Chapter 42: The Intelligence Revealed by Sewing the Hunting Eagle Vests
"Is Jianguo's wife home?" The courtyard gate was open, but Meng Yulan didn't push the door directly; instead, she called out from the entrance.
"I'm home, it's Yue Family's Sister-in-law, come in quickly!" Zhang Cuilian heard the call and came out to greet her.
"Is your sewing machine free? Xiao Feng needs to make some Hunting Eagle vests, I thought I'd borrow your sewing machine!"
"It's free! Xiao Na and I have nothing to do at home, we can even give you a hand!"
Because Yue Feng had brought wild game several times recently, Zhang Cuilian's impression of the Yue Family had significantly improved. Yue Lei and his wife already had good relationships in the village, and now the two families were even closer.
"Then I'll have to trouble you!"
"We're all family, relatives in the same village, why be so formal! Xiao Na, pour some water for your Dàniáng!"
Soon, Xiao Na brought the water cup to Meng Yulan.
"Dàniáng, have some water!"
"Ah, good! This girl is really good!"
"I heard you say just now, what are you making? What kind of vest?? Why cut such nice floral fabric into such small pieces!" Zhang Cuilian asked curiously.
"Hunting Eagle vests! They used to be for catching and tying Hunting Eagles. Now Xiao Feng is taking some village kids into the mountains for Hunting Eagle hunting, right? The Sand Grouse and Flying Dragons he catches need to be sold alive in the city, so they need Hunting Eagle vests to tie up the little birds!
Oh right, I also brought Jianguo a few sets of work protection gear from the mine, he's out all the time, he can use them!"
As she spoke, Meng Yulan took out a stack of glove, towel, and sock sets from under her basket.
"Did Yue Shan bring these back? The things used in the mine are really sturdy, look how thick this towel is!" Zhang Cuilian thought it was brought back by the Yue Family's eldest son, Yue Shan, and praised it while holding the snow-white towel.
"Yue Shan? He's worked at the mine for several years, let alone a set of three, he hasn't even brought back a pair of gloves!
This is because Xiao Feng delivered wild game to their cafeteria, and live little birds are hard to transport, so their leader specially approved it! He went to the warehouse and picked up a whole large box!
Our family doesn't have many old relatives in the village, we can't just keep good things to ourselves, right? Since I was coming over, I brought a few sets for your family, don't think it's too little!"
When mentioning her second son in front of outsiders, Meng Yulan's face seemed to glow with a golden light, an undisguised pride and satisfaction.
"Sister-in-law, what you said is true, if it wasn't for our real relationship, who would be willing to give away this work protection gear!"
After a few pleasantries, Zhang Cuilian quickly flipped the sewing machine head out from its compartment, threaded the needle, and after a brief exchange, quickly got busy.
Northeast women, when it comes to being hardworking and capable, even nationwide, they are definitely among the best. After simply familiarizing themselves with the process, they quickly got busy.
Chatting about daily life while working with their hands, in less than two hours, the thick stack of floral fabric was all finished.
The finished Hunting Eagle vests were like small capes on top, with two fabric strips threaded through the bottom. When needed, you just wrap it around, tie the strings around the legs to secure it, and no matter if it's a young Hunting Eagle or a small bird, it will be held neatly and securely.
While chatting, Zhang Cuilian also kept subtly asking about what Xiao Feng was currently doing. Other things were fine, but when it came to sensitive information like money, Meng Yulan's responses were quite vague, only saying that her son took people into the mountains with Hunting Eagles and then sold the caught wild game to the coal mine to earn money.
Zhang Cuilian also understood the boundaries of conversation and didn't press further when she saw the other person didn't want to elaborate.
However, they were so engrossed in their work and chat that they didn't notice. Their seven-year-old youngest son, Wang Mingyu, had slipped into the east room at some point, and he heard the women's casual chat crystal clear.
At the foot of Changbai Mountain, birds of prey were not unfamiliar to ordinary people, but Falconry and hunting with Hunting Eagles was rare. In the surrounding villages, except for the Yue Family who had ancestral heritage, no one else knew how.
When Wang Mingyu heard his Dàniáng say that Yue Feng took Hunting Eagles up the mountain to catch Sand Grouse and Flying Dragons, his curiosity immediately ignited fiercely.
Just as Meng Yulan left with the finished Hunting Eagle vests, Wang Mingyu followed right out the door, went to the street, and ran into Zhu Sanhai, to whom he spoke very mysteriously.
"Sanhai, Manjiang, have you heard of big Hunting Eagles? In our village, at Yue Lei's house, my Brother Yue Feng is doing Falconry, taking people into the mountains to hunt, catching lots of Sand Grouse and Flying Dragons, and even Gray Dogs and big pheasants!"
...
In the village, there are no long-lasting secrets. In less than half a day, the news that Yue Feng was taking people into the mountains for Hunting Eagle hunting spread throughout the village.
Around four in the afternoon, Yue Feng, dragging his tired body and carrying a Hunting Eagle, arrived home. Just as he reached the alley entrance, he was surrounded by a group of village kids with bare bottoms.
"Brother Yue Feng, is this the Hunting Eagle you trained?"
"Old Uncle Yue Feng, did you catch anything today? Can you show us!"
...
Yue Feng just treated it as a chance encounter. They were all kids from his own village, so Yue Feng didn't take it seriously. He carried the Northern Goshawk and let the little guys admire it for a while before going home.
Seeing the Hunting Eagle that the adults talked about up close and in person, these kids with bare bottoms became even more excited. Normally, finding a few young Mountain Eight Tigers from a bird's nest was enough to show off to their friends. Now, someone in the village raised a Hunting Eagle that could catch pheasants, and their brief admiration was nowhere near enough.
These kids just blocked the entrance to Yue Feng's house, peering pitifully through the crack in the door.
Less than half an hour later, Xiao Tao and Li Wentong also returned, each carrying a Hunting Eagle.
Today, the two of them were well-prepared and had a great time catching things in the woods around the small pond. Their two Hunting Eagles acted separately, catching over thirty Sand Grouse alone, and more than ten Flying Dragons.
Their bags couldn't hold any more, so later they simply tied the birds' legs with wire and carried them by hand, which caused a sensation among the children.
Xiao Tao and Li Wentong, the two of them, each carried seven or eight live Sand Grouse tied by the legs, while holding a Hunting Eagle in the other hand, wearing their mountain leggings, and carrying bulging bags. This appearance was extremely impactful.
"Little Uncle, are these the Sand Grouse you caught with your Hunting Eagle? You caught so many!"
"Hello, Grandpa Li, can I touch your Hunting Eagle?"
"Uncle Xiao Tao, where did your Hunting Eagles come from? Can you help me catch one too?"
...
They were all children from various families in the village, and the adults in their families interacted, so the children were not unfamiliar with Xiao Tao and his father. The bolder ones came forward asking all sorts of questions, their eyes never willing to move away from the Sand Grouse and the Hunting Eagles.
In this era, life in the village was hard. Even catching an old sparrow meant taking it home to burn under the pot and eat. Xiao Tao and his father returned, each carrying seven or eight Sand Grouse. If they prepared these and stewed a pot with potatoes, how fragrant that would be.
Xiao Tao originally wanted to show off to his little admirers, but Li Wentong gave him a look that said 'don't show off', and Xiao Tao immediately obediently followed him into Yue Feng's courtyard. The gate was quickly closed again.
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