The sky collapsed, and in the blink of an eye, I found myself transported to Nanluoguxiang.

But as he ate, the only sound at the cave entrance was the sound of him chewing.

Li Kaixin felt the atmosphere was unusually quiet. When she looked up, she realized that the four of them had already finished eating and were sitting quietly.

Considering the current state of affairs, he immediately realized that Li Yong and his three companions had probably only brought a small amount of food, which was far from enough to satisfy their hunger.

Thinking of this, Li Kaixin took out five more cakes from his bag, stood up, and stuffed them into Li Yong's hand, speaking casually:

"Brother Yong, you can share this with Brother Shun and the others. I brought too much today, so you guys can help me carry some so I don't have to carry it all back."

Upon hearing this, the three people beside him looked over, their faces showing a hint of reluctance.

Seeing this, Li Kaixin smiled and pointed to the sika deer next to him:

"Don't be so quick to refuse. You'll have to carry this deer later. If you're not full and can't carry it halfway, I won't lend a hand."

After he said that, the group looked at each other and stopped being coy.

After Li Yong distributed the pancakes to the three of them.

The four of them thanked Li Kaixin together, then lowered their heads and silently resumed eating.

When the three people other than Li Yong took their first bite of the pancake, they immediately realized that the taste was wrong.

It doesn't have that scratchy feeling that cornbread usually has; instead, it has a faint sweet aroma.

"This is so delicious!" Li Shun exclaimed as he chewed.

Li Wei and Li Tieniu nodded in agreement, eating exceptionally slowly, as if afraid of finishing their food too quickly.

Seeing the three of them, Li Yong chuckled and said, "How could it not taste good? It's all made with fine grains."

He ate one this morning, and from the texture, he knew it must be top-quality fine noodles; coarse grains don't have this kind of delicate texture.

The three of them then showed expressions of sudden realization.

Li Shun smacked his lips:

"No wonder it smells so good. I haven't eaten refined grains for more than half a year, and I've almost forgotten what they taste like. I wish it were like last year."

As he spoke, a hint of nostalgia appeared on his face.

Li Yong knew that Li Shun was thinking about the time when the communal dining system first started last year, so he raised his hand and gently patted the back of his head.

Li Shun was startled when he was slapped, and turned around with some displeasure: "Brother Yong, why did you hit me?"

"I'm waking you up, stop dreaming." Li Yong's tone was clear-headed.

Li Kaixin knew from her memory what they were talking about.

When the communal dining system was first introduced last year, the village's food was indeed better for a while, with white flour steamed buns for every meal, and meat dishes available from time to time.

He had also been there a few times in the village and had eaten there a few times.

In those days, even the food provided to workers in the city was not as good as it could be. Unfortunately, it didn't last more than six months.

These days, being able to eat dry food every day and not go hungry is considered good.

As soon as Li Yong finished speaking, the group of five fell silent, with only the sound of chewing food remaining.

After everyone finished eating and rested for a while, the five-person team picked up their prey again and continued their journey deeper into the mountains and forests.

Two more hours passed, and Li Kaixin, relying on his experience, found three pheasants, four rabbits, and a goat weighing about fifty pounds.

Li Wei finally got his first kill this time, and he even caught the biggest prey.

However, this was something Li Kaixin intentionally gave to him.

After shooting down two more pheasants, he noticed that Li Wei seemed a bit down. Considering that he hadn't caught anything yet, he understood what was going on.

So when he encountered that goat, he directly signaled to Li Wei to fight it.

Sure enough, after Li Wei knocked down the goat, his previous low spirits vanished instantly, and his face was replaced by an undisguised smile.

But this also meant that their load increased.

Li Kaixin raised her wrist to look at her watch; it was already one o'clock in the afternoon.

He turned around and saw that the four of them were having some difficulty walking, so he decided not to explore any further.

So he suggested, "How about we find a place to rest before heading down the mountain?"

Li Yong and the other three nodded in agreement.

Although they were still somewhat unsatisfied, they knew that after walking for most of the day and carrying the prey, their bodies were already at their limit.

Li Kaixin then led them to a place with a relatively open view to rest.

As soon as they put down their prey, Li Yong and his three companions collapsed to the ground, exhausted.

"That feels so good. If I had kept going, I'm afraid I would have fallen apart." Li Shun let out a long breath and closed his eyes.

Seeing Li Shun's expression, Li Yong smiled and replied, "Then you can put the game down when you go down the mountain, and I'll carry it all by myself. I guarantee you won't get tired."

"Really? You still have that strength?" Li Shun opened his eyes and turned his head.

"It must be true!"

Li Yong raised an eyebrow and drawled, "But... when it comes time to divide the spoils, you won't get a share."

Upon hearing this, Li Shun sat up abruptly: "Well, so you've got a change of heart! Turns out you just wanted a piece of my meat!"

Without thinking twice, he pressed down on Li Yong, who was still lying on the ground.

"Ouch! Ouch! Shunzi, are you serious?!" Li Yong cried out immediately.

Watching the two playfully bickering, Li Kaixin couldn't help but laugh. He turned to Li Wei and Li Tieniu beside him and asked:

"Brother Wei, Brother Da Niu, have they always been like this?"

The two nodded first, then shook their heads.

"You're nodding and shaking your heads, is it true or not?" Li Kaixin was completely confused by the two of them.

Li Wei smiled wryly and said in a low voice, "They used to joke like that all the time, but things have changed this year, and it's rare to see them joking like that anymore."

Upon hearing this, Li Kaixin's smile slowly faded, and she was momentarily at a loss for words.

He knew in his heart that, judging from the past three years, life must be difficult for someone like Li Yong who had a family and two children.

However, that's when you don't have yourself.

With his grandfather's support and the village's connections, Li Kaixin wouldn't stand idly by and watch the village do nothing for the next two years.

After Li Yong and the other three had rested enough, Li Kaixin, wanting to get down the mountain as soon as possible, picked up the heaviest sika deer and turned to say:

"You guys carry the rest, I'll do this."

After saying that, he led the way down the mountain.

Seeing this, Li Yong and his companions quickly picked up the remaining prey and followed.

With the sika deer gone, the heaviest burden, the four of them walked much more nimbly and quickly caught up with Li Kaixin's pace.

At this moment, Li Shun, who was following behind him, spoke up curiously:

"Kaixin, now that you've come down the mountain, are you going to come back up again?"

"Go ahead, what's wrong?" Li Kaixin replied.

Upon hearing this affirmative answer, Li Shun immediately followed up, "Then next time, could you take a few of us with you?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Yong and the other two looked at Li Kaixin with anticipation in their eyes.

They understood that Li Kaixin was truly skilled at hunting.

After a moment's thought, Li Kaixin nodded: "Okay, as long as I come back, we'll go together."

Seeing that Li Kaixin agreed, Li Yong and the other three were immediately overjoyed, and the atmosphere instantly became lively.

As they walked down the mountain, the group chatted with Li Kaixin, one after another.