Chapter 196 Mommy's Portable Little Lucky Charm 1
From a distance, the No. 99 sampling site appears as a mountain forest with not very dense vegetation. The terrain is mainly a combination of hillsides and valleys. The mountains are not steep, but they are undulating and not flat.
The most common tree species here is the mutated prickly pear, interspersed with some shrubs and wild vegetables.
Mutant locust trees typically grow to 50 to 100 meters tall, with numerous side branches, and each tree occupies at least 20 to 30 square meters.
Furthermore, they are all spaced at least 20 meters apart and will not interfere with each other.
Each tree has at least a thousand bean pods hanging on it. Each pod is about 30 to 50 centimeters long, and the pods inside are flat and round. Each bean looks about the size of a grape. Each pod can be shelled to produce 20 to 30 beans, and they weigh about 200 to 350 grams.
With such tall trees dominating the landscape, and other tree species rarely seen, the wild vegetables and shrubs growing here appear relatively small, shaded by their lush branches.
After several months of living in the wasteland, Zuo Shan noticed that even the same type of mutated plant would have different degrees of mutation depending on its growing environment.
For example, the broom grass she saw here grew abundantly and densely, but it was not very big, generally only a little over a meter tall. Compared to the plants that were two or three meters tall that she had seen at other collection points before, it was like a dwarf.
The mercenary families traveling with them looked down on these low-lying wild vegetables, because in their minds, wild vegetables should have large, thick leaves to fill their stomachs.
The main objective of this mission is the pods of the locust tree; wild vegetables and the like are secondary and will not be taken by the mercenary group.
So when the two mercenaries in charge of the inspection spoke up, telling everyone to choose a tree and not to get in each other's way, the group swarmed towards the area under the trees where tall, plump wild vegetables grew.
Zuo Shan hadn't planned to compete with everyone else, so he chose a relatively open area that was easy to move in and out of, and asked Ding Yi and Pan Duole to choose trees that were close to each other so that they could be rescued in time if anything happened.
Ding Yi looked up at the tall tree and said to Pan Duole, "Sister Lele, let's choose the same tree. There are so many bean pods on it, we can't possibly pick them all!"
"Test the bean pods first, and then pick some wild vegetables when we're almost done working in the afternoon," Zuo Shan said to the two children.
“Okay, if you’re tired, sister, I’ll carry Achen on my back,” Pan Duole said.
“I can carry the baby too, Sister Fan.” Ding Yi chimed in. She saw the baby carrier strap tied to Zuo Shan’s chest and found it very novel. The baby sat very steadily inside, so she thought she could do it too.
Although she is only nine years old and her combat strength is relatively weak, she has awakened her superpowers and her physical strength is definitely stronger than that of ordinary children. So theoretically speaking, she has more than enough strength to carry a small baby.
"Alright, you two go ahead and get busy. Watch out for the thorns on the tree; they hurt when they prick your skin," Zuo Shan said with a smile, patting the two children on the shoulder.
After getting off the bus, Ah Chen's eyes were busy taking it all in. This was his second time in the wild. Compared to home and the streets, he preferred the wild, where there were endless grasses and trees, and he could feel the strength of every kind of life in nature, including animals and plants.
Zuo Shan opened the elevator rented by the mercenary group under the tree and began to inspect the bean pods on the tree.
"Beep! Highly radioactive locust bean pods, inedible, not recommended for picking!" The first cut yielded this result, which was perfectly normal for a seasoned scavenger.
Zuo Shan raised the testing knife and aimed it at the second nearest pod, but heard the baby in front of her cry out "Ah ah!" Although he was speaking in Lilliputian language, as his closest mother, Zuo Shan instantly understood what he meant.
He was in a hurry. He would make this sound when he needed to pee or was hungry. Zuo Shan was about to go down to the ground to see if he had peed when she saw his chubby little hand pointing at the third bean pod on his right, making "ah ah!" sounds.
When collecting samples from the left fan, it is customary to proceed from left to right in sequence. This makes it less likely to miss any samples, since no one can determine the level of radiation in a plant before the test results are available.
She hadn't finished testing the left pod yet, and hadn't originally planned to test the right one, but the baby's behavior had piqued her curiosity. She couldn't resist bending down to touch his forehead and smiling.
"Chen, you're such a little person, and you already have your own preferences? Okay, okay, don't rush, Mommy will test the one you chose first."
This pod looks very ordinary, no different from other pods, but since the baby chose it, she should at least give the baby some face, right?
With one slice, an announcement came through: "Beep! Low-level radiation detected in locust bean pods. They are safe to eat in large quantities. Harvesting is recommended!"
Happiness came so suddenly that Zuo Shan was so excited that she swayed. Looking at her current height, she quickly steadied herself and carefully put the bean pod into her backpack.
"Mwah! Baby, you're amazing! You can pick out the perfect one with just a few strokes of your finger! You're practically Mommy's lucky charm!" Zuo Shan kissed him and showered him with praise.
Lan Xing had learned a lot about children's education from what she had seen and heard, and she knew that children would become more confident if they were praised more.
Of course, for such tiny babies, being well-fed and watered is more important than nurturing their mental health. However, praising one's own baby is a joy for every mother.
Overjoyed by the praise, Achen blew "ah ah," rubbed his face against his mother's cheek, and left a trail of drool.
Zuo Shan was so busy that he didn't even have time to wipe his drool as he continued with the testing.
This time, Ah Chen didn't point anymore. Perhaps he was just curious before, and Zuo Shan didn't take it to heart.
After testing more than a dozen bean pods without success, she adjusted the elevator and moved to a higher position to continue.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
