Chapter 54

The force of the fish in the water was strong, and Jiang Xingchen, who was directly pulling the animal tendon line, felt his palms hurt from the strain. After a great deal of effort, he finally managed to pull the fish up.

"Brother! This fish is so big!" Mei'er exclaimed in delight, hugging Jiang Xingchen's arm and staring at the fish still thrashing on the ice, her excitement palpable.

"It's not small!" Jiang Xingchen also laughed. The fish weighed at least three pounds. Zhou Xiong said it was called a big carp, similar in appearance to a grass carp but with a more plump body, looking hard and firm, clearly with tight meat and great strength, jumping very high when thrashing.

"Fortunately, my strength has increased since the development of the Sensitivity Array. Otherwise, I might not have been able to outlast it," Jiang Xingchen secretly rejoiced, calling Qian Feng and Zhou Xiong to help hold the fish while he removed the hook.

At this moment, Qian Feng and Zhou Xiong looked at Jiang Xingchen with a fanatical gaze: "How did his brain develop like that? Why don't we have it? A casual idea made Young Master Sun rise in status within the family... As a man, he even performed in a musical and received unprecedented praise, earning a title and a fief... In this cold winter, he can even catch fish. If we sell them to the restaurant..."

While the two were admiring him, Jiang Xingchen threw the hook back into the ice hole, then picked up the little girl, holding her small hand as they waited together.

The little girl blushed, glanced at Qian Feng and the others, and then fixed her gaze on the ice hole, her expression very excited.

"Ah! It's hooked again, brother, pull quickly..." Soon, Mei'er's cheers rang out again...

They caught four fish in a row, and Jiang Xingchen didn't dare let the little girl play anymore, as it was quite tiring. Despite Mei'er's pouting resistance, he firmly pushed her behind him.

Continuing to fish, he noticed movement and was about to pull the line.

"Brother!" Suddenly, Mei'er shouted, startling him as he was about to pull the line, and the fish got away!

"This little brat!" Jiang Xingchen turned around angrily. But when he turned, a fish head was right in front of him, its mouth wide open.

"Ah!" Jiang Xingchen was startled again, almost falling over.

"Hehehe..." The little girl burst into a series of joyful laughter, threw the fish, and ran away.

"Little brat, stand still!" Jiang Xingchen got up angrily and ran after her.

Qian Feng and Zhou Xiong watched the playful siblings, feeling a sense of warmth and harmony...

By noon, they had caught over ten fish, mostly weighing more than three pounds. The variety of fish was quite limited, only one type.

On the way back, Mei'er, sitting in the carriage, was still excited, her face flushed. She had never been this happy before.

Jiang Xingchen was very happy to see Mei'er so joyful. The reason he only brought Qian Feng and Zhou Xiong today and didn't invite friends was to make the little girl have fun! Mei'er was very quiet in front of strangers and only opened up to familiar people. In the entire Hongyuan City, besides himself, she was only familiar with Qian Feng and Zhou Xiong!

"Brother! How did you think of using this method to fish?" The little girl suddenly asked in the carriage.

"Stupid!" Jiang Xingchen laughed and tapped her head, saying, "You forgot, brother told you that after taking the fake medicine, he had strange dreams..."

While saying this, Jiang Xingchen thought to himself, "If it weren't for the Sensitivity Array and the Knowing Array, without a fishing rod, float, and sinker, how could I have the ability to fish with just an animal tendon line!"

"Ah!" The little girl lightly exclaimed, rubbing the spot he had tapped, pouting, and mumbling, "I was too happy and forgot..."

Then, Mei'er's eyes suddenly lit up, and she asked, "Does that mean, brother, you know a lot of fun things?"

"Of course! Brother told you, there are many fun things, and I will play with you in the future!" Jiang Xingchen gently stroked Mei'er's long hair, recalling that snowy night.

"Yes! Brother said that..." Mei'er quieted down, her mind also recalling that snowy night when her brother took her to see a doctor and talked to her while holding her.

"Brother, will you always play with Mei'er in the future?" The little girl's body slowly leaned over, gently resting on Jiang Xingchen's shoulder.

"Always, as long as Mei'er likes!" Jiang Xingchen reached out and hugged the little girl's thin shoulders. In the whole world, she was his only family, and he never wanted to lose this warmth of mutual support.

"Hehe..." The little girl suddenly laughed.

"Little brat, what are you laughing about?" Jiang Xingchen asked.

"I was thinking..." A strange image appeared in Mei'er's mind, of two white-haired elders fishing and playing on the ice.

However, before she could describe the image, Jiang Xingchen suddenly shouted, "Wait! Qian Feng, stop the carriage!"

"Ah!" Mei'er was startled and asked in surprise, "Brother, what's wrong?"

Jiang Xingchen pulled back the curtain and pointed to a patch of light yellow flowers on a slope in the distance, "Look!"

