Author Archives: Thandar

“Speaking of which,” the two of them changed to Liang Jincheng sitting on one end of the bench, with Ji Cha resting on his lap, “Has the base not yet restored corresponding regulations regarding marriage and divorce?”

“Indeed, there are none. Why do you ask?” Liang Jincheng lowered his head and asked Ji Cha.

Ji Cha told Liang Jincheng about the woman he met at the checkpoint in the base and her situation. Without relevant regulations, there is no guarantee in this aspect. Even couples who were married before the apocalypse have lost the legally protected relationship, which is bound to cause some confusion.

They cannot control what happens outside the base, but they cannot let things go unchecked within the base.

During the period from late autumn to deep winter, the workload on Ji Cha’s farm was reduced by half compared to the busy farming season, but his work efficiency did not change, so he had almost half a day of extra time every day. He took advantage of this time to investigate the current situation of women in the base.

The current female population in the base is 3,951, and there are 2,700 people whose job information can be seen at the recruitment office, but whether they are single or have marital status is unknown.

Having experienced the apocalypse, Ji Cha knew that there would be many unimaginable things even in the base, so this investigation focused on understanding this aspect.

Sure enough, he discovered a problem soon. Although there had been crackdowns on the trafficking of women on the black market, similar behavior had only gone from semi-public to completely underground.

In the vast base, the only places Ji Cha would normally stay besides the factory and the farm office were the apartment buildings. He didn’t even go to the cafeteria on weekdays, and no one could enter the farm office except for the farm workers. As for the apartment building, only the senior management of the base could go there, so most people in the base only heard of Ji Cha’s name and had not seen him in person.

Ji Cha had no other way to start his investigation, so he chose to go to the cafeteria farther from the farm for two days. It didn’t take long for him to overhear a few men chatting.

“Did you go there last night? I heard there were two new ones, they look pretty and they’re also quite tender.”

“I was so tired yesterday that I couldn’t go. We have a break tomorrow afternoon, so we’ll go then.”

“Are the new ones much more expensive?”

“Probably raised by twenty points, after all, she’s a newcomer and looks pretty good.”

Ji Cha listened roughly to their conversation and leaned in to ask, “Hey, what are you guys talking about?”

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

He was already young and looked quite naive. The men glanced at Ji Cha’s plate and saw two large meat dishes and a bowl of meat soup, along with several vegetarian dishes. One meal could compare to a day’s wages for an ordinary person. Given that even their meals were like this, it was certain that he was a wealthy person.

After the apocalypse, class differences gradually emerged and the wealth gap widened due to different occupations.

However, there was a misunderstanding here with Ji Cha. It wasn’t that he was extravagant or luxurious, he just happened to be checking out the food in this not-so-often visited cafeteria. He couldn’t finish the meal at lunchtime, so he planned to bring it back and eat it for dinner. It wouldn’t spoil anyway.

The men didn’t say directly, but one of them smiled and looked at Ji Cha’s plate, hesitating to say, “Brother, are you a technician? The food is pretty good.”

Ji Cha immediately pushed his plate over to them and smiled, “Hey, no, it’s my birthday today and I just wanted to treat myself to a good meal. I can’t finish it all by myself, so let’s eat together, okay?”

The men didn’t hesitate and immediately started eating from Ji Cha’s plate.

“What were you guys talking about earlier?” Ji Cha asked again.

The men didn’t want to say anything more since eating other people’s food was impolite. One tall and thin man leaned over to Ji Cha and said, “You look like a greenhorn. When did you come to the base?”

Ji Cha smiled honestly, “It’s been a long time. I came in at the end of last year.”

“You don’t know about it?” The tall and thin man was somewhat surprised. “Where do you live?”

“West side.” The factory and apartment buildings were on the west side, so that wasn’t a lie.

The west side was also where most of the technical occupations from before the apocalypse were located, so the men considered Ji Cha to be in a technical occupation. Technical jobs paid around thirty points per day, so it was considered a wealthy occupation.

“So why did you come here today?”

“This is because I was getting tired of the food at the cafeteria over there. They say the taste is different here,” Ji Cha said as he continued, “And it is indeed different when I tried it here. I guess it’s because the cooks are different.”

“Have you ever been with a woman since you arrived at the base?” the tall and thin man asked him with a smile.

Ji Cha blushed at this question, feeling very embarrassed. “No,” he shook his head.

This was not a lie. He had never been with a woman before. Usually, he would glance at women who passed by on the street, and the smell of vinegar would emanate from Liang Jincheng’s body. Let alone being with a woman.

The men saw Ji Cha’s reaction and treated him even more as a naive young man who knew nothing.

“Do you want a woman?”

Ji Cha nodded with a guilty conscience, “Yes, but there are so few women in the base now. I can’t find a girlfriend for a while.”

He put on a sad expression, and the tall and thin man immediately spoke up, “We’re all in the same boat now. It’s a special time, but there are ways to solve this.”

“What solution?” Ji Cha pretended to be very interested.

“I’ll tell you. There’s a place in the east district where there are many women. If you go there and find Brother Qiang, he’ll show you the way. Once you brush up enough information points, they’ll give you the woman you want. The better ones cost more money, and the average ones cost less. If you’re willing to spend, go for the good ones, but even if you don’t, it’s no big deal. After all, women are all the same when the lights go out.”

“What?” Ji Cha pretended to be surprised. “But is this allowed in the base? Will we get caught?”

The tall and thin man smirked, “Brother Qiang is very cautious about his work. Besides, if there weren’t anyone higher up involved in the card-swiping of information points, do you think Brother Qiang could have gotten this done? Don’t worry, the higher-ups turn a blind eye to these things. There are more outrageous things happening in the base than this. Have you seen anyone take action?”

“What kind of outrageous thing is that?” Ji Cha laughed helplessly with interest all over his face. “I just go to work usually and don’t know anything about this.”

The tall and thin man and a few others then educated Ji Cha on the matter.

“I’m telling you, even some women over at Brother Qiang’s place agree to it themselves. Making money this way is much easier than working outside. And even for those who didn’t agree at first, they end up being okay with it. We are considered good because we don’t sleep with other people’s wives. There are some who even steal other people’s wives and become women themselves. Would the woman’s husband dare to say anything? Even the higher-ups can’t do anything about it. They’ll just break your legs.”

Ji Cha listened with anger in his heart, but he couldn’t show it on the surface. He asked for Brother Qiang’s full name and contact information from these people and then left the table, leaving the full plate of food behind.

Back at the apartment building, Liang Jincheng wasn’t there. Ji Cha opened the computer in the apartment and entered Brother Qiang’s full name. The resulting account did indeed show some anomalies.

For ordinary people who earn information points in the base, the amount in their account is transparent and they don’t have much surplus. However, Brother Qiang’s information point balance initially showed a normal value, but when Ji Cha checked again, it was clearly incorrect, with several discrepancies in earnings and the final amount. However, when Ji Cha tried to view the detailed content, the system showed that he didn’t have the authority to do so.

He then logged out of his account and switched to Liang Jincheng’s account. Liang Jincheng’s account had the highest level of authority in the base, and the password was Ji Cha’s birthday. He could see whatever he wanted.

The result was completely unexpected for Ji Cha. From Liang Jincheng’s account, Brother Qiang’s personal information was completely different, with an enormous amount of information points that were almost shocking.

Ji Cha then searched for accounts with similar amounts of information points and found quite a few. Even if these people weren’t engaged in forcing women into prostitution like Brother Qiang, they were probably doing similar things.

Ji Cha suppressed his anger and logged out of Liang Jincheng’s account. He borrowed Zhang Xing’s information card from the factory and rode his electric scooter straight to the East District, where he found the Brother Qiang that everyone was talking about.

Brother Qiang looked like an ordinary man, and was polite when he saw Ji Cha. However, Ji Cha’s peripheral vision caught sight of the several people standing behind Brother Qiang, and their eyes showed a hint of fierceness, indicating that they were not easy to deal with.

“I heard that you can provide a certain service here,” said Ji Cha as he handed over Zhang Xing’s information card.

Brother Qiang had someone check the card and confirmed that Ji Cha was an ordinary person, and also a skilled worker with money. Brother Qiang immediately smiled at him and said, “Come inside and let’s talk.”

Ji Cha was pulled into a world separated by an iron door, which divided the inside and outside.

🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺

Thandar: Why did he go by himself omg it’s dangerous

Although bone meal fertilizer is used on the old farm, it is not as widely used as on the new farm, so the overall effect is not very obvious.

Upon hearing what Cheng Fang said, Ji Cha briefly looked at the planting data recorded on his side of the new area, “This is not completely certain yet. Let’s continue to observe.”

Since it is still in the early stages of growth, and mutated crops are not very stable, there may be some special situations. Whether the mutated crops have a good compatibility with bone meal fertilizer needs further investigation.

The workers in the old area farm and Ji Cha are already familiar with each other, and checking work is a very common thing. However, most of the farm workers in the new area are refugees from outside the base, and they do not have a strong sense of belonging to the base and still have a reverential attitude.

Before Ji Cha arrived this morning, someone had already informed these employees that the leaders were coming. So when Ji Cha arrived, the workers in the farm tightened their backs and just wanted to show their best side.

Ji Cha saw this and knew their intentions, after all, he had been in the same position before.

Ji Cha took a deep breath and turned to Cheng Fang beside him, “I’ll take a walk by myself, you don’t have to follow me. Go and do your own work.”

Cheng Fang nodded hesitantly and left. The other workers on the farm were nervous, so Ji Cha simply left the farm.

