Chapter 12: Experiment
Year 64, June 25th.
Tearing off yesterday’s calendar page from the desk, it was one day closer to her coming of age birthday.
The morning air carried a faint fragrance of gardenia flowers, dispelling some of the gloom in her heart.
Patting her cheeks, Su Ning perked up, manually tugged at the corners of her mouth, and poked her own little dimple.
“Nothing can stump you!”
Her clear eyes regained their sparkle, she picked out clothes and pants that were convenient for movement and durable against dirt, grabbed her hair and combed it into a high ponytail, then stepped out the door with light footsteps.
……
Flea market.
In one morning of darting in and out here, Su Ning not only found many things that satisfied her and were missing in the space, but also bought a lot of building materials along the way.
Now the space courtyard had undergone a huge change; the rosewood boxes previously stacked had all been moved by her to the cave on the mountainside.
The cleared space was just right for placing the furniture moved over from the old house.
Among the five rooms, besides the kitchen on the far left and the bedroom previously planned, there was now also a study room and a storage room.
The smallest one closest to the bedroom was used as a bathroom for dry-wet separation, toilet.
With her full comprehension ability plus decent hands-on skills, even though it was her first time doing this kind of thing, she managed to make it look somewhat proper.
Of course, the main focus was sturdiness; as long as it was functional, it was fine!
Besides the simple version of the toilet, she also built a pigsty, cattle and sheep pens, and nests for chickens, ducks, and geese.
These with stronger odors were all built on that shorter hilltop as she had planned before.
She believed that in the near future, she could completely achieve meat and egg freedom!
Speaking of this, she had to mention the magical aspect of the Peach Blossom Spring Space.
After yesterday’s experiment, she discovered that the kitchen in the small courtyard indeed had a fresh-keeping constant temperature effect; the large meat buns placed inside were still as plump and warm as when freshly bought even after a day and a night.
And the seeds scattered on the black soil beside the yard, no matter the type, had all successfully sprouted green and grown even a size larger.
At this growth rate, after a rough estimate in her mind, the result was astonishing.
Vegetables and melons would ripen in at most three days, staple foods like rice, wheat, and corn would take about ten days, and fruit tree saplings would need less than two months at most.
Thinking of this, she couldn’t help but grin foolishly, her whole body filled with strength as if she had endless energy.
“Mission accomplished!”
After safely delivering the last batch of chicks, she wiped the sweat from her face, stood on the hillside looking at the space she had single-handedly created, and felt an indescribable sense of pride in her heart.
Once she caught her breath, Su Ning flashed out of the space contentedly.
……
“Ring ring ring~”
Just as she emerged from the unmanned alley, she heard urgent bell rings from behind and instinctively dodged to the side.
The man riding the bicycle was drenched in sweat, with a fierce expression, pedaling desperately while cursing under his breath.
“Stop!”
Two people in uniforms chased after him, running one after the other.
Before she could fully react, Su Ning had already swiftly grabbed the rear seat of the bike.
“Screech—”
“Bang—”
This tug not only made the cyclist fall flat on his back, but also sent her lunging forward with the momentum and crashing to the ground.
“Ouch ouch, my hand’s broken, it’s broken!”
“Run, you keep running! Behave yourself! Don’t move!”
Seeing this sudden situation, the two police officers had no time for surprise; one rushed forward and cuffed the man’s hands behind his back.
The other quickly came to Su Ning’s side and asked with concern, “Young comrade, are you okay?”
Her hand seemed to be sprained, her knee was scraped, with a stinging burning pain, but it wasn’t a big problem.
Checking according to his words, Su Ning shook her head on her own and replied, “I’m fine, what about him?”
“Good as long as you’re okay, he’s a bike thief, rest assured this fall won’t cripple him!”
—If it did cripple him, it would be well-deserved.
Li Bei cursed inwardly, then seeing the girl’s excessively delicate and obviously youthful face, his expression softened and his tone suddenly became much gentler.
“Thank you for your heroic action, young comrade, but next time remember to prioritize your personal safety first.”
Looking at his extended hand, she lowered her eyes and politely declined, “I can manage myself, thank you.”
After leaving her specific information and address, she limped away under the worried gazes of the two police officers.
At the same time, in the Peach Blossom Spring Space, a soft faint white light turned into raindrops and scattered down: the green seedlings in the field, the livestock on the hilltop, and the fish, shrimp, and crabs in the river visibly perked up and even gained a bit of weight.
Unaware for now of the changes in the space, Su Ning gave up the idea of going to the scrap station to hunt for treasures due to the sudden incident and headed to the hospital early.
……
On the corridor, Qian Huiru in a white coat stared fixedly at the extremely familiar figure not far away, “Su Ning…”
Why was she at the hospital at this time? She seemed to be injured?
“Director Qian? What’s wrong?”
“Ah, nothing, let’s go check on the patient in bed 56.”
Putting away the inquiry in her eyes, Qian Huiru smiled at her colleagues and took the lead toward the hospital room.
……
In the three-person hospital room, besides three 1.2-meter iron frame sickbeds, there was only a stool pieced together from wood for each.
Therefore, the visitors to the patient had to crowd together standing, making the not-so-large room even more cramped and narrow.
Especially that loud-mouthed shrill-voiced old woman who kept blabbering nonstop, making Lu Fei’s aura drop lower and lower, with cold air emanating outward.
“Uncle Lu!”
“Xiao Ning? You’ve come, quick…”
Hearing the voice, Lu Fei turned around, a rare smile on his face not yet fully formed before it quickly retracted and turned stern in a second, “What happened? How did you get those injuries?”
Upon learning that she got injured accidentally while doing a good deed, Lu Fei eased his expression.
A man who always disciplined others and himself, selflessly serving the people, yet said something similar to that police officer to her.
Knowing it was well-intentioned, Su Ning didn’t feel annoyed after being lectured twice in a row, but instead showed a well-behaved teachable manner, nodding repeatedly in agreement and guarantee.
This… how could Lu Fei continue lecturing? He could only helplessly suppress his verbal concern.
“How is Little Stone? What did the doctor say?”
“He woke up once this morning and they said there’s no life-threatening danger, but after all, he injured his head and lost so much blood, he needs good rest and recuperation.”
Heartachingly touching her son’s bald head, just thinking of that wound on top sewn with over ten stitches, even the upright man couldn’t help but redden his eyes.
Turning his back and wiping his face, clearing the choked throat, Lu Fei smoothly changed the topic, “I heard from Old Fu that Xiao Ning, you’re preparing to go to Xiangnan?”
“Yeah, in a few days.”
“Keep these two contact methods; they are my two comrades who returned to Xiangnan after retiring. If you run into anything there, be sure to find them for help.”
Taking the note he handed over, Su Ning felt a surge of warmth in her heart, “Thank you, Uncle Lu, I’ll remember.”
