Chapter 11: Is This What They Call Joy Turning to Sorrow?
An elderly woman who had been silent the entire time stopped what she was doing, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and, seeing Wang Dazhu’s lazy demeanor, grew angry.
“Wang Dazhu, how many work points did you earn today? We didn’t send you here to work just to watch you sleep. If you don’t shape up, I’ll report you.”
“Do you have no conscience cursing a child like that? Adults make mistakes and accept correction, but what does it have to do with an eight-month-old baby?”
“The poor kid was sent here barely after birth. You’re a father yourself—show some decency!”
Zhang Guihua, the elderly woman, scolded Wang Dazhu loudly. Her booming voice and blunt words immediately made the other women nearby agree with her.
Indeed, the little baby was only eight months old and hadn’t even cut any teeth yet. Though a financial burden, it wasn’t their money being lost.
They all had children of their own. If something happened to their grandchildren instead, they’d probably be begging for help everywhere.
For a moment, the expressions of the gathered women darkened. Seeing their gazes turn toward them, they quickly lowered their heads and resumed working diligently.
Wang Dazhu scoffed at the remarks, still lying lazily on the ground.
He didn’t think he had said anything wrong. He could curse the child casually—how many times had the family’s financial burden died in his mind?
He shifted to a more comfortable position and continued to lie there. Zhang Guihua’s words were, to him, nothing but nonsense. An old woman, half a step from the grave, daring to lecture him?
If not for respect toward the team leader’s mother, he would have struck her with a brick long ago. She acted capable, but her mouth was his business; what he wanted to say was none of her concern.
Wang Dazhu remained still, and Zhang Guihua, seeing this, shouted to the nearby scorekeeper, He Jun.
“Junwa—”
Before she could finish, Wang Dazhu sprang up, grabbed his sickle, glared at Zhang Guihua fiercely, cursed under his breath, and reluctantly went over to cut the rice.
“What’s going on?” He Jun looked over upon hearing the noise.
“Nothing, I was mistaken,” Zhang Guihua waved her hand and withdrew her gaze from Wang Dazhu. That good-for-nothing really thought she couldn’t handle him, huh?
The gossip quickly reached Tong Lingxian’s ears and also He Daixing’s, who was working on the other side.
The former felt like tearing Wang Dazhu’s mouth apart immediately. They might have let it go, but why curse Xixi as well?
She was still so young—why should she bear such slander? What did “financial burden” mean? The Fang family’s child could never be doomed to misfortune.
The latter’s face darkened when he heard this and he glanced at He Jun, signaling him to reset Wang Dazhu’s work points to zero for the day.
He Jun hesitated for a moment but said nothing, following the order. He wondered why the team leader cared so much about Wang Dazhu.
After all, Wang Dazhu had been slacking off for some time, either shirking work or wandering the mountain looking for things. Though the team leader had scolded him sternly and threatened to deduct points, at the end of the year’s ration distribution, they always gave him a little extra because of his daughter’s situation.
What was going on today? Could it be because Wang Dazhu insulted the team leader’s mother?
...
When Tang Yao returned home, the first thing she did was change Fang Mingxi’s dirty clothes and pants.
Fortunately, it was midsummer, and Fang Mingxi wasn’t wearing much—just two sets of clothes, which made washing easier.
After crawling around the mountain, Fang Mingxi’s legs and body were covered in dirt. Tang Yao didn’t blame her at all. Instead, she helped clean the clothes before preparing lunch.
Tang Yao’s lack of reproach made Fang Mingxi feel a bit guilty. From the start, Tang Yao helped with feeding and diaper changes, and now she was washing clothes and cooking—more attentive than a real sister.
She didn’t want to be so restricted in her actions, but with the child barely ten months old, it was still too soon for walking. There was no telling when she would walk independently.
Fang Mingxi decided next time to find some grass to crawl on, to avoid dirtying her clothes and adding to others’ work.
Taking advantage of Tang Yao’s absence, Fang Mingxi quickly exhaled, opened her interface, and tapped on the backpack icon.
She had collected five large porcini mushrooms from Tang Yao’s wooden bucket, each weighing at least two pounds.
She transferred the mushrooms and peanuts from the basket into her backpack. The progress bar on the cart jumped from one to ten, then a virtual firework bouquet appeared in the center of the interface, followed by a circular spinning wheel.
[Congratulations, host! Collection progress reached 10%. You have earned two lottery draws. Please use them within half an hour.]
A lottery draw! This was like a pillow arriving just as she was about to fall asleep. Fang Mingxi’s eyes lit up as she eagerly stared at the various rewards on the interface.
There were about a dozen items, ranging from miraculous elixirs to various tools. Almost everything imaginable was there.
Fang Mingxi quickly tapped the lottery button. The wheel spun rapidly—first wildly, then slowing, and finally coming to a gradual stop.
Throughout the drawing, Fang Mingxi was tense, clenching her fists and praying to win something useful—to at least relieve the predicament she faced.
When the wheel stopped, her heart leapt.
[Congratulations, host! You have received an automatic engineer’s shovel. It can be used once per expedition to automatically collect food.]
“Wow!” Fang Mingxi exclaimed excitedly. Such luck was incredible—she felt as if her wish had just come true.
In the morning, she had been wondering how to gather food quickly without being noticed, and now a timely boon had appeared. It was truly a delightful surprise.
For the second draw, Fang Mingxi held back, climbed to the bedside, and dipped her hands into the basin of cooled boiled water used that morning for warming bottles. After washing her hands clean, she tapped the lottery button again.
[Congratulations, host! You have received a regulation system. This item allows the host to adjust various parameters of the forest environment at will, such as weather and resource output...]
“Whoa!” Fang Mingxi gasped sharply, raising her hands in amazement. It would have been a shame not to buy a lottery ticket today.
The mountain trading system truly granted wishes; any difficulty could be overcome. Now her biggest problem was easily solved.
No longer would she worry about Tang Yao lingering too long and the golden finger disappearing, risking exposure. Nor would she fret over rain outside while inside remained dry. The weather could be adjusted promptly.
Fang Mingxi clicked to collect the items. The engineer’s shovel was placed into her backpack, and the regulation system appeared in the upper right corner as a circular gear icon.
She opened the regulation system to find not only weather controls but also systems for adjusting mountain paths, intrusion detection, sound simulation, and more.
Curious about the intrusion system, Fang Mingxi clicked it and saw that it functioned similarly to a tracking system, showing anyone approaching the forest and effectively blocking unauthorized entry, while masking any unusual activity from outside view.
Only the owner could see the full picture and even issue expulsion orders.
As for the sound system, Fang Mingxi found it perfect for her current situation. With exploration time nearing, if Tang Yao showed no sign of leaving, the sound system could simulate various noises to pretend someone was arriving.
The most incredible feature was the resource allocation system, which could mimic various items appearing in reality to deceive others.
There were leaves and seemingly abundant food, but digging beneath revealed nothing but emptiness.
All these were excellent tools. Fang Mingxi was overjoyed and, while reaching beside the bed, accidentally tapped an empty space, losing her balance and suddenly falling from the bed.
“Thud!”