In the kitchen, Xiao Mannai didn't seem to hear anything going on outside, and was still cooking unhurriedly. She was steaming the "big-foot buns" that everyone loved.
Cut the pumpkin and sweet potato into shreds and saute them with oil and salt until fragrant to make the filling. Mix the fresh corn noodles with water until they are soft and hard. Wrap all the fillings together like making dumplings.
Finally, use the cleaned mulberry leaves, wrap the whole thing and put it on the bamboo steaming tray, and steam it through water.
Little Man walked to the door of the kitchen and said in his usual slow voice: "Old lady, those people are coming up the mountain!"
There was no trace of fear on Xiao Man Nai's face, and she kept her hands on her hands: "With Er Ruiniang and Xiao Man here, we can kill big wild boars, I'm not afraid!"
She was not blindly confident. It was dark and the road was steep. She couldn't escape even if she wanted to. There was no point in being afraid. What was supposed to come would always come.
Besides, we have already been fully prepared.
From the first day on the mountain, I have been guarding against the knowledge of people down the mountain every moment.
Over time, it has become a habit.
For several months on the mountain, from when Zhao Li's house was attacked by bandits to now, I was afraid that someone would come in. Every time the big rooster crowed, he would be hit by stones. Unfortunately, it had not stretched its neck to make a complete cry in half a year.
The two families cook in the morning and evening when there is fog, and try not to leave any traces even when walking on the mountain.
Especially after the refugees moved into the village, Jiang Zhi asked Xiaoman and the others to increase the number of traps in the forest near the two families, to guard against people and wild animals, and to protect the two families tightly.
Some time ago, in order to kill wild boars, Jiang Zhi also mentioned several trap methods. Although they were not used to kill wild boars, Xiaoman and Xu Errui were inspired and improved the traps.
It used to be just an enhanced version of the rabbit snare, but now it's a snare that can hurt wild boars.
By forcefully pulling down a snare made of bent treetops, the wild boar can be hoisted to a green tree by simply stepping on the trap on the ground and causing the branches to bounce up.
Even if it is not harnessed, the bouncing treetops can make a sound, alerting the two families that something is approaching.
The cry of pain that Qiaoyun heard just now was because he had stepped on a trap.
It was not yet completely dark at this time, and as soon as Xiaoman entered the forest, he saw several strangers huddled together in a panic.
One of them was still hanging upside down in the tree, trying to untie the hemp rope around his leg.
But the man was hanging swaying in the air. When he moved, the whole treetop shook wildly, as if it was about to break. He was so frightened that he screamed: "Please save me!"
But no one paid attention to him at this time.
"What do you do? How did you end up here?" Xiaoman looked innocent.
Falling into the trap, the bearded man was still panicking, but he could see that Xiao Man in front of him was still a half-grown child, and he immediately smiled: "Little brother, don't shout, we are going up the mountain to collect herbs. When we saw your house, we wanted to come over and ask for a drink." !
I accidentally stepped on this pole, and I don't know whose family did it... Little brother, come on, help put the person down! "
Xiaoman's face was still naive: "There are wild boars here, and my family just set the trap. Who told you to wander around? I'm sorry, you have to climb the tree to release it yourself!"
He was polite in his mouth, but he was sneering in his heart. Whoever did something immoral was the one who set it up himself.
As for saying you went wrong, that's even more nonsense. This forest has no access to the outside at all, and only people who want to sneak up will go there.
Facing the sudden appearance of the refugees, Xiaoman was not afraid, but excited.
There are more than one trap in this forest, and you can lure them away by running towards those places.
However, thinking that brother Errui and sister-in-law had not arrived yet, I decided to delay for a while and also feel the background of these people and see how many people they had seen.
"Oh! It's a wild boar!"
The man on the tree was about to faint, but the bearded man was not in a hurry to save him. He said with a smile: "Little brother, how many people are there in your family? Can we go to your house to drink some water?"
Xiaoman said without hesitation: "It's just me, my brother and my father. If there are too many of you, my father will be unhappy!"
"A guest is coming to your door. Didn't your elders teach you how to treat people?"
The disheveled man next to him said something sinister and moved towards him with evil intentions.
Xiaoman backed away cautiously, keeping a distance from him and said, "I don't know you. There are so many of you that I don't even have enough benches, bowls, or chopsticks at home!"
On the other side, hearing that there were only two brothers and an old man here, the bearded man became happy: "There are only four of us, not many. Quick, put down the rope and go to your house..."
At this moment, Xu Errui also entered the forest. When he saw Xiaoman talking to someone, he immediately said: "Don't talk to these outsiders!"
He was in a nervous mood. Just now, his mother said not to talk nonsense, but to find a way to lure the person to the trap and capture him first.
If that doesn't work, you can also lure him home, and they will use soft methods to arrest him. Anyway, don't get hurt in the fight.
Although Xu Errui had knocked out a refugee who bullied Chunfeng's sister-in-law outside the village, he was still nervous about taking on such a heavy task, and his hand holding the wooden fork was trembling.
Especially when he saw Xiaoman still chatting with others, he was even more frightened.
When Xiaoman saw Xu Errui arriving, he immediately retreated to his side: "Brother, there are four of them, and they want to drink water and eat at our house! I didn't agree!"
"Oh! Oh!" Xu Errui didn't react at all when Xiao Man called him brother. He just stared at the two people walking over.
It was dark in the woods at this time, and it was impossible to see each other's faces even though they were five meters apart.
Xu Errui took a deep breath, suppressed his pounding heart, and whispered to Xiaoman next to him: "My mother said don't talk nonsense..."
"Okay!" Xiao Man responded quickly, his voice filled with joy.
"Bang!" "Bang!"
"Ah!" "Ah!"
Xu Errui stood there blankly, looking at the back of Xiaoman who suddenly rushed out, still muttering: "...If you can't beat me, take him home!"
He didn't expect that Xiaoman couldn't wait to take action just after he said his words...
Opposite, the bearded man also saw a young man of medium height coming over. Just as he was about to say a few words and ask to go home, he saw the child suddenly rushing over.
As a result, he only felt his eyes flashing brightly and then blacking out, and his head was opened.
Xiaoman was as excited as a little tiger. He didn't give everyone present a chance to speak. He waved the mace with stone chips in his hand and knocked people over without holding back.
He went up the mountain for half a year. Except for the grass root porridge he ate for the first few days, after the wildfire, he started to live a life of eating plenty of meat and green rice flour cakes.
Eating pancakes every day and supplementing with various herbs, the fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy's height is like a knotted wheat seedling. He is growing rapidly every day, and at the same time, his physical strength is growing with nowhere to burn.
On the lonely mountain, Xiaoman was so energetic that he howled all day long, and his feet would itch if he didn't run back and forth on the mountain for a few times.
There is also his sister-in-law Chunfeng who dares to kill the people who bully him. Killing a big snake is simply the second most powerful person in his mind.
The most powerful person is of course his eldest brother.
He couldn't wait to see his strength, and finally waited until the refugees arrived.
Xiaoman is now like a little wild boar that has started to grow fangs and needs a teething stick every day. He bites everything he sees.