Many places in the new area are still under construction, and the daily food is still delivered from the old area. The canteen is also relatively simple.

The only busiest place, apart from the farm, is the entrance checkpoint of the new area. The arrival of winter has increasingly crushed the hope of survival for the small base, and many small settlements with originally hundreds or dozens of people have gradually come here. The first thing to do when entering the base is to undergo a physical examination, and after the examination, they have to be isolated for forty-eight hours before they can be allowed into the base.

The military officer in charge of clearance and Ji Cha are also familiar with each other. When the officer saw him coming from afar, he immediately put down what he was doing and greeted him, “Director Ji, are you coming with Captain Liang today?”

“Yes, are you busy here?” Ji Cha walked over, exchanged pleasantries with the officer, and then they walked to the checkpoint together.

At the moment, three men and one woman walked into the base. The woman was thin and weak, and her pregnant belly looked disproportionately large. The three men beside her looked similar and appeared to be brothers.

The base valued women highly. However, after the apocalypse, the number of female members joining the base was far lower than that of male members. The current male to female ratio had reached eight to one.

Ji Cha noticed that the woman’s belly looked like she could give birth at any moment and couldn’t help but worry. “How many months pregnant are you?” he asked.

The woman lowered her head and didn’t speak. One of the three men replied, “Not sure, maybe over seven months.”

“Her belly is so big at seven months?” Ji Cha was surprised.

“Can’t say for sure, could be twins or more, but it’s over seven months,” the man said.

If it were twins or more, they needed even more protection. Newborns were the hope of the base’s future.

Ji Cha turned to the officer and asked, “Lao Qian, did they pass the medical examination and quarantine?”

Lao Qian nodded. “Yes, they passed. They just finished their 48-hour isolation, so there shouldn’t be any problems. Why do you ask?”

“I’m thinking that the medical equipment in the new area hasn’t caught up yet, and the overall conditions are inferior to those in the old area. It’s better to take them to the old area first and come back here after the birth,” Ji Cha suggested.

“That works. Who is the father of the child?” Lao Qian asked the three men.

To their surprise, the three men said, “We don’t know, we’ve all slept with her.”

Although Ji Cha and Lao Qian felt repulsed by their attitude, they weren’t surprised. S city Base had various rules to prevent such absurdities, but outside the base, the law of the jungle ruled, and weak women were once again seen as assets that could be taken by force.

“In that case, none of you need to come with us,” Ji Cha turned to the woman. “You come with me.”

The three men became anxious when they realized Ji Cha was taking their woman away. “Hey, she’s our woman. How can you take her away?” they protested.

“I’m taking her to a safer place with better medical conditions for her to give birth. As for your relationship with her, we’ll talk about it after the birth. If she still wants to live with you at that time, we will naturally return her to you,” Ji Cha explained.

The woman had been keeping her head down all along. Upon hearing what Ji Cha said, she quickly lifted her head and asked in a hoarse voice, “Really?”

“What?” Ji Cha asked.

“After giving birth, can I choose for myself?” the woman asked.

When she raised her head, Ji Cha noticed that there were still many marks on her neck, and he didn’t know whether they were from being strangled or beaten.

“Really,” Ji Cha nodded.

The woman immediately walked towards Ji Cha with large strides, trembling and firmly saying, “Then I will go with you.”

The three men were held at gunpoint, and although their faces were full of anger, they dared not say anything and could only watch as the woman held her stomach and left with Ji Cha.

Along the way, Ji Cha learned from asking that the woman’s name was Xiao Hui, she was only nineteen years old, and she did not know the three men before the end of the world. The three men were brothers who met Xiao Hui and her boyfriend while hiding from zombies. They had evil intentions and killed Xiao Hui’s boyfriend, and then forced themselves onto her.

“This is not their child,” Xiao Hui told Ji Cha, “I was already pregnant before I met them.”

Afterwards, she did not struggle or escape, and instead tried to cooperate with the three brothers as much as possible because she knew their hearts and methods. She had to submit to them in order to keep the bloodline of her and her lover.

“If you are willing,” Xiao Hui grabbed the straw of salvation, “I can follow you in the future. As long as you don’t let me go back to those people, I can do anything.”

“No,” Ji Cha shook his head, “after you give birth to the child, you can start a new life with the child. You are still young, and there will be many possibilities and opportunities in the future.”

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

Xiao Hui looked into the distance, her tone hesitant, “Is that so?”

Actually, Ji Cha was not sure either. He handed Xiao Hui over to the guards who came with him and went to other areas.

There were not many buildings left in the new area, and one large building was originally an office for the district. It had ten floors, and now it had been cleared out and would be used as the offices for various departments. The office for the farm would also be set up here.

Ji Cha climbed ten floors to the rooftop terrace. There was a long bench on the terrace, and Ji Cha lay down on it. Looking up, there was a deep blue sky, with a gentle breeze blowing by, and a peaceful surrounding. Even if he closed his eyes and pretended it was before the end of the world, it wouldn’t matter. However, beyond the high walls, the terrifying mutant creatures still raged, and the ugliness of human nature was still evident.

Although, if he looked at it optimistically, he was living again, and although the end of the world had still arrived, this time he had family, loved ones, and a peaceful life. But Ji Cha couldn’t help but think about what was really happening outside of the base, beyond the apocalypse, which was what the vast majority of people had to face after the end of the world.

“What are you thinking about?” Liang Jincheng’s voice suddenly appeared, and his footsteps lightly fell on the ground.

Ji Cha suddenly opened his eyes, a little startled by him. “How did you know I was here?”

Liang Jincheng sat down next to Ji Cha and slowly leaned in towards him, then took a light sniff at his neck, as if marking his territory like an animal. “I can smell your scent, no matter how far away you are.”

Liang Jincheng’s body was too big to fit on the bench, so Ji Cha sat up and leaned against him instead.

“I’m wondering if all of this will end, and if we can still go back to the civilization we had before?” Ji Cha asked softly.

“That’s a big question, and it’s not something we can control or predict the answer to,” Liang Jincheng put his arm around Ji Cha’s shoulder, “but what I can assure you is that everything will develop towards a positive direction.”

Ji Cha remembered the decade before, as if it were a dream. Although S city Base had also developed very well at that time, the atmosphere was completely different from what it was now. The Liang Jincheng of that time was also different from the Liang Jincheng of now.

Thinking about how everything could start over again, how he could meet Liang Jincheng again and be with him, Ji Cha couldn’t help but marvel at the wonder of fate.

“Perhaps there is a timeline where we didn’t immediately get together,” Ji Cha said slowly.

But Liang Jincheng interrupted him immediately.

“No matter which timeline, we will always be together.”

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Thandar: Thank you so much to the anonymous Kofi supporter. I will continue to work hard ^_^

Selling Cured Meats

After returning home, Yu Qingze returned the cart to the village chief’s house and went to Brother Chang’s house.

Upon hearing his purpose, Brother Chang immediately said, “Okay, I’ll come over.”

It was already mid-afternoon, and it was almost time to prepare dinner. Brother Chang’s mother said, “Then I’ll come too. I have to make some dim sum for tomorrow morning. Brother Chang, pack some Laba porridge and bring some for Brother Le to eat together.”

Brother Chang nodded.

After listening to it, Yu Qingze suddenly remembered that he forgot to bring Laba Porridge for Brother Le when he went to the town earlier. Although they had already eaten lunch, there was still plenty of porridge at home. So he said, “Wait a moment, I’ll go back and pack some too. You can try what I made and we can exchange and eat.”

The Laba Porridge here was slightly different from what he knew, but since Grandpa Chang and the others trusted his skills, they let him make it according to his method. As expected, the one he made was much more delicious than the local traditional one, and they all liked it very much.

“Boss Yu, did you make this? It must be delicious. Pack more, please,” Brother Chang shouted in the kitchen.

Yu Qingze smiled and agreed, then went back and packed a lot of porridge in food containers, enough for the three of them to eat. He asked Brother Chang and the others to take it to the shop.

Arranging someone to accompany Brother Le, Yu Qingze returned home with peace of mind, took a hoe, and went to find Grandpa Chang and the others. They were digging in the backyard, preparing to plant the Chinese cabbage seedlings today.

By the time Yu Qingze arrived, they had already dug two-thirds of that small plot of land. He went over, tapping and flattening the soil while saying to Grandpa Chang, “Grandpa, I didn’t go to get the prescription. I thought about it, and I think we should go see Dr. Li tomorrow. What do you think?”

Grandpa Chang nodded and said, “Alright. We should have Dr. Li take a look.”

“Then please come with me tomorrow so that Dr. Li can also take your pulse. It will help him make a better judgment,” Yu Qingze suggested.

Grandpa Chang hesitated and said, “Should I go too? I was planning to plant the scallions over there tomorrow.”

Yu Qingze persuaded him, saying, “If you don’t go, Dr. Li won’t know your symptoms, and it will be difficult to judge whether the prescription is effective or not.”

After thinking it over, Grandpa Chang said, “Okay, I’ll go.”

In the evening, after dinner, Chang Hao continued to work on his homework as usual. Yu Qingze was teaching Jiabao arithmetic. They had started learning multiplication, so Yu Qingze asked Jiabao to recite the multiplication table up to nine times nine before teaching him further.

Watching the young boy earnestly calculating on the abacus, Yu Qingze asked him, “Jiabao, have you paid off all your debts?”

Jiabao shook his head and said, “I still need five hundred and sixty wen to clear them.”

