“Big Brother, you caught these?”
After saying that, the little girl couldn’t help swallowing.
“Nope. They jumped right into my hands on their own,” Lu Ping’an teased with a grin.
The little girl pouted. “Big Brother, you’re lying. Mom said we mustn’t tell lies!”
Lu Ping’an burst out laughing. “Alright, alright. Let’s go home and stew some wild chicken!”
At those words, drool immediately slipped from the corner of the little girl’s mouth.
Realizing it, she hurriedly wiped it away, but her eyes remained glued to the two wild chickens, unable to look elsewhere.
Tie Dan and the others, who had been about to leave, now spotted the chickens in Lu Ping’an’s hands and crowded around.
They looked at him with admiration, all of them gulping repeatedly.
Surrounded by a large group of children, General Wild Chicken Lu Ping’an led his “troops” home in triumph.
The children followed him all the way to the Lu family’s gate before finally dispersing reluctantly.
Lu Ping’an glanced at the sky—there was still plenty of time before noon quitting time.
He immediately began handling the two wild chickens. The blood couldn’t be wasted.
He might not know how to start a fire, but killing chickens? That he knew well—he’d seen it plenty in the countryside.
After mixing salt water with the chicken blood, he filled a large bowl and set it in the pot to steam.
If you didn’t want the chicken blood to turn tough, you couldn’t skimp on salt or water, and the heat couldn’t be too high while steaming.
Of course, some people simply boiled water first, then poured in the coagulated blood to cook it.
But that often made it overcooked and less flavorful.
Plucking wild chicken feathers was easy—both birds were done in just a few minutes.
After chopping them into pieces and washing them clean, Lu Ping’an placed the meat into a large bowl.
He added some spiritual spring water, then set it in the pot to stew.
With such naturally delicious ingredients, no heavy seasoning was needed. Once it was nearly done, just add a bit of salt—the taste would be incomparably fresh.
As for the innards, he set them aside to deal with later.
The little girl followed him the entire time, drooling nonstop.
“Alright, you watch the fire. I’m going to Grandpa and Grandma’s for a bit—I’ll be right back.”
He had already chopped up a chicken for the two elders; they only needed to stew it.
“Go ahead, Big Brother! I’ll watch it carefully!”
After speaking, she sniffed deeply through her nose, as if she could already smell the chicken’s fragrance.
Lu Ping’an laughed and hurried off.
About five minutes later, he arrived at his grandparents’ house.
His grandfather was hoeing the small plot of land in front of the house—a patch the village had specially reserved for him so he could grow some vegetables.
Not everyone in the village received such treatment. The old man had once served as village committee director for several years.
Later, when the People’s Commune was established, that position was abolished, and the brigade leader became the most powerful person in the village.
Seeing his precious eldest grandson arrive, the old man immediately tossed his hoe aside.
“Oh! Grandson, what brings you here?”
“I was just about to finish digging and then bring you some eggs and the meat coupon!”
He hurried over.
Inside the house, the old lady heard him and instantly set aside the shoe sole she had been stitching.
“Old man, where’s my grandson? Has he come?”
She hadn’t even stepped outside yet, but her voice was already ringing out.
Lu Ping’an felt deeply touched and quickly called out, “Grandpa, Grandma, I came to see you!”
By then, the old man had reached him. When he saw the bowl of chopped wild chicken, he froze.
“Grandson, what’s this?”
Before he finished speaking, the old lady appeared at the doorway. The moment she saw it truly was Lu Ping’an, her face broke into a wide smile.
“Grandson! Come in, come in! Don’t stand outside with your grandpa. Grandma will make you some brown sugar water!”
“Grandpa, let’s go inside and talk,” Lu Ping’an said.
The old man nodded, and the two went in together.
The old lady hurried to the kitchen to prepare the sweet brown sugar water.
As they entered, Lu Ping’an explained, “Grandpa, Grandma, I went to gather wild vegetables at the foot of the mountain with Sixth Sister today.”
“I happened to see two wild chickens fighting. I got lucky and caught them.”
“One is already stewing at home. This one—I’ve chopped it up for you. Let’s stew it now.”
The old lady, who had been pouring water, immediately objected.
“Grandson, no need to give it to us. Keep it to nourish yourself!”
“Your grandpa and I are so old. As long as we have something to eat, that’s enough. We don’t need anything fancy.”
The old man quickly agreed. “That’s right, grandson. Your grandma and I are in good health!”
“Over twenty days ago, your aunt brought us three liang of pork from the city. Your grandma and I ate it all.”
“You just recovered from a serious illness—this wild chicken is perfect for you.”
“Take it back. Add some salt and store it somewhere cool. It won’t spoil if you stew it tomorrow.”
Lu Ping’an had expected their refusal and was prepared.
“Grandpa, Grandma, ours is already stewing. I’m perfectly healthy now!”
“I’m your only eldest grandson. In the future, you still need to watch me get married, have children, and help me raise them. You must keep yourselves strong!”
“Grandpa, go start the fire. I’ll put it on to stew. Later you and Grandma eat more and nourish yourselves too!”
Hearing this, the two elders didn’t protest as strongly.
Still, the old man didn’t dare decide on his own and glanced at the old lady.
“What are you looking at me for? Since our grandson says so, why aren’t you starting the fire? Or do you expect him to do it himself?”
“Grandson, come drink your brown sugar water. Don’t mind your grandpa—he has no sense at all!”
After scolding the old man, she turned with a smile and handed the bowl to Lu Ping’an.
He quickly set down the chicken bowl and accepted it. “Thank you, Grandma!”
She beamed affectionately. “Have a sip. If it’s not sweet enough, I’ll add more sugar!”
He nodded and took a drink. “Grandma, it’s already very sweet!”
Her smile grew even brighter. As long as her grandson was happy, that was all that mattered.
The old man obediently went to start the fire. He didn’t dare defy his wife.
The whole village knew he had been henpecked all his life—there was no shame in that, especially in front of his precious grandson.
After finishing the brown sugar water, Lu Ping’an was about to take a large bowl from the kitchen cabinet to stew the chicken.
“Grandson, use this.”
The old lady handed him an enamel washbasin with a smile.
“Your grandpa and I can’t finish so much ourselves. Your second and third uncles’ families haven’t had meat in a long time either.”
“Stew more soup so they can taste some too.”
“Autumn harvest is almost here. If there’s no oil in people’s stomachs, they’ll all lose a whole circle of weight.”
After saying this, the old lady let out a soft sigh.