Chapter 305: Chapter 305: Eaten by a Tiger Chapter 305: Chapter 305: Eaten by a Tiger “Mother, I’m going to cook breakfast in the kitchen, and afterwards, I need to see how the mason masters are progressing with the house construction, then, I’m going up the mountain with Big Bull.” Xuexue secured her hairbun and straightened her clothes, preparing to step out.
Now that the weather has gradually warmed up, the birds and beasts in the mountains have become more active as well. She planned to try her luck with Big Bull, hoping they might hunt some pheasants to not only feed the workers building the house but also to save on spending silver in the town.
“Xuexue, our fields are still lying fallow. If we don’t plant crops soon, we won’t have a harvest this year. What shall we do?”
Madam Xie had been worried about this issue for the past few days. However, seeing Xuexue so preoccupied with the construction, she kept her concerns to herself. Now that the spring planting season was nearly over, she couldn’t hold it in any longer and raised the question.
“Mother, don’t worry about this matter, I already have a plan, and you will see the results in a few days.” With that said, Xuexue stepped out.
“This girl, she doesn’t tell me anything, making me worry unnecessarily,” Madam Xie said, unable to hide her smile.
For breakfast, Xuexue rolled out noodles and cooked a large pot, served with a big plate of flavorful mud loaches, which made up the meal for the day.
Aunt Li, who had initially been quite sullen, had changed greatly and would now eagerly sit at the table waiting for mealtime, anticipating Xuexue and the others to start eating.
“What are we having today?” Seeing Xuexue bring a plate of mud loaches to the table, Aunt Li craned her neck, her eyes darting back and forth over the dish.
There was no helping it; since Xuexue and her family had arrived, her life had undergone significant changes.
Firstly, the whole house came alive with their presence, but most importantly, Xuexue’s culinary skills were exceptional. She constantly varied her cooking, satisfying Aunt Li to the fullest. It was the first time since her husband had died that she felt life could be so enjoyable!
“Aunt Li, these are flavor-packed mud loaches, a unique creation of my sister. You can’t buy them anywhere else, they’re delicious. If you take them to town to sell, they fetch one tael of silver per jin,” Chuner said, unfazed by Aunt Li’s sternness, chattering away.
“Is that so?”
Aunt Li was surprised and looked up at Xuexue, finding it hard to believe that such a thing could be worth one tael of silver per jin. The girl might be better at overcharging than she was. Skeptically, Aunt Li picked up a loach and started chewing, and immediately, an aroma that was spicy and numbing filled her nostrils.
“Hmm! Not bad, really tasty!”
Aunt Li couldn’t help but nod her head in approval. The charm of the flavor-packed mud loaches was that they were not only delicious but also made one crave more after eating them. That the girl could come up with this on her own signalled a promising future.
“Aunt Li, if you like it, eat more,” Xuexue said with a smile as she served Aunt Li a bowl of noodles, then filled bowls for everyone else, placing them on the table before sitting down herself.
“Big Bull, after a while, let’s check on how the house is coming along, and then head to the mountain to see if there’s any game to hunt,” Xuexue said as she ate her noodles.
“Alright!” Big Bull’s eyes immediately lit up at the mention; amidst the chaos of house building, he had not had the chance for some alone time with his wife.
“Just remember not to venture too deep into the mountain, there are big tigers there,” Aunt Li said, an unusual note of caution in her voice.
Upon hearing this, Madam Xie became nervous; it was an incident she had almost forgotten. A few years back, a hunter from a neighboring village, in pursuit of his livelihood, had gone deep into the mountain and