Chapter 104: Stealing Bites
liked to come and try their luck.At this time of year, the reeds are withered and yellow. Some still stand straight, while others seem to have surrendered to the winter's chill, lying prostrate along...These days, because there are too many people, it's difficult to "perform magic". The small courtyard is overflowing with chicken eggs, duck eggs, goose eggs, and all kinds of vegetables.
"Mom, let's go pick up the eggs!"
Five words, and the old woman was as invigorated as if she'd been injected with chicken blood. Glancing left and right, she saw that the other women were already three meters away. She quickly picked up her granddaughter and walked a few steps deeper into the woods.
A woman saw her and called out, “Auntie, don’t walk too far! Be careful of snakes!”
"Okay, I understand." The old woman replied, and the woman didn't bother her any further. She had to hurry and pick mushrooms in time to make a mushroom soup for dinner, to give everyone a change of taste.
Jia Yin took the opportunity to quickly scatter a pile of eggs, a pile of chestnuts, and a pile of dates in the grass.
More than thirty eggs, five or six jin of chestnuts, and five or six jin of dates.
Actually, she wanted to take more out, but the eggs could be said to be from wild chickens, and the chestnuts and dates could be blamed on the industrious squirrels.
As for the rest, taking out duck and goose eggs is simply a slap in the face at the speed of light. Where would ducks and geese come from in the deep mountains and old forests
Also, there are fruits and vegetables. Where do fruit trees come from, and where are vegetable gardens
Fortunately, she wasn't in a hurry, taking her time, there would always be opportunities.
She had no intention, nor the ability, to support the entire village's food and drink.
But if you find an opportunity, it's good to take out some things and improve the food for everyone.
After all, everyone in Li's family is eating from the same pot. They don't have the chance to eat alone...
Luckily, the old woman was easily pleased. Seeing so many things, she was almost dancing with joy.
She also knew she couldn't be too ostentatious, so she quickly picked up the eggs and took off her outer garment, wrapping it around the chestnuts and dates.
Jia Yin leaned on the old woman's back, seeing that her hair had turned even whiter, she couldn't help but feel heartache. So she softly complained, asking the old woman to sit down.
She found two honey cakes from the space courtyard.
This is sold at the big market in my hometown. It uses mountain wild honey, its appearance isn't as pretty, but it has a traditional flavor. One piece is as big as a palm and very affordable and sweet.
She bought three kilograms at the market yesterday and brought them all here today.
The old woman saw her granddaughter holding this strange "snack" and eating it in small bites, happily squinting her eyes.
She also tentatively took a bite, and before she could swallow, she turned her head to look towards the camp.
Jia Yin guessed she was thinking about her grandchildren. With such delicious food, she wouldn't want to eat it all by herself.
"Milk, eat, eat! At night, for big brother!"
Jia Yin tried her best to stuff the snacks into the old woman's mouth. The old woman hesitated for a moment before taking a big bite. After finishing, she helped her granddaughter keep watch.
Jia Yin simply took another big apple and ate half of it with Grandma.
The grandfather and grandson carried the eggs, chestnuts, and dates back to their camp.
"Hongying, come quickly, look what I found!"
It has to be said that the old woman was a natural actress. With one shout, she gathered the women, and then excitedly told them all about how she found wild eggs and robbed the squirrel's nest.
While onlookers were surprised and delighted, Tao Hongying understood this "standard operating procedure" all too well.
Then, she held her daughter's little face and kissed her soundly before getting back to work.
Eggs should be cooked halfway, one for each child to supplement their bodies.
Uncle Zhao, several elderly gentlemen in poor health, plus the village head's wife and Doctor Zhang, each also get one.
Thus, half a dozen eggs were used up in one go.
Everyone felt compassion, but none hesitated in their actions.
When you're out on your own, nothing is more reassuring than the health of your elders and children.
If one person gets sick, everyone else will feel worried too.
Dates can be stored for later use, chestnuts can be boiled and the skins removed to add to congee. This not only fills your stomach but also saves on food rations.
The mischievous boys followed behind each other, pestering until they got a handful of chestnuts, which they then tossed into the bonfire.
When they were cooked through, the chestnut kernels were soft and sweet. They were so happy, they skipped with joy.
The first thing Jiā'ān did after returning home was to rush to feed his little sister chestnuts.
