Chapter 120: Settlement on Day 25 |
The man in official robes began to tell his story.
His story was long, but telling it was short.
Back then, when he went to the capital for the imperial examination, after losing his Book Case, he fled in panic from the mountain and unexpectedly encountered the family of his now-wife. The following year, during a special imperial examination under the new emperor's grace, with the help of his wife's family, he went to the capital again for the exam. This time, he finally passed. He spent twenty-two years of frustration in the imperial court, ending up as a minor official. Because he backed the wrong faction, he was demoted to serve in the southern borderlands. This time, on his way to his post, he unexpectedly encountered that very same shop from back then.
The man bowed from a distance towards Qin Ziwen, "The road ahead is long and the mountains are high. If fate allows, perhaps we will meet again."
He paused, then sighed with emotion, "I wonder if you still have any Daliyuan Small Bread here? After tasting it back then, I searched all of Chang'an Prefecture but never tasted that flavor again."
Qin Ziwen went out and brought him a small bread, its packaging already torn open, placed in a small bowl from the tavern.
The man picked up the small bowl and smiled, "I once told my wife about this. She thought I was making it up, saying I was just too hungry back then. Today, I will let her taste it and see if she still laughs at me."
With that, the man took a gold ingot from his bosom and placed it on the table, bowing again from a distance to Qin Ziwen, "Mountains and rivers separate us. I hope you, shopkeeper, take good care of yourself."
After saying this, he picked up the small bowl, lifted his Book Case, turned, and left.
He gently hefted it in his hand; it probably weighed about five taels.
Like the silver obtained before, this was also a usable currency.
Qin Ziwen sighed with emotion, "It would be great if we had a few more customers like that."
He waited in the tavern a while longer, but no more customers came in. Finally, Qin Ziwen took down the lantern and returned to the bedroom.
"You have successfully survived safely in the wilderness for the twenty-fifth day. You obtained a card, acquired some currency through tavern transactions, hunted a Wild Boar... Comprehensive Score: 100 points."
"You have received a reward: [Advanced Building Card] Level 1 Martial Training Ground*1"
Qin Ziwen checked the reward.
Level 1 Martial Training Ground?
A training ground seemed to be a place for training soldiers in ancient times.
But if he wasn't mistaken, the area required for a training ground definitely wouldn't be small.
Sure enough, upon taking out this card and seeing the area it required, Qin Ziwen's face darkened.
30 by 40.
It required a full twelve hundred square meters of area.
Fortunately, although this training ground required a large area, among other similar training grounds, this area was considered small.
As for those large training grounds that could accommodate tens of thousands of troops for drills, even if he had a month, he might not necessarily be able to gather such a large area.
He put away the card and, after eating breakfast,
Qin Ziwen came to the side of the fish pond. After the water in the fish pond was changed overnight, the Seven-star Fish and the two loaches in the bucket had already adapted to the water quality. He poured them into the fish pond.
Afterwards, he led everyone out, but before leaving, he kept Li Tieshan and Zhao Pu behind.
Li Tieshan and Zhao Pu each had their own tasks.
This time, Qin Ziwen planned to first forge a batch of weapons.
While they were still in the forest, they should purchase more wood. Once they reached the Gobi Desert, wood wouldn't be so common.
Li Tieshan's task was to forge Spearheads. The refugees had dug several large baskets of iron ore over the past two days, enough to use for now.
Zhao Pu's task was to purchase wood through his channels, prioritizing woods of suitable thickness like ash, Cudrania Wood, oak, and jujube wood.
Afterwards, everyone gathered outside the south gate.
Qin Ziwen, Qin Ziwu, Deng Guang, Li Yue, Du Yu, Wang Yun, and Yang Cunshen—seven people.
They were still missing one person.
"Coming, coming!" From inside the south gate, a tall, sturdy boy with somewhat loose skin came running over.
Wang Yun said to Qin Ziwen, "This is Xiao Pang. His real name is Yuan Ming."
"Brother Wang, Captain Qin!" Xiao Pang greeted the two after arriving.
Qin Ziwen nodded, sizing up this person.
This Yuan Ming wasn't short, close to 190 centimeters tall. He wore a black jacket, had thick eyebrows, and his skin was fair with a reddish hue. His face still carried the flush from just having run, likely the type of complexion that flushes easily.
"Welcome aboard. We're teammates from now on." Qin Ziwen extended his right hand.
Yuan Ming hurriedly extended both hands, "Brother Wang already told me everything. I have a bit of strength. Just leave the physical labor to me from now on!"
[Common · Human (Wang Yun): ☆☆]
[Common · Human (Yuan Ming): ☆☆☆]
This Yuan Ming also had a three-star physique, among the stronger ones for ordinary people.
Qin Ziwen said, "Alright, let's talk as we walk up the mountain."
On the way up the mountain, Wang Yun said, "I've been observing that Giant Toad these past two days. It basically goes down to the river about every half day, eats up all the Mayfly corpses on the river surface, then comes ashore and rests lying on the bank. I think once the mayflies in the river are completely gone, it should leave."
"Mm, the path we're taking now is the one it used when it came down the mountain that time." Qin Ziwen tapped the ground beneath his feet with his foot. He paused, then continued, "Also, I know where its lair is. Our main task today is to find a suitable ambush location."
Finally, Qin Ziwen explained the team's plan for how cards would be distributed.
After hearing the first plan, Wang Yun hesitated for a moment but ultimately kept quiet.
Qin Ziwen took the initiative to guide him, "Doctor Wang, if you have any thoughts, just say them."
Wang Yun looked at Qin Ziwen, thought for a moment, then said, "Uh, regarding this plan, I think there might be a slight issue. That is, if other people in the team have other tasks to perform and can't participate in obtaining cards, wouldn't that lower their work motivation?"
After saying this, Wang Yun quickly added, "Of course, this is just my personal shallow opinion. My thinking might also have shortcomings that I myself haven't noticed."
Qin Ziwen nodded, "It's fine. I think what you said is quite right."
Previously, Zhao Pu didn't go up the mountain for several consecutive days after becoming a Building Head.
But in the end, Qin Ziwen still gave him a chance to obtain a card, considering that Doctor Zhao, who stayed behind in the residential complex, also contributed to the team indirectly.
Qin Ziwu suggested, "Then use a contribution point system?"
Wang Yun pondered and then said, "That kind should be better, but how to evaluate contribution points is also a hassle."
Qin Ziwen nodded, "It's fine. We can discuss this further after we go back. We just need to establish a standard that everyone can accept."
Just as they were talking, Yang Cunshen suddenly spoke up, "How about this location?"
The others stopped and looked in the direction Yang Cunshen pointed.
Directly ahead was a sunken pit in the ground. Compared to the surroundings, this area had the lowest terrain. Right next to it was a cliff ravine, about forty to fifty meters high, quite steep.
At the bottom of the pit, there was a lot of buried Dry Grass and dead leaves.
On the slopes of the other three sides, there were also some trees and shrubs.
"Lure it to the bottom of the pit, then throw in Molotov cocktails. That would just create an encirclement. Once it's at the bottom, it'll be smoked and scorched. And since the ravine is right next to it, if we can startle it into jumping down itself, that would be even better."
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