Ji Shaoming walked into the woods that Shen Yanming pointed out and saw Yu Shui and Zhang Heping smiling broadly as they prepared to leave.
"You've done a great job!"
Yu Shui nodded smugly: "Yes, we were lucky. We didn't expect another rabbit to fall into Yanming's trap. We caught another one and picked a lot of mushrooms in the field, enough for a meal. There are still quite a few inside, so look carefully."
Zhang Heping also laughed heartily: "We only picked the big ones. Let the small mushrooms grow a little longer. We don't know how long we'll be staying here. Let's not exhaust the resources."
Also, Yu Shui and I only looked around inside the woods; we didn't go outside. Since you have a lot of people, you could see if there's anything to eat there.”
Zhang Heping felt that his friend had surprise in his eyes but no greed, so he was willing to chat with him a little longer.
“Alright, I’ll go scout it out.” Ji Shaoming nodded and led his men into the depths of the forest.
Along the way, they heard birds chirping, and Ji Shaoming told his men to look up and see if there were any bird nests so they could go up and take some eggs.
When passing by locust and elm trees, they would ask someone to pick some tender leaves. They didn't care whether it was the season for eating these things; after all, the experience of countless ancestors told them that the leaves of these two types of trees were non-toxic and edible.
Ji Shaoming also saw the chicken liver mushrooms in the soil, and he had some of the larger ones picked and taken back.
Yu Shui and Zhang Heping were very sensible; they only picked what they wanted to eat and left the rest untouched. Ji Shaoming's lips curled into a smile, his impression of them improving even more. Neither of them were greedy people, so they could continue their cooperation.
Once they emerged from the woods, they came upon a patch of tangled grass. It wasn't desolate, but it couldn't compare to the forest. There were many wild vegetables on the ground; they looked rather unsightly, but Ji Shaoming knew they were edible. After ordering his men to scavenge them, they continued onward.
There are so many of them, this little bit of food isn't even enough to fill a tooth gap...
Shang Haoqiang headed in a different direction. He figured that even if this wasn't a tourist area, it was likely in the suburbs. So, there should be a forest ranger, and probably some dormitories, right?
He wanted to see if he could find any pots and pans, or even a broken earthenware pot. He didn't know how long he would have to stay in this wretched place, and he couldn't be without even a sip of boiled water.
The others had no idea what he was thinking, and seeing him walking straight ahead without stopping, they all stopped.
Someone grabbed Shang Haoqiang and asked, "Where are you going? If you keep going, you'll be out of the mountains, right?"
Shang Haoqiang replied, "Let's see if there are any usable tools. Even if there aren't, we can at least see if there's anything to eat. If all else fails, we can walk to the end and see what the situation is—whether it's a flooded mountain or a flooded city."
They can't stay here forever; once the water recedes, leaving is inevitable.
Upon hearing this, many people pretended to be very tired, started bending over and rubbing their backs, and exclaimed, "Oh dear, I can't walk anymore."
Shang Haoqiang didn't force them to do anything, and said with a smile, "Since you can't walk anymore, just rest here. While you're at it, see if there's anything to eat around here. You know, there are a lot of us, and what Ji Shaoming and the others found probably won't be enough to feed us."
Upon hearing this, the team members' faces darkened. They had come along hoping to scout the way without much effort and even gain some advantage, right? But now, judging from Shang Haoqiang's words, it seemed they were going to work for nothing?
"People who find food should have priority. If you can't even get enough to eat yourself, how can you have the mind to share food with others?" the young man who understood the situation said.
“Yeah, yeah, I wouldn’t give it to them either.” Someone else chimed in.
"Sigh, I should have gone with Team Two to look for ingredients. We've been walking around for ages and haven't found anything," someone complained.
Shang Haoqiang wasn't annoyed. He smiled and pointed to the weeds at their feet, saying, "Purslane can be eaten raw or cooked. It is rich in nutrients, can lower blood cholesterol levels, and improve the elasticity of blood vessel walls, which is very beneficial for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases."
Shepherd's purse has a fresh and delicious flavor, contains various amino acids, and is a high-fiber vegetable...
There are so many edible species here, you can take your time picking them. I'll have to excuse myself now.
Shang Haoqiang left as soon as he finished speaking, not giving anyone a chance to stop him. Several people who genuinely wanted to follow him quickly caught up, and the group hurried on their way, disappearing from sight in no time.
Those who remained were dumbfounded, never expecting that Shang Haoqiang would simply abandon them without a second thought.
But they couldn't leave empty-handed, so they picked all the wild vegetables that Shang Haoqiang had said were edible nearby.
So much so that when the scouts returned, they thought the land had been ransacked. This shows how frantic people on the verge of collapse can be.
Just as Shen Yanming finished roasting the rabbit, Zhang Heping and Yu Shui returned. He gave one of the rabbits to Li Zhaozhao and his wife, as well as Wanwan. He shared the remaining one with Nuannuan and Meng Wu.
"Old Shen, I don't need it. I'll go hunt some wild game myself after you're done with your work." Meng Wu looked at Nuan Nuan's greedy expression and felt too embarrassed to compete with the little darling for food.
Shen Yanming didn't argue with him. After sprinkling the seasonings, he tore off two rabbit legs for Nuannuan, then cut off a third of the rabbit meat with a knife. "This is enough for me. You can have the rest."
"Old Shen, I..."
Shen Yanming glared at Meng Wu, thinking to himself what a clueless guy. He didn't even look around; people were practically jumping in to grab it.
"Just eat what I tell you to eat, and then go roast a rabbit for my brother!" Shen Yanming winked, gesturing for him to eat quickly.
Meng Wu made two "oh oh" sounds, picked up the rabbit, and started gnawing on it. He thought to himself that he would have to find something to eat later, so as not to waste Shen Yanming's kindness.
The space rabbit was plump but not greasy, and seasoned with cumin, chili, and salt, its aroma could be smelled from afar. Yellow Hair rubbed his belly, feeling even hungrier. But he didn't dare to go and snatch it, muttering "Pah!" under his breath before leaving.
Zhang Heping and Yu Shui, smelling the aroma, drooled several times. They couldn't wait to gut the rabbit, then smiled as they watched each other's skillful movements.
"Dude, you're pretty good. How long have you been practicing?" Yu Shui asked.
Zhang Heping raised an eyebrow and said with a smile, "I can't remember exactly, but I started dissecting rabbits, frogs, and mice as soon as I entered university. Quite a few of them died under my care. Actually, dealing with them is child's play. What I'm best at is dissecting corpses."
Yu Shui suddenly felt a sinister glint in Zhang Heping's smile, and a chill ran through him. He chuckled awkwardly, "Ha, so you're the big boss! My apologies for my rudeness!"
Zhang Heping waved his hand: "I don't deserve it, I don't deserve it!"
Shen Yanming watched the two of them goofing around and thought it was quite nice. They had similar personalities, and he believed that after going through hardships together, they could become close friends.
While listening to the bloody scene of the two fighting, Huang Mao's henchmen felt unwell and vomited.
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