Chapter 102: Pheasant / A Bit Cute

Chen Dashan, who had been Shen Lian's companion since their youth, showed an innate understanding between them.

Shen Lian had just hidden the bow and arrows in his backpack, carefully concealing the protruding parts, and asked Sang Luo for a rope and a bundle of millet before preparing to meet Chen Dashan.

Before stepping out, Chen Dashan arrived, carrying a similar backpack and a shovel.

Greeting him with a smile, Shen Lian said, “I was just about to look for you.”

Chen Dashan smiled back, “I guessed you'd be heading out too, to hunt something for a treat. We can exchange the game for some money in the county after collecting the taxes.”

Life at home was much better now, but in these unsettled times, they were reluctant to consume meat and needed money for buying grain.

Shen Lian nodded, “Wait a moment for me, I need to grab something.”

With that, he turned back into the house.

Chen Dashan leaned the shovel against the courtyard wall and greeted Sang Luo, who emerged from the kitchen, with a friendly call of “sister-in-law.”

Being two years older than Shen Lian, Chen Dashan’s manner of addressing Sang Luo was indeed appropriate. She smiled in response. Hearing the commotion, Shen An and Shen Ning emerged from the kitchen and, spotting Chen Dashan, gleefully ran over, calling out “Big Brother Dashan.”

Chen Dashan, obviously familiar with the siblings, ruffled Shen Ning's hair and then lifted Shen An, commenting as he held him, “Little An has grown taller and heavier.”

Chen Dashan now fully appreciated his grandmother's words. Shen Lian's marriage to Sang Luo was like a blessing from heaven. In these times, for a young lady like her to not only take in but also raise Shen An and Shen Ning so well was extraordinary. Her kindness, character, and capability were beyond reproach.

Looking at the healthy state of the two children, it was hard to believe that just in autumn, they struggled to even have wild vegetable porridge.

Shen Lian was ready to go. After picking up his backpack, he bid Sang Luo farewell and asked Shen An and Shen Ning to wait for his return with something delicious. He then set off with Chen Dashan.

Seeing Chen Dashan carrying a shovel, Sang Luo guessed he intended to set traps. Hunting often involved laying traps in deep, uninhabited parts of the forest. Anticipating they would venture far, she stopped them for a moment.

Sang Luo returned briefly to the kitchen and came back with a bamboo container of water and half a plate of pancakes wrapped in dry lotus leaves, handing them to Shen Lian, “I'm not sure how long you’ll be in the mountains. Take this with you; it’s something to eat if you get hungry. The water’s boiled too, better than drinking snow water directly.”

She hadn’t known Shen Lian was going into the mountains today, otherwise she would have prepared more pancakes.

Shen Lian, having ventured into the mountains countless times, was taken aback, as this was the first time someone had prepared food and water for him.

Seeing his reaction, Sang Luo laughed, “Do you need help putting these in your backpack?”

Sang Luo found it difficult to place items inside the backpack due to Shen Lian's height and the elevated opening of the backpack he was carrying.

Shen Lian quickly declined her offer to help: "No need, no need, I can do it myself."

He set the backpack down again, carefully placing the items Sang Luo had given him inside. He felt a mix of bashfulness and joy, and his voice warmed with gratitude as he spoke to her again: “Thanks for these. I'll get going now. You should head back inside; it’s cold with the melting snow.”

Smiling, Sang Luo nodded and watched them leave, then returned to the house with Shen An and Shen Ning.

Winter brought frequent rain and snow. Indoors was comfortable, but outdoor paths were paved with stones to prevent shoes from getting easily wet. Like the previous day, walking in the snow would completely soak their shoes, prompting Sang Luo to consider making another pair of shoes for each family member to change into.

Meanwhile, Shen Lian and Chen Dashan left the courtyard and descended the mountain. Chen Dashan couldn't help but show a grin on his face. Once they were over the ridge, out of earshot from the courtyard, he elbowed Shen Lian teasingly: “You're really lucky, having a wife changes everything. She even prepares food and water for you. Here I am at twenty, and I still don’t know where my future wife is.”

Shen Lian responded with a laugh, “If you're so eager to get married, ask Grandma and Aunt to find someone for you. Better do it while times are still peaceful.”

Chen Dashan just brushed off the idea with a wave of his hand: “Let’s not, just staying alive these days is hard enough. We’ll think about it after these tough years are over.”

Shen Lian smiled and then delved deeper into the conversation, speaking in a low voice about Zhou Village Head's request to help store some grain secretly, including the commitment not to reveal the storage location even to Zhou’s family members.

Chen Dashan listened and then asked Shen Lian, “What do you think?”

Shen Lian replied, “I think it’s a good idea. On our journey, we’ve seen that the mountains are full of bandits. The Zhou family has good character and many able men. For our safety, it’s best to have a trustworthy group to rely on. One more person means more strength.”

Chen Dashan trusted Zhou Village Head's judgment: "I have no issues with this. I'll discuss it later with Uncle Shi and Uncle Lu. I don't think they'll have any objections."

Shen Lian nodded, "The challenge lies in transporting the grain. To ensure safety, we need to hide it as deeply as possible. We can't carry much in one trip if it's too far. Once the snow melts, we'll have to go deeper into the mountains. It's crucial to secure our escape route early, giving us ample time to prepare."

Chen Dashan agreed: "Indeed, this is a major issue. I'll mention it to Uncle Shi and Uncle Lu when I get back today."

