Little Husband

"As long as the train doors are open during the normal stop time," Portable Abode offered a solution.

Li Banfeng was overjoyed.

With the railway in place, Portable Abode can take Li Banfeng a designated location according to his wishes.

However, this has a serious drawback: the key is outside the Portable Abode and cannot be taken with the Portable Abode. After Li Banfeng leaves, the Portable Abode closes the gate, and Li Banfeng cannot go home.

However, if the gate is not closed, this drawback is solved.

Li Banfeng asked Portable Abode, "What is the normal stop time?"

"It depends on whether it's a large station or a small station."

How do you distinguish between large and small stations?

"It depends on the size of the platform."

Li Banfeng stood up and said, "I'll build a big station, the kind that can be shut down for a whole day at a time."

"What kind of station would stop for a whole day unless the train broke down?"

"How long can the longest stop be?"

"At major stations, the train can stop for a maximum of one hour, and at minor stations, it can stop for a maximum of half an hour."

This amount of time is indeed limited, but considering the normal stop time of trains, the stop time of Portable Abode is not short.

Li Banfeng took out a map and started making plans.

"I want to build a large station in my territory, a large station in Green Water City, a large station in Medicine King Gully, and a large station in Black Stone Slope."

The soda at the Soda Kiln is delicious; we could consider building a large station there. The food at Sea Eat Ridge is good too; we could build a large station there there as well. As for Belt Ridge, I estimate it wouldn't take an hour, but having a large station there would be excellent..."

Li Banfeng was engrossed in his painting when the record player beside him reminded him, "My dear husband, you should first ask about our house. How much material does a large station need? These materials might not be easy to find."

I almost overlooked this.

What materials are needed to repair the train station?

Portable Abode replied, "Building a large station requires stones."

Li Banfeng laughed, "Stones are no problem. There are stones everywhere here. I have several mountains on my land. You can dig as much as you want."

"Ordinary stones cannot build my station; a major station must be built with Heaven Heart Stone."

Heaven Heart Stone?

Li Banfeng had never even heard of it.

The Wife reminded him, "My dear husband, the Heaven Heart Stone is extremely expensive."

"How expensive?" Li Banfeng asked dismissively. "Does your husband need money?"

Portable Abode responded, "The price of one Heaven Heart Stone is equivalent to that of a pair of railway tracks. It takes three Heaven Heart Stones to build a large station."

Li Banfeng paused for a moment and then said, "Building such a large station in such a remote wasteland seems a bit too ostentatious to me."

Let's talk about the small station first. Does the small station also need Heaven Heart Stone?

"The small station can be built with mud, but it must be Heaven Spring Joy Soil)."

"Heaven Spring Joy Soil..." Li Banfeng rubbed his hands together and said, "Judging from the name, it's not cheap, is it?"

"Whether it's cheap or not is another matter, but do you have anywhere to buy it?" Portable Abode's tone was slightly sarcastic.

Purchase?

Do grocery stores sell them?

Li Banfeng had never heard of this name before, so where could he buy it?

After a moment of silence, the Wife spoke.

"This Little Slave has seen the Heaven Spring Joy Soil. If you are lucky, my lord, you may be able to collect some."

Li Banfeng's eyes lit up. "Where should we collect them?"

"Little Slave knew a few places before, but the Heaven Spring Joy Soil there has been completely harvested. This soil is a medicinal herb; after consuming it, it can invigorate a man's virility and enhance a woman's tenderness."

"Then I can just go to the pharmacy to buy it, right?"

"My lord, ordinary pharmacies don't have this rare stuff. And even if they did, how much would they have?"

They use it as medicine, but we're building a train station. How can a few ounces of soil be enough?

The Little Slave recognizes a type of insect from the new land called the Three Joy Worm. This insect has a lifespan of about a hundred years, and it mats three times a day. It is extremely fond of this kind of medicinal material.

If we could catch a few Three Joy Worm in the new area, perhaps we could find out the whereabouts of the Heaven Spring Joy Soil.

"Wife, what does this insect look like?"

"Its body is glossy, and its tentacles are very long, varying in size, from as small as a fingernail to as large as three feet..."

After his Wife described the insects in detail, Li Banfeng immediately went out to catch them.

Before long, Li Banfeng brought back one. After his Wife looked at it, she said, "Husband, this is a cricket."

Li Banfeng went out again and brought back another one.

"My lord, this is a longhorn beetle."

Li Banfeng brought back another one.

