He said in that deep, even tone of his, "The fat bull tribe grows this. They eat it often. They also sell it to the Bird Tribe for trading."
Su Qinglan’s mouth fell open. "They... grow it?!"
She looked down again at the shiny grains, still half afraid they would vanish if she blinked. She rubbed one between her fingers and then smelled it...yes, there was no mistake. That faint scent of sun-dried grain was the same one she had grown up with in her old world.
"It really is rice," she whispered, almost teary-eyed. "I never thought I’d see it again..."
Xuan Long tilted his head slightly, watching her reaction with quiet curiosity. "Do you like it that much?"
Su Qinglan laughed, half crying, half smiling. "Like it? I love it! This is what I always want! I can make porridge, rice cakes, and even steamed rice!"
Her eyes shone as she held the leaf bundle like a treasure. "Do you have more of this? Or did you just find this much?"
"I brought what I could carry," Xuan Long replied calmly. "If you want more, I can take you to where they grow it."
Her head shot up. "Really?!"
He nodded once. "Yes. The Fat Bull Tribe’s territory is not too far from here. It is called Niuzan Plains. They have wide fields and grow this grain in the mud. They trade it with other tribes."
"Niuzan Plains..." she repeated softly, as if tasting the name. "Even the name sounds like a rice field."
Then she turned to him with eyes shining like stars. "Xuan Long, you have to take me there! Please!"
He blinked again, slightly taken aback by her bright expression. His lips curved ever so slightly. "If you wish to go, I will take you," he said simply.
Su Qinglan grinned from ear to ear. She quickly sat down again, inspecting every grain like a precious jewel. "I can’t believe this... rice in the Beast World! It’s even bigger than the ones from my world..."
Su Qinglan’s whole body was buzzing with excitement. She wanted to leave right away...go see that rice field, the Niuzan Plains that Xuan Long mentioned. Just thinking about it made her heart race.
"Let’s go!" she said eagerly, grabbing the leaf bundle of rice. "Right now! I can’t wait to see it!"
But as she turned to head out, her eyes fell on the half-smashed fruits sitting in the big stone bowl. The sticky, sweet mixture was still there, uncovered, with juice running down the sides. A few small bugs were already circling around it.
She froze, then sighed.
"Oh no," she muttered, placing the rice bundle back on the stone. "If I leave this like this, insects will get in for sure. I worked so hard on this too..."
She bit her lip, torn between the shining image of endless rice fields in her mind and the sticky mess in front of her.
Finally, she gave a small groan and sat back down. "Fine! Just a little while. I’ll finish this first."
Xuan Long, who had been waiting quietly near the cave entrance, tilted his head. "You are not coming now?"
"I will," she said quickly, brushing her hair from her face. "But I can’t leave this half-finished. It’ll attract insects and go bad. I just need to squeeze out the juice and cover it properly before it ferments."
He looked at the bowl for a moment, then walked over without a word. "I will help."
Su Qinglan blinked, surprised. "You’ll help me? You don’t mind?"
"I don’t," he said in his usual calm tone. "You are small. It will take you long."
She couldn’t argue with that. She smiled gratefully. "Alright then! You can help crush the rest. We need to get all the juice out."
She pointed to a thick wooden stick lying beside the wall. "Use that...it’s perfect for smashing the pulp."
Xuan Long picked it up easily, and Su Qinglan quickly showed him how. "Just press and twist like this. You don’t have to hit it hard....Ah, wait, not that hard!"
But it was too late. Xuan Long’s first press made a loud squelching sound, and juice splashed everywhere...on her arms, on his chest, and even on the cave wall.
Su Qinglan stared at the dripping mess for a moment, then burst out laughing. "You’re too strong! You’re going to turn it into flying wine instead of fruit wine!"
Xuan Long looked down at his hand, then at her, slightly frowning. "It is soft," he said seriously. "It breaks too easily."
She giggled, wiping her hands with a leaf. "That’s because you’re crushing it like you’re fighting an enemy! Gently, gently!"
This time, he tried again...more carefully. His movements were slower, but strong enough that the remaining fruits turned into thick pulp in just a few presses. The juice quickly filled the bottom of the stone bowl, glistening golden-red in the light.
"Perfect!" Su Qinglan said happily. "Now we just need to drain it."
She fetched a wide leaf and folded it into a cone shape, using it to pour the juice into another smaller stone jar she had washed earlier. The sweet smell of the fruit spread through the cave, making her mouth water.
When all the juice was collected, she nodded in satisfaction. "Now we cover it with clean hide and let it sit near the warm stone outside. That’s how it ferments."
She took a clean piece of beast hide, tied it over the jar with a thin vine rope, and carefully placed it near the cave entrance where sunlight reached.
"There," she said proudly, brushing her hands. "All done! My first beast-world wine is officially brewing!"
She turned toward Xuan Long, who was still holding the wooden stick. "Thanks for helping. I couldn’t have finished this so fast without you."
He gave a small nod. "It is fine...you looked pleased."
"I am!" she said cheerfully, looking at the sealed jar like it was a treasure. "If it works, I’ll let you taste it first. But don’t get drunk, okay?"
Xuan Long raised an eyebrow slightly. "Drunk?"
Su Qinglan giggled. "You’ll see. It means dizzy and funny after drinking too much."
He looked at her for a moment, as if trying to understand why someone would drink something that makes them dizzy. But in the end, he just said, "Then I will be careful."
She laughed again, tying her hair up with a strip of beast hide. "Alright! Now that’s done, we can finally go to the rice fields!"