The round-faced woman's movements paused, and she glanced sideways at the passing Qin Ziwen and his brother.
The older woman hurriedly grabbed Qin Ziwen's arm. "Young man, you be the judge. Tell me, is it right to just go around messing with other people's things?"
Qin Ziwen looked down at the weathered hand gripping his arm, then slowly raised his head to meet the woman's eyes.
The older woman sensed something was off and released her grip.
Qin Ziwen smiled. "Of course, she's in the wrong. You can't just go around messing with other people's property."
The round-faced woman's face went pale. She lowered her head and scurried away.
Seeing the woman had gone, the older woman prepared to turn and leave, but Qin Ziwen stopped her. "We're all neighbors. It's only right that we help each other."
The older woman suddenly felt she had miscalculated. She shouldn't have dragged these two into this.
She forced a smile. "You're right. We're all neighbors, we should help each other."
Qin Ziwen glanced at the tightly clutched bag. "My brother and I left early this morning and still haven't eaten. Are those vegetables edible?"
The older woman quickly pleaded her case. "Young man, I have a bedridden husband and an eight-year-old grandson at home. If I give these to you, my whole family will starve."
Qin Ziwen waved a dismissive hand. "You're worrying too much. I'm not going to take your food. I just want to see what these wild vegetables look like. After all, it's a big place out here; you can't possibly gather them all by yourself. And didn't you say neighbors should help each other?"
The older woman's expression froze. 'What does he mean, *I* said it? Wasn't he the one who said that?'
But she glanced at the two tall, sturdy young men and figured that telling them was better than having her food taken by force.
She opened the bag and took out the wild vegetables.
"This one is purslane, these are bupleurum shoots, and this is a fiddlehead fern..."
Qin Ziwen realized he'd seen many of these plants before in other areas.
He just hadn't recognized them, so he never picked them.
'Looks like the resources in this area are more abundant than I imagined. If only I'd majored in agriculture or botany in college.'
Figuring she might as well tell him everything, the woman explained all at once, "You have to blanch these vegetables before you eat them—boil them for a few minutes. You can serve them as a cold salad, stir-fry them, or use them as a filling."
At this, the woman hesitated. "There might be a lot of these vegetables, but they won't last long. If everyone starts gathering them, they'll be picked clean in a couple of days."
Qin Ziwen nodded. "Thanks. You can keep gathering here."
Once they were some distance away, Qin Ziwu whispered, "Brother, look over there. Is that man picking wild vegetables too?"
Following his brother's gaze, Qin Ziwen saw an old man dozens of meters away. The man had his hands clasped behind his back, a bag in one hand, pretending to take a stroll. He would suddenly bend down, swiftly stuff something he'd picked into the bag...
...then stand up and look around nonchalantly. When he saw the two brothers staring at him from a short distance away, the old man even smiled at them before continuing his leisurely stroll. A few steps later, he suddenly darted down again.
Qin Ziwen smiled.
He decided to have his brother join the foraging party as well.
After a busy morning that required several trips back home, the two had gathered over ten pounds of wild vegetables.
That many greens would spoil in just a few days if left out.
So he brought some soil back home. He flipped over a plastic stool, filled its hollow base with the soil, and planted the vegetables that still had intact root systems.
Viewed from above, the small space inside the stool was crammed with greens. 'It'll be fine as long as they stay fresh for another couple of days.'
"I'm starving," Qin Ziwu said, rubbing his stomach. "Brother, can we eat a little more for lunch today?"
"I'll cook some noodles." Qin Ziwen unwrapped the fire chicken noodles and took out four packs. After toiling all morning, one pack each wouldn't be nearly enough. He also blanched a large handful of purslane.
He didn't add much water to the pot, just enough to cover the noodles.
Once they were cooked, he added about a third of the fire chicken sauce packet, along with a little soy sauce and MSG.
Water was a scarce resource, and eating something too spicy would mean wasting a lot of it to quench their thirst.
Although they had a fire starter and a river nearby—meaning they weren't technically short on water—the river was home to crocodiles, making every trip to fetch it a risk.
Even after lunch, Qin Ziwen still felt a faint pang of hunger. He'd eaten so little over the past two days that his body was instinctively craving more meat and protein.
"You take a nap. This afternoon, we'll fetch water, then check the traps and gather more vegetables."
