Discovery
Mǎn Bǎo was shocked when she took out the flower basket and found that the flowers, which were fresh and bright yesterday, were now wilted, and some were even broken.
Dà Yā and Èr Yā also came out to see, their faces filled with shock and sadness.
Zhōu Wǔláng could not comprehend their pain at all. He hadn't been to the county town for many, many years. He was so caught up in his excitement that he paid no attention to the flower baskets. He simply put all of them into the large backpack and said, "Never mind, we can pick more beautiful flowers on the way."
Pointing to the flowers they had picked last night but hadn't tied up because it was too late, and Qián Shì didn't want to light the oil lamp, he said, "Bring these as well." It should be enough. We can tie them up when we get to the county town.
Mǎn Bǎo felt somewhat melancholic all the way until she got on the cart. After all, she had planned for so long and was very confident, but things had turned out like this.
This time, they brought two bags of food again, intending to sell them to buy paper for Mǎn Bǎo. The remaining amount would be used for Qián Shì's medical expenses.
They also brought emergency money in case something happened at home and they needed urgent funds.
They tied many baskets and hampers to the cart, while Zhōu Lìng and Zhōu Dàláng each carried some on their backs.
Zhōu Dàláng lifted Mǎn Bǎo onto the cart and settled her into a hamper.
Qián Shì took one of Zhōu Dàláng's winter coats and wrapped herself up completely to stay warm.
Then she covered her with a bamboo lid, and Mǎn Bǎo could sleep inside.
It was Mǎn Bǎo's first time going on a long journey, so, naturally, she couldn't sleep. She poked her head out of the hamper, her eyes shining, but it was still dark, and she could only see a few things illuminated by the torch held by Wǔ Gē.
After staring for a while, she felt drowsy and couldn't help but yawn. Her eyes slowly closed.
Zhōu Èrláng noticed that Mǎn Bǎo had fallen asleep, so he covered her with the bamboo lid.
The lid had holes, so there was no need to worry about her suffocating.
Zhōu Èrláng looked at Dà Yā and Èr Yā walking beside him. He adjusted the baskets tied to the food, then straightened a hamper and placed Èr Yā in it. Dà Yā was positioned on top of the food, holding onto the nearby baskets. "You both sit down." We'll walk again when it's light.
Zhōu Èrláng and Zhōu Dàláng took turns pushing the cart, while the other assisted. It wasn't too tiring on flat ground, but the road involved going up and down hills, and it wasn't very smooth. They stumbled along, and even though it was early in the autumn morning, they were all sweating.
By the time the sun began to rise and the sky brightened, they had already walked half the distance.
Except for Mǎn Bǎo, who was still asleep, Dà Yā and Èr Yā were awake and expressed their desire to disembark from the cart and walk because their feet had gone numb.
Zhōu Wǔláng and Zhōu Lìng looked at their two nieces with envy, wiped the sweat from their faces, and felt fortunate to have numb feet.
Zhōu Dàláng said, "Let's take a break."
Zhōu Wǔláng and Zhōu Lìng immediately sat down on the nearby grass and set aside the large backpacks they were carrying.
Mǎn Bǎo also woke up and rubbed her eyes as she poked her head out of the hamper. She was excited to find herself in an unfamiliar place.
She stood up from the hamper and wanted to get off the cart.
Zhōu Èrláng lifted her up and instructed her to go play with Dà Yā and Èr Yā. "You can pick flowers, but don't go too far." Just pick them in front of us, understand?
The three little girls nodded vigorously, indicating their willingness to obey.
Mǎn Bǎo, small in stature but bold, walked to the edge of the mountain road, tiptoed to look down, and seemed to see a wisp of smoke in the distance. She immediately pointed downward and called out, "Our home!"
Zhōu Dàláng didn't even look; he just grabbed some nearby grass and ate it. "Nonsense, how can you see our village from here?"
Mǎn Bǎo vaguely saw a road below, much wider than this one, and curiously asked, "Big brother, why don't we take the lower road?"