“Tomorrow, I’ll go with you, and we’ll repay all the money. Also,” Yu Qingze glanced at Chang Hao and then looked at Jiabao, asking, “Jiabao, do you want to go to school and study?”

During this period, he was too busy, and sometimes he would be called by the villagers at night to handle issues, so he didn’t have time for Jiabao. Now that things had finally eased up a bit, he saw Chang Hao working on homework and suddenly thought that if Jiabao went to study, he would definitely be a good student and might even achieve some academic success. If Jiabao wanted to go to school, he would send him.

Jiabao hesitated for a moment when he heard this and looked up at Yu Qingze. He asked, “Big brother, why are you asking me this?”

Chang Hao also looked up at Yu Qingze. If Jiabao could go to school with him, that would be great!

“You are so smart and have a good foundation. If you go to study, you will definitely be able to pass the imperial examinations and achieve success,” Yu Qingze replied.

Chang Hao nodded in agreement with these words.

Jiabao looked at the abacus in silence, not saying anything. After a while, he looked up, shook his head at Yu Qingze, and said, “Big brother, I don’t want to go to school. I want to learn bookkeeping from you, learn cooking, and learn to run a business and open a shop.”

Yu Qingze frowned, thinking that Jiabao was worried about the snack shop and money. He said, “You don’t have to worry about the snack shop. I can find someone else to take care of it. Money is not a problem either. With the money we are earning from the snack shop now, it’s no problem to send you to school. You just need to consider whether you want to go or not. If you want to go, I will send you to the school.”

Jiabao continued shaking his head, a trace of inexplicable sadness on his face as he said, “Knowing how to read is enough. There’s no need for me to go to school. I don’t want to pursue academic success. The court is too complicated, and I’m not suitable nor do I want to walk that path. I just want to live a simple life. My mother also told me not to pursue an official career.”

Yu Qingze slightly opened his mouth, somewhat surprised by the words the young boy uttered. It made him reconsider Jiabao’s background.

Jiabao was only thirteen years old. According to what Old Huang said before, he came to Tongshan City with his mother when he was five and had been living at the bottom of society in Tongshan City for seven or eight years, working hard every day to make a living.

His mother could read and had taught him how to read and do arithmetic. It could be seen that their family background used to be good, but it was unclear why they ended up in their current situation.

Yu Qingze had always assumed that Jiabao might have come from a declining wealthy family and ended up in Tongshan City with his mother. But now, considering his words, it might not be the case.

“…Is it related to your father?” Yu Qingze asked tentatively.

Jiabao looked up at Yu Qingze in shock, then quickly lowered his head, tightly clenching his fists, his knuckles turning white.

Seeing the young boy’s reaction, Yu Qingze couldn’t bear it and patted his shoulder, saying, “It’s okay. If you don’t want to talk about it, I won’t ask anymore. Don’t worry.” Anyway, from his reaction, it was clear that it was related to his father, but the specifics were unknown.

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

Jiabao kept his head lowered, his thoughts unknown. After a while, he raised his head again and continued to work on the problems.

After some time, with red eyes, Jiabao looked up and said to Yu Qingze, “I’m sorry, big brother. I didn’t mean to hide it from you. It’s just… “

Yu Qingze patted his head and said, “It’s okay. If there are things you can’t talk about, then don’t. When the time comes and you want to talk about it, you can tell me.”

“Big brother…” Jiabao’s eyes welled up with tears and then he couldn’t hold back anymore.

“It’s alright, don’t cry. You’ll make Xiao Hao laugh at us,” Yu Qingze patted his head and said.

“Yeah, I won’t cry…” Jiabao wiped away his tears and looked at Chang Hao with great embarrassment.

Chang Hao had been stunned when he saw Jiabao crying earlier, but now as Jiabao looked at him, he smiled and said, “It’s okay. I used to cry a lot too. Grandpa said that crying is like washing your eyes, but don’t cry for too long, it’s not good for your eyes.”

Jiabao nodded with flushed cheeks and lowered his head, feeling embarrassed, and continued to work on the problems. Yu Qingze didn’t bring up the topic of sending him to school again.

The next day, Yu Qingze took Grandpa Chang to see Dr. Li for a consultation, and then showed him the prescription that Dr. He had given them yesterday.

Dr. Li studied the prescription for a while and then had a pleasantly surprised expression on his face. He exclaimed, “This prescription is marvelous! Who prescribed this? It’s amazing, I never thought of combining the ingredients like this!”

Yu Qingze and Grandpa Chang exchanged glances. Yu Qingze asked, “Dr. Li, can this prescription be used?”

Dr. Li nodded and said, “Yes, it can be used. This prescription is very good. I can say that it’s the best prescription I’ve seen so far for treating this illness.”

Yu Qingze said, “Then let’s follow this prescription and prepare ten doses of medicine.”

Dr. Li handed the prescription to his assistant to prepare the medicine and then asked, “Which doctor prescribed this prescription? I’d really like to meet him and discuss it.”

Yu Qingze replied, “It was a doctor we happened to meet yesterday. His surname is He, and he lives at the Fulai Inn. I’m not sure if he’s still there today.”

“Alright, I’ll try my luck and pay him a visit,” Dr. Li said happily. He enjoyed discussing medical techniques with others.

After getting the medicine, Yu Qingze and the others returned to their shop.

During lunchtime, they were surprised to see a man in his thirties pushing Dr. He into the shop.

Dr. He seemed equally surprised when he saw them and said, “My son told me that the food here is delicious, so I wanted to try them. Turns out, it’s your shop?”

Yu Qingze smiled and said, “Yes, Dr. He. Take a look and let us know what you’d like to eat. It’s on me.”

Dr. He chuckled and replied, “I can’t always eat for free from you. I still haven’t paid for the meal yesterday.”

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

Seeing Yu Qingze coming over, Chang Hao quickly said, “Brother Yu, I saw someone on the mountain across. It looks like they stumbled and can’t get up.”

Yu Qingze frowned and looked in the direction he was pointing, but all they could see was dense forest. He asked, “Really? Are they injured? Take a closer look, where exactly?”

Squinting his eyes, Chang Hao looked for a while and then said, “Right across from here, next to a big rock. I know the spot. It seems like the person grabbed a tree branch and tied several branches around their right leg…”

“Tied branches around their leg?” Yu Qingze exclaimed, “That means they have a fracture. Come down quickly, take me there to have a look.”

“Okay.” Chang Hao quickly climbed down from the tree.

“Jiabao, stay here and watch the firewood. I’ll go with Xiao Hao to the other side.” Yu Qingze quickly said.

Jiabao nodded, “Okay.”

Yu Qingze followed Chang Hao and climbed up the opposite mountainside. They indeed saw a person with branches tied to their leg in an open space near a large rock. The person appeared to be an elderly individual, around fifty to sixty years old. There was a backpack and a makeshift crutch made of a tree branch placed next to them.

“Sir, are you okay? Did you hurt your leg?” The two of them hurriedly approached.

The elderly person, upon seeing someone approaching, expressed joy, “Oh, young ones, it’s so good to see you. I was collecting herbs on the mountain, and I accidentally rolled down from the rock, fracturing my leg. Could you please help me down the mountain?”

Yu Qingze nodded and said, “Come, I’ll carry you on my back. My younger brother saw you fall and couldn’t get up from the other side of the mountain, so we came to check on you.”

“Oh, I see. Thank you so much, young ones,” the elderly person thanked Chang Hao as he looked at him.

Chang Hao helped the elderly person pick up the backpack and the makeshift crutch, shaking his head and saying, “No need to thank us, Grandpa.”

Yu Qingze carried the elderly person down the mountain. When they reached the small path at the foot of the mountain, he told Chang Hao, “Xiao Hao, you’re faster. Go back and ask your brother to go up the mountain and bring Jiabao back with the firewood.”

“Alright.” Chang Hao quickly ran back home with the backpack on his back.

As Yu Qingze carried the elderly person out of the mountain, they coincidentally met Jiabao and Brother Le who had rushed over.

Brother Le gestured and asked if everything was alright.

Yu Qingze replied, “Everything’s fine. You go and bring Jiabao back first.”

Brother Le nodded and went back first.

When they returned home, Yu Qingze helped the elderly person onto a chair and was about to go and fetch Dr. Yu to have a look at the leg.

The elderly person waved his hand and said, “No need to call the doctor, I am a doctor myself. Just find two flat and suitable-sized wooden boards for me.”

Yu Qingze found two wooden boards, and the elderly person also asked to borrow some paper and a pen from him. He asked Yu Qingze to help him gather some herbs from Dr. Yu’s place and then proceeded to reset his own bone, apply the herbal medicine, and put on a splint.

“Young man, in the afternoon, could you do me a favor and deliver a letter to the Fulai Inn? I will have someone come to pick me up,” the elderly person said to Yu Qingze after he finished tending to his leg.

Yu Qingze nodded and said, “In the afternoon, we are also going to the city. If you don’t mind riding on a cart, we can give you a ride there?”

Upon hearing that, the elderly person nodded and said, “That will do. I appreciate your help.”

At noon, the elderly person had lunch together with the Chang family. He greatly appreciated Chang Le’s cooking skills and said it was the most delicious meal he had ever eaten.

Upon hearing this, everyone laughed and said, “The most delicious meal? You haven’t tasted anything yet.”

The elderly person introduced himself as Dr. He and mentioned that he was a traveling doctor who liked to collect herbs. He had come specifically to this area because he heard there was a rare herb on the nearby mountains.

