Hmmm… it seems that today’s diner was delivering itself to him.

Li Xuejian immediately stuffed the pheasant into the cart and covered it with the rest of the bamboo so it was unknown that he caught one. For a second he thought of exchanging it with villagers for some rice but quickly gave up this idea, it was better to share and eat with Uncle Chen.

Li Xuejian went home and dunked the dead rooster in the hot water so that the feathers could be plucked more easily. Then he headed straight for the old man’s field and confidently approached him.

Seeing Li Xuejian, Uncle Chen was a bit stunned as he had never seen him come around here before: “Xue Jian? What’s the matter? Did something happen?”

Li Xuejian pointed towards his courtyard and said: “I caught a pheasant in the bamboo grove when I was out and came to ask if you want to eat it with me.” 

The old man took a long look at him in disbelief: “You caught a pheasant?” It was not that Unce Chen suspected that he was lying, but it was very unusual, if not impossible, with Li Xuejian’s ability to hunt. 

Tracking and catching a pheasant is quite difficult, if other birds at the sight of hunters immediately take off, then pheasants freeze in place. They build their nests in places remote from villagers and only in the ground. First, the birds dig a hole and then mask it with a dense layer of grass and various branches so it is very difficult to spot them. 

Li Xuejian looked at Uncle Chen earnestly and said: “It’s true. Why don’t we go back and make it into a stew with the vegetables?”

The old man excitedly applauded and agreed: “En! I will go dig up some, we will steam up the meat with it!” 

Looking as if he was going to leave right away, Li Xuejian quickly stopped him: “Uncle, wait! Shouldn’t we marinate it with salt first?” He was quite embarrassed to ask this and scratched the side of his neck. But the meat without salt doesn't taste good at all!

To be honest, Uncle Chen was very reluctant to use salt on a regular meal, but this was a rare occasion to eat meat so his heart didn’t ache to be a spendthrift this time. 

He invited Li Xuejian to his house: “Wait a bit. I’ll pack you some.” And then Uncle Chen went inside his house to grab a small bowl and scoop some salt for him. 

He kept asking if this was enough and Li Xuejian quickly said: “That’s definitely enough. Thank you so much, Uncle. I will bring what was left in a bit for you.”

The old man quickly waved his hands, very generously saying: “Hey, it’s only a pinch of salt. Go, go. It’s already past noon and I still have to go to the field to bring the vegetables.”

Li Xuejian nodded his head in acknowledgment: “Then I will prepare the pheasant and wait for Uncle to come.” After saying this he went back home. 

Li Xuejian sat in the kitchen and began to deal with the dead rooster. He handled the pheasant skillfully, plucked it, and scalded it again with boiling water. After cleaning up the whole bird, Li Xuejian started to cut it into individual pieces, he cut the chicken legs and wings and left them. The rooster liver and heart were also placed separately.

He marinated it with salt and when Uncle Chen brought some vegetables, Li Xuejian added them to a pot. There weren't any special ingredients for the stewed pheasant, just a handful of baby potatoes and cabbage.

The stewed meat was very nourishing, perfect for Uncle Chen’s old age. 

Li Xuejian scooped another spoonful for him to eat and then grabbed a pheasant leg to give to the old man. 

Uncle Chen stared at him, not knowing what to say, his nose was a bit sore. He didn’t remember when was the last time he ate such a good meal. 

Is this how filial piety feels like? Aiyo, if Li Xuejian’s father was still alive, he would not be ashamed of his son. 

 filial piety - the act when children offer love, respect, and support to their parents and other elders in the family

Uncle Chen and Li Xuejian said some words to each other before Uncle Chen went back to work. When the old man left Li Xuejian sat in the yard and began to deal with the bamboo that he brought earlier. 

The first thing Li Xuejian wanted to make was a bow. The bamboo was tough, straight-grained, very flexible but at the same time also demanding to work with. Of course, this bow won’t be traditional or laminated, it will be just a fine bamboo bow. 

Li Xuejian picked up a nice large cane of bamboo and split it in half using a heavy stone knife. He also split off the sides and started to shape the front profile of the bow, tapering the limbs. Next, he had to carve a couple of notches in each end for the bowstring. It took him some time to make the handle and wrap it to the bow to secure it in place. For a bowstring, he used strong and flexible cordage.

The bow was thick and powerful enough to shoot a deer or fat rabbit.

As for the arrows, if he wanted to make good ones it takes time, effort, and attention to detail. Li Xuejian looked at calluses that were already showing themselves on his hands and grit his teeth, starting to create arrows. After cutting, heating, trimming, smoothing, tying, drilling, and sawing, he finally completed a set of arrows.

At last, Li Xuejian chose the thinner cane, cut it off, made one about his own height, sharpened its head, and made it look like a spear. Although the village’s river was wide and raging, and there was not a suitable lake for fishing, he believed that in the deep mountains he could find a hidden one to use it.

The sun was starting to go down when Li Xuejian finished his work.

He lit firewood and boiled hot water for himself on the stove. When he went to his room to find a set of clean clothes he realized that there was no wardrobe there. 

The room was small, it only had two beds and a washbasin. The box with clothes was in the kitchen because there was no more space. Li Xuejian knew that in ancient times most houses had very little furniture. But he didn’t even have a kang bed that was common in both wealthy and poor homes. 

kang bed - heated bed, this was a raised platform with a space underneath to build a fire or run pipes filled with hot air or water, this was also the sitting and eating space

Li Xuejian set his sights on the bed that belonged to the original owner's father. He was not going to sleep there and giving it away also didn't feel right since it was in a dilapidated state.

Li Xuejian snatched up his machete and in one smooth movement, he jerked it and chopped the wooden bed in two.

Thwack-thwock, thwack-thwock!

Li Xuejian chopped the bed into pieces and carried it to the kitchen to use as firewood in the next few days.

He retrieved the broom from the corner and swept up the remaining sawdust.

The room was a lot more spacious after the second bed was gone.

There was so much to do around the house that Li Xuejian forgot that he wanted to take a bath and rest a little in the first place. He went to the kitchen for a couple of buckets of hot water and then to the room to fill the washbasin. 

He took a full and long bath and even washed his hair. Men in this era also had long hair which was very troublesome to deal with, considering the fact that there was no soap in the countryside. However, he couldn’t cut his hair because the tradition of ancient people viewed body parts, including hair, as came from the parents. It would be a tremendous disrespect to deliberately damage any of it.

After a nice warm bath, it was about time for a night's sleep. Before falling asleep, Li Xuejian couldn't help but imagine the future that lies ahead of him. He knew that as a poor peasant he won't be able to afford that big of a house. But if he earns some silver it won't be hard to add another small house to his courtyard in the course of time. 

But he is a man who has no money at all! It's pitiful, isn't it?