Making A Fortune Through Hunting To Support My Wife - Chapter 30

Song Yu and Xu Jing returned home late, expecting a cold stove and an empty pot. To their surprise, Grandma Xu had actually prepared a meal today. She had even slaughtered an old hen to make stew, which was currently warming in the large wok.

Seeing the large fish and meat Xu Jing brought back, Grandma Xu, for once, did not nag.

“It’s Mid-Autumn Festival today. Xiao Yu, let’s make some festive dishes, perhaps some Braised Fish and Crispy Pork Strips (Xiao Su Rou).”

At the mention of these two dishes, Xu Jing swallowed hard, almost smelling the aroma already.

“Braised fish and Crispy Pork?”

Song Yu knew how to cook fish. Song Father was an excellent swimmer, whenever he had free time, he would catch fish and shrimp in the large river flowing through Qili Village. High-quality catches were taken to town to be sold for extra income, while the smaller fish and shrimp that couldn’t be sold were kept for the family.

The names “Song Yu” (Song Fish) and “Song Chuan’er” (Song Boat) were chosen by Song Father in the hope that the family would always catch big fish and eventually own a fishing boat, a beautiful vision for a better life.

“Yes, the method is a bit complicated, but it’s delicious.”

Whenever food was mentioned, a smile always graced Xu Jing’s face. Having lived through an apocalypse, she was truly traumatized by hunger. In such harsh conditions, preparing gourmet food was a luxury, survival was the priority, let alone culinary enjoyment.

“I’ll tell you how to do it, and you see if you can make it.”

Xu Jing had a realistic understanding of her own cooking skills. She didn’t try to take center stage, knowing she was better suited as an assistant.

Under Xu Jing’s guidance, Song Yu washed and sliced two catties of marbled pork into strips. She marinated them with shredded ginger and scallions, yellow wine, and coarse salt, then coated them evenly in a batter of eggs and flour.

One by one, the coated meat strips were dropped into a wok of oil at medium-high heat until they turned slightly yellow. They were then double-fried at a higher heat until they were golden and crispy. The aroma of the Crispy Pork filled the entire kitchen.

The pork strips were hot out of the pot, but Xu Jing didn’t care. She snatched a piece and popped it into her mouth, her eyes squinting with delight at the flavor. She gave Song Yu a huge thumbs-up. “The taste is perfect! Delicious!”

A faint smile appeared on Song Yu’s face.

“Chef Song, you’ve worked hard. Come, try your own creation.”

Xu Jing smiled and picked up a piece of crispy pork, holding it to Song Yu’s lips.

Song Yu paused for a moment. Seeing the expectation in Xu Jing’s eyes, her earlobes turned slightly red as she gently took the meat into her mouth.

“How is it? Good, right?” Xu Jing retracted her hand, her eyes carrying a trace of unconscious doting.

Song Yu chewed the pork, crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, savory and meaty. She nodded.

“As long as it’s good. We can use the leftover oil to fry some meatballs or something later.”

Xu Jing thought of another delicacy that could be made alongside the crispy pork.

Meatballs and crispy pork in the end, Xu Jing decided against frying the fish as well, as too many fried dishes would be monotonous. She thought they could try Squirrel Shaped Mandarin Fish next time, but for now, they settled on Braised Fish.

The large fish was coated in flour and pan-fried in lard until both sides were golden and crispy. With a sizzle, a ladle of hot water was added, and soybean paste was used to simmer the fish until it was savory and flavorful.

Finally, the sauce was thickened over high heat. The fish was placed on a large platter, drizzled with the remaining sauce, and garnished with bright green scallions.

A dish of tender, plump, and glistening Braised Fish was ready.

By the time they finished all this, the sky was pitch black. The full moon hung high, its moonlight flowing down like water, illuminating the courtyard so brightly that they could see clearly without lanterns.

Xu Jing moved a square table outside so the family could eat in the yard.

To mark the occasion, Xu Jing opened a small jar of rice wine she had kept at home and placed it on the table along with mooncakes, creating a proper sense of ceremony.

Grandma Xu, who hadn’t spoken much, looked at the spread and suddenly said, “If your grandfather and the others were still here to eat this, I don’t know how happy they would be.”

Xu Jing and Song Yu exchanged a glance.

Xu Jing had no memory of “Grandpa Xu.” Grandma Xu rarely mentioned him to the original owner of the body, who had assumed he and the others had died in a foreign land, as no news had come for years.

