Chapter 386

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Main Character:

Shen Yao

By the time Aunt Zhou arrived at the hospital, Shen Yao and the others had already helped pay the hospitalization fees.

Aunt Zhou opened her mouth with thanks, pulling out her wristwatch to transfer the hospitalization points, but Song Ling reached out and held her hand, stopping her, "Let's look at the situation first. Ying Zi's side isn't good — I heard she fainted for two days with no one to care for her." These points probably wouldn't even cover Ying Zhou's hospitalization fees.

Song Ling also counted as an elder who had watched Ying Zhou grow up; she was too embarrassed to accept points at a time like this, perhaps also because the Shen family's situation this year gave her the confidence.

"Old Zhou, you prepare yourself mentally. And whether to continue treatment — discuss it with your family."

Song Ling patted Aunt Zhou's shoulder, turned, and led Shen Yao away.

Shen Jiancheng and Shen Yu weren't at the hospital; the two of them had already gone to Chang Le Town in advance. Song Ling and Shen Yao had no choice but to stay — after all, they'd been neighbors for nearly twenty years; meeting meant three parts affection.

Hearing Song Ling finish these words, Aunt Zhou was immediately so frightened she couldn't stand steady. This — this serious? Still need to discuss with family?

Thinking of her son and daughters-in-law, Aunt Zhou's face was full of bitterness.

Tough enough!

"I, I'll go see Ying Zi."

As if aged several years in an instant, Aunt Zhou's shoulders slumped, and she moved her legs forward.

Song Ling subconsciously wanted to reach out and support her, but Shen Yao directly held her hand.

She shook her head indifferently, "Mom, Aunt Zhou's mood is bad right now; let's not go over."

This matter can't be meddled in; who knows, the Zhou family might split because of it — who could bear that consequence?

Song Ling: ……

"Sigh, truly a sin. This child Ying Zhou — she wasn't this foolish back then." How could she be so sure the man she found could be relied on?

Shen Yao actually understood Ying Zhou's choice very well. From childhood on, her life had never been much good; suddenly encountering a man who spoke sweet words — not falling for him would be the strange thing.

In this aspect, the Zhou family has no reason to blame others. Ying Zhou was first framed by her own family, which formed this warped psychology, leading to today's severe consequences.

But things have come to this; blaming anyone can't change Ying Zhou's situation.

"The child not being kept is a good thing; otherwise, born, it couldn't be raised alive." Raise it with what? Ying Zhou's in-laws' conditions were several grades lower than even her natal family; Ying Zhou was more sallow and emaciated than before she married.

Shen Yao had seen Ying Zhou's state. To speak the truth, she was more wretched than before marriage. Living like this, who knows if Ying Zhou would regret it.

"Don't talk about these things. Let's go out quickly." They still had to go to Chang Le Town; no time to stay at the hospital wasting time with Aunt Zhou.

Although the relationship between the two sides was said to be very close, it definitely hadn't reached the level of family.

Shen Yao supported Song Ling as they left, detoured around the outermost F District, exited the base, and caught the last bus to Chang Le Town. Shen Yao and Song Ling wasted a full hour and more.

By this time, Shen Jiancheng and Shen Yu had already finished testing two not-small grape fields, and had even picked many grapes, putting them into their back baskets for safekeeping.

"Today let's go south and see if that batch of apples is ripe." Mutated apples ripen early; with luck, we might even pick to our heart's content.

"Okay. Besides the apple orchard, next door is the pomelo grove. Let's check both." Although pomelos are especially sour after mutation, making them into jam isn't bad either.

And pomelos can supplement nutrients the body lacks; they're the fruit the base sells the most.

A single pomelo weighs ten jin or more. Its golden-yellow shell floats with fruit fragrance. Whether used for incense or eating, it's very popular at the base.

Shen Jiancheng and Song Ling discussed back and forth, and finally decided on where they would go.

Listening to the couple discuss and finally make the decision, the four of them stood up and walked toward the distant apple orchard.

…………

Wild grass grew thickly around Chang Le Town. Especially since this place was originally orchards, with no one to tend them, wild vegetables were allowed to spread, bit by bit encroaching on the fruit trees' growing environment.

If not for the mutated fruit trees' powerful abilities and vigorous vitality, they truly might not have survived smoothly until now.

"Slowly, slowly."

Song Ling reminded them as she walked, especially Shen Yao. The back basket was in the way; every step required carefully watching her feet, afraid of stepping into empty space and falling in.

After about half an hour, they finally saw the apple trees.

The trees were at most ten meters high. Compared to the mutated loquat trees, they were a case of the small witch seeing the great witch. The already-formed apples hung on the trees, red and green, looking festive.

"Last year at the Exchange Center, one apple was 50 points. Don't know what the price is like this year."

Compared to before mutation, apples changed the least — their size merely swelled a circle.

Song Ling put down her back basket, found a shady spot, and called the three to rest quickly.

