Chapter 404

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Main Character:

Shen Yao

Day 160 of the Cold Season, the Cold Season ended, the temperature outside officially rose, and the Mild Season arrived.

"Don't go out for now, it's a bit dangerous outside recently, wait for me to accompany you."

Cheng Qi admonished Shen Yao with a single sentence as usual; on ordinary days this would seem like he was being too controlling, but right now Shen Yao had just passed three months of pregnancy, so she really shouldn't go out.

She nodded to let Cheng Qi not worry; she would stay home recently anyway, "It's just that food might be a bit troublesome. Did the Exchange Center say anything about opening?"

Zhao Xue didn't know about this either, because the Base had bled too much during the Cold Season to guarantee the stability of the Public Area.

Cheng Qi shook his head, "The Patrol Team has no channels for information, but I reckon it won't stay closed for too long," people in the Public Area were gradually returning home.

In the early Mild Season, food acquisition outside was insufficient, and they needed to rely on the Base to provide basic survival guarantees; otherwise, everything the Base had done before would come to naught, and the backlash would be fiercer than ever.

Shen Yao was not optimistic about future life; the Base's response measures were still too crude, possessing neither the boldness of a large base nor the decisiveness of a small-to-medium base, always hesitating and wavering.

Just last year they cleared out a batch of restless dangerous elements; logically, the Cold Season shouldn't have seen so many incidents, but in reality, the Public Areas of E District and F District had basically fallen, and the ordinary people inside suffered heavy casualties.

Even though the Base offered humanitarian compensation afterward, the dead were dead; how could the Base appease the deep-seated resentment? When dissatisfaction and contradictions accumulated, what would the Base use to cope?

"Let's wait and see first; no matter what, the Base can suppress things for a few years."

As for whether they live or die a few years later, perhaps they won't even be at Dawn Base anymore; considering these things has no meaning.

…………

Seeing Cheng Qi off from the Small Courtyard, Shen Yao turned and shut the Gate; the neighbor next door poked her head out again to chat with Shen Yao, her words full of attempts to get close.

It wasn't that she had any schemes; she just wanted to probe whether the Patrol Team side had any new news. For people like them who worked in the Base's public departments, with no return-to-post notification, they were very anxious.

"Sigh, who knows what the Base means? They wouldn't push it to the end of this month, would they?"

"No, no, they have to arrange those Public Area people first, otherwise how can we go to work?"

"Would they make us clean the Public Area too? What a hassle."

"……"

Groups of three or five gathered and opened their mouths to chat, no longer like the Cold Season when everyone shrank their necks and hid away; now they were much more enthusiastic.

Shen Yao maintained a frequency of occasionally interjecting, but more than that she was worried about grain supply.

"Our family's grain is about to run out these few months, Sister Wang, does your family have any connections at the Exchange Center?"

The woman called Sister Wang hurriedly waved her hand, "Same here, no movement at all. I plan to go outside the Base tomorrow to take a look; even picking some wild vegetables would be fine."

"Sister Wang, I happen to want to go look too; shall we go together?"

A young wife chimed in, clearly not understanding Sister Wang's penchant for taking advantage.

Shen Yao pursed her lips and smiled knowingly, then heard Sister Wang agree readily, even saying to meet at the doorway early tomorrow.

Shen Yao: …… fast enough on the uptake

Using feeling unwell as an excuse, she went inside and shut the door; Shen Yao spent some time removing the wooden boards and wind-blocking curtains from the Window and sending them to the Storage Room, greatly improving the space's lighting.

Following that, Shen Yao reorganized the remaining supplies in the Storage Room and Attic.

Carefully calculating the grain still at home, allocating it according to the two people's daily consumption, she finally concluded they could continue lying flat for three more months.

Three months?!

'Still need to keep going out to gather, ah.' The first Mild Season is less than three months, followed by the troublesome Hot Rainy Season, and if nothing unexpected happens, the child will be born between the end of the Hot Rainy Season and the beginning of the second Mild Season.

After giving birth, she needs to recuperate and cannot exert herself; this year there's an even more severe Cold Season than last year.

To be safe, not a single Mild Season can be wasted; large-scale gathering is needed to ensure their own supply of resources doesn't stop.

Walking to the Window Side, she took out her Notebook and scribbled calculations; Shen Yao seriously wrote out their upcoming plan.

Cheng Qi needn't think about resting; this year he needs to work even harder than last year.

"Leave the arrangements to me. Last year it was mainly you and Mom and them acting alone.

This year we can borrow the Patrol Team's strength; more people makes things easier."

Cheng Qi had collected quite a few favors during the Cold Season; now was the time to cash them in.

Even if the gathered things are split fifty-fifty, they both profit.

"Ask Mom and them if they want to go together; I'll arrange the manpower and the carriage rental," Cheng Ma and Song Ling only need to send people along; there's simply no easier pickings than this.

Seeing the suggestion Shen Yao sent, Song Ling and Cheng Ma had absolutely no reason to refuse.

