Shen Jiumei has a lot of experience in finding water sources. Following the sound of the water, she quickly took Shen Qiubao to a crystal clear mountain stream.

"Fish! Ninth sister, look, there are fish! Chopsticks fish!" Qiu Bao pointed to the stream and shouted happily.

Shen Jiumei dragged the person away: "Now is not the time to catch fish and play." "If it weren't for a miracle, they would have been sleeping in the mountains tonight. In the unfamiliar mountains, I don't know how many dangers are hidden. And at night, wild things come out of the hole together, and the danger is even worse. Therefore, the priority is not to catch a fish to fill your stomach or to travel, but to find a safe place to prepare for the night.

Experience has taught her that you can't stay overnight near a water source: God knows how many wild animals will come out of the dense forest on all sides at night.

"Ninth sister, I heard Brother Dashu say that the river water with chopsticks and fish can be drunk directly, is it true?" Shen Qiubao explained. Their old clay pots, as well as the fire folds, were left at my aunt's house and not brought, so now, they can't boil water.

It turned out that he was thirsty...... Shen Jiumei deliberately teased him: "Without old clay pots and fire folds, they can also boil water." ”

You still have to boil it before you can drink it! Shen Qiubao was a little wilted.

"Big Tree is right. Shen Jiumei said slowly, "It's okay to take a few sips." ”

"Great. Shen Qiubao cheered, broke free of her hand, ran to the stream, squatted down, held the water, grunted, and took a big sip, "It's so sweet!"

Then, he wiped his face with his sleeve, trotted back, looked up and smiled: "I'm done, let's go!"

"Just take a sip?" Shen Jiumei asked him deliberately.

"Hmm. Still have to hurry. If you drink too much water, you won't be able to walk. Shen Qiubao was truthful.

"Qiu Bao is so smart!" Shen Jiumei took his hand with satisfaction and continued to hurry. Isn't it really smart that you can memorize the truth once and strictly enforce it?

Shen Qiubao was praised, there was nothing on his face, but he walked more energetically.

Night in the mountains fell early. Shen Jiumei walked while looking for a place to stay overnight. Finally, after more than half an hour, she found a place she wanted—a steep leeward slope. There is a ridge at the bottom of the slope that separates the wild animals. On top of that, with a boulder abrupt to protect them, they have a sheltered place tonight.

"Let's go, we'll go now. "I saw the sun go west. There was not much time left for her to prepare.

The location of the steep slope is relatively high. The two of them walked for nearly a quarter of an hour before they climbed under the blue-gray boulder.

"What a good place to stay!" Shen Jiumei was even more satisfied when she got closer. She deliberately asked, "Qiu Bao, do you think this place is good?"

Shen Qiubao knew that the eldest sister was taking the school examination herself. On the way to the town, the eldest sister taught him how to choose a campsite.

He looked around seriously and nodded, "Very good." The boulder is very stable, and we hide under the boulder, so that even if it rains at night, we will not get drenched. ”

After determining the place to stay, he knew what to do next, so he took the initiative to ask: "Ninth sister, I will help you pull weeds and clean up gravel." "Gravel is useless, just throw it away, but the uprooted grass is very useful - it is soft and comfortable when it is made as a bed.

"Okay. Shen Jiumei smiled and pointed to the edge of the clearing, "The gravel is thrown here, and the grass is piled aside." I went down the slope to get some firewood. ”

"Hey. Shen Qiubao was full of answers, busy and curious: Without a fire fold, the ninth sister can also light firewood?

Next, what the eldest sister did opened his eyes and made him admire it so much.

Soon, Shen Jiumei came back with a large bundle of firewood on her back with rattan. After putting down the firewood, she left again.

When Shen Qiubao was almost done, she came back. This time, she brought back some hay and a large package made of large sheets of fresh banana leaves.

"Ninth Sister, what's in the banana leaves?" asked Shen Qiubao by stretching his neck.

"Luckily, I picked up some mushrooms. Shen Jiumei smiled, "Tonight, we have mushroom soup to drink." ”

Shen Qiubao's curiosity was instantly full - there was no fire and no pot, how could the ninth sister make mushroom soup?

Shen Jiumei saw that the open space she had drawn out was cleared very flat, and praised Shen Qiubao again.

Then she chose a dry place on the ground and put the dry grass she had brought back into fluffy nests and placed them on the ground.

Then, she walked over to the pile of rubble that Qiu Bao had cleared, rummaged through them, and selected two brownish-yellow gravel stones.

What is this going to do? Shen Qiubao didn't see anything special about these two stones, and was about to ask. At this time, Shen Jiumei had already returned to the dead grass.

She crouched down, took a piece of gravel in one hand, and "clattered" against each other on the dead grass.

Shen Qiubao could see it clearly, the two pieces of gravel actually knocked out a lot of sparks!

As the impact continued, more and more sparks fell on the dead grass. After a while, at last, he heard a "bang", a thin smoke rose, and a small orange flame burst out of the dead grass!

It turns out that you can still make a fire like this! His eyes widened and he was stunned: "Ninth sister......

