Chapter 13: Achieved Great Merit

Gong quickly walked to Mu Qing's side, "Mu Qing, you also heard the female's words just now; if this stone mill can really help the Witch Doctor, then the Witch Doctor will also have more time to teach disciples in the future."

And if the Witch Doctor's disciples could treat the tribe's beastfolk in place of the Witch Doctor, the Witch Doctor wouldn't have to stay confined in the tribe; he could go with the Hunting Squad to farther places to find things useful to the tribe.

This is not only the Witch Doctor's matter, but also the whole tribe's matter.

After saying all that, Mu Qing immediately knew what he wanted to do, and gave him his place.

Seeing this, Gong also hurried over, taking Mu Qing's place and began turning the stone mill.

Iron fruit is somewhat like modern dried luohan fruit, but the iron fruit not only has a hard thin shell, its flesh is also in pieces each bearing fine spines, so crushing it and boiling water to drink always feels prickly in the throat.

After all, unlike modern herbal medicine where only the decoction is drunk, beastfolk, in order to achieve perfect therapeutic effect, actually swallow the medicinal ingredients directly.

If it weren't that dried medicinal herbs are hard to swallow on their own, Yun Li would suspect they don't even bother to boil them, just eating them raw.

"Is this enough?"

Because he didn't know how long to grind before the iron fruit would become powder, Gong, reminded by Yun Li, stopped the turntable and moved the upper stone slab aside.

Then he saw that the stone mill had ground the iron fruit into a very fine powder; a swipe of a finger easily picked up a lot of the tiny powder. Gong's face instantly lit up with joy: "It works, it really works! Someone, quickly call Mang!"

He, seeing that the stone mill could truly grind iron fruit into the powder needed for the Witch Doctor's pills, was also astonished.

But she immediately reacted, "Witch Doctor, please summon the Witch Doctor as well."

The male who was about to run out responded to He's voice with an acknowledgment, and then shortly disappeared from sight.

He at this point finally showed Yun Li a genuine, sincere smile.

"A Li, you have rendered great service."

She grasped Yun Li's hand and told her, "If the Witch Doctor knew of the stone mill's existence, he would certainly be pleased. At that time, if you want anything, just tell Mang and the Witch Doctor; as long as the tribe has it, Mang and the Witch Doctor will definitely not refuse."

"Really?"

Yun Li said while trying to pull her hand back, but He's strength was great; she tugged twice before He seemed to notice and loosened his grip: "Yes, do you have anything you want? Then I'll tell Mang and the Witch Doctor for you."

"The Witch Doctor saved me before; if the stone mill can help the Witch Doctor, that's naturally the best. How could I then ask the Chief and the Witch Doctor for things?"

Moreover, even if she truly wanted something, Yun Li wouldn't have He relay it, because what she wants He cannot put into words.

Hearing her say that, He's gaze toward her grew increasingly kind.

The tribe had never treated Yun Li very well; before she came of age, the tribe would regularly provide some food so she wouldn't starve, but nothing more.

What's more, after she came of age, the tribe hoped that this single female Yun Li would quickly form a mate bond with a male of the tribe, cutting off even that bit of food, which nearly caused her to starve to death.

As a result, Yun Li never held a grudge against the tribe in her heart, and she always remembered the Witch Doctor's rescue.

By contrast, some females in the tribe have been spoiled to the point of being unbearable.

Thinking of this, He coldly glanced at Lvcao, whose face was full of jealousy.

Lvcao had been staring at Yun Li, burning with jealousy inside, but when she lifted her head, she met He's warning gaze, shivered violently, and lowered her head.

He then withdrew his gaze, pretending nothing had happened, and continued smiling at Yun Li: "How wouldn't that work? Your stone mill contributes to the tribe, so the tribe will surely give you something; that way, other beastfolk seeing it will be more diligent in serving the tribe."

Yun Li heard her say that, thought for a moment, and said, "I really do want some things, but I don't know if the tribe has them."

"You say, what does the tribe have? I definitely know better than you."

He, seeing that Yun Li had something she wanted, also felt delighted.

She wasn't afraid of Yun Li being greedy; anyway, the things come from the tribe's public stores, and if she agreed to them in front of Yun Li, later when Yun Li received things she would remember her kindness.

Thus their relationship would gradually become closer, and Mang finding Mu Qing to do work would certainly be more convenient than before.

If Yun Li wanted nothing, she would still have to worry about how to improve relations; who made Yun Li's past life so bitter that, after gaining Mu Qing as a beast husband, she felt completely satisfied.

Yun Li: "...... Clearly I have nothing, so I can only spend all day bitterly pondering how to improve my quality of life."

"I have wanted to eat a certain food for a long time; when I used to go out with the gathering squad, I occasionally ate it and thought it tasted good, but later, whenever I went out again, I never encountered it."

"I asked Mu Qing, and he said he had never encountered that food before, so......"

After Yun Li finished speaking, she gave a helpless smile: "Sorry, He. I used to have a meal and then miss the next, so I only remember having eaten."

He forced a laugh, yet still unwilling to give up, he said, "Mu Qing often goes out with the Hunting Squad; those beastfolk only know how to eat meat. Why don't you tell me what you ate back then? Since you ate it with the gathering squad, the tribe must certainly have it."

Upon hearing that, Yun Li pondered: "Let me think; it seemed somewhat long, growing underground. Back then I was so hungry that I heard a female from the gathering squad say it was edible, so I broke off a piece and bit it; the taste was very sweet."

"And then?"

He, after hearing her words, still couldn't recall what it was, even though it grew underground; their gathering squad, besides edible wild greens, what else is dug up from the ground?

"Nothing more, I just remember that much."

What Yun Li was actually referring to was sweet potato, but she had never seen it in the original owner's memories; she said this precisely to use the occasion to arouse He and the others' guilt for previously ignoring her, and incidentally to make them pay attention to those females of the gathering squad.

They actually let a starving minor female run around eating random things outside; why didn't they themselves try tasting those things to see if they were good or bad? Then, after turning back, they began blaming the original owner for eating randomly, delaying their journey.

Yun Li coldly snorted in her heart: "Isn't it just relying on the original owner having no one to back them up, so they vent all their anger at the original owner?"

Lvcao is, those few females are also not innocent.

Merely, Lvcao bullied the original owner openly, while they did so under the pretense of playing, secretly mocking and isolating the original owner; each seemingly trivial act actually deepened the original owner's inferiority.

He then felt embarrassed: "You say that, and I also can't recall what it is. Why don't you think again—did the females of the gathering squad tell you the name of that thing you ate?"

Yun Li pretended to think seriously: "I kind of want to call it bitter sweet potato."

The name was randomly made up, but she thought that if He went to ask the gathering squad, that female wouldn't remember what she had said back then.

But those few of them deliberately wanted to see the original owner make a fool of herself, sending the original owner to eat random things, and this had happened several times.

After the original owner also suffered several losses, she finally realized they weren't truly trying to help her; thereafter she constantly followed behind the protected female beastfolk of the gathering squad, watching what they ate, and then the original owner would gather the same.