Chapter 639 - 332: Everything for the Baby’s Mother

Chapter 639: Chapter 332: Everything for the Baby’s Mother

Huai Zi turned to the side, squatted slightly, and carefully lowered the wicker basket from his shoulder. He let out a long breath before saying to Juhua, "Wash these berries with warm water before you eat them. There are a lot of bugs in the mountains, so they’re not very clean."

Juhua nodded quickly and stepped forward to ask, "Did you go out first thing this morning? I already saw the wood ear mushrooms. You made two trips?"

Huai Zi nodded, looking at her with a smile. "I’ve been wanting to go pick these berries and dig up a tree root for a while. So I went today." As he spoke, he started to move the tree root out of the wicker basket, which had long since been crushed under the weight.

Juhua looked at the tree root on the ground. The upper part of the main trunk was thick, gnarled, and powerful, its bark a network of deep furrows. It looked like a stooped old man, his face full of laughing wrinkles. A few branches extended horizontally—the thick ones coiled like dragons, while the thin ones resembled nimble snakes peering out.

This section of deadwood should have been simple and imposing, yet from the tips of the main trunk and branches sprouted several clusters of glossy green leaves. Tender and smooth, they swayed gently, brimming with a unique vitality that lent the deadwood a touch of soft beauty.

What a perfect picture of deadwood reviving in spring!

Looking closer at the root section, the soil was damp and covered in dark moss. Tiny blades of grass and wild seedlings grew in clumps. There was even a thin vine coiling and climbing upward, while on the other side, a few small, round mushrooms had sprouted, looking quite adorable. A large section in the middle of the root had also rotted away, gnawed by something into a small hollow shaped like a mountain pass. A little clear, shallow water had collected inside—perhaps morning dew, or maybe it had seeped up from the ground. Within the water, there was also delicate moss and wild grass, and a few glossy green leaves, shaped like Copper Coins, poked out from the hollow.

Juhua tugged on Huai Zi’s arm and said joyfully, "Brother Huai Zi, I love this plant so much. Let’s not put it in a pot—it would be such a shame if we couldn’t care for it properly and it died. Let’s dig a hole and plant it in the ground. We can put it at the base of the courtyard wall, right next to the wild chrysanthemums. The peach tree next to it can even provide some shade—this plant can’t take the sun. It looks like it prefers shade and moisture."

Huai Zi looked at her gently and smiled. "Whatever you say." He added, "Planting it in the ground is a good idea. This tree has a certain spiritual air to it; we shouldn’t confine it. When I was digging it up, there were a lot of flowers and grasses growing next to it. It’s a pity I couldn’t move the whole thing over, so I just dug up a small patch from the middle. Even then, a lot of the soil fell off on the way back, and I broke quite a few roots. Luckily, I didn’t break the thickest ones, or else it probably wouldn’t have survived!"

Juhua nodded and looked at the tree root apologetically. "Technically, we shouldn’t have dug it up—moving it to a new place might not be good for it. We’ll have to take good care of it. If we water it with fresh water every morning and evening, the grasses can grow back."

Huai Zi smiled. "Don’t worry. After I eat, I’ll go back and bring back the rest of the soil, flowers, and grass. We’ll bury them all together with it. I’m sure it won’t feel so out of place then, and it’ll have an easier time surviving."

Juhua nodded, feeling a little ashamed of her own possessiveness.

Huai Zi picked up the crushed wicker basket and said to Juhua with a smile, "Juhua, come take a look at what else I caught."

Juhua looked at him and smiled. "More good things? You really hit the jackpot today." With that, she leaned in, and the couple put their heads together to peer into the basket.

Huai Zi lifted out the long snake, dangling it in front of him. He grinned at Juhua and said, "This snake is so fat. Later, I’ll skin it and make a soup for you. Should we slaughter a chicken to stew with it?"

Juhua studied the snake. A chill ran down her spine, but then she thought of how delicious snake soup was and swallowed hard. She moved a little closer to Huai Zi, hugging his arm. "Don’t kill a chicken—it’ll be too greasy. Let’s add some cured pork bones to stew with it instead. That salty flavor will definitely be good. And we can add some fresh mushrooms and Little Cabbage."

Just as the two of them were discussing it, they heard a shriek from behind. He ran over frantically from the kitchen doorway and scolded Zhang Huai, "What did you bring this snake back for? What if it scares Juhua? Throw it away, quickly!"

Huai Zi quickly said, "I was just about to skin it and make soup for Juhua—snake is very nourishing. It would be a shame to throw it away."

Juhua chimed in, "Mother, the snake is dead, there’s nothing to be afraid of. And snake soup tastes really good. If you don’t believe me, I’ll make some for you to try later."

He’s jaw dropped as she stared at her son and Juhua. Her son couldn’t bear to part with the snake because he wanted to make soup for his wife, and Juhua was looking at the snake as if it were nothing, not scared or upset in the slightest. Meanwhile, she was the one covered in goosebumps. She really had been worrying for nothing!

Suddenly, she noticed the snake’s swollen belly and cried out again, "This snake... this snake is pregnant! Oh my! Throw it away, quickly! You can’t eat it!"

Juhua and Huai Zi exchanged a helpless glance. Juhua said firmly, "We can’t throw it away. It’d be such a waste, it’s several pounds of meat. I want to eat snake meat; I heard from Doctor Qin that it’s the most nourishing thing there is. Mother, where do you get all these taboos? If we didn’t have anything else to eat, wouldn’t this snake make a fine pot of meat? Would you really be willing to throw it away then?" She brought up Qin Feng to quell He’s objections.