Chapter 115: In the Autumn Hunt

The part of the Taiswei Mountains located within Nohan was not particularly tall. As its endpoint in the Western Continent, the average altitude of the branches here was less than 700 meters, but getting close to it still gave people a significant impact. Everyone turned their eyes away from the towering mountains because the destination of this Autumn Hunt was not there, but rather in an area that could only be considered hilly. However, those 700-meter mountains were also a natural barrier protecting the eastern part of the Duchy.

Don’t think that low hills cannot be an aid in defending the country. A mountainous area that a single person could cross in ten days or so would be a nightmare for an army preparing to attack another country. With appropriate garrisons and a decent intelligence and patrol system, it could become an iron wall that no organization would want to collide with.

Although compared to its main body, the continuous mountain range covered in snow and clouds all year round, the part within Nohan was like a squirrel at the feet of an adult. Even so, it split the Uriel Grassland, which could have connected the Duchy of Nohan and the Kingdom of Lucia, into two. It was only after entering the territory of the Kingdom of Lucia that peaks over 4,000 meters would appear on its main range stretching for thousands of miles.

They set out at seven or eight o’clock in the morning, and now the sun was already high in the sky. Although they were riding horses, they had been stopping and starting along the way, and having to accommodate the speed of those court nobles, they had only traveled about 10 miles away from Karada.

Such a large group of nobles traveling would not eat dry rations on horseback like George and his group did back then. Once they stopped, the stewards naturally arranged for servants to set up pots and cook. The nobles with real power naturally had their own groups, while some court nobles chose to team up because of their smaller numbers.

However, there were some outliers among these people, like the one in front of George, Chrispian Burnham Capri, and Ben Andrews Markin, who was running back from the front. These were two of George’s good friends in Karada; the others, although also participating in the Autumn Hunt, stayed in their family camps.

As for why the two of them left their family camps to come here, it could be said that food was the culprit. Facing these two foodies who delivered themselves to his door, George really didn’t know whether to chase them away or scold them.

“George, how long until we eat here?” Before the person arrived, Ben Andrews Markin’s voice had already reached George’s ears.

This made not only George but also Chrispian Burnham Capri beside him look embarrassed. After all, this was not a reason suitable to say out loud. Chrispian had used the excuse of bonding with friends to get away from his family, but Ben’s sentence was very likely to expose his lie. Similarly, birds of a feather flock together, and George didn’t want to be categorized as a foodie in the eyes of many nobles. But in fact, he was already a famous gourmet in the Duchy of Nohan, only no one had told him.

“Whoa—” After dismounting, Ben ran up to George in a flash and asked directly: “What are we eating today!”

In response, George could do nothing but hold his forehead and remain silent.

The aroma wafting over attracted the attention of the two, making them turn around, and also allowing George to escape temporarily. He pretended to whisper to Craig beside him: “Don’t be like these two when you grow up; it’s really embarrassing for the family.”

The two immediately turned their heads and said in unison: “I heard that.”

George’s group’s lunch today was mutton noodle soup. If not for transmigration, George would never have thought that noodles, arguably the oldest pasta food, had not appeared in the country he was in.

Missing it too much, George had to rely on himself to get enough food. After many experiments, turning quite a bit of expensive fine flour into various failed products like unleavened flatbread or dough drop soup, he finally successfully made the first ramen in Nohan.

Later, to reduce production costs, a series of tools such as rotary winnowing fans for winnowing chaff from grain and noodle stretching racks for mass-producing noodles were crafted by artisans under George’s request. However, although these tools played a certain role, they ultimately did not lower the price of noodles to a level acceptable to ordinary people.

Thus, George’s Great Chinese Noodle Promotion Project failed, and Bolerum Territory gained another luxury item for sale. However, the production site was placed in the House Bolerum’s manor outside Karada City. Whether due to the process or other aspects, the noodles made under George’s guidance had a shelf life far shorter than before his transmigration, so they had to be sold near the market.

In fact, George didn’t know that even in the medieval period before his transmigration, noodles were a noble food. The famous spaghetti of later generations was an absolute luxury. Because flour processing technology was crude, processing flour was a laborious task. Coupled with the effort spent on further processing noodles, noodles were not something ordinary people could eat, but something enjoyed by royalty and nobles. Even in Shanxi Province in the Eastern Tianchao, before liberation, there was a saying that “eating buns is for lower-class people, upper-class people eat noodles.” So George wanting to promote noodles under existing conditions was completely contradictory to productivity.

The thick soup part of the mutton noodle soup eaten by the Bolerum camp today was also a product George failed to develop in terms of diet. Originally, George wanted to research something similar to instant soup packets. The result was that the finished products that could guarantee flavor were all too thick, and later he had to turn them into a thick soup series. These two conditions combined were the reason why the group could eat mutton noodle soup in the wild today.

