Chapter 388

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Main Character:

Shen Yao

"Hurry up, hurry up, it's raining——"

Someone kept shouting by her ear, and Shen Yao, who had just wanted to go out for a stroll, had no choice but to run back.

Time really flies; before she knew it, the hardest Hot Rainy Season had arrived.

She had been busy at the Planting Garden for several days before, and with plenty of grain at home, Shen Yao hadn't gone out gathering much recently.

Who would have thought that, having finally come out once, she would actually run into Zhou Ying.

Thinking of how this person stuck like a plaster and couldn't be shaken off, insisting on dragging her into it.

Shen Yao didn't understand; the two of them seemingly didn't have much interaction, right? Could it really be jealousy and resentment? Then shouldn't she go find the man who harmed her to this state instead?

'Thought the Host was easy to bully? These past few days Zhou Ying has been secretly observing the Host; today she clearly came prepared,' luckily the Host was sharp and didn't fall for the trick, otherwise it would be a minor loss of money at best and her life at worst.

The System sighed; this was still the first time in the Mutated World it had directly faced someone's murderous malice.

After all, the Mutated World is dangerous, but the dangers are the mutant beasts outside, not the crowds inside the Base; Zhou Ying let the System witness a woman's jealousy and her inexplicable ability to redirect anger.

'Zhou Ying isn't the mastermind; those people hiding in the background looking at us with displeasure are the most disgusting things; they really should be made to die cleanly and early — that would be a contribution to the Base too.'

Ever since losing her child, Zhou Ying has had some emotional issues; Aunt Zhou can't possibly keep providing for her food and drink forever, so in the end she could only let Zhou Ying return to the mixed E District to live alone.

A young woman, with no power and no influence, is just a fat sheep in others' eyes.

Shen Yao doesn't know what Zhou Ying encountered, but judging from the other party's desperate attempts to drag her down, it certainly isn't anything good.

'Human nature can't withstand testing; System, remember to keep a tight watch on Zhou Ying for me.'

People in the Hot Rainy Season basically never choose to go out; Shen Yao wants to retaliate in kind, but can only wait for the next Mild Season.

The System acknowledged and simultaneously urged the Host to hurry up and wash and change clothes.

The Hot Rainy Season's rain contains Mutation Value; if a person gets contaminated it will affect their physical health.

Shen Yao: ……

By the time Shen Yao finished showering and came out, the rain outside was already getting heavier and heavier.

She stood by the window, watching the splashes blooming as they hit the ground; anything farther away wasn't as vivid.

'The Hot Rainy Season's rain falls for several months,' even if it stops in between it's only very brief.

Everyone can only stay at home; every day opening eyes and closing eyes is just a tiny bit of space.

Sigh

Just imagining the whole scene made Shen Yao's heart a bit unable to bear it. Feeling bored, she turned and went upstairs, pulled the covers over herself, and fell asleep.

Eyes open sleep, eyes closed sleep; for a whole day, Shen Yao spent almost all of it in bed.

In the evening Cheng Qi got off work; seeing the prepared dishes, he looked surprised.

"Quick, taste the flavor; lately I'm in the mood, we can research recipes."

Shen Yao called Cheng Qi over, handing him a towel here, fetching clothes for him there.

The Patrol Team won't work continuously through the Hot Rainy Season; Cheng Qi's current arrangement is five days on duty once, and tomorrow he'll stay home to rest.

"There are some ancient books in the room; if you're bored, you can log into the Wristwatch Forum — there are many people there, for chatting or simple trading."

But this kind of trading can all be done online, including learning a craft; people in the Hot Rainy Season have plenty of time and aren't as busy as in the Mild Season, so it's impossible to really have nothing to do.

"Already looked, temporarily nothing of interest," she's been to many worlds and learned quite a few skills; moreover the Mutated World involves broken inheritance traces, which conflict with some knowledge content Shen Yao once contacted.

It's not that the teaching here isn't serious; on the contrary, it's precisely because it's too serious that problems appear.

Shen Yao has even been thinking about whether to take out some ancient knowledge to fill the Mutated World's gaps — no purpose, purely wanting the knowledge to spread on.

Cheng Qi pulled Shen Yao's wrist to go eat; the dinner was sumptuous enough to dazzle the eyes.

After the two ate, Cheng Qi went to the Studio; inside were all comparatively heavy tools, able to make items the home lacks.

Shen Yao was interested, followed over to watch for a while, and in the end took out processed bamboo strips and wove a few small, exquisite, cute flower baskets.

There are no flowers or plants at home; in the Mutated World everything carries danger.

Especially those things that look beautiful and harmless — one touch can cost a life.

"How about I teach you to make weapons," whether swords, spears, arrows, crossbows, or anything else, Shen Yao's daily gathering trips could have an extra layer of security.

"Weapons are controlled by the Patrol Team; can we do that?" It's not that they can't be bought, but most ordinary people use only the household machetes, hoes, and such.

