Xu Yue directed her brother to cut down a smaller paper tree, and asked the stronger brother to carry it back to the pond, while she and her sister followed behind.
The three brothers and sister came down the hillside. The huge crown of paper tree spread out in the forest, making a huge noise and startling countless birds.
While Xu Yue reminded her brother to pay attention to the road under her feet, she looked around the trees to see if she could find any more taro.
However, the villagers of Dawang Village had cleaned it yesterday. No taro was found, but many pits and scattered leaves left after digging were seen.
In fact, taro stems are also edible, but the taste is a bit anti-human. If there are no cooking conditions, Xu Yue does not recommend eating them.
In addition, there are now mountains full of prey, so there is no need to worry about food for the time being, and taro stems are not easy to preserve, so I did not mention this matter.
The three siblings carried the tree back to the pond, attracting the attention of Tong and others.
Aunt Wang held her thin younger brother in her arms and stood not far away. She watched curiously with her big eyes as the three brothers and sisters cleaned up the tree bark and peeled off the bark. Her mouth was slightly open, as if she didn't expect that the bark could be peeled off and used in this way.
.
Xu Yue tore the peeled bark into small strips, then took a handful and handed it to Xu Da who was making straw sandals.
"Dad, see if you can use this."
The best material for making straw sandals is rice straw, which is twisted into thin ropes and then woven into shoes, which are the most commonly worn shoes by the common people.
Have you ever seen Uncle Liu Huang start his business selling straw sandals?
That's because straw sandals are a necessity for ordinary people's homes. In addition, straw sandals are not very durable, are replaced frequently, and have a high repurchase rate.
However, most of the farmers in Changyi can also weave straw sandals. Xu Yue doesn't know if the business of selling straw sandals can be started here.
However, learning a craft first will help you to be prepared, and it may also be a way to make a fortune.
Xu Dazheng had a headache because of the fragile and easily broken grass stems. When he saw the thin strips of bark sent by Xu Yue, he tugged on them and felt its strong toughness and durability.
The grass stalks, which seemed useless, were weaved together in excitement.
The three Xu Yue brothers looked at each other and acted in tacit agreement.
Xu Dalang peeled the tree, Xu Erniang tore off the bark, and Xu Yue braided the bark into a thin rope and handed it to Xu Da.
Half an hour later, a flip-flop-like straw sandal appeared in Xu Da's hand.
With the shoe shape in place, two more straw ropes were added and passed through the reserved holes to turn into a pair of shoes that can be tied to the feet and will not fall off.
However, at first glance, the shoe slit is a bit big, and perhaps a sharper stone can penetrate it.
But the four father and son were still very excited.
Xu Da put on his clothes and walked a few steps before his brows rose. However, he could still feel a dull pain when he accidentally stepped on a stone.
Xu Erniang suggested: "How about making the soles double-layered and adding a layer of straw mat?"
"Anyway, it's easier to make than knitting it with straw. If it's not strong enough, just make two more pairs and wear them interchangeably."
When Xu Da heard this, he was so happy that he took off his new shoes and started studying again.
Xu Dalang had completely peeled off the bark of a large paper mulberry tree, and piled it into a small pile on the grass.
Xu Yue was afraid that there would not be enough, so she left her sister and her father who were very interested in straw sandals, and led her brother to chop down a paper mulberry tree.
But this time, there are two more followers behind the brother and sister.
It's the aunt of the Wang family, and Wang Youliang, the nine-year-old son of Wang Dahai's family who has lost his mother.
The two little carrot heads looked less strong than Xu Yue, but each of them held a heavy hatchet in his hand.
The level of forging in the Daqing Kingdom was low, and the ironware contained a lot of impurities, making it far heavier than the ironware of later generations.
Anyway, Xu Yue couldn't swing the hatchet, so she couldn't help but take another look at the two of them.
Aunt Wang is young and it seems a bit difficult to carry the hatchet. Wang Youliang is older and seems quite relaxed.
Moreover, the two of them were barefoot, and Xu Yue didn't know how they could move as if they were walking on flat ground in the rocky mountain forest.
When the two of them saw her looking over, they shrank in fear, fearing that she would drive them away.
Fortunately, she only glanced at it and then retracted her gaze. The two of them followed her eagerly. Watching her chop down the paper mulberry tree, they also found one.
The tree trunk was too big to cut down, and the two little beans couldn't resist cutting it down, so they took off the branches and each of them dragged a big armful and brought them to the pond.
Ms. Tong glanced at her daughter in surprise. Mrs. Wang pointed at Xu Da, who was making bark shoes not far away, then pointed at her badly worn feet, and said in a childish voice:
"My grandma makes shoes, so it doesn't hurt to wear new shoes."
After that, he added expectantly: "Auntie also needs to wear shoes, and so does my brother."
Tong's eyes flashed with shock. Her daughter has not liked to play with her peers since she was born, nor does she like to talk. She always likes to stare somewhere in a daze.
The neighbor said that there might be something wrong with the child's brain. As a mother, she didn't want to think so, but seeing her daughter being stunned from time to time, she couldn't help but wonder if there was something wrong with her.
As for the word smart, Tong never thought it would belong to her daughter.
But now, seeing her daughter taking back a branch to make shoes for herself and being the first to lead her to find taro, Tong was sure that there was nothing wrong with her aunt's mind!
Not only is it okay, it’s also very smart!
Mrs. Tong happily touched her daughter's little head and nodded heavily, "Okay, let's make shoes for my aunt and brother."
"But grandma doesn't know what to do. When dad comes back, can you let dad prepare it for you?"
"Yeah!" Mrs. Wang's family smiled contentedly, turned around and ran to Xu Yue's residence. Watching their movements, she silently wrote down the order of making shoes, waiting for her father to come back to make shoes for herself.
Wang Youliang was not so patient. His father was away hunting, so he thought about it by himself and made a mess on the bark of the tree.
Xu Yue secretly felt happy watching this, enjoying this rare moment of tranquility.
At noon, before Wang and others came back, Xu Da, whose stomach was growling, left a separate portion for Wang and led the children to have lunch first.
What I had was stewed rabbit, two of which were stewed.
It was tasteless. Although she was full, Xu Erniang still wanted to eat taro.
Thinking that taro was plentiful and cheap, my father refused to make it for me. The father and daughter who had previously been studying straw sandals with He Qiqi, the friendship boat was overturned.
Xu Da thought it would be good if he could eat it, but you are so picky!
But he still endured his temper and explained: "Taro is durable, so we should keep it as a reserve. These wild animals are not durable, and it will be wasted if we don't hurry up and eat them."
With good evidence, Xu Erniang lost her face and had no choice but to pick up the rabbit leg she was given and gnaw it viciously. While gnawing, she muttered: "Damn God..."
Xu Yue silently handed the rabbit meat that she couldn't eat to Xu Dalang, then turned her back, took out the taro left in the morning, chewed it carefully, and tasted it slowly.
