Steward Du still had some skill. He successfully persuaded the Jin family head to release some grain, allowing everyone to eat their fill and rest for a moment before joining the Cheng family convoy and the people from Shanao Village to chop wood.
Learning they would leave the next morning, everyone got busy once more.
Since the area’s forests were not lacking in resources, they seized the opportunity to gather what they could.
Cai Shi and Xi Shi, having finished washing the dishes with nothing else to do, took the lead in bringing the children along to pick things. It would be safer, and Xi Shi knew more.
She was knowledgeable about all sorts of mountain products.
Having lived in the countryside for so long, she understood a great deal from frequent trips to the mountains.
Mushrooms were truly everywhere.
No wonder the children could gather so much, and there were plenty of wild vegetables too.
Xi Shi spared none of it. She also dragged a thick, large hemp sack, picking even the older, yet still chewable, wild vegetables.
“Don’t look down on these for being old; anything edible is a good thing. Back when we had nothing, our stomachs hurt so much from hunger, we even found the taste of grass roots good!”
“That’s true. I’ve heard others say that further afield, there’s drought. I don’t know what’s going on, but every time there’s war, the climate that year is never normal. It’s either drought or floods, and many people starve to death.”
Cai Shi chimed in, saying that some people even ate soil and eventually died.
Xi Shi agreed.
Cheng Xiaotian and the other children, being younger, found this prospect quite frightening.
They put on solemn faces.
Cai Shi glanced at the children and sighed, “I thought life would be stable from now on, that you wouldn’t have to suffer like we did when we were young. I never imagined you’d have to go through this again…”
When would it end?
Seeing the bewildered look in the children’s eyes, Xi Shi felt a pang of sympathy but said, “Life and death are fated, riches and honor are from heaven. Since we are born, what we must endure is destined. Can we control it?”
Now, she was the one comforting Cai Shi, having truly come to terms with things.
Cai Shi nodded, smiled, and continued picking mushrooms and wild vegetables.
Xi Shi also bent her head and continued working.
She even called out to the children,
“Let’s have a competition, see who can pick the fastest and the best!”
How could the children resist such a challenge? Their competitive spirits were ignited.
With laughter, they surged forward.
Picking clusters of mushrooms felt particularly rewarding, there were so many.
By evening,
they could fill at least three or four large hemp sacks.
On the other side,
Su Miaomiao couldn’t sit still either. She directly pulled Cheng Hao into the mountains, intending to gather some herbs and edible wild goods for future use.
“The soil here is quite fertile. In other places, there might not be so many mountain products.”
Su Miaomiao led the way, with Cheng Hao following steadily behind, protecting her.
The better spots were already occupied by others, so they forged their own path.
She spotted herbs and yanked them up, tossing them towards Cheng Hao behind her. He caught them and threw them into his basket. Their coordination needed no words.
Su Miaomiao dug without looking back. As she passed a nearby trap, she checked it from memory. To her surprise, she had caught a lively, large rabbit.
Before it could die, she exclaimed in surprise, “Hey!” and went to inspect it.
Cheng Hao told her to be careful.
Su Miaomiao waved to him and said, “It’s really a live rabbit, and a pregnant one! It’s carrying babies! Shall we keep it?”
The law of the hunt.
Always leave some room for survival.
Do not exterminate.
Letting it go would be a waste.
But it was rare meat. Could they let the meat in hand escape?
It was better to raise it.
Raise it until it was fat, then it could have offspring.
Rabbits were highly reproductive. Once they grew, they could be eaten.
Besides, there was still space in their convoy’s carts. If they tidied up and built a large rabbit hutch, raising rabbits wouldn’t be impossible. The old imperial road was quite smooth, so it wouldn’t be stressed. They would just need to gather more rabbit food.
It could be fed.
When they found a place to settle, they could continue raising them.
Young rabbits could be eaten after six or seven months.
It was planning for the future.
They were already far from the neighboring country, and who knew how long it would take with delays on the road.
Moreover, everything was in chaos everywhere.
She wasn’t the only one who could hunt; others could too, and then it would be harder.
Raising them as a precaution for later was also good.
It wasn’t much.
They could try it first.
Cheng Hao tapped her forehead and said, “It’s not impossible, but it’s a bit troublesome.”
Su Miaomiao replied, “It’s not troublesome, not troublesome at all. Should we just let it go? Let’s keep it for now! If it really doesn’t work out, we can talk about it later. Let’s keep it for now!”
Cheng Hao considered it.
He felt that her way of thinking was sometimes novel, but not entirely without reason. It was, after all, just a rabbit.
Let’s keep it.
Since they had to gather grass to feed the horses anyway, it wouldn’t hurt to find some for the rabbit.
The two of them carried the rabbit back and handed it over to Uncle Ji. Uncle Ji was overjoyed, holding the heavy, gray furball.
Because its vital points were held.
The rabbit was relatively docile.
Uncle Ji was both happy and at a loss. He had never raised a rabbit before!
And he heard it was pregnant?
Then he was completely clueless.
Cheng Xiaoxi, who was on rest duty, returned, panting. The young man was thin but quite sturdy. He wiped sweat from his face with his sleeve and happened to overhear. He sheepishly said, “How about I give it a try? I raised rabbits at home. At my peak, I raised them from two breeding rabbits to eighty…”
Before Cheng Xiaoxi could finish, he stammered in fright.
He saw the three pairs of eyes shining brightly at him, which frightened him.
Uncle Ji handed the rabbit to him and patted his shoulder heavily, praising, “Young man, you’re really something!”
Cheng Hao also crossed his arms and nodded in full agreement. The problem was solved. His childhood sweetheart could have her wish, and he could be relieved.
Su Miaomiao gave Cheng Xiaoxi a thumbs-up, saying he was amazing!
Being able to raise a rabbit population from two to eighty was indeed no ordinary feat!
It was simply fate.
This position of Rabbit Keeper was his alone!
Cheng Xiaoxi had never been praised like this before and felt a bit shy. He said that he was actually quite close to small animals. He could also handle livestock like cows and donkeys well and found raising them interesting.
Uncle Ji chuckled, saying, “Good, good! Life is becoming more hopeful. If this convoy is managed well, it will be like a mobile home.”
As long as everyone was safe and together, that was better than anything!
Living life?
This was also living.
Even when fleeing hardship, one should live well and not spend every day in panic.
Every plan and effort made now was for a stable future.
The elder was happy to see this.
Su Miaomiao also said to Cheng Xiaoxi, “Raise it with peace of mind. If you raise it well, you’ll get the biggest and best portion of the meat! If you accidentally kill it, it’s no big deal!”
Cheng Xiaoxi immediately felt relieved and nodded happily, saying it was good.