Goldfield
Chapter 114: A Profitable Journey

Yu Xiaocao could not just stand by and watch the young man suffer. He raised the female goose in his hand and walked over. When the male swan sees that the female goose has been captured, it thrashes more powerfully. With Zhao Han's bright eyes watching him, Yu Xiaocao was unable to easily use his cheat item, the mystical stone water, to remedy the situation, so he had to use a bait that had previously been soaked in water. He fed the male goose with it and only then did the two geese settle down.

They tied the goose's legs and then placed the two animals into the basket that Zhao Han was carrying. After covering the basket with a cover, they had completed the mission that day.

While to catch cork fish also takes a long time even though he has a special fish bait. There is no other way. Xiaocao's unique fish bait was too popular among everyone. All the fish struggled to eat the bait, and they ended up catching goldfish worth five to six catties. The smallest fish is the size of a palm, while the largest is the size of a grass carp. Without much effort, Xiaocao's fish basket immediately filled up very quickly.

Luckily, by the time they had almost run out of bait, they managed to catch a large cork fish that weighed about two to three catties. As for the remaining fish bait, Xiaocao did not plan on taking it home and used the rest to catch more fish. In the end, he had caught too many fish and had to have Zhao Han tie them on a rope and help him bring them home.

This time, they not only caught three cork fish but they also caught many other fish that made the trip worth it. Xiaocao released the smaller fish back into the lake, but he naturally brought the larger one back home as ‘victim from war’!

On the way home, Zhao Han brought most of their profits, and Yu Xiaocao only needed to bring a pair of cork fish and ginseng. Despite having a lighter load, Xiaocao ended up spending a lot of energy to almost cross that seemingly foolproof mountain range. By the time they arrived at the place where they had set the trap, the cotton lining of Xiaocao's jacket was already drenched in sweat.

“Yeah, I'm tired!” Xiaocao dropped himself on a rock by the roadside and used the back of his hand to wipe the sweaty beads off his forehead. Traces of gray dirt were left on his face after that.

Zhao Han looked at Yu Xiaocao, who looked like a cute and dirty little kitten, and grinned, “Sit down and rest here, I'll go to the trap and see her.”

Despite carrying two fat and big geese in his bamboo basket and both of his hands holding onto a strand of fish, Zhao Han was not even out of breath after crossing the mountains. Xiaocao saw him walking with pure envy, ‘Ah, he must be someone who practices martial arts. The difference between us is too big! ‘

Zhao Han placed the bamboo basket and fish rope on the ground beside Xiaocao and warned him repeatedly, “Be careful. Although there should not be any wild animals in this area, sometimes wild boars or dogs can appear. If anything happens, scream loudly for me! ”

“I have a very good moral character, so my luck should not be that bad, right?” Xiaocao carelessly replied as he stroked the delicate feather of the male goose on his back.

Zhao Han was a little confused when he heard Xiaocao's reply. What does one's moral character have to do with meeting wild boars or other animals? And what is the ‘ripe’ thing he mentioned? But he didn't try to explain. He was already used to Xiaocao saying random things from time to time which made no sense.

After making sure their surroundings were safe again, Zhao Han went to a bush that was roughly half human in height. He only returned, filled with games, after all the sweat in Xiaocao dried up.

He had set a total of ten traps before, and, to avoid Zhao Han's suspicion, he had only splashed mystic stone water around five to six traps. Naturally, all the traps he used for the mystical stone water had a game. Since he only used smaller traps this time, the animals he caught were all on the smaller side, such as rabbits, pheasants, and badgers. One of the rabbits she caught was pregnant as well!

Spring is the season for animals to mate and breed. So, experienced hunters usually do not choose to hunt in this season. One reason is that the animals that raise their children are much more violent and cruel. The more important reason is that there is no reason to kill a goose that lays golden eggs; that is, they need to give time to the animals in the mountains to breed and thrive.

“What should we do with this wild rabbit? Unleash it? ” Hunters who go to the forest during the spring will usually release the pregnant creature. So, when Zhao Han saw the pregnant female rabbit jumping up and down and down, he couldn't help but ask what Xiaocao's plan was.

Yu Xiaocao carefully picked up the pregnant rabbit and used his right hand, which had a colorful stone on it, to gently caress the rabbit's soft and delicate fur.

“Be careful! Wild rabbits can also bite people when they are scared! ” Zhao Han couldn't help but remind him. Once when he picked up a pregnant rabbit, the creature fought him hard and bit him hard. The resulting wound was not serious but it was bleeding a little and painful!

Contrary to his expectations, the rabbit, who had been struggling frantically, calmed down and remained in Xiaocao's hands as if it was a kitten that had just eaten until it was full. He stopped moving and even closed his eyes, as if he was really enjoying Xiaocao's pet.

“Xiaocao, are you sure you are not a legendary forest spirit or something? Why do all these wild animals in the mountains look so much like you ?! ” Zhao Han was stunned by the change in the rabbit and couldn't help but make a small joke.

There's a reason why he mentioned this. Last year, he had caught a little roe deer in his trap. When the creature saw him, he treated him as if he were his mother, and followed him home blindly. Inside the secret valley, there was a bunch of small white fish that were extremely difficult to catch, but Xiaocao was able to catch a full bottle of fish without much effort. And then there was what happened today in the lake. When they caught the goose, there were many shrimp and small fish in the water, but the two birds seemed to have a special interest in the bait.

