Return to the small mountain village in 1983

Chapter 80 Liangyu Zizhu
  After his parents left, Lin Heng looked at Xiulan again. It was this woman. Even though his parents objected, he still stood by him.

Just like when her parents didn't agree with her marrying far away, she still resolutely followed her to Maple Tree Village.

"What are you looking at? Is there something on my face?" Xiulan blinked at him with a smile on her lips.

Lin Heng smiled and shook his head: "No, I just feel that I have a beautiful and virtuous wife."

"You're so proud of me for praising me like this. From now on, if I don't make food or take care of my children, I'll just eat at home." Xiulan joked.

"No problem, I won't let you do anything from now on, it's fun." Lin Heng chuckled, but this was what he meant.

"Okay, okay, look at your daughter, I'm going to make lunch." Xiulan smiled and stood up with the picked vegetables.

"Let's have something good for lunch today, cornmeal-cooked fish." Xiulan turned around and said after walking halfway.

"That's a good feeling. I haven't eaten this for a long time. I'm here to help you." Lin Heng carried his daughter into the kitchen.

Xiulan first boiled two kinds of wild vegetables, shepherd's purse and gray green vegetables, in water to serve as whistles, and then boiled water in a pot.

Cold fish is a delicacy that is eaten every summer in rural areas. It uses simple ingredients and has a good taste, so it is very popular.

Xiulan took out a pound of corn flour (a relatively coarse corn starch) and boiled it with water until it turned into a batter.

Boil water in a pot, and prepare a basin of cold mountain spring water outside. When the water in the pot boils, pour the batter into it and stir quickly. The corn flour will quickly turn into a light yellow semi-permeable membrane colloid when heated.

At this time, scoop up the semi-permeable membrane colloid with a water ladle and pour it into a ladle with small holes as thick as your index finger. Below the ladle is mountain spring water.

The colloid will be divided into 'small fish' with pointed ends through the holes. After being cooled in the water, it will be completely shaped. It looks like beautiful small fish swimming in the water, so it is called cool fish.

In fact, this is jelly, but the production method is different and the tools used are relatively primitive.

Not long after, a large basin of cold fish was ready. Xiulan changed the water again to make it completely cold, because the colder this thing is, the better it tastes.

After it was chilled, she put it into bowls. Xiulan put some lime greens and shepherd's purse, added oily spicy seeds and rugosa leaves, garlic chilies, and poured a little vinegar. Lin Heng's mouth was watering even before he ate it. .

There is no need to add salt. Garlic chili made in rural areas is usually heavily salted in order to preserve it for a longer period of time. Youpo chili and vegetables also have some salt.

"Okay, you can eat." Xiulan prepared three bowls and brought them to the table.

It was so nice to have a bowl of ice-cold jelly on a hot day of more than [-] degrees. Just when Lin Heng wanted to eat it, a little hand next to him grabbed him: "Ba Ba, eat~"

The daughter opened her mouth wide and looked at him with her big round eyes.

"Okay, okay, you eat first." Lin Heng picked up her non-spicy portion and fed it to her.

"You eat, I'll feed you." Xiulan said.

"It's all the same, it doesn't matter." Lin Heng shook his head, scooped up a small fish with a spoon and fed it to Xiaoxia.

"Ah~"

My daughter took the spoon into her mouth in one gulp and had to wait for a while before letting go.

"Eat quickly, don't eat the big ass." Xiulan glared at her, turned around and got a small branch.

"It's delicious. If you hit me with a branch, your butt will bloom." Lin Heng threatened while feeding him.

Xiaoxia looked at the branch in her mother's hand, stretched out her hand to cover her little butt, and started to eat it obediently.

"I'm full!" After eating for a while, Xiaoxia gave up and ran to the yard to play with the dog.

"It tastes so good!" Lin Heng took a sip and squinted his eyes in intoxication.

The cornmeal cold fish is smooth and chewy, and it is invincible when paired with garlic chili. The shepherd's purse and gray vegetables also taste very good, with a special texture and unique taste. It is really perfect when paired with the cold fish.

No wonder it is so popular in rural areas.

Life is hard, and it’s not easy to eat such delicate food.

Lin Heng ate three or three bowls in a row before he was satisfied.

"There's still half a pot left. You can take it to dad. He also likes to eat this." Xiulan looked at Lin Heng and said, she deliberately made so much just to give Lin Heng to give to his mother.

"Okay." Lin Heng nodded and came to the old house with the cold fish.

Pushing open the courtyard door, he saw Father Lin having a drink with his uncle in the hall. There were only two plain dishes.