For Cheng Qi to say it, he absolutely wouldn't mean those agricultural tools.

"Can use secretly; as long as it's not over-exposed, the Base won't control too much."

Because the Base Interior isn't that safe either; out of self-defense considerations, preparing a few more weapons is human nature.

Cheng Qi not only carries his service gun to and from work, but also has a fine-quality dagger on him for protection at critical moments.

From the Studio he took out a wooden box; opening it revealed a small, exquisite crossbow, "This was prepared early; you try it first."

The crossbow is comparatively heavy, the whole body forged from Fine Steel; it feels icy cold to the touch, and its whole body flashes with silver light.

Shen Yao held it in her hand, sensing the murderous aura of this crossbow.

Cheng Qi had already set up the target board, signaling Shen Yao to try shooting arrows.

Shen Yao: ……

Unexpectedly, Shen Yao's archery was very accurate; only occasionally one or two arrows went crooked, and that was due to the crossbow — her own skill has evidence to trace.

Cheng Qi: ……

Cheng Qi took out tools to modify and reinforce the crossbow, not to mention also making quite a few matching arrows.

"For this period, train at home first; when the rain stops, we'll go out and put the results into practice."

Speaking in detail, during the Hot Rainy Season one can go out when the rain stops.

However the time is short, basically just half a day or a little over a day, and whether at the Base or in the wild, spreading water vapor is everywhere.

Staying in an air-conditioned room is so comfortable, who would like to go out and suffer.

Shen Yao gave an "mm" sound, and while nodding shot out another arrow.

Even without using a crossbow, relying purely on arm strength she could make the arrow stick into the target board. Shen Yao was satisfied with her strength, temporarily no need to worry about being robbed in the wild.

By the time the Hot Rainy Season ends, the number of people going out will reach an extremely high figure.

Most have no reserves and are forced to go gather; Shen Yao mixed among them, it's hard to guarantee she won't be treated as a soft persimmon by some hotheaded people.

In the following days, Cheng Qi kept adjusting the crossbow to suit Shen Yao.

The young couple every day besides eating and sleeping, just rooted themselves in the Studio; aside from Cheng Qi occasionally needing to go out for work, other times were unexpectedly stable.

"Done."

Cheng Qi handed the finished modified crossbow to Shen Yao waiting at the side, letting her load an arrow and try.

Whoosh—

The arrow breaking through the air shot out, directly piercing the target board, leaving a hole.

Shen Yao shook the crossbow in her hand satisfiedly, "Holding it is smoother than before."

And it doesn't have much weight, strapped on the arm it doesn't affect gathering activities.

Cheng Qi touched his chin, and handed Shen Yao a knife the length of a forearm.

"For self-defense, Patrol Team product, blade quality guaranteed."

It cost Cheng Qi quite a lot of points and favors, and it's not something ordinary people can exchange for.

Shen Yao's eyes shone bright, she touched left and right, then directly hugged Cheng Qi, a whole string of verbal thanks.

Cheng Qi's cheeks flushed red, rather embarrassed; this was what he should do, no reason to let his own wife go out and suffer hardship.

…………

Splash—

Nearly a month has passed, Cheng Qi has gone out to work several times, and this rain hasn't stopped once.

The room has the air conditioner on, and there's a dehumidifier beside her, but even so Shen Yao still feels uncomfortable all over.

Lunch was relatively simple, two steamed buns plus a small dish of pickled vegetables; after the meal she gnawed an apple, Shen Yao rubbed her belly and let out a satisfied burp.

"System, you said the rain would pause in three days, true or false?"

Don't be fooling her; looking at the gloomy sky, there's completely no sign.

"Host, trust the System's scientific calculation algorithm, the probability of rain stopping in three days is 99%, basically no possibility of it not stopping."

Shen Yao pursed her lips, "Words can't be spoken too absolutely; the Hot Rainy Season is stifling and humid, every year a batch of people have accidents, this year is no exception."

From what Cheng Qi said, their Patrol Team's busiest job right now is going to E District or F District to carry corpses; some people die and can't be left in rooms too long, easily breeding bacteria and causing even more terrifying diseases.

Medical conditions in the Mutated World are also quite qizhi; can't say they're good, can't say they're bad.

They can treat gene diseases, yet cannot effectively block highly infectious illnesses.

In short, the Hot Rainy Season and Cold Season alike are seasons where people easily die; not only must one have enough food to cope, but also prevent oneself from accidentally having an accident.

The most secure method is to try not to get sick and not go out. As for the System saying the rain will stop? Depends on the situation; people brave enough to explore are few.

Evening, Cheng Qi got off work.

First he took off the clothes on his body and put them in the washing machine to wash; Cheng Qi took a hot water bath, then told Shen Yao about the rain stopping in a few days.

"Your Patrol Team knows?" News so well-informed.

