Chapter 48: Roasted Snake Meat

“Sanbao! Random cow dung drops.” Yan Yu shouted the command.

The family of three did nothing but wait.

They were simply too curious.

Similar yet different pieces of dried fodder pattered onto the ground.

A real eye-opener.

Yan Er-er gathered up the grass cakes; nothing could be wasted. They could be mixed with green fodder to continue feeding...

This time, the chicken, fish, and pork were each about two jin, just like the rice, flour, and seasonings. He wondered if the platform had increased the quantities because they thought they were short on these items after they had cleared the shelves last time.

As usual, they were made into jerky.

Yan Er-er fed Sanbao a little water, instructed it to wash itself thoroughly, and then poured all the water from the various bottles and jars into Sanbao's mouth.

"Next time if we're trading water, just let Sanbao open its mouth and stand there to see if it can go straight into its belly. All this back-and-forth is a waste," Yan Er-er said, looking pained at the loss.

"Then why did you let it drink water to wash itself? It must have swallowed nearly half a bottle," Li Xuemei said as she mixed dandelion, elm seeds, and corn silk together—this part could be considered something they had gathered themselves.

Yan Yu added, "It's actually psychological. Sanbao can sterilize the fodder with high temperatures; its stomach is much cleaner than the outside."

She also used a little water to wash the two sausages that had fallen to the ground.

She broke one into three pieces, wolfing down one herself, and giving one to her father and one to her mother.

It was mostly starch with little meat, but what did it matter? It was the craving that mattered.

"It's so worrying that nothing has packaging. We have to eat this quickly before it spoils," Yan Er-er said, snatching the remaining sausage from his daughter's hand. He swallowed half in one bite and finished the rest in two.

Truth be told, every time the platform opened or closed, they were in a state of high tension.

Before the opening, there was anticipation; after the closing, there was the joy of harvest.

After Li Xuemei finished organizing the wild vegetables, she began organizing the beans.

"Isn't this perfect for making Three-Bean Soup? It's great for drinking in the summer to clear heat and reduce summer heat. The platform is quite thoughtful."

Yan Yu thought for a moment and nodded heavily. "Sister Yu has listed the inflatable boat she wanted on the platform. Once her illness is cured, she'll be able to go to an inland city, and things should be much better."

"Hard to say. Do inland cities not have rain?" Yan Er-er didn't believe it. "I think it won't be truly safe until the platform gives her a ship. Sigh, right, is it windy over there again? If the wind is strong, the boat needs to be bigger to be stable. Ideally, an aircraft carrier level, to solve the problem once and for all!"

"Dad, you're more imaginative than a novelist," Yan Yu said with sincere admiration.

"Let's head back once we're mostly done. We should hide these things while it's still dark," Li Xuemei said, patting the neatly stacked bundles beside her.

"Hehe, we can finally replace those empty bundles. The straw stuffed inside..."

Thinking of the mules and donkeys in the village, Yan Er-er said

"I'll sneakily feed the livestock later. A horse won't get fat without night grass; what's the difference for a mule or a donkey? Everyone loves a midnight snack."

He would also take care of Sanbao's... business.

...

When the family rejoined the group, Yan Er-er waved to the night watchman and shook his torch to show his face.

The person opposite nodded and raised their torch as well.

Yan Yu whispered, "Dad, it's only been a few days and you guys already have secret signals."

Yan Er-er also lowered his voice: "It's pitch black. If we don't use some visual cues, we'll wake up the villagers if we shout."

Yan Er-er specifically led the ox through the area where the village's livestock were gathered.

He quietly set down several bags.

When they reached their own cart, the family of three moved even more cautiously.

Yan Er-er and his wife cooperated to swap out the empty bundles, while Yan Yu kept watch with wide, serious eyes.

Fortunately, everyone was sleeping deeply.

Yan Er-er carried several bags of straw, ran off to chop things up with a knife, and then came back to swap for a rake to go to the mules and donkeys.

