Chapter 108: Chapter 108: Goji Berries

“I’ll just hold them, it’s fine,” Chang Xia rolled her eyes, ignoring these two irresponsible parents. She handed one cub to Shen Rong to hold, then ate with one hand while petting the other cub with the other. So soft and fluffy—the feeling was just amazing!

It completely satisfied every fantasy a fluff-lover could have.

“Nanfeng, get a bowl of chicken soup for Nuan Chun,” Chang Xia said. “The chicken soup was made for the shaman, but Nuan Chun, you’re in luck today. It’s been simmering for a long time, so it’s really fragrant. Besides fish soup, you can also have Shan Kun make you chicken soup or pork trotter soup.”

Beastfolk didn’t have the concept of postpartum confinement.

Chang Xia couldn’t help but nag a little—beastfolk were strong and didn’t need to rest after childbirth, but eating well was never a bad thing. After all, the tribe had plenty of food now, so there was no reason to skimp.

If nothing else, things like chicken, duck, and fish could be hunted or caught easily.

“Forget Shan Kun, I’d better do it myself,” Nuan Chun said.

Other than grilling meat, Shan Kun’s cooking was a disaster—Nuan Chun really didn’t want to suffer through it.

“Is this pig’s lung?” Shan Kun asked in shock.

Ya Dong nodded vaguely, replying, “Chang Xia, the pig’s lung is even tastier than last time, though it’s a bit spicy. But it’s so satisfying!”

“I added chili peppers, of course it’s spicy,” Chang Xia said.

There was still about half a pound of chili left from what Bai Qing had brought. Once Su Ye and Bai Qing returned to Sacred Mountain Kana, they could ask if the Tian Lion Tribe was interested in trading for more. Besides that, there was also the bear tribe’s seaweed.

“Shaman, can we trade chili peppers with the lion tribe?” Nanfeng asked.

Immediately, everyone turned to look at Su Ye.

After eating Chang Xia’s spicy dishes, the tribe had discovered a love for the unique flavor of chili. The more they ate, the more they liked it. What would they do if they couldn’t get any more?

Su Ye took a small sip of chicken soup and calmly said, “Don’t worry, I’ll ask the lion tribe for you.”

The early rain had stopped, which meant she and Bai Qing should be heading back to the Sacred Mountain Kana’s shaman hall. They’d stayed at the Heluo tribe for seven days this time, and the shaman hall probably had a pile of things waiting for them.

Hearing this, Chang Xia knew Su Ye was preparing to leave.

“Shaman, is there anything you want to eat? I can prepare some food for you to take back to Sacred Mountain Kana.”

Bai Qing perked up at this, looking at Chang Xia with excitement.

After spending some time together, Bai Qing had gotten used to life in the Heluo tribe, and even his attitude toward Shen Rong had become friendlier. Suddenly hearing they were leaving, he felt reluctant to go.

Then Chang Xia offered to prepare food to take back, and his mood instantly improved.

“Bai Qing, what do you want to eat?” Su Ye asked, letting him speak up.

She was used to the cold, lonely life at the shaman hall, but it was hard on Bai Qing, who was still so young and living far from others.

“Anything?” Bai Qing asked nervously.

Chang Xia nodded, “Anything.”

“Braised meat, beggar’s chicken, fresh-pressed rice noodles, and roast duck,” Bai Qing said, not asking for too much—just four dishes.

“For braised meat, do you mean the marinated kind?” Chang Xia asked. She’d made braised beef for Elder Pukang once, letting it cool after cooking—a simple version of marinated meat. She didn’t have enough seasonings or spices at the time. Later, she’d made it a few more times, and Bai Qing had remembered the special flavor.

“Beggar’s chicken and roast duck are easy to make. As for the rice noodles, I can make you some fresh ones by pressing the dough directly without fermenting it. But fresh noodles are wet and can’t be stored for long.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll try to make some dried noodles for you.”

One day, not just Sacred Mountain Kana, but even the Qinghai Plateau and the East Sea would be able to enjoy Heluo tribe’s rice noodles.

