Affection for Sidaogou during the Famine

Today the weather is clear, sunny and windy, and the temperature has risen. It is a spring day full of vitality!

On the west bank of Shichahai, the ice has long melted, and the willow branches beside the lake have turned slightly yellow and green. Seven or eight species of wild ducks that live here are foraging and playing together on the shore and in the water.

Hundreds of wild ducks appeared in Han Zhaozhao's sight, including mallards, shelducks, spot-billed ducks, green-winged teal and several other species.

Individually, in pairs, and in groups, wild ducks sometimes spread their wings and fly, sometimes forage and play, and sometimes rest among the dead lotus bushes, enjoying the warm spring sun to their heart's content, and their chirping sounds are endless.

When Han Zhaozhao and his companions arrived, they found that many people were already hiding in the reeds and weeds, waiting to be hunted.

"Oh, we're late. All the good spots have been taken by others!" Niu Xiaoyun was very upset. She shouldn't have been so late as to dawdle in the cold.

"Don't worry, there are too many people in a good place. Wild ducks are not stupid, and they won't land here because there are too many people and too much noise.

Shichahai is huge, there is plenty of space. Let's see how others catch wild ducks and learn from them!"

A few children were hiding in the bushes on the shore, watching the adults catching wild ducks.

Some people brought nets, some brought bows and arrows, some brought long-handled net bags, and some even brought brooms and long-handled rakes.

A group of wild ducks swam slowly over and gradually approached the two young men who were ambushing in the reeds.

As they got closer, a group of children secretly cheered for the two men, hoping that they could capture the enemy in one fell swoop.

"Splash, cluck, cluck! Cluck!" The two men slowly stood up, crouched down and tiptoed towards the mallard duck swimming close to them. Suddenly, one of them raised a big broom and the other swung a long stick, and hit the ducks.

"Splash, cluck, cluck! Cluck!" A group of ducks gathered in a mess, splashing water and flying obliquely into the air.

"Missed?"

"I didn't catch it!"

"Get up early, those two are so stupid!"

The wild duck left behind a few feathers, which floated slowly in the air down to the water, as if mocking the young man whose cotton coat was soaked.

"It's a waste of effort to use a rake or stick!" Several friends analyzed the situation head to head.

"Well, wild ducks have very sensitive ears, and they will run away at the slightest noise!"

Next, they saw people casting nets to catch wild ducks, but, disappointingly, they were not professionals, the nets were not cast smoothly, and the wild ducks were not caught.

"It's no use using a net. The ducks react too quickly. The net hasn't even been spread out yet, and the ducks have already flown away!"

After two scares, all the wild ducks here ran away.

The people who had been hiding came out cursing and chased the wild ducks into the distance.

Only a small number of experienced and shrewd masters were left, continuing to lurk in the same place without moving.

Han Zhaozhao saw from afar several people holding bows and arrows. These were the young masters of the late Qing Dynasty as mentioned by Old Master Guan.

There are many such people in Beijing. Many of them have practiced archery since childhood and come to the lake to shoot wild ducks every spring and autumn.

In less than half an hour, another group of wild ducks flew over.

Before the duck fell into the water, the archer took action!

Several wild ducks fell down one after another. Surprisingly, they did not fall into the water, but landed on the meadow.

Han Zhaozhao was full of admiration. The Manchus were indeed a nation on horseback. Their archery skills were truly amazing!

"I got it! I really got it!"

Niu Xiaoyun and Xiao Sanzi cheered at the same time.

"Cluck, cluck, cluck! Cluck, cluck, cluck!" Well, the bow and arrow didn't scare away the wild ducks, but they were scared away by the two of them!

"Don't make a noise, it wasn't you who shot it, why are you so excited?"

Looking at the archers again, they were all turning their heads and glaring at them.

Niu Xiaoyun shrank her neck and hid behind Niu Xiaomin. Xiao Sanzi was a bachelor, and he bowed and apologized to him.

Looking at those people again, I saw that they were a group of children, so I didn't bother with them anymore. Those who picked up ducks picked up ducks, while those who continued to hold bows and waited for the ducks to fly over.

After observing for a long time, the children became a little discouraged. Looking at the brooms and rakes in their hands, they realized that it would be a waste of time to rely on these tools.

Didn’t you see that except for those young men with bows and arrows, almost everyone else got nothing?

"Zhao Zhao, you caught a wild duck in the mountains last year. How did you catch it?" It must be said that Xiao Sanzi was quick-witted. He knew that Han Zhaozhao was the most likely person to catch the wild duck.

"I'm telling you, I have some experience in catching wild ducks. As the saying goes, you can't catch a wolf without sacrificing a lamb!

Similarly, if you want to eat duck meat, you have to be willing to put in the bait.

We are small, with short legs and arms, so we cannot forcefully catch wild ducks.

There are two methods now: one is to shoot from the sky like those orphans, but we can't get bows and arrows, but we can use slingshots instead.

One method is to find a remote place with few people and spread food as bait to set traps, luring wild ducks to take the bait. "

Niu Xiaomin frowned: "How do we set a trap? Wild ducks are not wild rabbits. They can fly, but they can't run on the ground. It might be difficult to set a trap."

When Han Zhaozhao took out her secret weapon from the sack she brought with her, which was a slingshot and a ball of string the size of a fist, her friends were still confused.

"Wait till I'm done, and you'll know it once you see it!"

A few people wandered around Shichahai for nearly an hour and finally found a remote meadow where wild ducks were foraging.

The bushes and weeds in this area were cut by nearby citizens and taken home for firewood, so there was no place to hide people. Therefore, people did not choose this place to catch wild ducks.

Han Zhaozhao fell in love with him at first sight. To be honest, she really didn't like being squeezed together with others.

She squatted on the meadow, took out the ball of thread, tied a knot at the tail end and tied a fish hook to it, inserted corn kernels on the fish hook, pulled the thread end to the shore, threw the silk thread out more than 20 meters, and tied the other end to a shrub.

After pulling out three silk threads with corn kernels hanging on them, Han Zhaozhao scattered a handful of corn kernels on the shore and called on his friends to hide behind a big tree on the river bank.

My friends all understood this operation!

The fisherman was fishing with bait in the water, while Han Zhaozhao was fishing with bait on land for wild ducks!

Xiao Sanzi held the remaining ball of thread tightly in his hand and asked excitedly, "Zhao Zhao, this is nylon thread, where did you get it from?"

This thing is great, thin and tough, as strong as wire, best used as fishing line, inconspicuous, easy to hook wild ducks, and especially useful for fishing.

Han Zhaozhao told them, "I exchanged it with a shoe repairman! Can't you see? This is the nylon thread for leather shoes!"

Xiao Sanzi slapped his head and said, "I thought it looked familiar. My eldest brother's leather shoes were cracked, and the shoemaker used this thread to re-sew them.

I heard that this kind of nylon thread is very expensive, costing 20 cents per meter!"

Han Zhaozhao shook his head: "That's the cost of the shoemaker plus the labor cost. The cost of buying the thread is only five or six cents.

But most people don’t sell it. This kind of thread is hard to get. I paid 10 cents per meter to make this ball of thread.”

Niu Xiaolian touched the end of her braid and said to herself, "I don't know if it will work if I use hemp rope instead of nylon thread."