"Ooh!"
Alright! They all happily ran towards the riverbank!
Su Nanxi remembered the drowning prevention education that her school often talked about in her previous life!
Now it seems very necessary!
Upon seeing water, they act as if they've seen anything else, disregarding everything else!
Look, Mo Qinghe is just like a child, so excited, and he even took the lead in watering the plants!
The question is whether or not they need to be educated!
Sigh! Oh well, this is a shallow beach with pebbles underfoot. We won't go any further, so let them play for a while!
Out of the corner of her eye, Su Nanxi caught sight of several unfamiliar figures. She wondered why people from other villages were here collecting snails.
The snails in this river have been touched countless times. They just dip a little bit of water in and then touch a little more. There's never a moment when they stop!
But few people from other villages come to this river to fish, because the nearby villages all have rivers flowing through them, just different sizes, so there's no need to go to other villages!
Moreover, those people looked like novices; they didn't know much about snail hunting, and they couldn't find many snails in a long time, which made people very suspicious!
"Third Aunt! Are there still fish in this river?" Mo Dongcheng shouted.
Su Nanxi looked at the river water and said, "There should be some!"
Why ask this?
Mo Dongcheng smiled and asked cautiously, "Third Aunt, can you catch fish?"
Mo Jiarong laughed and scolded Mo Dongcheng, "If you want to eat fish, just say so! When did you start beating around the bush? Stop trying to confuse your third aunt!"
Su Nanxi gave him a look that said, "Exactly! A little devil!"
Mo Dongcheng was caught off guard, but he wasn't angry. He just grinned shamelessly and said, "Third Aunt, I want to eat fish! Can you catch any?"
Su Nanxi looked around and told him regretfully, "No! We don't have buckets, so we can't hold the fish!"
Mo Dongcheng was disappointed, but then he cheered up again. "Then I'll go home and get it! Third Aunt, how many buckets do you need?"
This foodie!
They're willing to run around under the scorching sun just to have a bite of fish!
Just as he was about to say they'd talk about it another day, Mo Qinghe stopped him, "Let him go back and get it! He's small, but he runs really fast! If you don't catch it, you won't have a moment's peace! We haven't had fish in a while, why don't we catch some and have a meal!"
All right!
When Mo Dongcheng heard his third uncle say this, he knew that it meant he agreed. He put down his basket and ran as fast as he could!
Passersby who didn't know better might have thought he was being chased by a wild beast!
Su Nanxi was speechless. Was it really necessary to run so fast?
Mo Qinghe pulled Su Nanxi aside and asked, "Wife, what's the best bait?"
Su Nanxi's eyes darted around; this was something she wasn't good at!
She really didn't know!
Anyway, as long as she wants to catch fish, no matter what bait she uses, there will always be fish that bite!
But before answering, he mumbled, "Let's release earthworms!"
With just one sentence, Mo Qinghe immediately went to the field to dig up earthworms!
Ugh! This person!
When Mo Dongcheng brought the bucket, Su Nanxi threw the earthworms directly into the water, and sure enough, fish came over shortly afterward.
Su Nanxi didn't need to fish at all; he just grabbed a bucket, slammed it down, and lifted it up, and the fish were in the bucket!
Just as easy as fishing!
Want as many as you want? Catch as many as you want!
The Mo family was already used to it; Su Nanxi always caught fish this way, so they didn't think there was anything wrong with it!
However, several figures not far away also looked over and were stunned to see Su Nanxi catching fish so casually, exclaiming "Wow!"
This guy is amazing!
Amazing!
I'm so envious, jealous, and resentful!
When will they have this skill? Then they won't have to worry about food and clothing!
Sigh! Forget about fish, you can't even find a few snails that aren't moving!
It's true what they say, comparisons are the thief of joy!
Su Nanxi and Mo Qinghe noticed that people were watching them from not far away, but they didn't pay much attention. The children were immersed in their joy and excitement and didn't notice what was happening around them.
Amidst a cacophony of squeaking noises, the group carried their wooden buckets back home!
When Old Xu saw the fish, he regretted not going with them, but then he thought about how he would be eating fish later and felt better about it.
The children clamored for fish, so the two elders laughed and killed the fish, preparing all the necessary ingredients for stewing and frying it.
They've eaten it many times and cooked it many times, so they know the ropes and which ingredients to add to make it taste better!
The kids love to eat fish prepared in different ways, but whatever Su Nanxi makes, there's never any left over; even the plates are spotless!
It smells so good!
So, they usually catch a few big fish, stew one big fish, fry two or three smaller fish, and if there are any left, they make sweet and sour fish or pickle and dry them.
There are many ways to cook fish. As long as you add enough ingredients and do it just right, and put a little effort into it, it will taste delicious!
It smells so good it'll make the neighbor's kids drool!
While working, Grandma Mo chatted idly, talking about what she knew.
“Outsiders have indeed come to our village. I saw them when I came back. I heard from the villagers that they came to seek refuge with Cao Dajia. There's a real famine going on where they're from, and they have nothing to eat, so they had no choice but to flee. Cao Dajia is also very poor and can't help them much, but it's still better than their hometown, so they've decided to stay for the time being. They've already spoken with the village chief. The village chief agreed to let them stay in the village temporarily, and they must abide by the village rules and regulations!”
Su Nanxi suddenly remembered the figures she had seen by the river and casually asked, "Where do they live and what do they eat?"
Grandma Mo didn't look up and continued, "Where else can we stay? It's good enough to have a place to stay. Do we even have a choice? We'll definitely be staying in someone else's old house! We'll have to take care of our own food. I heard that Master Cao gave us some grain, but that's all! It's pretty good here. We can go to the mountains, fields, and rivers. We can get whatever we can eat by ourselves, so we won't starve to death!"
Su Nanxi understood; the people she saw by the river must have been refugees fleeing famine.
"Oh, I remember now. I heard from the villagers that they went snail hunting today. It's because they tasted the stir-fried snails that the villagers gave them last night, thought they were delicious, and couldn't get enough, so they went to the river to hunt for snails themselves."
Su Nanxi was right!
Most people in the village know how to stir-fry snails, but the taste varies. It's not particularly delicious, but it's quite tasty with chili peppers. In this era of scarcity, it was a delicious side dish.
When the villagers have free time, they sometimes go and touch it; this thing is everywhere as long as there is water!
"They've never done this before. Do they even know how? If they can't do it right, how can they stomach it?"
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