Chapter 313: Sudden Enlightenment – The Daily Life of the Sickly Aunt in the Courtyard

Chapter 313: An Eye-Opener – The Daily Life of the Frail Aunt in the Compound

It seemed they must’ve used up all their luck. Aside from that one pheasant, they hadn’t found any other big catches during this trip to the mountain.

Still, Lin Qing’s mother managed to gather a few handfuls of wild vegetables—they’d have to make it look good when they got back.

After scouring the mountain for a while, the group prepared to return and check on the situation by the lake.

Lin Qing was pumped, eager to see how the fish traps were doing.

The fish traps Lin Qing’s mother had woven weren’t very large, so she had made ten of them, hoping every little bit helps.

Now, the four of them stood by the lakeside, all on edge.

"Honey, hurry up and pull up the fish trap to see," Lin Qing’s mother urged, too scared to check herself.

Lin Qing’s father was also nervous, but since it was getting late, he wasted no time. He reached down and hauled up one of the traps.

Feeling some weight in his hands, his face lit up a little.

The others watched as their expressions changed with his.

Did we catch anything? Did we really catch anything?

Lin Qing’s father pulled hard, but as soon as it left the water, the weight seemed to vanish. His stomach dropped.

Staring into the trap, he said stiffly, "Nothing... how can there be nothing? I was sure it felt heavy just now!"

The smile on Lin Qing’s mother’s face instantly turned strained.

Cen Xi and Lin Qing also felt a pang of disappointment. They had expected a big haul, only for the first trap to hit them hard.

Lin Qing’s mother took a deep breath to calm down. "Cen Xi, you and your father should pull up the rest."

Not daring to disobey, Cen Xi and Lin Qing’s father quickly pulled up the rest.

Lin Qing didn’t blink, staring hard, not wanting to miss a single detail.

Fortunately, they didn’t return empty-handed—there were still a few fish among the nine traps.

Four of them contained fish, though some were big and others small. Still, it was better than nothing.

Lin Qing’s mother let out a relieved sigh. "Not too shabby, not too shabby. Could’ve been worse."

Lin Qing nodded in agreement. "Yeah, this is already pretty good. These fish will feed us for a week."

Lin Qing’s father and Cen Xi, however, remained somewhat bummed out, wondering if they had placed the traps incorrectly, leading to such meager results.

"Dad, Brother Nan, cheer up! We still got something," Lin Qing encouraged.

Lin Qing’s father and Cen Xi faked a smile. "Mhm."

"Alright, stop dwelling on it. First, empty the fish out, then put the traps back in," Lin Qing’s mother instructed.

"Should we really put them back?" Lin Qing’s father and Cen Xi hesitated, unsure how to proceed.

"Yes. It’s not like we got nothing—at least they worked. As long as fish keep going in... huh?"

Fish going in... huh?

It suddenly dawned on Father Lin, and he slapped his forehead, letting out a hearty laugh. "Hahaha! I know where we went wrong."

"Dad, what do you mean?" Lin Qing was puzzled.

Father Lin explained, "There’s nothing inside our fish traps, so why would the fish just swim right in?"

Cen Xi’s eyes lit up—yes! If the traps were empty, why would the fish willingly enter?

"Dad, you mean we should put some bait inside the traps before setting them, right?"

"Exactly!" Father Lin nodded quickly.

Mother Lin and Lin Qing caught on, "Ohhh, now I get it!"

"But what kind of bait should we prepare?" Lin Qing asked.

Father Lin had gone fishing with others before and knew that earthworms were the best bait for fish.

"But there don’t seem to be any earthworms around here!" Lin Qing muttered.

"..." Everyone went quiet.

Indeed, they didn’t have any earthworms here!

In the end, Mother Lin cut in, "Let’s just wing it this time. We’ll set the traps without bait and bring earthworms next time we come."

"Alright!"

Once they’d decided, they prepared to head back.

They’d figured that if the catch was plentiful, Mother Lin and Lin Qing would take the bus home while Cen Xi and Father Lin rode their bicycles.

But they overestimated their luck—with such a small catch, there was no need to save space on the bikes.

So they all rode the bicycles back together.

On the way back, they suddenly noticed the strong fishy smell. If they returned like this, it would be a dead giveaway they’d been fishing.

Mother Lin’s eyes lit up, "Wait here for a bit. I’ll grab some mugwort."

Mugwort was all over the place out here, and Mother Lin quickly returned with a large bundle. She spread it at the bottom and top of the basket, soon filling it with the heavy scent of mugwort.

"No more stink—totally covered!" Lin Qing sniffed.

When the family of four pulled into the courtyard with their basket, it immediately drew everyone’s attention.

"Whoa, what’s that smell?"

"Why is there such a strong mugwort scent?"

Hearing this, Mother Lin shot back, "Ugh, the mosquitoes’ve been awful, so I gathered some mugwort to repel them."

Now that she mentioned it, others swore the mosquitoes had indeed become more numerous recently.

"You feel it too? So do I! Could you spare some of your mugwort?" Auntie Zhou was one of them.

She stared eagerly at the basket, not just wanting some mugwort but also curious about what was inside.

"The nerve of you!" Mother Lin wasn’t about to indulge her. "Why don’t you gather your own? What I brought back won’t last us the week!"

"Fine, keep it then." Auntie Zhou curled her lips and smirked. "So! Y’all went out to the countryside? Did you get anything today?"

Lin Qing's mother had known things wouldn’t be peaceful once they returned to the courtyard and had already prepared a response. "What’d you think we’d get? We just went out for fun, not for anything specific. On the way back, we picked some wild vegetables—that’s all."

"Yeah, right—" The others clearly didn’t believe her.

Not like they could do anything.

Lin’s mom quickly sent Cen Xi and her husband to haul the baskets inside.

After a bit more small talk with the nosy neighbors, she hurried back inside.

Soon enough, the smell of fish soup filled the yard.

Folks in the front yard perked up at the smell. "That’s the smell of fish. Where’d they score fish?"

Following the scent, they realized it was coming from the main house and gawked hungrily toward the house.

Unaware of the neighbors’ speculations, Lin Qing’s family of four pigged out happily before finally emerging from the kitchen.

The second Lin’s mom came out, Auntie Zhou seized the opportunity to ask, "Aunt Lin! Where’d you get the fish?"

"Oh! Swapped with some folks nearby. Where else would we get it?"

"Really?"

"Of course! You think fish just jump outta the fields?" Not wanting their secret fishing spot exposed, Lin Qing's mother rolled her eyes at Auntie Zhou.

Seeing her reaction, the others found her explanation more believable.