Abnormal Gourmet Chronicle-Chapter 384 - 223: Licking the Calf (Part 3) (Added for the leader who rewarded this book!)

Chapter 384: Chapter 223: Licking the Calf (Part 3) (Added for the leader who rewarded this book!)

On Qu Jing’s first night at the village chief’s house, she squeezed in with several of the chief’s granddaughters on the kang to spend the night.

Even though there were no blankets and only straw for cover, at least there was a kang, providing shelter from wind and rain inside the house, much better than being up a tree. Qu Jing happily ate sweet potatoes and eggs before falling asleep, waking only at dawn.

The next morning, while everyone else sipped gruel with half a sweet potato, Qu Jing enjoyed a full breakfast, with as much sweet potato and gruel as she wanted, and more could be cooked if needed.

Watching Qu Jing crouch in the yard, simultaneously eyeing the chickens and eating sweet potatoes just like the day before, the village chief’s wife whispered to the chief, "I think she really has a big appetite."

The village chief, not worried since the food didn’t come from his stores, replied, "It’s fine, Old Qu can afford it."

"Is she dumb?"

The village chief’s wife, not entirely convinced, looked at Qu Jing again. "Probably not too dumb."

The chief was satisfied with that assessment. "Teach her a bit more; there were two rabbits in the basket of grain Old Qu brought this morning. Later, when the chickens lay eggs, cook one for Qu Jing. Old Qu said he’d exchange them for hides."

Upon hearing the word "egg" from afar, Qu Jing enthusiastically ran to the village chief’s wife, waiting to eat the egg.

The village chief laughed heartily, "She doesn’t seem dumb at all, much smarter than our Gou Dan."

Gou Dan, munching on a sweet potato, was puzzled: ?

So, Qu Jing ended up staying at the village chief’s house for over a week.

The village chief’s wife was undoubtedly skillful in taking care of children, treating Qu Jing like a child in teaching her. Teaching her to wash her face, wash her hair, dress, what not to eat or touch, and how to use chopsticks.

Qu Jing was only inexperienced her first time being human; she wasn’t actually dumb. With this kind of teaching, she quickly learned everything except speaking, appearing to be a clever child despite looking about ten years old.

At times, the village chief’s wife was perplexed and often muttered, "Is she really dumb?"

"Is this clever or dumb?"

"I feel like this girl is rather wisely dumb."

Finally, when the village chief’s wife was puzzled about whether Qu Jing was a child prodigy or a dimwit with a damaged brain, a bed was finished at Qu the Hunter’s house.

Qu the Hunter came to fetch his granddaughter.

Raising a grandchild right after skipping the parent stage, Qu the Hunter was a little excited.

Qu the Hunter brought some sweets—malt sugar.

Not much, just a piece as long as a pinky finger, which was an absolute rarity in this time. The grandkids at the village chief’s house, seeing such a large candy, had tears of envy streaming from their mouths and almost wished to call Qu the Hunter grandpa if not for their real grandpa’s presence.

"Jingjing, remember me? I’m your grandpa." Qu the Hunter was both nervous and a bit hopeful.

Qu Jing nodded, her eyes fixated intently on the malt sugar.

Grinning broadly, Qu the Hunter happily chuckled and handed the candy to Qu Jing, who promptly put it in her mouth.

The village chief’s wife gathered all the clothes Qu Jing could wear, which wasn’t much—just three sets. But in comparison to other kids her age, this was a lot. Generally, the village chief’s kids wore only two sets for changing while a thin outer garment covered them. If they got dirty or torn, it was the outer clothes that were affected.

Unfortunately, pants couldn’t be counted like this due to high wear and tear, possibly the reason why the kids next door to the village chief didn’t have pants to wear.

The village chief’s wife not only gathered clothes but also gave Qu Jing’s eating bowl to Qu the Hunter, advising him on how much Qu Jing ate each meal, chattering on and on, reminding Qu the Hunter that this child seemed a bit dim but not exceptionally so. A hint of cleverness came through her dullness, at least knowing how much per meal would make her full, and when hungry, she would stare at someone pointedly.

She recognized grains, could light a fire, and cook sweet potatoes herself.

The village chief’s wife assured Qu the Hunter there was no need to worry when he went hunting, as the child would cook if she got hungry.

Finally, the village chief’s wife remarked on how close Qu the Hunter lived to the mountain, making her uneasy about sending children there. If Qu Jing wanted to play, she could come to the village, as all the village kids knew her by now.

The village’s only fool, widely known.

Qu the Hunter led Qu Jing to the log cabin at the foot of the mountain.

Qu the Hunter’s home was a wooden cabin with a lot of prepared pelts. When Qu the Hunter mentioned having a bed made, Qin Huai initially didn’t realize what that meant, only after spending two days at the village chief’s house did he realize having a bed in this village was rare, with most homes having only kangs.

Northern weather is cold, and each household was poor. The village chief’s house only had three quilts, with children sleeping huddled together under straw.

Compared to village conditions, the lines in Du Fu’s poem, "For years my quilt’s been as cold as iron, my delicate child sleeps restlessly with torn binding," almost seemed like good conditions, at least there was a quilt, while many households in the village had only half a quilt—

The quilt was cotton mixed with straw.

Qu the Hunter made a little bed for Qu Jing.

A plain-looking but immensely dominant little bed.

On the bed lay a tiger skin.