Grandpa Chang was surprised and asked, “What kind of rare herb? I’ve been living here for over ten years and haven’t heard of any rare herbs.”

Dr. He replied, “It is said that there is a herb here with a very strong medicinal effect. Just a tiny bit of it can instantly paralyze and make a person lose consciousness.”

Grandpa Chang shook his head, “I’ve never heard of it.”

Disappointed, Dr. He said, “I’ve been searching in this area for a few days but haven’t found it.”

After lunch, Yu Qingze went to the village chief’s house to borrow a cart. Dr. He noticed that Grandpa Chang was coughing and asked him about it.

“It’s an old problem. I always cough severely in winter. Medicine doesn’t work much. It lasts for more than two months, and once the weather gets warmer, it’s fine again,” replied Grandpa Chang.

Once the twelfth lunar month arrived, Grandpa Chang’s old problem recurred. He had to brew medicine every other day, or else he would feel extremely uncomfortable. When he drank the medicine, he felt better.

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

Dr. He took Grandpa Chang’s pulse and asked him about the medicines he had been taking. After understanding the situation, he shook his head and said, “Stop taking that medicine. If you trust me, follow the prescription I will give you to brew the medicine.”

Chang Le immediately gestured and asked if Dr. He could cure Grandpa Chang’s old problem. Chang Hao translated for them.

Dr. He said, “Complete cure is not possible, but it can greatly alleviate the condition. It’s much better than the medicine you’ve been taking before.”

Chang Le and Chang Hao were delighted and quickly requested Dr. He to write the prescription.

When Yu Qingze returned and heard about this, he was also very happy.

Dr. He wrote the prescription while saying, “This prescription is good, but it contains some expensive ingredients, so the cost may be a bit high. There are some relatively precious herbs in it.”

Upon hearing about the expensive herbs, Yu Qingze said, “Dr. He, we have a ginseng root. Can you see if it can be used for my grandfather?” He asked Chang Le to bring the ginseng, the one that was originally gifted by the Cai family.

“You have ginseng?”

“Yes.”

After Chang Le brought it out, Dr. He examined it and said, “This is good. The quality and age are both good. Older brother, you can brew it in water and drink it, or you can chew a slice every morning. You don’t need too much, just a thin slice will do. It can enhance your constitution.”

Once Dr. He finished writing the prescription, Yu Qingze took the prescription and, together with Brother Le, used the cart to take Dr. He to the Fulai Inn in the city.

Afterwards, Yu Qingze brought Brother Le to the shop and said, “I’ll bring Grandpa here tomorrow to see Doctor Li and get the medicine according to the prescription. Since Grandpa is not in good health, I’ll stay at home and take care of him. I’ll come back and forth every day, and when I come back to the village, I’ll have Brother Chang come over and keep you company.”

Brother Le shook his head and said he would stay home.

“The shop needs someone to take care of it. It’s more suitable for you and Brother Chang to stay here. It’s not convenient for me to stay with Brother Chang. Besides, the weather is getting colder, and I don’t want you to make the round trip. Be good, everything will be fine. Me and Jiabao will come back and forth with Xiaoshu and the others every day.”

After giving instructions, Yu Qingze hurriedly returned home with the cart.

NOTE:

The Laba Festival, also known as the Rice Porridge Festival, is a traditional Chinese festival celebrated on the eighth day of the twelfth month of the lunar calendar. It is considered a prelude to the Chinese New Year, which follows about two weeks later.

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Laba Festival and Dr. He

After ensuring that everyone in the village was able to successfully produce the sweet potato noodles without any major issues, the next morning, Yu Qingze returned to the shop with Jiabao and the others.

They brought along a cart filled with sweet potato noodles, some made by Yu Qingze and the others made by the villagers who quickly learned the process.

Yu Qingze purchased the villagers’ sweet potato noodles at a price of 18 wen per jin. In the snack shop, one jin of driedsweet potato noodles could make 6-8 bowls of sour and spicy noodles. The price for each bowl of sour and spicy noodles was 10 wen. Based on recent sales, they were using more than 20 jin per day, and the sales were still increasing. Overall, it was quite profitable when calculated on a monthly basis.

For the villagers, the fresh sweet potatoes on the market cost about 3 wen for two jin. Most of them went to other villages to buy them, and some could even buy them for 1 wen per jin. With good skills, they could produce one jin of sweet potato noodles from less than six jin of sweet potatoes, while those with lower extraction rates needed about eight or nine jin of sweet potatoes to produce one jin of noodles. In general, it took about seven jin to produce one jin of noodles.

Regardless of the situation, Yu Qingze ensured that they had enough profit margin. Those with better skills could earn more money, while those with less skill could earn less. It was fair.

The villagers who sold the noodles were delighted when they saw the copper coins in their hands, which further motivated them. They immediately returned home and resumed production. Seeing that some villagers had already made money, others also became more enthusiastic about their work.

Since the entire village was making sweet potato noodles, the neighboring villages had their sweet potatoes cleared out by the villagers, and the distance they had to travel to buy sweet potatoes became farther. Some even had to go to the villages on the east side of Tongshan City. Later on, some households set up specialized collection points in the eastern market. But that’s a story for later.

As they entered the twelfth lunar month, the weather became colder day by day, with a strong north wind blowing, and daylight arrived later. The working hours of the snack shop were delayed by half an hour, but when the village laborers left home, it was still early in the morning.

After unloading everything at the shop, Yu Qingze went to the kitchen and said to Brother Chang’s mother, “Uncle, the bunk bed that the village chief sent has been installed. Uncle Chang said to let you know.”

“So fast?” Brother Chang’s mother asked in surprise.

Yu Qingze nodded and said, “Two beds have already been made, and they are already skilled at it. Also, tomorrow is Laba Festival, and our snack shop will be closed for a day. Uncle Chang said to remind you to buy some paper candles on your way back.”

“Okay, I’ll remember that,” Brother Chang’s mother replied and turned around to make the sour and spicy noodles.

Seeing this, Yu Qingze approached Brother Le and stole a quick kiss on his face.

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

Brother Le stared wide-eyed: !

Yu Qingze smiled, washed his hands and dried them, stood next to Brother Le, then took Brother Le’s hand from the table and held it, giving it a squeeze. He said, “I’ll knead the dough, you go and wrap the dumplings.”

Brother Le withdrew his hands, his ears turning slightly red. He gently bumped into Yu Qingze and then stepped back, taking the dumpling wrappers and starting to wrap them.

“Brother Le, Grandpa has been coughing these past few days. He’s been taking the medicine according to the previous prescription, but I might not come to stay at the shop for a while. We’ll wait until Grandpa’s health improves.” Yu Qingze said.

Upon hearing this, Brother Le quickly gestured and asked how Grandpa was doing.

Yu Qingze nodded and replied, “Grandpa says it’s similar to previous years, so you don’t have to worry.”

Brother Le’s mood became a little down. Grandpa’s condition had persisted for about a decade. Every year, the medicine didn’t have much effect, but if he didn’t take it, the condition would worsen.

Yu Qingze comforted him, saying, “If you’re worried, after the Laba Festival, I’ll take Grandpa to the city to see Dr. Li.”

Brother Le nodded, feeling a bit relieved.

The day passed busy and bustling. In the afternoon, when they closed up, Yu Qingze told everyone that they would have a day off the next day. After tidying up and letting the workers leave first, they took the opportunity while some stalls were still open and went to buy some things.

Yu Qingze, Brother Le, and Jiabao checked everything one last time, locked the door, and then went to West Street to buy some incense and paper money before returning home.

The next day was the Laba Festival.

In the morning, Brother Le and Grandpa prepared lunch at home, while Yu Qingze took the two boys to the mountains to chop firewood.

These past few months, he and Brother Le had been busy with the snack shop, leaving all the household chores to Grandpa. Grandpa didn’t have much time to chop firewood, and the stack of firewood at home was almost gone. They had to chop some more before the snow came, to get through the winter.

The three of them entered the mountains and, led by Chang Hao, arrived at a slope with many dry branches.

Jiabao came to chop firewood for the first time, full of excitement. He ran here and there, happily picking up dry branches.

Chang Hao didn’t pick up the branches from the ground. He had a hatchet hanging behind him, and whenever he saw a large dry branch on a tree, he would climb up like a little monkey and chop it down.

“Xiao Hao, be careful. That branch is so thin. Can it hold your weight?” Jiabao anxiously watched as Chang Hao stood on a branch as thin as his arm and quickly reminded him.

Yu Qingze also shouted, “Be careful, little monkey!”

“It’s fine, Brother Jiabao, Brother Yu. I’m light, I’ve chopped firewood like this before.” Chang Hao casually replied, tiptoeing, gripping the tree trunk with his left hand, holding the hatchet with his right hand, and swinging his arm to start chopping.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The half-dead branch was easy to chop. Chang Hao chopped it about eight or nine times, and the relatively large dry branch snapped and fell down with a crash.

Jiabao quickly dragged the fallen branch away.

The three of them chopped for half the morning. As the sun rose higher, and they had chopped quite a bit, Yu Qingze called out, “Xiao Hao, Jiabao! That’s enough, we can go back now!”

“Oh! Got it! Let me finish chopping this one.” Chang Hao replied.

The two boys were currently under a tall tree, looking up. The tree was very tall, with a large dead branch and thick branches nearby, which were easy to chop. However, it wasn’t easy to climb up because there was a long stretch at the bottom without any protrusions to step on.

“It’s so high. Can you climb up? Maybe we shouldn’t chop it.” Jiabao asked.

Chang Hao nodded, “I can.”

