As winter approaches, the heads of wheat in the fields have just popped up and are being crushed again.

Taking advantage of the leisure time of farming, the villagers carried dung baskets and dung rakes and went all the way out of the village to pick up dung in the wind and snow.

Wang Zhong, however, became more leisurely, occasionally going to the county town, or going into the mountains to hunt and collect firewood with his bow, arrows and hatchet.

Maixiang Village is close to Maixiang Ridge, which, as its name suggests, is a mountainous area extending nearly a hundred miles. Although there are no jackals, tigers, or leopards in the mountains, there are still some small animals.

There is no shortage of firewood either.

Wang Zhong didn't like burning straw, so he went into the mountains from time to time to cut firewood. In the past few years, Wang Zhong had drilled almost half of the entire Maixiang Ridge.

On the night of the second day of the twelfth lunar month, it snowed all night.

Early the next morning, as soon as it was dawn, the villagers came out to clear the snow and clear the road.

Looking at the vast white outside, Wang Zhong suddenly had the idea of ​​going out to the top of the mountain to see the snow scene, and on the way to see if there were any of those stupid wild game. Carrying a bow and arrow on his back and a hatchet in his hand, Wang Zhong went out.

.

"Renlian, we are sweeping the snow!" The front door was open, and Ma Renlian was sweeping the snow on the road with a broom.

"Sweep it to make it easier to walk!" Ma Renlian turned around and saw Wang Zhong dressed in this outfit, and asked with a smile: "Captain Wang, are you planning to go up the mountain?"

Wang Zhong said: "I have nothing to do. I will go to the mountains to collect some firewood and come back. I will see if I can bump into any wild animals."

"It's such a cold weather, I can't guarantee it won't snow soon!" Ma Renlian kindly advised.

"Only in this snowy day can we see the footprints."

Ma Renlian was stunned for a moment, "It seems true."

"Sweep slowly, I'm leaving."

"Then be careful on the road."

"Do not worry!"

Maixiangling is not a deep mountain forest, and there are not many kinds of wild animals. They are just ordinary things such as deer, raccoon dogs, and pheasants. However, my second grandfather Niu Zhonggui said that there were wolves and foxes many years ago, and in recent decades, they have become more popular.

Disappeared.

Maixiang Ridge is not a large mountain forest, and the vegetation is not very lush. Anyway, there is nothing to do at home. Not long after Wang Zhong left the village, he followed the mountain ridge all the way up, first climbed to the top of the mountain, and after looking at the vast snow scene all over the place, he did not

Instead of walking deeper, follow the edge of the mountains and look for places with lots of shrubs and close to the plains below.

After walking for several hours, it was almost noon. Just after crossing a mountain col, Wang Zhong finally found the pheasant's footprints on the edge of a deserted bush.

He put the hatchet into the space, held the bow in his hand, and pulled out an arrow from the quiver. This arrow was made by Wang Zhong himself, and the tail fin was made of wild goose feathers.

Wang Chongfu lowered his body, adjusted his breathing rate, and carefully walked forward along the edge of the bush, trying to make as little noise as possible. The true energy in his body was circulating, strengthening his five senses, and using his ears and eyes. As expected, there were almost three people in front of him.

A sound was heard behind a bush ten meters away.

With such a long distance, Wang Zhong might not have been able to hear him if his true energy hadn't been getting stronger day by day.

At this time, Wang Zhong's heart became calmer. It took five minutes for Wang Zhong to adjust his position. At least six pheasants appeared in Wang Zhong's line of sight.

Wang Zhong found the right time, adjusted his posture, the bow string vibrated continuously, and in an instant he shot three arrows in succession.

The four pheasants fell down upon hearing the sound, and the remaining ones were frightened, squealing with their hooves, running or flying, and ran away in an instant.

With Wang Zhong's archery skills, he could definitely keep a few more, but Wang Zhong was not that greedy. On the one hand, hunting was to hone his archery skills, and on the other hand, it was just to kill time.

Although the process of searching for prey is boring, when the traces of the prey are found, when the location of the prey is searched, and when the prey is shot, the joy increases layer by layer, and the feeling becomes better and better. Wang Zhong enjoys it quite a lot.

After three consecutive shots, the first arrow was shot twice, and I felt even more happy.

It's a pity that there are no wild eggs at this time, otherwise, you can search them out and try them.

He strode over and put away the feathered arrows, wiped off the blood, and put them back into the quiver. The four pheasants were not big, the largest one was less than three pounds, and the smaller one was only about one and a half pounds.

He randomly stuffed two pheasants into the space, tied the remaining two with hemp rope, cut a stick, tied the two pheasants to one end of the stick, and Wang Zhong walked back.

In winter, the days are short and the nights are long. It's almost two o'clock now. Wang Zhong chopped two loads of firewood, hung the pheasants on the firewood, used a wooden stick as a shoulder pole, and strode toward Maixiang Village.

Not long after walking down the mountain, a figure appeared in front of him, carrying a large bundle, wearing a shabby gray cotton-padded jacket, and walking with a cane towards the village.

Wang Zhong was stunned: "It can't be such a coincidence, right?"

I walked up quickly and saw, as expected, a woman with unkempt hair and a beggar's attire.

"Sister, are you here to visit relatives?"

The woman was just burying her head and walking forward. When she heard the voice right next to her ear, she couldn't help but raise her head and saw a young and strong man. She said weakly: "Brother, are you calling me?"

He speaks with a Henan accent.

"That's right, eldest sister, it's such a cold weather. Are you here to visit relatives in Maixiang Village with all these gifts?" Wang Zhong asked.

"Maixiang Village?" The woman was stunned for a moment.

