Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Entering the Mountains and Discovering Big Fat Crucian Carp Once she had shed the disheveled, wretched appearance of a refugee, Shen Qingwu was very pretty—at least, prettier than every girl Xie Heng had ever seen. Beneath her clean, makeup-free face, her features were delicate and composed, and her slender, straight figure carried a rare, gentle elegance. She did not look like someone who had just fled hardship; rather, she resembled the pampered daughter of some wealthy family. Xie Heng stood where he was and looked at her calmly for two breaths before suppressing the strange feeling in his heart and restoring his usual cool expression. Shen Qingwu naturally noticed him as well. She gave him a slight nod. “Morning.” Xie Heng nodded faintly. Shen Qingwu stepped forward. “Where’s Qinghuai? Is he still asleep?” “Mm.” Looking at the faintly reddened tips of his ears, Shen Qingwu secretly laughed to herself. He looked fierce enough, but was actually a simple, honest sort. Liu Cuilan was already busy in the kitchen. When she saw Shen Qingwu get up, her eyes lit up. “Our Awu is so pretty. You look just like a celestial maiden descended to earth!” Shen Qingwu smiled slightly and reached out. “Auntie, let me help.” After all, they would not be married for another two days, so Shen Qingwu naturally had not yet changed the way she addressed Liu Cuilan to “Mother.” Liu Cuilan waved her hands. “No, no. This little bit of work doesn’t require you. Just rest.” With that, she glanced at her wooden-headed son and said with a hint of exasperation, “Your wife is so beautiful, and you can’t even praise her a little or say something to make her happy?” Xie Heng coughed lightly. “Mm.” Shen Qingwu did not tease him. Otherwise, the man’s ears would soon be so hot they could scald someone. After eating, Xie Heng hoisted more than a hundred pounds of firewood onto his back and headed to town to sell it. The village was quite far from town, and with Xie Heng’s leg being inconvenient, the journey would not be easy. But he said nothing. He simply shouldered the firewood and left. Liu Cuilan went to attend to the fields. The frontier lands were all saline-alkali soil, where it was nearly impossible to grow grain, yet the entire family depended on those meager plots to survive. Xie Gensheng sat in the courtyard, weaving baskets as best he could. Once he had accumulated enough, he could take them to the market fair and sell them, earning at least a little money for the family. Xie Nian slung a small basket over her arm and carried a small woodcutting knife, planning to try her luck in the mountains. Seeing this, Shen Qingwu stepped forward of her own accord. “Niannian, I’ll go into the mountains with you.” Xie Nian’s eyes lit up, and she nodded obediently. “All right! I know the paths around the back mountain. I’ll take you there, Sister-in-law!” Shen Qinghuai raised his hand. “I’m going too! I’m going too!” Seeing this, Xie Gensheng spoke up. “Niannian, don’t take your Sister-in-law and the others deep into the mountains. Just walk around the outer edge. Do you understand?” “All right!” The three of them made their preparations and headed toward the back mountain. The mountain paths were rugged. Rather than paths, they were more like marks gradually stamped into the earth by the feet of those who had entered the mountains. The beginning was still manageable, but the farther they went, the more difficult it became. At times, they even had to use both hands and feet to move forward. Fortunately, none of this posed much difficulty for Shen Qingwu, who had spent years living in the wilderness. Xie Nian had grown up here, so climbing the mountain was merely an everyday task for her. The little girl lowered her head and searched carefully, but the surrounding villagers had long since combed through these places. Now that every household was short of food and clothing, almost all the wild vegetables had been dug up. Shen Qingwu walked a couple of steps forward and pushed aside some weeds. Suddenly, a voice rang out abruptly in her mind. 【Ding! Congratulations, Host, on successfully activating the Myriad Things Compendium System. It can identify all plants, living creatures, minerals, and other things in the world. Scanning of collectable resources within one hundred meters is complete. Edible wild vegetables detected.】 