Qin Ziwen swept the clothes-drying pole spear in his hands through the grass a few times, and the chirping of insects abruptly stopped.
Stepping out of the main gate, Qin Ziwu followed behind. "Bro, which way should we go?"
Qin Ziwen first surveyed their surroundings. Although the resources by the river might be more plentiful, he opted for caution. "Let's check the immediate area first. Don't go too far from the Gated Community."
Following behind, Qin Ziwu spotted something unusual. He pointed at a large, green grasshopper crawling on a wide leaf not far away. "Is that a grasshopper? It's almost the size of my palm."
Qin Ziwen followed his gaze. "I hear those things are pretty tasty when roasted. Sixteen times the protein of beef."
"Then I'll catch one and try it." Qin Ziwu tiptoed closer, but before he had taken two steps, the grasshopper sprang into the taller grass behind it. Qin Ziwu ran after it, but with a few more leaps, the grasshopper vanished deep into the weeds.
To avoid snakebites, Qin Ziwen moved slowly, sweeping the path ahead of him with his spear every couple of steps.
A RUSTLING sound came from underfoot as a small, yellowish-brown creature scurried past his feet.
Qin Ziwen gave chase, but the undergrowth was too thick with shrubs, weeds, and roots. He lost track of it after just a few steps.
Qin Ziwu had also spotted a similar yellowish-brown creature, but it was too nimble to catch. "These things are too fast."
Qin Ziwen wiped the sweat from his forehead. "They look a bit like rats. We'd need to set traps. Let's look for fruit trees first."
The sun gradually climbed higher, baking a faint, grassy fragrance out of the surrounding vegetation as the air grew hotter.
Qin Ziwen and his brother had already circled the Gated Community once. More and more families like them were now out searching the periphery.
"Xiaowu, come look. Are these mulberries?" Qin Ziwen looked up, pointing at the tree in front of them.
Qin Ziwu was certain. "It's a mulberry tree. Didn't we pick them on the mountain back home?"
Qin Ziwen said, "Alright, you climb the tree and pick them. I'll keep watch for you down here."
Without a word, Qin Ziwu shouldered his backpack and obediently started to climb the tree.
The mulberry tree they found was somewhat hidden, tucked away between several other trees, so no one had noticed it at first. But it wasn't far from the Gated Community, and they hadn't been picking for long before a passing old man spotted them and hurried back to get others.
"Okay!" His younger brother, Qin Ziwu, was full of energy as he scampered up the tree like a nimble monkey.
Qin Ziwen reminded him, "Be careful. Don't climb too high."
The old man who had run off to get help returned with four or five people.
In the newly arrived group, a middle-aged woman with a poodle perm glanced at Qin Ziwen and said in a passive-aggressive tone, "So there are mulberries here. How unethical of you two young men, finding something and not making a sound, just picking them secretly."
Qin Ziwen retorted mercilessly, "You were too slow to find it yourself. How is that my problem?"
The skinny old man next to the woman pointed at Qin Ziwen. "Is that any way for a young person to talk!"
A flicker of impatience crossed Qin Ziwen's eyes. He raised his Long Spear and took a step forward, and the group's bravado instantly deflated.
A young man in the group quickly tried to smooth things over. "Hey, man, my family didn't mean it like that. Mom, with stuff you find in the wild, it's always finders keepers."
Perhaps intimidated by the "weapon" in Qin Ziwen's hand, the woman resentfully withdrew her gaze and turned to her own daughter. "Zihan, you go pick some."
The girl, who looked to be in high school, had wide eyes.
'Me?'
She glanced fearfully at the Long Spear in Qin Ziwen's hand, clearly reluctant.
Her mother urged her on, "You useless girl, what are you standing there for? Just go when I tell you to. It's not like this big brother is an unreasonable person. Is he going to bully you?"
The girl: "..."
The woman said to her daughter, "Besides, these mulberries don't last long. You have to eat them the day you pick them, or they'll spoil by the next. How many can these two handsome boys eat, anyway? Now go."
The girl dawdled forward a few steps, casting a timid glance at Qin Ziwen.
Qin Ziwen ignored her.
Growing a little bolder, the girl, who was wearing sweatpants, hugged the trunk and slowly began to climb. The skinny old man went over and gave her a push from below.
Just then, two more families arrived one after the other.
Qin Ziwu jumped down from the tree and handed his backpack to his brother. "The rest are a little hard to get to."
Qin Ziwen glanced over; his brother's backpack was about half-full.
This mulberry tree hadn't been picked much before, so its fruit was plump and juicy. Qin Ziwu had already cleared most of the easily accessible branches.
"Let's go."
He zipped up the backpack, slung it over his shoulder, and the two of them headed back.
"Alligator!"
"Someone's been bitten by an alligator!"
"There's an alligator in the river!"
Shouts erupted from the riverbank not far away, with someone screaming for help.
Qin Ziwen and his brother exchanged a look and simultaneously started walking toward the river.
When they were still dozens of meters from the river, they could hear the sound of violent splashing.
On the water's surface, a massive alligator was thrashing about, kicking up huge waves.
On the bank, a teenage girl was crying and shouting, "Dad! Please, save my dad!"
Some people on the shore were cautiously throwing rocks at the alligator, while others beat at it with branches they had picked up.
The alligator, agitated by the attacks, dragged the man away from the shore and swam toward deeper water. The water in its wake was stained red with blood. The man it had bitten had stopped struggling, his two legs dangling limply.
Qin Ziwu gasped. "That alligator is huge, probably four or five meters long. Good thing we didn't go to the river just now. The animals around here all seem to be a bit oversized."
Qin Ziwen said in a grave voice, "Have you forgotten about the bat from last night? Bats are usually social animals."
Hearing this, Qin Ziwu's scalp tingled. He pictured scenes he'd seen on TV of caves packed densely with bats. If they were all that size... the thought was terrifying.