nucmednet Chapter 110 In Exchange
Chapter 110 In Exchange
She used a piece of bamboo as a ruler, formed a straight line, and used charcoal to draw shapes of different sizes, covering an area of about twenty square meters. After determining the shape, she picked up a hoe and dug within the charcoal line.
They dug for more than two hours that night. At the beginning, they only dug a little bit. She expected to dig more than one meter deep.
After a tiring day, she washed her hair thoroughly, took a hot bath, and lay comfortably in bed to rest.
Whenever she worked a lot during the day and was very tired, she could fall asleep in seconds as soon as she touched the bed and sleep soundly until waking up the next morning.
Wake up and feel refreshed.
For breakfast, she peeled a few yams and threw them into a pot, cooking them with a handful of rice. She also cut a piece of cured pork belly and stewed dried bamboo shoots, and stir-fried a dish of Chinese cabbage.
You must eat a good and full breakfast so that you have the energy to work.
She boiled some chicken and duck eggs for Heihei.
The eggs at home are usually dark brown, which she eats more often, but she doesn’t like them very much.
The boiled taro is okay. After being used to eating yams, yam and cassava, the taste of this is quite novel.
After dinner, she cleaned up the house, fed the chickens, ducks and rabbits, and took her things out. It was just past seven o'clock.
After waiting for the Li family, the group headed towards the dense forest.
In the morning, they picked mushrooms, wild vegetables and hunted in the woods. As it was getting close to noon, it was time to eat, so they went to the tree by the stream where they had been last time to have lunch, and then went to explore the upper reaches of the stream in the afternoon.
Several men from the Li family went to the woods to set traps, and Han Zhibai took Heihei and Xiaobai to hunt.
Xia Qingyue, Chen Yuzhen, Chen Dawei and his son stayed behind to pick wild vegetables by the stream.
It had rained, and since it was next to a stream, the soil was quite moist, so logically there would be at least some wild vegetables growing, if not a lot.
However, after searching around, the four people did not find many wild vegetables.
"I just took a look and found traces of human activities around. There must be people walking around here often." Xia Qingyue said.
Chen Yuzhen frowned and looked around vigilantly, "I think so too, otherwise we should go somewhere else."
"Let's wait for them to come back first. If we don't find them, we might get separated from them."
Chen Yuzhen and the others thought it made sense, so they returned to the tree and remained on guard throughout the process.
An hour later, Han Zhibai came back with Heihei and Xiaobai. They had a good harvest, including a rabbit, a pheasant, a civet cat, and two badgers.
"I've heard that badger oil is very beneficial. It's great for treating burns and scalds, it can reduce swelling and relieve pain, it can be used to fry eggs, and it can relieve stomach ulcers."
It was the first time that Xia Qingyue saw a live badger with her own eyes. She was a little curious, so she watched the two badgers from a distance.
The badger has thick limbs and a medium body. Its body hair is black and its face is a mixture of black and white hair. At first glance, it looks a bit like a hairy wild boar.
"Han Zhibai, could you please help me deal with the badger later? I won't take it back."
She didn't plan to raise the badger, so she just killed it, kept some of the fat, and roasted it.
Han Zhibai nodded slightly, picked up two badgers and walked towards the stream.
"Hey, Han Zhibai, wait a moment."
Xia Qingyue told Chen Yuzhen and the others what she had guessed just now, "So we thought about changing the place after everyone comes back."
Han Zhibai said: "Maybe he is that woman's accomplice."
"Are you talking about Tan Xiaozhu?" Chen Yuzhen asked.
He nodded, his eyes as dark as a deep pool of water looking towards a certain direction in the forest, "There is a cave over there, where a group of men live."
Some time ago, he went out with Xiaobai and passed by there. He happened to see those men. This area is close to the dense forest street and there are many ferocious beasts. Apart from that group of men, few people have set foot here.
"Are there many of them? Who are they?" Xia Qingyue asked.
"There are about a dozen people. I guess they are villagers from the mountain."
She said, "I'll go with you to the creek to deal with the badgers. There's water here. After we're done, we'll move to another place when uncle and the others come back."
The two men and two dogs went to the stream.
Heihei and Xiaobai ran into the stream and played in the water happily.
Han Zhibai used a knife to cut the badger's body in several places and swiftly pulled off its fur. "Do you want to keep the fur for nitre making?
I'll give you whatever you want."
She was just planning this and a smile appeared on her face. In a flash, the smile gradually faded and her brows furrowed.
If she hadn't mentioned this, she wouldn't have remembered that there was one thing missing from the material for nitrifying animal fur that she didn't have.
Han Zhibai, who had been moving his hands, didn't wait for a response. He looked at her and saw that she was in trouble. His hand holding the knife slowed down.
"Um, Han Zhibai, I want to ask if you have any Glauber's salt?"
"Have."
Like the sun after the rain, she smiled again, her eyes bright and moving, "Can I exchange something with you for Glauber's salt?"
After saying that, she began to feel troubled again. What could she use to exchange with others?
"Please help me make candles." Han Zhibai said.
She looked up when she heard the voice, her expression slightly surprised.
He looked at Xia Qingyue, his long eyelashes trembling twice, his dark eyes were as clear as a stream, and his eyes were still as calm as always, "In exchange, I will give you Glauber's Salt."
After saying this, he lowered his head and continued to deal with the badger, easily ripping it open. The internal organs and blood floated downstream along the stream.
"Really?" Xia Qingyue was pleasantly surprised. Then, she exclaimed, and looked at Han Zhibai with a puzzled look, "But didn't I tell you before how to make candles with Chinese tallow tree fruit?"
"That's too much trouble. I have other things to do."
Han Zhibai cut open the second badger without even raising his head. He turned his wrist and the tip of the knife rotated and cut the fatty part of the badger's body, removing pieces of fat.
"Oh, that would be great."
Xia Qingyue, who was squatting by the stream, took the first processed badger and rubbed its inside with crumpled wild grass. She also said that she would go out for a day and would not come out later.
As she spoke, she slowed down her movements and turned her head to stare at Han Zhibai, but from this angle she couldn't see the specific expression on his face.
"I see."
After dealing with the badger, the two men and two dogs walked back under the tree. Several men from the Li family came back from hunting.
"Change place?" Li Benfu asked Xia Qingyue. It was obvious that he had learned about the things by the stream from Chen Yuzhen.
"Let's change, Han Zhibai, do you know of any safer and more secluded places nearby?"
Han Zhibai nodded and said yes.
The group immediately packed up their things and followed Han Zhibai to a remote place in the forest. It was on the edge of a cliff, with a flat terrain, shaded by large trees, and the grass growing on the ground was like a natural green blanket.
Standing here and looking down, you can see towering mountains, undulating and steep, covered with lush green trees. Look up and you will see the blue sky.
“The scenery here is so beautiful.”
Everyone looked around and was impressed by the beauty before them.
Han Zhibai lit a fire and roasted two badgers, while Li Benfu and his men killed and roasted chickens and rabbits.
They ate barbecue while enjoying the beautiful scenery.
After dinner, Xia Qingyue said to the Li family: "I have explained my situation to Han Zhibai."
The Li family understood and turned their eyes to Han Zhibai.