After hurriedly finishing lunch, the two didn’t rest for even a moment before throwing themselves back into gathering medicinal herbs.
They worked quickly and efficiently, their sharp eyes carefully scanning every corner where medicinal herbs might be growing. Time quietly slipped by as they worked, and before they knew it, they had gathered two large sacks and two full baskets of herbs.
The freshly gathered herbs gave off a faint medicinal fragrance, a testament to all the hard work they had put in that day.
Just as they were preparing to pack up and head down the mountain, a clear series of clucking sounds suddenly came from nearby.
“Cluck, cluck, cluck!”
Yun Yixuan immediately stopped what she was doing.
Her eyes lit up as she looked excitedly at Li Meiling, her expression clearly asking, “Did you hear that? There’s a chicken!”
She quickly leaned closer to Li Meiling and whispered excitedly, her voice trembling slightly, “There’s a chicken.”
Although she kept her voice low, she couldn’t hide her excitement.
Li Meiling froze.
For a second, her mind went completely blank. Then she realized what Yun Yixuan meant, and her heart began pounding wildly as a wave of excitement surged through her.
She unconsciously licked her dry lips.
An irresistible image appeared in her mind—a chicken simmering inside a pot, creamy white broth bubbling around the tender meat as a rich aroma filled the room, with a beautiful layer of golden oil floating on top.
If they managed to catch that chicken, they could finally enjoy some meat tonight!
Recently, every meal they ate consisted of coarse grains and wild vegetables. They had eaten so plainly for so long that they were desperate for the taste of meat.
To the two of them, this chicken was simply an irresistible temptation.
Li Meiling and Yun Yixuan exchanged a glance.
A silent understanding flashed through their eyes.
Neither needed to say another word. At that moment, they had already reached the same decision.
They were catching that chicken.
Their little “pheasant-catching operation” was about to begin in the quiet mountain forest.
Yun Yixuan leaned toward Li Meiling and whispered, “Wait here. I’ll go over and try my luck.”
With that, she began creeping toward the source of the sound, moving as quietly and cautiously as an alert cat.
Even from a distance, Yun Yixuan soon spotted two grayish wild pheasants.
They clucked softly as they wandered around, occasionally lowering their heads to peck at grass seeds and small insects on the ground.
Yun Yixuan immediately held her breath.
Slowly, carefully, she moved closer.
The distance between her and the pheasants grew shorter and shorter.
Just as she was getting close enough—
Crack!
A dry twig snapped beneath her foot.
Yun Yixuan’s heart skipped a beat.
Damn it!
She had definitely startled them!
She instinctively raised her head and found herself staring directly into the tiny, black, bead-like eyes of one of the pheasants.
At that critical moment, before the pheasant could fully react, Yun Yixuan made an immediate decision.
She locked her eyes on one of the birds, gathered all her strength, and hurled the small sickle in her hand.
Truthfully, she hadn’t expected much.
Wild pheasants were extremely agile, and throwing the sickle had been nothing more than a desperate gamble.
But somehow, luck was on her side.
The sickle struck one of the pheasants dead on.
“Cluck! Cluck!”
The injured pheasant cried out in pain, frantically flapping its wings and struggling across the ground.
However, its injuries were too severe. It couldn’t run fast enough to escape, nor could it fly away.
Seeing her chance, Yun Yixuan immediately sprinted toward it.
She lunged once.
Missed!
She lunged again.
Another miss!
On her third attempt, she finally managed to pin the pheasant firmly to the ground.
Yun Yixuan picked it up and examined it.
The entire side of the pheasant, from its wing down to its leg, had been badly cut. Its feathers were disheveled around the wound, and blood covered the injured area.
No wonder it couldn’t escape.
As for the other pheasant, it had already disappeared into the forest, frightened away by the commotion.
Only then did Yun Yixuan remember that Li Meiling was still waiting for her.
“Meiling! Come over here!”
Hearing Yun Yixuan shout, Li Meiling thought something terrible had happened.
Her heart tightened, and she immediately sprinted toward Yun Yixuan as fast as she could.
When she finally arrived and saw the plump wild pheasant dangling from Yun Yixuan’s hand, she let out a long sigh of relief.
“You scared me to death! I thought something had happened to you.”
“What could possibly happen to me?”
Yun Yixuan helplessly explained, “I just didn’t dare shout that I’d caught a pheasant. If anyone else heard and came over asking for a share, the two of us might not even get a mouthful of soup.”
Li Meiling immediately understood.
In the 1970s, many resources were considered collective property. Things that grew abundantly, such as mushrooms, could generally be gathered by whoever put in the effort.
But wild pheasants, ducks, boars, and other rare sources of meat were different.
Those were supposed to be divided equally among everyone.
Of course, if someone secretly caught one without anyone finding out, there was nothing stopping them from keeping it for themselves.
“That’s true.”
Li Meiling immediately glanced around cautiously, checking whether anyone else was nearby.
Suddenly, something caught her eye.
There seemed to be several round objects hidden in the grass ahead.
Her eyes lit up.
She quickly walked over, crouched down, and gently pushed the grass aside.
There, hidden beneath the grass, were eight bright white pheasant eggs!
“Yixuan, there are eggs here!”
Li Meiling excitedly called out in a hushed voice.
She carefully picked up the eggs one by one and placed them inside the basket on her back. Then she deliberately covered them completely with medicinal herbs so no one would discover them.
Hearing Li Meiling’s words, Yun Yixuan smiled so widely that her eyes narrowed into crescents.
“We’re really lucky today.”
She picked up the sickle lying nearby and swung it forcefully toward the pheasant’s neck.
With one swift strike, the pheasant stopped moving completely.
Yun Yixuan lifted the pheasant and watched the blood flow steadily from the cut on its neck.
She frowned slightly.
“What a hassle. We still have to wait for the blood to drain.”
“It’s fine. There’s no rush.”
Li Meiling looked up at the sky.
The sun was still high above them.
“We still have plenty of time before dark.”
Less than ten minutes later, the blood gradually stopped flowing.
Yun Yixuan put down her basket, tucked the pheasant deep inside, and carefully covered it with a thick layer of medicinal herbs.
“Let’s go back, get the rest of the herbs, and head down the mountain,” Yun Yixuan suggested.
Li Meiling nodded without hesitation.
The two retraced their steps and soon returned to the place where they had first heard the pheasants.
The two sacks of medicinal herbs were still lying there untouched.
Without wasting any time, Yun Yixuan and Li Meiling each grabbed a sack.
Using both hands, they carefully lifted the sacks and placed them securely on top of their baskets. They then kept one hand on the sacks to prevent them from slipping off.
Fortunately, medicinal herbs weren’t particularly heavy.
Otherwise, Yun Yixuan was certain she would collapse from exhaustion before they ever made it home.
Today had truly been an incredible harvest.
Their baskets and sacks were filled to the brim, and neither woman could hide her happiness.
They walked one behind the other along the winding path home, chatting and laughing the entire way.
The warm winter sunlight filtered through the gaps between the branches, scattering tiny patches of light across the path.
A faint golden glow seemed to surround the two women, making their cheerful expressions appear even brighter.
“Meiling, let’s stew the chicken tonight. I’m dying for some meat.”
As Yun Yixuan spoke, she exaggeratedly sniffed the air and put on a pitiful expression, looking exactly like a child eagerly waiting for a piece of candy.
Seeing her like this, Li Meiling smiled helplessly. Her eyes curved into crescents, filled with affectionate amusement.
“All right. Tonight, we’ll make chicken stew with mushrooms and finally satisfy that craving of yours.”