When the carriage jolted, the curtain had lifted a corner, and he happened to catch a glimpse. It was already winter, and the fact that flowers were still blooming surprised him, and a thought came to mind.

"That, there are many in the wild, and the leaves can be eaten. In our village, many families have no food in winter and pick those leaves to eat!" Mei'er said.

"Oh!" Jiang Xingchen nodded, pulling Mei'er out of the carriage and running towards the flowers.

"Brother, what are you going to do? We have rice and flour at home, we don't need to eat this..." Mei'er said as she ran along.

However, when they arrived, her confusion turned to surprise! Her brother actually picked the flowers and made a wreath, placing it on her head.

"Really beautiful!" Jiang Xingchen stood in front of the little girl, looking her up and down, and then smiled in praise.

The little girl, after days of care, had her originally yellow hair turn black, her face no longer pale, and her cheeks had a hint of red, though still thin, she was indeed much prettier.

The little girl tightly pursed her lips, trying to hide her shy smile, but the joy in her eyes was impossible to hide.

But at that moment, Jiang Xingchen suddenly said, "I meant the wreath!"

The little girl was taken aback, immediately pouted, and angrily shouted, "Brother~" and pounced over.

"Ha ha ha..." Jiang Xingchen laughed and dodged, but afraid the little girl would fall, he let her catch him after a couple of dodges.

"Alright, alright! Brother was wrong, Mei'er is beautiful! I was just joking with you!" After being hit a couple of times by the little girl, Jiang Xingchen quickly apologized.

The little girl wasn't really angry; seeing him apologize, her pouted lips slowly returned to normal. But then, her eyes twinkled, and her two cold little hands suddenly slipped inside Jiang Xingchen's neck.

"Ugh~" Jiang Xingchen shivered and darted out, but stumbled and kicked up a large patch of dirt!

"Hmph! See if you dare to tease me again!" The little girl triumphantly raised her two little hands.

But at that moment, Jiang Xingchen didn't react, his eyes fixed on the ground ahead.

"Huh!" Mei'er was startled, her face showing a hint of panic, and she quickly grabbed Jiang Xingchen's arm, "Brother, are you really angry... Mei'er will..."

"No!" Jiang Xingchen turned and smiled, rubbing Mei'er's head, "Brother isn't angry, I just found something!"

"Ah? What did you find?" The little girl's mind immediately followed Jiang Xingchen's words to another direction.

"Right this!" Jiang Xingchen took a few steps forward and picked up a round object from the ground, still covered in dirt, making it hard to identify.

"What is it?" Mei'er asked.

"This is called a mustard root! In the past, villagers only ate the leaves, which was like neglecting the main part for the minor one!" Jiang Xingchen laughed, not expecting to find this, and it was thanks to dodging Mei'er that he kicked up a clod of dirt.

"I didn't expect this thing to grow in winter!" Jiang Xingchen had never known that mustard could grow in winter. In his memory, only plum blossoms bloomed in winter, and Chinese cabbage was also available. As for mustard, he knew it was good for pickling and making pickled mustard, and the shredded mustard was very refreshing. The mustard seeds, when ground into powder, became mustard.

Thinking of mustard, he immediately started searching the ground, especially around the flowers. Sure enough, he soon found some black mustard seeds!

Watching her brother dig, Mei'er looked at him curiously. Qian Feng and Zhou Xiong, seeing him not return for a long time, hurried over and stared dumbfounded at his busy work.

Only when Jiang Xingchen stood up did Mei'er ask, "Brother, are you looking for the mustard roots? Can they really be eaten?"

"Hehe! Little brat, you'll know when we get back... After a few days of pickling, with some rice porridge, it will be very comforting!" Jiang Xingchen said proudly.

"Really!" Mei'er's eyes lit up. After playing all morning, she was a bit hungry, and the mention of food made her lick her lips.

Hearing this, Qian Feng and Zhou Xiong's stomachs rumbled loudly.

"Let's dig a few more, and then we'll go back!" Jiang Xingchen patted the somewhat embarrassed Qian Feng and Zhou Xiong and dug up a few more mustard roots.

As they got back into the carriage and headed back, in Jiang Xingchen's kitchen, a thin old man in a tattered cotton robe was looking around with bright eyes.

After a long while, the old man regretfully shook his head, "This kid isn't here, and there's nothing to eat in the kitchen. It was a wasted trip... I'll come back tonight, hoping this kid's cooking skills are as outstanding as Chuxue said... This stove is quite strange, I hope this kid won't disappoint me!"

Just as he was about to leave, he saw a small pot of water warming on a small stove next to the large stove. He picked it up and drank it in one gulp.

"Ha~" Wiping his lips, the old man said, "I ate a bit too much this morning... But it was really delicious..." Then, in a flash, he disappeared!