……

Shen Lian and Chen Dashan returned around noon, their previously empty backpacks now filled, each carrying an extra vine basket containing struggling pheasants, barely moving occasionally.

Chen Dashan greeted Sang Luo and her family, then headed straight home with his spoils, while Shen Lian entered the courtyard.

Sang Luo, Shen An, and Shen Ning gathered around the backpack and vine basket he set down, staring in awe.

Sang Luo often ventured deeper into the mountains with the children, beyond where villagers usually went. They had seen pheasants and wild rabbits but never managed to catch these swift creatures, only able to watch them from a distance.

But they had never encountered so many at once.

Shen Lian, noticing their expressions, chuckled: "We went deep into the forest. In winter, food scarcity and snow covering potential food sources make animals' tracks more visible. Well-set traps and covering tracks with snow make it easy to catch them."

'Easy,' of course, referred to the present ease. Before joining the army, he and Chen Dashan would struggle all day for just a bird or two.

Unaware of these details, Sang Luo listened to him say it was 'easy' and couldn't help but glance at him, thinking, 'Easy for you, maybe, but certainly not for me. You're quite something.'

Shen Lian caught Sang Luo's eye. Although he didn't know what she was thinking, he inexplicably felt she was murmuring something about him in her mind.

Her expression was unexpectedly adorable. He watched her for a moment, smiling softly before bending down to unravel the vines covering the top of the basket, casually asking, "Can we keep these pheasants in the chicken coop?"

Sang Luo, assisting with the unraveling on the other side, nodded, "Yes, we can."

"When the chickens first arrived, they were quite domineering, but they’ve mellowed out since the geese came. Our chicken coop is spacious enough. If needed, we can separate the chickens and ducks into one coop and keep the pheasants in another."

Shen Lian suggested, "If we can keep them, let's eat one today and raise the rest. Once we get our travel passes, we can sell them in the county."

Sang Luo looked up curiously, "Are they all alive? How many do we have?"

"Yes, all alive, five in total. Caught in traps without using 'that thing'. It's just for defense against other wild animals. Trapping pheasants only requires ropes."

'That thing' referred to the bow and arrow, which he had meticulously protected inside the basket. Wrapped securely, it occupied half of the basket's space, separated from the pheasants by a wooden board, likely considered before leaving home.

He seemed particularly concerned about the pheasants damaging the bow.

The basket was quite large, but it actually contained only three pheasants, each bound and tightly secured with vines, piled on top of each other, barely fluttering to avoid hurting themselves.

Halfway through removing the vines, Sang Luo saw the top pheasant, looking listless. She glanced at Shen Lian, "Can we really keep it alive?"

Shen An and Shen Ning also expressed doubt: "It doesn't seem very lively."

Shen Lian reassured with a smile, "Just let it out and you'll see. It can fly away instantly."

After unwinding the top vines, he lifted two pheasants out with one hand each and looked at Sang Luo, “Where should we keep them?” He gestured for her to lead the way.

Indicating her to show the way.

Sang Luo simply picked up the basket containing two pheasants, and Shen An, seeing this, grabbed another pheasant from the second basket that had its feet tied.

Shen Ning had already run ahead to show the way.

In the chicken coop, a few hens were nesting for the winter. Stirred by Shen Ning's calls, they rushed out to the feeder, followed by a flock of ducks and geese, all scrambling for food.

The coop was quickly emptied.

Shen Lian watched, amused, and complimented, “Ning is quite skilled now.”

Shen Ning smiled shyly, “They’ve gotten used to me from being taken care of for so long.”

Shen Ning was in charge of feeding the chickens, ducks, and geese at home, having learned the skill from the village aunts. She had a specific call that she used when feeding them. After a while, they recognized her call and knew it was feeding time.

The five pheasants, once released from their bindings, were placed into the coop, vigorously hopping and flapping around. The door was securely shut by Sang Luo, and the sounds of the pheasants hitting the coop walls could be heard.

The four chickens that went out to feed were baffled.

"Where's my nest?"

"Where's my nest?"

"Who's been let inside?"

Not even stopping to eat, he dashed back home, only to find that Sang Luo had already firmly locked the door.

Inside, five wild chickens were flapping about, while four domestic chickens fluttered outside, creating quite a commotion.

Watching this, Sang Luo felt like laughing, while Shen Ning diligently tried to communicate with the four chickens she had raised, urging them to stay in the duck pen for a few days.

The chickens, not understanding, saw the little girl patting the duck pen's door as she tried to make them comprehend her words.

The three ducks, initially watching the chaos with interest, became alert when they saw their young mistress patting their dwelling.

They too joined the commotion, flapping towards her.

Indeed, it was a scene of chickens flying, ducks scrambling, and geese watching the commotion.

Sang Luo finally laughed out loud at the scene, then left it as is, becoming a hands-off manager. She tossed the empty wicker basket back into Shen Lie's empty basket and went to wash her hands.

Shen Lie, watching his sister's enthusiastic efforts, felt quite happy himself. Had his hands not been so dirty, he would have liked to ruffle her hair affectionately. He smiled and said, “Good job, Ah Ning.”

He then carried his basket inside to store his bow and arrows.

Alone outside, Shen An displayed commendable responsibility, helping his sister by shooing the chickens one way and coaxing the ducks another.

Fortunately, the snow outside had been cleared away, preventing wet and frozen feet.