Chapter 271 | Chapter 272 | Chapter 273
Chapter 271: Wasted Effort
Having lived with Huai Yu for so long, Zhou Qian was now highly capable of rationalizing things to himself—it was just a mere tree-cocoon medical pod. At the Flower City Hospital, it could be exchanged for a million points; it wasn’t even worth mentioning.
He tried his best to convince himself, yet in the next instant, he walked out holding a wooden staff. He spent the next hour or two grunting and sweating in the woods to dig a large pit.
Huai Yu was about to die of anxiety!
“Brother Zhou Qian, don’t let the wounds on your body tear open again!”
“Also, since when did you become so humanitarian? That mutated macaque almost killed both of us, and you’re actually building a grave for it?”
She was utterly dumbfounded by her own assumption.
Zhou Qian, however, instructed, “Go gather some more firewood.”
The tree cocoon’s effect was so miraculous that he couldn’t afford to give anyone the chance to discover any anomalies through the carcass of the mutated macaque!
And right now, plants were everywhere. If he didn’t dig a pit, he wouldn’t be able to control the fire if it spread.
Only then did Huai Yu snap out of it. “Oh, oh, oh!”
Dead branches and dry leaves were piled at the bottom of the pit, with the feather-light carcass of the mutated macaque in the middle, and more twigs and dry leaves were stacked on top of it.
A piece of burning wood taken from the fire inside the temple was thrown on top. After a brief silence, the dry leaves instantly erupted into orange-red flames and faint plumes of smoke. Amidst the dancing firelight, the thick fur also let out a sizzling sound, and a foul stench of burnt protein wafted through the air.
Huai Yu quickly covered her nose.
Zhou Qian, however, didn’t change his expression, as he was entirely used to it. He then patted Huai Yu on the shoulder:
“Go inside the temple and rest. I’ll keep an eye on the fire here.”
At the same time, he also needed to think about the arrangements for when they headed to the wilderness in the winter.
At the very least, his previous idea of following far behind the Garrison Army would have to be completely overturned now.
……
The temperature at night wasn’t much lower than during the day, and Zhou Qian was covered in sweat once more amidst the firelight. The salty sweat flowed over the wounds on his newly grown tender flesh, bringing a faint, dense sting that reminded him of everything that had happened during the day.
By the time the carcass of the mutated macaque, covered by a shallow layer of embers, had burned into a charred silhouette, he finally let out a long sigh of relief. He quickly kicked the surrounding soil with his foot, burying the remaining embers in the pit once more.
This secret was finally drawing to a close.
Now, he couldn’t help but let out another sigh: Huai Yu’s choice to live next to the Rose Corridor, where no one dared to come, was truly the wisest decision.
Zhou Qian raised his wrist to check the time. It was already past 1:00 AM. The chirping of insects rose and fell in the forest, and the pitch-black shadows of the trees swayed in the gentle breeze, looking menacing and terrifying as if poised to strike.
Zhou Qian composed himself, and only then did he retrace his steps to the main hall.
However, the moment he stepped through the door, he froze—inside the hall, Huai Yu’s legs were still dangling outside the tree cocoon, but her entire body was half-lying inside it, fast asleep.
Zhou Qian couldn’t help but let out another smile: here he was, overthinking everything, while the culprit herself was blissfully asleep, completely dead to the world.
He looked at the sleeping bag Huai Yu had spread out in advance next to the tree cocoon, with several soft foam mats from the Daoist temple lined up underneath, and he couldn’t help but lie down as well.
The night enveloped their surroundings, and the campfire gradually dimmed. It was unknown if there was still danger lurking in the dark. But Zhou Qian, who had slept soundly all afternoon, was full of energy. Right now, pillowing his head on his arm, he fell deep into thought once more.
……
Perhaps because yesterday had been far too thrilling, Huai Yu slept all the way until past 7:00 AM the next morning before waking up.
The sun had already risen, and golden morning light was scattered outside the Daoist temple as the temperature slowly climbed once again.
Early in the morning, Zhou Qian had dismantled his vine stretcher and tied up the tree cocoon, leaving two “shoulder straps” to slip his arms through. Watching Huai Yu pack the three empty canteens back into the basket, he finally said, “Let’s go.”
Having had a full night’s sleep, Huai Yu chattered away, “We’re finally heading back! We left the day before yesterday, and no one’s been home for days now. I wonder if Ketaro, Da Zai, and Er Zai know how to take care of themselves!”
