Chapter 109: Mousehead

Sang Luo went down the mountain with Shen Lie because she also needed to go down and ask several families in the village where she could buy cloth.

They went to the Chen family first. When it came to applying poison to arrowheads, Chen Youtian indeed didn’t know, but unexpectedly, Mrs. Chen did!!!

The old lady was quite proud: “This thing, my father used to make it. It’s an herb called Mousehead that we can find in the mountains on our side. My father and his brothers used to make some every year. They would bring it with them when they went into the mountains. They wouldn’t use it normally, but when they encountered big game, they had to use it for self-preservation. It’s lethal. Once the poison arrow hits, the prey dies within a few steps.”

Chen Youtian was bewildered, “With such great power, why didn’t you mention it to me before?”

Mrs. Chen glanced at him, “Back then, you were just catching mountain chickens nearby. Do you think this is snake repellent? This stuff is highly toxic. Would I dare teach you? When you and A Lie went deep into the mountains and brought back a wild boar that time, I was scared out of my wits. I did consider teaching you, but we don’t have this herb nearby. I was thinking of asking the pharmacy, but before I could, you were conscripted.”

Mrs. Chen looked at Shen Lie again and said, “If you want to find this stuff, it’s better to ask at the pharmacy. I remember the process, but it’s better to hear what the pharmacy has to say. But one thing, you guys have to keep this stuff safe yourselves. Don’t let the children touch it. It’s too toxic. Whether it’s a child’s accidental touch or a misfire of the arrow, it could be fatal.”

Shen Lie nodded and said, “Okay, I’ll ask when I go to the county town tomorrow.”

Tomorrow afternoon, they also had to secretly go to the county town to fetch grain. They would be taken there by Chen Youtian’s group before dawn, stored at Dongfu Building, and then brought back empty-handed in the afternoon, taking advantage of the time before the city gates closed to bring the grain back home in the dark.

As for finding the Mousehead herb, they didn’t need to go to another house. They could just ask at the pharmacy where they bought medicine that day.

Mrs. Chen had explained everything she needed to, and then she directly mentioned the recipe for making poison to deal with wild animals.

That’s right, she directly mentioned it.

Although it was something passed down in their family, wasn’t it used by everyone to avoid disasters and save lives in the mountains? What was there to hide at this point? Moreover, there was no one else here except her grandchildren and Shen Lie. Mrs. Chen was happy to tell them.

Moreover, when they went to the pharmacy, wouldn’t A Lie ask about it then?

Do you expect the doctor to teach you the recipe?

Dream on.

You should already know, and if you encounter a good doctor, they might give you a few more tips.

With Shen Lie’s matters settled, it was time for Sang Luo to buy cloth.

Mrs. Chen shook her head, “There isn’t much cloth left in my house, and I need to save some for myself. You can go ask at your Uncle Zhou’s house. Both of his daughters-in-law are good at weaving.”

Originally, the Lu family’s cloth was also good, but they had changed weavers recently, so Mrs. Chen didn’t recommend the Lu family.

Sang Luo thanked her with a smile and looked at Shen Lie, “I’ll go to Uncle Zhou’s house. Do you want to go back first?”

Shen Lie nodded seriously, “I also have something to discuss with Uncle Zhou.”

Chen Youtian glanced at him. It was just about training Zhou Sanlang, Zhou Silang, and Zhou Wulang, so there was no need to make a special trip.

But seeing him, the newlywed, sticking to his wife was normal.

With smiles in their eyes, the two generations of the Chen family sent the young couple out of the Chen family’s yard.

…

When Sang Luo and Shen Lie went to Uncle Zhou’s house, Shen An, Shen Ning, and several other younger ones who often played together were by the riverside.

Looking for the Shen Jin brothers.

Shen Jin hadn’t been to their house since the snow melted, and Shen An and Shen Ning knew the reason.

Big brother had beaten Third Uncle and said he would sever ties in the future.

