Back to 1984: I built a chicken farm on a barren mountain.

When Chen Youwei couldn't find Zheng Erli, he panicked a little. Could he have fallen into the river?

He ran back the way he came, reaching the stone bridge, only to see that the river beneath it was frozen over with a thin layer of ice, through which the water still flowed slowly...

Although the ice layer was thin, it hadn't broken. Chen Youwei breathed a slight sigh of relief and shouted to the surrounding area:

"Erli, Zheng Erli!"

"Nichiri..."

"Village chief, I'm here!"

Chen Youwei looked in the direction of the sound and saw Zheng Erli peeking out from the grass on the south bank of the river.

Chen Youwei crossed the stone bridge in three quick steps and ran to the edge of the bushes.

Zheng Erli sat amidst the wild grass and snow, covered in mud, struggling to take off his rain boots.

When Chen Youwei arrived, Zheng Erli had already taken off one of his clothes, but the second one was stuck and he couldn't get it off no matter what.

Chen Youwei helped pull, and the two of them struggled for a long time before finally getting their rain boots off.

"I slipped and fell when I got here. These rain boots are so hard to walk in, I thought I'd take them off. It's okay if my cotton shoes get wet, otherwise I won't be able to walk all day..."

Chen Youwei expressed his deep sympathy and agreement.

Zheng Erli got up from the snow, hid his rain boots in the grass, and continued to follow Chen Youwei.

Taking off his rain boots, Zheng Erli felt much lighter on his feet, and with that lightness came a sense of joy. He started skipping and jumping in the snow, and this time Chen Youwei couldn't keep up...

The two of them walked on, sometimes stepping into the deep woods, sometimes stopping, leaving two deep sets of footprints in the trees...

As Chen Youwei and Zheng Erli approached Jiming Mountain, they first smelled a faint aroma of meat, then heard laughter coming from the foot of the mountain, and were greeted by Chen Xiaohei.

"Woof woof woof woof..."

Chen Xiaohei knew Chen Youwei. It first circled around Chen Youwei again and again, and then started circling around Zheng Erli. When it got tired, the master and guest started chatting.

At this point, Chen Xiaohei wisely ran away to guard the earthen stove where the meat was stewing, hoping to earn a delicious meal in exchange for its "dedication to its job".

Seeing Chen Xiaohei's expression, Zhou Zhiming couldn't help but laugh:

"This dog is practically a genius!"

Chen Wenfeng greeted Chen Youwei and Zheng Erli with a smile:

"Uncle Youwei, Uncle Zheng, what rare guests you are! What brings you both here at the same time?"

"The northwest wind," Chen Youwei said with a self-deprecating laugh.

"It's all because of Zheng's second son, insisting on coming up the mountain in this awful weather. Look at my shoes, they were just made for me by my aunt..."

Chen Wenfeng then looked down at Chen Youwei's shoes. Originally, the cotton shoes were black on the outside and white on the inside, but now they were gray both inside and out, wet and dirty. Chen Wenfeng welcomed Chen Youwei and Zheng Erli into the house and asked Niu Da to find a new pair of shoes and socks.

Chen Youwei waved his hand and said:

"I'm not going inside. My feet are cold, but I'm sweating all over."

"It's alright, let's make a fire outside and warm ourselves by the fire."

Upon hearing Chen Wenfeng's words, Niu Er started a fire outside without waiting for instructions.

They used to light fires outside the house. Initially, Chen Wenfeng and his group dug a shallow fire pit, and later they piled stones around it. In addition to warming themselves by the fire, they could also boil water and cook.

Although the fire pit was now cold and covered with snow, after Niu Er shoveled away all the snow and wet ash on the surface, the bottom of the pit was dry.

Niu Er brought over some dry grass and stubble, quickly lit them, and then brought over some firewood, piling it up in a crisscross pattern.

Niu Da found new cotton shoes and socks, and also brought over a few small stools.

Chen Youwei was the first to sit down, take off his wet shoes and socks, and free his feet. His feet were indeed white and red, white from being soaked and red from being frozen.

