Chapter 45 Acorn
The sky was full of dark clouds and the road was muddy and difficult to walk on, but fortunately it didn't rain again.
In the morning, we had a meeting to discuss Daya's affairs, so we set out an hour later. By noon, the dark clouds in the sky had dispersed and the sun was out. The sky suddenly cleared up, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. It was better to travel on a sunny day than on a rainy day.
Daya followed behind Butcher Zhao's ox cart. Li Juhua called her several times to get on the cart, but she just shook her head and said nothing, and refused to get on.
Zhao Zhuang, the eldest son of the butcher, was pulling the ox cart. Li Juhua said to Zhao the butcher next to him, "You said that a skinny girl, who is not very heavy and does not take up much space, refused to get on the cart. I see that she is even unsteady when she walks. Let's rest for a while and then pull her on the cart."
Butcher Zhao: "Okay, let's ask her to get on the bus later. There's enough room. Daya is a very honest child."
Daya carried a basket with food in it that Uncle Benshu had fought for for her: a bag of dried vegetables, a bag of beans, and a small bag of millet. The small bag of millet was obtained by Uncle Xiucai, Uncle Benshu, and Grandpa Zhao.
The three people from the Li family were watched by everyone along the way. They wanted to find Daya, but they didn't dare to go. The three people were angry but dared not speak. If they left the team, they would die, but if they didn't leave, they would feel suffocated. Without Daya to do anything, Mrs. Zhang had to do everything by herself. Mrs. Zhang thought about the rations that were distributed, and she felt even more anxious. She could only blame Old Man Li and Li Tiedan.
Time flies and it is late October.
I have been on the run for almost two months and have not entered a single town along the way. Either I encounter soldiers slaughtering the village and have to take a side road, or only locals are allowed to enter the city, or the city gates are closed and I am not allowed to enter.
As they got farther and farther away from Nanlin Village, their food rations became less and less. Everyone counted their food and lived in anxiety and distress.
The common people didn't have much money, but they still hoped to buy food. Although the money was not much, they bought as much as they could. Without food, people would starve to death.
Lin Zisu was squatting in the green tent to relieve herself, and her mother Shen Xianglan was squatting in the blue tent next to her. There were also several women waiting to relieve themselves. Every time they took a break, they would work together to relieve themselves.
After Lin Zisu finished pooping, she used the small stick she had cleaned to scrape her butt. At first, she would rather die than obey, but when she finally got some toilet paper, she refused to let her use it no matter what.
The ancient method of shaving the buttocks, you will get used to it after shaving it for a while. If you want to wipe your buttocks, you can only use leaves. When she encounters large smooth leaves, she will choose large leaves, pick more, put them in a bag and put them in the refrigerator for later use. At first, Mrs. Wang thought they were wild vegetables she picked, but when she opened the bag, she found that these leaves were edible? ? ?
Shen Xianglan laughed so hard that tears came out, she pounded the sofa, and shared her experience with Lin Youcai and Lin Xianwen.
Lin Zisu sat in the driver's seat, not knowing whether to cry or laugh, and could only pretend nothing had happened.
Lin Zisu shaved her butt a few times, then took out her big leaf to wipe it, stood up, exhaled, and quickly put on her pants.
"Oh, Zisu, you're pulling gold!" Old Mrs. Wang was walking back and forth anxiously outside.
"Pull the gold bars!" Lin Zisu grabbed both sides of the small tent, lifted it up, moved it to the field next to it and put it down, then pulled down the zipper and got out of the small tent.
Old Mrs. Wang hurried in and zipped up her pants skillfully.
Lin Zisu picked up the small shovel on the ground and buried her "gold bars". She is a person who pays attention to details. Every time she takes care of herself, she will shovel the soil to cover it. She is afraid that others will step on the "mine" and she is also afraid that her own people will be accidentally caught.
While waiting for them to relieve themselves, Lin Zisu limped to the side, shaking her numb legs. The main purpose was to see if there were any big leaves that she liked. Consumables must be replenished at any time. If there were no leaves when they were needed, her butt would be in big trouble!