The Huzi glanced at the commotion and learned a few words from Shen An and Shen Ning.

Shen An didn’t care much about recognizing Third Uncle, but he still looked worried when he saw Shen Jin and the others, “Many families in the village have started to buy beans from the county. Did your family buy any?”

Shen Jin shook his head, “My dad is still lying at home. He said we have beans at home, but if we need to buy more, we should wait until he’s healed.”

In fact, since Shen San was beaten, he had been lying in bed every day, making excuses to avoid the conscription that was scheduled for December. It was agreed that after Aunt Li served her conscription in November, Shen San would go in December.

Shen San was indeed severely beaten that day and cried out in pain for two days. Wasn’t this a ready-made excuse? Let his wife continue to serve the conscription in December.

He felt he had to appear weak for it to work, so he leaned more and more towards weakness. Now, Shen Jin was the one standing on a stool by the stove making two meals a day.

Shen An and Shen Ning glanced at each other.

The siblings were also semi-grown children and only half-understood such matters. They didn’t know what to say for a while.

A group of children sat by the riverside and sighed together.

They used to think Shen An and Shen Ning were pitiful. Now, comparing them, Shen An and Shen Ning were the best-off children in the village. Apart from a few particularly poor families, Shen Jin and his brothers were probably the ones who were pitiful.

Among these children, whose families didn’t have grain? Their parents were quietly buying, just like the families of Daniu, Erniu, and Huzi Axu, who had relatives in nearby villages. As soon as their parents heard the news, they went to inform them to store grain and buy beans, and they quietly informed each family to find a place in the mountains to hide the grain.

As for pooling their grain together, that wasn’t happening. Each family had its own methods.

Of course, the children didn’t understand this. They only knew that their parents, uncles, aunts, grandfathers, and grandmothers were all preparing urgently. Unlike Shen Jin’s family, which seemed to have no reaction at all.

Shen An looked at Shen Yin and Shen Tie, his two cousins who seemed completely clueless about everything, and felt troubled. He said to Shen Jin, “There’s a war going on outside, and many people are dying. My brother said there might be a war here too…”

How could you all be like this?

He kept this sentence to himself and didn’t say it out loud.

Because the relationship between the two families was really not close enough for such intimate conversations.

Shen Jin also looked listless. On the first day his eldest brother came back, Uncle Zhou Cunzheng informed each family one by one that night. The people in the village had been discussing these matters these past two days. Several families had gone to buy beans today, but no matter how many times he told his father, he was scolded and chased out.

Shen Jin watched as each family brought grain back home one by one, but there was no movement in their house. They felt quite disheartened.

“Let’s wait until my mother comes back in a few days.”

If his mother came back, whether his father went to serve conscription or his mother went to serve, the adults in the house wouldn’t be lying in bed like they were now.

Shen San had indeed been beaten, but it wasn’t to the point where he couldn’t get out of bed for several days. Shen Yin and Shen Tie weren’t quite clear about it, but Shen Jin could vaguely guess.

His father just didn’t want to serve conscription. Serving conscription was hard, especially in the dead of winter. His father looked at him several times and sneered.

Shen Jin vaguely felt that if he were a few years older, say, twelve or thirteen, his father might have sent him out to serve instead.

Because his father had said several times that this year’s conscription in the county was much lighter for women and half-grown boys like him compared to men like him.

Shen An didn’t mention buying grain anymore. He looked at Shen Jin and asked, “My brother and Brother Dashan want to teach us how to use slingshots and climb trees. Do you want to learn too?”

He said that what they were learning might save their lives in a critical situation.

Shen Jin’s eyes lit up and then dimmed again. He muttered, “Will Big Brother teach me?”

Big Brother came back and announced on the first day that he was severing ties with their family. Shen Jin and his brothers weren’t there at the time, but later, they heard their father scolding so loudly that their ears almost went numb. Others also mentioned it several times in front of him.

So, when the snow melted, the three of them didn’t dare to go to the main house.

