Chapter 102: Time
Huai Yu rolled her eyes under the umbrella.
She must’ve really lost her mind. Even if the Rose Corridor refused to speak, it was still better than asking Kuang Biao. That guy had a foul mouth—everything he said was worthless.
She sighed, then gently spoke to the two young geese, “Big Cub, Second Cub, Mama’s going back now. Are you cold in the rain? Should I bring over some more dry grass?”
She peeked into the shed and found it was already piled high with dry bamboo leaves and a heap of shredded bamboo shoots…
Alright then. Clearly, they lacked nothing.
She turned to leave the bamboo grove, leaving Kuang Biao calling after her, “Hey! Don’t go! Just a little more—hey, I support you no matter what you want to be! If you wanna stop being human, I’m cool with that! Just gimme a bit more—”
The rain came down harder. The ground quickly became muddy, her shoes kicking up dirt with every step.
Huai Yu glanced again at the Rose Corridor and finally couldn’t help but ask, “What exactly is the relationship between us?”
The branches of the Rose Corridor swayed gently in the wind and rain. Droplets rolled off the wet blossoms and hit the ground. It looked just like an ordinary plant, completely unresponsive to her question.
Huai Yu: “…”
Frustrated, she muttered, “You’re not telling me now, and I’m not going to bow to you anymore… We definitely have a connection. I’ll find out eventually.”
She turned to leave, but paused, still feeling unsatisfied, then spun back around, “Wait… don’t tell me there’s some kind of unspeakable story in between, right?”
Oh no!
Could it be that in a past life, she wasn’t just a strong and rugged farmwoman, but had some tragic romance with the Rose or Wu Yue?
Either way, it was totally absurd!
The Rose Corridor shuddered all over, and water droplets flew in every direction like a dog shaking its fur. Huai Yu stood there dumbfounded under her umbrella, drenched everywhere except her face.
“Ahhh!!!”
She stomped angrily. “I only have three sets of clothes!”
A splash followed her foot—mud from a small puddle splattered onto her pants and shoes.
Huai Yu: “…”
Her cheeks puffed in annoyance.
Back in her treehouse, soaked and miserable, Huai Yu sighed. Why had she gone out asking silly questions in the rain instead of lying in bed reading about toads and swans?
Now she had a pile of new chores: boiling water, bathing, doing laundry, cleaning her shoes.
She had just recovered from a serious illness. She couldn’t afford to stay cold and damp.
She looked at the only two buckets of water left and then toward the bái tree near the pond.
That constantly falling water sphere… it dropped frequently—could it work as a makeshift shower in summer?
Maybe she could build a treehouse nearby?
A brick room could work too. There were still tiles in the abandoned treehouse. She could buy cement and river sand and slowly build it herself.
Letting Kuang Biao grow shoots was easy—but the guy always pushed his luck.
Huai Yu thought it over and decided to build it herself. But first—take a bath and change into her last clean outfit!
Why wouldn’t the Rose Corridor answer her?
With that question in mind, she decided to visit Sanqing Mountain the next morning once the rain stopped.
She remembered waking up inside a cocoon hanging from a tree and seeing an ancient Daoist temple…
She hadn’t recalled the location of the temple yet, but she might be able to find the cocoon. If she brought it back, maybe the Rose Corridor would reveal something?
She got ready and didn’t bother with her basket this time—her only goal was to find the cocoon. Just then, the morning broadcast sounded.
“Today is April 24, 2066. Clear skies. Air Mutation Index: 6. No anomalies in Sanqing Mountain. Wasteland Mutation Index…”
Huai Yu was stunned.
Not because of the rising Wasteland Mutation Index—that had been ongoing after the heavy rains. That’s why Zhou Qian and the others had been dispatched there.
No—the problem was the date!
She had watered the plants while sick on April 20.
She’d slept through the 21st, got splashed by the Rose Corridor on the 22nd, and today was supposed to be the 22nd—sunny!
So how was it the 24th?!
She had just caught a cold… okay, maybe a slight fever. But how did a nap turn into three full days?!
No wonder her chicks were starving!
She stood dumbfounded for a long time, eventually blaming it on “evolving while sick.” Otherwise, how could she explain sleeping that long?
She thought her limbs were weak just from the illness—but another day of sleep, and she might’ve died of hunger!
Standing at her door, Huai Yu looked out at the empty and desolate surroundings, a wave of melancholy washing over her.
There were three estates in the Rose Mansion. She’d claimed Mansion No. 1, but why hadn’t anyone claimed 2 or 3?
Such a huge area. The Rose Corridor wasn’t always violent…
She sighed quietly, double-checked her things, and rode off on her bicycle.
Late April’s wind was already warm. After the rain, the temperature had clearly risen. She broke into a sweat as she pedaled.
When she asked the Rose Corridor to open the gate this time, she wasn’t exactly polite—well, just a little polite.
“Open up, okay?” Her voice was soft—she didn’t dare be too loud.
The rose branches rustled and soon opened up a person-sized passage. Huai Yu pushed her bike in, hiding it behind the bushes and flowers, then stepped out of the safe zone protected by the Rose Corridor.
Looking up, Sanqing Mountain’s crisscrossed ridges towered before her. Dense trees hid the jagged rocks and old wooden walkways meant for sightseeing.
She thought carefully, then followed the small path up the mountain.
Where had she woken up, again?
A huge tree cocoon, crisscrossed trees and shrubs… as she walked out, the branches had gently shifted aside…
Was it inside a cave? Or hidden in a sea of vegetation?
It couldn’t be too far—though she was tired when she first left the Rose Corridor, it didn’t take her long.
She regretted not marking the spot. Now everything was covered in mist, and she really feared getting tangled up with Wu Yue somehow.
