Lai Yi cleaned and fried the newly caught fish along with the dozen or so small fish he had been raising in a basin that very evening. The five-centimeter-long fish turned golden and crispy after cooking, with even their bones fried to a brittle crunch, making a satisfying snap with each bite.
He kept the river snails and larger fish in a big basin, saving them for the next couple of days.
At noon the next day, Lai Yi arrived at the construction site on time, pulling his improved cart. On it were two large pots of Mung Bean Soup and a small basket of Kamaigua melons.
The melons were supplied by Old Guge, who had heard Lai Yi was selling Mung Bean Soup at the site and offered them to him at a wholesale price.
Not daring to take too many for his first time selling, Lai Yi only took fifty. He bought them at three copper coins for two melons and sold them at three copper coins each, just making a little profit to cover his effort.
Although he arrived fairly early, the spot under the big tree where he had previously sold Mung Bean Soup was already taken. Unbothered, Lai Yi found another shaded spot and set up his cart there.
Seeing him arrive, Kelly came over to buy another bowl.
“Why didn’t you come yesterday?”
“I went to town to buy mung beans.”
“You missed it—the stall over there started selling Mung Bean Soup too.”
Kelly pointed to a stall in the left front where a middle-aged woman was hawking her goods.
“She sells it for one copper coin less than you, but yours tastes better—sweet and generously loaded with ingredients.”
“No problem, that’s to be expected.”
Lai Yi had long anticipated that someone would eventually copy his idea of selling Mung Bean Soup. He never considered it a long-term business, just a side hustle to earn some extra coins.
“You’re pretty calm about it.”
Lai Yi cut open a melon and offered Kelly a piece to try.
Old Guge grew excellent melons—crisp and sweet—and unsurprisingly, Kelly loved it, buying seven on the spot. After Kelly’s enthusiastic promotion, the dozens of melons sold out quickly as people bought a few each to take home to their families.
However, Lai Yi had prepared more Mung Bean Soup than usual, and by the time it was no longer chilled, there was still some left at the bottom. He decided to take it back home to drink in the evening or, failing that, give it to an acquaintance.
As the weather grew hotter, more vendors showed up. Today it was someone copying his Mung Bean Soup; who knew what new competitor might appear tomorrow?
Lai Yi decided to set up his stall every two days from then on, selling whatever he could.
By the time he packed up, it was already dinnertime. After eating, the sky was still bright.
Thinking back, it had been three days since he last checked his traps. If he waited any longer, any prey caught would likely be eaten by wild animals in the mountains.
Without delay, Lai Yi took his bow, arrows, and dagger and headed into the woods.
The first trap had caught a Longtooth Beast. It had some weight to it, but its udders were full—it was a nursing mother. Lai Yi released it directly.
The second trap had also caught prey, but only bloodstains and broken bones remained—sure enough, it had been devoured by wild animals. The bait used for the trap was wasted.
The woods were full of treasures, and there was no sense returning empty-handed. Lai Yi began foraging again.
The vegetation here was lush, but most of it was inedible weeds. The wild vegetables were past their season, their leaves rough, thick, and bitter-tasting. Few people bothered picking them anymore, preferring to eat the cultivated greens from their own gardens.
There were still some wild fruit trees struggling to survive in the forest, laden with unripe fruits. Lai Yi silently noted their locations, planning to return for harvesting when they ripened in autumn.
After wandering a bit longer, Lai Yi discovered a large patch of wild ginger in a clearing. Initially uncertain, he confirmed it by digging up the rhizomes. Since it wasn’t the right season yet and they weren’t very large, he only dug up a few to take back.
Days passed by buying Mung Bean Soup and Kamaigua, and before they knew it, over a month had gone by. The small mountain village had entered early autumn. Through selling Mung Bean Soup and Kamaigua, Lai Yi had managed to save forty-nine silver coins, finally giving him some financial breathing room.
