Before leaving the house, she reminded Zhuang Zhuang to study hard. Initially, Zhuang Zhuang had wanted to follow her, but Xiaoguo would not let him. After leaving the house, she went up the mountains and followed the markings she had made to the lake. There were a lot of fish in the lake, but less than the last time. In the trap, there were only two or three of them. Repeating what she had done the last time, she forced the fish into a corner and slowly drove them into the basket.
Xiaoguo went ashore and carried the basket on her back. She came to the trap which she had set among the woods. There was no prey inside. As she turned to leave, she bumped into the nest of pheasants that she had seen before. One of the big pheasants was staring with suspicion at Xiaoguo, thinking that she was going to steal its eggs. Xiaoguo was speechless. She snickered to herself and left the bird alone.
She began walking towards the location of the potatoes. Unexpectedly, she found a Chinese honey locust tree on the way.
At first, she did not notice it. However, after so many trips up the mountains, she had never noticed the tree. It turned out that it was hidden among a cluster of big red fir trees—making it especially inconspicuous. This time, she only noticed it because she felt that something was amiss.
Xiaoguo quickly ran over and was shocked when she arrived in front of it. The tree looked short in contrast to the towering trees around it. However, when she got nearer to it, she realized that it was exceptionally lush. The leaves hanging from the branches were abundant and dense. The tree also had a good height.
She guessed that it might be because no one had cut its leaves in a long time.
Although the tree was short, it was still a lot taller than a person. Unable to reach the leaves, Xiaoguo had no choice but to remove the basket on her back and swing the sickle towards the branches. With some strength, she managed to catch a hanging branch using the sickle. The height was just right. By tip-toeing, she managed to remove quite a number of fruit pods from the branch easily.
Knowing that she had to leave some space for the potatoes, Xiaoguo could not fill the basket with too many pods. She let go of the branch when she felt that she had gathered enough. This time, she did not mark the spot as she could identify the tree’s location.
Xiaoguo carried the basket to where the potatoes were. She put down the basket and squatted down to pull out the potatoes. This time, she put the seedlings aside. She would bring them back to feed the animals at home.
Afraid of crushing the fish to death, she placed the potatoes at the bottom of the basket before putting in the soap pods. The fish was put in next. Xiaoguo then placed the seedlings above everything and covered the basket. It was perfect.
Because of the seedlings, the basket with its lid on, had already reached half her height. Xiaoguo gathered her strength and slowly stood up with the basket on her back. After steadying herself, she walked down the mountains in the direction of home. On the way, she picked some mushrooms and stuffed them into the basket. She would stir-fry them for lunch.
When she got home, the fragrance of food was lingering in the air. Zhuang Zhuang had already learned five new words and was anxiously waiting for Xiaoguo to come home and check on his work.
At this moment, he saw her approaching the house and immediately ran over. He was not in a hurry to let her see his writing. Instead, he helped her carry the basket.
“Aiyo,” Xiaoguo let out a cry and stretched her aching body. With the aid of her superpower, she recovered from her tiredness almost instantly.
She washed her hands first before going through Zhuang Zhuang’s handwriting. The words written were as neat as ever, each stroke was precise and clear.
Xiaoguo praised Zhuang Zhuang and sat down at the table with him. Zhuang Zhuang closed the book and obediently held the brush, waiting for her to recite the words so he could write them down accordingly.
The fishing village on the other side…
Jiang Danhe warned Li Shouji, who was about to leave, “Don’t go to the mountains. I don’t eat wild chickens.”
Li Shouji reluctantly retracted his left foot and looked back at the man who was eating porridge. “Got it.”
Although he said that, he was feeling unsettled.
Jiang Danhe knew what he was thinking with a glance. He put down the bowl in his hand and looked at him solemnly. “This is a critical moment. We can’t let anything happen to ourselves.”
Seeing the tense expression on Li Shouji’s face, Jiang Danhe softened his tone and said, “I’m almost recovered. I don’t need to nourish my body. Please don’t go again. If no one had saved you the last time, you would have most likely died on the mountains.”
Li Shouji sighed softly. “That’s true. It’s all thanks to that man.”
Knowing that he had given up, Jiang Danhe heaved a sigh of relief. At this juncture, they must not allow anything to go wrong. After this was over, he would be able to go home.
“When will the troops arrive?” Jiang Danhe asked Li Shouji in a lowered voice.
When Li Shouji talked about serious matters, he couldn’t help but put on a respectful expression. He stood up straight and said, “General, three days at the latest.”
Jiang Danhe nodded thoughtfully. ‘Soon. Very soon.’
“Why don’t we go take a look?” Jiang Danhe said after a while. This matter had to be foolproof.
Li Shouji nodded. “I will leave first thing in the morning.”