Chapter 24: Seventh Was a Wife-Doting Husband

As soon as Chen Chunlan heard that there were wild pheasants and rabbits to eat, her eyes immediately lit up, and she readily agreed: “That’s not troublesome at all. Wait here, I’ll go boil some water.”

As she spoke, Chen Chunlan turned to head into the kitchen, but halfway there, she stopped and looked at Su Ruanruan with curiosity. “Seventh’s Wife, how many pheasants and rabbits did you catch?”

“Six pheasants, three rabbits.”

As soon as Su Ruanruan finished speaking, she saw Chen Chunlan’s eyes widen in shock, as if experiencing an earthquake in her pupils.

Chen Chunlan glanced toward the main gate and lowered her voice. “Seventh’s Wife, you didn’t run into anyone on your way back, did you?”

In these times, everything on the mountain belonged to the public.

Everyone went to gather wild vegetables and chop firewood. Even if they collected a little more, no one would say anything.

But pheasants and rabbits were a different matter.

Every household was struggling to get enough meat. If others found out that they had brought back so many pheasants and rabbits, they would definitely be envious. And if someone with a black heart reported them, they would be in serious trouble.

Su Ruanruan understood Chen Chunlan’s concerns all too well.

“Third Sister-in-law, don’t worry. We covered them thoroughly with firewood and wild vegetables. No one saw us.”

Hearing this, Chen Chunlan finally breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s good! That’s good! I’ll go boil the water now. Seventh, you close the main gate first.”

It was almost time for people to finish work. If anyone came to visit and saw them slaughtering chickens in the courtyard, it would not be good.

Fu Wenjing responded and walked toward the main gate, locking it from the inside.

Su Ruanruan couldn’t help but sigh in her heart.

In the end, all of this stemmed from poverty and a lack of resources!

The rural earthen stove had a strong fire, and in no time, a pot of hot water was ready.

While waiting for the water to boil, Fu Wenjing didn’t remain idle—he was skinning the rabbits.

Although the rabbits were still alive, they couldn’t be kept at home.

In these times, every household was only allowed to raise a limited number of chickens.

If anyone dared to raise more than permitted, at best, the extra poultry would be taken away and slaughtered. At worst, if they encountered someone strict and unyielding, their entire household could be torn apart.

Even though the wild chickens and rabbits were still alive, no one ever considered keeping them.  

They were all killed, skinned, and eaten.  

Only what was consumed in one’s stomach could truly be considered one’s own and would not invite trouble.  

Su Ruanruan watched as Fu Wenjing skillfully skinned a rabbit. She clicked her tongue in admiration and said: “You must have skinned quite a few rabbits before, haven’t you?”  

Fu Wenjing did not stop his movements. He turned his head, smiled at Su Ruanruan, and then answered: “Not that many, but it’s not difficult.”  

Hearing this, Su Ruanruan merely smiled without replying.  

As the saying went: “What is difficult remains difficult, but for those who have mastered it, it becomes easy.”  

Fu Wenjing said it was not difficult, but that was only because he had already learned how to do it. It did not mean it was truly easy.  

Once Chen Chunlan finished boiling the hot water, Su Ruanruan helped her carry a large wooden basin filled with steaming water into the courtyard.  

Fu Wenjing had already slit the throats of several wild chickens with his knife before placing them into the basin to soak.  

Chen Chunlan was experienced in plucking feathers, so she immediately started working.  

From the memories of the Original Owner, Su Ruanruan knew that she also had this skill.  

However, looking at the wild chickens soaking in the hot water, she still felt at a loss on how to begin.  

After all, it was the Original Owner who knew how to do it, not her.  

For someone like Su Ruanruan, who had never even killed a chicken before, to immediately start plucking feathers—she truly found it difficult to bring herself to do it.  

Just as she was hesitating, Fu Wenjing had already finished handling the rabbits. He walked over, crouched down, and directly started plucking the chickens.  

“Ruanruan, didn’t you gather a lot of wild vegetables? Sort them out and wash them—we’ll be able to eat soon.” Fu Wenjing spoke gently.  

Hearing his words, Su Ruanruan instantly felt relieved and replied crisply: “Okay! I’ll do it right away!”  

Their conversation entered Chen Chunlan’s ears word for word.  

She glanced at Fu Wenjing, then at Su Ruanruan, before quickly lowering her head again.  

She never expected that their family’s Seventh was actually someone who doted on his wife!

However, as long as the young couple had discussed things among themselves and were happy with their decisions, it was their own business. She had no intention of interfering.  

Both Chen Chunlan and Fu Wenjing were swift and efficient with their hands.  

Together, they took just over half an hour to finish processing all the chickens.  

During this time, Su Ruanruan also sorted the wild vegetables into categories and washed them thoroughly.  

Just as they completed their tasks, a knock sounded at the front gate, followed by Wang Maoni’s voice from outside.  

“What are you all up to? Why is the gate closed?”  

Chen Chunlan quickly ran over to open the door. As soon as she cracked it open, she eagerly spoke: “Mother, Seventh and Seventh’s wife brought back wild chickens and rabbits from the mountain. We were just finishing up preparing them!”  

“Really?”  

Wang Maoni had initially sounded a little displeased, but upon hearing this, her face immediately bloomed into a smile.  

She stepped inside first, followed closely by the younger grandchildren of the Fu Family.  

These children were still in elementary school, and since it was summer vacation, they spent their days collecting firewood and gathering pig grass. Sometimes, Wang Maoni would accompany them to the foothills of the mountain.  

The younger children were naturally less composed.  

The moment they stepped into the courtyard and saw the freshly cleaned wild chickens and rabbits, their eyes lit up, and they nearly started drooling.  

Even though they had eaten pork just a few days ago, they still craved meat.  

Last time, there hadn’t been much meat to go around, and each of them had only gotten a small portion.

But this time was different. With so many wild chickens and rabbits, they could finally eat to their heart’s content—there would be enough meat to fill them up.  

Wang Maoni also felt delighted as she looked at the game, but soon, a hint of worry appeared on her face.  

“Seventh, we were just at the foot of the mountain earlier and didn’t see you and your wife. Did you two go deep into the forest? That’s dangerous!”  

“Mother, we just went in a little bit. I was careful.”  

“I know you’re capable, but even so, you mustn’t let your guard down. Do you understand? The deep forest is dangerous, and you mustn’t go in. Whether we eat this meat or not, safety comes first.”  

“I understand. I definitely won’t go deep into the mountains.”  

Chen Chunlan had been quietly listening from the side. When Wang Maoni and Fu Wenjing finished talking, she finally spoke up.  

“Mother, how should we cook the meat tonight?”  

Wang Maoni pondered for a moment before saying: “The weather is hot, and the meat won’t last long. Let’s stew one rabbit and two chickens tonight, and we’ll smoke the rest so they’ll last a few more days. After that, we can eat one each day.”  

“Alright.” Chen Chunlan responded cheerfully and headed off to the kitchen.  

The wild chickens and rabbits were quite plump, each weighing several pounds. Stewing two chickens and one rabbit tonight would be more than enough to feed the entire family.