Chapter 121 The Lazy Girl in the Historical Fiction 9
Looking at the disheveled young man before him, Luo Dashan asked incredulously, "What did you say? You caught a wild boar?"
It's no wonder Luo Dashan was shocked. This guy from the Black Five Categories was as thin as a corn stalk, with hardly any flesh on his body. He didn't believe that he could catch a wild boar. Someone like him would be easily knocked away by the wild boar!
However, he still followed Xu Yan back to the cowshed. When they got to the foot of the mountain, they really saw a wild boar lying on the ground with its belly not rising and falling. It had obviously been dead for a long time. The wild boar's hind legs were bent, so it must have fallen into some ditch. It had been hungry for a long time, and its ribs were clearly visible. Even so, it was still a wild boar!
Luo Dashan turned his head and looked at Xu Yanhui with some curiosity, asking, "Young man, how did you kill this wild boar?"
Xu Yanhui calmly pointed to the broken tree stump and said, "This wild boar just crashed into this tree and was knocked unconscious. I saw it lying on the ground unable to move, so I hit it with stones until it died."
Upon inspection, Luo Dashan saw that the tree had indeed been broken, and a piece of the wild boar's bone was dented from the impact. It seemed that this young man was lucky to have encountered such a wonderful thing.
Actually, Luo Shu punched the wild boar, causing it to crash into the tree and break, but there's no need to say that now.
Luo Dashan beamed with joy. In an era where people rarely ate meat more than twice a year, this wild boar could provide a meal for everyone in the village. There was no other way; although Xu Yanhui was nominally the one who killed the boar, these things now belonged to the state, and Xu Yanhui was a member of the "Five Black Categories," so he had no right to decide what to do with the wild boar.
Luo Dashan called over two strong young men to carry the wild boar away. The wild boar wasn't very big, weighing at most a hundred pounds. Its entry into the village caused quite a stir. Everyone was taking their afternoon nap, but seeing the wild boar enter the village, they stopped sleeping altogether. After all, what's more important than eating meat?
A group of people surrounded Luo Dashan and his group and walked to the open space in front of the village committee. Almost everyone was there, including all the educated youth. Then Luo Dashan took out a megaphone and said in an excited voice, "Comrades, this time we were able to catch this wild boar thanks to Comrade Xu Yanhui. Let's give him a round of applause."
Xu Yanhui held Xu Qinghe's hand. Hearing the enthusiastic applause around them, he remained expressionless. His slightly long hair covered his eyebrows and eyes, making the young man appear timid. He hadn't been noticed for a long time, hence his timidity.
Luo Dashan then gave a speech, the gist of which was that everyone should be grateful to these two "black five categories" for being able to eat meat, and that they should be polite to them in the future and not bully them. He then thanked the Party and Chairman Mao, and spoke for about ten minutes. This was a characteristic of that era, as he recited Chairman Mao's quotations before distributing the pork.
Then everyone boiled water, removed the hair, and slaughtered the pig. After slaughtering the pig, the most important part, dividing the pork, came next.
No matter how these unclaimed items are distributed, they will be unevenly distributed, so the village's method is to draw lots and leave it to fate.
Two jin of pork per household was about right, and two and a half jin of offal per household. This distribution was fair. As for the pork bones, they were left to Xu Yanhui and his brother, and they were also given a piece of good pork hind leg. No one in Shanghe Village objected, since they were able to eat this meat thanks to the two of them.
Xu Yanhui lowered his eyelids, looking like a grateful young man who didn't know how to express his gratitude. Holding his younger brother's hand, he could only keep thanking him, making him look even more timid and hesitant.
Yang Bo, one of the educated youth, remarked, "What kind of meat does someone from the 'Five Black Categories' deserve to eat?"
He spoke to Xu Yanhui in a carefree manner, without any regard for the two brothers. The two brothers heard what he said clearly. Xu Yanhui did not look up, but his shoulders shrank slightly. Xu Qinghe felt as if he had been stung by what he said and hid behind his brother. Yang Bo smiled maliciously at the child.
He didn't see the disgusted expressions on Luo Dashan's and the other elderly villagers' faces. Although they were classified as "black five categories," Shanghe Village was full of illiterate rural people. They had heard that Luo Dashan had committed some kind of cultural crime. What did that have to do with them?
In addition, since the two were still young, the villagers did not interact with them on a daily basis, but they also did not deliberately bully them. Xu Yanhui never expected that his life would be so peaceful after arriving in Shanghe Village.
You know, in many other places, the "Five Black Categories" would be paraded through the streets and have big-character posters put up. Before he came, he had already thought about how to face his tragic fate. Unexpectedly, he was living a better life than before. It has to be said that the people in this village are not bad-hearted.
As for these educated youths, Xu Yanhui had no interest in them. These pampered young people had little to do with him.
Everyone happily drew lots, took their meat home, and headed back. The midday sun was still strong, so those who had received their meat ran quickly. Xu Yanhui, along with his younger brother, carried the meat and a large bucket of pork bones back home. In the summer, this meat needed to be processed quickly, but they didn't have enough salt to cure it, so they could only smoke it.
Xu Yanhui had eaten smoked meat before, and his grandfather had also taken him to see how others made smoked meat. He remembered that the cowshed where they lived was at the foot of the mountain. Xu Yanhui cut a big bag of pine needles and brought them back. Pine needle smoked meat was the best.
White smoke enveloped the succulent pork, emitting a strong pine scent. However, they had to eat the meat quickly; they couldn't protect this unexpected windfall, and only by consuming it could they feel at ease.
"This young man is quite good; this wild boar has arrived at just the right time."
Wang Meifeng was washing garlic while chatting with her daughter, her face beaming with joy. Anyone would be happy to get a free meal of pork. Luo Shu was picking green beans next to her, her fair fingers weaving through the green beans, a sight to behold.
"Mom's making you stir-fried green beans with pork today. Is there anything else you'd like to eat, honey?"
Luo Shu nodded, her lips red and teeth white, her face as beautiful as a peach blossom in March, so beautiful that it dazzled the eyes of everyone. Wang Meifeng's heart pounded when she saw her little daughter. How could she grow more and more beautiful?
She's really afraid to let her daughter go out freely these days. There are so many child predators out there, and she's terrified that her daughter will be kidnapped or targeted by some hooligans in the village. If that happens, she'll have nowhere to turn.
Luo Shu's gaze fell on the piece of pork. His family had been allocated a piece of pork belly. Wang Meifeng kept marveling at her good luck, as she was particularly satisfied with the meat she received. In this era, oil and fat were scarce, and the most popular cuts were not ribs and tenderloin, but rather pork fat. However, their little darling did not like to eat fatty meat, so getting pork belly was perfect.
This is the pig that Luo Shu killed. The male protagonist is smart; he maximized his benefits. From then on, the two brothers had different statuses in the village. The village wouldn't do anything openly, but if the two brothers were really in trouble, they would definitely help them. The current environment isn't good, so they don't dare to do anything openly.
This wasn't part of their original destiny. Xu Yanhui and Xu Qinghe lived quietly in the village until their grandfather was exonerated and they were taken away. They didn't attract anyone's attention. Now that this has happened, hopefully their lives will be smoother!
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