"Sis, did you hit this?" Xu Minghui took the sparrow from his younger brother's hand, feeling that the world seemed a bit unreal. Wasn't his sister supposed to be delicate and fragile? When did she gain such skills?
"Of course, big brother, we all saw it." Little Xu Tao said earnestly, wondering what to do as he also started to admire his big sister.
"Sis, when did you become so amazing?" Xu Minghui curiously looked at Xu Mumu.
"I don't know either, just felt like hitting and got it." Xu Mumu smiled harmlessly.
Yin Yang was also watching Xu Mumu. He hadn't really paid attention to what she used to be like before, but seeing her skills now, honestly, Yin Yang felt a bit envious.
Xu Minglei, the big mouth, had already bragged to Yin Yang yesterday about Xu Mumu hitting a pheasant, so Yin Yang was actually the calmest about Xu Mumu using a slingshot to hit a sparrow.
"Mr. Xu is really impressive." Yin Yang said with a gentle smile on his face.
"It's just luck, my brother could hit one too." Xu Mumu smiled.
"Sis, you're just too modest, you're obviously amazing." Xu Minglei looked at Xu Mumu with admiration.
"Exactly, sis is the best." Tiedan was now also a little fan of Xu Mumu.
"She's my sister, not yours." Xu Minglei glared fiercely at Tiedan. They had agreed to be good buddies, but now Tiedan wanted to steal his sister. He unilaterally declared that Tiedan was no longer his good buddy.
"Exactly, exactly, sis, Mumu is my sister." Tiedan stuck his tongue out at Xu Minglei.
Seeing the two little brats about to start a quarrel, Xu Mumu chuckled, "Brother, hurry up and clean it, let's grill it."
"Use the firewood in my basket." Xu Minglei said excitedly.
"Such a big one, just need a little fire to grill it." Seeing so many people here, Xu Minghui felt a bit of a headache, figuring out how to divide it was another issue.
"There's no water here, we'll grill it by the river later." Xu Minghui said calmly.
"Brother, you're so bad, talking all this time and now we can't even eat it." Xu Minglei pouted, his enthusiasm suddenly waning.
"Yeah, bad, what can you do?" Xu Minghui raised an eyebrow, tapping Xu Minglei's head with his fingers.
"It hurts, brother, lighter." Xu Minglei looked at his brother with displeasure, if only he could beat his brother, he would knock his brother on the head.
"You're pretty good at acting, with your thick skin." Xu Minghui glanced at his little brother.
"Sister, look at big brother, he's bullying me." Unable to talk back, he would tattle.
"I'll blow on it, and it won't hurt." Xu Mumu chuckled wryly.
"Sis, do you want to eat some grass roots?" Tiedan offered two pieces of grass root to Xu Mumu.
"I want some too." Xu Mumu took the grass roots, and Xu Minglei took one from her hand.
"They're pretty sweet, Tiedan, where did you find them?" Xu Mumu laughed and asked.
"Over there, there's some grass growing." Tiedan also started chomping on one.
At this time, the grass roots were tender and white, with a faint sweetness, a favorite little snack among the village kids.
By the time they were about to go down the mountain, the traps Xu Minghui set still hadn't caught any rabbits.
"Let's come check back tomorrow." Not catching any rabbits, Xu Minghui wasn't disappointed.
"Sure." Yin Yang nodded, having learned how to make traps. When he had free time, he'd come up the mountain, set a few traps, and see if he could catch some game.
After descending the mountain, Yin Yang parted ways with them, and Xu Mumu and the others returned to the Xu Family, with Tiedan putting down his things before running over to the Xu Family to play.
"Brother, hurry let's grill these two sparrows." Xu Minglei said excitedly, the other sparrow was hit by Xu Minghui with a slingshot.
Xu Minghui swiftly cleaned out the little sparrow, while the little ones gathered around the well.
Li Caixia was mending a piece of clothing, which belonged to Xu Minglei. Being mischievous, Xu Minglei's clothes, pants, and shoes got worn out quickly and needed fixing.
The second aunt and fourth aunt were tidying up the house, and the Xu Xue sisters were weeding on their small plot outside.
The Old Xu Family was still bustling with life.
Soon, the sparrow was grilled, without any seasoning. Xu Mumu was lucky enough to get a leg, while the remaining sparrow was divided among the kids. Xu Minghui ate a small wing.
"The sparrow is really tasty." After eating, Tiedan didn't forget to smack his lips. It's been a while since his family had any meat.
Xu Tao and Xu Jiaojiao also nodded in agreement. Even though they had wild chicken yesterday, the grilled sparrow was just as delicious.
"If we get another one next time, we'll let you have some." Xu Mumu said with a smile.
Xu Tao and Xu Jiaojiao, compared to Xu Minglei, were much more obedient and well-behaved. Xu Mumu had a pretty good impression of them.
Xu Mumu's words caused Li Caixia a headache. What's happening with her daughter? Normally, the sparrow meat, although not much, would at most be eaten by the three siblings, never shared with the fourth family's two kids.
Compared to Li Caixia, Sun Huiping was in a much better mood. Xu Jiaojiao and Xu Tao had each gotten a small leg; though it wasn't much meat, it was still meat.
"Mumu, come on, let's go into the room and have a chat." Li Caixia put Xu Minglei's clothes into the sewing basket, then motioned for Xu Mumu with it.
Xu Mumu wiped her hands and then got up to follow Li Caixia into the room.
"Mumu, why did you give the meat to those two from the fourth family?" Li Caixia asked unhappily, as Xu Hai lounged on the bed eating pumpkin seeds comfortably.
"Yeah, Mumu, if Xu Tao and Jiaojiao want to eat something, shouldn't they ask your fourth uncle and aunt? Why be nice to them? Give it to me instead." Xu Hai looked as if he was deeply pained, making it seem like Xu Mumu was the unfilial daughter.
"Mom, Dad, it's just a sparrow, not much meat at all. When I start earning money, I'll buy you plenty of meat, okay? It's just a little sparrow; no need to dwell on it. Plus, with the bit we've given, the fourth aunt doesn't nitpick us anymore." Xu Mumu said calmly.
Xu Mumu was prepared for her parents' personalities.
"That's true, but it's still meat. Are you silly? Don't do it again next time." Li Caixia felt the pain of loss.
"Got it." Xu Mumu nodded, agreeing on the surface. But next time, she'd still do the same. They hadn't even split the family yet, and even if they did, they'd still be family. There was no need to act like enemies.