Xing'an Mountains 1984: Starting from climbing mountains to support the family

Chapter 149 Ice Fishing
After stirring for a while, Chen Weidong saw a fish flash by in the water.

Knowing that a fish was coming, he immediately picked up the sieve net, slowly put it into the water, then held the net with both hands, bent over and tilted his body to stir it vigorously in the water!
Feeling something moving in the turret net, Chen Weidong immediately pulled back, leaned his whole body on the ice behind him, and lifted the net up with force!

"Brother Weidong, why are there only small fish here?" Shitou said.

This scoop net caught about 20 fish, most of which were crucian carp, old man fish, and willow root fish, about ten centimeters long, and the total weight was less than two kilograms.

"Why rush? Attract the small fish first, and the big fish will come later!"

Chen Weidong smiled and said, "But small fish are also good. Mix the small fish together and stew them with soybean paste. It's very delicious, especially when you drink a sip of sorghum liquor with it. It's very refreshing."

Chen Weidong threw the fish onto the ice, then turned around and changed direction, and scooped up another net, which was also full of small fish.

After two or three consecutive catches, Shitou suddenly shouted happily, "Fish, fish! Big fish! Big crucian carp!"

The scoop net caught seven or eight fish, including crucian carp, carp, as well as Chen Weidong's favorite pike and a black carp.

It weighs about five or six kilograms.

Chen Weidong threw the fish onto the ice, then turned around and changed direction, and scooped up another net.

There were only four fish in this net, the heaviest of which was a carp weighing less than one kilogram.

"Brother Weidong, let me do it, I'll catch a net!" Shitou begged.

"Okay, come on!"

Chen Weidong smiled and handed the net to him. The fish that had just been cast out was now frozen.

Shitou took the net excitedly, then went to the ice hole and stepped on it.

"Shitou, keep your feet on the ground. The water is very deep, at least two or three meters. If you go in, there will be no way to save you."

Chen Weidong reminded, "Be sure to step carefully!"

"Got it." Shitou was originally preparing to cast the scoop net, but after hearing what Chen Weidong said, he stepped hard with his feet, then bent down and put the net into the water.

Chen Weidong stretched out his hand and warmed it over the fire, his eyes fixed on the situation over the stone.

The fire warmed his chest, so Chen Weidong didn't feel too cold, but his hands were so cold that they hurt.
Today is also a good day. The sun has risen to its highest point. It is a little warm in the sun, but it is more chilly in the air. Fortunately, there is no wind.

If there is a cold wind and a fire, it would be like a world of ice and fire.

After my hands warmed up a bit, I picked up all the frozen fish, big and small, and put them into the basin. The weather was cold,

Chen Weidong brought a basin. You know, it was so cold that the fish were frozen and it was impossible to pierce their gills.

"Wow!"

Shitou lifted the net up suddenly and threw the contents onto the ice.

There were five or six fish on the broken ice of various sizes. Once they came ashore, the fish jumped desperately, but they lost their strength after a few jumps - the temperature on the ice was much lower than that underwater, and they soon froze.

Chen Weidong followed suit and picked up the fish.

There were also many miscellaneous fish among these fish, and the largest one was a five-striped black perch, which is scientifically known as red perch, a carnivorous fish, and very fierce. The one in front of me weighed nearly three pounds and looked quite fat.

The five black stews are garlic meat and very chewy.

"Yes, we have caught more than ten kilograms now." Chen Weidong said with a smile.

"Well, Brother Weidong, when are you going to Hajiang City?"

Shi Tou asked with a silly smile.

"Let's go the day after tomorrow! What's the matter?"

"I haven't been in the mountains for a long time, and my hands are itching!"

"Haha, let's go check it out when I come back. By the way, don't go too deep when I'm not around!"

Chen Weidong instructed.

"Brother Weidong, I know, I'll listen to you!"

The two chatted while fishing. They took turns casting several nets at the ice hole and caught more than 20 kilograms of fish. Chen Weidong felt tired and cold, so he said to Shitou, "Shitou, I don't want to do this anymore! Let's go back."

"Brother Weidong, please fish a few more nets." Shitou was still not satisfied. "I see there are fish in every net. Maybe there will be some big ones later."

No wonder the old man said that there is fire on the body of fish. As long as you catch fish and get something, you won’t feel tired or cold. Just look at the stones and you will know. This is definitely true.

"Can't wait any longer."

Chen Weidong flatly refused, "Look at yourself, your clothes are all wet. If you stay here any longer, you will definitely get seriously ill!"

Chen Weidong's voice left no room for doubt, and Shitou put away the stirring net.

After packing up their tools, they divided the money at the entrance of the village.
Chen Weidong went back with more than ten kilograms of fish.

……

When I got home, the door was closed and locked from the inside.

Chen Weidong knocked on the door, but there was no response from inside, probably because no one heard him. Just as he was about to knock again, Si Ni's baby voice came over.
"Dad is back."

Si Ni looked outside through the crack in the door with her big watery eyes, and immediately saw Chen Weidong standing at the door.

"Wuni wants to see it too!"

"Uh~ This is to look at pets, and everyone is scrambling to take a look."

Then a pair of big eyes looked at Chen Weidong through the crack in the door, and said in a baby voice: "It's Dad, he's back."

"Dad~"

Si Ni and Wu Ni screamed.