The boys weren't very good at this. The chestnuts came out burnt black, half of them were completely charred.
The two little brothers broke it in half, carefully bringing it to their sister's mouth.
Jia Yin didn't mind, she smiled and ate a few bites then stopped.
Jia An Jia Xi only stuffed this into his own mouth, eating as if he had grown a black beard around his mouth.
Three siblings, heads facing each other, smiling brightly, made the women envious.
The Li family's children are always well-behaved, while the mischievous boy in their family only knows how to have fun and never knows how to take care of his younger siblings.
While Jia Yin was learning to speak and entertaining her brothers, she kept an eye on the steamer in the corner where she was making steamed buns.
After more than a year of training, she had mastered control over space.
They could handle threshing, milling grain, and even steaming buns with ease.
She also couldn't bear to use all white flour, after all, the food stored in the small courtyard was limited.
Luckily, there was still corn noodles. Half white flour and half corn flour, added yeast, fermented, then cooked on the stovetop. Finally, when all the work was done, it was already past midnight.
And by now the villagers had all finished their meal, except for those on night watch; the rest were asleep.
Outside the shack, Li's family had built another sheet of oil cloth to block the rainwater. Inside, a young baby slept. At the door, the old woman held Jia Yin. Outside, there were Jia An, Jia Xi, Tao Hongying, and Zhao Yuru.
As for Jia Ren, Jia Yi, Jia Huan, and Li Lao Er, they slept outside the circle with the other men from the village. Even when sleeping, they were subtly protecting the elderly, women, and children.
Jia Yin quietly nudged her grandmother. The old lady, already feeling lightheaded, thought her granddaughter needed to use the restroom and sat up directly.
Jia Yin quickly hugged her neck and stuffed a warm steamed bun into her hand.
Li Laotai was so startled that she shivered. She vaguely smelled the aroma of noodles, and she understood what was going on.
She didn't dare to speak. She excitedly kissed her granddaughter and then gently patted her two grandsons, "Don't speak, open your mouths."
Jiā xǐ jiā ān shuì de mí mí hū hū, dào shì tīnghuà, zhí jiē zhāng kāi le zuǐ. While Jiā Xǐ and Jiā n were sleeping soundly, their hazy sleepiness made them obedient. They simply opened their mouths directly.
The entrance of the result was sweet and solid, which made them immediately sober up.
Buns!
Still thin noodles, I don't know what's inside, a slightly different kind of sweetness.
The two boys ate with shining eyes, but not a sound dared they utter.
It was just eating and chewing, eating and chewing, that the empty stomach slowly lost its burning sensation.
Feeling full is just so blissful!
The old woman didn't eat a single bite, she kept feeding her grandson two steamed buns before finally stopping. "Go to sleep," she said, "don't tell anyone."
Jia Xi Jia An immediately closed her eyes, quietly sipping the lingering sweetness between her teeth. She was secretly excited but dared not make a sound.
Li Laotai again held her granddaughter and went to find her three grandsons. Jiaren was alert and woke up when she heard the noise.
Li Laotai directly stuffed him three steamed buns, then waved her hand lightly. Jia Ren immediately understood and carefully hid the buns in his bosom.
When Grandma had held his little sister and put her back to bed, she stayed for a while before he called out to Jia Yi and Jia Huan, "I need to go to the bathroom, I'm a little scared, will you come with me"
Jia Yi Jia Huan immediately got up, and the three brothers walked out ten steps.
Tonight, Liu Biaotou led his men to guard until the middle of the night. Seeing this, he instructed, "Don't go too far."
The three brothers nodded quickly, finding a spot hidden from view but not far from camp.
Jia Yi unbuckled his pants and started to urinate, but when he saw Jia Ren hadn't moved, he was about to ask him something. Just then, Jia Ren pulled out three steamed buns from his pocket, startling Jia Yi so much that his eyes almost popped out of their sockets.
Instead, Jia Huan looked as if he suddenly understood. No wonder he had smelled the aroma of noodles just now...
A short while later, the three brothers returned to camp and continued sleeping.
Nobody knew they had an extra, warm bun in their belly compared to everyone else.
With this steamed bun as a base, it was as if the icy grass beneath me had warmed a little...en married for a few months! Is it possible for her, as a granddaughter-in-law, to know the secret recipe for making ice"Little Funiu, sister-in-law won't see anything today. You can rest assured, si...