The sound of “slurp, slurp” soon rang out in the House Bolerum team. After finishing lunch, the two beasts who came to mooch food didn’t stay long before returning to their own teams. The actions of these two further confirmed their reputation as gluttonous foodies in the eyes of everyone at the Autumn Hunt. Ben didn’t seem to care at all, but Chrispian might have to undergo a stormy baptism from his elders.

Lunch time took about two hours in total. A large part of that was the post-meal digestion time to ensure the food settled safely in their stomachs. It was said that this was also to take care of the ladies and certain court nobles who were not good with horses, to prevent them from vomiting on the way.

Mounting their horses and setting off, as the group traveled further, the surrounding signs of human habitation became sparser and the land appeared desolate. But on this vast grassland, groups of three or five sheep appeared, along with shepherds on horseback herding the sheep with sheepdogs.

The afternoon journey seemed much faster than the morning, perhaps to arrive at the destination before nightfall. However, some of the court nobles at the tail end of the group seemed to be showing signs of discomfort, especially the women and some overweight individuals. But in order not to miss this annual social event, those people had to endure even if they felt uncomfortable. Since they had come this far, it was impossible to give up halfway; otherwise, not only would all previous preparations and efforts be in vain, but they would also become a laughingstock.

As the distance gradually shortened and the sun continued to shift west, the green of the mountains gradually turned golden, then to crimson. Looking from afar, it was as if fiery red leaves were shimmering in the autumn light, bright as clouds.

Inside a row of wooden fences on the plain area below the mountains were several small wooden huts. If one were to call it a village, the number of houses was too few to even qualify as a natural village, so it could only be called a settlement.

These houses were the residences of the rangers in the Duchy. The so-called rangers were hunters under the nobles. Their job was to look after the nobles’ forest farms to prevent poaching, and also to pay tribute to their lords with captured game.

In this world, woodlands were also private property of noble families, and commoners were not allowed to enter for hunting before paying a certain fee. The punishment for poaching varied in severity, but it was definitely far higher than the gains obtained from hunting.

But in reality, for a large hunting ground like the Taiswei Mountains, only a specific area was designated as a forbidden hunting zone for ordinary people; hunting was still allowed in other places. After all, the area here was too large, and the Lord couldn’t arrange that many people to manage it. But if one did such a thing in a small forest in an ordinary territory, they should just wait to be hunted down.

At this time, George noticed some dark shadows moving on the grassland to the northwest. He focused his gaze and looked carefully. He saw the high horizon, flat and boundless. In the midst of it, a shepherdess wearing an old felt shawl and a square scarf was alone with her flock of sheep.

This shepherdess, with a dark brown embroidered felt hat on her head and a heavy felt cloak on her body, had her back to the sheep and the rosy clouds, knitting a woolen sweater in her hands. Her slightly bowed figure and focused expression were as pious as a prayer. A loyal sheepdog turned its head to watch the surroundings beside the flock, protecting its master and her property.

That shepherdess should be a member of the ranger family here. And the flock of sheep she was herding would likely become a meal for the nobles during the Autumn Hunt within these few days. In a sense, this was also a benefit for the rangers; once they raised sheep, they didn’t have to worry about not being able to sell them. Similarly, the nobles during the Autumn Hunt were relatively generous; for the sake of face, they wouldn’t deliberately find reasons to lower the price like unscrupulous merchants.

Just before dinner, the hunting team entered this settlement of rangers at the foot of the Taiswei Mountains. If they went further in, they might be harassed by animals from the Taiswei Mountains at night. Although with the strength of the group, there would basically be no danger, disturbed sleep would be unavoidable.

They would rest here for a night, and the three-day Autumn Hunt itinerary would officially begin the next day. From then on, it would be the time for the young men from various families to show off in front of everyone.

Because of the blockage of the Taiswei Mountains, the cold air from the north could not pour into the place where everyone set up camp. Although they were on the open grassland, there was no strong cold wind. Not far from this settlement, there was a stream with clear water visible to the bottom, which used to be an important watering place for beasts in the mountains and on the grassland.

But now it was firmly controlled by humans. In previous years’ Autumn Hunts, this valley was the station for the hunting teams. The nobles went out hunting during the day, cooked prey by the stream at night, drank and made merry, holding banquets; it was truly joyous.

As the first night of the Autumn Hunt, according to custom, today’s banquet was hosted by His Grace the Duke. Just as George thought, the shepherdess’s flock was missing at least 10 heads before the banquet started. In addition to roast whole lamb with suckling pig stuffed inside, there were various kinds of mutton dishes. George quite liked one of the dishes: minced lamb grilled and then mixed with rosemary and celery leaves.

