Chapter 11: Rabbit Meat is a Treasure

The sun rose in the east, bathing the earth in a warm, pale orange light.

The villagers were early risers. Before dawn, smoke already curled from the chimneys.

Ruan Xiaotang stood on a hillside, gazing at the sparse lights and the hazy smoke rising from the village below.

She held a rope in her left hand, tugging at the two plump wild rabbits behind her.

Tears welled up in her eyes.

Her mind immediately conjured up the best ways to cook them:

Spicy rabbit heads, braised rabbit in a large iron pot, charcoal-grilled honey-glazed rabbit legs.

Rabbit meat is a treasure; every recipe is a feast.

“Where did you get these?”

Liu Guifang’s eyes widened as she stared at the two dead wild rabbits lying beside the stove.

Each one weighed at least ten pounds.

Ruan Xiaotang used a feather duster to brush the dirt and a few burrs off her trousers.

Calm and collected, she replied, “I caught them.”

Liu Guifang’s fire poker instantly stopped moving. She stared at her daughter with a dazed expression.

A familiar sense of strangeness washed over her.

Ever since her daughter’s accidental fall into the water and subsequent recovery, her words and actions had been strange, though she couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was amiss.

Her limited education prevented her from understanding.

Since childhood, her daughter had been gentle, well-behaved, and sensible.

Every neighbor praised her.

But only she, as her mother, knew her daughter’s true temperament.

As gentle as she appeared on the outside, she was strong on the inside.

Calm and decisive in the face of adversity.

Yet, such a strong person had a family that held her back…

Fate was unkind.

Life, it was all fate!

Liu Guifang hung her head in shame, unable to meet her daughter’s gaze.

Ruan Xiaotang sensed the change in atmosphere. Her mother lowered her head, using her left hand to stir the corn husks in the stove with the fire poker.

Her expression was unreadable, but her sparse, dry, yellowing hair and the graying at her temples were clearly visible.

Her faded gray cotton clothes were covered in countless patches, one on top of another.

Her black velvet cloth shoes, besides having patches, were worn smooth, the raised velvet flattened into a single black line.

Beneath the patched clothes, her body was gaunt, like a loose garment hanging on a clothes rack.

Years of malnutrition.

Her speech was weak and listless…

Ruan Xiaotang’s chest tightened.

Her eyes reddened.

Their family had suffered too much hardship. She vowed silently that as long as she lived, she would ensure they lived a comfortable and prosperous life.

“Sister, you’re back! Wow, you actually brought back two such fat wild rabbits!”

Ruan Xiaohai limped into the room from the side room.

Upon entering, he grinned, baring his teeth, and chuckled.

The bruises on his face, combined with his cheerful expression, created a strangely comical effect.

“Here, Xiaohai, drink the water in this teacup.”

“Sister, I’m not thirsty. When are we going to stew the rabbit?”

His eyes were glued to the rabbits on the ground, his mouth constantly watering.

“Drink first. At noon, we’ll stew the rabbit. We’ll make a big pot and satisfy your cravings.”

Ruan Xiaohai looked as content as a child.

He danced with joy.

“Sister, this water is so sweet, so good. Mom, try some.”

“You drink it, Mom’s not thirsty.”

Ruan Xiaohai stubbornly held the teacup to his stubborn mother’s lips.

Liu Guifang relented, taking a small sip. Her eyes lit up. “Did you add sugar?”

Sugar was a precious commodity in this era.

A woman who could drink a bowl of hot brown sugar water during her confinement would be envied by all the women in the village.

But such fortunate women were rare.

“Rock sugar. I went to town before I fell into the water and bought two liang at the grocery store.”

“Sister, can I have a piece of rock sugar?”

“Sure. It’s on the table in my room. Go get it.”

“Thank you, sister!”

Ruan Xiaotang pulled over a stool and sat down.

She took off her coarse cotton jacket and handed it to her mother. “There are two pockets full of chestnuts and walnuts in the inner pockets. Let’s roast them and have a treat.”

When Liu Guifang saw the two pockets of goodies, her eyes gleamed.

Such rare treats were priceless.

There was a large patch of chestnut and walnut trees on the hillside in the village. During harvest season, each household contributed labor and received work points, which could be exchanged for grain, but the chestnuts and walnuts were never shared.

Liu Guifang’s heart was filled with suspicion. She quickly glanced around the empty yard.

Making sure no one was around, she quickly closed the door and bolted it.

She whispered, “Where did you get these? If the village chief finds out, our family will…”

“Mom, don’t worry. I got these from a squirrel’s hole in the mountains. It took me a lot of effort. You and Xiaohai just eat your fill.”

“Really?”

“When have I ever lied to you?”

Liu Guifang believed her daughter. She took the bamboo basket hanging on the wall and carefully placed the treasures inside.

There was enough for their family to eat for a while.

They could skip a few meals of poplar leaves.

She hung the basket back on the wall and turned to Ruan Xiaotang. “You’re a girl. Don’t go to the mountains alone, and don’t climb trees. It’s so dangerous. What if you fall?”

“Okay, I’ll listen to Mom.”

……………………

“Sister, sister, wake up! It’s noon. We should start cooking the rabbit.”

As instructed by his sister, he had already skinned the rabbits and soaked them in water to remove the blood.

More than two hours had passed. It should be enough.

His hunger gnawed at his empty stomach.

“Don’t shout. Your sister went to the mountains before dawn and brought back so many good things. Let her sleep a little longer.”

Liu Guifang sat on a stone stool in the yard, a worn-out winnowing basket between her legs.

Holding a silver needle in her right hand, she picked up a fresh mushroom with her left hand, inserted the needle, and slid it down, the mushroom now strung on the thin white thread.

Her hands moved continuously, stringing a long chain of mushrooms.

She turned her head, used the end of the silver needle to brush her hair, and stopped her hungry son.

“Okay.”

Ruan Xiaohai squatted by the wooden basin, his eyes fixed on the wild rabbits.

He swallowed his saliva repeatedly.

He eagerly waited for his sister to wake up.

He stood by the pot, his eyes glued to the spatula as it moved through the rabbit meat, the tempting aroma filling the air.

“Fragrant, so fragrant!”