Not only did they agree readily, but both unanimously felt the split should be sixty-forty; them taking forty was enough.

"Listen to me and you can't go wrong. Your dad and brother and them aren't just eating for free; as for you, pregnant as you are, you still need to be as careful as possible. If you bump or knock yourself, absolutely don't just endure it silently……" Song Ling nagged on endlessly; ever since she learned Shen Yao was pregnant, she unfailingly expressed concern three times a day, doing even more than the pregnant woman herself.

Sometimes Shen Yao even had to suspect who the pregnant woman really was; how had the roles swapped between the two sides?

Cheng Ma also cared a lot for Shen Yao, keeping track of her condition daily through the Wristwatch and telling Cheng Qi pregnancy precautions, so Shen Yao would have less to worry about.

"We're all adults; when you're out, aren't you responsible? Your Eldest Sister-in-law has given birth to two children and has experience; you can ask her more about what you don't know……" Cheng Ma isn't the birth mother, so overly intimate words aren't easy to say, but the care in her words is genuine.

Shen Yao coordinated with the Shen Family and Cheng Family, then stayed home waiting for Cheng Qi's notification.

The Cold Season and Mild Season have no obvious dividing line; it's just that the temperature changes outside are too extreme.

The day before, people were complaining on the newly reopened Forum that the wilderness was bald and bare with nothing; the next day, people were showing off the green tender shoots they'd picked.

The wild vegetables and grasses that sprang up perfectly matched that line of poetry: "Spring wind blows, they grow again."

It seemed as if, in a certain moment, the meaning of life was infinitely magnified.

Five full days after the Cold Season passed, Cheng Qi organized a wilderness gathering activity.

Two Vehicles loaded everyone and headed straight for the Riverside where aquatic plants grew lush.

Wild grass already grown to calf height set off the surrounding scenery, making the whole vista exceptionally beautiful.

After setting the time to return in the afternoon, the group dispersed and gathered along the riverside.

Shen Yao and Song Ling walked together, with Cheng Ma and Zhao Xue not far away beside them.

Cheng Qi and the other men entered the mountain forest up ahead intending to hunt; having endured an entire Cold Season, everyone needed fresh meat to supplement their nutrition.

Beep beep beep

Detection-passed fresh shepherd's purse was pinched off by Shen Yao roots and all and placed into the back basket. Shen Yao, who had already laid a thick layer of wild vegetables as a base, half-sat on the ground; her wrist moved lightly, and she quickly pinched another handful and held it in her hand.

"Girl, you sit and rest; Mother will go cut all that shepherd's purse up ahead and bring it over."

Song Ling rolled up her sleeves, told Shen Yao not to move, and herself walked quickly a few steps and bent down to work.

Currently the most abundant wild vegetable by the river is shepherd's purse; besides that there are some water celery and wild onion and wild garlic, and lichen that can swell when soaked in water is also present.

Everyone dislikes dry dried vegetables; wanting to eat fresh tender wild vegetables they can only come to the riverside to search.

Crash—

The shepherd's purse held in her arms was thrown down; Song Ling went back and forth like this several times, and piled up a round, bulging little mound in front of Shen Yao.

Shen Yao simply changed her posture, tucked her hem under her bottom and sat properly, casually picked up a root dripping with juice and poked it toward the detection needle.

"Wild shepherd's purse, moderately mutated plant, consume in moderation"

Edible ones went into the back basket; Shen Yao buried her head in testing, and unsuitable ones were directly thrown away.

When the time reached noon, and the weather turned slightly warm, Shen Yao returned to the carriage compartment, put the wild vegetables from the back basket into hemp sacks and made proper markings.

The people who went to the forest had not yet come out; Shen Yao inquired about Cheng Qi's situation through her wristwatch, and after receiving word that all was normal, she used words to reassure Cheng Ma and Song Ling.

Cheng Ma said she was already used to this sort of thing; moreover, the Cold Season had just passed, and the animals in the forest had been starved thin by more than half, so one shouldn't hold too much hope for the hunting results.

Shen Yao:...

There was no need to put it so realistically; small game might lose weight and water, but medium and large game are still very worth watching — as long as they don't run into fierce beasts like wolves, tigers, and leopards, they'll be able to eat their fill when they return tonight.

"Mother, Aunt Song, someone discovered a wild fish nest up ahead and plans to catch fish this afternoon; do we want to go over and join the lively scene?"

Zhao Xue ran back from the distance, her face full of excitement, pointing at the concealed place up ahead.

It's the riverside, after all; there will always be small puddles washed out or cut off, and if luck is good, there will be many river fish inside that can't escape.

"Are there many people going?" Song Ling wanted to go, but looking at Shen Yao's condition, she asked uneasily.

Zhao Xue let out a "Ha", "Not many; there are quite a few small puddles washed out over there, we'll pick a place with fewer people," maybe we can even get a few more fish.

