It was evidently asking too much for two people who had only transmigrated a couple of days ago to immediately adapt to a life on the run. Back in their previous lives, they could eat and drink without a care. Now, they were forced to eat tasteless wild vegetable dough drop soup, which was excruciatingly difficult for them. Both of them resisted the idea from the bottom of their hearts.
Alas.
They still had to eat it, treating it as a form of early adaptation. They had no idea what their future held.
Seizing the opportunity while everyone else was buried in their meals, Su Miaomiao leaned her head closer to Cheng Hao and whispered, "Do you think I could take it back to the carriage to eat, and you could add some noodle sauce for me later?"
The lunch had truly terrified her; she had never tasted anything so unpalatable.
Cheng Hao, afraid of attracting too much attention and alerting the Cheng family head and the others, quietly replied, "The carriage compartments have all been unloaded, and the horses are in the stables. Do you really think you can go back to the carriage to eat? Fine, eat as much as you can. Give me the rest, and when it's late and no one's paying attention, you can eat something else."
Su Miaomiao couldn't bear to let Cheng Hao suffer on her behalf. After hearing him, she picked up her bowl, tilted her head back, and gulped down more than half of it. Cheng Hao stared at her, dumbfounded.
"Are you crazy??"
Cheng Hao urged her to take it easy. After taking a large gulp, Su Miaomiao's face turned green. Fortunately, she managed to hold it in. After taking a moment to catch her breath, she trembled and said, "It's, it's even worse than lunch. These wild vegetables tonight are also a bit astringent..."
It turned out that the wild vegetables cooked at noon and tonight were not the same variety. There truly was only worse, not better. Compared to this, lunch had tasted much better.
Cheng Hao took a bite and fell silent. He paid tribute once again to the resilience of their ancestors, whose efforts allowed their descendants to eat their fill without enduring such hardship.
Seeing his silent demeanor, Su Miaomiao felt like laughing. She added, "If you really don't want to eat it, just leave it. I'll eat it later. I can just pinch my nose and force it down. I'll just need to rinse my mouth afterward, so you remember to give me two pieces of candy."
Cheng Hao ignored her and finished his own bowl. Although his face was also rather green, he finished it in a few mouthfuls without daring to chew. He said, "No, we can't keep eating this. We need to improve our food situation."
If they continued like this, within a few days, everyone in the convoy would have green faces.
The weather was cool.
The dough drop soup cooled down significantly after a while, and it wasn't even warm when they ate it.
Su Miaomiao also finished her bowl in a few gulps and then said, "I can set a few traps. I've looked around the area, and there are signs of wild rabbits. If we can catch one or two, maybe that would work. It's just that there are no seasonings in this convoy. Even if we have meat, it will still be bland."
They had resources in their spatial dimension, but they couldn't possibly expose it.
If they really gave it away, such a small amount of salt wouldn't last for fifty people. It would be gone in a few days.
They still had to rely on external sources.
The salt in their spatial dimension was only to be used in extreme emergencies.
Cheng Hao naturally understood that finding salt was an urgent matter. Just as he was contemplating this, the returning guards brought good news. It turned out that the nearby village had also been deserted long ago and was silent.
And after their reconnaissance, they indeed found no one there.
But strangely, some items had been left behind and not taken. They brought back some things they found useful and even dug up a large vat of pickled vegetables that had been hidden, returning jubilantly to report.
The guard, Big Head, said with a simple smile, "I figured everyone's taste buds were getting numb from the blandness, so I brought this back first. Everyone can satisfy their cravings. My hometown also stores things like this, burying them in the ground."
He said his grandmother used to do it that way, so he searched, and to his surprise, he actually found some.
Big Head added, "I think if one family had it, other families must have it too! Since they've all left, they probably won't be back anytime soon. How about we all go over there tomorrow morning and search around?"
When the Cheng family head heard that the village was empty and even some items were left behind, he exclaimed, "Excellent!" He stood up excitedly, took a couple of steps, and then praised, "You did a great job, lad! You deserve a reward! A generous reward!"
As he spoke, he instructed Big Head to collect his reward later at his place. Big Head was overjoyed, grinning as if he had won the lottery.
Everyone else was also happy and immediately started scrambling for the small vat of pickled vegetables.
Seeing that they could scavenge for more supplies tomorrow, the Cheng family head didn't mind and waved for everyone to grab their share. Cheng Kaichun, however, solicitously reserved a small plate for the Cheng family head first. The rest was snatched up by everyone else.
Xiao Wuzi and Xiao Liuzi, being quick-witted, first brought their shares to Su Miaomiao and Cheng Hao before joining the general scramble.
Su Miaomiao watched in bewilderment as several of her shoes were kicked off. It was evident that everyone else also found this bland food rather unappealing.
The small bowl that was brought over contained pickled vegetable stems of an unknown variety. They were the color of pickled vegetables, but they had a soy sauce aroma.
And indeed.
They were quite appetizing.
But neither of them touched it. Cheng Hao even called out to stop everyone from grabbing, warning them that in this situation, eating things brought back from the village without caution was foolish. They should at least test for poison first.
Everyone immediately dared not reach into the vat with their chopsticks and took a step back.
The Cheng family head was also scared into a cold sweat by his son's words. He quickly instructed, "Quick, quick! Find a silver needle to test it! And give some to the mule to try. If it shows no reaction, then we'll eat!"
He declared that in these chaotic times, being cautious was never a bad thing.
Big Head was also startled and earnestly told everyone not to eat it. If anything went wrong, he wouldn't dare bear the responsibility. They should test it first.
A subordinate of the Cheng family head quickly took out a small cloth roll, extracted a silver needle, and tested it. It turned out to be fine.
Uncle Ji, after much deliberation and seeing that the silver needle detected no poison, finally felt a little relieved. However, he still apologetically fed a small portion to a mule. The mule immediately devoured the slightly salty food.
This made the old man pity the mule immensely as he kept stroking it. Only after a while, when the mule showed no ill effects, did he breathe a sigh of relief, concluding that the pickled vegetables were safe.
Cheng Hao nodded as well. It was best if it was safe. Then they could investigate the village tomorrow. If there was trouble, then they couldn't go to the village tomorrow either.
The Cheng family head also let out a great sigh of relief and slumped onto his bed, utterly exhausted by the emotional rollercoaster. He then told everyone to eat. However, everyone still hesitated and stopped eating.
Cheng Hao then told them that they could each take their portions, and they would explore the village tomorrow to determine if it was truly safe.
The Cheng family head had initially thought he could finally relax, but he hadn't expected another possibility to arise, so his heart remained uneasy.