She came to her senses then.
This time, Grandma did not drink from the water pouch immediately. Instead, she stared longingly at the wisps of ethereal white mist rising from the openings of several water pouches.
The smell was identical to the refreshing coolness of the spiritual spring water.
Could it be that what Grandma called "absorbing spiritual energy from afar" was done this way?
Before long, Mrs. Wang stood up, rubbing her distended belly. Her face was flushed with vitality, as if she had become several years younger.
"Stop looking. This old woman knows you can see spiritual energy."
Oh no, she had been discovered.
As soon as Ajiu left, Mrs. Wang opened the door: "Take these."
"What?" Ajiu turned to see Mrs. Wang holding six water pouches.
Ajiu took them with surprise. They were still full: "Grandma, you didn't drink any?"
"This old woman drank with her nose." You wouldn't understand even if I told you. Mrs. Wang strode out with her hands behind her back: "It's not a waste to leave this water for you to use."
Huh? Ajiu looked at the water pouches in her hand. This was another way to use them? But it was quite cost-effective.
What was she waiting for? Ajiu quickly poured the water Grandma had left into the family's water bucket, then flopped onto the bed and quickly entered the spiritual spring space to refill the storage.
Upon entering the spring, she saw the little earth dragon frolicking happily in the water.
Ajiu also took the time to check her reserves. She had finished reading those two books and benefited greatly. However, she still had no idea what that spiritual pill was for.
She wondered if eating it would make her grow taller.
As for the bag of seeds, Ajiu had already determined that they couldn't settle down here. Otherwise, seeds for cotton, mulberry trees, and sorghum, these crops, could all be planted in Grandpa Niu's land.
At dawn, when the sky was still dimly lit, Cai Lihua and Meng Shaode, the couple, got up.
They spread a cloth in the yard, laying out the wheat to dry in the sun.
Mao Junlan began to light a fire and boil the wheat sprouts Cai Lihua had pulled the previous night.
Ajiu was still fast asleep. She had reread those books in her space. Unlike Grandma, she could communicate with the great immortals.
During the rest of her time, Ajiu still had to go to the fields at night to water the wheat.
Counting on her fingers, she estimated that these two mu of land would require at least six or seven nights to fully mature and be harvested.
The villagers had been constantly following the news about the poisoned meat, frequently visiting the village elder's house to gather gossip.
For safety reasons, Cai Lihua kept the doors closed day and night.
They continued until all the wheat was dried and stored, filling Grandpa Niu's granary with over five hundred catties of grain, and then began grinding their own flour.
"Tomorrow is the fifteenth of August. While the weather is cool, Mother will make simple mooncakes with maltose."
Cai Lihua said this and handed Ajiu a piece of a dark, lumpy thing coated with roasted flour.
Ajiu had been unusually idle these past few days. After eating maltose twice, she still couldn't believe that malt could be made into such a sweet yet not greasy candy.
Tie Chui and Tie Dan, however, couldn't get enough of it.
"During this time, Xiao Yan hasn't been over either," Cai Lihua said casually.
Meng Shaode had accompanied Tuoba Yan on several patrols in the deep mountains and forests: "He's busy. He has official duties. Haven't you seen they've increased the search parties now? I heard they've even searched as far as Qiming Mountain."
"Ah?" Mao Junlan and Cai Lihua exclaimed in unison.
"Looking for the meat?"
"You don't know, I heard from Xiao Yan that they found no less than thirty pieces of meat, and they weren't from the same person. Preliminary estimates suggest remains from four or five people."
Meng Shaode rarely interacted with officials in the past, but now he knew a lot of breaking news and spoke at length.
"Dad, thirty pieces doesn't match the death toll. That means there must be even more poisoned meat scattered around," Ajiu interjected.
"..." Mao Junlan and Cai Lihua exchanged glances, fear in their eyes.
"Daughter is right. Therefore, we must increase the search parties everywhere." Meng Shaode popped a piece of maltose into his mouth, his lips covered in white flour:
"We don't eat it anyway, so we won't meddle too much."
Ajiu fell into thought. She increasingly felt that this matter was not simple. Even if it were man-made, with social revenge, it wouldn't be possible to use the poisoned meat of four or five sick people to harm others.
Besides, this was not something one or two people could handle.
As she was thinking, the tightly closed courtyard gate was banged upon.
Cai Lihua nervously got up: "Shaode, quickly, cover the wheat."