"This is a shortcut." The lower road is for vehicles. It would take us an extra hour to go that way. Zhōu Dàláng proudly pointed to the mountain road, saying, "It's not worth it." "See this mountain path?" In the past, there were numerous stones, making it challenging for people to walk, let alone for carts to pass. Later, Bái Lǎoyé and Lǐ Zhèng led us to pick up all the stones on the road and filled it with soil so that carts could pass through.
Zhōu Dàláng regretted, "It's just too narrow to accommodate a carriage." Otherwise, this road would be even busier.
Mǎn Bǎo enjoyed listening to such stories and squatted down beside Zhōu Dàláng to listen. The system couldn't help but intervene, saying, "Host, there are many wild flowers around here. Why don't you go and pick some?" Otherwise, you might not find any when you go down.
Concerned about making money, Mǎn Bǎo was reluctant, but she stopped listening to the stories. Before leaving, she held Zhou Dalang's hand, asking him to promise, "Big brother, you have to keep telling me stories when we return." I love listening to music.
This scene was witnessed by Zhōu Dàláng and Zhōu Èrláng, who believed that Mǎn Bǎo wanted to hear stories but also desired to go pick flowers with Dà Yā and Èr Yā.
Zhōu Dàláng affectionately patted her head and said with a smile, "Go ahead. I'll tell you more stories when we get back."
Mǎn Bǎo happily went to join Dà Yā and Èr Yā.
This stretch of road was relatively flat, despite being a mountain road. At a glance, both sides were within the sight of Zhōu Dàláng and the others, so as long as the three children didn't wander off, there was no danger.
Dà Yā and Èr Yā discovered numerous flowers, some of which Mǎn Bǎo had never seen before. She was particularly delighted to squat down and unearth them.
Dà Yā and Èr Yā were astonished and asked, "Little sister, why are you digging up the whole plant?"
Mǎn Bǎo, with a face covered in dirt, looked up with shining eyes. "I've never seen these flowers before." "I want to dig up one plant, the smallest one."
The system did not stop her because it had scanned and checked its database, revealing that two of the flowers not only lacked records but also images. This indicates that these two flowers were either mutated or extinct. In either case, they hold significant value for future research.
If they could be recorded, the points obtained would be substantial.
The system, rarely feeling pleased, thought that not reminding Mǎn Bǎo to tie up the flowers yesterday was the right decision, as they would easily wither and break. If the flowers had not been damaged, she would not have been so eager to listen to stories and would have gone to pick flowers today.
Mǎn Bǎo was completely unaware of this. Although she wanted to uproot the flower plants to hand over to the system, collecting enough wildflowers and grass was also important. So she insisted on not letting Dà Yā and Èr Yā help, and told them to go pick flowers quickly.
Mǎn Bǎo took a wooden stick and dug the soil with determination.
After watching for a while, the system couldn't help but remind her, "Host, your brothers are about to finish resting." "You should just break the plant and give it to me."
Digging like this, she might not be able to unearth three plants in a day.
Mǎn Bǎo curiously asked, "Is it okay to break them?"
"Generally, most plants can survive through stem cuttings, so don't worry." It should be fine. Break the red vine on your left first, then proceed forward and pull the purple vine.
These two flowers were the most important. The others, even if they were recorded, were just for motivational purposes.
The system, rarely feeling pleased, thought that not reminding Mǎn Bǎo to tie up the flowers yesterday was the right decision, as they would easily wither and break. If the flowers had not wilted, she would not have been so eager to listen to stories and would have gone to pick flowers today.
Mǎn Bǎo was completely unaware of this. Although she wanted to uproot the flower plants to hand over to the system, collecting enough wildflowers and grass was also important. So she insisted on not letting Dà Yā and Èr Yā help, and told them to go pick flowers quickly.
Mǎn Bǎo took a wooden stick and dug the soil with determination.
After watching for a while, the system couldn't help but remind her, "Host, your brothers are about to finish resting." "You should just break the plant and give it to me."
Digging like this, she might not be able to unearth three plants in a day.
Mǎn Bǎo curiously asked, "Is it okay to break them?"
"Generally, most plants can survive through stem cuttings, so there is no need to worry." It should be fine. Break the red vine on your left first, then proceed forward and pull the purple vine.
These two flowers were the most important. The other recordings were merely for motivational purposes.