"Dad, we made cold fish and brought some to you." Lin Heng said with a smile.

Father Lin glanced at him and said, "Your mother is down there. You can take it back and eat it yourself."

"Here you go." Lin Heng felt that his father was still a little angry, so he directly put the basin on the table.

"Sit down and have a drink," his uncle said.

"Okay." Lin Heng sat down with a smile. He was not angry with his father at all and understood his mood.

If he hadn't been reborn and knew the future development well, he wouldn't have dared to do such a thing.

After drinking two glasses of wine, Father Lin didn't seem so angry anymore.

"Lin Heng, have you asked Tian Baishun?" After taking a sip of wine, his uncle asked again.

"No, I guess he can do it anytime. He was at home when I went there this morning, and he didn't plant many crops.

It's just that Xiulan asked me to help remove corn weeds tomorrow, but it might have to wait until the day after tomorrow. Lin Heng shook his head and explained.

Father Lin raised his head and looked at him coldly: "With your irritable personality, I'm afraid I won't be able to remove the weeds and seedlings as well.

Just me and your elder brother will be enough. Hurry up and go up the mountain with your uncle. "

Lin Heng: "...This is not good."

"What's wrong? If you kill a prey, don't you share the meat with everyone? It's all the same."

Father Lin said coldly, "The main reason is that I don't like your attitude in doing farm work. You can't even plant seedlings without staggering."

Father Lin has a little obsessive-compulsive disorder, and he still remembers Lin Heng’s uneven transplanting of rice seedlings.

"Okay, uncle, let's leave early tomorrow morning. I won't drink anymore. I'll go and inform Tian Baishun now." Lin Heng stood up and said.

"Take that turtle in the basin back to the fish pond. It's too small to eat and of no use." Father Lin said again before leaving.

"Okay." Lin Heng was not polite and picked up the tortoise in the basin.

This tortoise must be quite old. Its whole body is black and shiny, and the golden thread on its belly is obvious. It looks quite good-looking.

It's a pity that rural people only pay attention to how big it is and whether it can be eaten.

First take it home and keep it in a wooden basin with the turtles. The fish pond must not be placed there, otherwise it will become a buffet.

"Daddy Wugui gave it to you?" Xiulan hugged Xiaoxia and walked over to take a look.

"Yes, dad also asked me to go hunting with my uncle tomorrow. There is no need to weed. I am going to call Tian Baishun now. You can prepare some hunting food for me.

We will go into the mountains for two or three days this time. If there is prey, it may take a week or even a week. It is probably difficult to come back for the Dragon Boat Festival. You can spend it with Mom and the others then. Lin Heng said looking at his wife.

"It's okay, it's just a Dragon Boat Festival. It will be the same when you come back." Xiulan said with a smile, not caring.

Lin Heng didn't care too much. In this era, celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival is just eating a rice dumpling and frying a few dishes of delicious food. If there is meat, it is the Dragon Boat Festival every day.

"Then I'm going to find Tian Baishun."

After saying that, he turned around and went out to inform Tian Baishun.

Tian Baishun's family lives on the hillside on the east side of the village. There are a lot of people in that area, which is more densely packed than here. The village committee is also there.

Tian Baishun is a lonely old bachelor with no children and far away relatives. He is unlovable because he likes to gossip.

Especially when I heard that he liked to flirt with women, it was even more disgusting.

Lin Heng actually didn't want to hunt with him, but he thought that this man was an old hunter and it would be a good idea to learn from him once or twice.

This old man's house is also an earthen house. He rents all the land to others for planting. He only needs a little food every year to feed himself. He also raises a sheep and an old hunting dog.

When Lin Heng arrived, the old man was taking a nap on the master's chair in the main room, and the sheep were tethered to graze outside the courtyard dam.

"Wang Wang!"

Under the eaves, a large black and white dog rushed towards Lin Heng, with its teeth exposed. It was extremely vicious, but fortunately it was tied with an iron chain.

Tian Baishun woke up and saw that it was Lin Heng. He couldn't help but said, "Are you going hunting?"

"Yes, we will leave tomorrow. Just come and gather in front of my house early in the morning." Lin Heng nodded.

After saying that, he turned around and was about to leave. Tian Baishun quickly stopped him and said, "Come and chat for a while and have a drink of water."

"What's there to talk about? Let's talk about the details tomorrow. I still have to go home and pack my things." Lin Heng shook his head and left directly.

