Chapter 27: Heaven Provides the Meal

Meng Ling returned home and looked at the already repaired kitchen.

The kitchen could be fixed, but the clay pot couldn’t be repaired—stewed meat just tasted better when cooked in a clay pot.

She called out inside the kitchen, “Mother, do we still have a clay pot at home?”

“We do have one, but it’s a bit small. It might not be good for stewing meat,” her mother replied.

Then Shen Shi took out a clay pot from under the cabinet inside the house.

Meng Ling came over and saw that it really was a bit small—only slightly bigger than a bowl for serving dishes—but at least it could hold more than a bowl. It was enough to stew a rabbit.

She washed the clay pot clean, stir-fried the cut rabbit meat until fragrant, then put it into the pot and placed it over the fire to stew.

Inside the kitchen, the whole family squatted by the stove to warm themselves. Luckily, when it was originally built, they had thought to make the space big enough for warming by the fire, so it was cozy and warm inside.

“Dad, you wouldn’t believe how angry Zhang Sanmazi looked today…” Meng Shiqiao told the whole story of what happened today to the family.

Meng Liang slapped his thigh while listening, “He dared to do that, and even got defied back! That Zhang Sanmazi—next time I’ll have a good word with him, shameless guy!”

Shen Shi also angrily said, “Exactly, what kind of man is he? No need to fear him next time. There’s no one in this village who bullies children.”

Before long, the rabbit stew was ready. The family warmed by the fire, smelling the meat’s aroma, couldn’t wait to eat.

At the dinner table, Meng Shiqiao said while eating, “Hmm, wild game really is delicious. Tomorrow I’m going hunting for rabbits again.”

Shen Shi said, “Finish eating first, then go hunting.”

Meng Shiqiao agreed, “Okay!”

Soon, the three jin (about 1.5 kg) of rabbit meat was all eaten clean.

In the afternoon, the snow began to melt, and water droplets continuously fell from the eaves.

Meng Shiqiao looked outside and said, “Sister, the snow is melting so fast, I guess we won’t be able to hunt rabbits anymore!”

Meng Ling said, “If we can’t, we can’t. You always want to eat rabbit meat every day.”

She knew Meng Shiqiao was itching to try. He had been practicing archery for a long time and finally had the chance to show it off, but now it might be lost, so naturally he was eager.

“Sister, I just want to practice my archery.”

As expected, she guessed correctly. Meng Ling said, “There are many ways to practice archery. Why do you have to focus only on rabbits? Aren’t wild pheasants tasty? And there are deer and muntjacs in the mountains too.”

Those deep mountains had plenty of such game, but it wasn’t easy to catch any.

So the two prepared to go into the forest to look for chances.

Meng Ling took a machete and put it in the basket on her back. The forest was hard to walk through, sometimes a machete was needed, but holding it in hand was cold, so better to carry it on her back.

Passing through bamboo groves, behind them lay an endless deep mountain forest, much bigger than the eastern mountains. No one had ever crossed it before—one could easily get lost.

The two entered the forest, stepping on the snow that made crunching sounds. Most of the evergreen trees were bent by the snow’s weight, some broken or fallen.

Meng Shiqiao said while walking, “Sister, isn’t this the place where we met that bear? It’s hibernating in a cave; we could sneak in and attack it.”

Meng Ling rolled her eyes, “Do you even know where it’s hibernating?”

“Uh… we can find out!”

Meng Shiqiao said, he’d been thinking about that bear for a long time.

“Find it then, and talk later.”

They went deeper into the mountains, about three or four li (1.5-2 km) away. On the snow, there were some bird droppings.

Meng Ling pointed at some droppings and said, “See? These are left by wild pheasants. They’re smaller than the droppings from our home-raised chickens.”

“There should be some nearby. When the time comes, it’s up to you—make sure your shot counts. You only get one arrow.”

Meng Shiqiao nodded seriously, bow ready in hand.

The branches were covered in white snow. The wild pheasants resting on them were quite conspicuous, especially the roosters with their bright feathers.

Wild pheasants usually feed and rest on the ground, but on snowy days many roost on branches.

After about half an hour of walking, Meng Ling finally spotted some pheasants.

Pointing at the wild pheasants on the distant branches, Meng Ling said, “Slowly sneak over. Keep your eyes on their heads. If it moves, stop for a moment. When they relax their guard, move forward again.”

“Keep your movements small and slow. Find good cover, and then go.”

Meng Shiqiao remembered carefully and slowly moved towards the pheasants. The pheasants faced away from him and were still relaxed from a distance.

When the pheasants heard a noise, they’d move their heads left and right to scan. Their eyes could see sideways and behind, so their vision was wide.

When they turned their heads, they were observing their surroundings. Too much noise would scare them away.

Meng Shiqiao kept moving forward step by step behind the trees’ cover. After a while, he saw there were five pheasants in total on the trees.

Two roosters stood out most. One rooster and one hen stood on the same branch.

After about fifteen minutes, Meng Shiqiao got within fifteen meters.

He held his breath, left hand holding the bow, right thumb pulling the string, index finger pressing the thumb, while gripping the arrow tail.

Left hand moved forward, right hand pulled back, aiming at the pheasant.

“Whoosh!”

An arrow shot out. Meng Shiqiao immediately nocked a second arrow.

“Whoosh!”

The second arrow was ready even as the first was flying.

“Whoosh!”

The first arrow hit, the startled pheasant squawked and took flight, but the second arrow pierced one rooster.

This skill truly surprised Meng Ling. It was like heaven was providing the meal—this talent was undeniable!

Meng Ling muttered, “Really like a small knife stabbing the butt, opened my eyes!”

Meng Shiqiao shouted excitedly, “Sister, come quick, I hit three!”

“Got it!”

“Great!”

This talent even made Meng Ling a little jealous. He was definitely a wild game killer.

Meng Ling stepped forward, “You can even shoot two arrows in quick succession. If you went to war, you’d be a sharpshooter.”

“Then getting an official rank wouldn’t be a problem!”

Meng Shiqiao shook his head, “What’s the use of being an official? Can I eat the wild game from the mountains every day? Can I eat the rabbit stew made by sister?”

Meng Ling laughed, “If you were an official, you wouldn’t have to hunt. Someone would prepare it and serve it to you.”

He still shook his head, sticking to his idea. “Then I won’t be an official. If I leave, who will hunt the wild game in these mountains?”

Meng Ling understood what he meant. “Alright, then just stay in these deep mountains and hunt wild game!”

Meng Shiqiao heard a familiar tone in her words. “Sister, you sound almost like Mother now.”

He thought she had changed a lot recently.

Meng Ling pinched his cheek, “That’s because I’m your sister. The eldest sister is like a mother, don’t you know?”

“Ouch!”

Meng Ling let go, “Good that it hurts. Brothers are meant to be cared for!”

Meng Shiqiao rubbed his cheek, complaining, “Whose brother gets cared for like this?”

Meng Ling threatened, “Don’t you think I care for you enough? Want even more sisterly love?”

“No, not at all!”

Meng Shiqiao quickly ran away. There was still one wild pheasant left on the ground.

Meng Ling followed behind. Not far away, she heard him shouting anxiously, “Sister! Come quick!”

Meng Shiqiao’s voice sounded urgent, as if he’d discovered something important.

“What did you find?”

Meng Ling quickly ran over carrying the wild pheasant. Under the tree was a large hole, slanting downward, big enough for two adults to easily crawl in.

The hole’s depth was unknown, inside it was pitch black and nothing could be seen.