HBBMAWH Chapter 40

Lu suddenly pulled the reins and stopped the carriage. Not far away, for some unknown reason, two groups were engaged in a fierce battle!

Seeing the approaching carriage, both groups turned their attention, their weapons stained with blood.

Lu immediately became vigilant, reporting the situation outside to the people inside the carriage and pulled out a knife hidden under the carriage's floorboard.

Lu was always silent, only focused on his tasks. Even when the two masters suddenly had a child, he didn't ask a single question, continuing to do what needed to be done.

The two of them poked their heads out and saw the mess ahead.

"What's going on?" Yan Cai covered his son's eyes, trying not to let his son see the brutal fight.

Jiang Manyue responded indifferently, "Personal grievances, none of our business. Lu, let's go around them."

Yan Cai naturally had no objections. In the apocalyptic world, people adhered to the principle of not interfering in others' affairs, which seemed normal to Yan Cai.

However, everything was disrupted by an arrow that came out of nowhere.

The arrow flew in their direction, startling the horses. Jiang Manyue knocked the arrow away, and Lu quickly calmed the frightened horses. Several people jumped out of the carriage.

Originally, Jiang Manyue had no intention of getting involved. Other people's conflicts were none of his concern. But when the trouble reached his doorstep, he had to intervene. He picked up the arrow that had fallen to the ground and, after a moment of observation, identified the culprit who had released the cold arrow.

His gaze gradually turned cold. Good, it's you. Yan Cai, holding his excited and fearless child, stood aside.

Neither side of the conflict expected a stranger to join. When this person entered the fray, the situation suddenly changed.

The suppressed party originally thought they were going to lose but they met a helper and turned defeat into victory. The other party did not expect that someone would interrupt them midway.

When Jiang Manyue stepped on the back of an opponent, several people thanked him repeatedly.

"Thank you so much, my benefactor! Thank you so much, my benefactor."

Glancing around, except for the defensive servants, everyone seemed to be elderly, weak, sick, or young, appearing like a family. It is rare to see a group with an elderly woman and a child.

Jiang Manyue responded indifferently and did not accept their thanks.

"No need to thank me. I didn't do it for you."

It was merely to catch the person who shot the arrow in their direction. The person underfoot looked fierce, using foul language. Yan Cai, not pleased, glared at the person and walked towards them. It was inappropriate in front of a child.

Covering his child's ears, he walked a few steps, kicked the person unconscious with a forceful kick, reminiscent of fighting zombies. A bit more force, and the head would have shattered.

Jiang Manyue released his foot from the person’ back and was somewhat stunned. His wife was more violent than he was. The grateful family also froze, not expecting someone seemingly fragile to possess such strength.

"Who are these people?" Yan Cai asked, approaching Jiang Manyue, avoiding the person on the ground.

"My benefactor, this is a group of local bandits who usually bully the common people. Even the government can't catch them. Therefore, the traffic on this official road has gradually decreased, and only outsiders who are unaware of the situation pass through here," the old man replied as he got up.

"Outsiders pass through here? Then you're not locals?"

"Because the other road was blocked due to snow. We had no choice but to take this route."

Jiang Manyue observed the group, from the frightened woman to the carefree child, the elderly couple, and the several servants. He temporarily believed their explanation.

The old man looked at the sky and said, "It's getting late. Why don't you go back with us? Our home is not far away, in Qiuyang Town."

They had initially planned to go to the next town to find a lactating sheep. Meeting locals who could guide them was convenient. Yan Cai agreed, deciding to go with them to the town.

The bandits were tied up and taken away directly. From the old man's mouth, they obtained some information. The old man's surname is Liu, and he is returning to his hometown with his wife, daughter, and grandson.

It turns out that Old Man Liu left Qiuyang Town many years ago and went to do business elsewhere. A few years ago, shortly after his daughter got married, her husband passed away. She then returned to her parental home with her son. Old Man Liu, having heard enough idle gossip from outside and feeling satisfied with his earnings, thought about the difficulty of uprooting oneself from familiar soil. Therefore, he decided to return to his hometown like fallen leaves returning to their roots, to avoid other people's gossip.

Jiang Manyue speculated that perhaps due to not returning for many years, Old Man Liu thought this group of bandits should have been wiped out long ago, so he took this road.

The captured bandits were sent to the authorities, and the two of them accompanied Old Man Liu back to his residence.

Old Man Liu had already sent people to repair his old house, so the place was relatively clean. Hearing about their need for a lactating sheep, he enthusiastically went to find someone to buy them.

During this season, there weren't many sheep that had recently given birth. It took a lot of effort, but they finally managed to buy one from a household where the sheep had given birth prematurely.

Sheep's milk couldn't be consumed directly and needed to undergo processing and cooking. When the servants at Liu's residence offered to cook the milk for them, they declined.

Jiang Manyue wouldn't let someone else handle the milk meant for his child. So, he took charge, personally stewing the milk in a small pot and adding ground walnut powder. As the sheep was not in the best condition due to premature birth, Yan Cai used his abilities to heal the sheep. The sheep became much more spirited, and Lu led it to graze on some grass.

There was no grass in winter, so Yan Cai accelerated the growth of some grass and secretly added some tasty fruits and melons for the Mother Sheep. This is his son's future wet nurse, so he they couldn't afford to be neglectful.

Once the sheep's milk was ready, Jiang Manyue tasted it first. When the temperature was suitable, he fed it to the child.

Jiang Manyue covered up the two small leaves on the baby's head. When there were people around, they put a little hat on the baby, but when no one was watching, the baby always managed to knock the hat off, revealing the two small leaves on his head.

"Oh, by the way, didn't you say you wanted to name the baby?" Yan Cai put down his bowl and asked.

