Chapter 18

As for the skinning knife, Song Xiaozhu still kept it on her person, saving a slot in the little box and making it easier to reach. It was a lifesaving tool, after all, and she needed to be able to pull it out at any moment.

Finally, Song Xiaozhu took out the low-pollution water and simple meals as well, leaving room for the [raw stone material] she would collect later.

Low-pollution water was not difficult to synthesize. Even at the logging yard, there would be plenty of highly polluted water, so she could synthesize it whenever she needed.

As for simple meals, as long as she was near the garbage mountain, she would never lack raw ingredients.

Seeing that dawn was about to break, Song Xiaozhu put away the "workbench," got out of bed, and went to cook breakfast.

Qiu Shuyu was sleeping rather soundly today, probably exhausted from yesterday's logging. It made sense: she had chopped so much wood and then carried it all the way back. It would have been strange if she were not tired.

Keeping the recommended serving size for simple meals firmly in mind, Song Xiaozhu put only two portions into the pot, then scooped in a heaping spoonful of wild vegetable powder.

Looking at the increasingly deflated bag of wild vegetable powder, Song Xiaozhu silently promised herself, Once I earn some money, I'll definitely fill this back up for Master Bai. Then she added another heaping spoonful.

Simple meals, wild vegetable powder, and low-pollution water, under Chef Song's direction, unexpectedly turned into something like Laba porridge-a savory version, at that.

Song Xiaozhu was not actually much of a cook, but people could build rockets if pushed hard enough.

As the temperature rose, a fragrance gradually wafted from the pot. The simple meals had a very mild flavor, and after soaking in low-pollution water, the wild vegetable paste no longer tasted so strange either, carrying a hint of crisp, fresh greens.

Song Xiaozhu let it simmer a little longer before carefully scooping out a spoonful to taste.

It was slightly astringent but soft on the tongue, neither bitter nor coarse, with even a faintly sweet aftertaste.

Not bad!

Not only did it taste good, but there was plenty of it.

They needed full bellies to have the strength to chop trees.

Qiu Shuyu woke to the fragrance. In her daze, she thought she was still dreaming-

How could there be such a lovely smell of food in a shack on the garbage mountain...

Besides, I'm all alone. There's no one to cook for me...

"Sister Shuyu, come eat if you're awake."

The girl's light, sweet voice brought Qiu Shuyu back to her senses. Her eyes focused, and she woke fully.

Right, I'm in Master Bai's shack.

Right, Song Xiaozhu can cook, and her food is really, really good.

"You used Force to cook again?" Qiu Shuyu rolled out of bed and looked toward the stove. "Don't waste Force on things like this. Wild vegetable paste tastes perfectly good. I..."

Song Xiaozhu was getting better and better at making things up. "Sister Shuyu, I feel like this Force isn't something I should conserve. The more I use it, the more I have. It's like muscles-you have to train it."

Qiu Shuyu was at a disadvantage because she was not an Awakened, and the bluff left her blinking in surprise. "Is that so..."

Song Xiaozhu said, "Yes! Think about it. Force is a kind of strength too, just like a person's physical stamina. If you lie around all day without moving, you get weak. If you chop trees and work like you do, your stamina only gets better."

Qiu Shuyu nodded repeatedly as she listened. "That makes sense. That's how it works."

Song Xiaozhu served her a large bowl of the semi-finished simple meal and said, "I made a bigger batch today. Try it and see what you think."

With the wild vegetable powder added, the simple meal only resembled Laba porridge in color. On closer inspection, there were no particularly distinct beans.

Before even tasting it, Qiu Shuyu said, "It smells delicious!"

Once she tasted it, another round of praise followed, though a thought vaguely crossed her mind: ...It doesn't taste as good as yesterday's. Xiaozhu must have worn herself out yesterday after all. Her Force is clearly insufficient today...

Fortunately, Song Xiaozhu could not

read minds,

or Qiu Shuyu would have left her unsure whether to laugh or cry.

After both had eaten and drunk their fill, they tidied up and got ready to head to the logging yard while there were still few people outside.

Song Xiaozhu shouldered her stone axe, brimming with enthusiasm. This axe was no ordinary tool. It worked remarkably well, providing a full 20% bonus. Surely it was no worse than Qiu Shuyu's iron axe.

The thought had barely crossed her mind when the axe in her hand

was taken away by Qiu Shuyu.

Song Xiaozhu blinked.

Qiu Shuyu handed over her own iron axe. "Use mine."

Song Xiaozhu hurriedly said, "No need, I..."

Qiu Shuyu said earnestly, "Master Bai said that to do a job well, you must first sharpen your tools. You're new here. A better axe will make learning easier."

Song Xiaozhu said, "Well, the axe I made is pretty good..." A 20% increase in logging efficiency!

Qiu Shuyu insisted on pressing the iron axe into her palm. "You don't need to stand on ceremony with me. Take this axe and learn to chop trees properly. If you can stick with it, just buy me a new one once you've earned some money!"

Song Xiaozhu said, "..."

She did not know whether to laugh or cry.

She felt Qiu Shuyu's kindness, and warmth filled her heart. Thinking again of the stone axe's effect, Qiu Shuyu would only make even better use of it...

All right, this works too.

Song Xiaozhu agreed with a smile. "All right, then I won't stand on ceremony."

Qiu Shuyu smiled too. "Exactly! No need for that!"

Just then, Song Xiaozhu heard a notification:

Quest progress: 1/10.

Huh...

Did that accidentally count as a trade?

It seemed this Growth Quest B was even simpler than she had imagined!

Chapter 18

What was a trade?

Its original meaning was simply bartering goods for goods.

Later, as civilization developed, bartering could no longer meet people's needs, and it gradually became an exchange of value using currency as a medium.

Although Song Xiaozhu had not intended to trade with Qiu Shuyu, Qiu Shuyu had taken her stone axe and given her an iron axe, completing a barter.

Song Xiaozhu pondered inwardly: Can all ten trades be made with the same person? Are there restrictions on the items traded?

Unfortunately, Song Xiaozhu could not use Qiu Shuyu to experiment.

They were both flat broke, with pitifully few things to exchange. As for food and the like, Qiu Shuyu would simply give it to her, and she would feel too embarrassed to ask for something in return after giving Qiu Shuyu a simple meal.