Chapter 44 A Strange Encounter in the Forest: Selling Blueprints, Hunting, and the Little Guy
After the lively harvest festival, most of the crowds who had gathered in the village dispersed the next day, and the threshing ground quickly returned to its original state.
When Ray went to Timur's house to pick up the barbecue grill and pot, he ran into Lamb.
Lamb told him that Vivian had decided to leave the small village in three days; she still had tasks to complete and couldn't stay too long. Linda was going to make some sausages a little earlier, and while she was at it, she made some for his family too, so he didn't need to buy any more.
Ray thanked Linda and asked Lamb to convey his gratitude.
He went to Temujin's house, where Temujin was still tinkering with something in his workshop, and the thing was already taking shape.
Why didn't I see you at the threshing ground yesterday?
"Too many people, too noisy."
Temuqi finished assembling the parts and put down his tools.
“I finished making the items a few days ago, but you’ve been so busy selling things that I didn’t tell you to come and pick them up.”
"It's okay, there's no rush."
Temuqi stood up, shook off the bits of parts from his clothes, and took out two pots from the shelf.
"I made two according to your request, one large and one small. I added a layer of heat-insulating metal underneath so that the tabletop won't get burned when you use them."
Both pots still bear the initials of Lai's name. The pots are gleaming, with two handles on each side, and the metal edges have been carefully finished to prevent cuts when handling them.
“I’ve already tested it beforehand, and this pot won’t leak.”
Temuqi pointed to the part used for cooking meat.
"If there's a problem, you can bring it over for free repair."
Temuqi added.
"Okay. Is the barbecue grill ready too?"
"It's done, but put it in the outer room."
Temuqi took Laiyi to see the barbecue grill.
The barbecue grill is one meter long and is placed on a stone or table when in use.
This doesn't require much technical skill; it's just a matter of piecing together a few thin iron pieces and adding a perforated base in the middle.
The wire mesh used for grilling is a bit difficult to make, mainly because the thin wire is hard to handle, but that doesn't stump Temuqi.
"Well done, very beautiful."
Temuqi scratched his cheek somewhat awkwardly.
"The blueprints you provided are good."
Similar designs already exist on the market, but Lei's improved version is clearly better.
"Lei, are you still interested in selling this 'hot pot' and barbecue grill?"
After thinking it over, Lai decided to sell them all to Timur; someone would make these things sooner or later anyway. He figured he might as well seize the opportunity and make some money first.
"Can."
The design of the barbecue grill was mainly aimed at improvement, and Temuji gave Laiyi a price of half a gold coin.
Hot pot, on the other hand, is convenient; with it, you can cook meat without stopping while on the go.
Based on the blueprints, Temujin also made another version, without the vent in the middle, which allowed him to cook more food. Therefore, Temujin gave Laiyi one and a half gold coins.
With two gold coins and the subsequent profit-sharing terms, Lai didn't lose out in this round.
“Lay, I made a few more steamers later, and they’ve all sold out in the village. I’ll recommend them to my friends in Eton City later, and I expect they’ll sell quite well.”
"Okay, the rest is up to you."
The two said goodbye, and Lai took the barbecue grill and two pots home.
Neil had just woken up and finished eating the breakfast that Leiliu had given him.
"Brother, where have you been?"
“Go to Temujin and retrieve what he made.”
"oh."
Neil yawned and rubbed his eyes.
"I'm going hunting this afternoon. Vivian is leaving, and before she goes, I'd like to invite Uncle Hagrid and his family over for a barbecue. I need to prepare some meat in advance."
Lai put everything in the storage room, tidying up while talking to Neil.
Can I come along?
Neil stood at the door of the storage room, watching Ray bustling about.
"This trip will be a bit dangerous. You stay home and wash and dry the shaved bamboo skewers. I'll be back soon."
"Okay, brother."
After lunch, Lai took his bow and arrows and weapons and went hunting.
Because Neil had eaten breakfast late, he only ate a little bit at noon. The harvest festival was over, and he would soon be returning to class.
It had been a long time since Lai had ventured deep into the forest; the last time he went was with Lamb and Neil to pick fruit.
He remembered there was a persimmon tree over there, and the fruit should be ripe by now, so he could pick some to take back with him when he left.
The villagers had picked all the fruit at the edge of the forest, and those who wanted to stockpile firewood had already started cutting down trees. Lai encountered several groups of people busy cutting down trees in the forest.
He continued deeper into the forest, where the scenery had changed considerably.
The leaves are starting to turn yellow, and various plants are producing seeds, all preparing for the coming winter.
The small animals are plump and fat, and their old fur hasn't completely shed yet. In a while, people will come into the mountains specifically to capture these ordinary animals with smooth and beautiful fur.
This time, Lai went even further; he wanted to catch a wild goat or a wild deer. He wouldn't go for wild Gulu beasts; he'd just buy some from Mu later—they'd taste even better.
