Picking up small stones was no easy task either. Lu Wanqing and Cui Cui spent a long time and only managed to fill a small portion. In the end, it was the archaeological robot that stepped in and sped up the process, filling the foundation.
With the foundation ready, the rest was smooth sailing.
Lu Wanqing, accompanied by the archaeological robot, continued to chop trees in the forest. Not too big, not too small, just the right size, and the wood had to be of a type that wouldn't rot easily.
This was a forest, so there were plenty of trees to choose from. Cui Cui watched for a while and seemed to grasp what her mother was looking for. Once she found a suitable tree, she would happily call for her mother, and Lu Wanqing would direct the robot to it.
The atmosphere in the forest gradually became joyful. The mother and daughter spent the entire day selecting trees, and the robot worked tirelessly alongside them, felling quite a few.
After collecting a substantial amount of wood, Lu Wanqing returned to the foundation site and began constructing the frame.
However, building the skeleton of a house was not a simple feat. Lu Wanqing first set up a tripod ladder and then had the archaeological robot help her support the trees. Piece by piece, the logs were fixed in place.
Cui Cui stood below, looking up at her mother. Her position shifted, and the sun in the sky slowly transitioned from morning to noon.
As lunchtime approached, Lu Wanqing finally stopped, descended the ladder, and took Cui Cui to hunt.
Lu Wanqing only shot two birds for each meal. Afterwards, she returned to the cave entrance, set up a pot, started a fire, prepared the game, and stewed soup with wild vegetables.
After lunch and a short midday rest, they resumed work in the afternoon.
While Lu Wanqing worked in the afternoon, Cui Cui was not idle. She took her mother's bow and arrows and began to imitate her mother, practicing hunting!
Cui Cui was actually capable of using a bow and arrow. When she was little and her mother had to visit other relatives, her father would take her to play on barren planets in the interstellar network, where she would fish, hunt, and forage for wild vegetables. She was quite skilled, and her aim was good.
Not only in the interstellar network, but even at home, Wei Xingzhou had bought her bows and arrows and made targets for her to practice shooting to her heart's content.
However, playing was one thing, and actual hunting was another.
Especially since the bow and arrows her mother had made this time were different from what she had used before. This bow felt a bit crooked, strange.
Cui Cui missed her mark in the first two hunting attempts, and the birds flew away!
But on the third try, while searching for prey, Cui Cui somehow spotted a snake in a tree.
It was a small snake, as thick as a finger, coiled around a branch, its eyes fixed on her.
Cui Cui, however, was not afraid. She stood beneath the tree, tilting her head back, meeting the snake's gaze.
The human child and the snake stared at each other for a long time. Finally, the snake, unwilling to continue looking at the human cub, averted its gaze, turned, and slithered away.
Cui Cui watched the snake quickly disappear into the dense foliage without pursuing it. She picked up her bow and arrows and resumed looking for birds in the treetops.
The Insectoid Queen had not left. She had found a new position, one where the human cub couldn't see her, and continued to observe the small cub.
Cui Cui held her bow and arrows, hunting with great concentration. She failed many, many times that afternoon, but she did not get discouraged. Each time, she would retrieve her arrow and shoot again.
Until one time, her arrow accidentally hit a tree trunk and became stuck, unable to be dislodged.
Cui Cui was anxious. What should she do?
Cui Cui hesitated beneath the tree for a moment, then turned to find her mother.
The archaeological robot could chop down trees. She could ask the archaeological robot to cut down that tree, and then she could retrieve her arrow.
Meanwhile, Lu Wanqing, who was building the house, saw Cui Cui rushing over anxiously. She couldn't help but put down her work and look at her daughter.
"Mom, my arrow is stuck in the tree!" Cui Cui called out loudly.
"Can I have the archaeological robot cut down the tree so I can get my arrow back?" Cui Cui asked.
Lu Wanqing smiled and agreed, "Of course."
Lu Wanqing descended the ladder, preparing to take the archaeological robot to chop down the tree and retrieve the arrow.
On the other side, the Insectoid Queen had already slithered up the tree. It approached the arrow, wrapped its body around it, and pulled it free.
Noticing the human cub approaching with Lu Wanqing out of the corner of its eye, it loosened its grip, dropped the arrow, and swam away, disappearing into the undergrowth, untraceable.
As Cui Cui anxiously led her mother over, her first instinct was to look up at the tree trunk. She wanted to point out the tree to her mother, but when she looked up at the familiar spot, the arrow was gone. She was bewildered.
"What's wrong?" Lu Wanqing asked, seeing Cui Cui's confusion.
Cui Cui frowned, looking at the tree trunk above her head. "It was right here. Where did it go?"
Cui Cui didn't look down, but Lu Wanqing, in order to see her daughter, glanced down. It was at this moment that she spotted the arrow lying on the ground.
Lu Wanqing quickly walked over and picked up the arrow, saying, "It's here."
Upon seeing the arrow, Cui Cui immediately became excited. "Yes, yes, it's this one!"
"But how did it get on the ground? It was just stuck in the tree trunk!" Cui Cui asked, puzzled.
Lu Wanqing glanced at the tree trunk and then said with a smile, "Perhaps your strength wasn't enough, and the arrow didn't penetrate too deeply. It fell out a little while after you left."
It seemed… possible.
Cui Cui nodded, a little uncertainly. "Mm-hmm."
Lu Wanqing took the bow from Cui Cui's hands and began hunting in the forest. Shooting two birds was a simple task for her.
In just a few minutes, she had successfully caught two birds, ensuring their dinner for the evening.
Besides, it was getting late, just the right time to prepare dinner.
Lu Wanqing took Cui Cui to gather wild vegetables. Over the past few days, the wild vegetables that Cui Cui had nurtured with her abilities had grown, appearing exceptionally vibrant and full of life, more so than other wild vegetables.
"Cui Cui, shall we eat the wild vegetables you've grown with your abilities today?" Lu Wanqing asked, looking at the vegetables and then turning to Cui Cui.
Cui Cui's eyes lit up, and she nodded. "Mm-hmm!"
Lu Wanqing pulled up the wild vegetables. However, as she did, she noticed some nearby that seemed to have been eaten by something.
Perhaps it was just forest animals.
Lu Wanqing didn't think much of it and soon left with Cui Cui.
Returning to the cave entrance, they began preparing the two birds.
From needing her mother's reminders at first, Cui Cui now knew what to do without being told.
Her mother would add water; she would add firewood.
While her mother cleaned one bird, Cui Cui would clean the other.
Lu Wanqing was a little worried that she might cut herself while opening the bird's belly with a knife. However, Cui Cui was already eight years old, not a small child, and capable of doing some tasks.
Lu Wanqing didn't disturb Cui Cui, simply watching her until Cui Cui had opened the bird's belly and removed the internal organs.
"Cui Cui, you're amazing!" Lu Wanqing praised with a smile.