"Hey, husband, throw it away right now! You can't bring cockroaches home."

Finding an insect based solely on a description is far too difficult.

The record player said, "The Three Joy Worm isn't uncommon, but it possesses some spirituality, making it not so easy to find."

I'll teach you, my lord, to sing a song called "Little Slave." I've often used this song to lure these insects before, and it's always worked. You might want to give it a try, my lord.

The sound of the pipa began, Wife sang a little tune. "The sun rises above the flower branches, I adorn myself before the mirror, my heart aches for my beloved, but I hate his heartlessness."

When my love returns home, I'll keep him at home. I'll loosen his robes and sash, and then I'll take my red lips into his embrace, saying, "I only want my beloved, my little sir..."

No wonder this piece of music is said to be effective time and time again.

Leaving aside the Three Joy Worm, Li Banfeng, carrying the Machine Oil, had already arrived behind the record player.

The record player barked, "Hey, husband, let's get down to business! Have you learned this tune yet?"

Li Banfeng shook his head and said, "Hey, my Wife, you're really making things difficult for me. Do you think I can learn it? Even if I could, would I be able to sing it well?"

The record player said, "It's alright, I'll burn a record for you, my lord. You can find a suitable place to play it, and catch any insects that look similar."

The Three Joy Worm possess little spiritual power, and very few in the world can speak with them. My husband's Discern Spiritual Sounds Technique is still insufficient.

"This Little Slave can talk to these insects. As long as you catch the right insect, my Little Slave, I can ask you..."

Li Banfeng waved his hand and said, "That's too much trouble, my Wife. Let's go out and catch some bugs."

The record player paused for a moment, then said, "Husband, didn't you just say you wanted Little Slave to go out?"

Li Banfeng knew that Home Spirit couldn't go out freely. "Wife, don't misunderstand, I'm just discussing this with you. If you'd like to go out for a walk, we can go together. Whether we catch any bugs or not doesn't matter; I just want Wife to get some fresh air."

If my Wife doesn't want to go out, then pretend I didn't say anything.

The record player was very excited; she hadn't left since entering the Portable Abode.

Li Banfeng picked up the record player and was about to leave when the record player cried out, "Husband, wait a moment. Do you really trust your Little Slave?"

Bringing the Home Spirit is equivalent to freeing the house from its constraints.

The Home Spirit can kill the House Cultivator. After killing the House Cultivator, the Home Spirit can kill anyone it wants. At this point, the Home Spirit is no different from Evil Spirit.

Li Banfeng smiled, "What is there to distrust about my own Wife?"

"But..." the record player hesitated.

Li Banfeng knew why his Wife was worried; Home Spirit with the permission of the residence.

Li Banfeng said to Portable Abode, "We're going out for a walk to clear our heads, we'll be back in a bit."

Portable Abode Shenju said, "This is a one-time exception. You must return within two hours, and no combat troops are allowed to be taken out."

Combat troops are not allowed to be taken out?

Is this even allowed?

Li Banfeng looked at his Wife and asked, "My dear Wife, would you still like to go out?"

"Little Slave, I want to go out and have a look."

Li Banfeng carried his Wife out of the room.

The moment she left the room, the Wife lost all her fighting power, leaving her with only some useless techniques, and even had difficulty moving.

Taking a breath of fresh air, the Wife couldn't help but tremble. The three trumpet-shaped mouths swayed in the night, as if greedily taking in the surrounding scenery.

Actually, there wasn't much scenery around, just a barren mountain, but the Wife looked at it intently for a long time.

The melody began, and the Wife sang "Little Husband" again. Just as she finished singing, a worm about the length of an index finger, with a shiny body and long antennae, perched on the tree, listening quietly to the song.

The record player extended its stylus, and the insect obediently landed on the stylus holder. The Wife used her Discern Spiritual Sounds Technique to exchange a few words with the insect.

"Hey, my lord, this insect doesn't know much. Twenty miles to the east, there's a canyon where an old insect over sixty years old lives. He should have some knowledge. Let's go take a look."

Li Banfeng carried his Wife eastward, and the phonograph sang with a hint of shame, "This Little Slave's body is a bit heavy, it has really been hard on my husband."

Li Banfeng shook his head and said, "How could I feel tired carrying my own Wife? I was walking a little faster, did my Wife find it bumpy?"

"This Little Slave is willing to be tossed and turned in my husband's arms for the rest of my life."

