Xia Qing was a little confused by the eldest sheep's behavior. She flipped the basket lid over and caught the dried bamboo shoots the eldest sheep had brought her. "Second brother, do you want to trade this with third brother?"
"Baa."
The eldest sheep bleated urgently, picked up the basket, and headed north.
Xia Qing quickly followed. "Don't bleat like that, it'll attract wolves. We agreed to trade at the road sign south of the territory. If you go the wrong way, it's dangerous over there."
The eldest sheep clearly headed north. Xia Qing frowned, her voice low, "Second brother, what are you thinking of doing?"
Sensing Xia Qing's displeasure, the eldest sheep turned and nuzzled her, gesturing for her to follow.
Xia Qing, observing the sheep's unusual behavior, suddenly had a terrifying thought pop into her head: "You're taking food to find the wolf? Aren't you going to fight? What's your relationship with that wolf?"
The sheep continued walking up the hillside, Xia Qing following behind, her mind racing:
Could sheep and wolves have any other relationship besides predator and prey?
Is it possible?
Based on the sheep's clingy nature, Xia Qing deduced that it had companions before meeting her. Judging from the sheep's behavior, could it be that it and that wolf were… companions?
If wolves and sheep could be companions, then the evolved Earth is just too damn crazy.
If the alpha wolf and the sheep were companions, and she was the sheep's companion…
Does that mean… she might be able to live peacefully with the wolf… or even exchange supplies with it?
She really wanted to get a few green-light chickens, ducks, and geese to raise for eggs and meat!
Xia Qing found it increasingly impossible, yet she couldn't help but hope this low-probability event was true. She whispered to the sheep, "Boss is friends with the wolf? That's impressive! If it's a gift, wouldn't yellow bamboo shoots seem a bit insincere? We still have green bamboo shoots and bamboo rat meat at home. Should I go back and get some? Wolves should eat meat, right?"
The sheep ignored Xia Qing and continued climbing the slope, heading towards the isolation zone between Territory Three and the wild boar breeding center.
"Isn't that Boss Sheep? What's it doing here? What's it carrying?"
Xia Qing heard Hu Zifeng's voice and quickly stepped into the isolation zone. "Captain Hu, Boss Sheep heard the wild boar's screams and insisted on coming to see."
Hu Zifeng was thankful he was wearing a protective mask, preventing Xia Qing from seeing his wide-open mouth in surprise. "Boss Sheep and the wild boars in the valley... are they quite close?"
He couldn't very well say it might be on good terms with the wolf that killed the wild boar, could he? Xia Qing mumbled, "I just found out too, sorry to have troubled Captain Hu."
"No trouble at all." Hu Zifeng stared at the soaked bamboo shoots on the basket lid, his face full of question marks.
A sheep visiting a pig, and it even brings a gift…
Are ordinary evolved sheep this smart? Could it be that the eldest sheep not only evolved in strength, but also in its brain?
Are those wild boars also animals with evolved brains?
Watching the eldest sheep cross the isolation zone and reach the edge of the wild boar breeding center's fence, Xia Qing's heart was in her throat.
The eldest sheep put down the basket and began to call out, "Baa—baa—"
Hearing this enthusiastic call, Xia Qing wished she could knock the eldest sheep unconscious and take it back.
The area had already been checked and confirmed to be free of wolves, so Hu Zifeng wasn't nervous about the eldest sheep's bleating; instead, he became even more curious about its behavior. This was the first time he'd seen such an intelligent evolved sheep. "Is it calling for the wild boar?"
Xia Qing couldn't bear to watch. "Maybe..."
"The breeding center was attacked by wolves, and the wild boars are all locked up." Looking at the persistent sheep, Hu Zifeng was unusually helpful. "Should I find someone to deliver it in? But I can't guarantee it'll reach the wild boar."
Xia Qing seriously made up a story. "Thank you, Captain Hu, but the wild boar breeding center must be in chaos right now. Let's not trouble them. The sheep came with a kind heart; whether the wild boar receives it or not, its intention is there."
Hu Zifeng paused, then discussed with Xia Qing, "Since the intention has been delivered, Miss Xia, why don't you take it back? Although there are no wolves around here, it's not good for the sheep to attract too much attention."
