Chapter 849: The Eurasian Lynx Invaders

What do you do when it has diarrhea?

Xia Qing sighed. What else could she do but clean it up? If she didn't, the insects and microbes — flies included — would quickly make Does Daigua Monkey's condition worse.

Who's going to clean it up?

Who else? The three territorial lords in the territory: her, Lao Da, and Wolf Lao Er. She was the only one with opposable fingers. She'd clean it up, then!

Xia Qing resignedly went back inside, turned on the light, and drew a basin of warm water from the downstairs bathroom. It was summer, and the water in the outdoor barrel had been baked by the sun until it scalded her hand; a splash of cold water and it was ready to use — no need to waste firewood.

When Xia Qing stepped out of the house carrying the basin, she found the screen window already crawling with phototactic insects of all sizes, drawn by the light. But she didn't need to deal with those herself.

A dozen or so geckos scurried over from every direction, rapidly flicking out long, flexible tongues to snag the small insects on the window and swallow them whole; the larger insects were picked off by several toads that hopped up onto the windowsill.

The geckos living in the stacked firewood outside Xia Qing's windowsill, and the toads in the puddle beneath it, were all evolved specimens she'd caught from elsewhere in the territory. Add to that the forty-plus swallows, big and small, she kept under the eaves — all expert insect-catchers.

With them around, Xia Qing no longer needed to pull down the blackout curtains when she kept the lights on at night.

Of course, the bigger reason was that she'd now lived in the territory for a year and a half, and after repeated cleanups, the insects near her house were far fewer than last year.

As long as she kept her screens and screen doors sealed tight and regularly sprayed disinfectant and insecticide, the bacteria carried by outdoor insects wouldn't dare invade; and as long as she watched indoor hygiene, no harmful evolved bacteria would breed inside. She could live there with peace of mind.

Xia Qing carried the basin in one hand and Does Daigua Monkey in the other, and went over to the latrine beside Lao Da and Lao Er's spot.

She first rinsed the soiled parts of Does Daigua Monkey's body with warm water, then gave the now-clean monkey a shake to fling off the excess moisture, and set it down under the eaves, which had been baked warm by the sun.

Does Daigua Monkey's pitch-black fur blended seamlessly into the night; at a glance it looked as though a big white face had been set on the ground — genuinely creepy. A timid person could never raise one of these things.

Xia Qing shook her head, turned around, forked out the soiled straw mat and the soiled hay beneath it from the sheep pen, tossed them onto the dirty water she'd just sluiced beside the latrine, and set them alight. Burning was the most cost-effective way to sterilize.

When the flames flared up, they immediately outshone the little night-light inside the house. The phototactic insects on the screens and glass that hadn't yet been eaten by the geckos and toads recklessly flung themselves into the leaping flames and turned to ash. Even dozens of cicadas high up in the big tree were drawn by the firelight, crying out and beating their wings as they flew into it.

One person, one sheep, and one wolf stood beneath the eaves, quietly watching the orange flames devour the dry hay, and the black smoke rising above the fire and dissolving into the night; the dazed, still-damp Does Daigua Monkey, roused by Xia Qing's commotion, lay on the ground staring blankly up at the swallow's nest overhead.

Only when the flames gradually died down did Xia Qing shovel a few spadefuls of earth over the embers to smother them, then fed Does Daigua Monkey a little nutrient solution. The anesthetic hadn't worn off yet, so it couldn't eat on its own — she could only pour the nutrient solution down its throat.

"It's only because I grow so much spinach that I can afford to feed you like this. On any other territory, they'd never waste resources on you." After feeding it, Xia Qing gave it the evening's intramuscular injection before putting it back on the clean straw mat inside the sheep pen.

Because of the heat, Xia Qing left the sheep pen door open and instructed Lao Da and Lao Er, who were on night watch: "Lao Da, the safety of the house is in your hands; Lao Er, keep an ear out for this Does Daigua Monkey tonight — don't let some other animal snatch it and eat it."

