Chapter 175 A Tumultuous Autumn: Corn, the Past, the Wild Beasts Attack...
While Lai was busy harvesting apples and corn, the villagers also finished harvesting their crops one after another.
Under the supervision of town officials, Barnett weighed the grain from each household, collected the grain to be paid for tax, and then immediately escorted it to town to avoid any unforeseen complications. Soon after, the most important harvest festival was approaching, and the elders from several villages gathered again to discuss the various matters and preparations to come.
After getting through this busy period, Lai sold off last year's dust grains and then rented a stall at the market to sell apples and various mountain products.
During the period after the autumn harvest, he could earn quite a bit just selling chestnuts at his stall, thanks in large part to Iru's efforts. After the harvest festival, Neil would enter a month-long trial period, during which he would also travel to other places.
Last year, a trip brought Lei a great harvest, with the corn alone bringing him immense joy. He thought that if he went further south, he might be able to find rice; he really missed the sweet taste of rice.
The town's residents live well and are not stingy with snacks in addition to staple foods.
Lai sold all six baskets of apples, some bought and some given away, earning exactly one gold coin, enough to pay Iru and the others their wages.
The chestnuts near the small mountain village are large and delicious. Lai plans to collect more this year and store them in his pendant space, then take them to Eton City to try his luck. Prices are higher there; they could at least double.
After half a month of drying, the corn kernels were finally all dried, thanks to Iru and several goblins who worked hard to hand-rub them. Lai decided to raise the wages for that period to two silver coins a day.
Farm work is hard and dirty; anyone who does it knows.
During this period, Yilu and his group only went back once. After resting for two days, they finished the corn harvest and then started picking chestnuts.
The dried corn kernels filled six large bags, and Lai kept one bag for seed. Hagrid sent over a large bag and encouraged Hagrid to plant some next year as well, to provide extra feed for his livestock.
Hagrid, with his broad knowledge, was quite tempted by what Ray said, and looking at the golden corn kernels, he began to make a plan.
Lai kept three bags of the remaining corn kernels for his own family, specifically to feed the red rockbirds. The mule went to buy a cartload of hay, occasionally mixing in some corn kernels for extra nutrition.
Now that his family can afford to feed the red-billed ravens, if it weren't for the fact that he grows a lot of vegetables and can't stay in the low mountains for long, he would insist on raising a hundred or eighty red-billed ravens on the mountain, and he could make a lot of money selling eggs every year.
There are too few people in the family to help out.
Lai gave half a bag of the remaining corn kernels to Mu, who had fenced off a large area to raise Gulu beasts, spending a considerable amount on hay and feed each year. He felt a connection with the little bear cub Li and was willing to help Mu again. As for whether Mu would share the corn kernels with other beastmen, that was his own business.
Although the corn grown in our own vegetable garden this year doesn't taste as good as the modern corn, it's still very sweet and delicious.
Because it couldn't be frozen, aside from those saved for seed, I would pick a few whenever I thought of Laiyi throughout the summer and autumn, cook them, and eat them to my heart's content.
After the hunting party returned, the harvest festival arrived as scheduled.
That day, Seya, unusually, went to join in the fun, but left after the sacrificial ceremony ended. His disguise was excellent; he looked like a slightly better-looking ordinary person and didn't attract much attention.
It is well known that the elves are considered the most beautiful race. Besides their fruit wine, their most famous thing is their stunningly beautiful appearance.
After the sacrificial dance ended, Lai saw the beam of light extending from the wooden staff again, which fell straight into the depths of the forest like a shooting star.
"Daddy, it's a star!"
Ray heard a child's voice coming from the crowd. He turned around and saw a little girl with two braids in her hair. She had big eyes and a chubby face, and she was pointing her little finger at the light.
"Yes, it's a star."
The adult holding her didn't dismiss the little girl's innocent words. Lai recognized the man as Mark, meaning the little girl was the premature Ye Zi.
Without making a sound, Lei condensed an energy ball in his palm and approached the father and daughter.
"Little Leaf has grown up."
"Lay, you're here too! Quick, call him Uncle Lay!"
Mark greeted Ray with a smile, and the little girl in his arms sweetly called him "Uncle," a little shyly.
