Although Wen Xi had gone to sleep the night before determined to get up early and help her grandmother, her eighteen years of being pampered and indulged had left her body completely unwilling to cooperate after a long day of traveling.
So, in the end, Wen Xi still woke up later than her grandmother.
Her sleepy eyes could barely open, but thinking about helping Grandma, she forced herself out of bed through sheer willpower and went into the courtyard to splash her face with icy cold water.
The moment the cold water hit her face, even the fine little hairs on Wen Xi’s cheeks seemed to stand on end.
The excess water trickled from her wrists down toward her elbows, leaving a trail of goosebumps wherever it passed.
Cold water really was an excellent way to shake off sleep.
Wen Xi’s eyes were no longer stubbornly glued shut.
The sky was already bright, and the sunlight slanted across the loquat tree in the courtyard.
She hadn’t paid much attention to it yesterday, but now Wen Xi noticed that the large loquats on the sun-facing tips of the branches had already turned a beautiful golden yellow and were ripe enough to eat.
However, she didn’t linger over them.
After eating the breakfast Grandma had deliberately saved for her, Wen Xi found a sickle, locked the door, and headed out.
Before leaving, she checked the time.
It was only nine o’clock.
As long as she made it back before eleven, she would have plenty of time to cook lunch.
Since she hadn’t asked Grandma exactly which family she was helping yesterday, Wen Xi didn’t go searching through the fields.
Instead, she headed toward the mountain behind the village.
Her experience of living in the mountains in the modern era had been more than twenty years ago, and she suddenly realized that she really missed the wild foods she used to find there.
It was May, so there should be plenty of wild fruits growing in the mountains.
After making her way to the back mountain, Wen Xi looked at the towering greenery stretching out before her.
She couldn’t help taking a deep breath.
Mmm.
It was far more refreshing than any of those scenic areas in the modern era that advertised themselves as “natural oxygen bars.”
The cells throughout her body seemed to tingle pleasantly from the comfort.
The grass around her ranged from ankle-high to waist-high, with some even growing above her head.
But Wen Xi wasn’t afraid.
She calmly searched around until she found a sturdy wooden stick.
She held the stick in her left hand and continuously beat the grass around her, making sure she wouldn’t unexpectedly run into a snake.
Her right hand gripped the sickle in case anything unexpected happened.
Her bright, dark eyes darted around as she searched for wild fruit.
Smack.
The sound of the stick striking the weeds.
Rustle.
The sound of the disturbed grass shaking.
“Smack, rustle, smack, rustle, smack, rustle…”
Before she knew it, she had already traveled quite a distance into the mountains.
Whenever she got tired, she simply plopped herself down on a large rock without the slightest concern for her appearance.
One hand propped up her chin, while her expression changed from time to time.
The other hand held the wooden stick, occasionally tapping the grass around her.
When Wen Xi finally stood up again, she had a piece of foxtail grass between her teeth.
She didn’t throw away the carefully selected long, straight, sturdy stick. She carried it together with the sickle in her right hand, letting them swing casually as she walked.
Her free left hand wasn’t idle either.
Every now and then, she would reach out to touch a flower, pluck a leaf, or otherwise mess around with whatever greenery caught her attention.
Wen Xi had become so relaxed that when a sudden combination of fluttering and clucking sounds erupted from nearby, she was startled into screaming and jumping straight into the air.
“Ahhhhhhh!”
Her scream startled every bird within earshot.
One after another, things flew out from the nearby trees and bushes.
Already frightened once, Wen Xi was frightened again and immediately felt her legs go weak, causing her to fall onto the ground.
After sitting there for a while to recover, she finally realized that the fluttering sound she had heard was probably a wild chicken.
She wiped the cold sweat that had suddenly broken out across her forehead and excitedly began searching through the clump of grass where the sound had come from.
“One, two, three, four, five, six… There are actually six wild chicken eggs in one nest!”
“This nest is pretty big too. The dry grass, thin twigs, and dead leaves are woven together so tightly. It almost looks handcrafted.”
“Although wild chicken eggs aren’t as spotless as the ones sold in supermarkets, they don’t smell strange, and there isn’t even any chicken droppings on them.”
Wen Xi carefully picked up one of the eggs and examined it.
It was still warm.
It was slightly smaller than the chicken eggs sold in supermarkets.
She shook it gently.
There was no sound.
Then she held it up toward the sun and looked through it.
