Chapter 68: Barbecue
Editor: Atlas Studios
Mu Yangling only roasted fresh rabbit meat. At this moment, the weather was cold, and there was thick snow on the ground. Mu Shi and Mu Yangling were no longer going into the mountains to hunt, but the traps they had set up previously still remained. Every two to three days, the father and daughter would go into the mountains together to see if prey had been caught in these traps. If so, they could eat a fresh meal. If not, they would eat smoked meat and dried meat.
Most of the prey that fell into the trap were rabbits. Up until now, Mu Yangling had only encountered one roe deer. Pity though, Mu Shi had sent it to the town’s eatery instead of eating it themselves. That was why Mu Yangling used rabbit meat to make meat skewers.
Over the past few days, Mu Yangling had invented many ways to eat rabbit meat. Her culinary skills were not particularly good, but she had many ideas. For example, she would mince the rabbit meat and knead it into meatballs before cooking it in a soup…
In the past, Shu Wanniang doted on them and prepared for them all kinds of delicious food. Even though Shu Wanniang wasn’t in a state to cook right now, there was Madam Ma-Liu.
Mu Yangling was in charge of dicing and mashing the rabbit meat, for she was strong and had great endurance. She didn’t even mind doing it for the entire morning. Then, Madam Ma-Liu marinated the rabbit meat and gently kneaded it into meatballs, before adding them into the soup.
This was exactly what they ate last night. Even Shu Wanniang, who never fancied rabbit meat, had a small bowl.
Not to mention the two carnivores, Mu Yangling and Mu Shi.
The children also enjoyed the dish very much. This morning, Mu Yangling followed Mu Shi into the mountains and brought back two wild rabbits from the trap. One was kept for Madam Ma-Liu to stir-fry at night. Mu Shi had wanted to throw the remaining one outside to freeze with snow, but in the end, he asked Mu Yangling to skin it, wash it, and make roasted meat with it.
It couldn’t be helped. Although the winter day was short, there was nothing to do. Little Bowen couldn’t always read books, so Mu Yangling set up a grill to roast meat.
Speaking of barbecued skewers, Mu Yangling’s favorite was still roe deer meat or deer meat. Unfortunately, it was cold and snowy now, so they couldn’t go too deeply into the mountains, nor could they track the prey.
Mu Yangling was feeling sorry for her cousin and brother. “Roast deer meat tastes so good in winter. When the weather clears up and it’s a little warmer, Father and I will go into the mountains to hunt a deer. When the time comes, we’ll roast deer meat for you to eat. Put the deer meat on the tray and you just have to rub a little sesame oil on it. Then, sprinkle some salt and chili. Ah, if only there’s cumin. Just add a little and roast it until it’s 70% cooked.” Mu Yangling revealed a satisfied expression. “Once you eat it, I can guarantee that you won’t forget the taste.”
Little Bowen and Xiulan’s saliva dripped down. Little Bowen took a deep breath and asked eagerly, “Can I eat roasted venison too?”
“Of course, but you’re weak and can’t eat too much. Father should eat more.” Mu Yangling chuckled. “When the time comes, I’ll use this treasure to make wine for Father.”
Xiulan and Little Bowen asked innocently, “What treasure?”
Mu Yangling was about to speak when she was slapped on the head. Turning around, she saw Mu Shi standing behind her with a dark expression.
“Where did you learn such nonsense at such a young age?” Mu Shi looked at his daughter with a dark expression. “You’re even leading your younger siblings astray.”
Mu Yangling touched her nose and admitted her mistake. “Father, I know I was wrong. I won’t dare to do it again.”
However, Mu Shi knew that she was just paying him lip service and was not serious at all. He started worrying. His daughter seemed to be too mature for her age. He did not know who she had heard this nonsense from. He decided he’d better not bring her to town next time, lest she was led astray.
Mu Shi said with a straight face, “Don’t listen to such nonsense in the future.”
Mu Yangling agreed with an honest expression.
Only then did Mu Shi grunt and take out the dagger. He took out the remaining half of a rabbit, picked out the meat, before placing it on the plate.
