Chapter 38: Still So Simple

Chapter 38: Chapter 38: Still So Simple

The woven basket was too large; even though she only dumped out less than half a basket of wild vegetables, it still filled a whole basin to the brim. There wasn’t much Alpine leek—just five stalks. They were washed clean in a few quick scrubs. It smelled like a mix of scallion and garlic, exceptionally fragrant. What a pity it was so heavily polluted. And there was Osha... If this were mixed with meat for steamed buns, Huai Yu didn’t even dare to think too deeply about it, afraid she would drool!

She placed her palm over the wild vegetables, pressing down lightly, and imagined the energy surging. Perhaps her superpower had improved, or maybe it was because the quantity of vegetables was small, but after purifying the Alpine leek and Osha, she didn’t feel too drained.

Next came the bracken. This stuff aged too quickly. From the time it was picked, to bringing it back, and now stripping away the fuzzy rings on top, a quick pinch of the roots revealed they had already toughened up. Huai Yu didn’t want to waste her superpower, so she swung her kitchen knife to chop off the aged roots before starting the purification.

In contrast, this massive basin full of bracken made her feel strained again. She realized her efficiency was far too low. She felt a bit dismayed. Her ability didn’t seem capable of large-scale use yet; she was afraid she would be stuck doing these small-scale operations for a long time.

After washing them clean again, they took up another basin. She clicked her tongue, realizing she had forgotten to buy a jar. Without a tight seal, she wondered if the bracken would even pickle properly. Huai Yu wasn’t sure, but since things had already come to this, she would just have to make do. It wouldn’t spoil over a single night anyway.

When she poured from the salt bag, her heart bled. It cost ten points a bag! Pickling the bracken used up more than half of it. She could make do with whipping up something for herself to eat, but if she ran out of points, would she have to find a salt mine to scrape salt from? And oil... She sighed and looked around. Before the heavy rain, she felt her home was fully equipped; after the heavy rain, she felt she was left with four bare walls. After some thought, she finally set her sights on the bean sprouts.

"You guys better not let me down..."

Later that day, without any oil, Huai Yu didn’t have a very pleasant meal. The wild vegetables were blanched in boiling water and mixed with a little salt. The texture... it wasn’t exactly like eating grass, but it definitely made her wonder what all her tossing and turning had been for. Moreover, these things weren’t filling. Using her superpower so much made her hungry faster, so she had to pair it with a packet of nutrient fluid. It was a mouthful of salty grass followed by a mouthful of nutrient fluid. The taste was thrilling, to say the least. After barely finishing it, Huai Yu felt she couldn’t stomach another meal of this.

This only made her miss the hot, crispy roasted soybeans from that night even more. Back then, there had been someone to talk to. Now, eating such terrible food, she didn’t even have anyone to complain to. She felt a bit lonely.

The next morning, the radio buzzed to life.

"Today is Sunday, March 29, 2066. Overcast turning cloudy. Air Mutant Value index: 11. The pollution levels of Sanqing Mountain and the Wilderness are still slowly increasing. Citizens are advised to..."

Huai Yu woke up to the familiar broadcast, lying in her sleeping bag in a daze for a long while. She turned her head. In the dim room, the fire in the blue brick brazier had already gone out. Sleeping alone, she didn’t dare leave the fire burning at night. It wasn’t that she was afraid of burning the house down, but rather that the doors were sealed so tightly that the smoke wouldn’t be able to escape.

For some reason, she thought of Lin Xuefeng again. Even though she had only spent a single night with him, she had tasted what it felt like to have company. Moreover, he was incredibly meticulous, calm, and trustworthy. Thus, she, who hadn’t felt lonely before, now frequently caught herself feeling that things were too quiet.

But Huai Yu quickly cheered herself up! She was currently too weak and didn’t dare live in crowded places. Because she didn’t have enough points, she couldn’t build a more decent house yet. However, she was so capable that she would have all these things sooner or later! As long as selling the bean sprouts went smoothly today!

At the thought of the bean sprouts, Huai Yu’s spirits instantly lifted, and she hurriedly unzipped herself from the sleeping bag. Getting out of bed and slipping into her cold, damp slippers, the very first thing she did was lift the basin.

"Wow!"

The bean sprouts in the bamboo basket were densely packed together, squeezing against one another. The milky yellow beans had probably been exposed to light when she frequently used the basin over the past two days, as they were now slightly tinged with green. But the sprouts growing from the middle were already five centimeters long. Plump, white, crisp, and tender, a gentle snap would likely produce a satisfying crunch.

Such plump bean sprouts. Whether used in a stew with crispy pork or stir-fried with vinegar... Huai Yu couldn’t help but fantasize! Then, she hurried to wash up and slurped down a bag of nutrient fluid in the face of cruel reality. She only had seven bags of nutrient fluid left. Just to be safe, she decided to stock up on a few more bags during this trip.

She shouldered her woven basket, placed the basket of bean sprouts directly inside, and covered it with the basin. After a moment of thought, she scooped out the salt-pickled bracken from yesterday, drained the water, and placed it in the woven basket as well. After all, she had no oil, and she didn’t want to eat any more wild weeds anytime soon.

"Time to head out! Destination: Red Victory Pedestrian Street!"

Later, at the Red Victory Trading Market.

Over the past few days, as long as it wasn’t raining, Boss Tang would immediately come to his shop. From time to time, he would also stroll around the four entrances of the trading market. Today was no exception. Due to the continuous rainy weather, there were many buyers at the trading market, but few sellers. Several people at the testing station were idling about, and they started chatting.

"That bracken was absolutely amazing... When I bought it and brought it home at noon that day, my wife even scolded me for wasting points. But the moment I told her the Mutant Value was only 9, she shut up immediately."

"Yeah, yeah, thank goodness I acted fast that day! 30 points a pound is expensive, but it was totally worth it! My daughter even cried while eating it... The poor thing is only six years old and has never tasted anything good in her life."

"Yeah, absolutely... That girl was so honest. She even gave us a little extra..."

"It’s a good thing we bought it. Look at the heavy rain that night—what happened to the vegetable prices the next day? People dared to ask 18 points a pound for things with a Mutant Value of 16..."

"I don’t even know where she gets such good stuff. Look at her—she dresses quite plainly, carrying a basket every time like she’s hauling wholesale goods, but who knew she’d whip out such top-tier items."

"Ah, you just don’t get it. A young girl coming out to sell things by herself? Her family must have warned her a thousand times. How could she not dress a little shabbily?"

"That’s true. No one dares to flaunt their wealth nowadays... Speaking of which, why did the price of gold go up again? I was thinking of buying a gold ring for my mom, but who knew it’d reach one hundred points a gram..."

Their conversation jumped from one topic to another, quickly shifting from gold to the rising prices after the rain. They even brought up how raincoats were selling for 165 points a couple of days ago. Boss Tang listened with feigned nonchalance, but in his mind, he had formed a clearer picture of Huai Yu. Caution was good. Caution meant no one would discover his VIP client. It made perfect sense why she had been wearing a broken watch and using the most basic bracelet he had given her.

Just as he was pondering this, he suddenly spotted a frail girl at the nearby bus stop. Carrying a large woven basket, she arrived on the bus looking as plain and unassuming as ever! A bright smile instantly bloomed on Boss Tang’s face. He was just about to take a couple of steps forward to welcome her when the men from the testing station beside him called out faster than he could:

"Miss! Come over here! No need to wait in line!"

"Hurry, hurry, hurry!"

The men lowered their voices like thieves. "Don’t worry, our lips are sealed! Just come to us for your testing from now on. We’ll take good care of you!"