Her heart was already back home. Although the journey had been equally surprising and perilous, Huai Yu didn’t linger. She only asked worriedly, “Brother Zhou Qian, when we leave for the wilderness after the temperature drops, no one will be home for a very long time… Do you think I should bring Da Zai, Er Zai, and Da Pang along with us?”
“Don’t bring them.”
Carrying the massive tree cocoon, Zhou Qian’s steps didn’t appear heavy at all. He replied, “There will be many more mutated plants in the wilderness, and your ability will be invincible among them. If you bring them along, on one hand, it increases your vulnerabilities, and on the other hand, it makes it easy for others to notice something unusual.”
He comforted her, “Don’t worry, they’ll take care of themselves.”
As long as food, water, and a sheltered place were prepared in advance, the area next to the Rose Corridor was actually the safest place.
One in front of the other, the two slowly embarked on their return journey.
……
But Sanqing Mountain was simply too vast, and since they were carrying gear, they didn’t dare take any risks to look for a shortcut. Thus, even though Huai Yu didn’t slack off or cause trouble on purpose, it wasn’t until the morning of the second day that they finally spotted the towering and secure-feeling Rose Corridor before them.
She blanked for a moment, then beamed with joy. “We’re finally back!”
Zhou Qian followed with a smile as well.
If they kept walking, his seven-foot frame would truly be crushed by this not-so-heavy tree cocoon.
As they approached, the Rose Corridor in front of them actually rustled and parted to reveal a path, which was far more spacious than the tree hole they had to duck and bend over to pass through when they left.
Huai Yu let out a silly laugh. “Rose, did you miss me?”
The words had barely left her mouth when several glossy branches suddenly erupted from within the path, rapidly stretching toward Zhou Qian’s back!
With thorns hooking and vines wrapping, the tree cocoon that Zhou Qian had been carrying was immediately eyed by the Rose Corridor, which overbearing-mindedly intended to drag it away by force.
Zhou Qian instinctively slipped the vines off his shoulders, and the vines dragged the tree cocoon all the way back. Near the base of the rose roots, the soil suddenly churned up, swallowing the tree cocoon straight underground.
Huai Yu: “…”
Zhou Qian: “…”
So this tree cocoon she had carried all the way down from the mountain for a whole day was now entirely a gift for the Rose Corridor, wasn’t it?
The two stood in silence inside the path for a long while, until the rose branches let out a rustling sound, clearly urging them to hurry through.
Only after stepping out and looking at the desolate, uninhabited wild field did Huai Yu finally remember:
“I forgot to mention! When the fibrous roots of the Rosaceae family grow numerous, they look exactly like that tree cocoon!”
Zhou Qian clearly didn’t feel comforted; instead, his shoulders and back felt increasingly sore and aching—so what he had carried all the way down across miles wasn’t just a gift for the Rose Corridor, but it might very well have been a part of it to begin with, right?
The corners of his mouth twitched. Seeing Huai Yu still staring at the Rose Corridor, he couldn’t help but sigh again. “The tree cocoon is buried in the soil and can’t be used anymore. Do you feel like this was all a wasted effort?”
Huai Yu looked up. “No, I don’t!”
Chapter 272: Going Home
Huai Yu touched the pink-and-white rose once more. “This was originally its root anyway, so it’s only normal for it to take root in the soil again.”
Zhou Qian closed his eyes.
Right now, his entire body was aching, his shoulders felt too heavy to lift, and he was thoroughly exhausted. Yet, he used the last of his energy to voice a question: “I heard the vines of the Rose Corridor can stretch for dozens of miles, so why didn’t it just go drag the tree cocoon back itself?”
True, it had taken them three days to go to Sanqing Mountain and back, but if one calculated the straight-line distance, it wasn’t actually that exaggerated. If the branches traveled through the air, it would be an even shorter distance.
So, why did he have to carry it all the way down?
Huai Yu: “…”
She said weakly, “How could I possibly know what’s on the Rose Corridor’s mind?”
Zhou Qian fell silent as well.
After a moment, he waved his hand. “Go cook. I need to rest after eating.”
Huai Yu felt as if she had received a grand amnesty. “Right away! I’ll chop up some crispy pork lard residue right now, throw in some wild greens, dried eggplant, and dried cowpea beans, and cook a whole pot of dough drop soup for you! Oh, right, Brother Zhou Qian, you’ve worked so hard, do you want me to add a few mushrooms for you?”
Zhou Qian remained deadpan. “What, using the spore powder inside my leg?”
Huai Yu vanished in a flash.
Zhou Qian shot a look at the troublesome girl, then turned around, got on his bicycle, and headed straight for his own house.
