Capítulo 23: Chapter 23: Searching for New Traces of Wild Chickens
Cui Hongyu blushed deeply from his sudden action.
With a shy expression, she exclaimed, "Husband, what are you doing? Put me down!"
Beside them, Chen Qiao'er clapped her hands joyfully, "Hug, lift high, and a kiss too!"
Chen Xiaobei had initially planned to spin a few more times, but seeing Cui Hongyu struggle, he had no choice but to let her down.
He wanted to lean in and give her a kiss, but Cui Hongyu turned her head and avoided it, saying, "Husband, Qiao'er, Qiao'er."
It was then that Chen Xiaobei realized—right, Chen Qiao'er was still standing there watching.
Feeling embarrassed, he rubbed the back of his head.
"Ah, sorry, I got too excited."
Cui Hongyu looked at him with surprise, "Husband, what exactly happened?"
"Hongyu, do you know? Those ginsengs, I sold them for five taels of silver."
This was obviously within Cui Hongyu's expectations. However, seeing Chen Xiaobei so excited, she couldn't help but smile as well. After all, it was a very large sum of money, and it was worth celebrating.
After saying this, Chen Xiaobei reached into his chest and took out the five taels of silver, handing them to Cui Hongyu.
Cui Hongyu looked at him with a puzzled expression, "Husband, what is this for?"
Chen Xiaobei wiped the smile from his face, gently placing the bag of money into her hands. With a touch of emotion, he said, "Hongyu, from now on, you manage the money in our house. I'll just focus on earning, alright?"
Cui Hongyu quickly shook her head, "No, no, Husband, how can a woman be in charge of finances? You should manage it."
Chen Xiaobei placed both hands on Cui Hongyu's shoulders, looked into her eyes, and said seriously, "I said it's settled, and it's settled. This matter is decided."
"But, Husband, this..."
Chen Xiaobei acted casually and waved his hand. "Ah, managing money is too troublesome. I don't want to worry about it."
"Besides, if the money's in my hands, it'll be spent in a few days."
After saying this, he turned to look at Chen Qiao'er.
"Qiao'er, did you help your sister-in-law today?"
Seeing her older brother finally speak to her, Chen Qiao'er immediately smiled. "Brother, Qiao'er and sister-in-law watered the vegetable garden at the back, and... we also made some rice porridge."
Cui Hongyu also stepped forward and affectionately patted Chen Qiao'er's head. "Qiao'er is so good."
"Husband, you must be tired. You rest first, and we'll eat soon."
Watching Cui Hongyu busying herself in the kitchen, Chen Qiao'er bounced along behind her. Chen Xiaobei suddenly felt warmth in his heart. This scene was so heartwarming. How he wished these peaceful days could last forever.
Lunch was still rice porridge. While eating, Cui Hongyu spoke again, "Husband, now that we are a bit more financially stable, we should get some things for the house."
Hearing this, Chen Xiaobei felt a deep sense of emotion. Yes, his house was bare, and it was time to get some proper household items.
"Alright, then. Let's do as you say. What should we start with?"
Cui Hongyu furrowed her brows and thought for a moment. "Let's start by tidying up these few rooms. I noticed that the back wall of the house has been badly worn by rain, and the roof needs some repairs as well. If we don't fix it, we might not make it through the summer."
"Also, the courtyard wall needs to be raised. We can't have people jumping over it easily."
Chen Xiaobei agreed with her. Thinking about it, he recalled how easily Chen Ermao and the others had jumped over the wall that day.
"Alright, if you think we have enough money now, I'll find a craftsman tomorrow."
He decided to leave the task for the next day because, this afternoon, Chen Xiaobei still planned to go up the mountain.
There were two things he wanted to do: one was to search around the mountain god's temple to see if there were any new discoveries, and the other was to go to the place where the wild chickens had flown up and see if he could find any signs of them.
After lunch, Chen Xiaobei rested briefly and then headed up the mountain. Cui Hongyu still wanted to go with him but was persuaded to stay with the same reasoning.
Cui Hongyu looked at him helplessly. "Husband, I know all the medicinal herbs on the mountain. If I go with you, we might find even more."
Chen Xiaobei nodded, his tone still firm. "You're right, but the mountain is too dangerous. You can't go."
"How about this? After I go up, I'll collect a few more herbs and wild fruits. I'll bring them back, and you can see which ones we can sell. Then, I'll go back and collect more."
"So, for now, stay home and be safe."
Seeing that she couldn't change his mind, Cui Hongyu nodded and agreed.
However, a wave of sweetness surged in her heart.
Chen Xiaobei reached the foot of the mountain and started searching for the wild chicken's trail in the area he vaguely remembered.
However, finding the trail of wild chickens wasn't that simple. After searching around, he didn't find anything. Chen Xiaobei couldn't help but feel disappointed. Just as he turned to head back, he suddenly felt his foot slip and almost fell.
What was that?
Chen Xiaobei couldn't help but mumble to himself.
Looking down, he realized that there was a large pile of manure beneath his feet.
"Wild chicken droppings." Chen Xiaobei's eyebrows immediately lifted.
He walked a little further and found several more scattered piles of manure, finally discovering a clue. He became excited.
It seemed like this should be the wild chicken's new habitat.
Additionally, looking at the droppings, another thought crossed Chen Xiaobei's mind.
He remembered seeing Chen Qiao'er digging a hole to bury manure in the vegetable garden earlier.
The wild chicken's habitat he had discovered earlier also had many droppings.
If he could take those chicken droppings back with him, forget about just a few vegetables; even a few acres of land would be enough.
Excited by this thought, Chen Xiaobei couldn't help but feel a rush of enthusiasm. How had he not thought of this before?
With a burst of excitement, Chen Xiaobei quickly turned around and ran back to the mountain god's temple.
There's a saying, "Birds are for wealth, while the dead are for food," and now that he had a goal to pursue, Chen Xiaobei felt braver. When he reached the mountain god's temple, he didn't give up and continued walking further up.
Eventually, he found a dead sheep. Aside from some remaining fur and the complete skeleton, most of the body had been eaten clean.
This sent a chill through him. It seemed there really were wild beasts in these mountains.
He stepped closer and carefully inspected the remains, noticing that the bones had weathered, crumbling with a light touch. It seemed to have been dead for a long time.
Well, it wasn't a recent death, he thought, slightly relieved, but he dared not venture any further.
As for the forest along the roadside, he didn't dare to go too deep, only venturing a short way in to search.
Luckily, his luck was still good today, and he found two ginseng plants in the woods. These two plants looked much larger than the thirty-year-old one from yesterday, so their age should be considerable too.
He also came across a few uncommon plants, not knowing their names, so he picked them and marked their locations. Then, in a hurry, Chen Xiaobei headed down the mountain.
While walking, he continued to think. Searching for herbs, catching wild chickens, and fishing—though these tasks kept him busy all day, they all had to be sent to the county, and transportation was a big issue.
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