After assigning her two companions their duties, Xia Qing went back inside, took a shower, and finally curled up in the hanging chair to call her good friend.

"The seized supplies list didn't include tear gas or other contraband — only tranquilizer darts. These people's methods are a bit cleaner than Blaze's." Because the poachers today had been carrying the same thick-barreled gas guns as Blaze, Xia Qing had initially assumed they were Blaze's people.

Xin Yu, comfortably settled in her air-conditioned room, replied, "They're official, after all — more oversight, so their bottom line is a bit higher. How's the new phone working out?"

"Excellent — no static, very fast, and the camera is super sharp." Xia Qing was very pleased with the new phone. "By the way, what we seized today is a military aircraft, and even Qinglong can't keep it. Hui Liu wants to trade two civilian planes for the military one, so we're swapping it for two Chuanyun Mark III medium helicopters."

Xin Yu asked, "Chuanyun's a good pick — what color did you choose? The same as Fire Phoenix's?"

When Fire Phoenix had visited Northern Zone One's territory yesterday, the helicopter she'd ridden in was a Chuanyun Mark II. The Chuanyun series from Lan Yi was the highest-spec, best-performing, and most fuel-efficient among civilian helicopters — and naturally, the most expensive.

"No, I went with sky blue; Yang Jin picked a white one. I sold him one at fifteen percent off, on the condition that our helicopters can park free of charge inside Territory One, with Qinglong Squad handling protection and maintenance, and that we can buy fuel and parts through Qinglong's channels at twenty-five percent off. Once he pays, I'll transfer your share to you."

Although Xia Qing was the main force in seizing the helicopter today, she and Xin Yu had been operating as a team. It was Xin Yu who used her ability to spot the evolved bear first, and she who locked down the exact positions of the four poachers hunting it.

Later, it was also she who stayed hidden in the rock hollow with the evolved bear and Does Daigua Monkey, handling communications with the support team.

So Xin Yu was entitled to a share of this haul. By contribution, Xia Qing got ninety percent and she got ten.

In other words, just from selling the helicopters, Xia Qing had earned 6.12 million points! This was the second windfall since the big Yishi gift package Handsome Giant Wolf had given her — and this one she'd earned through her own ability.

Xia Qing was now, without a doubt, a woman of means!

A woman of means, of course, had to make her life more comfortable. Xia Qing happily ordered a water filtration system from Zheng Kui, and a fully automatic washing machine, two air conditioners, and some other household appliances from Xin Yu — all told, it came to just over 80,000 points.

Hearing her good friend in such good spirits eased Xin Yu's headache considerably. "Your points now are enough to build a small new-material house like mine. Want to build one?"

"Your little house is too eye-catching. My points are all from shady sources — better to keep a low profile. The place I'm in now is actually pretty solid; barring a major earthquake, it'll last another ten or twenty years without trouble." Newly rich, Xia Qing was still keeping a clear head.

A fridge and air conditioner tucked inside a house — nobody could see those. A gleaming little white new-material building, though, was impossible to hide.

After going over the day's negotiation results with Xin Yu, Xia Qing went to bed early. That morning she'd fought the poachers, then roared at the bear in the afternoon, gone to fill the wolf's water pool, and haggled with Iron Rooster that evening. It had been a day that left her utterly drained in body and mind.

She needed plenty of sleep. Fortunately, with Lao Er in the territory, even though his hearing was off, she could still sleep soundly.

Because her ears weren't working well, Xia Qing didn't hear that shortly after one in the morning, two Eurasian lynxes slipped into her territory and fixed their sights on Does Daigua Monkey in the sheep pen and the chickens in the coop.

Wolfdog Lao Er, sleeping under the eaves outside, opened his eyes and stood up.

Sheep Lao Da, sleeping in the downstairs living room, opened his eyes for a few seconds, then closed them again.