Having stayed on the mountain for two nights, he was covered in a sour, foul stench; it was time to clean himself up quickly. However, when he drew up a bucket of freezing well water and took off his shirt, he couldn’t help but stare at his leg, then stomped his foot:
“The spore powder—get it all out for me.”
After a long silence, a pile of pale yellow spore powder cascaded down onto the magazine pages lined up on the floor.
……
Meanwhile, Huai Yu was actually exhausted to the limit too, but she had slept like a log during the night. Coupled with carrying less weight and being uninjured, her condition was actually better than Zhou Qian’s.
Thinking about how they had narrowly escaped death this time, she also felt a bit guilty. So she scooped a generous basin of flour, chopped up the dried eggplant that had been thoroughly rubbed and marinated with chili and garlic, and mixed it together with the crispy lard residue from the pork fat container!
In between, she quickly ran to the vegetable patch and specially picked a handful of tender little wild greens, then added a handful of cowpeas that had grown so old their pods were fibrous and stringy, shelling a whole bowl of cowpea beans in just a few moves.
As she heated the oil in the wok, a faint trace of regret rose in her heart—if only she could crack an egg into this, how fragrant would it be!
But while real meat could be obtained these days, eggs were worth their weight in gold. The four little chicks at home were underperforming and hadn’t reached the age to lay eggs yet!
She stirred the flour batter in the pot while restraining her cravings.
By the time Zhou Qian cleaned up and walked over, the well-mixed batter was dripping through a strainer grain by grain into the bubbling broth in the pot, setting instantly into shape and cooking through in a single flash.
The rich aromas of lard and cowpea beans fused together, instantly making Zhou Qian’s stomach growl with hunger after choking down flatbreads for days—especially during their final meal, when their flatbreads hadn’t even been enough to satisfy them.
In short, the two of them were now sitting at the dining table with one large and one small basin in front of them. The moment it came out of the pot, a handful of minced scallions had been scattered over the batter soup, displaying green vegetables, milky-white dough drops, vibrant green scallions, purple cowpea beans, alongside brown bits of lard residue and diced eggplant…
Zhou Qian used his chopsticks to trace a circle around the rim of his basin, blew on it gently, and then carefully slurped it into his mouth!
In this sweltering summer weather, drinking such a bowl of hot dough drop soup made his pores open instantly, causing another layer of hot sweat to erupt.
But—
“Home is still the most comfortable!” Huai Yu spoke first.
Then the two of them exchanged a glance and broke into a laugh.
……
Zhou Qian quickly went back to rest after finishing his meal—going up the mountain with this heartless girl meant that as long as she was tired, she could sleep spread-eagled, while he had to keep his heart in his throat…
He truly was exhausted now.
Meanwhile, Huai Yu was tidying up the dining table—having been away for three days with the doors closed, the two vases of flowers on the table had withered due to poor ventilation, so she prepared to change them for fresh ones.
To her surprise, just as she picked up a vase, she saw Ketaro holding a familiar pink flower ball with its front claws, watching her cautiously from the doorway.
“…” Its wings vibrated slightly, revealing the transparent membranous wings inside.
Having survived a brush with death, everyone Huai Yu looked at now seemed sleeker and more adorable than that mutated macaque. She quickly set down the vase, dashed out the door, and scooped Ketaro up in a big hug:
“Wow! Ketaro! You seem to have gotten fat, you’re heavier!”
Ketaro hadn’t finished packing the flower ball with its front claws yet. Caught off guard by the pressure against its chest, the ball shattered instantly.
Huai Yu hurriedly set it down, frantically brushing away the remnants. “I’m sorry, Ketaro! I haven’t seen you for days, I got too excited.”
Ketaro didn’t mind at all. It gently tapped her with its antennae, then turned around and walked toward its small hutch. As Huai Yu instinctively followed, she finally understood what it wanted to say—
Oh no! She had forgotten to empty Ketaro’s box before leaving! Now, the massive box was piled so high it formed a peak, and a few balls were scattered over the ground…
No wonder Ketaro was anxious!
Huai Yu quickly dragged the box out. “Oh dear, I forgot! Ketaro, the weather is so hot, you don’t have to work so hard—come, I’ll empty the box for you right now!”
She beamed as she stared at the multicolored flower balls. “In a couple of days, we’ll go find Uncle Date at the trading market. These will definitely fetch a high price again—Ketaro, I’ll find you some fresh medicinal herbs or something then.”
It was unclear if Ketaro understood, but seeing Huai Yu nimbly dump that box of Kelang pills into a sealed container, leaving its own box empty once more and ready to hold several days’ worth of results, its antennae swayed left and right, looking visibly delighted.
