Chapter 42

Chapter 42

Qi Mo woke up to being nibbled on.

He opened his eyes and saw Chubby baby gnawing on him, then looking up before lowering his head to bite again.

"Biting me to see if I'm awake, Qi Mo?"

He booped the chubby cheeks of the baby.

Unaware that his daddy was already awake, the fat baby widened his eyes, looked up, and found Daddy staring right at him.

Baby Yan beamed a gummy smile: "Da-da-da" (baby babble).

"Baby, shouldn’t we try something new? You’ve been saying ‘da-da’ for almost a month now. Come on, say ‘Daddy,’ and Daddy will get you your bottle right away," Qi Mo teased as he lifted the baby onto his chest.

The chubby baby let out indignant squeals as Daddy pinched his tiny nose and tried to bite back.

But Qi Mo was faster—he grabbed the baby’s doughy little hand and gave it a few playful sucks, leaving a red mark on the soft skin.

Baby Yan giggled and rolled off Daddy’s chest, toddling off in a hurry—no match for Daddy, gotta retreat!

Watching the baby make a break for the edge of the bed, Qi Mo didn’t stop him.

He shuffled to the bathroom to wash up…

Just as he flushed the toilet and turned on the faucet, the water became a trickle and soon stopped altogether.

Qi Mo sighed. The water was cut off.

After summoning some water from his storage space to rinse up, he stepped out of the bathroom carrying Chubby baby and the now-awake kitty, Snowball, downstairs.

He took off the baby’s diaper, wiped his bottom with a wet wipe, plugged a bottle into his mouth, and placed him on the living room mat for some diaper-free time.

A glance at the clock: 6 a.m.

Still early.

He brought out a bowl of bland rice porridge, three steamed buns, two sunny-side-up eggs, and a steamed sea fish.

He set out Snowball’s small dish and filled it with some porridge, one fried egg, and half a fish tail. Then he called to the cat: "Chow time, Snowball!"

Only then did he sit on a low stool in the living room to eat.

The coffee table was roomy and handy.

Once done, Qi Mo walked to the yard and dumped yesterday’s laundry into the washing basin.

He scrubbed them with soap and gave them a perfunctory scrub—they were clean in no time.

After rinsing off the suds, he quickly hung the clothes on a makeshift clothesline freshly retrieved from his space.

It was already 6:30 a.m., and the temperature had climbed to 38°C—another brutal day of heat.

Qi Mo moved to the corner under the balcony and pulled a rope, deploying a black shade cloth.

He manually stretched the shade toward the courtyard gate and fastened it with a carabiner.

Then he dragged the meat smoker into the yard outside the dining area. In this weather, the meat would cure under the sun all day and be ready for smoking by evening.

Once he was done, Qi Mo put a diaper on the baby and carried him to the basement.

The lantern light pushed back the darkness, and the basement was quite cool.

Qi Mo first folded two layers of oil paper and pressed them over the wine jar openings, followed by two layers of oilcloth. Finally, he tightly wrapped an elastic cord around each one in circles.

After securing all the wine jar openings, he placed cake pans over each one and poured melted wax that he’d prepared earlier into them.

Qi Mo checked—he had ten large cake pans in total. The rest would have to wait until the afternoon.

By the time he brought the baby back to the living room, it was 7:30.

He took out a bowl of eight-treasure porridge and a poached egg, feeding the baby until his little belly was round and pudgy.

Just as Qi Mo opened the courtyard gate, he saw a crowd of people hurriedly heading up the mountain. What was going on?

"Auntie Chen, what's happening? Why are so many people going up the mountain?" Qi Mo asked, turning to his neighbor Chen Xia.

Hearing Qi Mo's voice, Chen Xia looked at the good-looking guy who had appeared and smiled. "Momo, you slept in today. It seems something happened at the pig farm up the mountain. These people are going to haul pigs."

"Momo, do you want to go up and buy some pork?" Huo Xiaoyu called out.

Qi Mo looked over and saw the old clan leader’s family, along with some other villagers.

The ones who’d looked sickly the night before now seemed much better—Huo Xiaoyu, her brother Huo Liangya, their neighbor Qin Lan, and Huo Huakang were all there.

Huo Jingxuan and Huo Jingtan were also present.

Since he didn’t have anything better to do and seeing so many people heading up, Qi Mo decided to go take a look. "Wait for me, I'll bring the baby out."

Hearing this, Huo Xiaoyu said, "Big Brother, take Qin Lan ahead first. We should at least secure half a pig. Jingtan, you guys are fast—go ahead. I'll wait for Momo."

Qi Mo soon came out, not taking his trike but walking like everyone else.

