Chapter 8: Look What I Found

Chen Xiao Mi asked Lu Lin that night whether he wanted to stay at home to get more rest or go to the mountains with him the next day.

Lu Lin thought the way Chen Xiao Mi talked to him was not like he was his husband, Chen Xiao Mi saw him more like a colleague.

Lu Lin weighed it up and decided he would go to the mountains with Chen Xiao Mi. He figured it was time to obtain some authority and change how Chen Xiao Cai saw him, he was an adult man after all.

Lu Lin got up early the next morning, he followed Chen Xiao Mi to the mountains. Lu Lin was a country boy in his last life, but his village was located on the boundless plain with no mountains around, so he was excited about the mountains and the adventures.

“Just stay close to me, don’t be more of a hindrance than a help.” Chen Xiao Mi turned around and said that in a serious tone.

Lu Lin nodded, “Okay.”

Chen Xiao Mi who was armed with a bow and arrow lead the way, Lu Lin followed him with a bamboo stick in hand.

Lu Lin took a look at the bow and arrow in Chen Xiao Mi’s hand and sighed on seeing his bamboo stick. ‘How lame is this bamboo stick, is it my weapon? It’s fine I don’t get bow and arrow, I know they are expensive, but shouldn’t I get a hacking knife at least?’

Chen Xiao Mi was an excellent hunter, granted, it had everything to do with his strength, but ‘good tools are prerequisite to the successful execution of a job’. The bow and arrow are very handy tools to have in hunting.

“Ha! Look what I found! It’s Chinese yam!” Lu Lin exclaimed, then he dug it out in a hurry-scurry.

Chen Xiao Mi looked at Lu Lin and the Chinese yam in his hand with confusion, “Why do you bother to dig out this muddy stick?” (T/N: Chinese yam, or ‘shanyao’ in pinyin, google it if you want to, it does look like a muddy stick.)

“It’s food, not muddy stick.” Lu Lin replied readily.

Chinese yam was rich in nutrients, it contained a lot of vitamins and minerals. It would do good to the kids back at home.

Chen Xiao Mi frowned, “Really? It’s not tasty, and the skin of that thing will make you itchy, it might even give you rash.”

It looked like Chen Xiao Mi had found this a long time ago, chances were he didn’t deal with it properly when he cooked it or he had allergy to the skin, that was common, but it was fine after a good boil.

Lu Lin smiled, “You can add this yam in the porridge, don’t worry, it’s common if it makes you itchy, just pay more attention to it when you cook it. I’ll show you.”

Chen Xiao Mi didn’t touch the yams by hand, he found some big leaves and wrapped the yams inside. Then he put them in the basket on his back.

“These muddy sticks are everywhere, you may dig as many as you want.” Chen Xiao Mi said casually.

“Sure.” Lu Lin smiled.

There was a decent amount of snacks in the convenience store, but there was not enough staple food, plus Lu Lin didn’t want to just sit idle and consume what he had in the store, he wanted to find more resources and contribute to the family.

Chen Xiao Mi went deeper into the mountain to check the traps he had set up, leaving Lu Lin digging Chinese yams, considering the place Lu Lin was at was pretty safe.

Chen Xiao Mi thought Lu Lin was lying about how yummy the muddy sticks were, he thought Lu Lin was just making excuses thus to not go deeper into the mountains. Chen Xiao Mi didn’t point it out bluntly since it was the first time that Lu Lin ventured into the mountains, it was common for him to have some fear.

Lu Lin noticed the way Chen Xiao Mi looked at him was a bit odd, but he didn’t say anything either.

Chen Xiao Mi found two pheasants in the traps, he gave one pheasant to Lu Lin and he left with the other one.

Chen Xiao Mi had few friends in the village, an old hunter probably the only one.

Chen Xiao Mi had ventured into the mountains several years ago without telling that bloodsucking family. The old hunter appreciated Chen Xiao Mi’s courage, he taught this poor boy the basics of hunting, such as setting up a trap and disguising in the wood. Chen Xiao Mi was so grateful for the bow and arrow the old hunter gave him, otherwise he wouldn’t have had hunted the tiger successfully two years ago.

Unfortunately, the old hunter broke his leg about a year ago, he had been leading a miserable life since that.

Chen Xiao Mi was a grateful person by nature, he had been helping the old hunter out whenever he could. But he had two little brothers to feed himself, so he couldn’t help as much as he wished.

Chen Xiao Cai frowned on seeing the Chinese yam, “Why did you bring them home. Watch out, it will give you rash.”

Lu Lin gave a subtle smile on hearing that, ‘The Chen Brothers surely hate Chinese yam.’

“They are actually pretty yummy.” Lu Lin explained.

“You idiot.” Chen Xiao Cai snorted.

Lu Lin didn’t take it to heart, “You can go mind your business now, I will cook this muddy stick now, and I will call you when dinner is ready.”

Chen Xiao Cai rose to his feet and said, “Keep it all to yourself, I won’t eat any.”

Lu Lin looked around and sighed with emotion again, they were indeed utterly destitute. He couldn’t even find a knife to peel the yam. They usually used a piece of tile to cut vegetables, and as for meat, they usually used a blade, but that blade was so rusty that Lu Lin didn’t want to even lay a finger on it.

‘It’s gonna take me forever if I use that tile!’ thought Lu Lin. Then he sneaked to the store and found a little knife that worth about two Yuan.

‘It’s a cheap ass knife in modern days that you can find everywhere, but it’s probably a divine artifact in this time and space.’