She couldn’t see a chick inside.
The smile on her lips widened.
She couldn’t help praising the eggs.
“They’re so round and plump. They must taste delicious!”
“I really am lucky. I find wild chicken eggs the moment I come up here.”
After enjoying her little discovery, Wen Xi looked at the six eggs and thought about it.
In the end, she took only four.
She left two for the mother hen.
Why didn’t she take all of them?
Wen Xi’s reasoning was simple.
She didn’t want to go too far.
Leaving two eggs for the mother hen meant she wasn’t wiping out the whole nest.
In fact, she had even thoughtfully left two eggs so that when the chicks hatched, they would have playmates!
She really was a good citizen raised under the red flag!
After checking the time and seeing that it wasn’t even ten o’clock yet, Wen Xi carefully protected the four eggs in her pocket and continued deeper into the mountains.
Before long, she spotted a tree covered in tiny red fruits.
In the mountains of the modern era, these little red fruits were called ye ganfan.
They could be eaten directly without spitting out the seeds.
The only problem was that the tree was covered in thorns, so she had to be careful when picking them.
Wen Xi used her sickle to cut a handful of wild grass and twisted it into a little ring, carefully placing her four wild chicken eggs inside for safekeeping.
Only then did she turn her attention to the tree covered in tiny red fruits.
She carefully pinched one branch between her thumb and forefinger, then used her other hand to pick one of the larger red fruits and pop it into her mouth.
The taste was almost exactly as she remembered.
It had a soft, slightly grainy texture and a faint fruity flavor.
Unlike the sandy texture and rich apple flavor of an apple, these little red fruits had a very mild taste.
Only when she first bit into one could she detect the faintest hint of fruitiness.
They didn’t taste strange, they could fill your stomach, and there was an entire tree covered in them.
Nature really was humanity’s greatest mother.
Before heading back, Wen Xi picked a large handful of the red fruits and put them into her pocket, planning to bring them home for Grandma to taste.
She gave the ye ganfan tree a little wave.
“Bye-bye!”
Then she turned around and began making her way home.
Unfortunately, she didn’t encounter a second wild chicken on the way back.
That was a little disappointing.
But when she felt the four wild chicken eggs and the wild fruit in her pocket, Wen Xi was satisfied again.
She had timed her return perfectly.
She arrived home only ten minutes before Grandma returned.
Wen Xi handed her grandmother a cup of boiled water that she had prepared in advance and allowed to cool to a comfortable temperature.
“Grandma, you worked hard. You must be thirsty, right? Have some warm water.”
Grandma first praised her.
“Xiaoxi really is Grandma’s thoughtful little sweetheart.”
Then she accepted the cup and drank.
“Grandma, sit down and rest. Xiaoxi will massage your shoulders for you.”
Grandma said there was no need, but Wen Xi insisted on giving her a massage.
In the end, Grandma could only accept the service with a helpless but happy smile.
However, after only a short while, Grandma reached up and gently stopped Wen Xi’s hands.
“That’s enough. Grandma has rested enough. What does Xiaoxi want for lunch?”
Wen Xi uncovered the bowl she had deliberately placed over the wild fruits.
Then, like a child showing off a precious treasure, she proudly presented them to her grandmother.
“Ta-da! Grandma, look! I found these little red fruits that can be eaten.”
Grandma glanced at them.
Then, before Wen Xi could react, her grandmother’s hands—weathered by the passage of time—began checking Wen Xi from head to toe.
Her voice was filled with concern.
“Why did you go into the mountains? Did you get scratched?”
“Xiaoxi, you’re not allowed to go into the mountains alone again. The mountains are dangerous. There are black bears, wolves, snakes, and even some shameless scoundrels hiding out there.”
“Xiaoxi, promise Grandma that you won’t go into the mountains alone anymore. If you refuse, I’ll have your parents come and take you back.”
Only then did Wen Xi understand just how reckless she had been this time.
She quickly nodded and raised her hand, solemnly swearing that she would never go into the mountains alone again and would never put herself in danger.
Even after hearing her promise, Grandma still looked shaken.
Wen Xi immediately stepped forward, wrapped both arms around her grandmother, and gave her a little shake.
Then she said coquettishly,
“Grandma, don’t be upset. Look, I’m perfectly fine!”
“How about I perform a little talent for you to cheer you up?”
Grandma looked at her.
“What kind of talent?”