Chapter 15
Just then, a carp about the size of a tuna suddenly leaped out of the water.
Silver scales shimmered in the sunlight, and the fish's powerfully thrashing tail splashed up layers of water before plunging back into the water with a "plop."
As the carp leaped out of the water, the golden symbol reappeared in Jiangzhi's mind.
So the dashboard was showing this fish!
Jiang Zhi's gaze followed the silver figure intently.
Unfortunately, as the carp went deeper into the river, the golden symbol in his mind slowly disappeared.
Jiang Shu quickly asked, "What good stuff?"
Jiang Zhi smiled, "It's just as good as that bone stick in my hand."
"!!"
Jiang Shu was immediately thrilled. "That fish from just now?"
That fish must weigh at least several hundred pounds. If it's covered in the golden items Ah Zhi mentioned, then we'll be rich!
Jiangzhi turned her gaze away and said to Jiangshu, "We're not prepared enough today. Let's make a note of this and come back next time when we're better prepared."
"Absolutely!! If we can really get our hands on it, we'll be one step closer to a comfortable life!"
As Jiang Shu spoke, he was already imagining his wonderful future life.
Jiang Zhi smiled and said, "Let's go, there's still time, let's continue to the next location."
The brother and sister suppressed their restless hearts, tidied up the scene, and then left.
Unbeknownst to the two, shortly after they left, a huge head suddenly emerged from the bottom of the river, its long body tumbling in the water for a moment before slowly sinking back down.
*
With some time to spare before noon, the brother and sister decided to head to their destination: the wild vegetable forest.
The wild vegetable forest is quite large, covering more than ten acres according to the book on biological variation.
It contains more than twenty kinds of wild vegetables.
Bidens pilosa, wild strawberry, foxtail grass... and many other ginger twigs I'd never seen before.
Jiang Zhi guessed that the area was farmland before the catastrophe, but the mutation caused wild vegetables to proliferate, which benefited humans.
Fortunately, these mutated wild vegetables are not aggressive, so the wild vegetable forest is the most popular place in the No. 3 collection site.
Jiang Shu packed his harvest into bags, tied them to the cart with elastic ropes, and then continued walking along the riverbank into the valley.
There were a few crooked willow trees along the road, and the terrain dashboard of Jiangzhi showed red.
Judging by the considerable attack power, the two had no choice but to take a detour.
After finally reaching the wild vegetable forest, before even entering the valley, we could already see many of the base's residents.
Looking from the outside in, the valley's terrain is undulating, with jagged rocks on both sides and thin topsoil, occasionally revealing a few huge green plants.
The valley surrounds the entire wild vegetable forest.
Giant wild vegetables are everywhere, with the largest reaching two meters in height.
The wild vegetable leaves, whether dark green or light emerald, are broad and plump, with thick stems and clear textures.
If you're lucky, you might find a leaf of vegetables with moderate levels of toxins. Even just one leaf would be enough to feed a family for several days.
The wild vegetables are not evenly spaced; some grow so densely that they completely cover the ground.
The brother and sister crossed the valley and stepped onto the mud mixed with small stones, occasionally finding some animal droppings.
The entire valley was filled with the aroma of wild vegetables and soil.
From time to time, you can see residents of the base moving through the wild vegetable groves. In the area near the river, the wild vegetables grow more luxuriantly, and the leaves are more vibrant.
Jiang Zhi took out a map and looked at it, deciding to head west. There was no danger there, near the valley wall, and a grove of elm trees.
The two hadn't walked far when they encountered a middle-aged couple.
Upon seeing Jiang Zhi and her brother, the other person immediately tensed up, their entire body visibly becoming tense.
Seeing the brother and sister getting closer and closer, the couple couldn't resist anymore.
"You, you all stop right there!!"
Jiang Zhi and Jiang Shu stopped in their tracks, staring blankly at each other, completely unaware of what the other was trying to do.