Shen An was also a bit uncertain. Big Brother was still Big Brother and was particularly good to them and their sister-in-law. But when he got angry, he was actually quite scary.

He blinked, “Why don’t you try it? Just quietly follow along and see if Big Brother agrees?”

He thought Big Brother would dislike Third Uncle and Third Aunt, but he should be okay with Shen Jin and the others, right?

If Shen Yin and Shen Tie were the ones he and his sister grew up with, then he and his sister and Shen Jin were the ones Big Brother took care of.

When Shen Jin was young, he was quite annoying, but he was particularly good at being cute and clever in front of Big Brother because Big Brother often brought back some food.

Shen Jin couldn’t remember it himself, but Shen An remembered a lot. As long as the amount wasn’t too small, Shen Jin got a share in nine out of ten times, but his and his sister’s shares were a bit more, and Shen Jin’s was a bit less.

Big Brother’s favoritism was clear because without Shen Jin, they wouldn’t eat as well at home.

Because of this, when Shen Jin was young and had something delicious, he would actually share it with him and An Ning, and then he would go to Big Brother to curry favor.

But later, when Big Brother left, Shen Jin was six years old. He learned words from Uncle Zhou and Aunt Zhou, and became more and more annoying.

Thinking of this, Shen An pursed his lips again, “Big Brother hasn’t seen you when you had a foul mouth and were annoying, so he probably won’t chase you away.”

He also heard him say some good things about Shen Jin helping with farming and reporting back. But he was too lazy to tell Shen Jin about it.

Shen Jin blinked, “Then, should I try it?”

…

Shen Lie’s military training plan was set to begin execution the next day before dawn.

This was the notice that each child received from their family before going to bed, telling them not to sleep in the next day. Early the next morning, they would follow the adults who set up stalls to run to the county town, train their physical strength and endurance, warm up with a slow jog behind the convoy’s torch

So, Shen Jin, who had come up with the idea of brazening his way into the group, failed on the first day of mingling. By the time everyone knew the news, it was already too late, and none of the kids who had talked together by the riverside had a chance to go out and inform him.

Sang Luo, who had agreed to learn only archery and tree climbing as quick and useful skills, also felt eager to go out when she saw the other three in the house getting ready to go for a run. But ancient undergarments were really inadequate!

The original host was already sixteen, not too young anymore, and had all the developments that come with that age. Forget about running, at least not for now.

Sang Luo felt for the first time that she needed a bra, a sports bra. Even if the one she made herself would be completely different from those bought in future markets, she had to figure out how to make one.

With that in mind, she grabbed her purse and joined Shen Lie and the others.

Shen Lie looked at her with confusion. “Are you going too?”

Sang Luo shook her head. “I’ll just walk with Aunties and go to the county to buy some things.”

The clothing shops in the county didn’t just sell ready-made clothes; they also sold fabric scraps. In the past, Sang Luo only bought the relatively inferior coarse cloth, which she used for shoe soles and sewing money bags. At that time, she had seen that there was no shortage of satin and silk scraps, all just sold by the pound.

But this time, she wasn’t planning to buy those small fabric scraps. She intended to see if there were slightly larger pieces of silk fabric blocks for sale. They were more expensive than scraps but much cheaper than whole pieces of fabric. Sang Luo planned to buy a few more pieces and use them for her and Shen Ning’s close-fitting clothes in the future.

Luxury was luxury, but for close-fitting clothes, not much fabric was needed. Sang Luo felt that it was entirely feasible to buy small pieces and stitch together a few outfits.

As for bras and such, she planned to start with relatively conservative styles, practice with coarse fabric first, and when she got it right, she would use good fabric to make two for herself, even if it was just using good fabric to make a lining.

That’s settled.

Shen Lie originally wanted to offer to help her buy whatever she needed, but he was also secretly pleased that Sang Luo was going out with him. He cleverly kept his mouth shut and just helped Sang Luo lock the door.