Chapter 22
"Alright, Auntie, take it back and cook red sugar eggs. We can all eat together," Luo Ge smiled as she took it from her.
"No, it's for..."
"Look, a bird's nest."
Da Bao opened his mouth, about to say it was for his little aunt to eat, but Second Bao suddenly exclaimed.
The whole family was attracted by their words and turned their attention to the tree where the little ones were pointing. Sure enough, there was a bird's nest that looked freshly built.
Gu Jinchen quickly climbed up the tree pointed out by the little ones and soon took out the bird eggs inside, totaling five.
"Here," like the little ones, they handed them to Luo Ge.
"You took the whole nest?" Luo Ge asked after seeing this, as birds would abandon the nest if it had human scent. If there were any remaining eggs, the snakes and mice would probably benefit.
"Yes, I took them all."
Upon hearing this, Luo Ge nodded. "I remember you mentioned earlier that there are plum trees on this mountain. Can you take me to have a look?"
Sour plums can be made into sour sauce and are delicious when made into dried fruits.
"There are a few trees, but they are too sour. The people in the village don't like them. If not, should I go and find some of the fruits we had yesterday for you?"
These wild plums are really sour, much more sour than the yellow ones. So even though the yellow plums are slightly sour, the people in the village would still pick them and only a few would be left.
"It's fine. We can add some ingredients and make them delicious." Thinking about the sour taste of the plums, Luo Ge couldn't help but swallow her saliva.
This scene looked extremely tempting to Gu Jinchen, and he quietly led the way for his little wives and the little ones behind him.
"Be careful, the leaves here are slippery." He reminded as they walked, not forgetting to look back.
"Yes, we know."
The plum trees were on the mountainside, facing away from the mountain. On the way down, Gu Jinchen also managed to catch two wild chickens.
His archery skills were indeed excellent. As soon as he spotted the wild chickens, the little wives and the little ones hadn't even reacted yet, but he had already shot them down to the ground.
He didn't let her touch anything stained with blood and carried them himself.
"We're here." As they walked, Gu Jinchen suddenly stopped and whispered to her.
Luo Ge held the two little ones and instantly looked delighted at his words.
"There are still many fruits, and they're quite big." There were two or three trees that were not very old, but they had a lot of fruits.
She thought the wild plums would be small, but she didn't expect them to be quite large and juicy.
"They're very sour, and the villagers don't like them, so they're left behind."
Upon hearing this, Luo Ge's eyes lit up. Nobody wanted them, which suited her just fine.
"Then let's pick more and take them back. I want to make dried plum fruits."
Dried plum fruits? Did his little wife even know how to make such things?
"Sure."
With his permission, Luo Ge didn't hesitate and started picking them. Looking at the tree full of fruits, she couldn't resist tasting one that should have been a bit sweeter.
"Phew!" In an instant, her face wrinkled up. It was indeed very sour, almost comparable to a lemon. No wonder no one picked them.
"Drink some water to rinse your mouth," Gu Jinchen wanted to stop her but couldn't in time, so he silently handed her some water.
"Uncle." The two little rascals who sneaked to eat didn't escape the consequences and frowned, looking for water to drink.
Although there seemed to be plenty of fruit, because the trees were not big, by the time they finished picking, they had just filled the few baskets they brought with them.
But this was already a great harvest, so they headed straight back home.
"Let's go, let's go home. Auntie will make delicious food for you."
"Okay."
"Okay."
Because Gu Jinchen had to carry the fruits and wild chickens, he couldn't bring these two little rascals along.
Luo Ge led them back slowly. Since there was no well in their house, it was inconvenient. So they washed the fruits clean by the riverside at the foot of the mountain before going home. They would rinse them again with clean water at home.
At this time, it was the time for work, and few people came to the end of the village. No one noticed them.
Drying the fruits took a while, so Luo Ge first made them some pickled sour plums to taste.
She cracked the cleaned plums and mixed them with some salt, stirring well to remove excess moisture and enhance the sour taste. It could be done by making a cut with a knife, but cracking them made the flavor more intense.
These plums were indeed very sour, so they needed a bit more time to soak. Taking advantage of this time, Luo Ge went to a corner outside the courtyard and picked some small spicy chili peppers.
She had transplanted them from the space and watered them with well water from the space courtyard. She didn't expect them to survive overnight.