"Maixiang Village is ahead." Wang Zhong pointed to the front.

"Brother, I misunderstood!" The woman was a little embarrassed: "I escaped because my hometown was hit by a disaster and I couldn't survive anymore!"

While he was talking, the woman saw the pheasant and bow and arrow hanging on Wang Zhong's firewood. She was stunned for a moment and swallowed subconsciously.

This is meat. Ginger Hongguo usually can’t even eat a full meal, let alone meat.

When I was begging for food all the way from my hometown, the most I ate were sweet potatoes and yellow steamed buns. Nowadays, every household is not rich, so most of the time they just feed their stomachs, and the number of times they are full can only be counted on one hand.

Wang Zhongdao: "From your accent, are you from Henan?"

The woman nodded, held her cane, and begged. "Brother, you can even catch a pheasant, which shows that you are a capable person. I haven't eaten for several days. Please do a good job and give me something to eat!"

This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! The hair scattered in front of the forehead covers half of the face, and the remaining half of the face is also dirty, and the lips are dry and peeling.

Now, my eyes are a little cloudy and my speech is weak. This is because I am hungry.

If I stay hungry for another day or two, something will definitely go wrong.

"Okay! Come with me!" Seeing the woman's appearance, Wang Zhong did not refuse.

"Thank you, brother, thank you, brother!" The woman quickly thanked Wang Zhong.

Wang Zhong could slow down his pace so that the woman would not be able to keep up.

It was almost lunch time now, and some people in the village had smoke rising from their homes. It was a cold day, and there were no people on the road. The east end of the village was close to the village entrance, so I didn't meet anyone.

The woman watched Wang Zhong carrying firewood around to the back door, walking into the backyard with firewood, unloading the load that served as a temporary stick, and just placing the firewood under the eaves of the firewood house, she did not see the woman come in.

It turns out that the woman stopped

"Sister, why don't you come in?" Wang Zhong took a few steps back and looked at the woman standing at the back door.

The woman stood at the door, hesitating in her heart, but the hunger in her belly came one after another, her body temperature also dropped, and she could no longer hold the cotton-padded jacket on her body. As the sky gradually turned dark, the woman took a bite

Lip, the confusion in his eyes turned into determination, he raised his legs and stepped into the back door, and helped Wang Zhong close the door at the same time.

Wang Zhong untied the two pheasants tied to the firewood, picked up his bow and arrows, and walked forward along the path, followed by the woman.

Wang Zhong took out an enamel teapot from the cabinet, poured half a tank of hot water from the thermos bottle, and brought it to the Kang table: "Sister, the water is a bit hot. You blow it and let it cool before you drink it. I'll get you something to eat.

.”

"Thank you big brother."

"You're welcome. All Chinese people are one family. We are all brothers and sisters. Please sit down for a while."

Wang Zhong had been out for a whole day. The fire in the stove had gone out and the kang was cold. Wang Zhong lit the fire first and poured two and a half ladles of water into the pot.

He turned around and went to the west room and brought in a wooden basin that had just been made. He rinsed it with water, poured half a pot of hot water into it, mixed it with a ladle of cold water, and brought it to the Kang in the main room.

"Sister, dinner will take a while, and it's cold outside. I'll find you a towel. You can wash your hands, face, and soak your feet to get rid of the cold."

"Brother, don't bother, I have a towel!" The woman stopped Wang Zhong who was rummaging for something, and took out a piece of cloth from her bag.

"Then wash slowly!"

Wang Zhong sat down in front of the low bed, pulled the bellows, and blew the stove fire vigorously.

After the woman washed her face and soaked her feet, Wang Zhong also boiled the water. He filled the pot with the dumplings he had made yesterday and put the lid on the pot. The woman came out with a wooden basin to pour the water.

Looking at the woman with a clean face, Wang Zhong was a little surprised. This woman's appearance was no worse than Qiao Yue and Yang Deng'er. In Wang Zhong's opinion, this oval face was much prettier than Qiao Yue's.

"Sister, there is a place for washing at the back. Just pour the water there! Just put the basin against the wall. There is a place to hang towels inside." However, Wang Zhong was used to seeing all kinds of beauties, so he was only slightly surprised. There was nothing wrong with it.

how.

The woman hurriedly went into the inner room to pour the water, then came out and walked to Wang Zhong, saying: "Brother, let me help you!"

"No, no, no, there's no point in making guests busy. Just sit on the kang with peace of mind. The kang is warm and can drive away the cold. It's freezing cold outside, and you're hungry on the road. So you have to be careful.

, be sure not to catch a cold or cause any disease."

"Thank you, eldest brother. By the way, what do you call eldest brother?" The woman couldn't resist Wang Zhong, so she had to sit back by the kang. The fire had been burning for a while, and the kang had warmed up, so it was quite comfortable to sit on it.

"My name is Wang Zhong, what do you call me eldest sister?" The water in the pot boiled again. Wang Zhong opened the lid of the pot, added a little cold water into it, and closed the lid again.

"My name is Jiang Hongguo!" the woman said, but she was still a little reserved.

Sure enough, it was the short-lived ginger red fruit.

"Where are you from, eldest sister?"

"I am from Shangqiu."

"How old is eldest sister this year?"

"I am twenty-four this year." Jiang Hongguo said.

"Oh, you're one year younger than me. You can't call me eldest sister, you have to call me sister." Wang Zhong thought that Jiang Hongguo must be in his mid-twenties, but he didn't expect that he was only twenty-four.

But think about it, I have been running away from famine for half a year, and I don’t know if I will be able to eat a full meal for a few days. I am hungry, exposed to wind and sun, how can I not be haggard, and my age is naturally not so easy to distinguish.
To be continued...