Ray took two candies out of his pocket with his left hand and handed them to Little Leaf. He placed his right hand at his side and noticed that the little girl's eyes were fixed on his right hand as she took the candies.
"Uncle has light in his hand, it's green!"
Ray raised his right hand in front of her.
Is it this hand?
"Yes!" Little Leaf nodded emphatically as she spoke, her chubby cheeks bulging out.
"What light is there? You're being naughty again. If you don't behave, Grandma will scold you when you get home."
Xiao Yezi immediately covered her mouth.
Having determined what he wanted to know, Ray clenched his fist and dispersed the energy ball. His magic had improved significantly in recent years, and he was now able to control the release and containment of the energy ball; a few words of guidance from Ryan were enough for him to learn for a long time.
Ray has confirmed that this child does indeed possess extraordinary talent.
"She can try her luck at the Magic Association when she's a little older."
Ray gave a seemingly random reminder, and Mark paused for a moment, then immediately understood what Ray meant.
"You, you mean..."
Ray interrupted Mark.
"She has some talent, but I'm not capable enough to be sure. Don't tell anyone, and don't have too high expectations."
"I understand, I know."
Mark nodded solemnly.
"Such things are so rare, maybe only one in hundreds. I'm content that she was born safely, I don't dare to ask for anything else, I just hope she can grow up safely and happily."
"Yes, it's good that you can think positively. Everything in the world has its own arrangements."
Yes, yes.
Mark took Ray's words to heart.
After the ritual, the meat was distributed. Ray ate a few pieces and then left to go home, while Neil stayed a while longer with Helen and the other children. Adults have their own topics of conversation, and children have their own social circles.
The harvest festival thus came to a lively and bustling end.
Saya was born with magic, so he naturally saw the light. He knew far more than Lai, so it wasn't surprising to him.
Ray tried asking Seya about the light, and Seya didn't hide anything. He said many people knew about it, but so much time had passed, and the peaceful life had made everyone lose their vigilance against danger, gradually leading to forgetting.
"Therefore, when the two months coincide during the annual harvest festival, the 'key' absorbs enough 'moon power' and directs the energy to the boundary marker. This strengthens the entire barrier and permanently suppresses the demons within the subspace."
"That's right. There are many such boundary markers inside the Eton Forest, and there are also a few within the Elven territory. The largest one is in the center of the square."
This is something I can say...
Seya bluntly revealed the situation within the Elven race, and Lai brainstormed for a while, wondering if their method of suppression would really work.
"If someone maliciously damages the boundary markers, wouldn't the barrier be destroyed directly?"
That's what Lei thought, and that's why he asked directly.
"There are many boundary markers, but not every one of them is crucial. Some provide energy, some reinforce the barrier, and some are fake, merely for prevention and warning. They each have their own function, and they are interconnected. Unless..."
"Unless what?"
"Unless the most important ones are all destroyed, but that's impossible; nobody knows where those 'keys' are hidden."
Saiya spoke very casually, clearly showing his unwavering belief in the power of the barrier.
"Relax, there's no need to be nervous. This is something only your father... I mean, it's something only kings of great renown need to worry about."
Seyah secretly observed Lai's expression and, finding no change, quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
"Lei, could you grow some of that pink lettuce? It's quite delicious."
"good."
Seyah began to change the subject, and Lei didn't bring it up again.
Shortly after, the weather began to turn cold, and Lai went to the market again to buy some warm clothes for Seya. This year, he wanted to leave earlier, so he harvested the vegetables in the field half a month in advance, leaving only the radishes to be harvested when he returned.
Cabbage, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and pumpkins are all essential winter vegetables for storage. Truckloads of these vegetables are transported to town, and there are plenty of people buying them. On peak days, a truckload can sell out in the morning and another in the afternoon.
Lai ran between two or three markets, working tirelessly for over half a month, finally managing to sell all the vegetables from the fields. Meanwhile, Yiru had prepared the peeled chestnuts and pine nuts, and after a few days of rest, they could set off with the goods.
This time, Lai took Tata with him to teach a lesson, but before setting off, he prepared grilled fish, roasted lamb leg, and wild mushroom stewed bird, and bribed Ryan handsomely, asking Him to use illusion magic to conceal the horns on Tata's head and some obvious magical beast features.
