Chapter 98: Cold Winter

Chapter 98: Chapter 98: Cold Winter

The sun was high in the sky.

In the courtyard of Vili’s home, next to Wally’s bear den, a small wooden hutch had appeared. Two layers of wire mesh were wrapped around its exterior.

This was the new home for the Earth Medicine Rats, the hutch Vili had ordered Yadon to build for the two little creatures.

Fearing the two Earth Medicine Rats would chew a hole in the wood and escape, Yadon had added the two layers of wire mesh. However, his craftsmanship was so poor that the new hutch looked like a shabby steel wool ball.

"These two little things are so ugly."

Vilia peered through the hutch’s window, watching the two Earth Medicine Rats scurry about restlessly. The female was calmer; being pregnant, she only scurried around in the corner a bit before letting out a couple of squeaks. The male, on the other hand, was constantly leaping about, trying to jump out through the window hole. But the opening was too small, and every time its head got stuck, it had to push against the wooden plank with its short forelimbs to fall back into the hutch.

"They may be ugly, but they’re very useful."

Vili was squatting nearby, also sizing up the two little creatures.

After watching for a moment, he turned and called out to Wally, who was dozing in the courtyard, "Wally, bring me the basket of herbs."

Vili pointed to the basket in the corner by the house’s outer wall.

These were herbs Vili had gathered on the side after entering the forest before. Since they weren’t of great value, he had just dried them and stored them at home.

While these herbs were nothing special, their medicinal properties and nutrients were more than enough to satisfy the Earth Medicine Rats’ appetite. After eating them, the rats would quickly break them down and catalyze them, excreting high-quality fertilizer.

Upon hearing Vili’s command, Wally’s drooping ears twitched, and he quickly fetched the basket, placing it at Vili’s feet.

"Vilia, watch carefully how I feed them. From now on, you’ll feed them just like this."

Vili said to Vilia as he pushed the herbs into the Earth Medicine Rats’ hutch.

"No! I don’t want to feed these two ugly things!"

Vilia wore a look of disgust and immediately protested vehemently.

Vili ignored Vilia’s protest. "I’ll pay you a salary. One Copper Rum per day."

"Just one Copper Rum?"

Vilia was no longer the little girl from a struggling family. Now, with their improved living situation, her threshold for being impressed by money had unknowingly risen.

"At least five Copper Rums!"

Vilia raised the price fivefold. Although she didn’t want to raise these two ugly things, she was willing to consider it for the money. After all, her father and mother never gave her an allowance, always using the excuse that she was too young.

"One Copper Rum."

Vili continued feeding the herbs, his expression unchanged.

Vilia’s brows furrowed, and she bit her lip. "Three Copper Rums."

"One."

Vili was unmoved.

Vilia clenched her small fists, her brows knitting together tightly. As if having made a great resolution, she ground out, "Two. A minimum of two Copper Rums. Otherwise, don’t even think about making me do your dirty work."

"Deal!"

The moment the words left Vilia’s mouth, she saw Vili looking at her with a wide grin.

Vilia was instantly indignant. The moment she saw Vili smiling so wide his teeth showed, she knew she’d been played.

But even though she was a little frustrated, the thought of earning two Copper Rums a day made Vilia accept it.

’Two Copper Rums a day, that’s sixty Copper Rums a month...’

At this thought, Vilia suddenly broke into a grin. None of her friends in the village had ever seen such a huge sum of money.

After teaching Vilia how to feed the Earth Medicine Rats and the right amount of food, Vili washed his hands of the matter.

He didn’t have that much time to waste on trivial matters. Most of his time should be spent practicing the Frost Knight Breathing Technique.

Just as he was about to head to the backyard, Vili saw Lake hurry back from outside, a helpless look on his face.

Given Lake’s diligence, he should have been patrolling Fandou Village at this time. Why was he back so early?

"What’s wrong, Father?"

Vili asked casually.

Lake grunted, then shook his head. "I have to make a trip to Diamond Town to buy some more farm tools."

"Everyone’s working hard, but the tools we bought before are too low-quality. It’s only been a little over a month, and they’re already damaged and useless. I really miss our time in Xiangguo Village, when Ubi alone could handle the entire village’s need for farm tools."

Lake grumbled to Vili, "If only we could get Ubi to come to Fandou Village, but that guy would never agree."

Lake’s face was full of regret.

Vili sniffed. "That must be tough, Father."

In his eyes, this was a minor issue. But for Lake, whose heart and soul were in Fandou Village, even the slightest problem in its construction was intolerable.

After a brief exchange, Vili went to the backyard and continued practicing the Frost Knight Breathing Technique.

His progress was still holding at around seventy percent. The further he went, the more difficult the practice became.

However, since there was nothing urgent, Vili’s state of mind was relatively peaceful.

He deliberately controlled his breathing and began to integrate it with his Combined Techniques.

...

Days in Fandou Village passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, nearly half a month had gone by.

The winter was growing colder. Early winter had just passed, and it wasn’t yet deep winter, but even so, the villagers were already bundled in thick, padded clothes. This was especially true for the children, who were wrapped in so many layers they looked like little balls from a distance.

These clothes were very worn, mostly remade from the tattered garments of the adults in their families.

In this weather, even Vili would feel cold in a single layer of clothing and had to add an outer coat.

’This winter is going to be even harder than I imagined...’

Vili looked up at the distant horizon. The sky was dim, the clouds heavy. It looked like it was about to snow.

Although the Star-Spotted Snow Root and Beans currently growing in Fandou Village were cold-resistant crops, they had their limits. If the temperature dropped to negative fifteen degrees Celsius or even lower, both the Star-Spotted Snow Root and the Beans would stop growing.

’Looks like I need to come up with a plan...’

Vili mulled over his options as he strolled through Fandou Village.

Just as he reached the village entrance, Vili suddenly heard the villagers’ shouts of dismissal and a man’s pleading voice.

He was about to go forward to see what was happening when he saw Yadon jogging over.

"What’s going on?"

Vili asked Yadon.

Yadon, bundled in a padded jacket that had been patched countless times, his face red and chapped from the cold, even showing signs of frostbite, explained with a shiver, "A refugee with a child wants Fandou Village to take him in..."

Take him in?

Vili raised an eyebrow.