Zheng Wei's words were not polite; he did not subscribe to the idea of gentlemen avoiding the kitchen. Taking the firewood stick, he sat in the spot where Shen Xiaoyan had been sitting earlier.
Shen Xiaoyan chopped the rabbit into pieces and blanched them in boiling hot water to remove any scum.
As soon as the meat changed color, Shen Xiaoyan quickly scooped it out with a ladle. She poured out the water from the pot, added oil, then garlic, chilies, and ginger. After stir-frying them until fragrant, she added the meat. Lacking sugar, Shen Xiaoyan could only stir-fry it for a longer time.
She asked Zheng Wei if they had wine at home. She poured some into the pot, then added water, covered it, and let it simmer for half an hour. A pot of fragrant braised rabbit was ready.
While the rabbit was simmering, Shen Xiaoyan steamed enough rice for two people in a smaller pot.
During the meal, Zheng Wei ate a lot and quickly, but his movements were not at all crude.
Shen Xiaoyan stole glances at Zheng Wei as she ate, surprised by how elegant the young hunter's demeanor was.
Zheng Wei put down his chopsticks, wiped his mouth, and said to Shen Xiaoyan, "Are you full?"
"I'm full from watching," Shen Xiaoyan replied instinctively. When she realized what Zheng Wei was asking, a suspicious blush spread across her face.
Shen Xiaoyan looked at Zheng Wei's bowl, which was already clean. Then she looked at her own bowl, where on top of the white rice, there was only a small hole poked by chopsticks.
"Eat slowly, I'm going to chop firewood," Zheng Wei said and walked out.
Shen Xiaoyan watched Zheng Wei's shadow disappear and recalled the unconcealed smile in his eyes earlier. She felt extremely embarrassed.
Shifting her attention to the meat, Shen Xiaoyan was startled again. One side of the basin holding the meat was empty, with only soup left, while the other side had untouched meat.
She picked up a piece of rabbit meat and put it in her mouth. Shen Xiaoyan thought it was the most delicious rabbit meat she had ever eaten.
After eating and washing up, Shen Xiaoyan finally had true leisure.
In this era, there were no zombies, no mutated animals, and no endless danger and killing.
Although she had encountered a terrible stepmother when she first transmigrated, she now had her own small home.
Her husband, though a bit ugly, was a good person.
Even though their home was just a few thatched huts, and they had almost nothing besides necessities, Shen Xiaoyan still felt very satisfied. Nothing was more important than peace and freedom.
Sitting in the courtyard, lazily basking in the sun, Shen Xiaoyan squinted her eyes contentedly. If only her little brother were here.
Thinking of Shen Xiaoming, whose eyes were always full of concern for her, Shen Xiaoyan's heart warmed again.
Just then, Zheng Wei returned from chopping firewood. Shen Xiaoyan immediately stood up and walked to his side, hesitating for a long time, unsure of how to begin.
"Say what you want to say," Zheng Wei said, a flicker of a smile in his eyes as he watched Shen Xiaoyan's awkwardness.
Shen Xiaoyan closed her eyes and said loudly, "I want to bring my little brother here."
"That Shen Xiaoming?" Zheng Wei's eyebrows raised slightly.
Shen Xiaoyan was surprised, "You know him?"
"The skinny monkey who always follows you around and works for you, who in the village doesn't know him?"
"Is that possible?" Shen Xiaoyan asked Zheng Wei expectantly.
"I have no objections," Zheng Wei said expressionlessly.
Before Shen Xiaoyan's lips could curve upwards, Zheng Wei added, "But do you think your father and your stepmother will agree?"
Indeed, after hearing Zheng Wei's words, Shen Xiaoyan's lips immediately drooped.
Yes, how could she forget? As a married daughter, wanting to have her younger brother by her side was not an easy matter, whether in ancient times or the twenty-first century.
Especially in recent years, she had been doing all the household chores with Shen Xiaoming. Now that she was married, those chores would likely fall solely on Shen Xiaoming's shoulders. How could Xu Shi let her take Shen Xiaoming away?