The tunnel excavation project had progressed one-third of the way. Large numbers of trees had been cut down to make tunnel supports, which were drying in open spaces across the villages. With the grain harvest approaching soon, there wouldn’t be as many free hands available to help. Preparing the supports in advance would save time later. After all, the villages lacked many things but never trees, so no one minded the logging.
Nothing went to waste – thicker branches were collected by households to make fences, while thinner twigs were taken home for basket weaving or firewood.
The village vegetable gardens yielded a bumper harvest. Vegetables overflowed from the plots, and any surplus was sun-dried by each household. Entering the village, one could see rows of dried vegetables displayed everywhere.
“What a good year this has been!”
“Indeed.”
Haggard remarked with emotion, and Linda agreed.
Haggard was sending Linda to stay with relatives for a few days, while Lai Yi and Neil hitched a ride on Haggard’s ox cart to buy some things in the neighboring village. There was a household there known for making excellent large pottery jars – sturdy and practical. Lai Yi planned to buy some to make pickles for winter.
“Lai Yi, don’t worry about the wheat harvesting. After we finish our own work, I’ll have your cousin come help you.”
“Alright.Lai Yi outwardly agreed, but had already made plans in his heart. It would be better to handle the wheat harvesting himself rather than constantly troubling Haggard’s family. No matter how good the relatives are, one-sided giving without returns ultimately can’t last. Life must be built step by step on one’s own.
“Little Neil seems to have gained weight.”
Linda pinched Neil’s cheek and ruffled his short crop haircut. Since Neil had cut his hair, elders always wanted to touch it whenever they saw him, much to his annoyance.
“I want to touch it too!”
Luna started exclaiming when she saw Linda’s action.
“Just one touch!”
Neil lowered his head to let Luna have a feel, and the little girl smiled contentedly.
Haggard drove the ox cart carrying Linda, Luna, Lai Yi, and Neil. After a long journey, they finally arrived at their destination.
As soon as the two brothers entered the yard, they saw pottery jars neatly arranged along the walls – some finished, others still drying. The uncle selling the jars, upon hearing Lai Yi was Haggard’s relative, gave a discount of ten copper coins per jar. The local jars were wide-mouthed with large bellies, but Lai Yi wanted the style of modern pickle crocks.
After several discussions, Lai Yi drew a sketch and custom-ordered several jars, arranging to pick them up in half a month. He also bought one small meter-deep vat and two ordinary pottery jars, spending nearly four silver coins in total.
After having lunch at Linda’s relative’s house at noon, Haggard took Lai Yi and Neil back. On the way, Haggard taught Lai Yi how to drive the cart again, while Neil listened attentively beside them.
Lai Yi learned quickly and was able to handle it after just over ten minutes of practice. For the latter half of the journey, he was basically the one driving the cart.
“Uncle Haggard, you know I’ve been selling Mung Bean Soup over by the mountain recently. I’ve saved up some money and was thinking of buying an animal for transportation. I wanted to ask for your opinion first.”
“We have an ox cart at home, you can just come and hitch it whenever you need it. Why spend money on another animal? They’re troublesome to take care of, and the food they eat every year costs quite a bit.”
Hearing Lai Yi’s words, Haggard didn’t immediately make suggestions but first explained the drawbacks, worried that Lai Yi might not be able to afford the expenses.
“Mainly because I plan to do some business in the city in the future. It would be too troublesome to bother you every day going back and forth, and I’d feel bad about it.”
“Alright then.”
Haggard thought for a while before asking.
“Were you thinking of buying an ox or something else?”
“Anything is fine, as long as it can pull loads and serve as transportation.”
“Oxen are strong, but they eat a lot and move slowly. They’re also more expensive. You could buy a Delrastoen Beast. They’re fast, and although not as strong, they can still pull several hundred pounds. They don’t eat much either.”
The Delrastoen Beast was that local species that looked like mules – the same ones the village had brought along during Lai Yi’s last hunting trip.