Or worse—what if she had actually birthed the Rose Corridor, and no one knew, and she nearly died doing it…
She felt like crying just thinking about it!
No matter what, she had to find the truth.
But…
Panting and supporting her knees, Huai Yu looked down the mountain.
Some of the knots she’d tied as markers were still faintly visible, but she had zero clues about where the cocoon might be.
She gazed at the endless trees and peaks, chose a direction, and kept searching.
A new month was approaching. Boss Tang sat behind the counter, brows furrowed, sighing deeply. It had barely been a month and he already felt haggard.
He was rubbing his cheeks in the mirror when a familiar figure appeared at the door—
“Little Yu!”
He jumped down with joy, his round body bouncing like a ball as he rushed over, eyes full of hope.
“You’re here?! Why such a long gap this time?”
Without waiting for a response, he took her heavy basket—sure enough, it was full of bean sprouts again.
Huai Yu smiled without saying a word—
She had spent the entire day on the mountain, returning home at dusk completely empty-handed.
She was sure she hadn’t walked long from the cocoon to the corridor, but she just couldn’t find it.
After that ordeal, she took a whole day to recover.
Then she had to check the post-rain crops—potatoes, sweet potatoes, peanuts, yams… and she sowed all of Keta Rō’s balls.
Another day gone.
Huai Yu thought about her bathroom-building plans and the steep price of cement she’d seen on her first market trip. She needed to save more points.
But she couldn’t dig up too many bamboo shoots now. Big Cub and Second Cub loved poking at them, so much so that Kuang Biao had stopped reproducing.
Sprouts were the cheapest—costless, even. No labor required.
Sure enough, Boss Tang skillfully weighed the sprouts. With purified soybeans and water filtered by the bái tree, the mutation index stayed stable at 9.
As the transaction finished, Huai Yu was about to chat when Boss Tang smiled sweetly, “Little Yu, your place is pretty big, right?”
Huai Yu nodded silently. “Yeah, pretty big.”
More than 600 acres of wild mountain.
Boss Tang beamed, then pulled a big plastic bag from under the counter, “Look! These are the balls Keta Rō has collected recently. I saved them all for you!”
Huai Yu eyed him curiously.
He saved them, sure, but why was he so eager and excited?
She couldn’t help but ask, “Wait… did Uncle Zaozi’s tea actually work? Or… did something happen?!”
“Oh, no,” Boss Tang replied, disappointed.
“I watched for days and asked him. He said the tea was nice, no more constipation, very fragrant. Drinks one every day…”
That expression—Boss Tang looked so complicated, and Huai Yu’s face mirrored his.
“So, Keta Rō’s balls don’t really do anything… Uncle Zaozi even wants more. He offered a high price… but I couldn’t take the money. I held back.”
“Sigh! If Gao Ming weren’t still inside, I’d have brought the balls in for testing.”
“So…” Huai Yu looked puzzled, “if Uncle Zaozi’s fine, why are you so happy to see me?”
The moment he saw her, he looked overjoyed—like it hadn’t even been that long since her last visit.
“Well, well…” Boss Tang rubbed his hands awkwardly.
“You see… Labor Day is coming.”
Huai Yu: …She didn’t know that!
But no matter—when in doubt, just nod.
Boss Tang sighed heavily, “Labor Day requires everyone to do a week of farming. The market’s closed during the day…”
Huai Yu’s smile cracked—everyone? Did that include her?
Luckily, Boss Tang added: “That’s only for city folk. Your place is in the suburbs, right? If you’ve got enough land, you’re exempt from the labor requirement…”
“You’re not on the labor list, are you?”
Huai Yu instantly relaxed!
She wasn’t just outside the city—she was practically off-grid! And she had 600 acres to herself.
No way she’d be on that list.
She shook her head confidently.
Boss Tang exhaled in relief—then grew hesitant again.
“You know I have to go… but what about Keta Rō? He has to make balls every day or he can’t eat!”
“So…” Boss Tang looked at her expectantly.
“So…” Huai Yu stared back, eyes widening, “You’re not saying…”
“Yes, yes!” Boss Tang brightened. “You get it! I was hoping you could hide Keta Rō at your place for a bit?”
“Don’t worry—I’ve been watching. He doesn’t even like using the bathroom. He avoids poop when he sees it!”
“He’s a good Keta Rō!”
Boss Tang looked so hopeful, like he’d collapse if she refused.
What could Huai Yu do?
Boss Tang had always treated her well.
She hesitated, then asked, “But… how do I get him home?”
“No problem, no problem.” Clearly prepared, Boss Tang brought over a sack—
“Keta Rō! Keta Rō!”
He called twice. A small door at the edge of the warehouse opened, and out waddled a giant fly-green dung beetle, about 40cm tall.
Still the same as always.
It hugged a black sphere in its front claws and, seeing Huai Yu, fanned its yellow wings in greeting.
Huai Yu instinctively nodded and smiled, then went numb again.
Boss Tang already had the sack ready. “Keta Rō, in you go—don’t worry, Little Yu, I’ll cover the basket so no one will notice on your way back.”
His voice softened, face full of fatherly care, “Don’t worry, Keta Rō’s really quiet. Unless he’s rolling balls, he won’t make a peep…”
“Just… Please let him out for a walk now and then. If he doesn’t walk or roll, he’ll get really sad… Keta Rō… oh, Keta Rō…”
As the basket lid shut, Boss Tang’s voice almost broke into sobs.
Huai Yu: “…”
After a long pause, she finally asked, “If that Gao Ming comes out… will he take Keta Rō back?”
Boss Tang couldn’t answer. His expression turned even more bleak.