After securing the hatchet, Chang Hao hugged the tree with both hands and squeezed his feet onto the trunk. Once he had a secure hold, he moved his hands up a bit, pulling his body up…

The little monkey successfully climbed the tree. After climbing up the initial trunk, there were other branches behind for Chang Hao to leverage, making it relatively effortless.

It took some time, but he finally chopped off the thick dead branch, which was thicker than his thigh.

“Hahaha, what do you think, Brother Jiabao? I told you I could chop it!” Chang Hao proudly stood on the branch, showing off to Jiabao.

“Yeah, that’s impressive! Come down quickly, it’s time to go home.”

“Wait, let me rest for a moment. I’ll drop the hatchet down, so make some space.”

Chang Hao dropped the hatchet, wiped his sweat, and leaned against the tree trunk to rest, while looking into the distance. After the dead branch fell, it created an open space where he could see the scenery on the opposite mountain, which was beautiful.

As he was looking, Chang Hao blinked his eyes and rubbed them. How come he saw someone lying motionless on the open space on the opposite mountain?

“Brother Jiabao, there’s someone on the mountain across.” Chang Hao called out.

“Is someone chopping wood over there?”

“No, that person is lying on the ground motionless.”

“Are they just sunbathing and resting?”

“I don’t know.” Just as Chang Hao finished speaking, he saw the person getting up. Chang Hao said, “Oh, they were sunbathing indeed. Oh no, they just stumbled… It seems like they can’t get up.”

“What’s wrong?” Yu Qingze approached and asked.

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In late October, the test results finally came out. The results showed that the zombie ashes were indeed not much different from human ashes, with calcium, phosphorus, oxygen, and carbon being the main elements present in the remaining ashes. Moreover, the ashes did not carry the zombie virus and could be safely used as inorganic fertilizer.

Ji Cha immediately sent this news to Feng Xing via radio and informed him that S city Base would send someone over to distribute the bone ash fertilizer within a week. T city Base was also thrilled to hear this news.

However, the issue of distribution was still a problem. Feng Xing knew that S city Base was being polite by offering to distribute the fertilizer, and T city Base could not take this for granted. The method of using the ashes as fertilizer was originally proposed by S city Base, and the zombies were not associated with T city Base at all. The reason why Ji Cha and his team came over was due to the cooperative relationship between the two bases, and S city Base’s ability user team was in charge of the whole process. If T city Base insisted on an equal distribution now, they would be taking advantage of S city Base’s kindness, which was not wise.

Therefore, Feng Xing proposed an 80/20 split. T city Base had much fewer people than S city Base, and the soil was not very suitable for large-scale farming. Even with an 80/20 split, the amount of fertilizer they received was sufficient. However, Ji Cha adjusted the share to a 70/30 split, indicating that this was a long-term cooperation and that T city Base’s cooperation would be needed in the future, possibly on a quarterly basis for handling the zombies.

The weather was gradually getting colder, and the refugees outside the base began to suffer again. It was not too bad to sleep outside during the early autumn, but once the temperature dropped below 20 degrees, it was dangerous to stay outside. The refugees in the tent area outside S city Base were considered better off than those outside since the base took care of them to some extent. The tent area was located within the base’s protection zone, and the refugees could sleep more securely at night without worrying about being attacked by zombies.

The base was not very well off before, but now they had more resources. They scavenged a lot of blankets and winter clothes from the city and transported them back by truck to distribute to the refugees living outside in tents, enabling them to survive the winter.

Now, the refugees were waiting for the new area of the base to be built so they could move in. The new area was located about ten kilometers away from the main base and was in a good location, on the outskirts of S City in an industrial area that the base had taken over early on.

The newly opened planting area of the farm is located between the new and old areas. It is a flat and vast planting area, which is built together with the livestock breeding area. The walls to prevent zombies are erected outside the planting and breeding areas, and the guard posts are also very dense. After all, this is an open planting area, which is not as well protected as the planting area in the core of the base.

Due to the increase in construction plans and the reactivation of several factories planned for next year, even though the population absorption this year has exceeded expectations, the population of 30,000 in S city base is gradually becoming insufficient.

To develop, there must be labor.

By the middle of November, the arrival of winter became even more apparent. The people in the base can still eat and dress warmly, but the world outside the base has become even more chaotic due to the need for survival.

A bed, a piece of clothing, a mouthful of food, and a cup of hot water can all become reasons for conflict or even death. Morality or dignity has long been trampled underfoot.

At the same time, the first batch of residential areas in the new area of the base has finally been completed. Half of it is the renovation of the original housing, and the other half is built on flat ground, all according to the living conditions in the core area of the base. This area can currently accommodate about 5,000 people.

In order to facilitate farm planting, a group of farm workers who originally lived in the core area and a small number of troops have temporarily moved to the new area. They are engaged in planting in the greenhouse while waiting for the establishment of public service facilities such as canteens and management offices.

The base lacks people, but it is also the place where people are most abundant, especially for shelters of the level of S base. There are countless people outside who want to come in. The first batch of new area residents are refugees who originally lived in the peripheral tent area. After a series of physical examinations, a total of 1,056 peripheral refugees have moved in. Most of these people have been invested in grain planting, and some have become construction workers. A few of them will be trained and then join the operation of the factories.

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

Ji Cha got up early today. He is going to inspect the planting situation in the farm branch in the new area.

Liang Jincheng finished washing up and having breakfast with him, then set off on the trip. The new area is not far or near to the old area. It’s quite fast to drive straight for more than ten kilometers.

The two of them sat in the back seat and talked about the situation in the small base outside.

“Currently, according to statistics, except for T city base, there are two bases of similar size to T city base with a population of less than 10,000. The remaining small bases have about dozens of them with a population of less than a thousand, most of which occupy relatively advantageous areas.”

“How are the living conditions?” Ji Cha asked.

“Living conditions are generally poor and without strong military equipment, it’s easy to be attacked,” Liang Jincheng said calmly.

It’s one thing to be easy to attack, but whether or not to be prepared for an attack is another matter. With the current capabilities of the S city base, it’s not necessary to use force to reclaim land. The so-called ease of attack simply highlights the common problem of small bases in the outside world. If there are more powerful bases that can provide protection and survival opportunities, no one will be foolish enough to give up in such an end-of-days situation.

The base currently has more or less material exchanges and contacts with many other bases, mostly just not having spoken openly about it yet.

The original population of the S city base in the new area accounts for one-tenth of the total personnel, but because the first batch of new entrants have all lived outside the base in the tent area for at least two months, they are relatively familiar with the management of the base. So far, nothing has happened, and with the mixing of the old area population, the overall development is good.

Ji Cha and Liang Jincheng arrived at 8:30 in the morning, and the farm starts work at 8:00 in the morning and ends at 5:00 in the afternoon. Lunch break is from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm. When they entered the farm, many people were already busy.

Liang Jincheng had his own work to do, so he left a guard for Ji Cha after dropping him off at the farm entrance and went to another place.

Cheng Fang is temporarily managing the farm in the new area. He worked with Ji Cha for a long time in the old area, and his work ability is very reliable. Cheng Fang knew Ji Cha was coming today, so he had been waiting for him at the farm entrance.

“The planting situation is about the same as expected, but overall it’s better than expected, especially for some mutated crops. I found that planting them with zombie fertilizer yields much better results than ordinary crops.”

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Ji Cha and Liang Jincheng returned to T city base, originally they were about to leave, but Ji Cha suddenly remembered the old man who had come to look for him before and wondered if his sister had been involved in the recent events.

Ji Cha asked Feng Xing about this matter and fortunately, the area where the old lady lived was not in the area where the zombies broke in, so she was safe and sound.

“Well, since we’re here this time, we can bring the person over and save the two old people waiting,” Ji Cha said. “And I’ll take the zombie ashes back for testing. After the results come out, we may send someone over again.”

“Testing?” Feng Xing was a bit surprised by this.

Ji Cha and his team had not mentioned the use of zombie ashes as fertilizer, after all, it was still an unknown factor whether it would work or not. They just thought it was a way of disposing of the zombies.

Ji Cha thought there was no harm in mentioning it at this point. “I’m planning to test whether there are any harmful substances to soil or crops inside. If there aren’t, it’s a useful inorganic fertilizer. We can distribute it to both bases and it will be useful for crop production.”

Feng Xing was awakened by Ji Cha’s words and nodded repeatedly. “That’s a good idea. We’ll wait for your test results.”

Compared to S city base, T city base was much smaller and lacked many related equipment and technical personnel. It was difficult to obtain accurate test results on their own.

Because they had to wait for the old lady, Ji Cha and Liang Jincheng waited in T city base for a while. Feng Xing had someone bring the old lady over. At first glance, the old lady saw the two young faces of Ji Cha and Liang Jincheng and thought they were just technicians sent by S city base to pick her up. She followed them onto the truck and even asked about the situation at S city base along the way.

“My health isn’t very good, and when nothing happened before, I could still take care of myself. At that time, my children and grandchildren were all around. Now that I’m the only one left, I can’t really take care of myself. The leader came to find me and said my brother was looking for me in S city base. I thought it was a mistake, but in any case, it’s good to have someone to rely on now.”

Ji Cha comforted her: “You are originally from S city, this time can be considered as returning to your hometown. Your body will surely recover, and there is still a long way to go in the future.”

The old lady smiled and said, “Young man, we are all people who have one foot in the grave. What long way is there?”