At this time fish and meat make no difference; stewed fresh fish soup is tastier than dried vegetables and jerky.

Cheng Ma patted Song Ling's back of hand, "The two of us will protect Yao Yao more; today the hemp sacks we brought out have fishing nets," heaven's timing, earth's advantage, and human harmony — let's do a job first and then talk.

They rested a while at noon, and in the afternoon the four people brought back baskets and fishing nets over.

Quite a few people were already standing by the puddles, among them some even more prepared than them, who even threw fish cages down.

Cheng Ma linked arms with Shen Yao, letting her walk on the inside and try not to conflict with other people.

"There really are many puddles washed out on this side," the key is there really are fish inside.

The largest one, poked the water a bit, and fish went plop plop jumping out.

After all, puddles are dead water; the oxygen content inside is insufficient, so fish will definitely jump out to breathe.

The four people walked to a small fish nest closest to the riverside, only about two meters long and wide.

Just when they came over, the person poking here just left carrying a water bucket.

"Throw the fishing net and dredge this afternoon," if we catch something it's a gain; if not, we'll change places.

Zhao Xue gave an "Ai" sound, opened the fishing net and then with a whoosh flung it open, the vines tied on it sinking into the water together.

Waited roughly a while, then Zhao Xue directly pulled the vines in her hand and dragged backward.

Cheng Ma and Song Ling ran over to help together; as for Shen Yao, she stayed far away and didn't add to the chaos.

Around there were quite a few various small puddles; looking not large, but inside there were traces of river fish activity.

The Zhao Xue trio carried out the fishing net soaked with water, and just happened to see several fish jumping about lively.

Zhao Xue's eyes brightened; just as she wanted to speak out, she heard a sudden burst of intense applause from the distance — precisely the large puddle they had passed.

"Must be they caught a big fish," Song Ling gazed into the distance, withdrew her gaze and focused on the present, "Let's try once more; if no fish, we'll change places."

Zhao Xue gave an "Mm"; the four people tested the lively jumping fish one by one, and in the end kept three half-grown crucian carp weighing several jin each.

The fishing net continued to be poked into the water; when pulled up again, the fish count was obviously fewer than before.

Picked out two crucian carp, all put into the back basket, letting half the basket soak in water, thereby guaranteeing the crucian carp's vitality and freshness.

Shen Yao also took on a task watching the back basket; Zhao Xue then led Cheng Ma and Song Ling running to other small puddles to dredge river fish.

The trio picked puddles with few people or that had already been dredged by others.

Although this caused the fish quantity to be not much, these could all ensure safety, not to the point of being attacked by creatures in the water while dredging.

You must know puddles often have water snakes and toads; one is poisonous, one disgusts people; it just so happens these two things easily damage fishing nets.

They only brought this one spare when going out; if it breaks, they can't dredge anything.

The three without greed relied on the accumulated fish quantity to fill a back basket.

"Enough, return to the vehicle first," Cheng Ma and Song Ling lifted the two sides of the back basket, signaling Shen Yao and Zhao Xue to stay a bit away from them.

The fishy smell is still very easy to make people uncomfortable; moreover Shen Yao is a pregnant woman, she should pay even more attention.

Zhao Xue had already put the fishing net into the hemp sack, carrying it somewhat wet but the smell was much less.

"Eldest Sister-in-law, when do you go on duty?" Shen Yao asked about the Exchange Center's opening time.

Zhao Xue's face full of worry, "The base has no definite word, only tells us to wait for news."

Otherwise how could Zhao Xue, a counter clerk, possibly accompany them out gathering.

"Ai, every household is waiting for the base to sell grain," yet the base just won't open its doors, forcing most people to only run outside.

A few days ago Cheng Qi still said with a serious face that there was danger and they couldn't come out; today he simply led the team himself; Shen Yao completely doesn't know the inside story.

"What grain does the base have? Our manager even says the Exchange Center can't be counted on."

Zhao Xue quietly complained about the Exchange Center's situation, thinking the Exchange Center had just been cleared out, empty inside without even a Chair; to restore it to its Appearance before the Cold Season, they could only wait for the Base's Arrangement.

Shen Yao Listening to Zhao Xue speak of the Exchange Center's Insider Info, then seeing Cheng Qi Patrol Team's Busy, Heart Think the Base This Time bled heavily and would truly need a good Segment/Clip of time to recover, hoping the Base would not fall into chaos.

The four returned to the vehicle, just happening to meet Cheng Qi and them carrying Prey out of the Mountain.

They were several Wolves, not emaciated, but Looking like they also had no Meat, ribs distinct.

Everyone knows, Wolf Meat is Sour and unpalatable; mutated Wolf Meat is even more not to be eaten casually.

Cheng Qi and them entered the Mountain once, only caught several Wolves, thinking Not Want to waste, those who want to eat can Dai Jia and try to Stew, Not Want to eat just Directly Sell to Base for points, Anyway Base Will Recycle these Beast Corpses, Not Care edible or not, Will not Waste.