"What are you still doing? Pick up a few small smooth stones, which are about the same as eggs. Shen Jiumei spoke, while putting thin dry branches on the withered grass nest.

The fire was rising. The fire has been successfully burned!

"Okay!" Shen Qiubao didn't know what she wanted Xiao Shizi to do. However, he firmly believes that it will definitely be useful. With a strong sense of curiosity, he carefully selected five stones with smooth surfaces and the size of eggs.

"Is there anything else?" Shen Jiumei directly threw them into the fire one by one, "Pick a few more." ”

It's a lot of fun. Shen Qiubao hurriedly picked up the pebbles and threw them into the fire one by one.

After adding a few thick branches, Shen Jiumei stopped: "Okay, the pebbles are enough." He drew a circle on the ground about the size of an old clay pot and commanded, "Dig a pit here." Dig a little deeper. I went to wash mushrooms and fetch water. Remember, watch the fire and don't let it go out. ”

"Remembered. ”

Planing pits or something, Shen Qiubao usually doesn't play less. He picked up a sharp gravel with great experience and dug carefully into the yellow mud in the circle.

Shen Jiumei wrapped up those mountain mushrooms and hurriedly went downhill again.

This time, she was away for a little longer. The reason is that she took some time to catch the fish! It was a chopstick fish that was more than three inches long, the most common fish in the mountains, thin and long, with a blue-black body, and it was better than the taste of fresh meat and thick meat, and it was very delicious to eat it in soup or without frying.

Shen Jiumei had already opened its belly and removed its gills, and wrapped it in banana leaves with the cleaned mountain mushrooms.

Seeing the round pit on the ground, she was very satisfied: "We can start cooking mushroom fish soup." ”

Shen Qiubao thought he had heard it wrong: "Cooking soup in the dirt pit and drinking?"

"Look!" Shen Jiumei smiled mysteriously, showing him the big "leaf bowl" in his hand - large pieces of banana leaves are stacked and rolled into a bowl, and the effect is really good when used to hold water, almost no leakage.

Shen Qiubao was greatly inspired, and without her instructions, he picked up some banana leaves and pasted them densely in the round pit.

"Clever!" Shen Jiumei put the "leaf bowl" directly into the round pit, and said with a happy smile: "The soup jar is ready." ”

"But how can we boil the water?" Shen Qiubao couldn't help but ask.

"Who said that water must be hot to boil?" Shen Jiumei pointed to the small pebbles in the fire and announced the answer, "You can boil water with the same hot pebbles." ”

"Really?" Shen Qiubao looked incredulous.

Shen Jiumei smiled, first put all the mushrooms and fish into the "soup can" on the ground, and then used a long branch to dial in the small stones in the fire one by one.

"Zila——, zila-", the heat kept rising. After a while, Shen Qiubao smelled the fragrance of fish soup.

"Really!" he slapped his face in pleasure.

"As long as there are enough pebbles, the soup can be boiled. The only bad thing is that the hot stones are likely to explode when they touch the cold water. Shen Jiumei explained, "That's why I asked you to dig the pit deeper." ”

As if to prove her words, the soup exploded with a "bang", splashing a few drops of water.

"Be careful!" Shen Jiumei's eyes were quick, and she pulled Qiu Bao away, "The water is already very hot." Stay away. ”

Shen Qiubao stuck out his tongue: "Ninth sister, you are so powerful!" Previously, the eldest sister was able to take him to the town, he already felt that the ninth sister was powerful and admired it very much, but now, this feeling is even worse. Grandma often said that a girl is useless. But these days, he feels from the bottom of his heart that his grandmother is wrong. At least, the ninth sister is so powerful.

After a pause, he praised sincerely: "Ninth sister, it seems that nothing can stump you!"

"That's what my dad taught me before. Shen Jiumei lowered her eyes and hid the gloom in her eyes, "Dad knows much more than me, that's the real power." It's a pity that she can no longer learn the skills of entering the mountains from her father.

When Shen Qiubao heard this, his eyes turned red, and he choked up: "Ninth sister, I miss my father too, I think about it so much...... I still miss my mother, I miss my grandmother......"

"Good Qiubao, don't cry!" Shen Jiumei put down the long branch in her hand, held down her grief, gently hugged him, and said in a dumb voice, "Dad often says that we mountain people suffer hardships and are willing to work hard, and nothing in the world can stump us mountain people." If I see you so well-behaved and capable, my father will definitely be very happy, and will praise you for being the most capable mountain baby. "She misses her grandmother and her father so much, but she is the eldest sister and has to take care of her younger brother, so she can't cry.

"Ninth sister, I'm not afraid of hardship!" Shen Qiubao wiped away his tears and straightened his small chest, "I must work hard to learn martial arts, and avenge my grandmother and father when I grow up!"

"Okay, let's work together!" Shen Jiumei sniffled vigorously and smiled happily.

As the heat rose, the water gurgled and gurged. The smell of fish is even worse.

"Drink mushroom and fish soup!"

"Ah, it smells so good!"

Night fell, and the half-moon crept up. On the hillside, there was a burst of laughter.