Yu Xiaocao must have a secret! However, Zhao Han did not plan on asking her that. Everyone more or less has their own little secret. After all, wasn't his own family an example of that? She already regarded Xiaocao as a friend, no less as a younger sister, so she decided to respect her privacy.

When Xiaocao heard his joke, he deliberately opened his mouth wide and pretended to look scary, he cynically said, “It seems you have seen through my disguise, son! Guess that means I can't leave you in this world anymore! Zhao Han, you must die. ”.

Zhao Han laughed happily over Xiaocao's joke, but then saw the little golden kitten twitching around in the basket. He reminded Xiaocao out of worry, “Xiaocao! That mountain ginseng is precious! Be careful not to damage your cat! ”

“Do not worry! Little Glutinous Dumpling will not damage it. That said, without Little Glutinous Dumpling, I would not be able to find this wild mountain ginseng. Since he likes ginseng so much, then we should let him hug him! ” Yu Xiaocao, on the other hand, was not worried at all.

Zhao Han took out two large swans from the basket on his back and placed the hunted animals they had just caught and his fish into the basket. Fortunately, he had brought a basket big enough for this trip!

He held a wild goose in each of his hands and then glanced at the sleeping golden kitten with his eyes closed. He smiled, “Your kitten is truly a treasure. It could actually find ginseng in all of those weeds. I've heard of hunters training dogs to catch prey, but I've never heard of training kittens to find medicinal plants! ”

“I just picked up this little kitten, and usually he is free to roam around the house. I don't really know this cat. Could this be just a coincidence? Have you heard of animals that can specifically find medicinal ingredients? ” Yu Xiaocao also put a bamboo basket on his back. One of her hands was still holding a pregnant wild rabbit.

He had already made the decision that he would take this rabbit home to raise. It is said that rabbits and rabbits breed very quickly. In the future, even if he did not go to the mountains, he could still eat rabbit meat at home!

Zhao Han looked at her for a long time and then smiled faintly, “Why do I have the feeling that every time I am with you, coincidences seem to happen more often?”

“Ha ha! That's because I have good moral character, ah! ” Yu Xiaocao acted as if she had accidentally avoided her gaze and pretended to be very happy as she passed the way home.

At home, they learn that Little Shitou must return to town to return to school after making sure that her older brother is okay. Yu Hai went with his eldest daughter on a donkey cart to sell pickled fish at the pier. The only person in the courtyard was Madam Liu, who was drying clothes.

When she saw her younger daughter pushing the gate open, Madam Liu looked up at the sky and her facial expression immediately changed, “This child, ah, is completely disobedient! Didn't you promise me before you left that you would take the winding road at the foot of the mountain, right? How can you be so reckless? What if something happens to you, do you want your mother to live again? ”

“Auntie, please stop scolding Xiaocao! It was my idea to go to the mountains. I have walked the trail several times and I know there is nothing dangerous there. Auntie, if you want to scold someone, rebuke me! ” Zhan Han followed Xiaocao into the courtyard and heard Madam Liu reprimanding him, so he quickly pulled the responsibility onto himself.

The tight expression on Madam Liu's face relaxed a little but she was still a little dissatisfied, “Xiaohan, don't blame auntie for making such a big fuss about nothing. After what happened with Uncle Yumu last time.Aunti is really scared now! ”

Zhao Han took the basket on his back that contained the hunted, placed it on the ground, and replied in a tone of understanding, “Auntie, I know you are trying to do your best for Xiaocao! Worry not! In the future, I will not take Xiaocao to the mountains without your permission first. These are the hunted and fish that Xiaocao caught, please get rid of them immediately! ”

“Oh, silly boy, why do you always treat yourself like an outsider? Back then, when Uncle Yu and your father went to the mountains, they always split the game fifty-fifty! We don't have to get stuck with who owns what between our two families, okay? ”

After receiving Zhao Han's promise that he would not secretly take Xiaocao to the mountains, a smile finally appeared on Madam Liu's face. He took three large fish, two pheasants, and a rabbit, and put them in Zhao Han's basket, ignoring his protest.

“Mother, hand over the wild rabbit for me! I want you to make a basket cage and house this pregnant rabbit with that male rabbit. Rabbits can give birth to a child after about a month. In the future, we will always have rabbit meat to eat! ” Yu Xiaocao hurriedly took the male rabbit from the basket and exchanged it for the badger.

After seeing the mother and daughter pair acting like this, Zhao Han knew that if he continued to resist it would only make things even more awkward. Instead, he smiled and said, “Oke! I will accept this politely. Xiaocao is good at raising animals, so I will leave these two geese at aunt's house. The next time I go to a prefectural city, I will stop buying and picking up geese to take to the prefectural magistrate's residence! ”

“Oh right, Xiaocao!” Before Zhao Han exited through the gate, he suddenly asked, “Are you planning on storing that ginseng for now or do you want to sell it? If you want to sell it now, you may not be able to get a good price in the city. You have to wait until I go to the prefectural city and I can help you ask a little! ”

Yu Xiaocao thought that with the mystical stone water, he might not need to use this old ginseng and said, “Then I should humbly ask Brother Han to ask later! You also know our current family situation. If we were to sell ginseng, I think we should really improve our house and then buy some more plots of land. With my mother here, we might not be able to go to the mountains to hunt anymore. We must settle down and plant the fields! ”

“Didn't you make a lot of money selling your food? If you don't farm, do you really think you're going to starve? ” Zhao Han lightly joked.

“Oh it's true!” Yu Xiaocao raised his head proudly, “However, as a family of farmers, it is still better to have more plots of land in hand!”