There were too many members in the household. Having resolved Ketaro’s minor worry, Huai Yu hurried over to check on the ginseng—she had force-grown a round last time, and they had all grown into decent shapes by now. It was just that she didn’t know where Da Pang had gone to play; its white toddler walker was nowhere to be seen around.
Next were the chicks—the chicks were currently entrusted to Da Zai and Er Zai, Da Zai and Er Zai were entrusted to Kuang Biao, and Kuang Biao and Xiao Kui were entrusted to the Rose Corridor!
In short, the relationships were subcontracted layer by layer. Since the Rose Corridor was in a decent mood, it proved nothing had gone wrong at home. Huai Yu thought about it and brought along the half-basin of cowpea beans left over from lunch.
—When returning from a business trip to see the kids, how could one not bring some treats?
She stood at the doorway and looked up, but could only see the corners of the roof. So she backed away a considerable distance, and looking up again, she could see the yellow flowers, as massive as millstones, blooming brilliantly, dish after dish chasing the sun.
They hadn’t seen each other for only three days, but looking at them now, it seemed as if the sunflower seeds inside were already mature!
There was just one flaw…
Huai Yu lowered her head, wiping away her tears in embarrassment: Xiao Kui’s flowers were like sheets of metal; they reflected far too much light. Every time she stole a few extra glances, she couldn’t stop herself from crying. It really was too embarrassing.
Chapter 273: Let’s Break Up (Dream)
The sunflowers had actually only been blooming for a short while, and many hadn’t bloomed yet. They were still a long way away from producing seeds, but Huai Yu was just too cravings-stricken, so every time she saw the massive flower discs, she couldn’t help but fantasize about them.
The moment she fantasized, she would stare absentmindedly, and staring absentmindedly would lead to tears…
In any case, she wiped away her tears, brought along the half-basin of cowpea beans, and came to the back of the house:
“Kuang Biao! Da Zai, Er Zai! Xiao Kui!”
“I’ve been gone for days. Did you miss me?”
They absolutely did!
One look at Da Zai and Er Zai, who came charging out from the bamboo forest upon hearing the commotion, made it blindingly obvious. They squawked and honked as their sea-urchin-like bodies forcefully snuggled into Huai Yu’s embrace, acting both manly and bizarre in their coddling.
But they were the babies she had hatched with her own hands after all, so Huai Yu felt incredibly protective and doting. “Good babies, did you eat well these past few days? Was the food left for you enough? You weren’t bullied by Kuang Biao, right?”
Faced with this three-part question, Xiao Kui remained aloof and completely unmoved, but Kuang Biao utterly shed its previous depression from being heartbroken. The entire patch of bamboo reverted to its chatterbox mode—
“Oh my, gone for three or four days, completely abandoning the house, aren’t you?”
“The two of you can’t even beat me, yet you dared to go into the deep mountains!”
“How was it? You originally said you’d be back in a day or two, but now you’ve been delayed to this extent. You must have suffered a lot, right?”
“Sigh, I told you the deep mountains are incredibly dangerous… What is there to look at? When you go to the wilderness, bring me along. I guarantee we’ll slice through everything like splitting bamboo, completely invincible.”
After saying that, it felt like something was slightly off. It thought about it for a long while before finally snapping out of it:
“Oh, I’m the bamboo that got split… Tsk, this metaphor won’t do!”
It had to be said that when its loud voice rang out, Huai Yu actually found herself missing its previous demeanor a little. Back then, it would only talk if asked, and it would absolutely never ramble otherwise.
But regardless, seeing it recover its high-spirited and vigorous state, Huai Yu felt thoroughly delighted as well. “Yeah, the deep mountains really are very dangerous.”
“It’s fine to bring you to the wilderness, but if we need to fight, won’t you have to stake out a territory to grow up first before fighting?”
“If that’s the case, we’d have to make an appointment a day in advance when we battle the enemy! That’s too inconvenient!”
Kuang Biao’s bamboo leaves shook all over. “Why would it require a day in advance? I can clearly grow up in less than six hours!”
“But…” Huai Yu grew hesitant. “Mutated plants are everywhere. Before you take root, you’ll have to battle them first! If you don’t leave a day’s time, there won’t be any gap for you to grow at all.”
Kuang Biao: “…”
Oh no.
The boasting had gone too far.
If the mutated animals and plants in the wilderness teamed up to deal with it, it—it—it didn’t have much combat experience!