Tian Baishun was a little helpless. He was bored and wanted to chat with others. When Lin Heng got home, Xiulan was making food for him on the road. Wowotou was definitely the best thing to keep, and he could take a can of bean curd with him and eat it for two days.

Lin Heng then packed up the things he needed. First of all, bring more rainproof film paper, which can be used as a raincoat, and when building a shelter, it can also be used as a roof to prevent rain.

Disassemble the lighter and fill it with kerosene. Check the small flint on it. If it is short, replace it with a new one. Be careful not to start a fire when you go up the mountain.

Bows, arrows, and slingshots should also be inspected, and knives should be sharpened. A hatchet should be used for cutting mountains, and a knife should be used for cutting meat.

A few plastic bags, two strands of rope, an old-fashioned iron cup, a flashlight, and two dry batteries.

You also need to bring a pound of salt with you. When hunting in the summer, you sometimes have to run far away, and sometimes you catch prey that smells bad before you get it back, so you have to deal with it first on the mountain.

Coupled with the dry food prepared by Xiulan, that's usually all you need to bring.

As for the medical kit, it doesn't exist at all. Use herbs for minor injuries, and just wait to be carried back for major injuries.

After getting the things ready, Lin Heng put them all into the backpack so as not to forget them tomorrow morning.

Xiulan used cornmeal and flour to make round pancakes for Lin Heng, put them in a pot to dry, and also made a few steamed buns.

"I'll put some fried soybeans in it for you. This won't go bad easily. You can eat it for four or five days."

Xiulan shoveled some more soybeans and fried them in the pot. After they were cooked, the aroma filled the room.

"I'm afraid I couldn't help but finish it on the first day." Lin Heng said with a smile, the fried soybeans are really delicious.

"Then you can only hunt well next, but no matter what you do, safety comes first." Xiulan said with a smile.

After the soybeans were fried, a handful was left for Xiaoxia, and the rest were packed and given to Lin Heng. She tasted two of them herself.

After finishing this, it was already past three o'clock. Xiulan went out with Xiaoxia in her arms, Lin Heng went to lead the sheep, and the family of three went to help work in the fields. When they walked to the old house, they helped to get a Bag grass wood ash.

This season, farm work can be said to be endless. Basically, corn, soybeans, adzuki beans, and peanuts all need to be weeded, and weeds also need to be pulled out in paddy fields.

Today is the [-]rd, and the day after tomorrow is the Dragon Boat Festival. During this time, the wheat is ripe and harvesting is about to begin.

Because of the high altitude here, the food here matures relatively late. Generally, the plain areas have taken over and they have just started to mature here.

Also, the sweet potatoes planted a month ago have also survived and need to be fertilized to turn over the sweet potato vines.

When they came to the sweet potato field, their mother, sister-in-law Liu Juan, and her two young sons were all digging sweet potato vines in the field.

"Lin Tao, come here and help me herd the sheep. Pull it to the edge of the field to graze and stop it from running away. By the way, take your sister with you so that she doesn't fall."

Lin Heng looked at his second nephew Lin Tao and shouted.

"Okay, Second Dad." After hearing this, Lin Tao quickly ran over to catch the rope. He was too tired to climb the sweet potato vines.

"You don't want to work, but keep an eye on your younger brothers and sisters. If they fall, you will be rewarded." Sister-in-law Liu Juan looked at her son and warned.

"Don't worry, Mom." Lin Tao nodded. Although he was only four years old, he already needed help in the fields.

"Xiulan, you put in the fertilizer and I'll weed it." Lin Heng picked up the hoe and said.

"Okay." Xiulan carried the plant ashes and sprinkled a handful of the roots of a sweet potato.

Lin Heng first dug out the weeds with a hoe, then loosened the soil, hooked it up to cover the roots of the sweet potatoes, and then turned the sweet potato vines over with their backs facing up to prevent them from growing lateral roots.

This kind of work is repeated until all the sweet potato fields of more than three acres are finished.

The most terrible thing is that this is only the first time, because the plant ash is not fertile enough, so it usually has to be done a second time.

The sweet potato vines must be plowed three times. If they are not plowed, the sweet potato vines will grow lateral roots and the sweet potato yield will be low.

When Lin Heng thought about this, he missed chemical fertilizers. This was really the greatest invention. It was only with chemical fertilizers that mankind began to get rid of famine.

If there is chemical fertilizer, you only need to apply fertilizer once and then turn the sweet potato vines three times, which will save a lot of time.

Unfortunately, at this time, chemical fertilizers were not widely available, perhaps only in some grain-producing plains.

