Xia Qing, having returned to her territory with two yellow bamboo rats and over 200 jin (approximately 100 kg) of bamboo shoots from her recent trip into the mountains, was warmly welcomed by the sheep leader.
Judging by the sheep leader's gait, Xia Qing was certain that if it weren't for its heavy tail, it would wag like a gust of wind. She placed her heavy backpack on the sheep leader's back for it to carry home, then generously gave it a small, tender yellow bamboo shoot. "Eat up," she said. "From now on, follow me and work hard. I won't treat you badly."
With such a treat, the sheep leader paid no attention to Xia Qing, focusing intently on munching on the bamboo shoot.
After putting away the supplies, Xia Qing practically dragged herself into the bathroom. Carrying 700 jin (approximately 350 kg) of weight for 15 li (approximately 7.5 km) wasn't her limit, but it wasn't as easy as she made it out to be. After taking off her clothes, Xia Qing leaned against the wall under the showerhead, letting the warm water wash over her burning shoulders.
Thanks to solar energy and her own hard work, she finally had access to a simple solar water heater, allowing her to take hot showers without needing to burn firewood.
After showering, Xia Qing rewarded herself with a bamboo shoot feast to wear off her hard day, and fell fast asleep in bed before nightfall.
After finishing his feed, Boss Yang trotted over to Xia Qing's table and licked all the plates and bowls clean. Then he lay down on the straw mat on the tatami, waiting for Xia Qing to clear the table.
After waiting for a long time, Xia Qing just lay there snoring and wouldn't get up. Boss Yang squinted at her for a while, then trotted back to the table, picked up the bowl with his mouth, and took it to the kitchen.
The porcelain bowl landed in the stainless steel basin with a crisp sound.
"Clang!"
This sound startled Xia Qing. She grabbed a knife in her left hand and a gun in her right, jumped up, and rushed to the source of the sound. Looking at the bowl broken in two, then at Boss Yang standing by the basin, squinting at her, her tense nerves immediately relaxed completely.
Sheathed her weapons, Xia Qing gently stroked the short fur on the sheep's head, softly praising its work, "Great job, Boss! You're even helping to clear the table. It's okay that the bowl broke, we'll get a new one."
Praised, the sheep was delighted and trotted back to fetch the plate. Xia Qing used the broken bowl to demonstrate how to put the dishes into the sink, "Like this, gently and slowly, and they won't break."
The sheep squinted at the broken bowl in Xia Qing's hand, not paying attention to the force, and with a "crack," it bit the plate in its mouth, splitting it in two. One half fell into the sink, while the other half remained in its mouth.
Xia Qing took the half-plate out of the sheep's mouth and sat on the ground, laughing heartily. Although the sheep had broken her few pieces of tableware, its comical appearance was just too funny for Xia Qing to resist.
Unable to hold back, Xia Qing received two shoves from the sheep, baring its teeth and becoming obedient, climbing back into bed to continue sleeping.
The next morning, after a good night's sleep and regaining her strength, Xia Qing decided to pickle a jar of bamboo shoots. She had helped her grandmother pickle bamboo shoots when she was little; the method was very simple. Xia Qing found a well-preserved earthenware jar in the tool shed, cleaned it thoroughly, and then washed a few yellow bamboo shoots—she was reluctant to pickle the green ones, fearing they would be wasted if they didn't pickle properly. After washing them, she sliced the bamboo shoots, put them into the jar, filled it with spring water, and sealed the jar. That was it.
If all went well, she would have pickled bamboo shoots to eat after a month.
Xia Qing carried the jar upstairs and hid it where Yang Laoda would never think of or touch it, before taking out her phone to message Luo Pei, wanting to send him some bamboo shoots.
Although Xia Qing knew that Hu Zifeng would definitely send some to Luo Pei, it was different for him than for her to send them herself. It had been more than half a month since Xia Qing last visited Luo Pei, and she wanted to check on his treatment progress.
Luo Pei quickly replied, telling Xia Qing that she could come anytime.
Xia Qing carried two bamboo shoots, one yellow and one green, to visit Luo Pei in a deserted village in the southwest of the territory. This time, it wasn't Wei Chengdong who greeted her in the dilapidated house, but Luo Pei himself.
Although he still needed support, Luo Pei could stand up. His face had regained some flesh, and he no longer looked as frightening as a skeleton wrapped in human skin. The bloodshot in his skin and eyes had also faded considerably. The treatment for the mutilated poison was progressing better than Xia Qing had expected.
Following Luo Pei into the basement living room, Xia Qing had already composed herself and handed him the sealed bamboo shoots. "These were dug up by Captain Hu and me in the Evolution Forest. Brother Luo can make bamboo shoot and rice porridge; it's easy to digest and nutritious."
Luo Pei, whose eyes couldn't be open for long, glanced at the bamboo shoots and then closed them again, his smile gentle. "Zifeng brought some over last night; the taste is indeed better than bamboo shoots before evolution. I didn't expect someone your age to know how to cook."
When the natural disaster struck, Xia Qing was only fifteen years old. Logically, in that peaceful and prosperous era, few fifteen-year-old girls knew how to cook. Food was scarce after the natural disaster, and there was no chance to learn to cook. Xia Qing didn't mention that her family had cooked it when she was little, only saying, "I collected a few cookbooks, and one of them happened to have this kind of porridge."
The cookbooks Xia Qing collected did indeed have this porridge, but they used glutinous rice, while Xia Qing used regular rice.
After chatting for a while, Luo Pei brought up teaching Xia Qing marksmanship, "You can come to learn to shoot every day from mid-May, whenever it's convenient for you. We'll learn the basic movements and principles here first, and in June I'll take you to the Evolution Forest for live-fire shooting."
Will Luo Pei's body recover to the point where he can enter the Evolution Forest and face danger directly in two months? Xia Qing tried to reassure him, "Brother Luo, your focus these next few months should be on treatment. I'm not in a rush."
Luo Pei smiled, gestured for the two people inside to leave and close the door, making sure no one could hear, before whispering to Xia Qing, "You've come at the right time. I have something I want to discuss with you. To be on the safe side, the Azure Dragon Team wants to buy the usage rights to Mountain Forty-Nine in the north of your territory, and then we can privately sign an agreement to transfer that mountain to your name, making it your property."
After natural disasters, earthquakes, and the great evolution of life, the landscape of Blue Star has undergone tremendous changes. The original place names have been abandoned, and mountains and rivers are now marked with numbers.
Hearing Luo Pei say he wanted to buy Mountain Forty-Nine and then transfer it to her, Xia Qing was completely stunned.
Luo Pei, eyes closed, his face gentle, said, "Regardless of whether the spring in your territory gushes from underground or flows from within Mount Forty-Nine, once the spring is exposed, Mount Forty-Nine, currently unclaimed, will undoubtedly become a key resource fought over by various factions. Buying it directly in your name is unrealistic, because you don't outwardly have the motive or the capability to buy the mountain. That's why I proposed that the Azure Dragon Team buy it under the guise of establishing a training base for its members, and then transfer it to you. There's no need to rush this; consider it for a day and give me your answer."
Only a day to consider, and it's not too rushed?