Chapter 12
Upon seeing this, Niu Xiaolu immediately rushed over: "Mom! You're awake!?"
"Xiao Lu... I... I'm not dead?"
Liu Xu was also a little confused.
She looked down and felt for a moment, and found that the pain in her internal organs had disappeared, and even her mind was very clear.
Most importantly, she is now full of energy, and even the scars from her injury in the wilderness two years ago have disappeared!
Niu Dali asked excitedly, "Ah Xu, how are you feeling?"
Liu Xu hesitated for a moment, but still said, "Dali, I feel like my body has returned to its pre-cataclysmic state. Did you pay some price to cure my illness again?"
Even old scars have disappeared now. How amazing must this detoxifying medicine be to achieve this? You know, the scars on her hands used to itch so badly every day that she couldn't stand it.
With the current antidote available at the base, it's absolutely impossible to achieve that level of effectiveness.
Niu Dali's eyes widened. "Ah Xu, are you serious?!"
"No, we should go to the clinic for a test!"
Niu Dali was about to pull Liu Xu out of bed when he said that.
Liu Xu slapped his hand away impatiently, "We can't go now. You made it so public to treat me. If we go for a test now and the results show that I'm fine, we'll become the target of everyone's criticism!"
After his wife said that, Niu Dali calmed down.
He still couldn't believe it: "Are you really alright?"
Liu Xu got up and walked around to show him, "Not only am I fine, but I feel like my old ailments are all cured."
Upon seeing this, Niu Dali couldn't help but ask in a daze, "Could it be that the thirty grams of powder is really that effective?"
It's important to know that even with ordinary low-toxin foods, you'd need to consume at least a pound at a time to effectively alleviate poisoning symptoms. And even then, the relief would only last for about six months.
Seeing his expression, Liu Xu's heart skipped a beat: "What thirty grams of powder? Did you give away something again?"
Seeing that his wife was angry, Niu Dali quickly told her about the powder that Jiangzhi had given him.
Niu Dali: "I didn't expect what she gave me to be so effective. And it seems that its effects are not just limited to relieving the symptoms of poisoning."
Liu Xu straightened up and said, "No matter what, she saved my life. We have to repay this favor. Also, we can't let anyone else know about this."
Niu Dali nodded, then heard his wife say:
“From what you’ve said, that family just settled in our base and they definitely need some help. They still have more than a month’s worth of food left. Tomorrow we’ll go see if they need any help. We’ll give them whatever points they ask for.”
Niu Dali nodded, "I'll do whatever you say. If it's too expensive and I can't pay off the debt, I'll just be their slave for the rest of my life to pay it off."
Such a potent powder must be rare; they were lucky to find someone willing to give it to them.
The situation took an unexpected turn, and while the family was filled with lingering fear, they were also extremely grateful to Jiang Zhi.
*
Jiang Zhi woke up before dawn the next day.
She got up, changed her clothes, and covered herself up completely before walking into the hall.
Unexpectedly, Jiang Shan and his wife got up even earlier than her.
Judging from Ye Qingyun's condition, he clearly didn't sleep well last night.
Needless to say, it was definitely because of concern for the two of them.
Seeing that Jiang Zhi had gotten up, Ye Qingyun couldn't help but give her another instruction: "Your dad made the flatbed cart for you overnight. When you two go out, be careful. Stay away from those mutated beasts and be wary of people."
Just then, Jiang Shu walked over, yawning. When Ye Qingyun saw him like that, she was furious.
"You brat, don't you dare drag your sister down when you get out of here!"
Jiang Shu got a sharp rap on the head and was fully awake, feeling incredibly aggrieved. "Mom! Your son's smart brain will be ruined by you sooner or later!"
Jiang Shan: "Alright, alright, stop fooling around, let's get going."
The brother and sister set off amidst the worried gazes of Jiang Shan and his wife.
Once the two had merged into the crowd leaving the city gate and were completely out of sight, Jiang Shan comforted Ye Qingyun: "Alright, they're not children anymore, and they have more experience surviving in the wild than most people. And Azhi... Anyway, she'll be fine."
