Reborn in the 60s, I hunt to support my family and even seduce the village beauty.

Chang Kun was overjoyed; the system had given him another reward.

Deep-fried cicadas, what a delicacy!

But at this moment, he couldn't possibly give it to his parents to eat, because he couldn't explain where this stuff came from!

These days, who would be willing to deep-fry this stuff?

Even for those in the city who receive government-subsidized grain rations, each adult only receives two ounces of oil per month.

Let alone frying cicadas, even when cooking vegetables, you can only dip chopsticks into the oil jar, swish the chopsticks in the pot, and that counts as adding oil.

It's truly a case of pouring oil drop by drop!

Not to mention the rural areas.

Rural people don't even have oil jars anymore, and for nearly half a year, they haven't seen a single speck of oil in the porridge they've cooked.

Thinking of this, Chang Kun spoke up:

"Mother, roast some more baby birds in the stove. You and Father can have some too. I'll go catch more tomorrow night."

Liu Meifen smiled and agreed.

Her son must have a trick for catching so many, so she doesn't need to worry about saving food for the children.

Chang Kun slowly walked towards the small house on the east side.

The little house was pitch black, with only the sound of the two younger sisters crunching on cicadas.

Chang Qing, in particular, was grunting as he chewed, like a little pig eating.

"I'm done! I really want another one!"

"I've finished eating too!"

The two younger sisters smacked their lips, savoring the aroma of the cicadas.

They hadn't tasted this kind of delicious food in a very, very long time.

Eating wild vegetable porridge every day has almost dulled my taste buds.

Chang Kun approached the small kang (heated brick bed) and took out two deep-fried cicadas from the temporary space.

"Second sister, third sister, open your mouths, there are still cicadas here."

"Big brother is the best, thank you so much!"

"Ah~"

Chang Qing and Chang Mu opened their mouths, waiting for their older brother to feed them.

Chang Kun stuffed the cicada into their mouths and warned them:

"Eat quickly, and don't talk."

Chang Qing took a bite of the fried cicada, his eyes widening in surprise.

This smells amazing! It's so much better than roasted bird's nest!

"Mmm! Mmm! So delicious, so delicious!" She had long forgotten her older brother's instruction not to speak.

Chang Mu, standing to the side, remained silent. The cicada had already been chewed up, but he was still reluctant to swallow it, savoring its taste.

"Big brother, what is this?"

Chang Qing jumped up on the kang (a heated brick bed) and grabbed Chang Kun's arm.

"Shh! Don't talk, eat and go to sleep. Don't tell anyone!"

"Mmm, big brother, I want more!"

"Me too!" Chang Mu always spoke a step behind her second sister.

"That's all, go to sleep." Chang Kun rubbed his two younger sisters' heads.

They rarely eat oily food, so if they suddenly ate too much oil, their stomachs might not be able to handle it. They were only given one fried cicada each to taste.

Chang Kun then walked towards the large kang (heated brick bed) in the east room.

By the light of a few stars through the window, I saw my three-year-old sister, Changxiu, lying sprawled on the kang (a heated brick bed), drool dripping down her chin.

He just watched Chang Xiu quietly, stroking his little sister's head.

In my past life, next year, my younger sister suffered from malnutrition, became swollen from hunger, and eventually died tragically.

Thinking of this, Chang Kun's heart ached with pain.

At the stove, Liu Meifen rummaged through the cicadas in the firebox and whispered to Chang Dashan:

"My son seems to be doing well today; he even knows how to be affectionate towards his little sister."

"Of course, she's his own sister, how could he not love her?"

Chang Dashan acted as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"My son is so capable, catching so many seasonal birds in just one night's outing."

Liu Meifen made small talk, mostly praising her son.

"Hey, it's only been a day, don't praise it too soon."

Chang Kun used to be really outrageous, and now that his son is grown up, it's not easy for the father to beat him.