Once everything was ready, Lei set off on his journey again.
After arriving in Eaton, Ray visited various markets to check out the prices and then started promoting "chestnuts from the Great Forest of Eaton." There was nothing wrong with what he said; these chestnuts were indeed picked from chestnut groves on the edge of the Eton Forest.
The quality was visibly good. After packaging, Lai's thousand pounds of chestnuts, plus several hundred pounds of pine nuts, were bought by a fairly large shop in the city, which gave Lai a very good price.
Before setting off this time, fearing he might make a wasted trip again, he exchanged letters with Vivian, and the two met successfully. Linda delivered the sausages, jerky, and other items she had prepared to Vivian, as well as snacks such as pine nuts and melon seeds that Ray had roasted himself.
It's not about the value of the gift, but the sentiment behind it.
Vivian took five days off to accompany Lai on a tour of Eton City's famous sights, and even showed him around the outer perimeter of the castle. Through her connections, Lai managed to purchase two rare magical plants and some fruit trees unavailable in Rosen Town.
Time flew by. After leaving Eaton, Lai went to St. Enwa, a city further south. It was a coastal city built on the inland sea called Towa. It was rich in marine resources and produced salt, dried fish, and various beautiful shellfish and pearls.
Unfortunately, I didn't find the rice that Lai was so desperately looking for here, but I did buy a lot of local specialties and seafood.
He left after a brief five-day stay because Tata couldn't adapt to the air and kept sneezing uncontrollably. It disliked the salty sea breeze and the overly strong fishy smell in the market.
This time I visited two cities, but it didn't take as long as last time. When I returned to Rosen Town, it was just the beginning of winter, and the temperature wasn't very cold, so there was still time to make the vermicelli.
What's puzzling is that negotiations on the border issue have dragged on for months, from autumn to winter, without yielding any results.
Everyone was saying that the war probably wouldn't break out, so they stopped paying so much attention, went back to eating and drinking as usual, and returned to their normal lives.
Winter arrived in the blink of an eye, and two heavy snowfalls transformed the entire small mountain village into a world covered in silver.
Having rarely seen snow, Seya was very interested in these beautifully shaped white flowers, and even with her hands and feet freezing, she would play in the snow for quite a while.
Tata, who also loves snowflakes and enjoys rolling around in the snow, found common ground with him and became friends. The two often frolicked in the snow.
That winter seemed particularly cold, and Lai always kept the fireplace warm. The family would gather around the fireplace, roasting sweet potatoes, potatoes, and quail eggs, feeling cozy and content.
This comfortable life was soon shattered by a crisis. Somehow, another pack of wild animals broke into the small mountain village in the dead of night. Barnett had made thorough preparations, but he still couldn't stop the riot.
This time, there were more wild animals that ran into the village than last time, roughly a hundred or so, and the rumbling sound outside lasted for a long time.
Upon hearing the noise, Lei immediately had Seyah move upstairs to Neil's room for the night, but he himself couldn't fall back asleep after being woken up.
He placed the three bone knives, along with the large knife left by Mr. Victor, on the bed and carefully wiped them by the dim moonlight. Tata leaned against the windowsill, looking outside, her nose twitching as she sniffed the air.
"The noise outside is bothering me."
Ryan was in a bad mood, and floated in Ray's bedroom, trailing a faint light.
"I will kill them all."
"Killing them all would make us too big of a target; let's just take care of the most dangerous ones."
Ray and Ryan exchanged a glance, as if they had reached some kind of consensus.
A flash of light, and when Lei looked up again, he had transformed into a completely different person.
"Lay?"
Tata stared at the humans whose scent had become somewhat unfamiliar, her eyes filled with doubt, fear, and worry.
"I am here."
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Author's note: Tova Sea: Legend has it that the Statue of Liberty once had a sapphire the size of a bird's egg, named "Tova," meaning tranquil wind.
Later, the goddess came to the mortal world to play and accidentally dropped a gem. The gem smashed into the ground and created a deep pit. Eventually, this pit connected with the sea, forming the only inland sea on the continent.
To commemorate this event, the area was named "Towa," in the hope that God would forever bless the people living on this land.
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