The reason why the old lady said this was because she was not sure about the living conditions of the S city base after the apocalypse. Although her brother described the S city base as very good in the letter he sent her, the old lady thought that this was probably just her brother trying to comfort her. As for recovering her health, she didn’t know. In the post-apocalyptic world, there were no concepts of respecting the elderly and loving children. There was not much sympathy in the post-apocalyptic world, and people who were not able to work were not welcome anywhere.

The convoy returned to the S city base along the same route they came. Even before entering the base, they could see a group of tents and many people living on both sides of the road.

The old lady followed Ji Cha to the window and saw this scene. She couldn’t help but wonder, “Who are these people? Are they residents living outside the base?”

The people living on both sides of the tent looked up when they saw the convoy, but their gaze did not show any emotional fluctuations. There were armed soldiers not far away. The reason why the old lady thought that these were residents living outside the S city base was that although they were living in tents, they were still within the protection range of security personnel.

Ji Cha shook his head and said, “No, they are refugees from other bases or those without bases. The base is already full, and except for those with education or skills, ordinary people cannot enter the base. They are temporarily living here, waiting for the new planned construction area to be completed. Here, they can be assured of no attacks, and the base also provides a small amount of food every day to ensure that no one has an accident due to hunger.”

Essentially, these people cannot be considered residents of S city.

The old lady sighed, “Since I got married, I haven’t been back to this village for decades. I don’t know what it’s like now.”

Ji Cha said, “The old houses are still there. If you go inside and take a look, the village is still the same as before. The water well is the same, but it has been dry for more than ten years.”

Although the old lady has been married and left for decades, her accent is still the same, similar to the dialect of Ji Cha. When she found out that Ji Cha’s family had an elder from her village, she immediately asked for the elder’s name. They turned out to have known each other when they were young.

Normally, the old lady could have talked about these things when the old man came to find Ji Cha, but the old man had already placed Ji Cha in a position of leadership, so he naturally wouldn’t chat with him casually. However, the old lady now feels that Ji Cha is just an ordinary young man, and there is no restraint in chatting with him. At this point, she feels even more intimate when she talks about Ji Cha as the descendant of an old friend.

When they arrived at the base, Ji Cha had planned to have the old lady follow other staff members to find her brother, but the old lady insisted on following Ji Cha.

Ji Cha simply let the old lady accompany him back to the farm’s office and waited there for the old man to come and pick her up.

Ji Cha handed the ashes to Qin Shuang and asked her to take them to the technicians for testing. The old lady sat in Ji Cha’s office. The farm’s office was decorated very ordinarily, just like a small office in a town. Except for a computer, which was still quite novel after the end of the world, there was nothing special about it. Even the chair Ji Cha was sitting on looked hard and uncomfortable.

“Xiao Ji, how much can you earn working in the farm every day, and what kind of food do you eat?” the old lady asked him for advice, “I’m trying to figure out what I can do in the future.”

Ji Cha honestly replied, “My salary is about the same as that of an ordinary worker, 25 points per day. Points are our currency here. But I can’t spend the money on food and rent because they are included, so I basically don’t spend any money and just save it.”

The old lady nodded and said, “Then the benefits at your workplace are quite good.”

Ji Cha smiled and lowered his head, “Yes, they are quite good.”

The two of them chatted, and Ji Cha also gave the old lady many suggestions on what work she could participate in. However, her family’s wages were bound to not be too high, after all, labor efficiency was there.

After about half an hour, when the old lady’s brother arrived at the farm’s office, she had already chatted with Cheng Fang, Ji Cha, Wang Qin, and others, and she had a general understanding of the situation at the S city base.

When the siblings met, they cried for a while.

Cheng Fang spoke up and advised, “Go back and rest well. There is still food in the cafeteria now, so go and eat first.”

The old man nodded and wiped away his tears, thanked Ji Cha, and then left with his sister.

After going out, the old lady and the old man talked about Ji Cha. “That Ji Cha is really good,” said the old lady.

The old man quickly corrected her when he heard her refer to Ji Cha in such a way, “You should call him Director Ji. Director Ji is a very good person, but he is still a leader. He is kind to us, but we can’t be too casual.”

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

The old lady, with tears still in her eyes, smiled and said, “Brother, you are still so old-fashioned after all these years. I called him Xiao Ji all the way here, and he didn’t say anything. And they call Xiao Liang who is in charge of the team Captain Liang, I think they are all good.”

When the old man heard about Liang Jincheng, he didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He had to explain the operation of the base and the leadership situation to his sister first.

“Captain Liang is called Captain, but now he is the head of the base. Not only us, even our military here is under his command. Although Director Ji is kind, he is in charge of the farm and many other places, and he has a great say in the base, especially since he and Captain Liang are family. They are both very influential in the base. You are treating them like ordinary young people, aren’t you?”

The old lady realized that she had been impulsive when she heard her brother say this. But fortunately, her brother did not blame her, and they were both still in a good mood.

“The canteen is not far from our house. Today, since you came, let’s go and eat something good,” said the old man.

Although the old man said they would eat something good, the old lady did not expect the food at the S city base canteen to be so good. The braised pork was big chunks of meat, and the vegetables were fresh and tender. They had a variety of meats, including chicken, duck, and fish.

As the old lady walked through the corridor, she carefully observed the food being eaten by ordinary people on both sides. They were all eating white rice or white steamed buns, and many people had at least a little bit of meat in their bowls, but it was a matter of how much.

She was shocked and thought, “Has it always been like this here?”

“Even Feng Xing and his team couldn’t eat like this every day, let alone ordinary people,” said the old man with a smile. “We didn’t have such abundance before. Now that we have livestock, we have meat every day. Before, we were struggling, and we only had a bit of meat in our vegetables. I told you not to call him Xiao Ji because he’s in charge of the entire base. He’s very capable, and nobody in the base can say anything bad about him.”

On the other side, Ji Cha had returned to the factory with Liang Jincheng to have dinner. Everyone was curious about the result of dealing with the zombies, so Ji Cha explained it to them one by one.

“We’re just waiting for the test results in two days. If they are good, we will split the ashes with T city base.”

Zhang Xing frowned and said, “Just say it’s fertilizer. It sounds weird to say ashes.”

Xiao Chao giggled beside him, teasing him for being timid.

Zhang Qinqin also laughed and said, “We have so much going on.”

At night, the lights inside the base shone through the high walls, illuminating a small part of the outside world. But beyond the reach of the light, the world remained cruel and despairing.

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After climbing to the top bunk, he stretched out his limbs and lay flat on the bed, chuckling with excitement. After a while, he eagerly leaned over the edge of the bed and shouted, “Grandpa, Grandpa! Big Brother Yu!”

Grandpa Chang entered the room upon hearing his voice and asked, “What’s the matter?”

“Grandpa! New bed! Bunk bed!” Chang Hao sat up excitedly and shouted.

Grandpa Chang glared at him and jokingly scolded, “I know! Do you think I wouldn’t notice the installation? Come down quickly, don’t make it dirty. When you go to bed tonight, you’ll have to make it yourself! Tomorrow, when Jiabao comes back, you can discuss with him who will sleep on the top and who will sleep on the bottom.”

Chang Hao was happy and easy to persuade. He smiled and said, “Okay, Grandpa! I got it, Grandpa! I’ll make the bed later!”

Grandpa Chang turned and left the room. Chang Hao lay on the top bunk, chuckling with excitement. After a while, he climbed down to the bottom bunk and lay there for a while. He climbed up and down a few times, thoroughly enjoying himself. Then he put on his shoes and ran to his brother’s room to fetch a clean blanket and started making the bed himself.

Halfway through making the bed, he suddenly thought, what if his brother, Jiabao, does not like his way of folding the blanket?

The young boy frowned, pondered for a moment, and then carried the folded blanket back to his brother’s room and placed it on his brother’s bed.

He decided to wait until Jiabao came back tomorrow, clarify the bed arrangement, and then make the bed!

So, when evening came, Grandpa Chang watched Chang Hao climb onto his bed and sleep together with him.

Chang Hao asked, “Why aren’t you sleeping on the new bed?”

Chang Hao chuckled and replied, “I’ll sleep on it when Jiabao comes back tomorrow!”

Grandpa Chang remained noncommittal.

Yu Qingze smiled and patted Chang Hao’s head without saying anything.

The next day, the entire Niutou Village mobilized.

Some went directly to the city to buy meat and sausages, while others joined Yu San’s group to buy live pigs. Yu Qingze, the village chief, and Dajian took the bunk bed to the snack shop.

After installing the wooden bed and putting the previous bed back on the cart, they dragged it back to replace the makeshift bed that Yu Qingze had been sleeping on. Now everyone had a bed to sleep on, and everyone was happy.

Brother Chang looked at the double-decker wooden bed and said to his mother, “Mother, let’s make a bed like this too. San’er and Si’er have grown up, it’s not good for them to sleep squeezed together.”

Brother Chang’s mother nodded. They had earned a good amount of money during these months working with Boss Yu, and their financial situation had improved. They could afford to buy a big item like this.

Immediately, Chang Hao asked the village chief about the price of the bed and said they wanted to custom order one.

After discussing with Yu Qingze, the village chief quoted a price, which was cheaper for the villagers and higher for outsiders.

Brother Chang and his mother agreed on the spot and asked the village chief to deliver the bed to their home when it was ready.

After having lunch at the shop, Yu Qingze took over the counter for Jiabao and asked him to help the village chief and others with their luggage.

Having been away from the shop for a few days, Yu Qingze asked Brother Le and the others about the situation in the shop. He learned that the hot and sour noodles were selling very well, with increasing sales every day, and it was gradually becoming a signature snack for the shop.