That's what they say, but actually, Jiang Shan had the urge to go out with his brother and sister early that morning.
But in the end, he managed to restrain himself.
There are four people in their family.
The brother and sister may not go now, but they will go later.
Ye Qingyun's eyes reddened slightly. Upon hearing this, she glared at her husband and said, "What do you know! What mother doesn't worry? Unlike you, so cold-blooded and heartless!"
In the years following the disaster, the family has always acted together, holding the belief that if they were to die together, they would have no regrets even if something were to happen to them.
This was the first time the brother and sister had acted alone.
Jiang Shan pleaded, "I misspoke. Can I do all the housework today?"
On the other side, no matter how worried the couple was, the brother and sister followed the main group out of the city gate.
Jiang Shu pushed the modified cart, attracting many stares along the way.
Jiang Shu felt uncomfortable under their gaze: "A-Zhi, what are they doing? Do they think I'm too handsome?"
Jiang Zhi said expressionlessly, "They probably think you're a walking charity project, a living bodhisattva who creates jobs for the unemployed."
Jiang Shu was confused. "What do you mean?"
Jiang Zhi fell silent. She drew the watermelon knife from her waist and gave a cold look to those who coveted their flatbed cart.
Over the past few years, Jiang Zhi has killed quite a few mutated beasts, and when she gets serious, her eyes carry a hint of ferocity.
Upon seeing this, those people all averted their gaze.
Jiang Shu understood what Jiang Zhi meant and jumped up, "Ah Zhi, are you insulting me?!"
Jiang Zhi rolled her eyes.
Her brother didn't even look at them; every single one of these people leaving the city was dressed in rags and carrying baskets.
Although there were others pushing carts like them, they were all large families, and they didn't look like they were easy to mess with.
In these people's eyes, weren't the brother and sister just insignificant kids?
The reason these people haven't taken action is simply because there are base soldiers patrolling.
Once they find an opportunity, given how scarce their handcart is, they will definitely make a move.
After realizing what was happening, Jiang Shu noticed the malicious stares around him. He glared fiercely at everyone around him, saying, "I'd like to see which fool dares to try and take advantage of us!"
Jiang Shuren was tall and strong. Although he looked somewhat thin now, his 1.85-meter height was enough to make people wary.
Sure enough, as soon as Jiang Shu finished speaking, even the boldest people dared not openly spy on him anymore.
There is a stop about two kilometers from the base gate, which is specifically for the base's buses.
It's called a base bus, but it's actually just a converted sightseeing bus.
Most people planned to walk to the gathering area on their own, while only a small number chose to take the base's transportation.
After everyone had mostly left, Jiang Shu finally spoke up: "A-Zhi, which gathering area should we go to?"
The base has currently mined fourteen collection areas, and each collection area has been scanned by the base's exploration team using special instruments.
Large mutated creatures will not appear inside. Of course, small mutated beasts such as fire mice and fanged rabbits are unavoidable. If you encounter them, you can only consider it bad luck.
The good thing is that each gathering area is guarded by mutants. Base residents can buy signal flares produced by the base.
Once a mutated beast is encountered, simply fire a signal flare, and the mutated creature will arrive promptly.
What?
You're saying you can't afford it?
Well, I'm sorry, you're just unlucky.
Jiang Zhi thought for a moment, "Collection Area No. 3 is a wild vegetable forest. I heard there is a river there that flows into Zhonghai Lake. I want to go and take a look. It's not too far from the base."
Most importantly, it covers a large wholesale market that existed before the catastrophe, so even if you can't find much food, you can scavenge nearby.
Currently, the base relies on seven collection areas to support most of the local population.
But this "support" simply means keeping someone alive in the literal sense.
For most people, being able to eat their fill is still an unattainable dream; most people experience periods of hunger followed by periods of fullness.
Ginger has a cheat code, so of course it's not enough to just eat its fill.