Seeing the changes in Chang Kun now, Chang Dashan, though stubborn, is also very pleased.

Chang Kun's sudden change was a bit too much for Liu Meifen and Chang Dashan to adjust to.

"Little Kun, the cicadas are ready, come out and eat."

Liu Meifen called out softly.

Chang Kun shared the cicadas with his parents.

Liu Meifen nodded repeatedly as she ate.

"You know what, the birds are really fragrant this season."

Every day when I'm foraging for wild vegetables, I hear them squeaking and chirping in the trees, but I can't reach them to eat.

After talking for a while, Chang Kun returned to his small kang (heated brick bed) in the west room and lay on the bed thinking about his system.

To get the system rewards, you need to capture prey, and your family also needs meat to supplement their nutrition.

Tomorrow I'll go to the foot of the mountain to see what I can catch to make a special meal for my parents and sister.

Thinking this, I drifted off to sleep.

……

Meanwhile, in Qinjiacun, at Qin Meiru's home.

"Dad, that little bastard dared to hit me! Tomorrow you go and beat him up for me!"

Shi Zhenxiang was filled with resentment and tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

"Look at you, asking for such a high bride price, no wonder they're getting angry!"

How am I supposed to fight back?!

Chang Kun's father was the village militia captain, and the father-in-law of the family his eldest daughter married was the captain of the militia security team in the commune!

You know nothing but spout nonsense.

"What? You really want to report Chang Kun for being a hooligan?"

"Let's not even talk about whether you'll win the lawsuit or not. Even if you do win, how will your daughter get married in the future?"

"That's like playing jump rope between your legs—utter nonsense!"

Qin Jianren rolled over and got up, lit a pipe, took a few puffs, remained silent for a while, and then an idea popped into his head:

"Have Meiru go to the Chang family tomorrow and ask that young man what he really means."

"If the bride price is too much, we can lower it a bit, but we absolutely cannot break off the engagement. If we do, we'll lose all face!"

"Go to sleep! You're always causing me trouble!"

Shi Zhenxiang gritted her teeth, her face full of resentment, and continued to mutter curses under her breath.

……

Chang Kun didn't sleep well all night, and he had countless dreams in his hazy state.

Just around three or four in the morning, Chang Kun suddenly woke up.

He reached out and touched it; beneath him was the hard, stiff kang mat.

He breathed a sigh of relief, fearing that everything yesterday was just a dream.

He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, got up, and went to the main room.

Hearing the noise, Liu Meifen peeked out from the east room.

"Xiao Kun, what are you doing up so early?"

"Mother, I can't sleep. I'll get up and go check down at the foot of the North Mountain," Chang Kun replied softly.

"Why are you running around the root of your nose instead of sleeping... You've eaten too much..."

Liu Meifen mumbled a few words and lay back down.

Chang Kun arrived at the courtyard, went to the small shed where the family stored miscellaneous items, rummaged around for a while, and dragged out a burlap sack.

He planned to try his luck at Beishangen and see if he could catch some rabbits or something.

We followed the dirt road out of the village. Most of the villagers were asleep, and we didn't see anyone else.

After leaving the village and walking north for three or four miles, it took more than twenty minutes to reach the foot of the mountain.

Several plots of wasteland have been reclaimed at the foot of the mountain, where some corn and sorghum have been planted.

The seeds had already sprouted, the thin seedlings standing in the cracked earth, looking like they were destined to die young.

Chang Wei recalled that in June, when the brigade had just planted crops, some people were so hungry that they secretly dug out seeds from the fields to eat.

As the village's militia captain, my father also organized a period of agricultural protection activities.

We haven't reached the most difficult time yet. If it comes to 60 years, all these seedlings will be pulled up and eaten!

Rural people are truly miserable! No matter the time!

Even in later generations, in cities, "you country bumpkin" was still used as a swear word to insult people!

Just outrageous!

Some of those weedy types are really quick to curse as soon as they put down their chopsticks!