Chapter 39: Climbing Over the Wall at Midnight

Mother Wang’s aged face turned dark. "Go on, go on, you little brat. Your mouth is full of filth; you can’t expect a dog to spit out ivory."

Tu Shan chuckled. "Auntie, are you selling that little cart?"

"Not for sale!" Auntie roared, slamming the door as she went inside.

Tu Shan pouted. Why was this old lady always so hot-tempered? It was bad for her health.

She placed the single-wheeled cart in the corner of the courtyard, thinking she really needed to get one of her own. Paying rent to the old lady all the time was too much of a loss.

Taking advantage of the fact that there was no one else in the yard, Tu Shan skinned a rabbit and scalded a wild pheasant in a few quick motions. Once everything was cleaned up, she went to knock on the old lady’s door.

Mother Wang ignored her, so she slid a one-yuan bill through the crack in the door. "Trade me for some green onions and ginger, you stingy old lady."

The money was snatched away in a flash. The "stingy old lady" opened the door, her face dark, and unlocked the gate to the backyard. She didn't let Tu Shan follow her, instead pulling two stalks of green onion and a small piece of ginger from the garden before heading back inside with a scowl.

Tu Shan’s mouth twitched. For just this little bit of stuff, a whole yuan? The old lady had the potential to be a real profiteer.

"Old lady, if you do business like this, you’re going to lose a big customer like me."

"Get lost."

Tu Shan bared her teeth. With her sharp eyes, she spotted a pea in the dirt crack—it must have been dropped by the stingy old lady by accident. She quickly picked it up, tucked it into her pocket, closed the door, and squatted in the backyard to start her self-sufficiency project.

The stove at home had two burners, one large and one small. She placed a large iron pot on the big burner and an earthenware pot on the small one.

The stove had been drying for a day, and in this heat, it was already bone-dry.

Mother Wang had collected the leftover wood scraps from making the doors, windows, and furniture in a broken basket by the stove. It was enough to cook two meals; she’d have to remember to go gather some firewood later.

She lit the fire, and the yellow-orange flames roared upward. The master who built the stove had good craftsmanship; it used little wood, the fire was strong, and it was a smokeless stove, so the fumes wouldn't fly everywhere. This technique was truly ahead of its time.

First, she steamed a big pot of rice in the earthenware jar, then used a piece of rabbit fat to season the iron pot. After washing it clean, she started the fire and added oil.

The oil had been sent over by the Yang family along with the other things—it was oil pressed from the rapeseed she had accelerated with her ability, and it was incredibly fragrant.

Once the oil was hot, she poured in the rabbit meat and ginger to stir-fry. There were no chilies or seasonings, so she’d have to make do for now; she’d remember to go to the supply and marketing cooperative tomorrow.

Once it was mostly stir-fried, she added water to braise it.

She took out the small clay stove she’d gotten from the unit’s warehouse, placed her old broken earthenware pot on it, added water, and began to slow-cook the wild pheasant.

While it simmered, she gathered the green onions and ginger she had just accelerated in the garden and placed them in the corner of the kitchen for easy access.

She accelerated another batch and packed them up to send to Old Man Zongzheng and the others.

Next, she took out radishes and potatoes to accelerate. These were for her own consumption; she made about a hundred pounds of each and piled them in the corner once finished.

The empty kitchen felt much fuller now.

Protected by her alien energy, they wouldn't wilt for ten or fifteen days, and besides, these two items had a long shelf life anyway.

She took out sweet potatoes to accelerate. The small patch of land in the backyard could produce about forty pounds at once—enough for her own consumption for a while.

She picked out twenty or so uniform ones and buried them in the embers.

She took the soybeans and the peas she had just picked and accelerated them, half the plot for each.

There were plenty of soybean seeds, and after five cycles, she had nearly two hundred pounds.

When the soybeans were ripe, she gave the stalks a little shake, and the beans rattled down on their own.

She collected the beans into bags and piled the stalks by the stove to use as firewood.

The peas took four cycles to get enough seeds to fill the entire plot.

She accelerated them twice more, got about fifty pounds, and then stopped.

With all that done, she accelerated some grapes and oranges. In the meantime, she took a moment to peel a few potatoes, chopped them into large chunks, and added them to the rabbit meat.

By the time the grapes and oranges were ripe and boxed, the rabbit meat was just about ready.

Tu Shan saved some white rice and started to eat.

A big pot of rice, plus two wild rabbits and four potatoes—in less than twenty minutes, not a scrap was left. She even used the rice to wipe the pot clean of the remaining broth.

After washing the pots and stove, the wild pheasant in the earthenware jar was tender and soft.

Tu Shan accelerated some small green vegetables and blanched them in the chicken soup; her mother loved chicken soup with greens.

Even without salt, with the boost from her ability, it tasted wonderful.