Through the hazy mist, Li Banfeng carried the record player and ran all the way. The record player, worried that Li Banfeng tired, urged him to put her back in his Portable Abode: "My Little Slave, if I go back to the house, the house will be with you, which is the same as Little Slave going with you, isn't it?"

If I go back now, it will be difficult to get out again.

But the record player was quite content, whispering in Li Banfeng's ear, "Husband, just come out and take a look. There will be plenty of opportunities in the future."

I'm in Portable Abode good mood today, and I agreed to this request for the station matter, but it's hard to say whether I'll have the opportunity in the future.

"That won't do!" Li Banfeng smiled. "My dear Wife, it's a rare opportunity to come out, you must take your husband out for a good stroll."

The night wind was biting cold. The record player hung its horn on Li Banfeng's shoulder, gently exhaling steam. It was careful not to get too close and burn her husband, nor too far away and freeze him. Li Banfeng would scratch his peach, then his back, then his armpits, making the record player so ticklish that it almost laughed itself out of breath.

They ran all the way to the mountain stream, Li Banfeng put his Wife down. His Wife wiped his sweat and started singing "Little Husband" again. This time, after singing only two lines, a nearly three-foot-long insect crawled out of the soil and stopped next to his Wife.

This was an old Three Joy Worm. After the Wife finished singing, she exchanged a few words with the Three Joy Worm and then turned to Li Banfeng and said, "It knows where Heaven Spring Joy Soil is. It's more than eighty li away from here. As long as Little Slave sing it two more songs, it will lead us there."

Li Banfeng nodded slightly. While his Wife was singing, he returned to his Portable Abode, changed into coarse clothes, put on a pointed straw hat, and dressed up as a hunter from the new land.

Portable Abode was getting impatient. "It's about time we brought that girl back!"

Li Banfeng smiled and said, "Don't rush, it hasn't been two hours yet."

The Wife sang two more songs, Three Joy Worm greatly. He then led Li Banfeng and the record player southeast.

After walking for more than ten miles, they had reached the edge of Li Banfeng's territory. The Three Joy Worm were not moving fast, and a lot of time had passed.

The record player said, "My lord, time is almost up. Take Little Slave home. Don't anger the household. And when we're on someone else's property, it's best if Little Slave don't show my face."

Li Banfeng escorted his Wife back to Portable Abode Shen Ju and then left his territory with Three Joy Worm.

After walking another ten miles or so, they came to a stream. A man with a turban on his head, leading a dromedary camel, called out to Li Banfeng, "Brothers passing by, come and take a look! I've just received a new batch of good stuff. Slaughter it if it's enough to cover your costs, take whatever you want!"

Peddler?

This was indeed a Peddler, but not the Peddler Li Banfeng knew.

These Peddler only did business in the new land, selling daily necessities to settlers and hunters, and were known as itinerant merchants of the new land.

The hawking sounded quite friendly, so Li Banfeng went up and bought a pearl flower for his Wife, two hair ties for Hong Ying, and a rag for Copper Lotus.

In the new place, supplies were scarce and prices were much higher than in the Proper Land. Li Banfeng just patronized the business out of kindness and didn't buy much.

After paying the money, Li Banfeng and Three Joy Worm went to find Heaven Spring Joy Soil. After walking for more than two miles, Li Banfeng bent down to tie his shoelaces and threw two silver dollars on the ground.

After Li Banfeng walked away, the traveling merchant followed with his camel and saw the silver dollars on the ground.

This was a warning from Li Banfeng, advising him to stop while he was ahead and not to continue following him.

The traveling merchant paused for a moment, but the camel beside him urged, "What are you standing there for? Follow him, keep going, and when the time is right, kill him."

The traveling merchant nodded, touched the shelf on the camel's back, checked the location of the weapons, and continued to follow Li Banfeng forward with a murderous look on his face.

They hadn't gone far when Li Banfeng suddenly disappeared without the merchant noticing.

By the time he realized it, his body swelled up instantly and then exploded into a mass of flesh and blood.

Li Banfeng did not continue on his way. He stood a dozen meters away, watching the dromedary camels beside the traveling merchants.

The camel was also looking at Li Banfeng, and said calmly, "My friend, impressive skills! May I ask what brings you here?"

Li Banfeng's tone was also calm. "I haven't yet asked who you are?"

As they were talking, the Three Joy Worm had already run far away.

The dromedary snorted and said to Li Banfeng, "I only have one hump on my back. People like to call me Old Single Hump, and some call me Bei Wushuang."

P. S.: What a small world!