Upon hearing this, Yu Qingze nodded with a smile.

It’s not surprising. In his previous life, hot and sour noodles were famous nationwide. You could see the shadow of hot and sour noodle shops in almost every slightly larger city, especially in bustling commercial areas and pedestrian streets. They would definitely have a place for hot and sour noodles in many street food places.

Moreover, the people here have a strong taste for spicy food, so it’s within his expectations that hot and sour noodles are so popular.

After Jiabao and the others moved back home, Yu Qingze asked him to go home directly with the village chief and the others to pack their luggage. He would return in the evening.

After closing the stall, they had a meeting. Yu Qingze carefully listened to everyone’s recent situation and didn’t find any major issues. He was satisfied and let everyone go off work.

He didn’t return to the village with everyone. Instead, he took Brother Le into the room and had a good chat, giving hugs and kisses. Brother Chang and his mother were cooking in the kitchen, and they didn’t feel uncomfortable making the dishes anymore.

“After I teach everyone and they become skilled, I’ll come over,” Yu Qingze said while holding Brother Le.

Brother Le nodded, holding onto Yu Qingze’s waist tightly, cherishing this rare and short time together.

After spending a good time together, Yu Qingze went back before it got dark.

When he returned home, the meals were already prepared.

“Brother Yu, Jiabao made all the dishes today,” Chang Hao said proudly.

“Is that so?” Yu Qingze glanced at the dishes on the table, picked up his chopsticks and took a bite. He exclaimed, “The taste is really good. Jiabao, you cooked it very deliciously.”

Jiabao shyly smiled and said, “I watched you and Brother Chang Le cook every day before and memorized the process. Today, I tried it out.”

“Not bad, really good. When I teach Brother Le how to cook, you should also learn. When we open a restaurant in the future, we’ll have three chefs!” Yu Qingze said optimistically.

“Yeah!” Jiabao nodded and then pointed at the boiled sliced pork on the table, saying, “Big brother, taste this boiled sliced pork. I think this taste is closest to what you and Brother Chang Le made.”

“Okay, I’ll give it a try.” Yu Qingze picked up a slice of meat and ate it, then tasted the sprouts underneath. He nodded and said, “Not bad, the meat is tender. The sprouts are a bit overcooked, don’t blanch them for so long next time.”

Jiabao obediently nodded and said, “Okay, big brother.”

Chang Hao looked at the two of them and grinned, “Brother Yu, we’re about to eat. Why are you starting a lesson now?”

Yu Qingze chuckled and said, “Right, right, let’s eat quickly. It’s getting cold.”

The four of them happily started eating.

After finishing the meal, Chang Hao finished his homework, and Jiabao completed the arithmetic problems assigned by Yu Qingze. The two boys then washed up and went to bed early.

New beds! They had to sleep early!

When Jiabao returned in the evening, the two of them had a friendly negotiation and finally decided that Jiabao would sleep on the lower bunk, while Chang Hao would sleep on the upper bunk. At this moment, the beddings were all laid out, and the two of them lay on the bed, poking their heads out to talk.

The novelty of the new bunk beds fascinated the two boys, and they chatted for a long time before falling asleep.

The next day, every household in the village began making cured meat and sausages.

Yu Qingze had informed them in advance about the purchase price for various cured meats and sausages. The villagers considered the types they wanted to make and bought the necessary spices according to the amount of meat they purchased. They bought a variety of spices.

Yu Qingze estimated the sales volume of various flavors and also took into account the purchasing power of traders from different places. When making the spices, he controlled the quantities. The spicy flavor had the least amount of spices, followed by the moderately spicy flavor, and the regular flavor had the most.

After a couple of days, when everyone finished marinating the cured meat, sausages, chicken, and fish, Yu Qingze gathered everyone and taught them how to make sweet potato noodles.

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

The process was complicated and time-consuming, but fortunately, they already had all the necessary ingredients at home. Yu Qingze spent a whole day teaching and repeated the instructions three or four times before considering it done.

In the following days, villagers went to other villages to buy sweet potatoes. Yu Qingze tirelessly ran around, visiting each household. One moment, a family wanted him to check if they were doing it correctly, and the next moment, another family had encountered some issues, and he rushed over to explain where the problem was.

It wasn’t until seven or eight days later, when the cured meat and sausages in every household had been smoked for three to four days, that the villagers finally learned how to make sweet potato noodles.

Yu Qingze tapped his leg and thought to himself, “Finally, I don’t have to run anymore. My legs are about to break!”

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Making Money in Full Swing

“Dear villagers, this morning I will teach you how to make cured pork and sausages. I’ve prepared a small portion in advance, which is already steamed. You can taste it first. Come on, everyone, give it a try, let’s make sure everyone gets a taste.” Yu Qingze brought out two large bowls of steamed and sliced cured pork and sausages, with small bamboo sticks inserted for easy consumption.

Yu Qingze carried the plates into the crowd, extending his hand for the villagers on both sides to take their share.

The villagers saw the brightly colored and shiny meat, took a sniff, and a tempting aroma filled the air—a combination of the savory smell of roasted pork and a hint of smokiness. It made their mouths water.

“I’ll have a piece!”

“I want to taste it too!”

“Mmm, it’s salty but delicious!”

“This sausage, is it called a ‘làcháng’? It’s tasty, slightly sweet, and filled with meat!”

“The flavor is excellent. How did you make it? Did you roast it?”

…

After everyone had finished tasting, Yu Qingze returned to the front and asked the people in the front row to crouch down. He then continued, “What you just had was cured pork and sausages. These food items are made during winter and can be stored for a long time. After marinating them with spices for a few days, they are smoked for about ten days and are ready to be eaten. They can be enjoyed until March or April. If properly preserved and continuously smoked until fully dried, they can last even longer. Moreover, as you have just tasted, this meat is savory and delicious, making it a perfect addition to meals when fresh vegetables are scarce in March or April.”

Everyone listened intently and savored the taste they had just experienced, without doubting the authenticity of Yu Qingze’s words. Suddenly, they all became excited.

“Aze, how do we do it?” an impatient villager asked.

“Yeah, especially that sausage. Is it stuffed with meat inside the casing? How do we stuff it in?”

The villagers were all thinking about the sausage they had just seen and the question raised by another villager.

Yu Qingze smiled and said, “Uncle, don’t worry. I will teach everyone how to make it right now.”

Saying that, Yu Qingze went into the kitchen and brought out the spices, ingredients, and strips of pork, placing them on the table together with Grandpa Chang.

“Let’s start with the cured meat, which is relatively simple. When buying meat, you should choose cuts that are moderately fatty and lean, such as pork belly, pork shoulder, or hind leg meat. These are all good choices for making cured meat. It can have bones or not, and the bones in cured meat are also delicious…”

Yu Qingze began explaining step by step, starting from how to choose the meat, while demonstrating the process.

“Sprinkle the spices on the meat like this, then rub it vigorously to let the spices penetrate and marinate the meat. Rubbing it for about fifteen minutes should be enough, then put it in a bowl for curing. I have already prepared these spices in advance, and there are three different flavors. When you make it, you can come to me to buy them and add them according to the proportions I will tell you.”

One villager whispered to the person beside them, “Having the spices prepared is great. It ensures the taste.”

“Yes, if we had to prepare them ourselves, the taste might be different.”

“That’s right.”

“…”

Yu Qingze overheard and said, “Yes, I’m afraid the taste would be different if everyone prepared the spices on their own. That’s why I’ve already prepared them.” In reality, that was just one aspect of the reason. The other reason was that by not teaching the villagers the ingredients, if they were to leave him, they wouldn’t be able to reproduce the taste, effectively safeguarding the most important secret recipe.

Yu Qingze continued, “After curing for two to three days, take it out and wash off the outer layer, then let it air dry. After that, you can take it for smoking. When smoking, you can designate an area in the kitchen and use sawdust, tea leaves, peanut shells, or something similar to produce smoke. Be careful not to ignite a fire; you want to maintain a smoky atmosphere. Remember to check the fire periodically; otherwise, if it catches fire after a few days of smoking, it will burn all the cured meat…”

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

After finishing the cured meat, Yu Qingze proceeded step by step to teach them how to make sausages, fillings, and stuffed meat. He even taught them how to cure chicken, duck, and fish. Once Yu Qingze finished teaching everything, he had two or three people come forward to try it out and answer their questions before concluding.

By this time, it was already past lunchtime.

Before ending, he reminded the villagers, saying, “I want to remind everyone that if you all go to the city to buy meat, buying too much at once may cause the price to increase in the next couple of days. See if anyone knows pig farmers. You can pool your resources and buy together, with each pair of households sharing one pig. Alternatively, if you have pigs suitable for butchering at home, you can slaughter them.”

“Ah, that’s a good idea. Yu San, doesn’t your husband’s family have a lot of pig farmers?” a villager asked.

“Yes, many people raise pigs for sale. If you’re interested, we can go together tomorrow to take a look. They have connections with some butchers, so they can have them slaughtered in the city. The remaining pig head meat and offal are also specially brought in to be sold,” another villager replied.

“Well, that’s great. Let’s gather money today and tomorrow go to Yu San’s husband’s place. We’ll meet at their doorstep,” one villager immediately organized.

Suddenly, everyone started discussing whether they should buy meat from the market or raise pigs.

“Oh, fellow villagers, come back the day after tomorrow, and I’ll teach you how to make sweet potato noodles!” Yu Qingze called out from behind.

“Okay, we’ll remember!”