She extinguished the fire, grabbed the basket she’d woven from grapevines and pea vines, and headed out. Everything she needed to take was inside, covered with taro leaves on top. It was very secure, and even the smell couldn't escape, so she wasn't afraid of anyone seeing.

The sky had already darkened. People returning from work were arriving one after another, and the rowdy children were being shouted at to head home. The small courtyard was at its liveliest.

Seeing Tu Shan, perhaps because of the few meals they’d shared, everyone was quite friendly.

"Third Sister, heading out at this hour?"

"It’s almost dark; you’re a girl, you should be careful."

Tu Shan bared her teeth in a smile. "Thanks, thanks!" She left at top speed.

The concern from this group inexplicably made her want to dig a hole to the center of the earth.

She went to deliver the food to Father and Mother Tu first. The old couple only got to eat this one meal a day, so she couldn't forget.

After knocking on the shack, she left the earthenware jar, the rice, two oranges, a small bag of peanuts, and two roasted sweet potatoes outside.

She waited until Father Tu took the items inside before leaving.

Father Tu looked at the figure disappearing rapidly into the night, his heart filled with a complex mix of emotions.

"Father of the children, this chicken soup... it’s so familiar."

Adding greens to chicken soup was Mother Tu’s favorite way to eat it, though others didn't really like it because the greens would get mushy, and the leaves would soak up all the oil, making them feel greasy.

But Mother Tu loved it.

Because she loved it, before Tu Shan was married, every time she stewed chicken soup, she would add greens separately for her mother.

Seeing the object reminded her of the person; Mother Tu’s eyes turned red.

Father Tu, however, felt a shock in his heart. There were too many coincidences and mysteries.

He remembered the inexplicable things Tu Sanmei had said that day, and her strange behavior these past few days. He had a very bold guess, but he didn't dare believe it.

He took a few deep breaths to suppress the thoughts that made his blood boil and comforted Mother Tu, "Don't be sad. Shanshan would be heartbroken if she knew. Eat up, the greens are cooked just right."

Mother Tu fell silent and said nothing more.

Tu Shan went to the Longgang District.

The guards at night were stricter than during the day.

Carrying the basket, she snuck in, turning left and right to avoid all the visible and hidden sentries and patrols. She jumped over the wall into the Zongzheng family’s courtyard with ease.

The moment her feet touched the ground, she was met with a powerful punch.

Tu Shan remained calm and composed. She set down the basket and dodged with an extremely relaxed posture.

The man was stunned for a moment, then launched even sharper punches and kicks at Tu Shan.

Tu Shan sighed; she was really very busy.

She reached out to grab the man’s wrist and tapped a point on it, instantly draining all the strength from his body.

Then, under his incredulous gaze, she stuffed a roasted sweet potato into his mouth.

She shouted toward the house, "Old Man, stop messing around, I have things to do."

Eight people rushed out of the house—five acquaintances and three new faces. Including the one with his mouth stuffed with a sweet potato, there were nine people in total.

Auntie Wei greeted her with a smile, "Girl, why are you here at this hour? Have you eaten? We’re just eating now. Come, come, let’s eat together."

"Auntie, I won't eat. There’s an old man here whose teeth are almost all gone who was craving meat. I brought it specially for him, but he doesn't seem to appreciate it. I’ll give it to you; you handle it."

Auntie Wei laughed uncontrollably and gave Tu Shan a playful glare. "The old man is getting on in years and just likes to play around. Why are you getting so worked up with him?"

Tu Shan huffed, "Wild pheasant, alive. I also brought some green onions and ginger. This one tastes better than the usual kind; it’s fragrant when added to dishes. There are also oranges and grapes. You keep them safe; don't give them to certain people no matter how much they crave them."

"You brat, don't push your luck!" Old Man Zongzheng, hearing these sarcastic remarks, was so angry his beard curled up. "What’s wrong with my grandson wanting to spar with you?"

Zongzheng Rui... *I didn't! Grandpa, don't spout nonsense!* He didn't even know who this person was. He thought there was an intruder, and since his grandfather knew the situation but didn't stop him at all, he had rushed out, only to be completely humiliated and suffer both physical and mental trauma. *You’d better explain this!*

"Is that what you call sparring? If I were a bit weaker, I’d be dragged off to the dark room. You didn't say a word even though you knew it was me; you were deliberately trying to test me. Don't think I don't know."

Old Man Zongzheng glared at her, puffed up with anger. "So what if I tested you? You have the nerve to climb over my wall in the middle of the night?"

Tu Shan was also angry. "Old Ming agreed to it! Why are you playing the 'I have amnesia' card, you old man?"

Old Ming... *He didn't say a word.* Don't blame him; he only agreed to let her come, not to let her climb the wall.

Old Man Zongzheng couldn't win the argument, so he turned his head away in a huff, breathing heavily.