The original owner only vaguely knew that twenty years ago, a drought and famine had hit Dayue Village. The Xu family fled with the rest of the village, but in the end, only the original owner’s parents, who were severely injured, returned to the village with Grandma Xu.

The parents died early from illness, leaving Grandma Xu to raise the original owner alone.

Xu Jing wondered if it was her imagination, but she thought she saw a flash of loneliness and exhaustion on Grandma Xu’s usually stern and harsh face, as if she had finally let go of a lifelong obsession.

In fact, ever since the Shamaness Ge had visited, Grandma Xu had been changing, losing the sharp edge she had when Xu Jing first arrived.

Collecting her emotions, Grandma Xu said coolly, “Alright, let’s eat. This old woman knows you young people don’t like listening to my rambling.”

Her words didn’t dampen the meal. Xu Jing ate heartily, feeling satisfied.

Grandma Xu, however, only ate a little before saying she was full and returning to her room to rest.

At the Song house, Xu Jing had drunk a little, but she had been cautious in someone else’s home. Now at her own home, accompanied by the moonlight, she couldn’t help but drink a few more cups. Her eyes grew hazy with a slight intoxication.

She leaned to the side, lazily propping her cheek on her hand, smiling as she watched Song Yu eat.

Perhaps her gaze was too intense, for Song Yu looked up and their eyes met in the air.

The young girl, unlike the thick-skinned Xu Jing, was the first to look away.

“I’m finished,” Song Yu said softly, putting down her chopsticks.

“Then have some wine. It’s a rare festival,” Xu Jing invited bluntly, her inhibitions lowered by the alcohol.

Song Yu froze, looking at the person making such a bold invitation with a hint of strangeness.

“Can’t you drink, Xiao Yu?”

Xu Jing’s voice carried a faint drunken slur, sounding like soft down brushing against Song Yu’s ear, making it itch.

“I can drink a little,” Song Yu heard herself say.

“That’s great. Drink with me, we can’t let this scenery and wine go to waste, right?”

Happily, Xu Jing poured half a bowl for Song Yu.

The liquid was clear and slightly yellowish. In the ceramic bowl, it reflected the moonlight, emitting a fragrance of wine and rice.

Song Yu raised the bowl and took a small sip. The liquid spread through her mouth, it was both spicy and sweet. She couldn’t help but frown slightly at the unfamiliar sensation.

Seeing this, Xu Jing handed her a piece of mooncake and laughed. “If you can’t drink, forget it. Have some mooncake to wash down the taste.”

She couldn’t really bully the girl.

“It’s just been a long time since I’ve had any.”

Song Yu didn’t take the mooncake. She took another small sip, her brow relaxing.

Hearing the faint pride in her tone, Xu Jing raised an eyebrow and asked curiously, “How long is ‘a long time’? You used to drink?”

Given Song Yu’s family background, it should have been difficult for her to access alcohol.

Song Yu looked up at the full moon. From Xu Jing’s angle, she could only see her profile. The quiet moonlight draped a soft glow over her cheek, in the play of light and shadow, she looked elegant and refined.

After a while, her voice drifted out.

“A sister of mine loved to drink. She used to give me some in secret.”

After saying that, she didn’t continue the topic and took another sip.

Even without words, emotions can be contagious. Xu Jing suddenly lost her festive mood and looked down to take another drink.

Fortunately, this mood didn’t last long, because after half a bowl of wine, Song Yu’s cheeks flushed crimson. Her clear eyes became misty, like morning dew.

She suddenly turned to look at Xu Jing. Xu Jing stopped chewing her mooncake: “What is it?”

“Why would a person who went far away want to come back?”

Xu Jing was confused by the question. After thinking for two seconds, she gave an uncertain answer.

“Maybe the place they left has something they cherish? Or maybe there’s something they must handle… there are too many possibilities.”

As Xu Jing spoke, she thought of the day’s events. A flash of insight hit her, she seemed to understand something.

Song Yu gave a soft “oh” and went back to sipping her wine.

Xu Jing looked at the crown of Song Yu’s head, and the mooncake in her hand suddenly felt tasteless.

“Hey, you said you could only drink a little. Don’t get drunk.”

Seeing Song Yu reach for the jar, Xu Jing stopped her.

Song Yu obediently stopped. Now it was Xu Jing who felt awkward, so she handed the jar back.

“Just be careful, don’t overindulge. If you get drunk, I’m not looking after you.”