Xiuhong, Xiulan, and Little Bowen excitedly took the skewers of meat and Mu Yangling roasted them. Soon, there were more than 20 skewers on the other side of the plate. Mu Yangling stuffed a skewer into her mouth and pushed the rest over. “Eat them while they’re hot. Otherwise, they won’t taste good when they’re cold.”
Xiuhong let Mu Shi eat first. Mu Shi took a skewer and said, “You guys eat. I’ll just have one skewer.” He swiftly picked out the rabbit meat and placed it on a plate. Then, he instructed, “Don’t be gluttonous. If you eat too much, you’ll get heaty and I’ll have to make tea for you guys later. Ah Ling, watch over them since you’re the eldest.”
Mu Yangling agreed. After Mu Shi left, she stuck out her tongue and said to the three of them, “Let’s skewer the meat. We’ll eat half of it today and roast the rest tomorrow.”
Mu Yangling took two skewers and stuffed them into her mouth. Her mouth was filled with oil as she sighed in satisfaction. “Wild rabbits are so fresh, fragrant, and sweet. The domestic rabbits I used to eat simply can’t compare.”
Xiuhong’s face was filled with confusion. “Cousin, did you need to buy domesticated rabbits? Can one raise rabbits at home? How do you go about doing it?”
“Uh, I’ve eaten it before.” Mu Yangling said vaguely, “Since pigs and chickens can be domesticated, why can’t rabbits be raised at home?”
Xiuhong thought about it carefully before nodding. “You’re right. I’m not knowledgeable. Perhaps I’ve just never heard of it.”
Mu Yangling blinked as she tilted her head. “You’ve never heard of rabbits being raised?”
Xiuhong shook her head. “I’ve never heard of it. How does one go about doing it? They know how to dig holes, so how can they be raised?” As she spoke, she looked at Mu Yangling with sparkling eyes and asked, “Cousin, if rabbits can be raised, can our family raise a few rabbits next year? We can sell them after fattening them up.”
Upon hearing Xiuhong’s question, Mu Yangling realized that she didn’t exactly know how to raise a rabbit. Since Mu Shi was knowledgeable, she planned to ask him tonight.
Uninterested in this topic, Little Bowen and Xiulan ate meat skewer after meat skewer while they were talking. By the time Mu Yangling snapped out of her thoughts, Little Bowen had already eaten seven to eight skewers. Anxious, she quickly stopped him. “Alright, alright. You’re not allowed to eat so much. Otherwise, if you can’t eat dinner tonight, Father will beat me up.”
Little Bowen made a fuss. “I’m not done yet. You guys are also still eating.”
“Alright, alright, we won’t eat anymore, too.” Mu Yangling knew that children imitated others. Although she still wanted to eat, she could only suppress it and say, “Let’s drink some water first. I’ll roast the rest for you tomorrow.”
Mu Shi went to Liu Daqian’s house and discussed with him about building a house in West Mountain Village after the weather cleared up. Half of the Ma family’s house had collapsed. Although they could not start work at the moment due to the terrible weather, as soon as the sky cleared up, they would go over to help build it. Meanwhile, Mu Shi helped pay for the materials such as bricks and wood first. Since nobody knew when the weather would clear up, Mu Shi asked Madam Ma-Liu to stay in the Mu residence in peace. Most importantly, with Madam Ma-Liu around, Mu Shi felt much more at ease.
With Shu Wanniang due to give birth in about a month, Madam Ma-Liu was more reliable than Mu Shi and Mu Yangling, with her wealth of experience.
Seeing Shu Wanniang take out a needle and thread to make clothes for her unborn child, Madam quickly snatched it over and said, “You can’t use needle and thread. Otherwise, your eyes will be blurred in the future, and it won’t be good for the child.”
Madam Ma-Liu looked at the half-made clothes in the basket and smiled. “This isn’t difficult. I can help you finish it up. I may not be able to stitch embroidery upon them, but I won’t lose to anyone when it’s just plain making clothes.”
Madam Ma-Liu did not know how to embroider, but every woman knew how to sew clothes. Clothes made for children usually did not have embroidery and only required fine stitches.
Shu Wanniang said happily, “I’ve seen the clothes Aunt made for Xiuhong and Xiulan. Indeed, my needlework can’t compare. I’m more than happy to have you help me make clothes for the baby.”