Chapter 150: Chapter 151: Luxury
The radishes hadn’t grown yet, and sea fish were a crucial food source for the monkey troop. If they couldn’t ice fish anymore, it wouldn’t affect them immediately. But in the long run, their food consumption would be a huge drain, which meant they had to accelerate the construction of greenhouses for growing grain.
After all, Jiang Si couldn’t just openly take out the grain from her personal space.
The visible food stores on the Icebreaker were the true source of everyone’s peace of mind.
Jiang Si turned to Lao Er and asked, "Did the sea snakes show up suddenly, or did they appear after a while?"
Lao Er thought for a moment before replying, "It was about half an hour after we started fishing. Then, a sea snake suddenly appeared."
’Red Flower Sea Snakes typically lived in the deep sea. If it takes them at least half an hour to swim up, then as long as we follow that rule, it won’t stop us from catching a lot of fish in a day,’ she thought.
After all, they had professional fishing equipment. One good haul from the net would be enough to supply the monkey troop with fish for two or three days.
Jiang Linhai said worriedly, "But what if the snakes show up before the half-hour mark?"
Jiang Si replied, "The snakes’ reaction speed is clearly sluggish on land. We’d have time to run, and we should also have time to plug the hole."
She wasn’t sure about the others, but she knew Qin Shen could lift hundreds of pounds. If she was the one fishing, Qin Shen could probably just smash the snake dead with a single blow from the ice-hole cover.
’Analyzed this way, the Red Flower Sea Snakes aren’t actually that dangerous,’ she concluded.
Unless you fell completely into the water.
That was what they had to be extremely careful about.
Once Lao Er and Brother Qiu confirmed the snakes were dead, they climbed down from their tree, preparing to pick one up and take it back to see if it was edible.
Jiang Si suddenly called out to them. "Since you’ve decided to stay, we want you all to be well. We’ve prepared a small amount of food and bedding for you. Send someone to come get it later."
Lao Er and Brother Qiu were suddenly overcome with emotion, their voices choked as they said, "Thank you, thank you..."
’Finally, we don’t have to eat chicken feed today!’
Zhang Aihua led his group, their nerves stretched taut as they waited for the Red Flower Sea Snakes to deliver themselves to their doorstep. But after a long while, there was still no movement.
Song Yufang asked in confusion, "Do you think the snakes can’t find their way here?"
Zhang Aihua couldn’t help but chuckle at her question. "Wouldn’t it be a good thing if they couldn’t?"
Zhang Yiwen said, "Dad, I’m starving. I want to eat fish."
At the mention of fish, a difficult expression crossed Zhang Aihua’s face. He patted his son’s head. "We didn’t manage to bring any fish back. Next time, okay? Dad will definitely get you some fish then."
But surprisingly, Zhang Yiwen didn’t cry. Instead, he flashed two rows of bright white teeth and pulled two enormous sea fish from inside his puffy clothes. "Ta-da! I’m quick, right? We can finally eat fish! I want one stewed and one grilled."
’My son actually hid two fish on him!’
Zhang Aihua praised his son’s quick thinking and pinched his chubby cheeks. "Alright, we’ll have your mom cook them for you."
Song Yufang hugged Zhang Yiwen and kissed him. "You really are Mommy’s little treasure."
’She was dying to eat some fish too!’
’She’d thought they wouldn’t get to eat any today, and maybe never again.’
It truly felt like they had reached a dead end.
The others looked on with envy. If only they had also grabbed a fish on their way up.
But alas, they hadn’t.
Now, all they could do was watch as Song Yufang took a knife to the fish’s belly.
Even the sight of the innards made their mouths water.
A little while later, Lao Er and Brother Qiu returned.
Seeing them carrying a Red Flower Sea Snake, everyone was startled. "The snakes? Did you only run into one?"
Lao Er quickly told everyone what they had seen.
Upon hearing that the Red Flower Sea Snakes were all dead on the ice, everyone’s gaze fell in unison upon the snake’s plump body.
With one voice, they asked, "This snake should be edible, right?"
Among them were members of an extreme sports club, and several were wilderness survival enthusiasts.
Eating a venomous snake was child’s play to them; they’d seen it all before.
They had just never seen such a plump venomous snake.
Lei Hu grabbed the snake, expertly skinned it from top to bottom, and then chopped off its head with a single slice. "Eat it? Of course, we can eat it!"
During their difficult journey, they had resorted to digging up and eating insects. Having snake to eat now was already a luxury.
Soon, some of the women took over, volunteering to cook it. One member even suggested going to the ice to get more of the Red Flower Sea Snakes so everyone could eat until they were stuffed.
But then Brother Qiu delivered another piece of exciting news: Jiang Si was going to give them some provisions and bedding to help them through their current difficulties.
Everyone cheered. They had meat, grain, and a home for the day. This was, without a doubt, the happiest day they’d had in a long, long time.
Zhang Aihua looked toward the Icebreaker and felt from the bottom of his heart that he had made the right call. Staying here was indeed the correct decision.
They had initially felt like they were living under someone else’s thumb, like slaves. But now that supplies had arrived, it felt like being paid a wage. And if they were being paid, then the one paying was their boss, their superior. It was only natural to serve them.
Zhang Aihua personally led a group to retrieve the grain, assuming they would be allowed within the Icebreaker’s territory.
Unexpectedly, the other party had no intention of letting them in.
When they reached the boundary marker carved into a tree, they saw Lu Zhifeng driving a transport vehicle over with the supplies.
Standing on the vehicle were several Snow Monkeys dressed in cotton coats, boots, and hats. They held guns in their hands, watching the newcomers with caution.
It was as if the monkeys would kill them instantly if they had even the slightest crooked thought.
The group’s recently relaxed mood instantly tensed up again.
For the Icebreaker group to give them grain so readily, they must have been confident in their ability to control the situation. Raising a troop of monkeys to the level of soldiers was enough to intimidate them into not daring to try anything.
The group unloaded the sacks of rice and wheat from the vehicle in an orderly fashion, their hearts pounding with excitement.
It had been so long since they had eaten this kind of proper food.
In addition to the bedding, they had also been given some salt and seasonings.
After saying a word of thanks to Lu Zhifeng, they all happily set off, carrying the supplies back on their shoulders.
With two bags per person, it was probably enough to feed them for a week.
It wasn’t a huge amount, but it was a gesture of goodwill.
They could have chosen to give them nothing at all.
When the rest of the group saw them carrying the things back, they immediately rushed forward to help.
They touched one bag, then another, their excitement creating a lively and joyful atmosphere, as if it were the New Year.
Song Yufang ran her hand over a down comforter and said excitedly, "This is even the same brand we used to use! They’re so generous!"
To have this kind of bedding now was a true luxury.
There were thirty sets of bedding, which was more than enough for everyone to share.
Someone else opened a bag and, upon discovering it was full of unhusked rice, asked excitedly, "It’s rice paddy! I wonder if we could plant it?"
Since they were near a hot spring, the temperature was a bit higher, giving them a glimmer of hope for becoming self-sufficient through farming.
Zhang Aihua, who had a better understanding of the situation, shook his head. "We can’t. The radishes they’re able to grow are a mutated variety. This is just ordinary rice paddy; it can’t adapt to such a cold climate unless we have a greenhouse."
