Just as Li Long caught one sparrow in his net, he heard a sudden flutter nearby as another flew away. What a shame, he thought, but he carefully removed the sparrow he’d caught from the net. It squirmed in his hand, pecking at his fingers. Li Long tightened his grip slightly, only to feel a sudden warmth—his captive had relieved itself.

“Here you go, Qiang Qiang,” Li Long handed him the sparrow. “Hold it tight. If you let it go, there’ll be no roast sparrow for you later.”

“I got it, Uncle,” Qiang Qiang nodded earnestly, holding the sparrow with both hands.

Li Juan watched her uncle with bright, curious eyes. Li Long smiled, taking the flashlight to search again. In winter, sparrows gathered in stacks of straw to keep warm, so he knew there would be more.

Sure enough, soon he spotted another and caught it, handing it to Li Juan.

After searching through the whole stack, Li Long managed to catch four sparrows, though two got away.

“Uncle, the He family in the front yard has another stack!” Qiang Qiang offered eagerly, still holding a sparrow in each hand.

“Inside their yard or outside?” Li Long asked.

“In their yard.”

“No, we can’t go into someone’s yard just for a few sparrows. It wouldn’t be right, especially at night,” Li Long shook his head.

“Uncle,” Li Juan chimed in thoughtfully, “do you remember the Gao family’s side yard? Their straw stack is outside the fence, visible from the road.”

“That’ll do. Let’s check it out,” Li Long agreed. Four sparrows wouldn’t be enough for all three of them.

Outside, near the open field, trudging through knee-deep snow was no easy feat. Li Long walked in front, making a path for Li Juan and Qiang Qiang to follow in his footsteps.

By the time they reached the Gao family’s straw stack, their shoes were filled with snow, though nobody complained. In fact, all three looked eagerly at the larger stack of straw, about a third bigger than the one at home.

A dog barked from inside the Gao family’s house, and someone faintly yelled for it to hush.

Li Long shone the flashlight over the straw, scanning carefully. Within seconds, he spotted a sparrow. This time, he took his time, scanning the whole stack. Counting nine sparrows in total, he started on the lower left corner, netting each one carefully.

He caught six sparrows, more than he could hold, so he twisted their necks one by one, placing them in the snow to gather up later.

“Uncle, the Qin family has a stack further back…” Li Juan said, her tone full of anticipation.

“No, that’s enough for tonight. We’re all soaked, and if we stay out longer, your mom will scold you. Let’s head back.”

“Okay… let’s go.” The two kids sounded a bit disappointed, but they agreed. Even a small sparrow meant meat, after all.

Back in the yard, Liang Yuemei stepped out as she heard them arrive. Seeing the snow on the children’s pants, she scolded, “Where did you all go? Look at you—covered in snow! Aren’t you cold? Get inside and change your shoes!”

“I won’t! I want to eat sparrow!” Qiang Qiang stubbornly held up his sparrow. “I want meat!”

“Alright, alright,” Li Long said with a chuckle, cutting off his sister-in-law before she could say more. “But go change your shoes first. I still need to clean these sparrows before we can roast them.”

“Okay…” Qiang Qiang reluctantly agreed. He and Li Juan handed over their sparrows and went inside to change.

“You really spoil them,” Liang Yuemei sighed at Li Long. “And you, change your shoes too—you’re soaked!”

“Right,” Li Long agreed, smiling as he went inside.

He switched to thousand layers-soled shoes his sister-in-law had made for him, placing his rubber boots by the stove to dry before getting to work on the sparrows.

Thanks to his experience from his previous life, preparing the sparrows was quick. Instead of plucking the feathers, he twisted off each sparrow’s head and pulled the skin down, feathers and all.

It may sound cruel, but for children who have been without meat for years, what is cruel?leaving them hungry is harsher.

After skinning the ten sparrows, he cleaned them out, brushed the stovetop’s iron plate with a rag, and arranged the sparrows in a row.

Before heading out, he had covered the stove fire with coal dust, leaving the stovetop hot but not burning. Perfect for roasting.

The stove was made from bricks with an iron sheet across the top. At that time, few villagers could afford a proper iron stove, so makeshift setups like this one were common.

As he finished arranging the sparrows, Li Juan and Qiang Qiang returned, their eyes widening with excitement as they saw the sparrows roasting on the stove.

“Uncle, when can we eat them?” Qiang Qiang asked, practically drooling.

“Just a bit longer. I’ll go get some salt and chili powder,” Li Long replied.

“Alright,” Qiang Qiang answered, surprisingly patient.

Li Long stepped into the west room, where his brother and sister-in-law were talking.

“Sister-in-law, can I grab some salt and chili powder?” he asked.

“Of course, I’ll get it for you,” Liang Yuemei said with a smile, pleased to know it was for her children.

“You caught quite a few sparrows, Li Long,” she said, chuckling.

Li Long grinned sheepishly. In his previous life, he wouldn’t have bothered. But now, seeing his niece and nephew happy made the effort worthwhile.

With small bowls of salt and chili powder and two enamel plates for serving, Li Long returned to the east room and set the ingredients by the stove. Carefully, he sprinkled salt and chili powder on each sparrow as it roasted.

Both salt and chili powder were precious commodities, nothing to waste. Unlike in later times, where seasonings were tossed freely, here he was careful with every pinch.

After sprinkling one side, he flipped the sparrows and seasoned the other.

Soon, the savory scent of roasted, spicy sparrow filled the room. Li Long sighed—if only he had some cumin, it would be perfect.

Even Li Juan, usually more restrained, couldn’t help but swallow hard, her eyes fixed on the roasting sparrows.

After flipping them three times, Li Long plated two sparrows and handed them to Li Juan. “These are ready. Take them to your mom and dad; they should have the first bite.”

Qiang Qiang looked a little confused, but Li Juan, understanding, carefully took the plate and carried it to the west room for her parents.

Seeing Qiang Qiang still puzzled, Li Long explained, “There’s no meat in the house, right? So your mom and dad haven’t had any either.”

“Right…”

“And they work the hardest, don’t they?”

“Yes.”

“So, shouldn’t they have the first taste?”

“Yeah, they should!”

Satisfied, Li Long nodded, then picked up a sparrow, waiting until it had cooled a little before handing it to Qiang Qiang.