Especially,
Thinking of this, Shen Xiaoyan walked back into the house dejectedly. She was absent-minded during dinner, and this mood continued until the next day.
Because she was preoccupied with this matter, Shen Xiaoyan didn't sleep soundly all night.
Before dawn, Shen Xiaoyan heard the sound of the room door opening, followed by footsteps moving outside.
Shen Xiaoyan quickly put on her clothes and opened the door, just in time to see Zheng Wei about to close the main house door from the outside.
"Where are you going?" Shen Xiaoyan asked in surprise. So early, and it was still dark, where was he going?
"I'm going to town," Zheng Wei said upon seeing Shen Xiaoyan come out, not seeming surprised. "I'm going to town to sell those two pheasants and the wild goat. Once Shen Xiaoming is here, that little bit of food won't last for the three of us for more than a few days."
Upon hearing this, Shen Xiaoyan was deeply touched. Zheng Wei had already thought of this in advance. She had worried all night, only to be overthinking.
"I'll go with you. I... I haven't been to town before." Saying this, Shen Xiaoyan felt a little embarrassed.
The original Shen Xiaoyan had lived for 15 years without ever going to town.
Every time Xu Shi went to town to buy groceries, she never took her and Shen Xiaoming along.
Looking at the hopeful light in Shen Xiaoyan's eyes, Zheng Wei readily nodded, "As long as you don't mind the fatigue."
It wasn't until they were on the road that Shen Xiaoyan truly understood what Zheng Wei meant by "don't mind the fatigue."
Their home was located at the village entrance. After walking a short distance from their courtyard, they reached the road leading directly to town.
In ancient times, there were no bicycles or cars. Wealthy families had comfortable carriages for travel.
Ordinary people would buy donkeys or mules to pull carts. Farming families would typically buy oxen to pull carts, which served for both travel and farming.
Shen Xiaoyan knew that Uncle Wu's family in the village had an ox cart.
Uncle Wu drove the ox cart to town every day, taking villagers with him. Each person paid one copper coin per trip.
After they had walked for an hour, the sky had already brightened, and the sun had peeked out from the east.
Shen Xiaoyan gazed ahead, feeling that the road ahead was long.
After walking for another hour, the two finally arrived in town.
Shen Xiaoyan tilted her head back and looked at the old city walls, a sense of excitement rising in her heart. This was the first time she had seen an old town.
In her previous life, she hadn't had time to earn money and visit the ancient towns of Jiangnan before she was plunged into the zombie apocalypse.
Sighing softly, Shen Xiaoyan followed Zheng Wei, who had paid the city entrance fee, into the town.
Upon entering Tongling Town, Shen Xiaoyan realized how large the town was. All she saw were blue-brick houses. Although not as magnificent as those seen in dramas, they had their own charm.
People were already moving back and forth on the streets. The early morning food stalls were already crowded.
Shen Xiaoyan followed Zheng Wei through the streets and finally arrived at the bustling market.
The market was even more crowded than the streets. Villagers from nearby hamlets would bring everything from eggs laid by their hens to wild game caught in the mountains to sell, and then buy what they needed.
Although Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei had set off very early, as it was Shen Xiaoyan's first time walking such a long distance, her pace was naturally not fast.
By the time they arrived at the market, many stalls had already been set up.
Finding an empty spot, Zheng Wei placed the two pheasants and the wild goat on the ground and then sat down, waiting for someone to buy them.
Shen Xiaoyan was very curious about the trading place here. The scale couldn't compare to before the apocalypse, but it was similar to after the apocalypse.
After about a quarter of an hour, a middle-aged man finally walked over.
"Zheng Wei, how's the merchandise today?" the middle-aged man said with a smile, greeting Zheng Wei before even looking at the animals on the ground.
Zheng Wei nodded faintly, "They're all alive."
"Haha, Brother Zheng, you're the most reliable. I only mentioned it once, and you brought live ones." The middle-aged man laughed happily. "Here, this is the money. Count it. It's ten percent more than the original price."
Zheng Wei reached out and took the money the middle-aged man handed him. Without looking at it, he directly put it into his embrace. "I trust you, Brother Liu."