"It's from the Base side," Cheng Qi wiped his face, "This time the rain stops for most of the day, Patrol Team personnel will check the Base population by sector."

Including how to settle some people already dead or on the edge of death.

Sending them to the Hospital is fine, but few come out of the Hospital alive.

Cheng Qi frowned, not wanting to discuss these cruel dark sides with Shen Yao, just reminding her it's best to wear a protective suit when going out.

"The rainwater outside has very high Mutation Value, you're not a Gene Awakener, easily polluted," Gene Awakeners also fear rainwater, but Gene Awakeners have Gene Stabilizer to use; ordinary people if contaminated with too much Mutation Value and cannot Gene Awaken, then only a dead end remains.

Shen Yao gave an "mm" sound, "We have protective suits at home," she'll wear one when going out.

"Alright, not talking about these, dinner's ready, let's eat."

Shen Yao pushed Cheng Qi to the Living Room to sit; the newly issued bean sprouts were fresh and tender, stir-fried they tasted crisp and slightly sweet; Shen Yao has sprouted quite a lot of soybeans recently, already becoming their must-eat dish every day.

Because soybeans are relatively large, the sprouts come out thick and strong.

Every time Shen Yao stir-fries she has to cut them into sections; just a few roots make a plate of food.

The two ate very satisfied; by the time bowls and chopsticks were put down, all the food on the table had gone into their bellies.

After the meal there were fruit desserts; eating while going to the workshop to work, Shen Yao couldn't stay idle, wove a few more back baskets and placed them at the side to hold things.

The bamboo strips chopped back earlier have been used up almost; Shen Yao thought in her heart to wait a couple days to go out, must chop some more back.

Three days later at dawn, the pattering rain finally stopped, giving everyone a chance to breathe.

Shen Yao eagerly put on her brand-new protective suit and walked out the door; first she made an appointment with Song Ling, then brought along the idle Shen Yu; the three pushed a cart and left the Base, heading straight for the Small Bamboo Forest outside.

The ground was full of puddles everywhere, air humidity high, temperature also high.

By the time they reached the Bamboo Forest, the three were already sweating all over from the heat.

The Bamboo Forest mist swirled, like a fairyland on earth.

"Isn't it chopping bamboo? Little Yu you go chop, me and Yao Yao will look for edible bamboo shoots."

Song Ling's voice sounded a bit muffled, because the protective suit wrapped her too tightly.

Shen Yu sighed, picked up the axe and chopped at the bamboo beside him.

Shen Yao and Song Ling held hands, like two clumsy fat penguins, craning their necks and walking deeper into the Bamboo Forest.

The post-rain Bamboo Forest though damp, the ground showed one bulge after another.

Digging open the bulges to reveal the bamboo shoots inside, the two took out their wristwatches to test them; as long as they met the standard, they directly set to work digging them up.

"The yield rate is pretty high; one trip and we can haul back several sacks."

Song Ling was happily pleased; though the half-day was a bit short, in terms of harvest it was no worse than a full day.

Shen Yao hummed and ah-ed along in agreement; she didn't understand how the mutation values of wild plants were calculated — clearly it had rained for so many days, yet the newly emerged bamboo shoots were mostly medium- and low-mutation, inconceivable.

The newly emerged shoots were not large in size; compared to those already grown, they were simply miniature.

Shen Yao dug one shoot at a time, and after digging them out she packed them into hemp sacks together with Song Ling.

While they were busy, people came over one after another from outside the bamboo forest.

Everyone wore thick protective suits; whether digging bamboo shoots or cutting bamboo, all were busy with great relish.

Until the wristwatch popped up a time reminder, Shen Yao stood up and moved her body, called Song Ling to hurry back to the base.

Shen Yu walked in front leading the way pushing the cart, Shen Yao and Song Ling followed behind.

On the road they ran into quite a few people who were just going out or striving to rush back; the three avoided the main group, trying their best not to have any conflict with them.

Soon, the three arrived home.

Shen Yu placed the cut bamboo and the hemp sacks directly in the courtyard, then he and Song Ling left.

Shen Yao first rinsed the things clean with clear water and piled them neatly in the main hall, then turned around, took a shower, and put away the protective suit she was wearing.

Phew—

Finally able to catch her breath, Shen Yao tidied her hair in front of the dressing mirror, and after combing it she directly tied it behind her head.

The shoots were fresh and tender; after peeling off the outermost thicker skin they could all be eaten.

Shen Yao planned to pickle a batch; the previous pickled shoots had a unique flavor, and if she used fresh tender shoots she believed it would go even better with rice.

She brought out the idle jars from the storage room, boiled water to remove the astringency from the shoots, and Shen Yao bustled about busily; Cheng Qi stepped into the house and immediately smelled the distinctive sweet fragrance of fresh shoots.

The bamboo had not yet been processed, piled in the corner looking wretched; Shen Yao waved her hand, signaling Cheng Qi to come over and do the work.

Cheng Qi:...