"Xiaoya, Chang Yan, look, this is the Fire Bamboo Forest. You probably didnât see it clearly last night when you got back late, right?"
"This Fire Bamboo Forest is extraordinary. The bamboo here is not only the main construction material for us, but once the fire bamboo matures, it can be used as top-grade fuel."
"Many families use fire bamboo for cooking. It doesnât produce smoke, and it wonât fail to ignite even if itâs damp."
"This is indeed a treasure of our Yangshan Shelter."
"Look here, this fire bamboo is an old one. Itâs no longer green but fiery red."
"Its texture is hard, comparable to iron, and itâs hard to destroy except by fire."
"And look at this, itâs a fire bamboo shoot, very tasty. The canteen has a dish called fire bamboo shoot stir-fried with plum blossom pig meat, super delicious. You must try it once Brother Tu Long recovers."
The young girl chatted away, a light smile on her face, very sweetly.
Wang Xiaoya and Chang Yan couldnât help but feel trust and a good impression towards her.
Wang Xiaoya couldnât help asking, "Sister Dong Yan, since fire bamboo is so good, surely you canât just pick the shoots at random?"
Dong Yan giggled and said, "Of course not, but donât worry. Brother Liang has already instructed someone to open up a plot near the Martial King Pavilion for cultivation."
"And Brother Liang said fire bamboo grows fast and doesnât have high environmental requirements. It can even grow in rock crevices. Itâs not just here; Meishan and Lingyun Slope also have such Fire Bamboo Forests."
"So theyâre not all that rare."
"But you canât move the fire bamboo here, since weâve built a Fire Bamboo Rat breeding base ahead, and these are the bamboo ratsâ food."
"Fire Bamboo Rat breeding base?"
Chang Yan, Ni Qi, Ma Ji, and Zhong Mountain all showed interest.
Dong Yan smiled and said, "Youâve never seen a Fire Bamboo Rat before, right? Haha, Iâll take you to see them. Let me tell you, the Fire Bamboo Rats are super cute when theyâre young, chubby, but when they grow up, theyâre ugly, turning dark black."
The group chatted as they walked towards the Fire Bamboo Rat breeding base.
Li Qinghua, Zhou Qingming, and Lin Wan just emerged from the crowd, glanced at the group, and let out a sigh of relief.
Lin Wan smiled wryly, "Sigh, who wouldâve thought that Wang Xiaoya is here too? If we had known, we wouldnât have caught her back then."
Zhou Qingming said speechlessly, "Back then, you could still hide behind someone elseâs face, but she has seen mine."
Thinking about possibly running into her in the future, Zhou Qingming felt a bit awkward.
Former enemies, now living in the same shelter, seeing each other often, how to deal with that?
Li Qinghua said, "Weâll be operating in Meishan in the future, so we wonât meet often."
"Even if we do, we should just apologize since it was indeed our fault back then."
Zhou Qingming nodded slightly, "I did knock the girl out back then, indeed need to find a chance to apologize."
Lin Wan laughed, "Then I should apologize too, I fooled this little girl quite well back then."
"Letâs go, letâs keep going inside." Li Qinghua gazed at the Fire Bamboo Forest, recalling Dong Yanâs introduction, thinking Yangshan is truly a good place.
Liang Yuan and the others really have imaginative ideas to think of breeding bamboo rats.
He was full of curiosity about this place and wanted to keep going further to see what else it had to offer.
Continuing further, Li Qinghua and his companions saw many people carrying fish baskets, heading towards a building.
Li Qinghua asked a passerby, "Hey there, where are you all heading to?"
"To the Slaughterhouse, you must be new here, right? Haha, every time we finish fishing, we send them to the Slaughterhouse. These mutant fish can be exchanged for points."
Saying so, he put down the fish basket, a slight smile tugging at his lips, "I caught seventeen mutant fish last night, not too bad huh."
Zhou Qingming was very familiar with this anglerâs boasting stance.
He twitched at the mouth but still cooperatively asked, "Impressive, brother, how many points do you get for this?"
The young man chuckled, no longer able to hide his pride, "Each fish is worth around 7 to 8 points, these seventeen are at least worth 120 points!"
The people around him burst into laughter and teasing.
"Alright, Chen Xu, we know you hit the jackpot last night."
"Chen Xu, you earned over a hundred points in one night, you gotta treat us, or itâll be unreasonable."
"Ah Xu, donât forget, who helped you reel in the biggest one for over twenty minutes last night?"
Chen Xu laughed heartily, "Donât worry, Brother Wang, Brother Liu, breakfast is on me today."
"Then itâs settled, I want Old Hu Familyâs buns!"
"I want the canteenâs pork pies!"
"Geez, you all might as well eat me!"
...
Li Qinghua and his companions watched the group jostling with each other, feeling the cheerful atmosphere amongst them, and also felt their spirits lift unknowingly.
This shelter is indeed full of vitality.
The three remembered the Slaughterhouse and the fact that fishing could earn points and continued to explore further inside.
Soon, they saw a huge mountain basin.
The basin was surrounded by mountains on three sides, with a vast area.
Inside, buildings stood tall, and along the cliffs, various heights of bamboo house structures were built.
Vines extended between the high bamboo houses, forming vine bridges.
At first glance, it was as if they had walked into a fairy tale world.
But what caught the trioâs eyes at first was the big neon sign on the cliff wall.
The letters sparkled, spelling out "Yangshan Shopping Center"!
Li Qinghua saw the words and was suddenly struck with shock!
Zhou Qingming also exclaimed, "Damn, a shopping center?"
Lin Wan immediately turned excited, "Thereâs actually a shopping center here?"
But Li Qinghuaâs focus was different from the other two.
He looked stunned and said, "Electricity! They have electricity here too!"