All four of them got up. Wang Lun and Li Ling each put on their own clothes; of course, Wang Lun put them on outside, and Li Ling put them on inside.
The four sat by the fire pit, watching the pot of wild vegetable and fish soup. The wild vegetables simmered, and the fish floated to the surface. Their feelings mirrored their own. Wang Lun, that splash of white, evoked endless imagination, making one want to explore his secrets. Li Ling, a fleeting glimpse, held a mixture of shyness, secret joy, and a touch of melancholy, leaving one puzzled. Liu Ruoxi's eyes followed the movement of a single vegetable leaf, her heart rising and falling with the memories she recalled. Liu Ruoling, on the other hand, was simply focused on the pot of wild vegetable and fish soup, wondering if she could drink a few more bowls later, and also wondering when she could stop eating wild vegetables and fish and try something else.
Suddenly, Liu Ruoling said, "They're cooked, you can eat now." She stood up and went to the shelf to get all four bowls. Startled by Liu Ruoling's words, the four people were all taken aback. Wang Lun and Li Ling exchanged a glance, then lowered their heads, straightened their clothes, and sat up straight, quietly waiting for the meal to begin. Liu Ruoxi turned to see Liu Ruoling bringing over the four people's utensils, shook her head, and said, "I'm not hungry, you can take yours." Liu Ruoling ignored her, went straight to the table, placed the utensils on it, and sat down to wait for her meal.
Liu Ruoxi shook her head, picked up the bowl on the table, and first served rice to Li Ling, then Wang Lun, and finally Liu Ruoling. Of course, Liu Ruoling didn't say anything, because she knew that Li Ling and Wang Lun must be very hungry. Finally, Liu Ruoxi served herself a bowl, though it had more soup than vegetables.
The four of them quickly finished the pot of wild vegetable and fish soup. Of course, Wang Lun and Li Ling ate the vast majority of it, while Liu Ruoxi and Liu Ruoling only ate a little. After all, it's a late-night snack, so it's best to eat less.
After having a late-night snack, the four of them were still quite excited, so Liu Ruoling kept pestering Wang Lun to tell them about what had happened during the day. Wang Lun couldn't resist and told them everything that had happened during the day.
When the topic of wetlands came up, Liu Ruoxi worried about the two of them. If they fell into the wetlands, rescue would be difficult, so she had to back out. When Wang Lun mentioned seeing reeds, Liu Ruoxi thought of using reed fluff as winter gear. But before she could express her thoughts, she heard Wang Lun tell the other three to remember to gather as much reed fluff as possible when they had time, and also to check if there were any wild ducks in the reeds. If so, they should hunt a couple or collect some duck eggs to eat. All three women said they understood.
When Wang Lun mentioned finding sugarcane, this time it wasn't just Liu Ruoxi who was happy. All four of them were excited. Although Wang Lun and Li Ling were the discoverers, the gatherers, and the porters, they were still thrilled when they thought about that patch of sugarcane again. Liu Ruoxi and Liu Ruoling were also excited. Liu Ruoxi knew it could be used to make sugar, while Liu Ruoling was simply happy because it meant having another food to eat.
When Liu Ruoxi suggested using it to make sugar, Wang Lun asked, "Do you know how to make it?" Liu Ruoxi replied, "I've only read about it in books, I've never actually done it." Wang Lun said, "Tell me." Liu Ruoxi then explained the steps she had seen in the book. After listening, Wang Lun said, "Very good, just like what I saw." Liu Ruoling said, "Then won't we have sugar to eat from now on?" All three of them nodded. Liu Ruoling said, "Then let's get started quickly, the sooner we make the sugar, the sooner we can eat it." Wang Lun slapped her on the head and said, "What are you thinking? It's time to rest. You all go to bed and rest, I'll take care of the rest of the time." Liu Ruoxi and Liu Ruoling both said, "No, I (Ruoling) will do it." After saying that, they even called Li Ling to help push Wang Lun onto the bed. Wang Lun had no choice but to go to bed and sleep, leaving the night watch to Liu Ruoling.
Before the three of them fell asleep, Liu Ruoling diligently watched the fire. After they fell asleep and started snoring, Liu Ruoling quietly went to the front of the kang (a heated brick bed), called out softly, and when no one responded, she went to her basket, took out a sugarcane, peeled it, and then sat down in front of the fire pit to eat the sugarcane.
After finishing one sugarcane, she felt a little worried about what Liu Ruoxi would say to her when she woke up in the morning. So, she thought for a moment, then brought over the earthenware pot and the sugarcane mortar. She then grabbed a large handful of sugarcane and washed it outside. Back inside, she cut the sugarcane into small pieces, threw them into the mortar, and used a stone pestle to extract the juice. Once there was some juice, she scooped it into the earthenware pot with a spoon. She continued eating, only occasionally sneaking a piece or two.
In the morning, when Wang Lun and the other two got up, they saw that Liu Ruoling had already filled a ceramic pot to the brim with sugarcane juice. Luckily, she knew there was only one iron pot left, otherwise she might have filled the iron pot as well.
Wang Lun highly praised Liu Ruoling's actions, even though he knew her motives weren't pure. He still commended her, as he couldn't let her do so much for nothing. So Wang Lun instructed Liu Ruoxi and Li Ling to quickly cook breakfast, and after breakfast, to boil all the sugarcane into sugar.
While they were cooking breakfast, Wang Lun fed the pheasants, rabbits, and goats, then washed the remaining sugarcane so it could be juiced directly after the meal. Actually, the yield from sugarcane was quite high. According to the book, Wang Lun estimated he had brought back about 200 jin (approximately 100 kg) of sugarcane, enough to make at least 10 jin (approximately 5 catties) of brown sugar. That would be enough to last until the end of the competition, though they would have to eat it sparingly. After all, there were four of them, and they could eat quite a lot each time. Of course, Wang Lun didn't tell Li Ling and the others this; it was just his estimate.
After the meal, Liu Ruoxi began to boil brown sugar, while Wang Lun, along with Liu Ruoling and Li Ling, started processing the remaining sugarcane. Wang Lun chopped the sugarcane into small pieces, and Li Ling and Liu Ruoling took turns using a stone pestle to extract the juice. Of course, the four of them occasionally ate a piece or two of sugarcane, which didn't bother them much.
Wang Lun had the sugarcane, after being juiced, collected together, intending to feed it to the rabbits and goats along with some grass. A few pieces could also be given to the pheasants, but the rabbits and goats would be the main focus. After all, the goats were much larger, and there were more rabbits than pheasants.
Before long, the iron pot was full, so they used both pots together to boil brown sugar. Liu Ruoxi and Wang Lun each held one pot, while Li Ling and Liu Ruoling took turns when Wang Lun and Wang Lun got tired, and the remaining person was responsible for tending the fire.
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