The middle-aged man breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the two stop, but he remained vigilant: "Don't you know the rules? We were here first, so you'd better leave now!"
The brother and sister looked at each other in bewilderment.
Jiang Shu: "This is our first time here, and we're not familiar with the rules. Brother, could you explain them to us?"
"Don't worry, we'll leave right away after we finish listening to you."
Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man sized up the two of them for a moment and began to believe him.
"The collection area is allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Once someone has taken it, no one else may take it or come within ten meters of them."
So that's how it is.
That makes sense.
After all, there are millions of people in the entire Ancheng base. If everyone flocks to one place, it's bound to result in a bloody fight.
Having learned the reason, Jiang Zhi and the other person thanked them and left.
After walking another kilometer into the valley, we finally found a spot where there were hardly any people.
Jiang Shu put down the cart.
After looking around, he muttered, "Ah Zhi, there aren't many resources in this place."
Compared to the towering foxtail grass on the other side, the wild vegetables here are only half a person tall.
Judging from the traces, it's been searched much less thoroughly.
Jiang Zhi also felt this place was not good. She casually pushed aside the shepherd's purse in front of her and saw a familiar hemispherical object.
This is... jute?!
She squatted down, picked the fruit she saw, and examined it. It really was jute!
Jiang Zhi hurriedly continued to peel away the mutated shepherd's purse on top, and after searching several places, the smile on her face grew wider and wider.
"Brother, we're lucky!!"
Jiang Shu also parted the shepherd's purse to take a look, but couldn't see anything special about it.
Aren't they all wild vegetables?
Is the wild vegetable that grows at the bottom more precious?
Jiang Zhi smiled for once: "This is amaranth, also called millstone grass. The leaves and flowers are edible, and most importantly, they can be pressed for oil."
Actually, Jiangzhi didn't recognize the leaves of the jujube tree at first glance, but its fruit was so distinctive. Although it was much larger than the ones she had seen before, Jiangzhi recognized it immediately.
"Oil!!" Jiang Shu exclaimed excitedly.
"Although it's not a mainstream cooking oil, it's fine to eat a small amount."
"Moreover, the outer skin of jute is very durable, so we can collect some to patch up the holes in our fishing nets."
Jiang Shu immediately said, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's hurry up."
Seeing the dense clusters of velvetleaf growing beneath the shepherd's purse, the ginger tree was no longer in a hurry.
Anyway, this is their final destination today. There's a slope about 100 meters ahead, so they can go there to rest at noon.
Jiang Shu cleared out a piece of land.
With bone sticks on their bodies, they weren't afraid of insects or ants. The brother and sister just sat there, one picking wild vegetables and the other doing the testing.
"Drip, highly toxic, not for consumption."
"Drip, highly toxic, not for consumption."
"Drip, highly toxic, not for consumption."
...
"Drip, moderate toxicity, can be consumed in moderation."
Finally, I won a prize – a large piece of shepherd's purse leaves, weighing about three or four pounds.
Both of them breathed a sigh of relief.
They were genuinely afraid of wasting such a short time without finding anything to eat.
"Ah Zhi, there isn't a single jujube here. Should we go somewhere else?"
Jiang Zhi hesitated for a moment. Seeing that the sunlight was getting stronger and stronger, she was afraid that if she continued, she would not get any fruit. Undeterred, she picked another apricot kernel about the size of a volleyball. "If this doesn't work, we'll go somewhere else."
— "Drip, low level of toxin, edible."
Jiang Shu's eyes widened immediately. "Low-level toxicity?!"
"Shh! Keep your voice down!"
Jiang Shu then lowered his voice.
He took the apricot kernel from Jiang Zhi's hand, examined it for a while, but couldn't figure it out.
But Jiang Shu hadn't forgotten that a few pounds of tomatoes could sell for several hundred points in the base store.
This should be an immature one; the outer skin isn't very hard. Peel off a side of the ginger tree, and the fruit inside is off-white with a faint fragrance.