After working for a while, Lin Heng couldn't help but rub his waist. It was already sore and weak, and having to bend down to hoe was really killing him.

"If you can't do it, rest for a while and take your time." Mother Lin glanced at her and said, knowing that Lin Heng wouldn't be able to do it for more than a few strokes.

"That's why I want to make money." Lin Heng shook his head and continued hoeing.

From three o'clock to five o'clock, it took four people to finish working the entire acre of land. After taking a break, there was still more than an acre of land left to work.

"Lin Heng, look, isn't that your uncle? Why did he come down from the mountain carrying the bamboo?"

During the break, Mother Lin suddenly said.

Lin Heng turned around and saw that indeed, a man in black clothes walked down the other side of the river carrying a clump of bamboo on his back. His walking posture was definitely that of his uncle.

"What he got should be purple bamboo. He dug it for me. I'll pick it up." Lin Heng put down the hoe and walked past.

The two met by the Shiban River. My uncle Li Baiquan spoke first: "I got the purple bamboo for you. These six chopped bamboos are old purple bamboo and can be used to make fishing rods."

"Okay, I'm ready. Let's go fishing together." Lin Heng smiled and took the bamboo. These purple-black ones are indeed old bamboos. The younger ones only have a little purple in the knots.

"Where are you going to plant?" my uncle asked again.

"The hill behind the yard, outside the pig pen, this thing can't be planted in the yard, otherwise it will overgrow in a few years."

Lin Heng said that he originally wanted to help his uncle carry it, but was rejected.

"That's a good place. Don't plant it too close. This thing will be dirty forever." My uncle nodded.

Arriving at the back hill of Lin's house, Lin Heng dug a big pit with his hoe and planted the purple bamboo in a fertile area.

After planting, he picked up two buckets of water and watered it down. The purple bamboo his uncle dug was soil-laden and had three bamboos, so it was very promising to survive.

"Uncle, go down and have a drink of water."

Lin Heng said with a smile.

"Okay." My uncle nodded, he was already very thirsty.

After entering the house, before Lin Heng could pour him tea, he went to the kitchen and drank a ladle of cold water.

"Hey, are you going hunting?" Coming out of the kitchen, my uncle asked after discovering the things placed in Lin Heng's room.

"Yes, I, my uncle, and Tian Baishun will form a team to go hunting. We will set off tomorrow morning." Lin Heng nodded.

As soon as he heard about team hunting, my uncle immediately became interested and said, "Add me in, I'll get up early tomorrow morning."

"Can my aunt agree to this?" Lin Heng was worried that he would be scolded by his aunt.

"How can I disagree? I'm doing business, not bad things. I'm going home right now. You must wait for me when I come down tomorrow morning."

The uncle said and walked out.

"Uncle, eat a corn tortilla before you leave." Lin Heng took a corn tortilla and chased after him.

"Okay, remember to wait for me." The uncle said, and left with a smile. He originally wanted to eat here tonight, but he couldn't care less now.

Lin Heng was helpless, what could he do? He was an elder and he couldn't refuse. His uncle had been running around a lot recently and didn't do any farm work. He really didn't want to ask him to go hunting again.

If he didn't hit anything, wouldn't he have to quarrel with his aunt again when he went back?

After picking up a bag of plant ash, Lin Heng reluctantly came to the second sweet potato field.

"Your uncle is gone?" Mother Lin asked when she saw Lin Heng coming over.

"Hey, he knows that we are going to hunt in the mountains tomorrow, and he insists on going with us. I'm afraid my aunt will beat me next time we come." Lin Heng said helplessly, spreading his hands.

"It's okay. This is a good thing. If you didn't take him hunting, he might still run around." Mother Lin said. She knew her brother-in-law Li Baiquan very well.

He is restless. Although he also works, he just likes to join in the fun and drink everywhere.

But you can't say that he doesn't do his job properly. He also works, hunts, and runs around the village.

Fortunately, his family has not been separated yet, and his two sons and his wife can still help with farm work.

"That's good." Lin Heng nodded. He actually thought that his uncle was very good. Maybe it was because they both liked to play, so they had some similar personalities.

Instead, he felt that his uncle was too serious and hunting with him was not interesting.

The farm work continued until half past seven, and it ended when it was almost dark. Finally, I finished applying fertilizer to the sweet potatoes.

When Lin Heng got home, he suffered from back pain and leg cramps. He had a simple pickled cabbage noodle for dinner, took a shower with cold water and went to bed.

There was no way he would be struggling tonight. He had to recharge his batteries for hunting in the mountains tomorrow.

(End of this chapter)