Coming out with a paper cup, Shen Moxi remembered the problem of destroying the evidence. Having to do this all the time was such a hassle, so she called out to Xiao Tao.
"Xiao Tao, do you have somewhere to put rubbish? Look at these packaging bags and things. Having to sneak around destroying them every time is such a hassle. It'd be even harder if I were out somewhere."
"Master, the system can unlock a garbage recycling station for you, but it requires ten thousand points," Xiao Tao said after some thought.
"Ten thousand points?? That expensive?" Shen Moxi's little heart jolted. "But I don't have ten thousand points right now. I have about six thousand left. Couldn't you bend the rules a little and unlock it for me?"
"I can't, Master."
"Then how about I give up the discount you gave me as compensation? Take it back and use those points to unlock it for me. Would that work?" Shen Moxi sighed. Why is everything so hard for me?
"Yes. Xiao Tao will now withdraw the week-long mall discount and unlock it for Master." Xiao Tao hurried off to take care of it.
Xiao Tao moved so fast, as though afraid Shen Moxi would change her mind, that she was left utterly speechless. Had she made the wrong decision? She had forgotten she still had a big golden thigh to rely on.
Before long, Xiao Tao had it ready. "Master, it's unlocked. From now on, you can put all the packaging waste from goods purchased in the mall inside, and the system will process it."
"Mm, got it," Shen Moxi said glumly. Looking at the paper cup in her hand, she silently commanded it into the garbage processor, and it vanished instantly.
"Ah." She sighed and went out the front gate to find Song Yongjun and his wife.
As soon as she stepped outside, she saw the couple coming back not far away, each carrying a shovel over one shoulder.
Seeing Shen Moxi standing at the gate, the two quickened their steps.
"Girl, why are you outside? Did something happen?" Huang Yushan hurried over anxiously.
"Nothing happened, Auntie Shan. Dinner's ready, but you weren't back yet, so I thought I'd come out and look," Shen Moxi said with a smile, taking the shovel from her shoulder and setting it down.
"If it's ready, you two can eat first. No need to wait for us. I thought something had happened," Huang Yushan said with a smile, wiping the sweat from her forehead.
"A little wait won't hurt. Auntie Shan, go wash up. I'll dish up dinner." Shen Moxi fetched water for them, poured it into the washbasin, and went to the kitchen.
Song Qi was already sitting at the table waiting. Seeing Shen Moxi come in, he stood to help her, but she waved him back. "Just stay seated. Dishing up dinner won't take long."
Actually, he wanted to say that he was starving. Sitting here smelling the food without being able to eat it was tormenting his stomach...
He sat quietly to one side, watching Shen Moxi fill four bowls and bring them over. She set out the chopsticks and handed him a pair. "You eat first. You're the patient, so eat plenty."
Song Qi took the chopsticks. "I'd better wait and eat with them. It wouldn't be right to start first."
Just then, Song Yongjun and his wife came in. Having washed their faces and hands, they felt a little more comfortable. They were startled for a moment to see Song Qi sitting outside.
"Qi'er, are you feeling better? You can come out now?"
"Mm, there's not much wrong anymore. Once I've regained some strength, getting up and walking around will help me recover faster." Song Qi nodded.
"As long as you're better. You gave us such a fright those past few days." Huang Yushan wiped away her tears.
"Thank you, Dad, Mom," Song Qi said with a smile.
"You child, why have you become so formal after losing your memory? We're family. There's no need for thanks. Come on, let's eat." Song Yongjun patted Huang Yushan's arm. "Try the girl's cooking. It looks very good."
"Mm, it's very good. Better than mine. You're a good cook, girl. Our Qi'er will be eating well from now on." Huang Yushan tried a slice of cucumber and gave her a thumbs-up.
"Mm, it really is good. It's every bit as good as the little restaurants out there." Song Yongjun nodded. He had eaten at plenty of restaurants when he was young, and this really was no worse.
Song Qi said nothing, but the speed at which he ate made it clear that tonight's meal really was good.
For someone who loved cooking, seeing everyone enjoy and acknowledge the results of her efforts brought a tremendous sense of accomplishment. Back in his old home, he had often cooked for his parents too, and even the housekeeper had joked that she was about to lose her job.
Watching the older couple eat so happily, she thought of her own parents, who had died protecting her, and her eyes reddened slightly. Realizing her emotions were showing, she immediately composed herself and lowered her head to eat.
After dinner, Huang Yushan went to wash the dishes and asked Shen Moxi to take Song Qi for a stroll nearby to help their digestion and see whether familiar surroundings might help restore his memory.
Shen Moxi nodded and supported Song Qi as they slowly walked out of the courtyard. She saw rows of earthen houses and country paths, all dirt roads. There were not even gravel roads, let alone concrete ones.
In the early eighties, the country was not yet prosperous, and cities had only just begun developing, never mind the countryside. These muddy dirt roads became particularly difficult to walk on whenever it rained. Coming home from the fields meant leaving a trail of muddy footprints, which were especially hard to clean up. No wonder people in ancient times had called farmers mud-legged peasants.
Aside from houses, there were fields on either side of the road. Stretch after stretch of lush green wheat fields looked beautiful at a glance, and the air was fresh and free of pollution.
Looking at the houses and fields, Song Qi thought at first glance that he had arrived at a farming village back where he came from. It really was similar: adobe houses, wheat fields, and the occasional laughter of children playing. For a moment, he felt dazed, unable to tell whether he was dreaming now or awake.
Seeing Song Qi staring off to one side in a daze, Shen Moxi waved a hand before his eyes. "What are you looking at so intently?"
Song Qi smiled at her. "Nothing. It's just that all this looks so much like the farming villages on our continent. I suddenly felt a little dazed."
"This is still undeveloped countryside. Most people aren't well-off, so the houses are all adobe houses like these. That's why it looks much the same to you. But in another ten or twenty years, the countryside will be full of large blue-brick houses with tiled roofs, and the roads will be asphalt. It'll look much more impressive than this."
"Right now, the air, environment, and water are all at their best. There's no industrial pollution or environmental damage and pollution caused by people." Shen Moxi sighed. "Later, as the country develops and reforms and industry grows, more and more factories will be built. The wastewater and exhaust they release will pollute the environment. Then even the air we breathe will be harmful, and we certainly won't be able to drink water just anywhere."
"What are factories? Places that make things?" Song Qi asked, having heard many things he did not understand.
"There are many kinds of factories. In the future, everything we need for clothing, food, housing, and transport will be produced in factories. Wherever there's production, there'll be pollution. That's unavoidable. The development and progress of the times are also built on gradual destruction."
Song Qi nodded thoughtfully. Although he could not imagine it, he understood a little now. He could learn more once he saw it for himself in the future.
"Have you thought about what you want to do for a living?"
"The eighties are an era for digging gold. Any kind of business can do pretty well, as long as you have capital. We have some capital for now, but we don't actually have any in the real world, so we can't buy a shop. We'll start with a stall and earn some money, then take over a shop once we have enough." At the thought of making money, Shen Moxi's eyes lit right up, and her little mouth chattered nonstop.