Chapter 84: Sweet Potato
Xia Lu Nong hadn’t expected Yan Ning Wang to be involved.
This guy often went out with Old Liu and his group. Xia Lu Nong had subconsciously lumped them together, so he was surprised to hear Yan Ning Wang had acted alone.
Xia Lu Nong thought for a moment. “Are they all pretty anxious?”
Given that their lives were fairly comfortable, venturing out like this must have put them on edge.
Yan Xi Nian sighed. “These days, who isn’t anxious?”
Xia Lu Nong, however, thought to himself, I’m not too bad, actually.
Before he could say that, Yan Xi Nian turned to him. “By the way, you and Kong Zhi don’t seem to hang out with the young people at the base much?”
Xia Lu Nong replied, “We don’t have much in common.”
Yan Xi Nian glanced at Kong Zhi, who was quietly eating and didn’t even respond.
Yan Xi Nian knew that this guy had even less to say to the people at the base.
The three of them ate, bathed, and went to bed.
Xia Lu Nong was so exhausted that as soon as he lay down, he fell asleep.
In the middle of the night, someone started banging on his window. The noise woke him up, and he sat up in bed, dazed, looking at the window. Half-asleep, he saw someone standing outside, mouthing words he couldn’t hear.
He stared blankly for two seconds before collapsing back onto the bed.
“Hey! You!” The person outside stomped their feet in frustration. “Don’t go back to sleep! Get up, it’s about to rain! Where’s Captain Xia?! It’s going to rain!”
With a “click,” the window opened, and Xia Huo Qu poked his head out from Yan Xi Nian’s house window. “Is it really going to rain now?”
“Yes! A huge cloud just covered the moon. Smell the air—it’s full of moisture. The rain’s coming any minute! Hurry and gather the peanuts!”
“Hold on!” Xia Huo Qu quickly responded.
The person shouted again, “I’ll go help at the square first. You guys hurry!”
“Thanks a lot!” Xia Huo Qu closed the window and rushed out like the wind.
Yan Xi Nian and Kong Zhi also woke up, grabbed some poles, brooms, and shovels, and hurried to the square.
Xia Lu Nong only realized what was happening after hearing their footsteps disappear.
He quickly jumped out of bed, threw on some clothes, slipped into his shoes, and dashed outside.
It was the middle of the night, and many people from the base had rushed to the square. In addition to those drying peanuts, there were people drying rice, chili peppers, and vegetables. The wind was howling, and rain seemed imminent, so everyone was rushing to collect their crops.
When Xia Lu Nong arrived, quite a few people were already there, helping to gather peanuts.
People were sweeping, gathering, carrying baskets, and shouting to one another. The air was filled with the smell of dust, peanuts, chili peppers, dried vegetables, and sweat, making the scene chaotic but busy.
Xia Lu Nong grabbed a bamboo broom from an elderly person and said, “I’ll do it.”
He hurriedly started sweeping the peanuts into piles, the broom making a “swish, swish” sound on the ground.
Most of their peanuts had already been collected, and the others helped carry them back to their house.
Xia Lu Nong kept sweeping the peanuts into neat piles, making it easier for the others to load them into baskets.
Soon, all the peanuts were swept up, and he quickly joined the others in carrying them.
At that moment, large raindrops started falling.
The wind picked up, and it seemed like a heavy storm was imminent.
Xia Lu Nong grew anxious, jogging back and forth to carry the peanuts home. He made trip after trip.
Soon, the sound of the rain became a continuous roar. They hadn’t finished gathering all the peanuts yet, and some were still lying on the ground.
Those peanuts were now getting soaked, and still warm from the sun. When they brought them home, they spread them out on the ground instead of piling them up, afraid they might mold, and opened the windows to air them out.
No one had expected such a sudden and heavy downpour that night, and they weren’t prepared at all. By the time the peanuts were all gathered, everyone was exhausted.
Xia Lu Nong was especially tired, sitting by the table, panting heavily. He said dejectedly, “I wonder how long this rain will last. Hopefully, it’ll stop by morning, or the peanuts might sprout.”
Xia Huo Qu reassured him, “It won’t. They only got a little wet. They’ll dry out soon.”
Xia Lu Nong shook his head. “I can already feel the life force inside the peanut shells.”
The others were surprised by his remark, and for a moment, all eyes were on him.
Xia Lu Nong thought for a moment and added, “These peanuts might be different from before the disaster. They seem more eager to sprout at any chance they get.”
Xia Huo Qu patted him on the shoulder. “Even if they sprout, there’s nothing we can do about it. Get some sleep, and we’ll deal with it tomorrow.”
There wasn’t much else they could do now.
The four of them said goodnight and went to their rooms to sleep.
Before lying down, Xia Lu Nong could smell the sweat on himself. He considered taking a bath but noticed it was already 2:30 AM.
If he bathed now, it would probably wake up his brother and the others. It’d be a hassle, and no one would get any sleep.
With that in mind, he gave up the idea.
But feeling too grimy to lie down on his clean, soap-scented bed, he hesitated for a while before grabbing a pillow and tiptoeing into the living room to sleep on the couch.
After all, there were only a few hours left until morning, so he figured he could manage on the couch for a bit.
