CHAPTER 34: CHAPTER 34: CAUGHT

"Go!"

It’s fine, taking the two kids along is safer than having them run around.

Besides, the little ones never stop talking, and their innocent words are amusing, adding some cheer to the day.

With that thought, Yi Chichi took one kid in each hand and headed to the team clinic.

Uncle Yaozi hadn’t slept all night and was yawning uncontrollably.

Seeing Yi Chichi bring Niu Niu and the others over, he weakly said, "You watch the kids process the herbs, I’m going to take a nap."

"Okay."

Soon, the room was filled with deafening snores, like a saw.

Er Dan listened with his ears perked for a while and sighed like a little adult, "It’s just like my dad’s thunderous snores, he got beaten by my mom and had to kneel on a washboard."

Er Dan’s dad is named Dong Liu, but the team calls him Dongzi, a tall and sturdy man like a bear.

He has a bushy beard which makes him look fierce, like a bandit.

But in reality, he’s cheerful and loves to laugh, and is totally henpecked.

One stern look from his wife sends him into a panic.

Kneeling on a washboard is a common occurrence.

Yi Chichi often hears from the aunts about him kneeling on the washboard, and she laughed, "Does your dad know you’re spilling his embarrassing stories?"

"... He doesn’t, sister, don’t tell my dad."

"Then you’ll have to butter me up."

Yi Chichi teased, and the little kid thought hard with his not-so-chubby cheeks propped on his hands, then hesitantly asked her, "Can I help you with work?"

"Sure."

"What should I do?"

Yi Chichi, not being polite, quickly assigned tasks to the two little kids.

It wasn’t difficult; they just had to evenly spread out the herbs she brought out.

The two kids did it with great excitement, even competing to see who spread the herbs more evenly.

This sight left Aunt Ma and the others, who came by to look for the kids, dumbfounded.

Er Dan’s mom, Tu Jing, felt an itch to spank him, "At home, you do nothing, but outside you’re so hardworking."

Aunt Ma sighed, "Niu Niu isn’t any different. I’ve realized it; Xiao Yi really has a knack with children."

Tu Jing laughed, "Among our team’s youth corps, apart from not being great at work, they’re actually not bad people."

That’s true.

Unlike other teams that have a lot of issues.

Although our team’s youth corps often caused trouble, it was acceptable.

They didn’t cause any loss to the collective.

Whereas, the youth corps in the neighboring team didn’t just oppose their team but even reported them to the commune.

One drama after another, now that’s a spectacle.

But that’s not the point; the point is—

"I see they’re getting along well with Yi Zhqing, should we bring them back?"

"No, let them play. They’ll naturally come back when they’re hungry."

So, quietly they came, and quietly they left.

Yi Chichi was oblivious to all of this; she was busy with the tasks Uncle Yaozi had assigned and chatting with the kids.

Time slipped by, and soon it was noon. The kids got hungry and wanted to go home for lunch.

She couldn’t stand being hungry either, so she sent the kids home and returned to the Youth Corps Courtyard to prepare her own lunch.

Wang Nan and the others had gone up the mountain to collect firewood.

They brought axes, machetes, dry food, and other gear, and even borrowed the team’s ox-cart.

They probably wouldn’t be back until after dark.

In the time that followed, Yi Chichi focused on making medicine, while Wang Nan and the others were busy stockpiling firewood.

In the blink of an eye, it was November 4th, and Yi Chichi finally finished her medicinal preparations.

She had made a total of three kinds of medicines: powders to repel small creatures like snakes, rats, and ants.

Another powder for deterring large beasts such as wild boars and wolves.

The last one was a healing medicine for stopping bleeding, reducing inflammation, and promoting tissue growth.

She delivered the first two powders to the team headquarters for the team leaders, keeping half of the healing one for personal use in case of emergencies.

The team leaders were skeptical of her medicines’ effectiveness but promised, "If they’re as effective as you say, we’ll give you a few extra pounds of meat when we get back from the mountains."

Yi Chichi declined the meat; she was being straightforward, "Uncle, I’d like a wild boar stomach."

"??? Wild Boar Stomach?" This is a big request.

"Yes."

"Why that? That part isn’t as tasty as the meat."

Everyone in the room looked at her as if she was odd, wondering why she would prefer a boar’s stomach over good meat.

"Wild boars are omnivores, and the stomach has medicinal value, beneficial for gastric bleeding, gastric ulcers, and other stomach ailments."

With Yi Chichi’s explanation, the team leaders suddenly understood. No wonder she wanted the boar’s stomach; it actually had a use.

"Alright, if we hunt a wild boar, we’ll definitely save you a stomach."

Yi Chichi was satisfied with this; she wasn’t greedy, as long as there was some.

A wild boar stomach, paired with herbs to make a medicinal dish, would be enough to nurse her stomach back to health.

After confirming the day the team leaders would enter the mountains, Yi Chichi left the headquarters in high spirits.

On her way back, she bumped into Aunt Ma and the others. After exchanging a few pleasantries, Aunt Niu reminded her, "The day after tomorrow there’s a big market, if you plan to go, get ready beforehand."

"Thanks for the reminder, auntie, I’ll go tell the others when I get back."

Upon receiving the reminder, Wang Nan and the others were thrilled.

They had no idea what would be at the market, but a group of them excitedly discussed what they wanted to buy.

Wu Yongfei made a surprising statement, "I want to buy beef."

Yi Chichi, "??? There’s beef for sale at the market?"

"Not sure, I heard someone sold it secretly before and got caught."

So that’s not an option.

Beef is rare and in high demand even in the city.

A production team only has a few cattle, and if one unexpectedly dies, it has to be reported.

The better ones are half handed over, and the remaining half is distributed among the households in the team.

It’s not unheard of for the entire carcass to be handed over.

There’s nothing that can be done, current policies are like that.

Everyone knows this, but the group still held a sliver of hope.

Wang Nan whispered, "Let’s just bring more money in case we run into a fearless beef vendor."

"Bring it!"

If they find any, they can buy some; if not, they can buy something else.

At 6:05 AM on the 6th, Yi Chichi and the others set off, first meeting Aunt Ma and the others at the village entrance, then following the main group to the market.

It wasn’t far, right between two neighboring production teams on a large drying yard.

Yi Chichi thought they were early, but upon arrival, she found the place buzzing with people.

Sounds of hawking, whips cracking, and animals like cattle, horses, and donkeys being directed were endless.

These animals had ropes harnessed on them, pulling carts behind them.

The carts were filled with people.

There were designated sheds for the animals, feeding them hay and water.

It cost money; storing an animal for a morning was 15 cents, and until 3 PM was 22 cents.

In this era where full labor points couldn’t earn much, the storage fee was quite high.

But there was no other choice; in these times, without machines, working animals were more valuable than people.

If a person fell ill, they could wait it out, but not the animals; they needed immediate attention.

Each production team took meticulous care of their animals; paying a few cents was mandatory, be it one or two.

They couldn’t afford to let the animals freeze or starve.

They still relied on them for work in the coming year to ease human labor.