Besides the tiger skin, there was clearly a newly made quilt. Being a hunter, Qu Shan had no shortage of hides; thus, besides the tiger skin on Qu Jing’s bed, there were several other pelts, making it look quite warm.

Due to living alone, Qu the Hunter’s cabin wasn’t large, but it was full of things. Guns, knives, and bows hung on the walls, with no household hoes like every other village home; grains and other items weren’t locked. Sweet potatoes, rice, and flour were placed in the bedroom, the salt jar on the cupboard, and wood was piled everywhere from the bedroom to the living room to the kitchen, showing that Qu the Hunter didn’t prioritize tidiness while living alone.

Highlighting how wise the village chief’s wife was in teaching Qu Jing to cook sweet potatoes.

Qu the Hunter took Qu Jing around the house, showing where everything was before handing her the keys and giving her two newly carved wooden figures, and went to the kitchen to cook a meal.

Like Chen Huihong, Qu Jing loved the wooden carvings, playing with them joyfully, cherishing them, only carefully inspecting the house after Qu the Hunter went to the kitchen.

Qu Jing avoided the knives hanging on the wall, reached out to poke at the tiger skin spread on the bed as a blanket, and happily sat on it, continuing to play with the wooden carvings.

Supper was boiled cornmeal with wild vegetables and preserved meat.

Compared to the wild vegetable gruel with sweet potatoes, this was undoubtedly a lavish feast. Qu Jing filled three large bowls she brought from the village chief’s house. After eating enough, she set the bowl down without overindulging.

Seeing Qu Jing indeed stop eating when full as the village chief’s wife said, Qu the Hunter was relieved and happily praised, "Our Jingjing is so smart."

Qu Jing, wide-eyed, looked at Qu the Hunter without replying, silently fetching water to wash her bowl, then settled on the bed to play with the wooden figures.

Seeing Qu Jing would fetch water and wash her bowl, Qu the Hunter praised again, "Our Jingjing is so capable."

Qu Jing still gave no response, but Qin Huai keenly noticed her lips curve slightly.

In the following days, Qu Jing continued living normally at Qu the Hunter’s home.

Qu the Hunter almost daily went hunting, leaving at dawn and returning in the mid-afternoon or evening.

Of course, not every day yielded rewards.

On unlucky days, he returned empty-handed; usually, he caught some wild rabbits or gathered a few bird eggs and on somewhat luckier days captured pheasant or fox.

Nearby villagers were very familiar with Qu the Hunter’s routine, often coming to trade in the evening. Mostly bartering food, salt, or fabric for game or furs.

Almost every villager who came to trade curiously glanced twice at Qu Jing, whispering about how extraordinary it was that Qu the Hunter truly adopted a little fool, noting her good fortune, at least assured of food and clothing for the coming years.

On the fifth night after Qu Jing moved into the cabin, another family tried their luck by leaving a child who couldn’t yet walk at Qu the Hunter’s doorstep.

Hearing a child’s cries, Qu the Hunter, without even lighting the lamp, skillfully got up, picked up the baby, and took it to the village chief’s house.

Qu Jing quietly sat on the bed, watching Qu the Hunter’s silhouette vanish into the night by moonlight. Then she rose, dressed, and sat by the door to wait.

When Qu the Hunter returned, finding Qu Jing at the door startled him, and he warmly said, "Jingjing, it’s chilly out here; let’s sit inside."

He then led Qu Jing indoors, lit the kerosene lamp, and went to find some cornmeal.

"Hungry, eh? Grandpa will cook you some cornmeal."

"Why not keep him?" Qu Jing asked.

Qu Jing’s sudden voice startled Qu the Hunter into pausing.

"I heard them say adopting is best with children too young to remember, he is a boy, doesn’t remember, and eats less than me, raising him would be more economical than raising me," Qu Jing replied.

Qu the Hunter was overjoyed: "Jingjing, you can talk!"

Qu Jing: ...

After the excitement passed, Qu the Hunter calmed down and patiently explained, "I am not fated with that child."

"Am I fated with you?" Qu Jing asked.

"I found you in the mountains, of course, we are fated."

Qu Jing looked at Qu the Hunter, "Will you sell me?"

"Of course not."

"Will you eat me?"

Qu the Hunter frowned, "Did your parents scare you with such talk? Unless in a prolonged drought threatening survival, who’d bear to eat their own child."

"Don’t believe such nonsense, really thoughtless, speaking such to a child."

Qu Jing fell silent.

Qu the Hunter hesitated, then embarrassingly asked, "Jingjing, you know I’m your grandpa now, don’t you?"

Qu Jing nodded.

"Could you call me grandpa?"

Qu Jing didn’t respond.

Qu the Hunter felt a bit disappointed but didn’t speak, finding the bag of cornmeal and heading to the kitchen.

"Grandpa," Qu Jing said clearly.

"I heard them say you’re raising me to take care of you in old age."

"I will, I swear."

"As long as I live, I will definitely take care of you in old age."

Qu the Hunter grinned so widely his mouth wouldn’t close, "Kid, what’s this about swearing while alive, nonsense, stop saying such things."

"You bear my surname now, as my granddaughter by name. Grandpa doesn’t need you to take care of me when old. I’ve saved several coins. When you’re older and find a lad you like, I’ll prepare a dowry for you to marry into the village, better than anything."

"Jingjing, could you call me grandpa once more?"

"Grandpa."

"Yes!"

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