Chapter 34: A Bountiful Harvest (1)
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
When the net was almost filled with fish, Mo Beihan drew it in. He dumped all the fish onto the open space near him, then lowered the net again.
There were about a dozen fish in the open space. A few were rather small, and Gu Qingyao did not want them. She put them back into the water.
She was delighted as she looked at the large fish that remained. They were flapping and floundering about.
Two of them were extremely big, and were approximately six kilograms.
“These two are so big. Their heads will be excellent for making tofu soup,” Gu Qingyao said with a smile.
Mo Beihan glanced at them. “If you like them, you can bring them back. Chop their heads up and use them to make soup. Those grass carps are not bad. Take that wooden bucket and fill it with water to keep them in. I want to bring them back alive.”
Gu Qingyao obediently took the wooden bucket and filled it with water. There were four grass carps, each weighing approximately two kilograms.
Mo Beihan handed Gu Qingyao a small dagger and told her to clean the fish by the water. He let down the net another two times, but there were fewer fish, and he only caught ten slightly larger ones.
They caught twenty-six fish in all, which was pretty good.
Mo Beihan found some sticks and made a frame. He told Gu Qingyao, “Clean the fish and hang them there. It’s very safe here and we can leave the fish here to dry. We’ll bring some back tonight. It’ll be too conspicuous if we bring too many fish back.”
In these times, people went berserk over food. Fishes were priceless on the black market.
Gu Qingyao nodded, to show that she understood.
They had also done so in their previous lives. She was used to it.
Mo Beihan found some more sticks and sharpened them to make a door. Then he tied them so that the sharp points faced outwards, to prevent wild animals from entering. Then he found some dried grass and laid it at the entrance.
Only then did he say to Gu Qingyao, “I’ll go out for a while. Don’t leave this place. I won’t go far. If anything happens, call for me immediately. If wild animals come, light the fire immediately to frighten them. Do you understand? I’ve set a line of bells outside. If anything comes towards you, the bells will ring.”
Gu Qingyao smiled, but still said obediently, “I know, don’t worry!”
Mo Beihan was afraid that there would not be enough dried grass, so he gathered another bundle of firewood and placed them next to Gu Qingyao before he was satisfied.
He knew that this place was very safe and although they had been here many times in their previous lives, no wild animal had ever come in. However, he would rather be safe than sorry. This girl was the apple of his eye. He could not allow her to be hurt or frightened.
Mo Beihan left while Gu Qingyao remained to clean the fish. After she finished cleaning them, she strung them up with straw ropes, and hung them on the frame.
Besides the six grass carp that Mo Beihan wanted to keep alive, there were only a few fish, so Gu Qingyao finished cleaning them within an hour.
Would she continue to wait here?
Of course not.
She knew very well that there were plenty of good things around. Also, she was now so skilled that she did not worry about encountering any dangers.
Although this was virgin forest, they had not ventured too deeply into it. At worst, she might encounter a wild boar, or a wolf. Anyway, such animals were pitifully few. It was impossible to encounter a tiger.
Also, she still had her interspace, so there was no need to worry.
She took her basket and her cloth bag, and went out. She covered the opening properly, then went straight into the surrounding forest.
The moment she entered, she saw that the ground was covered with mushrooms.
She had struck it rich!