After Su Miaomiao and Cheng Hao finished their tasks, they continued to search for supplies.
They each picked up a wooden stick to probe the way forward.
They deliberately ventured into less crowded areas to find better wild goods.
Su Miaomiao, with her large crossbody bag slung over her shoulder, carried the wooden stick in her hand, using it to rustle through the grass to scare away anything hiding. This also protected them from encountering snakes about to hibernate.
As the saying goes, "beat the grass to startle the snake."
Cheng Hao followed her, having some knowledge of what could be harvested.
So, he picked things along the way.
There were herbs for stopping bleeding, herbs for warding off cold, and herbs for relaxing muscles and invigorating the joints.
Su Miaomiao looked around as she walked. Occasionally, she spotted bird nests in trees and climbed up to peek. Following the rules, she left one or two, and took all the rest.
More importantly.
She glanced over and suddenly noticed a lot of wild chilies hanging there.
Su Miaomiao immediately became excited.
"Cheng Hao, Cheng Hao, look! So many wild chilies! These are great for winter! They can ward off cold and remove gamey smells when cooked with meat. They are truly wonderful!"
As she spoke, she went over and, after careful examination, confirmed they were indeed wild chilies.
Cheng Hao stopped her, warning her to be careful of getting spicy hands. "I'll get you a pair of thin gloves. If you pick them with your bare hands, don't cry if your hands get a rash!"
As he spoke, he put a pair of gloves and some candy into her hands, to sweeten her mouth and supplement her sugar intake, as their meals were not very regular here.
It was good to be able to eat some snacks and replenish energy when possible.
Cheng Hao also put on gloves for himself. It was quite secluded here, with no one around, so they felt at ease. Just as he bent down to start picking together, a piece of candy was handed to his mouth, already peeled. He ate it.
"Just eat it if I give it to you, why keep putting it in my mouth?"
Cheng Hao mumbled indistinctly, but his hands were already busily picking.
Su Miaomiao squeezed another piece into her mouth and then tucked the remaining two or three into her chest. She also mumbled with the candy in her mouth, "I've already said it, how can I eat alone? What I have, I will share with you!"
Cheng Hao chuckled, "You're just trying to coax me. Alright, let's get to work."
Su Miaomiao had recently started to understand Cheng Hao's little reservations. She also put on gloves and started picking, and though her words were sharp, she said, "Every time I say something nice, you're actually secretly delighted, aren't you? You're just a closeted tsundere, unwilling to admit it!"
She snorted a couple of times.
She thought she was quite clever.
Cheng Hao was amused by her antics and didn't bother to argue, letting her enjoy herself.
They worked quickly.
Soon, they had cleared out the small patch of wild chilies.
Su Miaomiao also dug up two plants, put them in plastic bags with some soil around the roots, and asked Cheng Hao to put them into his spatial storage. "These wild chilies seem to have a stronger flavor than the ones from our place! They must be very good! Let's keep two plants. If we find a stable home later, we'll plant them!"
Then they wouldn't have to worry about not having wild chilies. There weren't many varieties of chilies here.
It was good to keep more.
Cheng Hao, of course, stored them in the convenience store's warehouse without hesitation. The plastic bags were from him to Su Miaomiao, so why would he refuse to store them?
Just as his consciousness was about to exit the space, he suddenly realized that the space seemed to have expanded a bit more, unlocking the hot pot restaurant directly above.
This convenience store was located at the periphery of a small shopping mall. Besides this nostalgic, somewhat old-fashioned convenience store, there were many other small shops, such as the fried chicken shop and pizza place that Su Miaomiao liked, which were their frequent haunts.
Su Miaomiao and Cheng Hao had rented a place in a nearby residential area, very close to here. Occasionally, when they felt lazy to cook, they would come out for a walk, and usually, they could solve their dinner, then go into the convenience store to replenish daily necessities.
Above the convenience store, there was also a hot pot restaurant, various chain eateries, as well as an arcade, a cinema, a fresh food supermarket, and so on.
And because this row of shops was not at the main entrance of the mall but at a side entrance facing the road, and because there were many shops here, the mall's internal cargo elevators and loading docks were also set up here, which is why many shopkeepers unloaded their goods here, leading to the presence of trucks.
The two unlucky souls had thus fallen into trouble.
But whether to count it as fortunate amidst misfortune, this space actually expanded. Now, the hot pot restaurant directly above had been unlocked.
Cheng Hao's consciousness explored inside and found that the several warehouses and the kitchen were also fully stocked. There were drinks, plenty of hot pot bases, as well as various meatballs and other fresh meats, all of which were abundant.
However, there was no one inside, which was very strange.
It was as if all the items in the restaurant had been brought over together, but the people were completely absent. Even the tabletop still had unfinished dishes, and the half-cooked items were sealed.
Time seemed to have frozen in this restaurant. Cheng Hao tried to operate it but found that, unlike the convenience store, he couldn't boil water, pour water, or cook things. However, at least the items could be freely taken in and out.
Su Miaomiao watched Cheng Hao suddenly appear dazed and questioning life. The next moment, he was holding a large head of cabbage, and her eyes immediately lit up.
"The convenience store doesn't sell cabbage, does it? They don't sell vegetables either!"
There were some fruits.
Cheng Hao was stunned for a second before quickly recovering. He coughed twice, calmly put the cabbage back, looked around to make sure no one was watching, then pulled Su Miaomiao aside and whispered a few words. The little childhood friend exploded.
"My heavens!"
Before Cheng Hao could cover her mouth, she had already done it herself, her big, round cat-like eyes wide, filled with surprise and joy.
"A hot pot restaurant? It was still mealtimes then, right? They should have prepared plenty of ingredients!"
Su Miaomiao whispered to Cheng Hao like a secret agent.
Cheng Hao calmly nodded, but in his heart, he was extremely pleased. The continuous expansion of the space meant greater security for their survival, and it would also allow them to better manage their convoy and improve their quality of life.
Su Miaomiao was overjoyed, but she still had to collect the necessary items.
After all, no one knew when the space would stop expanding or when they might be unable to retrieve things from it. They had to be prepared for both possibilities.
The items in the space needed to be saved, and the convoy's supplies also needed to continue to be stockpiled.
They couldn't completely rely on the space. What if, one day, not to mention the space disappearing, but what if it went into an upgrade state and temporarily couldn't be accessed? So, the young couple was preparing for this.
Although their intuition told them that since the space came with them, it was unlikely to disappear. After all, which protagonist's cheat had a retract button? There wouldn't be such an author, right? The young couple was so confident in this thought.
However, the possibility of an upgrade was quite high, as there were stories like that.