She wanted her family to live a good life.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Shu didn't hesitate, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"
They did not choose to take the base bus.
Jiang Zhi had no intention of handing over 20% of the valuable information she found using the terrain data in her mind to the base.
The two had purslane porridge and instant noodles for breakfast, so they weren't hungry and still had plenty of energy.
Along the way, they would occasionally encounter other base residents who were also collecting resources.
However, everyone was very cautious, and everyone was in a hurry.
The cart modified by Jiang Shan, besides having one tire, also had small wheels removed from a camping pushcart installed in the front, making it inevitably a bit unbalanced when pushed.
Fortunately, the base has cleared the roads leading to each collection area.
The brother and sister hurried along and finally arrived at their destination an hour later.
From a distance, the No. 3 collection area is located in a relatively flat valley, with a river about 4 meters wide running through it.
On both banks of the river, large swathes of plants grow lushly. Near the riverbank, foxtail grass grows abundantly, its fuzzy spikes plump and round.
Every now and then you can see the huge white fluffy balls of the mutated dandelion.
It looks so big it's like a person's head is spinning.
The brother and sister walked over, and the bone stick on Jiang Shu's body came into play.
With each step forward, many flying insects were startled and sprang up.
Jiang Shu was delighted.
"Ah Zhi, this thing is so convenient. I wonder if it works on all insects."
"If it works on snakes too, we'll make a fortune."
Jiang Zhi observed the insects flying away ahead, silently noted their species, and said, "Maybe it really works?"
Jiang Shu dared not dream of such a thing.
There were quite a few people in the No. 3 collection area at this time, but after they dispersed to different places, there were hardly any people to be seen.
Further along, there is a small patch of sea buckthorn forest, but it's unclear how many of the fruits are edible.
Seeing the two-meter-tall white fluffy balls swaying in the wind, Jiang Shu couldn't help but ask, "A-Zhi, did someone give us dandelions yesterday too?"
Jiang Zhi knew what her brother was thinking; she had just sensed the surrounding area.
"Those dandelions can attack people."
Just as Jiang Shu was about to say something, he saw someone not far away trying to test a shorter dandelion. As soon as his hand touched the leaf, the white fluffy seed head floated up and landed on the person.
The next moment, the man started shaking all over, as if he were having an epileptic seizure.
"Aaaaaaah!!"
The man's companion tried to help, but upon touching him, he also began to convulse.
Those standing nearby, fearing they might suffer the same fate, quickly moved away.
Seeing this, Jiang Shu couldn't help but shrink his neck.
"How come such a cute dandelion can generate electricity?"
Only after all the dandelion fluff had fallen off did the two of them finally collapse.
Judging from the situation, he's not dead, but he's not in much better shape.
Someone took the opportunity to steal the grain from the two people's baskets.
Jiang Zhi looked away. "Brother, let's go."
"Okay!" Jiang Shu replied and followed along eagerly.
They're not saints or fathers; they're too busy with their own lives to have the energy to help others.
The brother and sister walked upstream along the river. Clumps of mutated calamus grew on the bank, two or three times larger than before the catastrophe, with greener leaves that reflected the sunlight.
Before the Jiangzhi Catastrophe, he studied botany and had some knowledge of plants.
The mutated calamus on the shore is a variant of the original water calamus.
The rhizome is edible, but it is spicy and pungent. Our picky ancestors never thought of eating it before, but because it has medicinal value, it can be eaten after processing.
I wonder what the rhizome of the mutated calamus looks like.
The topographical map in my mind didn't show anything special, and there were hardly any people around; the location was excellent.
Jiang Zhi felt relieved and decided to start from here.
Jiang Shu placed the flatbed cart aside and even locked the wheels with chains.
"Ah Zhi, you've got your eye on this? Is it edible?"
"I don't know. I saw in the book of mutant organisms that the rhizomes of calamus can be used to sift out starch."
Jiang Shu's eyes lit up.
Starch is good; it can fill your stomach.
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