"In a while we still have to pick apples. Someone should have been here already." Although the apple trees still looked lush, the fruit fallen on the ground had bruising marks — clearly tested for mutation degree.

Shen Yao nodded. "This apple orchard has already been gone over by the Patrol Team." Even Cheng Qi got a few assigned.

"Mm. We'll try to test the apples on the trees. The ones near the ground — leave them alone for now."

Song Ling felt apples reachable by hand would hardly yield new goods; better to watch the batch at the treetops — there might be some that slipped through the net.

Hearing this, Shen Yao and Shen Yu were eager to try. They couldn't wait to climb trees and test.

Song Ling: ……

Song Ling gave each of them a hemp sack. After resting well, she urged them up.

One person, one tree. Song Ling and Shen Jiancheng were responsible for continuing to pick up misses under the trees.

The four cooperated with tacit understanding. Before long, Shen Yao's side smoothly produced goods.

Apples went into the hemp sack. Using the branches, she smoothly lowered them down to Shen Jiancheng. Shen Yao sat on the tree fork, and casually grabbed a small snake hidden away.

Shen Yao: ……?!!!

The small snake wasn't big — looked to be only a few dozen centimeters, thin as a chopstick.

Subconsciously reaching out, she pinched the small snake to death. Shen Yao stared blankly as she threw the snake to the ground, and by the way reminded Shen Jiancheng and Song Ling below to be careful.

Shen Jiancheng and Song Ling: …… The kid's a bit brave.

Fortunately this little snake wasn't venomous and wasn't very aggressive, otherwise Song Ling would have been scared into a heart attack by Shen Yao's maneuvering.

"Mom"

Shen Yao felt embarrassed; her mind had gone completely blank at the time and she didn't know what to do, and by the time she reacted the little snake was already gg, "I'll definitely be more careful next time."

"There won't be a next time, you just stay under the tree and let your dad go up and pick them."

Song Ling coldly pressed Shen Yao down, then sent Shen Jiancheng up the tree.

Shen Jiancheng had no objection to this; as for Shen Yao, her rebuttal was useless — the Shen family has always followed Song Ling's word, everyone else is just a tool in Song Ling's hands.

The apple orchard wasn't very large; after Shen Yao encountered the snake, Shen Jiancheng and Shen Yu also ran into a few snakes that had emerged from hibernation, all non-venomous small snakes that died with a squeeze, perfect to take home and make snake soup.

Song Ling shuddered with goosebumps; she didn't like these soft-bodied creatures, and as for eating them, she wouldn't even think about it.

"Handle it yourselves when we get back, now let's go to the pomelo grove," that place counted as a public area and many people would scavenge there, so when they arrived and saw people in the pomelo grove, no one thought anything of it.

Continuing to walk inside, they found a few unoccupied pomelo trees, and Song Ling clapped her hands to signal Shen Jiancheng and Shen Yu to climb up.

Pomelo trees are much taller than apple trees, about the same height as loquat trees.

Shen Yu and Shen Jiancheng, father and son, simply climbed one tree together; Shen Yao couldn't resist, pestered Song Ling for a while, and finally climbed up another, relatively smaller pomelo tree.

The orange-yellow pomelos looked fresh and appetizing, but in reality mutated pomelos are especially sour; occasionally getting a sweet one is a stroke of great luck.

Most of the pomelos they picked weren't eaten directly, but made into various fruit sauces, either mixed with water or used as seasoning.

Beep beep

"Pomelo, high-mutation creature, inedible"

"Pomelo, medium-mutation creature, edible in moderation"

"Pomelo, high-mutation creature, inedible"

"..."

They tested over a dozen pomelos in a row, and in the end only two were edible.

Shen Yao blankly stuffed the pomelo into the hemp sack and wedged it in a tree fork to keep it from falling, then had to continue climbing higher — the topmost pomelos were the most numerous, largest, and easiest to yield good ones; for her family to eat and drink well during the hot rainy season, she had to give it her all.

One tree took nearly an hour; the hemp sack held five pomelos giving off pomelo fragrance.

Shen Yu and Shen Jiancheng carried the sacks uniformly, the four returned early to the boarding point, and their harvest also drew others' gazes.

But "These are pomelos?"

Someone curled their lip in disdain at this fruit — not only does it taste bad, it doesn't sell for any price, who would be stupid enough to pick so many.

When they get back and can't finish eating them and have to waste them, they'll know regret.

People with this thinking are not few; after all the pomelo grove is large, pomelos grow there, basically everyone goes over to pick one or two to take home.

The four of Song Ling's group were despised, but didn't pay attention, just quietly waited for the bus.

However this time the sacks held a lot, placed on top of the carriage there wasn't so much worry — who would like pomelos that sour you to death.

Relying on the map Cheng Qi sent over, they stayed in Chang Le Town for several days, until they had explored every corner of the surroundings, then planned to switch collection points.