Kuang Biao thus refused to answer this question, immediately shifting her attention instead: “How was it? Did you see that exceptionally fierce mutated red pine?”
“No.” Huai Yu shook her head. “I didn’t see where it was at all, but I ran into a giant pine tree that was very nice to me. Brother Zhou Qian kept insisting that it was the one… How could that be possible.”
“Exactly!” Kuang Biao also scoffed at this conclusion. “That mutated red pine is so ferocious and overbearing, how could it be the pine tree that gave you pinecones? That Zhou Qian! He grew so tall all for nothing!”
It shook its head, causing the entire bamboo forest to rustle loudly.
Meanwhile, Huai Yu cradled Da Zai and Er Zai in her arms. The sea-urchin-like sharp spikes on their bodies were flattened and retracted; as long as she stroked them along the grain, they wouldn’t prick or injure her at all.
At this moment, Huai Yu even pinched their flat beaks. “So good!”
After this trip to Sanqing Mountain, while stroking their round, plump bodies, Huai Yu had indeed absorbed the lesson—
She absolutely had to bring plenty of Kelang pills; those for healing, neutralizing venom, and replenishing qi and blood were all necessary.
She had to bring Da Zai and Er Zai along too. She didn’t expect them to be the primary combat force, but when Zhou Qian couldn’t hold his ground, the two of them could slip in and launch a surprise ambush. With a sharp beak that possessed an armor-breaking attribute, they could just directly pierce straight into the enemy’s torso.
Next were the sunflower seeds—although she hadn’t had time to plant the landmark during this trip to Sanqing Mountain, it was always good to be prepared.
Most importantly—
Huai Yu thought about the car they had newly bought. The space inside was so spacious, and the truck bed was equally capable of hauling a lot! As long as it was useful, she could put it right inside.
When the time came, she would bring the tree cocoon along as well. It could fight and heal, and she herself could generate emotional value; it could be considered a thorough preparation!
Hehe! Having a car is so wonderful!
After checking everything over completely, Huai Yu finally felt entirely at ease. Presently, she brought her clothes along to her rudimentary shower room.
The weather was still sweltering, but when the cold water poured down over her head, she couldn’t help but give a sudden shudder. Fortunately, she adapted to it rapidly. No matter how intermittent the stream from a shower was, it was far more convenient than before.
While waiting for the water to accumulate overhead, Huai Yu wrung the towel in her basin. Then, a massive wave of exhaustion hit her, and she grew drowsy as well.
……
The two of them slept like logs, completely dead to the world, until Zhou Qian crawled out of bed in the middle of the night. Feeling his growling, empty stomach, he finally realized his oversight—
If he had known, he should have brought some food back to his room.
He gulped down a cup of water and simply turned right back around to sleep. Once he was asleep, he wouldn’t feel the hunger anymore.
On the other end, pink petals drifted gracefully, carried by the night breeze through the window to the side of the bed. As Huai Yu lay there, she unconsciously drifted into a dream once again—
“Wu Yue, let’s break off our relationship.”
In the dream, it was already the lush, overgrown world after the cataclysm. Deep and light shades of green blanketed everything in every direction. Wu Yue and Huai Yu stood in a corner of the base, the girl’s face laced with complete exhaustion.
She extended her hand; calluses lined her palms and fingertips, a stark contrast to her current soft, white, and tender self. She had likely cried; her double eyelids, which had been made to look slightly mature through post-surgery enhancement, were red and swollen, standing out in an exceptionally abrupt manner on her palm-sized small face.
Even her expression was haggard.
As she spread open such a rough palm, two pieces of vibrant green sprouts rapidly grew and spread. They were frail and delicate, affectionately wrapping around her fingers, while her slightly pained words rang out:
“Let’s break up. I’m not joking, nor is it a temporary whim; I’ve thought about it for a very long time.”
“I have an ability too, and I want to join the Garrison Army. Even if it’s just doing logistics, that’s fine…”
The young man opposite her knit his brows, his eyes filled with complete incomprehension. “Huai Yu, I am not a tyrannical person, and I haven’t stopped you from joining the Garrison Army!”
“As long as you meet the requirements…”
Huai Yu interrupted him, “The requirement is to have sufficient control and familiarity over one’s own ability—but I am still not strong enough right now. Is it because I haven’t worked hard enough?”
She saw a familiar blankness on the face of the man opposite her, a blankness that left her feeling increasingly powerless. “You indeed cannot be called tyrannical, but I don’t want to come home after a hard day of scratching out a living or training only to serve your mother’s various picky eating habits, cleanliness compulsions, and demands for housework.”
