As soon as Wu Jing and Wu Jing arrived at the stream, they divided up, each taking one side, and walked upstream along the stream. They searched very carefully, digging up all the edible wild vegetables. Of course, they left the very small ones behind.
The Liu sisters were in a much more relaxed situation than Wu Jing and her companion were now. After all, the two of them were currently soaking in the pool.
After dinner, Liu Ruoling wanted to take a bath in the pool. She hadn't had a proper bath in a long time, and now that she had the time and opportunity, she definitely wanted to have a good one. Liu Ruoxi also wanted to bathe, but because she was a little worried, she let Liu Ruoling go first while she observed the surroundings. Seeing that Liu Ruoxi wouldn't go, Liu Ruoling went into the water alone. However, once in the water, Liu Ruoling splashed water on Liu Ruoxi, quickly soaking her clothes. Having no other choice, Liu Ruoxi also went into the water. Of course, before going in, she took off her jacket and put it by the campfire to dry. Both of them had taken off their jackets and pants, wearing only t-shirts and shorts, since this was a live broadcast, and the camera had to be pointed around to prevent it from going into the air.
The two played in the water for a while. Suddenly, Liu Ruoling grabbed a crab from the water and exclaimed, "Sister, there are crabs in the water! Let's catch more crabs and eat them when we get back!" Liu Ruoxi also wanted some, so the two of them started catching crabs in the water, quickly catching twenty or thirty. They only got out of the water when Liu Ruoxi felt it was getting a little cold. They changed their clothes in the bushes and tied the crabs up with vines. Then they wrapped their wet clothes in leaves, extinguished the campfire, and switched sides, continuing their journey back the way they came. Along the way, they continued to dig for wild vegetables when they found them, hunt when they found game, and now they had one more thing to do: catch crabs whenever they found them.
They walked and stopped frequently, taking more than two hours to reach their usual water-fetching spot. By then, their baskets were already full, with even some wild vegetables tied up and placed on top. Liu Ruoling had shot three birds, all of which were hung on the wooden spear. As for the crabs, they were in the pot, which Liu Ruoling was carrying.
Upon reaching the pond, Liu Ruoling put down what she was carrying and helped Liu Ruoxi put down her basket. Liu Ruoxi sat on a nearby rock, panting heavily, and said to Liu Ruoling, "Take out the clothes, wash them clean, then take them back to dry on the wooden hut. Then bring down a basket and remember to add firewood to the campfire." Liu Ruoling said she understood, then emptied the wild vegetables from the basket into the pond, found the clothes wrapped in leaves, washed them clean upstream, wrung them out a bit, and then carried the clothes back to the campsite.
As soon as Liu Ruoling left, Liu Ruoxi felt she had rested enough, so she went to the puddle to wash the wild vegetables. She washed them one by one and put them into her basket.
A short while later, Liu Ruoling came down carrying a basket. Liu Ruoxi told her to clean the crabs first, as they would be eaten crabs that evening. Liu Ruoling grabbed a handful of dry grass and began cleaning each crab one by one, placing the cleaned crabs into the basket she had brought with her. Soon, both of them finished their tasks at roughly the same time. Liu Ruoxi washed all the wild vegetables and put them in her basket, placing the rest in Liu Ruoling's basket. Liu Ruoling also cleaned all the crabs and put them in her basket, wrapping them in a large leaf.
Next, they continued processing the three birds. Liu Ruoling went to fetch a pot of water, while Liu Ruoxi lit a campfire. Since they had some firewood left over, they didn't need to look for more this time. Soon, the water boiled. Each person grabbed a bird, first removing the arrows, then placing it in the water and beginning to pluck its feathers. Liu Ruoling quickly finished processing one bird and moved on to the second. Liu Ruoxi hadn't even finished plucking the first one, perhaps due to insufficient experience. Before long, both of them had plucked all the birds' feathers. Liu Ruoling then began cleaning the three birds, starting by gutting them. Liu Ruoxi collected the feathers and down, washed them, and then wrapped them in a large leaf to store in the treehouse later. While Liu Ruoling gutted the birds and selected the edible organs, Liu Ruoxi cleaned them. Working together, they quickly cleaned all three birds, placed them in baskets, and each carried a basket back home. Since they had already reached the stream, they brought back a pot of water, which Liu Ruoling carried, as Liu Ruoxi was too tired to carry it anymore.
The two returned to the campsite. The sun was still high in the west. Seeing that it was still early, Liu Ruoxi decided to blanch the wild vegetables and let them air dry overnight, figuring they would be almost dry. After informing Liu Ruoling, they began blanching the vegetables. Liu Ruoxi placed the pot on the campfire and waited for the water to boil. Liu Ruoling first checked if the poles under the treehouse were enough and clean, then added two more poles. She then went back to the treehouse to fetch a basket to hold the vegetables. She also placed the feathers and down inside the treehouse.
The two of them worked for over an hour before they finished cooking both baskets of wild vegetables. Finally, Liu Ruoxi tested the remaining water, but after just one taste, her brows furrowed as if she were wearing a mask of pain. She immediately told Liu Ruoling to empty the pot of water, wash it clean again, and then fetch some water from the water storage pit to cook dinner.
Liu Ruoxi wrapped some of the crabs in leaves, then scooped up some mud, mixed it into a paste, and wrapped the paste around the crabs. She then placed the paste in the campfire and added more firewood. She found some thin twigs, made a simple sieve, placed it on the pot, put the crabs inside, and covered the pot with a large lid. Then she simply waited quietly; it wouldn't be long before they were ready to eat.
After the water boiled, the aroma of crabs filled the air in about ten minutes, but Liu Ruoxi waited a minute or two longer before taking the pot off the table. She set the pot aside, found a thicker stick, and used it to break up the embers covering the crabs, removing the mud ball that had enveloped them. After a few minutes, when the soil had cooled slightly, she used the stick to break up the mud, picking it all out until only the leaves that had wrapped the crabs remained. Even the outer layer of leaves was discarded. She placed the crabs and leaves on the table, then used another leaf to scoop the steamed crabs out and placed that on the table as well. Dinner was ready.
The two began to eat dinner, each taking a crab. During the meal, Liu Ruoxi asked Liu Ruoling to put all the crab shells together so that they could crush them when they had time. They could then add some crab shell powder to their cooking as a seasoning, which would at least give them some flavor.
The two quickly finished the crabs, but were still a little hungry. However, Liu Ruoxi didn't plan to cook anything else, figuring she could eat less at night to avoid gaining weight. Of course, Liu Ruoxi's real thought was that since she wasn't doing anything that night, eating less wouldn't hurt. Liu Ruoling couldn't do anything about it, so she could only take the pot to wash, while Liu Ruoxi cleaned up the pile of leftovers.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com