Various kinds of poultry were placed on the dining table, including swans, peacocks, quails, partridges, storks, red-crowned cranes, larks, and others George could and couldn’t recognize. These birds were all skinned, ground, mixed with spices and ingredients, and the minced meat was put back into the original bird skin and wrapped up, making them look lifelike. To be honest, placing these birds at the banquet might not necessarily be for eating their meat, but perhaps just to see their beautiful appearance and use them as side dishes. This was really hard to fit George’s dietary taste; after all, George was not from Guangdong before his transmigration.

Salt and pepper shakers placed on the long table were contained in silver bottles, but generally, it was the attendants’ responsibility to add them for the guests.

Various fruits with cores removed, steamed with strong liquor and sugar, and of course, some were stuffed with light-flavored cheese. In George’s view, these cooked fruits, with a few exceptions, could also be considered to have a unique flavor.

As for vegetables, apart from the side dishes next to the meat, they were only found in specially made pies.

The drinks were mostly various wines and fruit juices. At the banquet, the distilled liquor produced in the Bolerum Territory was the most popular, but those court nobles and ladies who were not strong enough didn’t dare to drink much. They probably didn’t want to miss the excitement of the Autumn Hunt due to a hangover the next day.

The entire banquet lasted until late at night before ending. After the nobles returned to their respective tents to rest, a mess was left for the servants to clean up.

Early the next morning, the young men prepared for the hunt. After being inspected and encouraged by His Grace the Duke, they rode away in twos and threes.

“George, do you have any plans for today?” Hiren, riding behind him, wanted to know what arrangements he had.

George said without looking back: “After gathering our people, we will go directly to the woods at the foot of the mountain or go up the mountain to take a look. Without falcons, we probably can’t compete with others in fox or rabbit hunting. So let’s go into the woods and see if we can hunt wild boars or small deer.”

Nobles still had to follow many principles when hunting. For example, chasing and killing injured animals or hiding in watering areas waiting to shoot prey were considered dishonorable acts; and shooting those slow-reacting animals was considered bullying the weak.

Among the many items like rabbit hunting and deer hunting, fox hunting became the most attractive project due to its high challenge. Because foxes were cunning and alert, not easy to catch, usually requiring the cooperation of hounds and falcons, and long chases to capture, this greatly stimulated people’s desire to win, and could also reflect the wit, patience, and strong physical strength of the fox hunter.

Of course, being able to capture fierce beasts like bears or tigers was also something worth boasting about. However, this was somewhat unfair to those court nobles with average strength. In addition, several times when such fierce prey was captured, civilian hunters assisting were injured, making this situation set to a different standard and not counted in normal judging.

To be honest, hunting was also about luck; even the most experienced hunters couldn’t guarantee capturing prey every day. Of course, if the animals were raised by oneself, that was another story.

Speaking of every Autumn Hunt, George would remember a joke. A certain Kang Mazzi once said in the “Collected Statutes of the Qing Dynasty”: “From childhood to old age, I shot dead 135 tigers, 20 bears, 25 leopards, 10 lynxes, 14 elk, 132 wolves, and hundreds of deer lured by whistling with a bow and arrow. The rest of the beasts shot are countless. I once shot 318 rabbits in one day.”

This passage was Kang Mazzi talking about his own hunting, killing 318 rabbits in one day. Calculating it, even if one hunted for ten hours a day, one would have to kill a rabbit every two minutes on average, faster than swatting flies. I don’t know if Kang Mazzi had a vendetta against rabbits; was he using red cannons to bomb rabbit dens? This speed is really not something we people can understand.

According to the common practice of that time, hunters used hounds to drive the prey in front of Kang Mazzi, and then Kang Mazzi, sitting steadily on horseback, enjoyed the thrill of the moment of killing the prey. Answering from a political angle, Kang Mazzi displayed his power, and hunting also deepened the cooperative relationship between the monarch and his subjects. It was a good method to deepen ruling status, but that boastful number was truly inexplicable!

After a few “Woof! Woof! Woof!” barks, several hounds disappeared into the bushes. A hunter from the Bolerum Territory who followed closely behind also vanished.

Standing in the woods, feeling the bleakness in the autumn wind. The green in the forest had faded a lot. The leaves of various broad-leaved plants had already put on a layer of yellow, while the maple trees were dyed a striking bright red. Only the evergreen pines and cypresses remained so lush green, unaffected by the season. The low shrubs presented another scene; although they had similarities with the tall trees, what was surprising was that many wild flowers were fluttering in the biting autumn wind. The mottled colors were like a visual feast; the beauty of nature was truly heart-pounding.

Unfortunately, the minds of the few were mostly not on that. They rode their horses and moved cautiously between the trees. Observing the surroundings while waiting for the hunters in front to send back useful news.