When he woke up, the midday heat had already subsided. With no clock, he couldn't tell the exact time, but judging by the position of the sun, he guessed it was around two or three in the afternoon.
They had a large, green plastic water barrel at home. The two brothers slung their bags over their shoulders, carried the barrel between them, and left the building.
The south gate was the closest exit. Just as the two of them arrived, they heard a loud argument erupting nearby.
On one side were property management staff in white security uniforms; on the other, a few residents. Among the security staff, Qin Ziwen spotted Huang Tao, who was wearing a suit.
'I wonder how he got mixed up with this group of security guards.'
A large crowd of residents from the gated community had also gathered to watch the commotion.
From the surrounding chatter, he pieced together what was happening.
Apparently, these security guards from the property management team had all been in the security dormitory when the transmigration occurred. Afterward, those rooms became their turf.
The property management fees at their Riverside Gated Community weren't cheap. The complex consisted of mid-rise residential buildings, with each floor having two elevators serving two households, and each building containing two units.
As a result, the day-to-day security was excellent. The property management not only had its own dedicated set of rooms, but they were also fully equipped with all the necessary tools.
This included tools like fire axes, riot shields, and steel forks.
A few of the homeowners had wanted to get some tools from the property management office, but the security guards refused, which led to the conflict.
Someone in the crowd murmured, "Those guards have teamed up with a few of the other residents. They've formed their own little clique."
"Everything in that office was paid for with our management fees! We can't just let a few people hoard it all."
"Yeah, and those guards have a real attitude problem."
Huang Tao stepped forward, holding up his hands to placate the crowd. "Neighbors, everyone, please calm down. Let's not be rash. Can we please try to communicate calmly? Conflict won't solve anything."
"I'm just like all of you, a member of this gated community. Look at our situation! Our entire community has been teleported to this godforsaken hellhole, with crocodiles, venomous snakes, and that giant bird that snatches people! You're all the backbones of your families. It would be completely irrational for us to be fighting amongst ourselves at a time like this."
A man with a thick beard on the opposing side spoke impatiently, "Cut the crap. Are you giving us the tools or not? Just a simple yes or no!"
Huang Tao replied patiently, "The tools in the property management warehouse belong to everyone, not to any single household. And there's a limited number of them; we can't just give one to every family. If someone has an urgent need for one, taking it out is not a problem. But what if you take one and just hoard it for yourself?"
The bearded man swore, "I paid my damn management fees!"
Huang Tao's voice remained calm. "So did everyone else! As I was saying, I suggest we hold onto these resources and establish a public resource monitoring committee. If a family needs something, they can use it under the supervision of the rest of the community and return it when they're done.
Our gated community has ten buildings. I propose that each building selects one representative, and our brothers here from property management select one as well. That makes eleven representatives in total. We'll follow a majority-rules system. As long as more than half vote to approve a request, it's granted. What does everyone think of that?"
Huang Tao looked around at the other residents.
Some people looked scornful, but others seemed interested, especially the older residents.
Huang Tao said to the bearded man, "We're all civilized people here. If a family has a genuine need—say, to form a team to chop firewood, build traps, or make weapons for self-defense—they can come and apply.
They'll register their name, building and apartment number, what they're borrowing, and when they'll return it. The item must be returned in the same condition. If it's broken or lost, we can all work out a system for compensation.
Besides, you all remember that giant bird that snatched someone this morning, right? Who knows what else might fly or crawl into the gated community at night. We can't leave this place unguarded. I think we can organize watch shifts by building, with groups taking turns on night duty. That way, everyone can feel safer at night.
Going it alone won't work in a place like this. If we want to survive, we have to band together! Anyone who's interested can come find me at the property management office later. My name is Huang Tao, and I live in Building Seven.
Sir, I can tell you're a straightforward guy. If you need something, come find me later. As for these four security guards, their families aren't here with them. They're just missing their loved ones, which is why they might sound a little aggressive. They absolutely don't mean anything else by it."
'Those last words completely cornered the bearded man. 'What did he mean, their families weren't here, so they're aggressive because they miss them? That's a fucking threat, plain and simple. He's saying they have nothing to lose!'
The bearded man glanced at the onlookers and snorted. 'So you're all just here for the show, huh?'
He finally said, "Fine. We'll talk later."