"Stop shouting, Daddy has heard you. Call Mom or sister! Open the door."

Before Chen Weidong finished speaking, the two little guys ran away excitedly.

Chen Weidong thought they were calling sister or Liu Xueting, because the two little girls were not as tall as the door latch and definitely could not reach it.

However, after a while, I heard the panting voices of two little breast dumplings,

Chen Weidong looked through the crack in the door, but didn't see anyone else.

There were only two little kids, working together to move a larger wooden chair. The smaller ones knew they couldn't reach it, so it was clear that the two kids were quite smart. The two little kids grunted and grumbled, and finally put the large chair in front of the courtyard door. Then Sini stood on the chair and pulled the bolt with all her might.

Chen Weidong was outside, also at a loss whether to laugh or cry.

"What's wrong? Mom's not here?"

"Mom, my sisters and I are out. We are the only ones at home."

Si Ni said in a baby voice.

"Who locked the door?"

"My sister and I!" Wu Ni said in a baby voice.

"Uh……"

Chen Weidong didn't ask why they wanted to wipe the door. In a child's world, there aren't so many whys.
For a moment, there was only a click sound, and the two little breast dumplings looked happy.

"Dad, the door is open," Si Ni climbed down from the chair happily, and then the two little ones moved the chair away.

"Dad~"

"Dad~"

"Dad, where have you been? There are so many fish! So big!"

"Dad went fishing."

"Dad, why didn't you call me when you were fishing? I want to watch you catch fish."

"I also want to see."

"..."

The two little kids chattered.

"It's too cold outside. By the way, Si Ni, why is the tiger-head hat that your aunt gave to your sister for her birthday still on your head?"

Only then did Chen Weidong notice that Si Ni was wearing Wu Ni's hat on her head, and couldn't help asking.

Before Wu Ni could say anything, Si Ni said in a baby voice, "It was Wu Mei who put it on me, right, Wu Mei?"

"um, yes."

Wu Ni smiled foolishly.

"Si Ni, you are the elder sister, you must protect your younger sister, don't coax your sister!"

"I'm my sister!"

"Dad, I just want to wear it for a while and then I'll give it back to my sister." The little girl said in a baby voice.

"it is good."

Chen Weidong smiled, then walked into the house, lit the fire first, then leaned against the fire wall to warm himself, and then took off his shoes.

His socks were frozen hard and his feet were a little numb. He poured a basin of hot water and felt that it was quite warm. Chen Weidong asked two little girls to bring Xue over and put her in the basin.

I stretched out my hand to feel the water temperature, and when it felt about right, I soaked my feet. In the Northeast, if you stay outdoors for a long time in winter, you usually wash your hands, face and ears with cold water as soon as you get home.

After soaking for a few minutes, they felt much better, and the two little kids snuggled in Chen Weidong's arms.

"Si Ni, Wu Ni, how about we have fish tonight?"

"Dad, fish is not tasty, Si Ni wants to eat meat!"

"Yeah, Wu Ni wants to eat meat too!"

"Haha, I guarantee you'll want to eat more of the fish dad made this time~"

The fish Chen Weidong caught this time are enough to eat for several days. It is more convenient to eat fish in winter because there is no need to worry about it going bad. No matter how much you want to eat, you can just take the frozen fish into the house to thaw it. Chen Weidong took two big crucian carps and more than twenty small miscellaneous fish.

After a while, Liu Xueting came back with four little girls.

Liu Xueting didn't say anything. She handed Xiaoliu to Chen Weidong and started to process the fish. By now, the fish had thawed in the house.

After Liu Xueting finished processing the fish, it was almost time for dinner. Chen Weidong looked at the little girls' suspicious expressions and went into the kitchen himself.

Two large crucian carps are used to stew soup, which is very sweet, delicious and nutritious. As for the small fish, they are of course used for "braised sauce". The sauce in "braised sauce" is not soy sauce, but Northeastern soybean paste, which makes it really delicious.

~

Dani had heated up the iron pan, and hot smoke was coming out. Chen Weidong scooped up a spoonful of rapeseed oil and poured it along the edge of the pan. He added some lard, then added onions, ginger, and garlic to sauté, added Northeast soybean paste, and sautéed the sauce until fragrant, added the water from the fish, cooking wine, sugar, and some seasonings, and then added the small fish.

The lid of the pot on the other side was opened, revealing crucian carp soup. Instantly, the aroma of the fish soup filled the entire courtyard!

"Dad, it smells so good!" said Dani who was cooking.

"Well, Dad didn't lie to you, did he?"

"No."

The little girl shook her head.

The other little ones in the room were playing, but when they smelled the fragrance, they came running over one after another. Si Ni laid her little hands next to the stove and watched eagerly!
"Dad, is this fish? It smells so good!"

"It smells so good, it smells so good!"

"Dad, that's awesome!"

"Okay, go play, and when daddy cooks dinner, he'll give you fish, okay?"

"it is good!"

The little guys said in unison.

In addition to the fish soup and fish in sauce, there is also a dish left over from lunch that only needs to be heated up!

"Okay! Wash your hands and eat!"

After Chen Weidong finished his work, he quickly shouted to the little girls.

The little girls can't wait!
They immediately ran to the basin of water that Liu Xueting had just brought, and scooped water from each other to wash their hands.

(End of this chapter)