Sisters in the Deep Forest Valley: Many Fun Things

Chapter 252 Cutting Cypress Branches

In early December, the snow had not yet arrived, and the sun was still shining.

The wind in the valley was as dry and cold as ever, making people's faces wrinkled.

With such beautiful weather, the two sisters decided to smoke sausages today.

They spent three days cleaning, drying, cutting, and marinating the pork and ribs, which weighed about 40 kilograms in total.

The knife was almost worn down from use, and my hands were practically superhuman, before I finally finished stuffing all the meat sausages and pork rib sausages and hung them under the eaves.

Upon entering the inner courtyard, one can see sections of deep red sausage hanging from the eaves, dangling in mid-air, looking incredibly tempting.

After being dried for several more days, the sausages have lost about 50-60% of their moisture.

But at this point, there was still one crucial step missing before the knot could be cut and the food could be cooked.

Smoky!

In their hometown, the sausages are smoked over a fire fueled by cypress branches.

Back then, in the period leading up to the Lunar New Year, the entire kitchen was often filled with smoke from burning cypress branches.

There was also the scene where everyone took turns holding their breath and rushing in to see how well the sausages were smoked, and then rushed out with their eyes closed, tears streaming down their faces and coughing.

It still lingers in their minds to this day...

After breakfast, the two sisters dragged their cart and took their wood-chopping axes, ready to leave the valley.

The purpose of this trip is to cut cypress branches.

Many of the flowers and plants in the valley have withered, but the trees and shrubs are still half green and half yellow.

The two sisters looked left and right, then strolled leisurely, pulling their cart, clattering past Peach and Reunion.

As expected, they rushed over as soon as they heard the noise.

"Uh-huh!" Peach squeezed through and opened its mouth to grab the hemp rope that Lin Chunyi was using to pull the cart. This was its spot.

"quack!"

"Cuckoo~"

Tuanyuan and Ankang flapped their wings a few times and flew onto the cart, settling comfortably in the middle, waiting to depart.

"..." Lin Chunyi and Lin Lanshan, their hands empty, stood motionless in place.

That's so clever! Why don't you go chop down the firewood and bring it back while you're at it?

Lin Lanshan glanced at the peaches and the reunion and peace that were already in their places, and could only say, "Sister, why don't we take them with us? The cypress forest isn't far from the valley, it's not a big deal."

They don't often take these little ones to stay in the deep mountains for long.

After all, to those large wild animals, they are simply walking, hot, fresh prey.

It's actually quite dangerous.

But then again, if we're talking about danger, the most dangerous people on the whole mountain should be Lin Chunyi and Lin Lanshan.

Because whether it flies in the sky, runs on the ground, swims in the water, or grows in the soil—as long as it can be eaten and put into their stomachs, as long as they want it, it can't escape their mouths...

Without further consideration, Lin Chunyi decided, "Alright, let's go. They haven't gone out to play much. But let's go home first and bring our bows and arrows, just in case."

Sigh, having some overly clingy pets is just so frustrating.

So, with Peach and the two sisters from Tuanyuan Ankang, they went home to get self-defense equipment and set off again.

The path to the cypress grove was bumpy and uneven, and they sat on either side of the cart, swaying and rocking back and forth.

After leaving the valley, in the time it took Lin Lanshan to eat a candied hawthorn, they arrived at the cypress forest.

It's called a cypress grove, but there aren't actually many cypress trees, only about a dozen. The rest are various other kinds of trees.

Lin Chunyi looked around and found the tallest-looking cypress tree. Satisfied, she said, "Peach, alright, let's stop here!"

Peach stopped in her tracks when she heard the sound.

She jumped off the cart, stood under the tree, put the wood-chopping knife into her storage space, tied her trouser legs and cuffs tightly, and then stretched out her hands...

Did you think she would still hug the tree trunk like before, and slowly pupate upwards like a wriggling worm?

Hmph, of course not!

They didn't learn light-body skills for nothing after all that time!

Lin Chunyi stretched out his hands, cracked his knuckles and showed off, then stomped his feet to firmly plant himself on the ground, and with a few steps he landed on the thick branches at the bottom.

Then, stepping up section by section, it didn't take much effort to reach the top of the cypress tree.

Once she had chosen a branch that she could step on firmly, she took out her machete and shouted down, "Lanshan, all of you, get away! I'm going to cut some branches!"

"Alright, go ahead and cut it!" Lin Lanshan had already pulled the cart, carrying peaches and reunion and peace, to another tree next to the cypress tree before her sister even climbed it.

Upon hearing the response, Lin Chunyi confidently swung her wood-chopping knife and chopped down at the cypress branch.

As the cypress branches shook violently, they released their unique, woody fragrance, infused with plant oils. No wonder people in their hometown love to use cypress branches to smoke sausages; the aroma is truly wonderful.

You have to be careful if your hands or clothes come into contact with the oil that oozes from the broken branch; it will be sticky and difficult to rub off!

With each swing of Lin Chunyi's knife, before long, cypress branches fell to the ground beneath the tree.

Adhering to the principle of leaving room for maneuver in all things, she only cut three branches before climbing down the tree, and then Lin Lanshan went up to the second tree to cut branches.

In less than half an hour, the two sisters had piled the cypress branches they had cut high on the cart.

They worked together to press the cypress branches down hard, then secured them to the cart with hemp rope before heading back.

Tuanyuan and Ankang originally planned to hitch a ride home, just like they had come. However, after they boarded the cart, they discovered that large clumps of tree branches had taken over the entire cart, leaving them nowhere to stay.

They tried to squeeze up, but the hard branches pierced through their feathers, hurting them!

Moreover, the branches above are all loose and rickety, with holes here and bumps there, making it difficult to stay still.

They fluttered off the cart, looked at the two sisters, and called out a few times.

The way they were begging to be taken home was so obvious that Lin Chunyi didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Walk by yourselves, I can't carry so many of you."

They didn't carry baskets on their backs; they only carried bows and arrows, so it was impossible to put them in baskets.

If they were to carry them home, both of their hands would be constantly busy. After all, they had put in a lot of effort climbing and cutting down the trees, and they were exhausted.

Seeing that the road was blocked, Tuanyuan and Ankang moved forward a few more steps, craning their necks and shouting towards the tall peach tree:

"Gah~"

"Goo~"

There's no need to guess; she's asking Peach, the eldest sister, for help.

Peach responded with a sweet sniff, then prepared to bend its legs and half-lie on the ground, waiting for its little brothers and sisters to sit on its back.

Lin Lanshan immediately patted its head to make it stand up, "Get up, don't mind them, they're all spoiled, they can't even walk properly."

Then, with his head bowed, he said to Tuanyuan and Ankang with utter indifference:

"We're all walking, and you want to take a car? You're dreaming! Hurry up and catch up, or if you fall behind and get eaten by jackals, I won't be able to catch you!"

After saying that, he tugged at the rope binding Peach and left.