Since entering this area, Lai had been on high alert. Deep in the woods, who knows what might suddenly jump out from somewhere?
He never figured out how big the forest next to the small village was. He heard that if you followed a certain direction and crossed a few streams and a small hill, you could reach the mountain where you could pick chestnuts and pine nuts.
You can imagine how big this forest is.
Rhys had told him that there were practically no magical beasts in the forest next to the village. So, his encounter with the gray wolf was purely bad luck; his luck was truly unbelievable.
You can always find something good in places with abundant wood elements.
Having not found any prey, Lai sensed the surrounding elements and "treasure hunted" in the forest.
There are medicinal herbs that are several years old, and there are also Ganoderma lucidum mushrooms as big as washbasins.
Ganoderma lucidum spores are more useful. There's no point in picking such a large Ganoderma lucidum, so I'll just leave it alone.
The decaying wood in the forest was still damp, covered with a thick layer of moss, and various small insects crawled around on it.
If you look closely at these lush green mosses, you can see that they are different species growing together.
Some are a tender green; some are fuzzy; and some, besides a layer of green close to the bark, have tiny teardrop-shaped balls standing upright on them.
Small reptiles occasionally pass by, and little lizards also perch on it; these mosses form their own verdant, miniature world.
As he walked further and further away, he sensed an exceptionally strong fluctuation of wood elemental energy.
What's ahead?
Ray struggled to overcome the attraction, advancing with the bone knife inlaid with elemental stones held horizontally across his chest.
This time, he's determined to find out the truth!
Drawn by the elements, Lei arrived at a small clearing where a giant ginkgo tree grew.
He roughly estimated that the tree was at least forty meters tall. The vegetation around it was completely blocked by the ginkgo leaves, with only some low-growing, shade-loving plants growing beneath it.
After carefully observing his surroundings, Lai slowly approached the ginkgo tree, gently placing his left hand against its bark. A rich wood elemental aura emanated from the tree; he absorbed only a small amount before his body reached its limit.
"Ah! Ah!"
Just as Ray was about to withdraw his hand, a small winged figure suddenly flew out of the tree and kicked Ray's arm with its tiny feet.
Thumbelina? An elf? A fantasy creature?
Ray withdrew his hand, and the little guy flapped its wings and made angry noises, as if accusing him of being impolite.
"I'm sorry, I didn't know this was your home."
Lai offered Him a small fruit, which He immediately swatted away.
"ah!"
"Can I return the element to you?"
Lai conjured a small ball of light in his palm, pressed it down with increasing magical power, and handed it to Him.
This time the little guy was satisfied and began to absorb the wood element inside the ball of light.
It's quite magical and fantastical.
After absorbing the elements, the little guy flew up to a branch of the ginkgo tree and tilted his head to observe Laiyi with curiosity.
Its small, transparent wings shimmered with a green halo, and it was naked with no obvious gender characteristics.
Lai Yi deeply felt that he really knew too little about this magical continent, and that there was still so much for him to learn.
Without observing the little creature any further, Ray turned and left the way he came; he didn't want to disturb His life.
Not long after Lei left, several more little ones poked their heads out from the flowerbeds, trees, and bushes.
The little ones huddled together, touching heads and shaking hands affectionately, as happy as little dogs wagging their tails. They imitated Ray's walking movements, walking parallel to the ground on the tree trunk, and then mimicked Ray's speech, beginning to pronounce words.
"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"
"Here you go! Here you go!"
......
Lei didn't venture any further and retreated in the direction he had come from.
He calmed down and began hunting, catching a few plump long-toothed beasts and wild red-billed birds, but no large creatures.
Seeing that the sky was darkening and turning gloomy, Lai abandoned his pursuit of the hunt and started heading back. He figured he could always go to the market early the next day and ask Mu if he knew anything about getting the meat.
On his way back, Lai didn't forget to pick some crisp persimmons from the persimmon tree.
He arrived rather late; most of the persimmons had already been devoured by wild birds and small, tree-climbing animals. He could only pick about twenty good ones.
This year's persimmon cakes won't be made.
Lai returned home with the prey and persimmons, carefully skinned the long-toothed beast, and cleaned it.
These three long-toothed beasts have already molted; their fur is now thick and soft. They'll be taken to a tanner to have it tanned. In winter, we can make them into cushions or sew them into a small quilt—they'll be wonderfully warm!
That very evening, the Red Rockbird Rayleigh was stewed into a dish for Chestnut Bird and Neil to eat.
Whenever Lai mentions stewed bird, he always thinks of that classic dish—stewed old hen with vermicelli.
If potatoes are cheap at the market, you can buy more to make vermicelli and rice noodles. They'll be convenient to add to hot pot later.
Fans, oh fans, maybe we can even expand into new businesses.
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