“I’ll keep an eye out for you regarding who has Delrastoen Beast offspring for sale this year. Just wait for news.”
“Thank you, Uncle Haggard.”
“Don’t mention it, no need to be so polite. You’ve grown up and know how to earn money now. If only Victor were still…”
Haggard’s voice grew softer and softer until Lai Yi could no longer make out what he was saying. Haggard stared straight at the wild grass by the roadside, lost in memories of the past.
Passing by the tunnel construction site, Lai Yi encountered his regular customer Simon.
Simon particularly loved Lai Yi’s Mung Bean Paste and sometimes asked him to make extra portions. Of course, he was also very generous with his payments. After prolonged outdoor work, his face and arms had darkened another shade.
Haggard and Simon greeted each other familiarly – it turned out they were acquaintances too.
“The weather’s hot, and there are many mosquitoes. Everyone seems to be lacking energy. I’m afraid the completion will be delayed for some time.”
Simon said worriedly.
“Why not ask the Clan Elder for more workers?”
Haggard asked. Simon sighed.
“The budget isn’t enough.”
Haggard could only shake his head helplessly.
Simon invited Haggard into the shed to chat, while Lai Yi idly observed the changes happening to the mountain.
The completed section of the tunnel was over two meters high and three meters wide. To ensure the tunnel’s safety, they used surface-carbonized wooden pillars for support, with the wooden pillars wrapped in a several-millimeter-thick metal layer on both sides.
The dozens-of-centimeters-thick pillars were fixed with several-centimeters-thick metal nails. At the corners, additional thick wooden strips were nailed together to form traditional triangular support structures, making it look very sturdy.
These things clearly required spending a considerable amount of gold coins. Lai Yi had heard that the Clan Elders from three villages were already planning to organize several hunting teams after the autumn harvest to hunt Magical Beasts, using the proceeds to subsidize the tunnel’s expenses.
The barren mountain where the Goblins had settled wasn’t far from the tunnel. In the distance, several brand new small wooden houses could be seen.
They had already adapted to the environment here and had begun building their own houses.
“What are you looking at?”
Kelly asked. He really liked the melons grown by Old Guge and would always buy a few fresh ones from Lai Yi’s stall. Over time, the two had become quite familiar with each other.
“Looking at the Goblins’ houses.”
“Looks pretty good, doesn’t it? Simon drew the blueprints for them.”
“I heard he provided them for free.”
Kelly said mysteriously. Lai Yi hadn’t expected there to be such a backstory involved.
“How are they doing?”
“You mean the Goblins?”
“Mhm.”
“They’re working diligently. Every day when we come to work, we can see the tunnel has been dug several meters further. The stones and such are neatly piled along the roadside.”
“Some of them even trade game with us for seeds.”
“That’s quite good.”
“Yeah, but there are also people unwilling to interact with them, always cursing them behind their backs.”
“Such things are to be expected.”
Lai Yi still remembered that Goblin named Iru and his family.
“Kelly!”
“The foreman is calling! I’m off!”
“Alright.”
Kelly pushed his handcart and hurried back into the still-being-excavated tunnel.
Author’s Note:
Legend has it that every mountain possesses a “Heart Crystal Stone,” guarded by a kind-hearted dwarf.
The dwarf lives in the very heart of the mountain. Though they stand only fifty centimeters tall, they possess powerful magic that can make mountains tremble.
Every day, the dwarf patrols various parts of the mountain—sometimes rescuing young animals abandoned by their mothers, other times picking insects off the elderly Grandfather Trees.
They sing unique hymns to pray for deceased creatures, helping them return to the embrace of the Earth Goddess. How deeply they love their mountain.
However, mountains can die—an irreversible process. When a mountain perishes, the dwarf takes its “heart” and moves to another living mountain to continue their life.
Therefore, whenever people need to reshape a mountain, they enter the mountains on the night of a full moon, seeking the first round stone they encounter. They then bring it down and place it on another mountain as an offering.