Chapter 166: Slaughtering the Yearly Pig

Chapter 166: Slaughtering the Yearly Pig

"Dad, this pig was hunted by ManCang and me!" Chen San Shi was covered in grime, but he didn't mind at the moment. He was too excited, gesturing wildly as he recounted his exploits—how he lured the wild boar, how he dodged its charges, and finally, how he landed a precise strike to its throat. It seemed that all those days of chopping wood had paid off. "There were two wild boars. This one's male and quite aggressive. It kept charging us, almost got us, but I managed to dodge it just in time. I wanted to catch the other one too, but Brother said no. Losing the male is fine, but we need to keep the female for breeding."

Uncle Chen nodded in agreement. "That's right. As they say, if a man dies, you can always find another who can bear children. It's like a field; it's not the plow that wears out, but the ox that tires. You, snap..." Before he could finish, his brother slapped him on the back of the head.

Great Uncle Chen glared fiercely, silencing his brother's incessant chatter.

"You guys didn't see it, but ManCang's archery skills are incredible. He hit a bird in mid-flight. In mid-flight, mind you! Not a stationary target." Chen San Shi, oblivious to the tension, mimicked drawing a bow as if he had made the shot himself. "But birds don't have much meat, so we didn't bring it back. Brother said that after another two months of practice, once spring passes, ManCang will be ready to hunt small game like pheasants and rabbits."

ManCang, more reserved by nature, was blushing from all the praise. Despite his embarrassment, he didn't say anything. Brother San Shi's compliments made him even more uncomfortable, and he tried to shrink away from the attention.

His clothes were stained with blood, giving him an intimidating appearance and a pungent odor. San Hua, who had never seen a live wild boar before, was curious but recoiled when she caught a whiff of the stench. She wrinkled her nose and looked away.

When ManCang noticed her reaction, he instinctively moved further away.

Seeing this, San Hua felt embarrassed and stopped pinching her nose, hastily waving her hands in explanation. "I, I don't mind the smell..."

"My clothes are dirty, and I smell bad. You should stay away," ManCang said with a shy smile, taking another step back. For some reason, this only made San Hua feel more upset, and her eyes welled up with tears.

This alarmed ManCang, and he froze.

Everyone else was focused on the wild boar, so no one noticed their interaction. San Hua felt guilty about pinching her nose, as if she was being judgmental. When she saw ManCang retreating, her guilt turned into overwhelming sadness, and her vision blurred with tears.

The sudden wave of emotion was inexplicable and irrational.

"Why are you avoiding me?" she asked, her voice thick with unshed tears. Afterward, she scolded herself for her behavior. Why was she acting this way? She was the one who found his smell unpleasant, yet she was upset that he was moving away. It was confusing and frustrating...

San Hua stomped her foot in anger, wiped away her tears, and headed straight for the kitchen.

When Zhao Su Fen saw her enter with her head down, she assumed San Hua needed something. However, the girl sat down silently by the hearth, grabbed some firewood, and started stuffing it into the stove. She lit the fire with a tinderbox and blew on it, causing the flames to rise quickly.

"San Hua, what's wrong? Did someone bully you? Tell Aunt Zhao, and I'll take care of it for you," Zhao Su Fen asked, noticing the wetness in the girl's lashes after she had just filled the pot with water.

San Hua shook her head. She felt ashamed for her earlier reaction to ManCang's smell and couldn't bring herself to admit it. Instead, she whispered, "The wild boar is so ugly. It scared me, so I came here to avoid looking at it and help with the fire."

"That's perfect timing. I was just worrying about who would help me with the fire. We need to heat water for the boys' baths and to scald the boar's hair. There's a lot of work to do," Zhao Su Fen said gently, assuming San Hua had been frightened by the wild boar. She adored her son-in-law's younger cousin. Having been a fiery woman all her life, she now cherished gentleness. Everyone in the family was strong-willed, including her own daughter, who wasn't afraid to stand up to her son-in-law. Even Liu Dao Cao, who had ventured into the mountains, was a formidable young woman, much like Zao Di from the Er Niu household.

San Hua, on the other hand, was often overlooked at home. Her brothers liked to tease her, asking her to serve meals, fetch washwater, or mend clothes. Sometimes, even Da Hu joined in the teasing, and Zhao Su Fen had playfully intervened a couple of times. Seeing San Hua's long, damp lashes now, she felt protective.

San Hua was unaware of Aunt Zhao's intentions to protect her. She also didn't know that ManCang was anxiously scratching his head outside, wondering why San Hua had suddenly started crying after pinching her nose. He thought to himself that women were indeed delicate and easily upset.

He was worried and wondered what to do. Should he apologize to her?

However, his mother was in the kitchen, and he was afraid to go inside, fearing her scolding.

While he hesitated, the water boiled. San Hua remained seated on the stool, unwilling to move and call them in for their baths. Zhao Su Fen didn't notice anything amiss and called out, "The water is boiling. ManCang, San Shi, come get your buckets and fetch some water."