Chen Youwei first dried his feet before putting on new socks and cotton shoes.

The socks and cotton shoes were originally taken out of the house, so they weren't cold at all. After Chen Youwei put on the new socks and shoes, he felt comfortable.

Chen Youwei then remembered that Zheng Erli was also wearing a pair of cotton shoes, and said:

"Erli, your shoes?"

"Village chief, I already changed it a long time ago."

Chen Youwei was so busy warming his feet and changing his shoes that he didn't notice Zheng Erli, who had already changed his shoes and socks and was leisurely warming himself by the fire.

As they warmed up, Chen Youwei and Zheng Erli recovered their spirits. The chill gradually subsided, but their hunger grew stronger.

The aroma of the stewed rabbit in the pot, steaming with moisture, wafted towards the two of them in waves.

Indeed, they had been struggling in the snow for more than two hours; it would be a lie to say they weren't tired.

Chen Wenfeng had already noticed how tired and hungry they were. Since the meat was already stewed, he smiled and said to Chen Youwei, "Let's eat!"

"Uncle Youwei, you asked what was stewing that smelled so good. Well, let me tell you, it's rabbit. Niu Da and Niu Er caught it this morning."

Hearing that it was wild game from the mountains, Chen Youwei became even hungrier.

"Wenfeng, we've come across such great food! You're not going to kick us out during mealtime, are you?"

"How could that be? There are four stewing in the pot right now. I'll take them out now, and I'll ask Chef Sun to stew two more. We'll eat our fill!"

Hungry... "Okay!"

Chen Youwei originally planned to give each of the six rabbits one, which was acceptable, considering that he could eat two at a time, and the others were all grown men with large appetites.

But when the rabbit was served, Chen Youwei realized that he had eyes bigger than his stomach.

Firstly, the rabbit was indeed large, with long bones and thick flesh.

Secondly, there was more than just rabbit in the pot; there were other things stewing in it as well. Chen Youwei thought there were potatoes, pork, and some small chunks, but he didn't know what they were.

The bowl was overflowing with rabbit, pork, and various side dishes; Chen Youwei felt like the legs of the table were about to break under the weight.

"Uncle Youwei, you should try some first!"

Chen Youwei didn't stand on ceremony. He picked up his chopsticks and took a piece of rabbit meat. The meat was fresh and tender. He then tasted a small piece of potato. It had a familiar sweetness, and it was soft and fragrant. It turned out that chestnuts had been added. It was delicious!

"Uncle Zheng, please don't be shy, everyone please eat!"

Chen Wenfeng urged everyone to start eating. At this time, in addition to the pot of rabbit meat, there was also a pot of white steamed buns on the table.

After Old Sun stewed the two rabbits in the pot, he brought over a pot of mutton offal soup from the earthen stove in the chicken coop.

This time, Chen Wenfeng didn't ask anyone for help. He picked up a spoon and served everyone a bowl, saying:

"This is from Li Ji Lamb Soup. It's lamb offal, cheaper than lamb meat, and it keeps well now that it's cold."

Needless to say, the others were used to the good food at Jiming Mountain. Although it was Chen Youwei's second time eating there, he was still amazed by the abundance of food at Jiming Mountain.

Although it was a communal meal, and there weren't any elaborate dishes or bowls, the amount of meat was so high that most families couldn't afford it during the Lunar New Year.

He couldn't help but sigh again:

"This is truly like celebrating the New Year! If this were Chenjiazhuang..."

Chen Wenfeng quickly said:

"If only every household in Chenjiazhuang could have this."

Chen Youwei glared at Chen Wenfeng, "You little brat, you stole my lines again!"

Although Zheng Erli had traveled extensively, he found the food at Jiming Mountain quite delicious. He had been very hungry along the way and had eaten a lot. However, he still had something on his mind. Seeing the village chief seemingly lingering there, forgetting about his business, he couldn't help but remind him, saying:

"village head......"

Chen Youwei said impatiently:

"Erli, I've remembered the important matter, I've remembered it. Let's talk about it after we finish eating, okay?"