"We actually managed to snag a bargain." Jiang Shu unusually thought things through a bit more. "How come no one noticed this huge patch of jute?"
Jiang Zhi shook her head, indicating that she didn't know either.
But a suspicion was already forming in my mind.
It's probably related to the fact that even after the mutation, the velvet still doesn't grow very tall. These velvet plants are buried among the dense and tall shepherd's purse, making them hard to spot without paying attention.
Furthermore, as the fruit of the amaranth grew larger, it fell directly to the ground, making it even harder to see.
In other words, only people like Jiang Zhi, who have some knowledge of plants, have the opportunity to find bargains.
"Stop looking! Put it away first." Jiang Zhi said, putting the fruit into the bag.
Now that they've opened for business, the brother and sister haven't given up and continue to fleece the barley.
In fact, not giving up was the right thing to do.
Over the next hour, the two harvested five moderately toxic amaranth fruits and a large handful of moderately toxic amaranth stalks.
The total weight is over 100 kilograms.
Jiang Shu felt a surge of relief: "Luckily I brought a cart, otherwise my back would have been ruined the next day if I had to carry so much stuff back."
As noon approached, Jiang Zhi decided not to continue and went with Jiang Shu to rest in front of a cliff that provided shade from the sun.
Many people, like them, were looking for a place to rest, but they all tacitly maintained a distance of more than three meters.
Jiangzhi took out two rice balls made of foxtail millet from her backpack, each about the size of a fist.
Ye Qingyun specially bought this from the base store so that they could eat better in the wild.
One ginger branch was given to the ginger tree.
After working hard all day, everyone was starving, so Jiang Shu ate heartily.
The foxtail millet is plump, chewy, and a little crunchy.
It tastes a bit like the texture of konjac from before.
Ye Qingyun also specially sprinkled some instant noodle seasoning packets into it, making it salty and spicy, which Jiang Shu ate with great relish.
After finishing the last few bites, he couldn't help but lick his fingers.
"I have to say, the foxtail tassels at the base taste pretty good, and they're quite filling. I actually feel about 50% full now, but they're just too expensive."
Jiang Zhi agreed.
Ever since she gained a cheat code in her mind, her appetite has been growing bigger and bigger.
The foxtail tassel made her feel a little full; although she wasn't stuffed, she wasn't starving either.
Noon.
The sun relentlessly scorched the earth. The blazing sun in the sky emitted an unbearable temperature, its rays blinding and scorching.
Jiang Shu glanced at the plants outside and muttered, "The weather is getting hotter and hotter."
Even without direct sunlight, it's still unbearably hot.
Sweat kept pouring from his forehead, sliding down his cheeks and leaving streaks.
Jiang Shu's eyebrows and eyelashes were covered in beads of sweat, and the sweat on his neck soaked through his collar. The back of his shirt was already drenched in sweat, clinging tightly to his body. Sweat dripped continuously from his arms, disappearing instantly on the dry ground.
Jiang Zhi handed him a bottle of water, then took out the book of mutated creatures and continued to look through it.
I still had a third left to watch last night.
Jiang Shu wiped away the sweat that kept dripping down his face, and admired his younger sister immensely.
"Ah Zhi, you're going too far! Can't you leave me a way out?"
Jiang Zhi: "The base's register is very useful; taking notes saves a lot of trouble."
It's unbearably hot in the ginger tree area.
Exhausted and sleepy, he took a handful of freshly picked jute leaves, spread them on the ground, and lay down. "Okay, you stay here and I'll rest for a bit before you take over."
The ground temperature reached 70 degrees Celsius at noon and did not drop until after 3 p.m.
We won't be able to actually take action until after 4 p.m.
At this time, most people can only find a place to hide, and very few choose to return to the base, since the journey is not short.
Jiang Zhi glanced at the young man sitting next to her, and immediately sat up straight after seeing him processing his prey.
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