Grandpa Zhao chimed in, "Xiao Chuan is right. Once these people have all come down the mountain, our lives will return to normal."
"Let's wait and see. We have plenty of food and drink, so we'll be fine no matter what."
Five or six days passed peacefully, and when Lu Chuan went to inspect the mountains again, there was no one left.
However, they didn't pay any more attention to what would happen to them after they went down the mountain.
Since it's already mid-October and winter hunting hasn't started yet, the Taoist priest and Lu Chuan wanted to take advantage of the time before it snowed to hunt a batch of wild game so they could add some dishes for everyone during the New Year.
Because they raised a lot of chickens and ducks at home this year, and there were also many wild rabbits, wild cattle and wild sheep in the house, and in addition, they wanted to give the mountains and forests time to recover, so the two of them did not go hunting in the mountains much this year.
After more than two years of recovery, the number of prey in the mountains has increased dramatically, and it is said that the number is now almost the same as before the disaster.
Don't underestimate the reproductive capacity of these animals; they can survive a considerable number of prey outside the normal food chain.
Especially wild rabbits and pheasants, which reproduce even faster.
After dinner that day, everyone sat around the fire pit to warm themselves. The nights in October were already quite cold, and it was impossible to sleep without lighting the fire pit.
The Taoist priest, unfazed by the cold, sat away from the fire pit, munching on konjac crackers, and said with a smacking sound, "Tomorrow, Xiao Chuan and I will start our winter hunt in the mountains. If you need any meat at home, just let us know. We'll get it for you."
Xu Han laughed and said, "Anyway, we don't lack chicken. If we're talking about meat that's in short supply, it's definitely beef."
Upon hearing that it was beef, Lu Chuan and the Taoist priest immediately fell silent.
The Taoist priest looked even more embarrassed and awkwardly touched his nose.
"Beef is a bit difficult, but it's not impossible."
Although bison are very large, it's not impossible for two people to hunt them back; it just takes a bit of effort.
Xu Han chuckled and said, "We won't need many. One cow will be enough for us to eat during the New Year."
Lu Chuan gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, let's go with the head cow. Anything else?"
"You can have two muttons, and as for the rest, you can decide. My family doesn't eat wild boar or roe deer, and we can't sell them in the county town right now, so we don't have to hunt them."
The Taoist priest nodded. "Well then, let's go hunt a wild buffalo tomorrow."
Xu Han joked, "Do you need my help?"
"No need, don't underestimate us."
Grandpa Zhao watched the group bickering with a smile, without saying a word.
As Lu Chuan poked at the brazier, he said, "I didn't have time to go into the mountains to pick chestnuts, pine nuts, walnuts, or anything like that this year. I don't know if there are any left in the mountains now."
Xu Han replied, "There should still be some pine nuts and walnuts, but the chestnuts might have been eaten by insects."
"Let's look around near our house another day. It would be even better if we could pick some. You and the kids both like to eat them, and they can have them as a snack."
"That works too. We know exactly where the trees are, so picking them won't be a problem."
Many of the trees planted under high pressure this year have survived, and they'll bear fruit in a few years, making it much easier to eat them then.
Grandpa Zhao chimed in, "Who says it isn't true! It's so convenient to grow something at home and eat it all the time."
Xu Han smiled and continued, "Next year, let's plant more fruit trees and walnut trees, and then we'll cover the surrounding hillsides with them. Once things are more stable, we can sell them for money."
"Haha, you little money-grubber, you're thinking far ahead."
Everyone knew that Xu Han planned to plant fruit trees all over the hillside. Although no one was very optimistic about planting fruit trees, since the fruit was difficult to transport and could only be consumed within the nearby county, they still supported Xu Han's idea.
Whenever Lu Chuan and the Taoist priest had free time, they would help Xu Han with the air-pressed fruit trees. After the fruit trees took root, they would transplant them to the hillside next to the house.
After two years of hard work, we have more and more fruit trees at home. Now the hillside next door is full of fruit trees. If we continue with high-pressure planting next year, we will have to move to another hillside to plant them.
Fortunately, there are many hills at home, otherwise there really wouldn't be any place to plant them.
The next morning, Lu Chuan and the Taoist priest set off into the mountains to hunt. They wouldn't be back for two or three days.
After finishing her chores, Xu Han took a basket and went out.
The chickens in the orchard have started laying eggs one after another. During this period, Xu Han can collect dozens of eggs every day. She has truly achieved egg freedom and no longer has to save eggs like before.
That day, Xu Han entered the orchard as usual and skillfully found the chicken coop to start collecting eggs.
After collecting all the eggs, Xu Han was surprised to find that there seemed to be many more eggs than usual today.
So he took another basket from his spatial storage and started counting right outside the chicken coop: "1, 2, 3, ... 46, 47, 48."
Xu Han became happier as she counted. There were a total of 48 eggs, 7 more than yesterday. It seemed that another batch of new hens had started laying eggs.
At this rate, 100 eggs a day will be within reach in no time.
There are now three or four hundred chickens in the chicken farm, all of which were hatched by Xu Han in the spring.
Chickens hatched in the summer are too hot and are prone to dying, while autumn is too busy and there is no time, and winter is too cold and not suitable for hatching, so fewer chickens are hatched.
No rush. This is the first year to accumulate experience. We'll strive to reach new heights next year and hatch even more chicks.
After collecting the eggs, Xu Han took her basket to the lower reaches of the stream, where ducks and geese were raised. They had started laying eggs recently, and she needed to collect them in time, otherwise they would be eaten by other creatures.
Only after collecting all the eggs did Xu Han carry her basket home.
Now that the family produces a lot of eggs, Xu Han is very generous. When cooking breakfast this morning, she boiled 20 eggs. In addition to the eggs for her own family, Xu Han also boiled an egg for the dogs. Each dog gets an egg to help them get some nutrition.
With the extra eggs, Xu Han quickly made a dish of egg and garlic, which was incredibly delicious when eaten with steamed buns.
After finishing breakfast, Xu Han had nothing to do, so she took out a jar and planned to make all the duck eggs she had recently collected into salted duck eggs.
Boiled duck eggs don't taste good, and they're also fishy when stir-fried. The best way to prepare them is as salted duck eggs.
Salted duck eggs are delicious whether eaten with porridge or used in dishes, and my family loves them.
All the salted duck eggs were made, filling two large jars, enough to last a long time.
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