Chapter 62: Chapter 62: Gathering Herbs

Hee-hee-hee—

Elder Pukang, full and satisfied, didn’t mind Changxia’s tone.

He reached out and scooped up the three little Mountain Sparrows. “Come on, little ones. You’re full—time to go back to the tribe and train.”

And so, with his laughter echoing, Elder Pukang strode out of the beast den, leading the three Mountain Sparrows back to the tribe.

“Changxia, you must be hungry,” Chenrong said gently, bringing over a bowl of cold noodles. “Here, have something to eat.”

“I can’t eat,” Changxia replied weakly, looking listless, too tired to even move. More than exhaustion, her mind was filled with longing for Redleaf Ridge.

She couldn’t think of anything but Redleaf Ridge—how could she have any appetite?

Her aching limbs made her even more sluggish and less inclined to eat.

“That won’t do.” Chenrong carefully helped Changxia sit up. “Open your mouth, I’ll feed you. If you don’t eat, we’re not going to Redleaf Ridge tomorrow. Eat a little, and I’ll give you a massage later—you’ll feel better.”

“Changxia, are you okay?”

“Elder Pukang is just too much sometimes.”

Seeing Changxia looking unwell, Muqin and Heyun both started blaming Elder Pukang.

Changxia shook her head. “Muqin Amu, don’t blame Elder Pukang, it’s not his fault. I’m just a bit tired, I’ll be fine after a rest. The reason I don’t want to eat is because I’m thinking about Redleaf Ridge.”

“You—!”

Hearing this, Muqin reached out and gently poked Changxia’s cheek.

Once they were sure she was really okay, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Changxia’s health had always been a big concern for the Heluo tribe. Now that she’d finally grown up healthy, they didn’t want to hear any more bad news.

“Come on, everyone, eat something,” Nuanchun called out.

She brought the cold noodles to the long table and invited everyone to sit down.

Changxia and the others had been careful not to let Nuanchun do any hard work, so she was actually in the best shape of them all.

“Muqin Amu, what does Elder Pukang usually eat?” Changxia asked curiously.

Muqin replied, “The shaman always prepares special pills for Elder Pukang, and there are tribe members who make roast meat for him every day.”

After all, aside from sleeping, Elder Pukang spent most of his time eating.

But in the past two years, Elder Pukang’s condition had started to improve.

According to the shaman, Elder Pukang could now control his bloodline power and no longer needed to eat constantly to store energy.

“Changxia, do you still want to go to White Lake?” Nuanchun asked with a smile.

Changxia waved her hand weakly. “Not today. I’m going to take a nap. I’ll visit White Lake another time. Oh, and tomorrow I want to go to Redleaf Ridge, so Nuanchun, please tell Shankun not to go hunting tomorrow.”

Nuanchun was about to give birth, so no risks could be taken.

“Don’t worry, I know what to do,” Nuanchun replied seriously. Lately, she’d been following the shaman’s advice to eat small, frequent meals, and the discomfort she’d felt before had eased a lot.

The spirit of early spring had also recovered quite a bit.

At the very least, she no longer fell asleep anywhere and everywhere like before.

After tidying up the long table, Muqin and her group left.

Changxia drifted off to sleep as Shen Rong massaged her.

“Changxia—” Shen Rong called her name softly a couple of times, but she didn’t respond. He fetched some water, washed her face and hands, soaked her feet, then carried her into the animal den.

He pulled over a fur blanket and covered her up.

At this moment, it was still early.

Shen Rong picked up his basket and walked down the slope.

He planned to wander around White Lake to get familiar with the area, and at the same time, gather some herbs for making ointments. Depending on what he could find, he’d see which ointments he could make. Herbal balm was undoubtedly the best, but it also required the most complicated set of ingredients.

Shen Rong knew it would be hard to collect everything in a short time.

If he couldn’t make herbal balm, he’d make something else. With the rainy season coming up, he’d have plenty of time to experiment.

Tomorrow, Changxia wanted to go to Red Leaf Ridge.

She probably wanted to figure out the yellow pellets Elder Pukang had given her. There were only a few, but Changxia hadn’t been stingy—everyone got one.

They were sweet and delicious.

Not only did Changxia keep thinking about them, but Shen Rong and the rest of the tribe couldn’t forget them either.

Following the lakeshore of White Lake, Shen Rong made his way upstream.

He wasn’t picky—any herb he recognized, he dug up and put in his basket, planning to sort them out back at the animal den.

By the time he reached the upper part of White Lake, his basket was already full of all kinds of herbs.

Seeing the sun already leaning westward, Shen Rong decided to head back.

Carrying a wild rabbit, he made his way home.

Back at the animal den, Changxia had woken up, yawning as she looked around for Shen Rong. Not seeing him, she guessed he’d gone out to White Lake.

She got up, stretched her back and limbs.

A good sleep really did wonders.

Youth made all the difference—no matter how sore and tired she was, a nap was all it took to recover.

Red Leaf Ridge was covered in tall, broad-leaved trees, just like maples and sycamores. If they really were maples, the Heluo tribe would never lack sugar again.

Maple syrup was harvested starting in March, and now it was late April—just in time for the last collection of the year. What luck!

Changxia didn’t waste any time, thinking about what food to prepare for the trip to Red Leaf Ridge.

She started fermenting some dough to make fine noodles in the morning, and prepared some stir-fried toppings to bring along. If they got hungry, she could build a simple stove, heat up the toppings, and mix them with the noodles for a quick meal. This would save a lot of time.

She remembered saving a piece of beef when she was cooking at noon.

With that in mind, Changxia walked out of the animal den, lifted the lid of the stone pot, and found, as expected, a chunk of beef left—about five or six jin (2.5–3 kg).

She took out the cooked beef and added water to the pot, planning to use the leftover broth to cook another batch of meat. The flavor wouldn’t be quite as rich as braised meat, but it would still be tastier than regular stewed meat. This kind of stew was perfect for hunting trips—no need to reheat, it tasted great even cold.

By the time Shen Rong returned with his basket of herbs, Changxia had already finished preparing dinner, as well as all the food for tomorrow’s outing.

“What are these?” Changxia asked, bringing the food to the table.

“Herbs,” Shen Rong replied.

“You know herbs?” Changxia was surprised. She squatted down and picked out a couple—just some common medicinal plants.

“I do. I couldn’t find everything, but once I have all the ingredients, I’ll make a few jars of ointment for you. You can use it on your face and hands,” Shen Rong explained.

Changxia was genuinely excited when she heard this.

“Ointment? You mean the kind you can put on your face and hands?” she asked, thrilled. She actually knew how to make ointments herself, but had been too busy—basic survival still wasn’t fully settled, so she hadn’t had the time or energy for it.

Today, Shen Rong had really surprised her.

“Yes,” Shen Rong said. “The nobles in the Western Lands live in luxury. Ointments like herbal balm and jade cream are very popular there. I had some time to study them when I was injured.”

“Shen Rong, you’re amazing!” Changxia jumped up and hugged him around the neck, laughing with delight. With Shen Rong and the shaman covering for her, she could bring out even more things in the future. Even though she’d never really tried to hide her abilities, she couldn’t help but feel happy.