Chen Xiaobei paused for a moment, then immediately put down the rice and hurried to the wasteland outside the village.
As expected, Cui Hongyu and Chen Qiao'er were watering the vegetables!
The seedlings had already grown an inch or so tall and were lush green, truly a delightful sight.
Seeing Chen Xiaobei return, Chen Qiao'er skipped over to his side, happily calling him brother.
Chen Xiaobei reached out and patted her head.
"Qiao'er, were you good today?"
Chen Qiao'er nodded, "Qiao'er was very good. If you don't believe me, brother can ask sister-in-law."
Cui Hongyu also smiled and said, "Yes, Qiao'er is very obedient and can even help me water the vegetables!" Su Dan Novel Network
Then she changed the subject, "Husband, you take Qiao'er back to rest first. I'll be back to cook after I finish watering this."
Chen Xiaobei smiled and shook his head, stepping forward to take the iron pot from her hand. "I'll do it. You and Qiao'er go back first."
Cui Hongyu wanted to say more, but Chen Xiaobei had already domineeringly taken the pot.
Carrying the iron pot towards the river, Chen Xiaobei inwardly chuckled. The iron pot was shouldering responsibilities it shouldn't have to! It was supposed to be for cooking, but now it was also for watering. No, when he went to town again, he had to get a proper container.
What touched Chen Xiaobei was that by the time he finished watering and carried the iron pot back, Cui Hongyu had already cleaned the fish. Seeing him return, Cui Hongyu pointed to the fish and said, "Husband, I cleaned them the same way you did last time, removing the scales and gutting them, then I rubbed them with a little salt."
That's great. Hongyu was truly skillful and nimble. She only watched him do it once, and she remembered it perfectly.
Cui Hongyu stepped forward to take the iron pot and placed it on the stove. The so-called stove was still just three stones. She smeared some lard on the bottom of the pot, pan-fried the small fish on both sides until golden, then added water and began to stew them.
Not bad. This Cui Hongyu was really smart. After watching it once, she had followed all the steps correctly.
During dinner, Cui Hongyu proactively put a fish head into her own bowl, then gave the fish body to Chen Qiao'er, and smilingly gave the fish tail to Chen Xiaobei.
Chen Xiaobei was very happy. The two exchanged glances, sharing that knowing smile.
After eating a few bites, Chen Xiaobei proposed that he was going to enter Qingniu Mountain again.
Chen Qiao'er clamored to go, but Cui Hongyu quickly grabbed her arm. "Qiao'er, your brother is going into the mountains to do important business. How about I take you to Brother Dachun's later?"
Before Chen Qiao'er could speak, Chen Xiaobei directly uttered two words: "No."
"Why? You?" Cui Hongyu looked at Chen Xiaobei with surprise.
Chen Xiaobei looked at Cui Hongyu and asked very seriously, word by word, "You just said to send Qiao'er to Dachun's house. Do you want to go with me?"
Cui Hongyu's face blushed as her little secret was exposed.
"Hongyu, I've been going to Qingniu Mountain every few days since I was little. I know the paths there very well, so you don't need to go."
Cui Hongyu wanted to argue further, but Chen Xiaobei cut her off again. "Alright, no more arguing. I've made up my mind. You and Qiao'er wait at home. I'll definitely be back before sunset."
Chen Xiaobei's tone was unyielding, though his attitude was a bit stern.
But Cui Hongyu didn't feel that way. People said Chen Xiaobei was a weak man, but from his irrefutable tone just now, she could see a hint of manliness.
Chen Xiaobei, carrying the net for catching pheasants, walked into Qingniu Mountain.
Honestly, he had no idea what he would find today.
But still holding onto a sliver of hope, he first went to check the place where he had caught pheasants before.
Everything was as he expected; there were no more pheasants to be found here.
There was no choice but to venture further in.
It was said that there were wild beasts in Qingniu Mountain, so the villagers only dared to linger at the foot of the mountain.
Chen Xiaobei walked four or five li into the mountain. The weeds on the path became denser, indicating that this place was rarely visited.
Just like that, Chen Xiaobei kept his head down and rushed all the way to the Mountain God Temple.
In his memory, he had last been to the Mountain God Temple about six or seven years ago. At that time, Chen Qiao'er had just been born, and his parents were entirely focused on their younger sister, so he had no one to look after him. One day, he had bravely come here with Dachun.
After so many years, the Mountain God Temple had become even more dilapidated. Weeds grew profusely at the entrance, and the statue inside was already in ruins, looking as if it could collapse at any moment.
This was already the limit of his courage. He didn't dare to go any higher.
Behind the Mountain God Temple was a small grove of trees. Chen Xiaobei, with a "let's try" attitude, entered with his net.
To his surprise, there weren't many weeds in this grove. In the middle of the grove, there was even a small patch of bamboo.
However, the absence of weeds meant there were fewer hiding places, so there couldn't be any pheasants here.
Chen Xiaobei turned to leave, but the moment he turned, his gaze was attracted by several unusual plants nearby. A large patch of emerald green leaves, with a cluster of red granular things on top, likely fruits or seeds.
Seeing this, Chen Xiaobei felt it was somewhat familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere before. But he couldn't recall what it was for the moment.
He couldn't return empty-handed. Taking it back would at least be a good way to amuse Chen Qiao'er. With this thought, he picked the clusters of red granules and turned to leave, feeling a bit dejected.
Walking back to the Mountain God Temple, Chen Xiaobei felt his vision suddenly open up. From the Mountain God Temple, he could see all the way down to the foot of the mountain. The movements in the forest were all laid bare.
Seeing this, Chen Xiaobei had an idea. Yes, he had a vantage point. If he kept watching, he would surely spot the movements of the pheasants. Of course, the premise of being able to spot them was that he had to understand their activity patterns, and only when they were roosting or leaving their nests.
Sunrise to sunset, not only for humans, but also for animals. Therefore, if he wanted to observe pheasants, he had to reach the Mountain God Temple before dawn.
With this realization, Chen Xiaobei carried his net and descended the mountain.
Seeing him return empty-handed, Cui Hongyu didn't complain. Instead, she brought him a bowl of water. "Husband, you've worked hard. Drink some water first."
Chen Xiaobei took the bowl and gulped down the water. He said with an apologetic tone, "Alas, it was a wasted trip. I didn't find anything."
Chen Qiao'er carried the three-legged stool over to Chen Xiaobei. "Brother, please sit."
Chen Xiaobei affectionately patted Chen Qiao'er's head and took out the clusters of red granules he had picked from his pocket. "I didn't find any wild fruits on the mountain. I don't know if this can be eaten. Here, you can play with it."
Chen Qiao'er took it with a smile and was about to turn away when Cui Hongyu stopped her. Cui Hongyu took a cluster from Chen Qiao'er's hand, brought it close to her eyes, and examined it carefully. Her face was full of surprise. "Husband, where did you find this?"