Shen Qingwu froze, and a flash of wild joy crossed her eyes. The transmigrator’s special advantage had finally arrived! She suppressed the excitement surging through her heart and calmly looked around. Sure enough, a short string of words had appeared above every plant before her, annotating each plant’s name and indicating whether it could be used. Since the system said there were wild vegetables within one hundred meters, she continued farther in. At last, on a patch of ground behind a dirt slope, she discovered a large patch of lamb’s quarters. Its tender shoots could be eaten after blanching. Xie Nian was clearly thrilled. “Wow, I can’t believe there are so many lamb’s quarters here! This place is slippery, and if you’re not careful, you’ll roll right down the mountain. Everyone usually avoids coming here, so who would have thought the wild vegetables would all be hiding here?” The little girl moved quickly and filled a basket in no time. Shen Qinghuai was no less enthusiastic. After all, he had been frightened half to death by hunger during their flight from the famine. Shen Qingwu glanced around and confirmed that there was nothing else nearby. Her current identification range was only one hundred meters, so if she wanted to find more things, she would have to continue deeper into the mountains. Looking at Xie Nian and Shen Qinghuai, who were happily gathering wild vegetables, Shen Qingwu picked up her basket and said, “I’m going to look a little farther in.” Xie Nian hesitated. “Sister-in-law, it’ll be dangerous if we go any farther. Father and Mother normally don’t let me go in there.” “It’s fine. I won’t go far. You and Qinghuai go back first.” Xie Nian stubbornly shook her head. “No, I’m going with you, Sister-in-law.” It was Shen Qingwu’s first day entering the mountains. How could Xie Nian possibly let her go alone? Seeing the worry covering the little girl’s face, Shen Qingwu smiled. “All right, then. You can come with me.” Shen Qinghuai stepped forward and puffed out his small chest. “I’m coming too. I’m a man, and I’ll protect both of you!” Shen Qingwu could not help laughing. “All right, all right, I understand. Then we’ll go together.” Since she had two children with her, Shen Qingwu did not dare venture rashly too deep into the mountains. She planned to go a little farther and turn back if they found nothing. The three of them continued inward for another quarter of an hour before the system’s alert sounded again. 【Ding! A wild school of crucian carp has been detected within one hundred meters. The meat is delicious and suitable for catching and eating.】 Shen Qingwu stopped walking. “I think I heard the sound of water.” Xie Nian looked puzzled. “Why didn’t I hear anything?” Shen Qingwu was already heading to the left. “Come on. I’ll take you both to catch fish.” Xie Nian and Shen Qinghuai did not question her and quickly followed. After walking for a while, they indeed found a small stream. The stream flowed rapidly, but they could not see any sign of the fish mentioned by the system. That made sense. If they were so easy to catch, the villagers would have caught them all long ago. Shen Qingwu swept her gaze over the stream and finally discovered the school in a backwater pool with the system’s assistance. It had to be said, this was a place that ordinary people would have great difficulty finding. “The current is very strong here. You two stay out of the water and help me find a few rocks.” Xie Nian nodded. Her Sister-in-law had found the wild vegetables just now, so she had absolute trust in Shen Qingwu. There was no need to mention Shen Qinghuai. During their flight from the famine, they had encountered danger countless times. Without his sister, he would have died eight hundred times over. Thus, whatever his sister said, he would do. The two children soon brought over a pile of rocks. Shen Qingwu quickly built a simple little dam in the stream, blocking the current, then slowly drove the fish toward the rocks. Her eyes were sharp and her hands were quick. In no time, she had caught two large fish and tossed them to Xie Nian and Shen Qinghuai on the bank. Xie Nian was a nimble-handed little girl. She immediately tied the two crucian carp together securely with a length of grass rope. In less than half an incense stick of time, Shen Qingwu had caught seven or eight wild crucian carp, each about the size of a palm. It was enough for the whole family to enjoy a proper meal. Xie Nian’s eyes widened, and her face flushed with excitement. “Sister-in-law, you’re amazing! You really caught them—so many fish!”