Chapter 223: Locusts Should Not Be Eaten
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
At this moment, Wang Laoshuan looked at the porridge on the table and could not help but swallow a few times.
At the same time, he was filled with regret.
If he had known that the price of grain had soared to this extent, he would not have cooked porridge.
By eating the locusts, he and his son could hold out for two more days.
Wang Dashan glanced at his father and swallowed the words he was about to say.
It was better not to tell his father about moving to town and the matter about the grain.
During these few days, he would observe the movements of the villagers first before deciding what to do.
“What can we do? Well take one step at a time.”
“Let’s eat.” After saying that, Wang Dashan sat down at the table.
Wang Laoshuan sighed and sat down without thinking further.
Wang Dashan picked up his chopsticks and saw the locusts on the table.
After thinking for a while, he stood up.
Carrying the bowl of locusts, he walked out.
“What are you doing?” Wang Laoshuan asked hurriedly.
“We have to dispose of this. This thing can t be eaten!” Wang Dashan replied without turning his head.
It was a pity that the last hen in the house had been eaten by his mother.
Otherwise, these locusts would not have been wasted.
“Ah… Why can’t we eat it?” Wang Laoshuan’s expression changed drastically. He quickly got up and ran out of the room in pursuit.
Unfortunately, he saw that Wang Dashan had already thrown the locusts away.
“Gosh! You useless bum! This is food!” Wang Laoshuan only felt a pang of heartache. After slapping his thigh, he literally cursed out in anger.
Wang Dashan turned around and glanced at his father, but he was not angry.
“These locusts are poisonous. If you eat too much, you might end up in trouble,” he said.
Wang Dashan had been feeling somewhat unwell these days.
He had always thought that it was because he had not eaten his fill.
Today, after his younger sister’s reminder, he found out that he had eaten too many locusts and had been poisoned.
Fortunately, he and his father did not encounter any major problems.
Otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable.
However, now, he must not eat them anymore.
“What?” Wang Laoshuan was shocked.
Then, his expression changed again.
“How can they be poisonous? We’ve been eating locusts for a few days, and there are so many people in the village who eat locusts, but I don’t see anything wrong with anyone?” Wang Laoshuan was somewhat in disbelief.
“It’s true! Mrs. Song said so!” Wang Dashan said.
“Nothing happened to us previously probably because we were in good health. However, we will still be affected.
“I’ve been feeling that I don’t have enough strength these past few days, and I’m aching in many parts of my body. Also, when Xiaomei saw me today, she said that I didn’t look too well.”
As he spoke, Wang Dashan looked at his father.
“From what I can see, your condition is more serious than mine. Your complexion is so much worse than before.”
Wang Laoshuan’s expression changed visibly.
After looking at his son, he couldn’t help but reach out and touch his own face.
There was no mirror in the house, and now there was a lack of water. He had not looked at himself for a long time.
However, his son’s complexion was indeed very different from before.
Wang Laoshuan had thought that it was because his son was hungry, but it turned out that he was poisoned!
Well, he also had the symptoms that his son mentioned.
“Are they really… poisonous?” Thus, Wang Laoshuan began to believe his son.
“Mm-hmm,” Wang Dashan replied.
The two walked into the house together.
“Later, throw away the remaining locusts in the house as well.”
“Although we don’t have enough food, we can’t afford to be sick at the moment,” he said.
If they fell sick, it would delay them from going into the mountains to gather firewood. They could not afford to be delayed now.
Wang Laoshuan thought for a while. Although he still felt that it was a pity, he finally nodded.
“Alright!”
“Let’s eat,” Wang Dashan said again.
Only then did he return to the table with Wang Laoshuan to eat.
The father and son drank the porridge paired with the salted vegetables. They felt that the taste was excellent.
After the meal and a short rest, the father and son set off and went into the mountains together again.
Although a great deal of the mountain greenery had been destroyed by the locusts, there was still a lot of vegetation left, so it was not that hot.
If they were a little more careful when gathering firewood in the mountains in such weather, they would not get too much sun.
They kept themselves busy, and before they knew it, it was almost dark.
When they returned to the village, a villager called out to them as soon as they reached the entrance.
“Why are you two still here? The village chief has summoned everyone for a meeting at his house!”
That person saw the Wang family duo pushing a big handcart of firewood, and carrying loads of firewood on their shoulders, so he knew that they had just returned from outside. Therefore, he informed them of the meeting.
Wang Dashan was stunned.
“Uncle Village Chief called for a meeting? What’s he announcing?” he asked.
“I don’t know! It’s about to start. You guys better hurry and go take a look!” the man replied.
“Alright. Uncle Guangzi, you go ahead. We’ll go back and put down the firewood first, and then we’ll go!” Wang Dashan said.
“Alright!” The man left in a hurry.
Only then did Wang Dashan pick up his pace and quickly rushed home with Wang Laoshuan.
Suddenly, Wang Laoshuan spoke, “They are probably talking about fleeing the famine. I heard that people from Brook Rise Village, Reed Flower Village, and Paddy Levee Village are all preparing to flee.
“Apparently, if the village chief leads the villagers to flee together, they can take care of each other.”
Wang Dashan turned his head and glanced at his father.
“You also want to flee?” he asked.
Wang Laoshuan’s expression changed instantly.
“I’m not leaving,” he said straightaway.
“Fleeing the famine is not so simple. We will be short of clothes, food, and water, and we have to keep moving forward without stopping, traveling a long distance. If we fall sick on the way, a small illness can drag on to become a serious one, and it can even be fatal.”
“Moreover, we might encounter wild beasts and bandits on the way.”
“One wrong move and you might lose your life on the way.”
In fact, the reason Wang Laoshuan was so afraid of fleeing was that his late father had fled to Brook Falls Village and settled down there back then.
When he was young, his father told Wang Laoshuan a lot about how he had fled when he was young.
This was the reason he was so afraid of fleeing and so strongly against this idea.
When he saw his son looking at him again, Wang Laoshuan continued, “They fled because the crops in the fields were gone. They were also afraid the crops in the fields won’t be able to grow in the coming year due to the locust plague’s influence.
“They can’t depend on anything other than crops.
“But our family is different.
“We re now gathering firewood to sell. Although we don’t earn much, we’re still making a living.
“As long as we work hard enough, we won’t starve to death.” When he said this, there was a hint of pride in Wang Laoshuan’s tone.
“Oh, yes. Tomorrow morning, why don’t I go to the town with you and deliver the ordered firewood to them earlier?
“When we come back, you make another trip again.”
“Then, in the evening, the two of us will go into town once more.
“This way, we can sell five handcarts of firewood tomorrow!”
After a few days of locust plagues, there was a lot more firewood in the mountains.
Today, he had gathered a lot of firewood with his son.
Although he didn’t manage to bring them all back, he noted down their locations in the mountains.
The father and son would set off early the next day and simply use the handcart to bring everything back.
Wang Dashan was a little surprised at his father’s diligence.
“Alright!” He smiled and agreed to the proposal.
He went with Wang Laoshuan to offload the firewood before heading to the village chief’s house.
When they arrived, they found that the village chief’s house was already packed with people inside and outside. There were many people gathered there.
Wang Dashi saw the father and son duo and called out to them.
The village chief asked everyone to check if everyone’s neighbors had arrived..