Hearing Chang Xia’s words, Bai Qing knew she’d agreed, and his face lit up with joy. No matter how mature he acted, he was still just a young beast cub.

“Bai Qing, I’ll make you a small noodle press. You can take it back to Sacred Mountain Kana and make fresh rice noodles or cold noodle sheets whenever you want,” Shen Rong said.

No beastfolk had ever gone to pick the ginkgo nuts at Sacred Mountain Kana.

With a noodle press, Bai Qing could make fresh rice noodles or cold noodle sheets himself whenever he wanted.

Listening to this, Su Ye couldn’t help but start making plans in her mind.

She liked peace and quiet, so she’d refused when the beastfolk tribes wanted to send people to Sacred Mountain Kana.

But now, Su Ye wanted to make a change.

Next time the beastfolk tribes came to Sacred Mountain Kana, she planned to ask them to send two or three people over.

First, to help take care of her and Bai Qing. Second, so that when she left Sacred Mountain Kana, there’d be someone to clean the shaman hall.

“Great, thank you, Shen Rong!” Bai Qing said happily.

That usually expressionless face was now lit up with a broad, genuine smile.

During the time Shen Rong was detoxifying, he had unintentionally changed Bai Qing’s personality.

Both Su Ye and Chang Xia were delighted to see this.

After eating, Shen Rong and the others got back to work building the corridor and eaves, hoping to finish within the next couple of days. Su Ye started packing her things, preparing to return to Mount Kana the next day.

Chang Xia and Nan Feng planned to go dig up cogongrass roots in the wasteland north of White Lake.

When Nuan Chun heard about this, she insisted on tagging along.

That meant the twin cubs had to be left in Shan Kun’s care.

As it happened, Shan Kun wanted to help Shen Rong with the corridor and eaves anyway.

Nan Feng carried a basket on a pole, while Chang Xia and Nuan Chun each had a backpack basket. They grabbed some simple stone hoes and headed toward the wasteland north of White Lake.

“Nuan Chun, are you really okay leaving the cubs with Shan Kun?” Chang Xia asked worriedly.

The cubs were still so little—otherwise, Chang Xia would have liked to bring them along.

Nuan Chun waved her hand, reassuringly. “What’s there to worry about? Besides, the shaman is at home keeping an eye on things. Nothing will happen. Let’s talk about how to make sugar from cogongrass roots instead.”

At the mention of sugar, Nuan Chun couldn’t help licking her lips, clearly still savoring the taste of maple syrup and maple sugar.

“Making sugar from cogongrass roots is simple. Just wash and chop the roots, put them in a stone pot with water, and boil them. Stir as you cook.”

They chatted as they walked, and after about twenty minutes, the three of them passed through the reeds upstream of White Lake and reached the northern wasteland.

This wasteland was twice as large as the one by the White River. It was overgrown with weeds, with no trees—just some low, scattered shrubs.

Chang Xia had Nan Feng cut down the cogongrass with an ironwood knife first, making it easier to dig up the roots.

She didn’t start digging right away, but instead walked around the wasteland. Using her bloodline ability, she sensed and dug up some medicinal herbs, tossing them into her basket.

She searched and dug as she went, and soon had a pretty good haul.

Before long, Chang Xia squatted down and stared at a clump of low shrubs not far away.

They looked familiar.

Goji berries—

Sure enough, they were goji berries.

She didn’t dig them up, but instead cut away the cogongrass around them, marking out the area. If there was one clump of goji berries here, there were bound to be more nearby.

And sure enough, not far from that first bush, there were several more goji berry shrubs, growing taller and healthier.

“Chang Xia, did you find something?” Nan Feng called out from a distance, curious when she saw Chang Xia gazing happily at the shrubs.

“Goji berries—a kind of medicinal herb,” Chang Xia replied. “Don’t cut down these thorny little bushes. I want to leave them so we can come back and pick goji berries later.”

She thought about transplanting some fruit trees into a corner of the courtyard, but not the goji berries—they were covered in thorns and would prick people.

Besides, this wasteland wasn’t far from the cave dwellings. It would be easy to come here and pick them, as long as she reminded the tribe not to cut them down.