Xia Qing didn't want the sheep to steal the spotlight either. She went over and laid the dried bamboo shoots from the bamboo basket lid on the ground, seriously discussing with the sheep, "The dried bamboo shoots are here; your friend will receive them when they arrive. Shall we go back?"
The stubborn alpha sheep, of course, wouldn't go back and continued bleating to call for its friends. Xia Qing simply picked up the basket in one hand and carried the sheep under her arm, said goodbye to Hu Zifeng, and returned to her territory.
Perhaps the gift had been delivered, or perhaps it hadn't received a response after calling for so long, because the alpha sheep stopped causing trouble after coming down the mountain and went to graze. Xia Qing, carrying two pounds of green-light vegetables, went to exchange them with the burly man sent by Zhang San for thirty pounds of deodorizing concentrate and a bottle of spray.
Xia Qing wouldn't let her guard down just because she suspected the alpha sheep had a good relationship with the wolves. After ten years of natural disasters, she had long since learned to plan for the worst-case scenario in everything she did. Even if the alpha wolf and the alpha sheep really did have a good relationship, it didn't mean the wolves wouldn't harm her, or that the other wolves wouldn't see the alpha sheep as food.
Xia Qing took out the sprayer and diluted the deodorizing concentrate with water according to the handwritten instructions given by Zhang San. This deodorizing solution was surprisingly odorless, which alone made it superior to the deodorizing liquids sold in the safe zone.
Zhang San's products are indeed top-notch.
The instructions stated that this deodorizer was harmless to humans and evolved sheep, so after diluting it with water, Xia Qing started spraying it from inside the house. Although the sheep leader didn't relieve itself indoors and took baths every few days, Xia Qing couldn't smell any sheep odor in the house. However, she wasn't an evolved olfactory expert; just because she couldn't smell it didn't mean the wolves couldn't.
Xia Qing sprayed until dark, covering the entire territory. After returning home, she ate a piece of compressed rations and collapsed onto the bed, too exhausted to move. However, she still kept her promise to the sheep leader and made its favorite concentrated feed.
Then, Xia Qing became completely absorbed in the crazy idea that the sheep leader's friend might be a wolf, not even listening to the radio or turning on the lord's channel.
Early the next morning, seeing the eldest sheep bring its basket to her again, Xia Qing packed a small bag of dried bamboo shoots and a small bag of dried bamboo rat meat for it. She personally took it to the outside of the wild boar breeding center's wire mesh fence, asking Hu Zifeng's team to keep an eye on it. She then returned to her territory to patrol and eliminate snakes, insects, and rodents.
During this patrol, Xia Qing was pleasantly surprised to find that the insects that had been surrounding the vegetable garden fence were less than half of what they had been the day before. She hadn't expected Zhang San's deodorizer to be so effective; it seemed she should exchange for a few more buckets to keep for later use.
"Damn, isn't that Sister Qing's sheep? How did it get out!" The patrol team, passing by the wild boar breeding center, saw the eldest sheep standing outside the wire mesh fence. Su Ming's mouth gaped open wide enough to fit an egg.
Hearing the humans' shouts, the eldest sheep shoved the basket closer to its side, squinted its eyes, and assumed a fighting stance.
Su Ming's jaw dropped when he saw what was in the basket. "Holy crap, what's Boss Sheep doing? Brother Jiang, what's going on?"
Da Jiang from Hu Zifeng's team saluted Tan Junjie before answering Su Ming, "This sheep came to visit its wild boar friends who are being kept at the wild boar breeding center. It'll be returning to Territory Number Three in a bit."
Even the usually composed Tan Junjie was stunned.
Su Ming stared wide-eyed. "Are you serious?"
Da Jiang shrugged. "Don't tell me you don't believe me, I don't believe you either." But the facts were undeniable; this wasn't the first time it had come.
Tan Junjie asked Da Jiang, "Has your Captain Yang returned?"
"Not yet."
Tan Junjie nodded and led his team on patrol. Behind him, Su Ming, already in a daze, walked with an unsteady gait.