Hearing these awkward yet caring words, Song Yu’s mood suddenly brightened. The past didn’t matter anymore, did it?

Seeing the faint smile return to Song Yu’s face, Xu Jing felt like sighing. Indeed, no matter the world, a woman’s emotions were as unpredictable as June weather.

The first Mid-Autumn night passed in such peace and tranquility.

Time flowed like water. Once Mid-Autumn passed, the rice stalks in the fields turned yellow and ripe. The busiest season for farming families arrived.

During this period, Xu Jing and Wang Hu went into the deep mountains twice more. They laid an ambush in the valley Xu Jing had discovered, and together they hunted several wild boars, as well as many sheep and wolves.

Sometimes, with good luck, they even bagged two deer.

They earned another thirty odd taels of silver, making both of them beam with joy.

Wang Hu gave Xu Jing a huge thumbs-up, saying this was his most successful hunting year in a long time.

However, with great rewards came great danger. Once, they were chased by a pack of wild boars and had to run all over the mountain. They got separated and lost their prey. Wang Hu was unlucky enough to be gored by a large boar. If Xu Jing hadn’t lured most of the boars away, his life might have ended there.

His thigh bone was fractured, and a chunk of flesh was torn from his calf by a smaller boar. He was covered in blood and breaking out in a cold sweat.

After Xu Jing lured the boars away, she used her wood element abilities to sprout vines, allowing her to swing through the trees like a monkey to escape the pack easily.

When she found her way back, Wang Hu had fallen down a steep slope. His face was white with pain, but he didn’t make a sound, a true tough guy.

Hunting in the deep mountains was like that, when luck was good, you could earn over ten taels, but when it was bad, even a seasoned hunter could meet their end.

In the end, Xu Jing used a makeshift cart to pull Wang Hu back home.

For the time being, Wang Hu could no longer go hunting with her.

When news of Wang Hu’s injury spread, those who had been jealous of his earnings and his plans to build a new house finally settled down, sighing with lingering fear.

Moved by the tears of Wang Hu’s wife, Xu Jing noticed that Song Yu’s eyes were also red. Xu Jing, acting as if nothing was wrong, comforted her instead.

Wang Hu’s house construction didn’t stop because of his injury, though it slowed down. He directed his half-grown sons from his bedside.

Xu Jing also wanted to build a new house, a spacious one made of blue stone and brick.

She was truly sick of the drafty hut and the “toilet” that consisted of a large vat with two wooden boards on top, which smelled terrible whenever it rained.

She gathered useful information from Wang Hu, such as which brick kiln was the most honest and which team of bricklayers and stonemasons in town had the best reputation.

Xu Jing didn’t plan to build on her current plot. The land was too small and was bordered by the Lu and Zhang families, making expansion difficult.

So, she paid a visit to the Village Chief and picked a new plot. She chose a spot at the foot of a gentle slope. The slope was quite large, she heard it used to be an orchard owned by a landlord.

When the landlord’s business failed, most of the land was abandoned. A small corner had been bought by a family named Xu to plant fruit trees.

The location wasn’t far from her current house. It was separated from the Lu family by a small stream. The empty land was overgrown with weeds and trees, requiring a lot of work to clear.

The Village Chief initially advised her against it, suggesting the head of the village would be better, but Xu Jing declined. Instead, she asked him to keep an eye out for any farmland for sale after the autumn harvest, as she intended to buy some.

As for the orchard on the slope, she only bought the residential plot for now. The orchard covered thirty-five or thirty-six mu, and at two taels per mu, she couldn’t afford it yet.

Residential land was more expensive at four taels per mu. Xu Jing bought over two mu, totaling eight taels and three mace.

She wouldn’t need that much space initially, so she planned to build a few rooms first, with a courtyard and a grain drying floor in the front, and a fenced-off vegetable garden in the back. Later, when she had more money, she could expand further.

After this purchase, she had about seventy or eighty taels left in her pocket.

Xu Jing trusted the old Village Chief of Dayue Village, he had handled the Wang Ergou situation fairly. She asked him to help find some honest villagers to help build her house after the harvest.

The Village Chief was happy to help, as it provided income for the villagers.

Additionally, Xu Jing specifically asked Song Yu to send brown sugar and pastries to the Village Chief’s wife. This delighted the wife, who couldn’t stop praising Xu Jing and Song Yu for being so considerate.

She estimated that after the autumn harvest, the building materials would be ready. Once she called upon the available villagers, the land clearing and construction could officially begin.