He poured the green and dry fodder in together. The mules and donkeys instinctively crowded around and began to eat.

Daya saw Auntie and little Er-ya climbing up in a daze; she moved slightly, squeezing herself to one side to leave plenty of room for the mother and daughter.

Li Xuemei rubbed her waist and fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

Yan Yu yawned and, without ceremony, hugged Daya, soon falling into a light snore.

By the time Yan Er-er returned, he was the only one in the family still awake.

He scooped up some dirt from the ground, slapped his face, rubbed his already messy hair, and braced himself. He led Sanbao to find the Qi brothers.

"Brother Qi the eldest, Brother Qi the fourth, Brother Qi the fifth, wake up!"

Yan Er-er's voice was trembling. If the Qi brothers weren't so thick-skinned, being woken up by someone shouting like this in the middle of the night would have scared them to death.

"Is it Brother Yan Er-er? What happened? Is something wrong?" Qi the eldest was the first to wake, followed quickly by the fourth and fifth.

"Keep it down, follow me quickly." Yan Er-er crouched and climbed onto the ox without explaining what was wrong, only repeatedly urging, "Quick, quick..."

The three brothers were honest men; they trusted him and followed closely.

Yan Er-er rode the ox with the three brothers following behind, and they soon arrived at the charcoal-burning site.

Yan Er-er scrambled down from the ox and pointed at a certain spot with a shrill voice: "Look, look at that... My goodness, it scared me to death!"

The three Qi brothers raised their torches and looked where he was pointing...

Good heavens!

Such a huge serpent!

They immediately grew tense and hurriedly backed away to create distance.

Once they realized the snake was dead, the three of them used the light of the torches to get a clear look at the massive creature.

"I was so close! I was so close to meeting my end right here!"

Yan Er-er acted completely terrified

"I don't know where it crawled out from. Such a big thing, chasing after me...

I lost my shoe, and my charcoal is gone...

Thank goodness for our ox...

Luckily, those two women went back early, otherwise, if they had encountered this snake... I don't even want to think about it, it's too terrifying!"

Qi the fifth stepped forward to measure it with his hands; it was so thick that two hands couldn't wrap around it.

He said with relief, "That was close, Brother Yan Er-er. This snake is terrifyingly large, it's almost a spirit!"

"I once vaguely heard that oxen eat snakes; it's actually true!" Qi the fourth's gaze toward Sanbao changed; this was an ox that protected its master and possessed spiritual intelligence.

Having worked as a hand in a coffin shop, he had heard many strange stories. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that the Yan family's ox was like a cultivated being returning to repay a debt of gratitude.

Qi the eldest patted Yan Er-er forcefully, repeatedly saying, "It's good that you're okay, it's good that you're okay..."

Yan Er-er thought: *I'd be better off if you stopped patting me.*

After the initial shock, the eyes of the Qi brothers soon lit up.

This was meat!

And so much meat at that!

As their perspective shifted from a ferocious beast to food, they couldn't help but salivate.

...

Sanbao couldn't compete with the Qi brothers for the task of carrying the snake.

By the time they returned to the group, it was already dawn.

Yan Er-er said he was afraid of scaring the women and children, so they should process it first, and the three Qi brothers thought that made sense.

In a simple and crude manner, they skinned the snake and chopped the meat into large chunks.

They found several basins, and the fresh snake meat was piled together. The early-rising children, who wouldn't even eat their regular breakfast, refused to leave the meat.

They stared longingly, sucking their fingers in craving.

Yan Er-er was very generous, directly calling for people to build a fire.

"I've turned a misfortune into a blessing! Everyone, share in this blessing. Don't bother making breakfast for your families today; every single one of us should have a taste of what this 'little dragon meat' tastes like!"

Everyone thought about it, and indeed, such a large snake was a rare sight!

Calling it "little dragon meat" wasn't an exaggeration.

Even those who hadn't intended to take advantage of Yan Er-er were eager to have a piece.