"Huh?" The oval, green fruit has a brown, hat-like shell on its head. Lin Zisu looked up and said, "Fuck, I'm rich!" This thing is not very delicious, and it is very troublesome to handle. Eating too much will cause indigestion and constipation. But it has a high starch content, there are a lot of them, and it doesn't cost money, just bend down and pick it up!
Lin Zisu looked at the mountain of oak trees with a few fruits hanging on the trees. She squatted down and pulled away the fallen leaves, revealing densely packed acorns underneath.
I picked up a handful of acorns and saw that they were still very fresh. Some of the acorns had shed their brown shells, while others still had their shell caps.
There are many varieties of oak trees. They are cold-resistant and can grow in poor soil, so they are widely distributed and have countless uses. Oak trees are good wood. They are hard and can be used to make furniture and charcoal. The bark of some varieties of oak is also a traditional Chinese medicine.
However, what everyone needs now is its seeds.
Shen Xianglan shouted, "Zi Su, why are you walking so far? Be careful not to step on a snake!"
"The weather is getting colder, the snakes are getting ready to hibernate! I don't have time to step on them!" Lin Zisu replied in a hoarse voice. There was nothing she could do. This was an era where communication depended on shouting. "Mom, look!" Lin Zisu grabbed a handful of acorns and ran towards the urination area.
"What? You found the big leaf!" Mrs. Lu smiled with her mouth wide open, looking at Lin Zisu who was running towards her.
"Ye Zi, let's talk about it later, hahaha! I found something that can fill my stomach!" Lin Zisu spread her hands towards her mother.
Shen Xianglan looked at the acorn in her daughter's hand, her eyes lit up, "Where did you get it?"
"There are so many over there! The whole mountain is full of these trees!" Lin Zisu looked very proud, right, I found something good!
After shoveling the soil and covering it, Grandma Wang patted the ground. When she heard that she had found something that could fill her stomach, she hurried over. "What do you mean?" She stretched her head and looked at her granddaughter's hand. "What? This fruit is poisonous! You can't eat it! It's astringent and bitter!"
Mrs. Lu: "Shiso, you can't eat this! This is not a chestnut, nor is it a chestnut!"
"I know it's not a chestnut, and I also know it's slightly poisonous! It must be astringent and bitter if eaten like this! It has to be processed repeatedly before it can be eaten!"
"Mom, sister-in-law, don't we eat this fruit in our family?" Shen Xianglan recalled from her original body's memory, and it was indeed the memory of not eating acorns.
"It's edible! It's really edible! This fruit is a gift from Mother Nature to us refugees!!!" Lin Zisu grabbed the fruit and ran towards the team on the official road.
I have to tell my dad about this. He is a man. Most importantly, he is a scholar, a learned man. Only then will people believe what he says! There is no other way. This was the case in ancient times! Of course, it is also the case in modern times. Those who understand will understand.
"Dad, Dad!" Lin Zisu looked around, where was the person?
"Dad is here, what happened to my daughter?" Lin Youcai came back from the toilet, and there were 11 people, big and small. This was also said long ago, whether it was to fetch water, collect firewood, relieve oneself, or do anything else, at least 7 or 8 people were together to be safe.
"Dad, look!" Lin Zisu spread out her palms, moved her fingers, and played with them for a while.
Lin Youcai opened his eyes wide and looked at the acorn with shining eyes, "How could I forget about it! I thought there was no such thing here!"
Lin Zisu: "Oak trees are very tenacious and adaptable, and they can be found everywhere."
Second uncle Lin Yougui's third son Lin Xianyun leaned over, looked at the fruit in Lin Zisu's hand, and asked with a smile: "Fourth sister, you like to pick this up to play with! We love to pick this up to play with! Where did you pick it up?"
"You only know how to play. You're still in the mood to play at this hour!" Lin Yougui slapped his youngest son's butt.