What was Wang Lun doing at this time? He was busy picking houttuynia cordata. He had walked along the stream for a long time, gathering some herbs and wild vegetables along the way, but still lacking some, so he continued on. Before long, he came across a large patch of houttuynia cordata. As a native of Sichuan, Wang Lun couldn't resist picking some, especially since houttuynia cordata is considered both a herb and a wild vegetable, so he collected even more. He stayed there, gathering as much as possible; the rest he couldn't finish eating, he would make into pickles, which were quite delicious.
In about half an hour, Wang Lun had gathered all the houttuynia cordata nearby. He didn't have time to dig up the underground rhizomes, but he planned to bring Li Ling back later to dig them up; it would last them a long time. Wang Lun packed the houttuynia cordata into his basket, slung it over his shoulder, and set off. However, this time, he didn't continue along the stream but instead chose to enter the woods and head back the way he came. The remaining medicinal herbs were very likely growing in the woods; of course, they might be outside, but there weren't any along the stream on the way here, so entering the woods was the only option.
Sure enough, not long after entering the forest, Wang Lun gathered some medicinal herbs, all of which were useful. So he continued on his way.
Inside the camp, Li Ling and the other two sat on the kang (a heated brick bed). Although each of them had a bowl of rice in front of them, they didn't seem to be eating very well. They ate slowly, unlike before when they ate one bite after another. Liu Ruoxi said, "Sigh, if it weren't for my illness, Wang Lun wouldn't have gone out in the rain to gather herbs." Li Ling replied, "It's alright, everyone gets sick sometimes, how could we blame you?" Liu Ruoxi said, "But it's all because of me, I really feel a little embarrassed." Li Ling said, "Don't say that, we're happy to be able to help you. And speaking of which, if it weren't for this, I really wouldn't have known Wang Lun knew medicine." Liu Ruoling said, "Yes, when we first met him, we thought he was a bit clever, but we didn't expect him to know so much." Hearing Liu Ruoling's words, Li Ling said with some pride, "That's right, he built this campsite all by himself, I just helped out." Liu Ruoling immediately became interested and asked, "Really? Can you tell me how it was built?" Li Ling said, "Sure." So she started talking about everything from arriving on the island, to catching fish at the beach, then continuing to the construction of the campsite, and finally moving into the earthen house a few days ago. The Liu sisters were impressed by Li Ling's story. After arriving on the island, they first found a water source and built a shelter. Then they explored the beach and encountered a school of fish, catching quite a few. With ample food, they resolutely decided to build a campsite, and successfully completed it. They felt truly lucky and impressed. Lucky to have encountered the fish and seized the opportunity. Impressive because, with abundant food, they were determined to build a campsite and consistently followed their plan without procrastination. While Liu Ruoxi was still sighing, Liu Ruoling became even more determined to curry favor with them. So Liu Ruoling said, "Sister, why don't we team up with them? We don't know how to repay them anyway, living together will help us find a way." Liu Ruoxi looked at her somewhat silly sister and said, "Whether you want them or not is another question." Liu Ruoling then turned to look at Li Ling, who thought for a moment and said, "I can't decide this alone; I have to discuss it with Wang Lun." Liu Ruoling smiled and said, "That's good. I believe there shouldn't be any problems. I think he's a pretty good guy." Li Ling smiled and turned back to continue eating her lunch. Seeing that Li Ling didn't speak, Liu Ruoxi lowered her head and ate. Seeing that neither of them was talking, and that it wouldn't be fun for one person to speak, Liu Ruoling also shut up and started eating.
After dinner, Liu Ruoxi, who had slept all day, wasn't sleepy, while Li Ling and Liu Ruoling, who had only slept for a few hours, were feeling drowsy. Liu Ruoxi said, "Why don't you two take a nap?" Li Ling said, "Let's not, what if Wang Lun comes back before we've eaten? We'll have to cook for him." Liu Ruoxi said, "It's okay, I'll wake you up then." Li Ling said, "Forget it, he won't let us wake him." Liu Ruoxi said, "Then I'll wake you when I hear the door open; that way he shouldn't be able to stop us." Liu Ruoling also said, "That's right, if Wang Lun comes back and sees how tired you are, he'll probably let you rest." Li Ling thought about it and agreed, so she said, "Wake me when you hear the door open, okay?" Liu Ruoxi nodded and said, "I definitely won't forget." So Li Ling and Liu Ruoling went to the kang (heated brick bed) for a nap. Before long, they were both fast asleep. Because Liu Ruoxi had slept for a long time, she wasn't sleepy. She wanted to do something, but the two wouldn't let her, saying that Wang Lun had to see her and she could only do so if there was improvement. So Liu Ruoxi could only sit on the kang (a heated brick bed), idly spacing out, while also thinking about teaming up with Wang Lun and the others.
Wang Lun wandered in the woods for a long time before emerging. He reached the source of the waterway and saw that the rain had lessened considerably and the clouds had thinned, indicating the weather would soon clear. He then released the water back into the stream and began inspecting and repairing the waterway as he went. He continued until he reached the campsite, where he pushed open the gate and entered. Liu Ruoxi, inside the shelter, heard the door open and woke Li Ling and the other woman. Although still a little groggy from several hours of sleep, they were much better. They quickly got off the kang (heated brick bed) to meet Wang Lun. However, Wang Lun didn't enter the shelter; instead, he placed his basket by the water pool, but he wasn't there. Li Ling called out, and Wang Lun's voice came from the shelter. Li Ling put on her straw hat and went over, with Liu Ruoxi following to investigate.
As the two approached the shelter, they saw Wang Lun drying two pheasants and three rabbits. Seeing the animals, Li Ling asked, "Did you go hunting again?" Wang Lun replied, "No, I found these in the forest. They got soaked from the rain and were caught. I don't even know if they'll survive." Li Ling and Liu Ruoling were about to help when Wang Lun stopped them. He instructed one of them to fetch sticks and dry grass from the shed to build a fence at the entrance to prevent the animals from escaping, and to make a shelter for the pheasants and rabbits inside. The other person was to light a fire in the hearth to warm the shelter and prevent the animals from dying. Liu Ruoling went to the shed to get sticks and dry grass, while Li Ling went inside to start a fire and then lit the hearth. Each doing their own task, they quickly settled the animals in the shelter. Of all the things, Wang Lun valued the two pheasants the most, hoping that at least one of them would be a hen, or ideally both, so they could eat wild eggs. He didn't expect to eat one every day, but at least he and Li Ling could have some every few days. Of course, at this point, Wang Lun hadn't yet considered Liu Ruoxi and Li Ling.
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