After arriving home, facing the eager gazes of the little brats, Lu Qing didn’t dally and immediately started distributing the fish.
He picked two banana leaves from behind the courtyard and cut them into several pieces.
He gave each of the little brats a handful of fish, not much, probably less than half a catty per person.
Though the fish wasn’t much, the little brats were incredibly excited.
After getting the fish, they all ran home gleefully, as if they had found some treasure.
Seeing Lu Qing finish distributing the fish, a villager came forward.
“Lu Qing, how did you catch these fish? How could you catch so many at once?”
“Just luck,” Lu Qing said with a smile, “Maybe it’s because the bait I used was more appealing to fish.”
“Then what bait did you use?”
“Just the common earthworms found in the fields.”
Lu Qing didn’t hide anything and told them truthfully.
Anyway, even if he didn’t say it, the villagers would know soon enough.
After all, when he was fishing, a group of little brats were watching him.
Since that was the case, it was better to be generous and tell them, so others wouldn’t call him stingy.
“Earthworms? This stuff can actually be used for fishing?” The villager was surprised.
“Of course, and fish quite like them.”
Lu Qing wasn’t surprised that the villagers didn’t know earthworms could be used for fishing.
From the original owner’s memories, he roughly deduced that he was now in a world similar to ancient China.
In such an old and feudal era, transportation was inconvenient, and information was blocked.
People were cautious and conservative towards new things, not easily trying them.
It was very possible that common knowledge in one place would become a rarity in another.
No one in the village was good at fishing or catching fish, so it was normal for them not to know that fish liked to eat earthworms.
“I didn’t expect fish to like eating earthworms. No wonder everyone used to catch nothing when fishing; it turns out the bait was wrong,” a villager sighed.
“Lu Qing, did your father tell you this method?”
Lu Qing hesitated for a moment, then nodded: “I heard my father mention it once, and I happened to remember it. Today, Little Yan kept saying she was hungry, and there was nothing to eat at home, so I thought of this method and decided to try it. I didn’t expect to actually catch fish.”
The villager paused at his words and looked at Little Yan.
The Little Fellow was squatting by the bucket looking at the fish. Feeling the villager’s gaze, she looked up and immediately gave him a big smile.
The villager’s heart immediately ached. He looked at the frail Lu Qing, and his pity grew immensely.
“Then what will you two do next? You can’t just eat fish, how can your stomachs handle it?”
“I was just about to discuss it with a few uncles,” Lu Qing said earnestly, “Uncles also know my family’s current situation; we don’t have a single grain of rice. So, I want to borrow some grain, oil, and salt from a few uncles. After a few days, when I find work, I will definitely repay it twofold.”
“What are you saying? Are we uncles the kind of people who take advantage of others’ misfortune? We are all from the same village; mutual support is only right. It’s just a bit of grain; Uncle Shan will bring it to you right away!”
The villager, moved by emotion, immediately spoke loudly.
Since he said that, the other villagers naturally couldn’t not show some gesture.
“That’s right, just a bit of grain. I’ll go get it for you right now!”
“My family bought too much salt at the market last week; I can spare some for you.”
“It’s just oil; my family still has a lot left. I’ll go dig some out for you later!”
Several villagers patted their chests, looking generous.
Lu Qing was overjoyed: “Then thank you, uncles!”
“Lu Qing, wait a moment; I’ll go home and get you some grain right now.”
Uncle Shan immediately walked out, and the other villagers also went home one after another.
Not long after, they all returned to Lu Qing’s courtyard.
“Here, you and Little Yan eat this half-sack of rice first. If you finish it, ask Uncle Shan for more!”
“Lu Qing, this half-jar of lard should be enough for you to eat for a while, right?”
“Here’s a small bamboo tube of salt; use it for now.”
“I have a few large flatbreads that your aunt just baked this morning; they can be stored for quite a while. Eating one will keep you full for a long time. Is that enough?”
Looking at the things brought by the villagers, Lu Qing was filled with gratitude.
He bowed repeatedly: “Enough, enough, thank you, uncles!”
After saying that, he scooped out several large handfuls of small fish from the bucket, dividing them into several portions.
With that, more than half of the fish in the wooden bucket were gone instantly.
“Take these fish, uncles, and have a taste.”
Uncle Shan and the others waved their hands repeatedly, “How can we do that? These fish were caught by your hard work; keep them for you and Little Yan to eat.”
“Little Yan and I can’t eat so much. The weather is hot now, and fish don’t keep long. We don’t raise chickens or ducks at home, so the fish will spoil easily. Uncles, just consider it helping me out, so it doesn’t go to waste.”
Without further ado, Lu Qing stuffed several packages of fish wrapped in leaves into the hands of the villagers.
“Well... alright then, we won’t be polite.”
The villagers had just taken out a lot of their family’s surplus grain, and they were a bit pained at first, but after getting the fish, they felt much better.
After seeing off the uncles, Lu Qing breathed a sigh of relief.
He was somewhat fortunate.
Fortunately, the people in the village were relatively simple and honest; otherwise, he wouldn’t have dared to rashly ask to borrow grain.
Now, with this grain, he and Little Yan wouldn’t have to worry too much about food for ten days to half a month.
With this buffer time, he could also properly explore ways to survive in this world.
“Brother, this flatbread smells so good!”
Lu Qing was pondering when he suddenly heard Little Yan’s words.
He looked down and saw the Little Fellow squatting on the ground, drooling as she looked at the flatbread one of the villagers had just brought.
He walked over, tore off a small piece of the flatbread, and put it in Little Yan’s hand.
“Little Yan, be good, eat this piece of flatbread first. Brother is going to cook now.”
“Mm, Little Yan understands!”
Little Yan nodded obediently, took the flatbread, and happily started gnawing on it.
After comforting the Little Fellow, Lu Qing also began to busy himself in the kitchen.
First, he washed rice and steamed it, then he scooped out about half a catty of small fish, gutted them, and cleaned them.
When the fish were cleaned and he was about to fry them, Lu Qing discovered a problem.
There was no wok in the kitchen for cooking dishes.
Lu Qing thought back and then remembered.
Originally, there was an iron wok at home, but some time ago, the original owner had sold it to buy grain.
So now, the house only had an earthenware pot for steaming rice, but no wok for cooking dishes.
Sighing, Lu Qing could only settle for the next best thing. He found a relatively flat, thin stone slab outside the courtyard, cleaned it, and placed it over the fire to slowly roast.
Once the stone slab was scalding hot, Lu Qing carefully scooped out a small spoonful of solidified lard from an earthenware pot brought by a villager.
When the lard touched the stone slab, it sizzled, and the fat quickly melted, immediately releasing a fragrant oil aroma.
