The children were overjoyed, their shouts and screams startling a flock of birds that flew away from the branches.
"Aunt Yu, you're amazing!"
They looked at Ke Meiyu with their little eyes filled with admiration.
She slightly raised her chin and said, "Keep it low-key. This method of catching rats is quite effective, as long as you are willing to use fragrant baits such as fried dough cakes and fried dough cracklings."
"You're not allowed to use my good fortune as an excuse, or I'll become a charlatan and be paraded through the streets sooner or later."
Everyone nodded repeatedly and covered their mouths.
"Yes, your aunt really cares about you and wants you to eat well. We caught dozens of mice with this rat-catching device, and that's what everyone says when they ask."
"If I hear any of you little brats making a fuss, my fists won't be for nothing!"
Before the children could say anything, Ke Meiyu's older brothers started waving their fists and trying to scare them.
Although the older brothers of the Ke family didn't like to work and were categorized by the villagers as petty thieves and brawlers, they were still young men with strong muscles, and their gritted teeth were quite intimidating.
"Uncle, we know!" the children replied, tears welling in their eyes.
"Brother," Ke Meiyu called out, rubbing her forehead in exasperation, "What are you doing messing around with the children? Why don't you hurry back and roast some rat meat?"
"Hey," the men's expressions immediately changed, and they nodded with silly grins.
The children's joyful laughter was infectious, making adults forget the unpleasantness of the day.
Adults and children alike got busy, and even Grandpa Ke was happily shaving bamboo skewers with a knife.
The more mice you catch, the more you get to share. The five older brothers of the Ke family eagerly handed over the first field mouse they had roasted.
Ke Meiyu smiled sweetly and praised and thanked them, then ate with gusto.
Encouraged, the brothers continued to roast rat meat for their sister.
Ke Meiyu carried on the tradition of splitting the bill when eating barbecue, quietly piling up her empty bamboo skewers to the side, so that everyone thought she ate little and kept letting her have her way.
So Ke Meiyu ate seven field mice, while only three pairs of bamboo skewers were placed in front of her.
She was about to take the roasted meat from her second brother when Grandma Ke intercepted it, saying, "Yu Bao'er has eaten three pieces; she can't eat any more. She'll be going to sleep soon, and eating too much will cause indigestion."
"Tomorrow Grandma will make you braised food with potatoes and mushrooms, and then top it with a layer of mixed flour pancakes. I guarantee you'll love it!"
Ke Meiyu reluctantly withdrew her claws, nodding with tears in her eyes, "Grandma, I'll wait!"
She was only half full.
Alas, during the apocalypse, although she wasn't hungry, she only had a few food options.
But once she got here, with so much delicious food, she found herself constantly hungry, racking her brains to find ways to eat even a few more bites...
After enjoying the rat meat to their hearts' content, everyone lingered for a while before dispersing and going back to their rooms to sleep.
After the little dumpling beside her fell asleep, Ke Meiyu listened carefully to the sounds from each room. Suddenly, she realized that being able to eat her fill and have meat at night was a luxury, so it was normal for the men to be full of energy and try their best for their wives.
However, her five simple-minded, bachelor brothers slept soundly, their snoring creating a symphony.
Ke Meiyu quietly climbed out the window and left, heading straight for the back mountain.
Having learned from her previous experience and with food in her belly, she ran incredibly fast, soon entering the deep mountains. Armed with her spatial ability as a cheat code, Ke Meiyu reveled in catching several flocks of pheasants, a herd of wild boars, five large, plump adult roe deer, two deer, and even a bear!
It took her only two hours to get back to the cabin.
The village was quiet. Ke Meiyu focused her consciousness into the space. The wild game had already been sorted and placed into the warehouse compartments, taking up very little space.
In order to fill her stomach as soon as possible, Ke Meiyu gritted her teeth and looked at various recipes, starting with practicing the most basic food preparation.
Fortunately, she could use her divine sense to operate within the space. Although it was tiring, it was highly efficient!
After processing the pheasant, her mental energy was almost depleted, and her stomach began to rumble in protest.
Ke Meiyu used seasonings she smuggled from the kitchen to make the simplest beggar's chicken.
Stuff the chicken cavity with potato chunks, shiitake mushrooms, scallions, ginger, and garlic. Brush the outside with wild honey, sprinkle with salt, wrap it in lotus leaves, then cover it with mud and bury it in the ground.
She buried ten chickens in one go, lit a bonfire on top of them, and made sure the beggar's chickens were heated evenly.
Even though the chicken was sealed, it didn't take long before Ke Meiyu seemed to smell the enticing aroma of the chicken!
Given the overpowering smell of chicken, she was afraid it would wake the little dumpling from her dream, so Ke Meiyu secretly found a sheltered spot and ate the three chickens before her stomach could finally stop burning.
After letting the smell dissipate, Ke Meiyu returned to her room and continued processing the remaining ingredients in the space.
We don't have enough seasonings at home, so we can't make many of the dishes on the recipes.
Ke Meiyu simply picked a piglet, stuffed it with food, brushed its skin with honey, and roasted it over a fire as a reserve of food.
She plans to buy more seasonings when she goes to town tomorrow, and then carefully cook a delicious meal.
Just thinking about those tempting dishes in the recipe book chased away all of Ke Meiyu's laziness.
Just as she was drifting off to sleep, she suddenly opened her eyes and turned her head to look out the window.
It's past three in the morning, the time when people are sound asleep. There's not a sound in the village, not even the autumn insects chirping lazily, unwilling to disturb the silence of the night.
The door to the second room was opened very slightly, and Ke Enshu bent over and slowly approached the window of the side room of the main room, which was Ke Meiyu's room.
The sound of the match striking the box was slightly harsh. After one strike, it didn't light. Ke Enshu paused, then struck the match again very quickly. A flame hissed up, and she quickly lit the cigarette made from the paper in her notebook.
Wisps of smoke drifted in through the cracks in the window!
Ke Meiyu squinted, held her breath, and stared coldly at the shadow on the window.
About ten minutes later, Ke Enshu took out a knife and slowly moved the latch on the window, then tiptoed into the house.
She walked to the bedside and gently nudged Ke Meiyu, only to find that the woman on the bed was breathing heavily and showed no signs of waking up.
With a gloomy face, Ke Enshu saw Ke Meiyu's serene appearance under the bright moonlight. She couldn't help but raise the knife in her hand, wanting to leave a hideous scratch on her flawless face.
She gestured at Ke Meiyu's face for several minutes, but finally restrained herself, tucked the knife behind her waist, and began to rummage around.
The room was only so big, and she quickly searched it thoroughly, but couldn't find what she was looking for.
Ke Enshu bit her lip, unwillingly put the things back to their original state, and climbed out the window to leave.
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