Thinking this, he turned off his phone, folded his hands over his stomach, and prepared to sleep.
He had only dozed off for a short while when he heard Kong Zhi’s door click open. A quiet voice came from the doorway, “What are you doing here?”
“I’m dirty,” Xia Lu Nong replied, rolling over. “Just go back to sleep. I’ll get up in a few hours.”
Kong Zhi looked at him. “You can’t handle being a little dirty? What about when you’re out collecting supplies and have to sleep on the ground?”
“Back then, the bedding was dirty too, so I wasn’t the only one covered in dirt,” Xia Lu Nong muttered. “Just go back to sleep, don’t worry about me.”
Kong Zhi stood in the doorway for a moment before saying, “Get up and boil some water.”
“No need, I can manage like this.”
Kong Zhi didn’t move, still standing in the doorway.
Xia Lu Nong whispered, “It’s too late. If I bathe now, it’ll wake up my brother and the others.”
“They won’t hear it over the rain.”
Under Kong Zhi’s insistence, Xia Lu Nong finally got up to start a fire and boil some water.
Xia Lu Nong thought Kong Zhi would go back to bed after telling him to do it, but to his surprise, he stayed and sat down beside him.
“You should go to sleep. I’ll be done soon.”
“I’ll take a bath too.”
“…Oh.”
The two sat in front of the stove as Xia Lu Nong mechanically fed firewood into the flames.
He was so tired that his head started nodding off as he tended the fire.
Kong Zhi stretched out a long leg and lightly kicked his chair. “Move over, I’ll take care of the fire.”
Xia Lu Nong, half-asleep, wiped his lips and moved aside without a word.
Kong Zhi kept feeding the stove with wood, and the kitchen was filled with the crackling of breaking wood and the sound of the fire. Outside, the rain continued to pour heavily.
Xia Lu Nong, no longer as sleepy, started to feel hungrier by the minute.
He clutched his stomach. There was no snack food in the house, and the tomato-chili dish they had made earlier was all gone. There wasn’t a scrap of dinner left either, so there was nothing to eat.
A gust of wind blew in from the window, sending a chill through him, and he shivered involuntarily.
It wasn’t autumn yet, but the rain had completely cooled the lingering summer heat.
Kong Zhi glanced over. “Cold? Or hungry?”
Xia Lu Nong groaned, “Both.”
“We’ve got some sweet potatoes left. Want me to roast a couple for you?”
“Sure, it’s been a while since I’ve had those.”
Kong Zhi went to the storage room and pulled out three long, slender sweet potatoes. He tossed them into the stove alongside the firewood and used tongs to turn them while the water boiled.
The first pot of water was soon ready, and Xia Lu Nong took a bucket from the bathroom to fetch it for his bath.
His hair was short, so he quickly washed both his hair and body. Once he was all cleaned up, he sighed in relief, feeling refreshed.
“Done with your bath?” Kong Zhi asked. “Come eat some sweet potatoes.”
Xia Lu Nong walked over.
Kong Zhi had already taken the three roasted sweet potatoes out of the stove and set them on a wooden block to cool.
The sweet potatoes were charred black on the outside. Xia Lu Nong picked up the smallest one, tossed it between his hands to cool it, and gently squeezed it open.
Peeling away the blackened skin, the inside revealed soft, steaming orange flesh, releasing a fragrant and sweet aroma.
Xia Lu Nong took a deep breath of the smell, his hunger growing stronger.
He broke the sweet potato in half, peeled most of the skin off one half, and handed it to Kong Zhi. He then took a bite of the other half, blowing on it to cool it while savoring the sweet flavor.
Kong Zhi said calmly, “I’m not eating. You go ahead.”
“Come on, this sweet potato is really good. Try some,” Xia Lu Nong insisted, pushing it toward him. “It’s the middle of the night. No one should be eating alone.”
Kong Zhi didn’t take it, and Xia Lu Nong kept holding it out.
After a few seconds, Kong Zhi finally accepted the half of the sweet potato and slowly ate it.
Xia Lu Nong finished two and a half sweet potatoes, and as the unique fullness from the starch settled in, he became sleepy.
He turned his head and let out a small burp, “I’m full and so sleepy.”
“Then go to bed.”
“Yeah, I’ll go after brushing my teeth. You should take your bath.”
Xia Lu Nong brought over the clean water bucket from the bathroom.
Kong Zhi scooped out some hot water, mixed it with enough cold water, and took it to the bathroom for his bath.
Xia Lu Nong grabbed his toothbrush and went outside under the eaves to brush his teeth. After finishing, he sat on the sofa and played with his phone.
When Kong Zhi came out, he saw the faint glow from the phone lighting up half of Xia Lu Nong’s face. He paused for a moment, “Why haven’t you gone to bed?”
Xia Lu Nong pocketed his phone and smiled, “I’m going now. I was just waiting for my hair to dry.”
Kong Zhi glanced at Xia Lu Nong’s almost bald head and, after a moment, said, “Hmm.”
Xia Lu Nong didn’t hear him; by now, he was so tired that his eyes were barely open. He wobbled his way into his room and collapsed onto his bed, falling asleep instantly.
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