“We got it!”

After the crowd dispersed, Yu Qingze and Grandpa Chang casually had lunch. Then they finished making the remaining cured meat and sausages, with the cured meat being placed in a fermentation jar to cure and the sausages hung up to dry.

In the afternoon, the village chief brought his sons and brought a bunk bed over. The village chief also took the profits from selling baby strollers and wheelbarrows and gave them to Yu Qingze.

Yu Qingze brought them into the house to install the bed, accepted the profits, and briefly checked the amount, estimating it to be more than ten taels.

“Village chief, are you also going to make cured meat, sausages, and sweet potato noodles?” Yu Qingze asked while observing their installation.

The village chief shook his head and replied, “We’ll make some cured meat and sausages, as they don’t take much time. But we won’t make sweet potato noodles. It seemed quite troublesome when we saw you making them before, and we still have woodworking tasks to do.”

Yu Qingze nodded and said, “That’s what I mean too. The profit from sweet potato noodles is not as high as woodworking. You should focus on that. Making cured meat and sausages is indeed not much trouble, so it’s okay to do them. However, I suggest that you still have Uncle Mo (village chief’s wife) come and see how to make sweet potato noodles. Even if you don’t make them, it’s good to have an idea. It’s always beneficial to have more knowledge.”

The village chief nodded and said, “Okay, I’ll have him come the day after tomorrow. By the way, when will the other bed be brought to the city?”

“Are you going to buy meat tomorrow? Or pigs? Do you have time?”

“It’s fine. Let Dayong go and buy. Dajian and I can go and install the beds.”

“Then who will sell the baby strollers?”

“Weren’t they all sold before? The ones we’re making now are all pre-ordered with a deposit. We’ll bring them all over the day after tomorrow, and the customers will come to pick them up.”

“Okay, then tomorrow it is. Brother Chang and his mother have been squeezing on one bed for a while. It’s uncomfortable for them. Tomorrow afternoon, please help me bring back our belongings as well. It might take some time to pack.”

“Sure.”

In the evening, after Chang Hao returned from school and entered the house, he suddenly noticed a brand-new wooden bed against the wall!

Just like what Big Brother Yu said, it had two levels!

And there was even a ladder!

“Wow! A new bed! A bunk bed!” He excitedly threw his school bag onto the bottom bunk, took off his shoes, and used both hands and feet to climb the ladder.

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The commotion and fanfare from Yu Qingze’s side naturally couldn’t be concealed from the villagers, and people occasionally came to observe and inquire.

This time, Yu Qingze had no intention of keeping it a secret. They made the first two batches of sweet potato flour themselves, but as the demand grew, they wouldn’t be able to keep up with the production. At that time, they planned to teach the villagers how to make sweet potato flour and let them produce it. They would negotiate the terms and conditions, and Yu Qingze’s team would handle the purchasing.

Sweet potato flour, cured meat, and sausages were seasonal foods in this world. Sweet potato flour could only be made after the autumn harvest of sweet potatoes, while cured meat and sausages couldn’t be made during excessively high temperatures. They could only be prepared when the temperature was below 10 degrees Celsius. Otherwise, without refrigeration or air conditioning, the meat would spoil during the initial stages of marination.

Yu Qingze had once thought about setting up a small workshop, but he didn’t have enough time. Additionally, seasonal products like these wouldn’t make a small workshop financially viable. Building a dedicated small workshop would require a significant amount of money, and by the time the workshop was ready, the temperature would likely rise again, rendering it unusable in a short period.

Therefore, Yu Qingze had already discussed with Grandpa Chang early on. Once they made enough profit from the initial stage, they would share the sweet potato flour production method with the villagers and help them generate additional income. As for the cured meat and sausages, they wouldn’t be able to handle the production on their own. Instead, they would prepare and sell the seasoning ingredients to the villagers, who could then smoke and process the meat. Afterwards, Yu Qingze’s team would purchase the finished products.

After the second batch of sweet potato flour was ready, the cured meat was also smoked to perfection.

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

For dinner that evening, Yu Qingze prepared the cured meat and sausages, and they tasted them. Chang Hao and Grandpa Chang praised the flavor endlessly, and Chang Hao even ate three bowls of rice before stopping.

With the taste confirmed to be suitable and the smoking done well, the next day, Yu Qingze went to the town again. He had Brother Le deliver two pieces of cured meat, two strings of sausages, and the recipes to the Cai and Zhao families. Then he went to buy the necessary spices, meat, and pig intestines before returning to the village.

Upon his return, he found the village chief and asked him to convene a meeting with the villagers.

That evening, when the villagers heard that Yu Qingze had asked the village chief to gather everyone and discuss something, they arrived early at the ancestral hall.

When most of the people had gathered, Yu Qingze stepped forward and said, “Fellow villagers, thank you all for coming. I asked the village chief to gather everyone for this meeting. These past few days, we have been making noodles using sweet potatoes, and I believe everyone has seen it. These noodles are already being sold in my snack shop, and the response has been good. However, we can’t keep up with the demand ourselves, so I wanted to ask if anyone here wants to learn how to make them. If you can make them according to my requirements, I will buy them all, and you won’t have to worry about selling them. If anyone is interested, I can teach you.”

Upon hearing that Yu Qingze wanted to teach them how to make noodles, many villagers started discussing it. It was well-known in the village that everything Yu Qingze sold was popular, so whatever he taught would surely make money.

“I want to learn, Aze!” someone immediately raised their hand and shouted.

“I want to learn too.”

“I want to learn!”

“…”

Yu Qingze pressed his hands down to silence everyone and continued, “Good, anyone who wants to learn can be taught. However, I need to establish some rules with everyone before we start. If you agree, we can begin tomorrow.”

“What are the rules? Aze, just tell us. Even if it’s not just three rules, even eight or ten, I’m still in!”

“That’s right, hurry up and tell us.”

Yu Qingze said, “What I will teach you is something unique that isn’t available elsewhere. It’s guaranteed to make money. Therefore, my requirement is that whatever food methods I teach you, they must absolutely not be spread outside the village. This includes your extended family or in-laws who married into other families. In other words, it cannot leave the village! Can everyone agree to this?”

Upon hearing this requirement, there was further discussion among the crowd. Some agreed, while others felt it was a bit inappropriate. They couldn’t even mention it to their extended family and in-laws, and it would be difficult to handle if they were asked about it. It would be a matter of losing face.

Yu Qingze then said, “Fellow villagers, the reason I’m teaching you is to help everyone increase their income. However, if the methods are spread outside the village, think about it. Your in-laws and their in-laws also have their own extended families, and those extended families have their own extended families. Before long, the method will spread throughout the entire county, even beyond. Then, there will be noodles everywhere, and how will you make money? If you want to earn money, you have to keep your money-making methods to yourselves. Think about it, does this make sense?”

Upon hearing this, the villagers pondered and realized that it was indeed true. This thing was like a rumor, and if it wasn’t kept under wraps, it would quickly spread nationwide.

The question of whether it was a matter of losing face or a matter of money was weighing on everyone’s minds.

So, the villagers nodded one after another, agreeing to the condition.

Yu Qingze paused for a moment and continued, “Second, the food you make must be sold to me first. As long as the quality of the food meets my requirements, I will buy it. I will offer a fair price, so you can rest assured and not worry about whether it will sell or not. Just focus on how to make it well.”

“What if it doesn’t meet your requirements?” a villager asked.

Everyone looked at Yu Qingze, waiting for his answer.

Yu Qingze smiled and said, “Of course, if it doesn’t meet my requirements, you can sell it in the market. If I don’t need as much at that time, I will notify you in advance so that you don’t make too much. Then you can decide whether to continue making it. And of course, you can handle any excess on your own, even selling it in town. This depends on whether you can do it or not.”

This requirement was much easier to fulfill compared to the first one, and everyone had no objections. However, some people started to calculate their own thoughts in their minds.

But soon, their calculations were mercilessly shattered by Yu Qingze.

“Fellow villagers, what I’m going to teach you is not limited to just one or two food items. There will be more in the future. If anyone violates the rules I have set, including your children, they will no longer have the opportunity to learn new cooking methods and make money. I hope everyone carefully considers this.”

Whether it was for long-term considerations or for a small immediate gain, there was no need to think too much about it. Smart people would definitely choose the long-term.

Seeing that everyone had no objections to this point, Yu Qingze continued, “If you can meet my requirements, you can come to my place to register after the meeting, with a maximum of two people per household. In addition, tomorrow I will teach you another new food item that is relatively simpler. Once you master that, we will move on to teaching the method of making sweet potato noodles.”

Upon hearing this, everyone’s enthusiasm was high. Yu Qingze had already said that they just needed to make it well and sell it to him. How could they miss this money-making opportunity? Besides, it was the middle of winter, and there wasn’t much work to do in the fields. It was a good chance to earn some money for the upcoming Lunar New Year.

As a result, the villagers gathered around Yu Qingze to register, and almost every household signed up. Even the village chief’s family, Doctor Yu’s family, Scholar Yu’s family, and the hunter’s family in the village also registered.

After returning home that night, Yu Qingze and Grandpa Chang ground and prepared the spices for curing the bacon and sausages. Chang Hao also helped and stayed up late before going to sleep.

They prepared three types of spices: five-spice flavor, spicy flavor, and numbing-spicy flavor.

The next morning, at the designated time, the courtyard of Chang Le’s house was densely packed with eighty to ninety people. Representatives from every household in the village came to learn the methods.

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Thandar: Hopefully there is no bad apple in this group of villagers.