Nut Butter

Giant wolves can climb trees, but they are not good at it, and climbing trees in their beast form is not good for their bodies.

Jian Mo insisted, "Let's collect them together down there later."

Wu Jiong could only feign composure. "Hmm."

Mo A swayed on it for a while and said, "Most of the ripe 'grinning' fruits have already fallen off. The remaining 'grinning' fruits need to grow a little longer before they can be shaken down."

Ji Xun tilted his head back and said loudly, "Okay, then come down and we'll sweep up the grinning fruit together. Be careful."

Mo A: "Wait for me."

With an agility completely disproportionate to its size, the giant panda climbed from the treetop to the trunk and then slid down the trunk at lightning speed.

He skated so fast that when he hit the ground, his round belly swayed like ripples on water.

Jian Mo felt her hands were itching to get started.

Of course, it's impolite to pet an adult beastman, so Jian Mo can only hope that Ji Xun's cub will be a giant panda so he can pet it a few times.

Jian Mo restrained herself and looked away.

Wu Jiong brought over a machete and chopped down a few bushes. Everyone used the bush canopies as brooms to sweep the juicy fruit under the trees into several piles.

After sweeping, everyone picked out the juicy fruits and put them into their baskets.

As a wild fruit, the "Grinding Fruit" doesn't grow as well as cultivated ones. Some are bitten by insects, some are picked by birds, and some are overripe and spoiled.

They can sort through the scavenging first, and then sort through it again when they carry it back.

Spoiled berries taste bitter and are not only unpalatable but also harmful to health; they must be picked out and thrown away.

Jian Mo's hands moved quickly. "This is the first time I've harvested so many Grinning Fruits in one go."

Ji Xun: "There are two more on the next mountain. They grow on the shady side and ripen later. If you have time in a few days, you can come over and pick them together."

Jian Mo: "Like today?"

Ji Xun smiled and said, "Of course, it's so much more convenient like today!"

Jian Mo nodded in agreement. "Indeed."

After thinking for a moment, Jian Mo added, "When I get back, we'll make a big cloth sheet. When we're shaking nuts, we can just spread it on the ground, and then we won't even need to sweep the nuts up. We can just scoop the cloth up and dump them into the basket."

Ji Xun with interest, "Then how do we do it?"

Jian Mo: "It's just making a round piece of fabric, and then we'll arrange it in a circle around the tree—"

Ji Xun: "How big of a piece of fabric would that be?"

Jian Mo: "It doesn't matter if it's a little big, it can be reused many times, so there's no waste. Besides, if we don't need it anymore, we can take the pieces off and make other things from them."

Jian Mo and her family had plenty of fabric stored up at home, so they weren't worried about wasting any money making such pieces.

Ji Xun felt a little sorry for him, but he was persuaded by his words.

They do often come into the mountains to pick fruit. If they had a piece of cloth like this, they could just lay it on the ground and shake it, and they could pick all the fruit from a tree in no time, which would be much easier than picking it up slowly now.

Sweeping up and sorting the fruit bit by bit like this is really tiring and has made his back hurt.

Ji Xun exclaimed, "Your mind is really sharp; you always come up with such brilliant ideas!"

Jian Mo: "It's not entirely my idea. People in my area use similar methods to pick flowers and fruits; it's based on the experience of our ancestors."

Chapter 167 Nut Butter

Jian Mo and her team quickly loaded the grinning fruit into their baskets.

The two orcs transformed back into their animal forms and carried their partners down the mountain.

The forests on both sides gradually changed from lush green to a riot of colors, Jian Mo felt extremely refreshed as she faced the wind.

Reaching a large river, Ji Xun shouted, "Let's wash the 'Grind Fruit' here before we go back!"

Jian Mo had no objection. "Okay, but do the 'greasy fruit' need to be washed?"

Ji Xun: "It's best to wash it first, then choose it again."

Ji Xun experienced, so everyone stopped, carried the grinning fruit to the riverbank, and poured the grinning fruit into the clear blue river formed by melting snow and ice.

The fruit with a gap has some weight; a good, intact fruit will sink directly to the bottom, while a fruit with a gap that has been infested by insects will float.

They stirred the river water, letting the worm-eaten fruit float downstream naturally, and then washed the intact fruit.

While washing the fruit, several people used small knives to poke holes in the smooth outer shell.

Ji Xun explained to Jian Mo and Wu Jiong, "By poking a hole like this, it will be much easier to peel the shells after we fry them, and the inner skin can be peeled off quickly too."

Jian Mo: "So there's such a technique."

Ji Xun: "Yes, otherwise it will be difficult to peel later, and the fruit will taste a bit bitter if the peel is not completely removed."

After they finished processing the grinning fruit, they continued their journey, heading towards Ji Xun and Mo A's home.

Ji Xun invited Jian Mo and Wu Jiong to stay for dinner. "I'll be making a really delicious nut butter; you should stay and try it."

Jian Mo became interested. "How delicious is it?"

Ji Xun: "It's sweet and smooth, you'll know once you taste it. I made this nut butter especially for daily consumption because I often felt hungry after becoming pregnant."

Jian Mo: "Then come on, come on."

Ji Xun: "We need to fry the 'grip-mouth fruit' first."

Mo A spoke up from the side, "I'll do it."

Mo A took a large earthenware pot and fried the "greasy fruit" outside the house.

The fire below was raging, and the grinning fruit was crackling and popping.

Mo A's strong arms moved quickly; his skills were excellent. Despite the large fire, there was not a trace of burnt smell, only an increasingly strong nutty aroma.

Jian Mo watched from the side and finally understood why the fruit had to be washed first. If it wasn't washed first and moistened, it would easily burn as soon as it was put into the pot.

Mo A was stir-frying the juicy fruit when Wu Jiong went over to switch hands with him.

Ji Xun then led Jian Mo to the back of the house and brought out the stone mill. "To make nut butter, we need to grind the nuts first. Let's clean the stone mill first."