By this time the sweet potato garden's popularity had dropped, Cheng Qi got his wished-for rest time, and ran to the exchange center with Shen Yao for a whole day, redecorating the new home.

Including curtains, duvet covers, and various large and small ornaments, all specified by Shen Yao, giving quite a pastoral fresh-and-clean feeling.

Three meals a day were naturally solved in the new home; the staple grain Cheng Qi mentioned arrived yesterday, and Shen Yao got to eat fragrant white rice as she wished.

Mm

Why am I a bit moved? Could it be because I've been eating less these days?

A single grain of mutated rice can be the size of a ping-pong ball; when they cook a pot of rice, they first crush the rice grains, then put them in a stewing pot to cook.

Similar to rice, there's also millet, sorghum, glutinous rice and other mixed grains — their size has surged, yield dropped, only during the mild season near the cold season can they be collected.

Cheng Qi being able to buy back several hundred catties at the exchange center relies entirely on the Patrol Team's reputation.

"Just these have already used up the hot rainy season's quota; buying more can only choose flour," Cheng Qi scratched his head, he tried his utmost to give Shen Yao a good living environment, but unfortunately still fell short by a lot.

"Flour is enough, the Shen family often eats noodles," and Cheng Qi's side has abundant staple food varieties not to mention only the two of them, coping with the hot rainy season is more than sufficient.

Holding Shen Yao's both hands, "Next mild season we'll go outside and collect more staple food, the family bought a vacuum sealer," vacuum packing, preservation time longer.

Shen Yao laughed and gave an mm, the two then discussed the matter of the families meeting.

Cheng Qi's father and eldest brother have already returned, during this period both the Cheng family and Shen family have time, the marriage matter will definitely be hurried.

Shen Yao didn't stand on ceremony, compared times with Cheng Qi, found three days later was good, tentatively set it, both went back separately to notify parents and relatives.

As for the meeting place, it's definitely the Shen home — the man's side must visit first, then the subsequent arrangements follow.

"Yao Yao, won't three days be too rushed?" Song Ling tidied her hair, then touched her clothes, always feeling something was lacking everywhere.

Shen Yao persuaded Song Ling not to be nervous, it's just a meeting, they've met before, just not this formally.

"Hmph, your and Xiao Cheng's matter, your dad and I have not a single objection," Song Ling glanced at Shen Yu with his back to her, feeling her son's marriage was more worrying.

"Ge has ability, personality also good, take it slow, will eventually meet a suitable one."

Shen Yao felt Shen Yu's marriage wasn't urgent, finding a daughter-in-law must be carefully considered, no matter which world, marriage is extremely important.

"Mom, how's Zhou Ying's side? Did Zhou Shen come looking for you later?"

Since sending Zhou Ying to the hospital, they hadn't dealt with each other again.

In a flash several days passed, Zhou Ying should already be discharged from the hospital.

The base hospital's treatment costs are still expensive, not that Shen Yao looks down on Zhou Shen, even her family would have to scrape together a sum of points, let alone Zhou Shen a housewife who hasn't held the Zhou family's authority for a long time? The Zhou family's several daughters-in-law don't look like the type of holy mothers who would sell everything for a sister-in-law.

"What can they say, borrowed some from me, also made the Zhou family pay some, the child wasn't kept, currently recuperating at the Zhou family," Song Ling sighed, thinking Zhou Ying tossed and turned and in the end still suffers herself.

"That Zhou Ying's man"

"Never appeared"

Song Ling was even angrier, cursing under her breath, also feeling indignant for Zhou Ying.

Shen Yao expressed no opinion on this, thinking if Zhou Ying could turn back in time, the following days wouldn't be too hard, if she insists on continuing her own way, then the Zhou family's support for her will stop one day.

………

Three days later, the Cheng family came to the Shen family's door, and the two families discussed the marriage of the two children.

In the end, the wedding date was set for the first day of next month; the Cheng family would handle the banquet and wine feast, and the Shen family could raise any requests they had.

What requests could there be? Song Ling smiled kindly; the Cheng family was perfect in every way, and the Shen family would certainly not find fault.

Everyone was delighted to meet; Cheng Qi and Shen Yao each breathed a sigh of relief.

The following days were like an alarm clock that had been wound up, pushing people forward without cease.

In the three days before her marriage, Shen Yao did not go out, but stayed at home to prepare her dowry in peace.

Shen Jiancheng and Shen Yu had Song Ling direct the preparation of Shen Yao's dowry; some large items were sent to the new home in advance, and only things that could be carried by hand would be taken away on the wedding day.

At this time, they did not bother with displaying the dowry; those who had goods at home wished to hide them tightly, fearing that certain people would take note of them.

Song Ling carefully stuffed some of the pearls she had gathered earlier into Shen Yao's hands, saying, "Keep them secretly; whether you want to spend them or use them, figure it out yourself."

The pink pearls were strung and hung close to her neck; Shen Yao reached out and touched them, saying, "Mother, I understand."