Xiaoxue gave the oil lamp to Wei Ziang and went out with her mother. Xiaomi was jumping around trying to make a nest for the little peacocks, not forgetting to order her younger brother to help pick peanuts.
Jiang Hu found a bamboo basket and padded it with a circle of straw, then Xiaomi carefully placed a few young peacocks inside.
"Xiaomi, what kind of bird is this, do you know?" With the oil lamp beside him, Jiang Hu could clearly see the adorable yet awkward appearance of the little birds.
"I don’t know," she lied without blinking.
"I happened to see them almost hatching today. I waited for a long ti, but the big bird didn’t co back, so I decided to pick lotus leaves and bring them back. Who knew there were too many, I couldn’t even walk with them."
Jiang Hu nodded to indicate he understood.
Then Xiaomi found a half-cut bamboo tube used to feed chicks before and pretended to scoop water in the kitchen. In reality, she added Spiritual Spring water and placed it in the nest for the little peacocks.
Jiang Hu looked at these fluffy little things: "What do these birds eat, how do you feed them?"
Xiaomi thought for a mont, realizing that peacocks are probably omnivores, eating insects as well as fruits and vegetables.
"We could probably feed them like chickens, and then catch so bugs for them?"
Jiang Hu nodded, "Alright, since you brought them back, you take care of raising them from now on."
Xiaomi’s eyes curved with delight, "Okay!"
She couldn’t be happier. That way, she could use more food from her special space to ensure the peacocks grow up healthy and strong!
Once the little peacocks were settled, and all the peanuts were picked up, Second Aunt and Xiaoxue had dinner ready.
Everyone had a bowl of dough slices, boiled with so vegetable leaves, a fried egg, and a platter of smashed cucumbers to cool off.
In recent years, the Jiang family’s farming and animal husbandry have redeveloped, and with a few more people in the house, although consumption has increased, the amount of work done has also multiplied.
Chickens, ducks, geese, and pigs are all being raised, and rabbits and wild chickens were naturally not overlooked, and even during droughts, the little round bamboo rats continued to thrive.
Not only were they raising animals, but the scale had more than doubled compared to before!
Regarding crops, under Uncle Liu’s advice, the Jiang family not only rebuilt the lotus pond but also opened several more acres of wasteland.
When the family couldn’t handle the farm work during the busy season, they hired a few n to get the work done quickly and affordably.
Moreover, concerning tasks like weeding and carrying water, as long as the couple was diligent, they could manage everything.
Besides, the children in the family were growing up, apart from the ones attending school, the rest could handle the chores around the house.
For example, tasks like feeding the chickens and ducks, doing laundry, and cooking, were all tackled by the diligent kids. When free, the parents handled these chores, but during busy tis, no one slacked off.
However, having two oxen in the family now ant plowing the fields was much faster.
Sotis Uncle Liu would help by driving the oxen to the town to deliver vegetables, freeing Jiang Hu to do more farming at ho, making things much easier than expected.
During dinner, under the oil lamp, you could see Second Aunt’s eyes a bit red, making Xiaomi feel extrely guilty.
She had done sothing foolish today.
She had placed the incubator in the special space, but forgot one thing.
She could actually have put the little peacocks in the space, and then taken them out when nearly ho.
That way, her mother wouldn’t have been startled to tears.
But at that mont, her mind went blank, completely overlooking the idea. It wasn’t until she was being carried on her father’s back ho that she finally realized.
"Xiaomi, don’t just focus on eating, have so vegetables. Didn’t you say eating more vegetables is good for your health?"
Second Aunt gave her a piece of smashed cucumber.
Cucumbers and eggplants were common veggies in the house, especially cucumbers, which were served almost every al.
Mainly because they grow quickly, if not picked tily, they might beco overgrown by the next day.
The better-looking ones were sold in town, while the oddly shaped ones stayed ho for als, perfect for smashed cucumbers. Once smashed and cut into pieces, appearance didn’t matter.
"Thank you, Mom." Although the cucumbers didn’t look good, their taste and texture were just fine, and the seasoning tonight wasn’t too strong, making them refreshing and tasty.
Taking the opportunity, Second Aunt said, "No need to thank , but Xiaomi, don’t let today happen again. No matter what you encounter, co ho first, then seek an adult to go with you, okay?"
Xiaomi nodded obediently, "Okay, Mom, I won’t do it again."
Knowing Xiaomi was obedient and sensible, understanding well, they didn’t say much more, instead asking about what happened with the bird she brought back.
She was too worried about Xiaomi earlier, and busy with cooking, so she hadn’t had ti to see them yet.
Xiaomi imdiately got excited, quickly recounting how she discovered the birds today and watched them hatch.
Of course, she didn’t ntion what exactly these birds were, planning to let others identify them when they grew up, just in case they were docunted in a book.
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