Chapter 28 Cooperation
"Sister-in-law, this..."
Xiao Xuemei said earnestly, shoving the bag at him. "I know you two brothers are kind-hearted, but you have to follow the rules when you get along. That's how a relationship lasts."
"Alright, then I won't be polite." Qin Ziwen took the bag.
Xiao Xuemei looked at Deng Wen sitting on the sofa. "Xiao Wen, stay there and wash some apples for your two brothers."
Deng Wen jumped up from the sofa, grabbed two apples from the fruit basket on the table, and ran into the kitchen.
Xiao Xuemei said, "Little Qin, is it alright for me to call you that?"
"Sister-in-law, please just say it." Qin Ziwen knew perfectly well that Xiao Xuemei had specifically called him and his brother up, bringing fish and fruit, so she probably wanted something from them.
Xiao Xuemei sighed and said, "Your brother-in-law is kind-hearted. That's what I valued in him when I married him. He's a family man, steady and reliable. Normally, with his reliable nature, as long as he has a stable job, supporting the family wouldn't be difficult.
But things are different now. We've traveled through time. When I was younger, I loved reading novels."
A smile appeared on Xiao Xuemei's face as she said this. "Back then, time-travel novels were very popular, and I read quite a few. If we had traveled to a civilized place, things might have been better, but now we've traveled to a primeval forest. If it weren't for this community, everyone might be living like cavemen."
Qin Ziwen nodded slowly, continuing to listen.
Xiao Xuemei said, "Your brother-in-law's personality isn't really suited for this kind of place. He's kind-hearted and easily swayed, making him vulnerable to being deceived. I just hope you can mentor him more." "
What do you mean, sister-in
-law?" "I used to work in human resources at the company, so I think I'm a bit better at judging people than most. Xiao Qin, although you're decisive, you're fundamentally a principled person, which is good; you have to follow the rules.
Old Deng doesn't have any other hobbies. He doesn't smoke, drink, or gamble. He just likes to go fishing occasionally after work. I never thought our family could make a living off this hobby, but I know it won't last." Xiao Xuemei sighed, "Fishing isn't difficult to learn, and more and more people in the neighborhood will fish.
This section of the river below us can't support so many people just by fishing. There will only be more people than fish, and I don't know how long that will last."
"A hero needs three helpers. In this primeval forest, you can't go it alone. When you were hunting crocodiles before, you specially reserved a spot for Old Deng. He's always remembered that and knows you're good to him," Xiao Xuemei said, glancing at her daughter washing apples in the kitchen. Her voice lowered slightly. "Old Deng may not be good at much else, but he's strong and honest. You two brothers are clearly ambitious. With him around, he can be a helper."
She paused, her eyes filled with earnestness. "I don't expect him to achieve great things. I just hope he can learn something from you and be of help. The world has changed, and I don't want my daughter and I to become a burden to him one day."
Old Deng, who was stringing fishhooks on the balcony, had been in the same position for a long time.
At this moment, Deng Wen came out with the washed apples.
The little girl's eyes sparkled as she brought the plate over. "Brother Qin."
Qin Ziwen nodded silently, picked up the apples from the fruit plate, and weighed them in his palm.
A reassuring smile appeared on her face: "Sister-in-law, I understand what you mean. Brother Deng is a very honest man. It's better for us to lend a hand than for one person to struggle alone.
Besides, who says Brother Deng is only strong? He's quite good at fishing too. Today he caught a giant fish that's a meter long."
Qin Ziwen glanced at his younger brother, Qin Ziwu, who immediately reacted and chuckled, "Yes, sister-in-law, Brother Deng is a very honest man. We get along well."
Xiao Xuemei's brows relaxed upon hearing this. Deng Guang, standing on the balcony, coughed and said, "81.3 centimeters."
"Hahahaha," Qin Ziwen laughed. Apparently, after bringing the fish back, Deng had specifically measured its length.
He wondered if he'd taken a picture.
The two families chatted inside for a while longer. Deng Guang said they should definitely call him when setting up the fish traps that night; he'd deliberately saved the tigerfish's innards, which would surely attract the fish in the river.
In the afternoon, Qin Ziwen and his brother, carrying equipment for setting rope traps, went to a spot a little further north of the neighborhood.
It was the first time they'd ventured this far from the neighborhood—a straight-line distance of over two hundred meters. The dense trees obscured their view; they couldn't even see the outline of the neighborhood from here.
"This is it," Qin Ziwen observed the surroundings and finally decided to set up a rope trap under each of the two trees, filled with dried mulberries.
To avoid forgetting, they had made subtle marks on the trees along their path with stones.
It's worth mentioning that after six consecutive days of sun exposure, the dried mulberries picked on the first day were already set.
At least from the outside, they didn't look much different from the dried fruits I used to buy at the supermarket.
"Brother, this looks like a plum tree! We used to have a lot of them at school." On the way back, Qin Ziwu pointed to a tree next to him, then said with some regret, "The plums on the tree seem to have been picked. Hey, there are still a few over there."
Following his brother's gaze, Qin Ziwen noticed that the few unpicked plums were in hard-to-reach locations. "Looks like someone's been here."
He didn't think this was normal. After all, they had been in the world for six days. Although the crocodile hunt in the neighborhood had been a big deal, only about three or four hundred people had actually participated, mainly concentrated at the south gate and along the riverbank.
In the north and east of the neighborhood, and even further to the west, such a large area would inevitably be explored.
If there were no daily settlement, he might have taken a different path, but since he had the daily settlement ability, it was better to be cautious.
Of course, not overly cautious; to get a higher score, a certain degree of risk-taking was necessary.
Back in the neighborhood, it was getting dark.
The weather was lovely today, clear blue skies and a gentle breeze.
The central area of the neighborhood had become a well-organized area for street vendors.
It wasn't peak time yet; the busiest time would be later, after most people had returned.
Xiao Xuemei had told Qin Ziwen this; she had strolled around downstairs for a while last night, finding it relaxing.
Compared to the unstable market of the past two days, after natural market selection, many people had gradually recognized the value of different items, and prices were now stabilizing, creating a unique "value chain" specific to their neighborhood.
(End of Chapter)