It was because of this that she noticed the small characters next to the well mouth that said, 'Yizhi: can resolve all toxins, strengthen the body, and beautify the appearance.'
It seemed that she had depleted a lot of energy from running on an empty stomach all the way here, and she recovered so quickly because she drank the water from the space.
Although it couldn't bring people back from the dead, Yizhi could resolve all toxins, strengthen the body, change one's physique, and improve one's appearance. It was quite powerful.
Since she discovered this, she had replaced all the drinking water in the house with this.
"Xiang, Xiang Gong."
Just as she finished picking the chili peppers and was about to discreetly bring some water from the space to water the chili pepper tree, she habitually turned her head to look around and saw Gu Jinchen standing behind her. She was startled.
"Ah, did I scare you?" He had just come out of the house and didn't see her in the courtyard, so he came out to take a look. He didn't expect to frighten her.
But why did she seem so flustered? Thinking about this, he furrowed his brows slightly.
"Yeah, you walked so quietly." She swallowed her panic and looked at him with a gaze full of reproach.
It had to be said that Gu Jinchen couldn't resist that look in her eyes. He couldn't help but shift his attention back to her and gently rubbed her little head to comfort her.
"I'll pay attention next time and won't scare you."
"Yeah, I just found a chili pepper tree in this corner. I picked some and made pickled plums. How about we make spicy chicken for dinner with the fresh chili peppers?"
By now, she had calmed down, and her voice carried a hint of intimacy and reliance that she herself hadn't noticed.
"I'll follow your lead. You decide."
It was normal to discover a chili pepper tree in this corner that no one usually paid attention to. Gu Jinchen didn't think much of it.
Hearing this, Luo Ge raised an eyebrow and said, "Then can you help me peel the plums?"
It was still early, and it wouldn't be too late to make dinner in another hour or so.
Peeling the skin and flesh off a plum is a bit troublesome.
"Okay." Gu Jinchen responded without hesitation. It was only natural for him to help his wife with the work, so there was no need for hesitation.
Together with Gu Jinchen, they spent some time peeling the plums, and the plums that had been soaked in saltwater were also ready, so they rinsed them with clean water.
The little ones couldn't handle too much spiciness, so she only added two chili peppers and shook them together with some sugar to mix well.
They let it soak for a while, and after about half an hour, it would be ready to eat. The taste would be even better if they added plum powder or chili flakes.
But they didn't have those ingredients now, so this was not bad either.
There were a lot of fruits, and the two of them worked quickly and didn't finish until it was almost dark.
The fruits were extremely sour, so the peeled flesh needed to be soaked in saltwater to remove the sourness and make it softer.
When she was about to use the salt, Luo Ge glanced at Gu Jinchen. Seeing that he didn't react, she mustered up the courage to use it.
"We can take these dried fruits to the town and sell them. We should be able to earn some money." She thought for a moment and said, at this time, salt was a rare commodity, and she was afraid he would say she was wasting it.
When she was in town, she had observed this. Nowadays, dried fruits were already available.
But the variety was pitifully small, mostly those heavy and sweet dried jujubes, persimmons, longans, and so on, which were sold in pastry shops along with snacks like melon seeds and peanuts.
She didn't see any dried plums with a sweet and sour taste. If they made them, they should be able to sell them as a fresh novelty. They shouldn't lose money on the labor and materials.
Gu Jinchen was taken aback by her words. He obviously hadn't thought that she wanted to sell these, thinking that they were just snacks for home.
"I can support you all." After thinking for a moment, he said in a muffled voice. He didn't want her to worry about making a living.
Luo Ge was stunned, but when she saw the slightly melancholic expression on the man's face, she couldn't help but smile.
"I know my husband can support me, but there's no harm in having more money, right? Besides, whether it's for our future children going to school or getting married, we'll need money."
"We can earn more if we have the opportunity. Moreover... in the future, we might not just have these two little ones, right? We should be prepared..."
As she spoke, her face blushed slightly, and her voice became softer.
But Gu Jinchen, with his keen hearing, caught every word clearly. His deep eyes lit up.
He reached out and held her hand, then pulled her into his arms with a strong embrace. His eyes, filled with brightness, looked at her eagerly.
"You said it yourself, no backing out."
Not just raising these two children, but also implying that they would have their own children together.
Even though it was still a long way off, he was already looking forward to it.
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