"Okay!" Chen San Shi was squatting on the ground, draining the wild boar's blood. He was covered in filth, so he pulled out his knife. The boar's blood was much more pungent than that of a domestic pig, and although they wouldn't eat it, they collected it in a basin to dispose of later.

Seeing that San Shi was busy, ManCang couldn't delay any longer. He entered with two empty buckets and immediately spotted San Hua with her head bowed and her body slightly turned away. He became nervous, digging his fingers into his pant legs and standing stiffly by the stove, forgetting to fetch the water.

Zhao Su Fen glanced between the two, finding the situation both amusing and perplexing. Could it be that her own son was the one who upset the girl?

As this thought crossed her mind, she couldn't help but calculate the age difference between them.

She chuckled and patted her son's shoulder, saying, "What are you waiting for? Fetch the water yourself. Your mother is busy and can't help you."

"Oh, oh." ManCang was preoccupied with whether he should apologize to San Hua. Although it was embarrassing to make a girl cry because of his smell, he knew it was his fault for getting too close to her when he was dirty.

He should learn from his brother-in-law, who never approached his sister when he wasn't clean.

With his mother watching, ManCang was too shy to speak.

After he fetched the water and left, San Hua secretly peeked towards the door. Seeing that he was gone, she still hadn't fully calmed down when she heard her older brother calling her from the yard. "San Hua, stop heating water. The boar's skin is thick, and a couple of buckets won't be enough to scald the hair. Da Hu is digging a pit in the woods. Get a pot ready, and we'll scald it there."

"Okay, coming." San Hua responded promptly, and Zhao Su Fen helped remove a spare pot from another stove, carrying it outside together.

Da Hu and Er Niu carried shovels and found a suitable spot with a small slope. They dug a hole where they could crouch and light a fire below. This way, they could prepare the boar above. They didn't want to dirty the yard, which they had just cleaned, and since they would be slaughtering pigs every year, having a designated area would be convenient for future hunts.

The men worked efficiently, quickly digging the hole. Da Hu then left the finishing touches to Great Uncle and his father while he and Er Niu carried the boar over.

With adults around, the children, including Dogzi, were no longer afraid and ran out to play nearby. They stayed within arm's reach of the adults, behaving well.

Once Old Wei and the others set up the makeshift stove, Fang Qiu Yan and Wu Zao Di brought over firewood. After ManCang and San Shi finished their baths, more people joined in the preparations. They set up the pot, poured water, heated the fire, scalded the boar, and scraped off the hair. The whole family was bustling with activity, with people coming and going in and out of the yard. Everyone gathered around to watch the spectacle.

The weather cooperated, with warm sunlight bathing everyone in comfort. Peach Blossom sat at the entrance of the yard with her sewing basket, occasionally petting Goose Egg when he came over to call her Auntie. She enjoyed pinching his chubby cheeks, finding him adorable.

"I don't have any jujubes for you right now, Auntie," Peach Blossom teased. "Will you still call me Auntie without any treats?"

"Auntie." Goose Egg lay on her lap, smiling up at her.

"Our Goose Egg is such a good boy. One day, Auntie will fry some dough balls for you to eat." Peach Blossom adored holding his little face, feeling both exasperated by his mischief and charmed by his cuteness.

Watching the children running around, she couldn't resist touching her belly, wondering about the temperament of the child growing inside her. Would it be as energetic as Dogzi and the others? Would it be a girl or a boy? If it's a girl with a boyish personality, that would certainly be a cause for concern.

"Tao Hua, ask Sister-in-Law to bring a wooden basin for the meat," Da Hu called out as he prepared to butcher the boar, tying ropes around its legs and hoisting it onto a nearby tree with the help of several men.

Peach Blossom turned to her sister-in-law. "Sister-in-Law, Da Hu wants you to bring a basin out for the meat."

"Are you starting the butchering?" Fang Qiu Yan hurried out of the kitchen. She loved watching the process of dividing the meat and quickly fetched a large, clean wooden basin, jogging out to join them. As she passed Peach Blossom, she playfully tapped her head. "Don't sit there all the time. Get up and move around a bit."

After all, he had grown up in the village watching pigs being slaughtered; that scene was not scary but rather lively. Although Wei Dahu wasn't a butcher by trade, his hands were well-practiced in this task. He made an incision on the pig's belly, and the innards, soon to be stir-fried with chili and pickled vegetables as a hearty accompaniment to both rice and alcohol, gushed out. Tall and strong, he effortlessly held the mass of organs. Cutting through the congealed fat with his knife, he asked San Shi to move aside, then tossed the pile of innards into a bucket.

"Er Niu," Wei Dahu called out. Chen Erniu, who had been waiting nearby, promptly brought over a bucket and moved the wooden basin for the meat.

Wu Zhaodi didn't need to be asked; she took the bucket of innards away. The water in the pot was still hot, so she cleaned them outside to avoid dirtying the courtyard.

*Author's note*

The story is approaching the New Year, both within and without. The main text is nearing its conclusion. During this busy time at the end and beginning of the year, with visits to relatives and trips to the countryside, I won't be setting a regular update schedule or daily updates. I'll post as much as I write.