"Let's call him Qingke," Jiang Manyue replied.

Yan Cai turned to look at Jiang Manyue and said slowly, "Isn't our son born in the winter when it’s snowing?"

His tone was filled with skepticism, probably thinking that Jiang Manyue, as a father, was not very reliable.

After wiping the baby's mouth, Jiang Manyue grabbed a Yan Cai's hand, rubbing it gently, before saying, "Winter is too cold, and snow is also very cold."

"Sunny days are good. Not cold."

The baby rolled his dark eyes, in fact the baby wasn't so afraid of the cold.

Yan Cai is actually more sensitive to the cold than they baby. Yan Cai squinted his eyes, thinking about how the warm fireplace was roasting Jiang Manyue's cheeks, turning them red.

Sunny days are indeed very nice and warm.

He laughed and leaned against Jiang Manyue, rubbing against him a few times; Jiang Manyue's body was warm too.

So, Jiang Manyue is also very good.

They didn't stay at the Liu family for long. New Year's Eve was approaching, and they set out with the sheep. It wasn't convenient to bring the sheep on their carriage, so they specifically hired a carriage driver to take care of the sheep.

Before heading home, they strolled around Qiuyang Town. This short stroll made Yan Cai exclaim that good deeds indeed bring good results!

Just after saving the Liu family, they encountered good fortune as soon as they stepped out. When they had just entered the town, they didn't pay attention to what was hanging at people's doorsteps.

Yan Cai, excitedly, threw Qingke into Jiang Manyue's arms and rushed to someone's doorstep. Because the New Year was approaching, many families were decorating their houses with new paint and festive couplets.

Yan Cai watched helplessly as a family hung a bunch of bright red decoration at the door, one on each side.

Chili peppers! They were completely dried and intact chili peppers!

Could it be that chili peppers exist in this world? Weren't chili peppers originally brought from the Americas? Why do they have chili peppers here? Could people from other continents have arrived first?

Or perhaps, chili peppers naturally existed in this world, but people hadn't discovered their practical use, just like how tomatoes were initially considered poisonous, the fruit of the devil.

Maybe this place was completely different from the world he originally came from.

Yan Cai's excited mood calmed down a bit due to these thoughts.

"Excuse me, do you have a lot of this stuff here?"

The person hanging the chili peppers jumped off the stool, looking at the handsome Yan Cai, momentarily at a loss. Unexpectedly, there was such a handsome young man in Qiuyang Town! Then, he saw Jiang Manyue behind Yan Cai and was even more astonished.

"Yes, yes," the person collected himself and answered, "This is unique to our region, called red fruit. It can be stored for a long time after being dried. It is very beautiful. Stringing them together made them look like firecrackers. During the New Year, every household will string them up and hang them at the door for good luck."

"Doesn't anyone eat them?" Yan Cai finally understood why Lu Ting felt he was wasting precious resources.

Indeed, a waste of precious resources!

The person waved his hand, finding it strange.

​"How can this thing be eaten? It's poisonous. Some people got so hungry in the past that they took a bite, and oh my, their mouth swelled up! After that, no one dared to eat it."

Yan Cai chuckled dryly; that must be because it was spicy.

The mouth is swollen from the spiciness, not due to poisoning.

"Little brother, you mustn't eat it out of curiosity." The person warned hastily, seeing Yan Cai eager to try it.

Yan Cai forced a smile, not saying whether he would eat it or not, only expressing the intention to buy.

"I don't have much left at home. Let me ask for you." The person was quite enthusiastic.

Jiang Manyue picked a dried chili, broke it, and sniffed it and choked immediately. The hand that broke the chili also became hot and spicy.

Yan Cai quickly took the child, not wanting to expose the baby to the spice, and urged Jiang Manyue. This chili seemed extremely spicy.

"Go wash your hands quickly."

Jiang Manyue washed his hands while asking, "Can this thing be eaten?" His hands hurt from the spiciness, and it didn't seem like something edible.

"Yes, it's called chili. But it's not eaten like this; it's used as a seasoning, similar to ginger, garlic, and spring onions." Yan Cai nodded. In the cold winter, eating something spicy made life so much more fulfilling!

"Wait after you've tasted it; I guarantee you'll fall in love with this flavor!"

Seeing him so excited, Jiang Manyue thought it might be better not to tell him that he had seen this fruit called chili before. He couldn't guarantee that Yan Cai wouldn't beat him up.

The decorations made with dried chili here are all intact, with the chili seeds well-preserved. As long as there are seeds, Yan Cai can grow them again.

Yan Cai bought a large quantity of chili from the townspeople, and many people curiously asked what Yan Cai was going to do with them. Yan Cai didn't hide anything and directly said they were for consumption. Although many people didn't believe they could be eaten, the people of the X Dynasty were naturally sensitive to food.

As long as you know that it is edible, you will sooner or later find 108 ways to eat peppers.

On the way back home, the two carriages—one carrying people and the other housing the sheep and several sacks of chili—traveled together.

On the journey, Jiang Manyue finally tasted the first way chili was prepared.

They grilled mountain rabbits and pheasants. At Yan Cai's strong request, they ground some chili and sprinkled it on the meat. As the temperature rose, the distinct spiciness of the chili immediately overshadowed the other flavors.

Jiang Manyue choked violently on the ground chili pepper and kept coughing. He looked helplessly at Yan Cai, who was staring at the meat and drooling.

Can this thing really be eaten? If it can't be eaten, just to avoid disappointing Yan Cai, he would do his best to eat it!

The author has something to say:

We are a serious farming story and cannot be without various kinds of food.

The Baby (崽崽): Why did you name me, but it turned into a display of parental affection?

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