Pushing the stroller, Chubby baby babbled excitedly the moment they left the house, his chubby feet swinging and his arms clutching his playmate, the little kitty Snowball.

Snowball wore a look of utter resignation as she was held by her chubby brother, her forehead fur practically gnawed bald. Unable to resist, she could only endure the chewing and let him maul her however he wanted.

"Wow, Baby Yan is still so adorable! Smile for Auntie," Huo Xiaoyu teased the chubby baby.

Noticing the kitten being gnawed on in the baby's arms, Huo Xiaoyu turned to Qi Mo with slight concern. "Momo, have you vaccinated this pet? That might not be..."

She didn’t finish her sentence, leaving the reminder at that.

Qi Mo looked at the baby, who refused to let go of the kitten. For some reason, he had a strong intuition that the kitten was pristine, cleaner than anything.

This wasn’t just a hunch. There was some evidence for his intuition—Snowball never got dirty.

Snowball had no interest in mice, didn’t chase bugs, and wouldn’t stoop to eat from a dirty dish.

Every time she ate, Qi Mo made sure to provide clean bowls of water and food.

If the water wasn’t changed, Snowball would sooner die of thirst than drink it.

Living together, Qi Mo quickly learned the kitten’s preferences.

As he pushed the stroller, Qi Mo smiled and said, "Don’t worry, I’ve taken Snowball for a checkup. She’s perfectly healthy. How’s your little girl doing? Is her fever down? By the way, what exactly happened at the pig farm? Why does it seem like everyone’s going?"

Hearing Qi Mo’s explanation, Huo Xiaoyu let it drop.

Then, Huo Xiaoyu spoke up: "Thanks to your medicine, Yaya's fever broke by midnight, and she slept soundly. She's fine now. Half an hour ago, the pig farm owner came down and told us that their farm was attacked by wolves last night."

"Many pigs were bitten to death or injured. He informed us that if we wanted pork, we could go directly there—they're slaughtering and selling it right there," Huo Xiaoyu explained.

Hearing this, Qi Mo frowned. The mutations were already happening.

He immediately thought of the little kitty—that tiny ball of fluff could already leap three or four meters high. It had clearly mutated long ago.

Moreover, it didn’t need a blow dryer after baths; just a shake dried its fur completely.

It even knew how to use the litter box, making it very easy to care for.

Qi Mo looked ahead and asked, "What's the pork going for per pound? Was anyone hurt?"

"The pig farm owner said freshly slaughtered pigs are eighty per pound, injured pigs sixty, and those bitten to death forty. No one was hurt, I think. Otherwise, the owner would’ve mentioned it and probably called the police first instead of going back up the mountain," Huo Xiaoyu replied.

The climb wasn't easy. Along the way, some leaves of the wild grass and shrubs had already begun to wither and yellow, drying up fast...

After half an hour, Qi Mo and the others finally reached the pig farm, about two miles from the village.

They arrived relatively late, around a little past eight in the morning, with temps already hitting at least 105 degrees—extremely hot.

The heat was rising quickly.

Qi Mo took out a small water bottle from the basket under the stroller and handed it to Chubby Baby.

As long as it was something edible—even water—Chubby Baby wouldn't let go. He’d hold onto it tightly.

Meanwhile, Snowball the kitty took advantage while her brother was busy with the bottle, slipping to the back to flop onto the ice pack—much more comfortable.

Entering the pig farm’s yard, they saw a crowd of people working.

All were villagers hired by the pig farm owner to help.

Some were boiling water, some scraping bristles off the pigs, others processing the wolf-killed pork...

Amid the busy crowd, the owner was cutting pork and loudly calling out, "These were bitten to death by wolves late last night—just the guts were taken. Forty per pound, forty per pound! The cheapest price! Take it home to cure, or cook it right away in a pressure cooker. Just be careful when cutting—don’t hurt yourselves."

Many villagers crowded around. As the owner said, the meat from late last night hadn’t spoiled yet.

Huo Xiaoyu glanced at Qi Mo. "Are you buying any?"

Qi Mo shook his head. "I’ll wait for the freshly slaughtered ones. Maybe some pig's feet."

Many villagers had already gathered. Qin Lan moved quickly, grabbing a front leg with ribs—over forty pounds of meat.

He had the owner chop it into two portions, then packed them into bags and said to Huo Liangya, "I’ll carry these back first. Let your mom cure them. You can look around for other cuts."

Huo Liangya nodded. "Watch your step on the way. Or maybe have Xiaoyu go with you—at least you can switch off carrying."

Qin Lan chuckled. "No need, I can handle this much. Xiaoyu can help you later."

Huo Liangya relented. He wasn't fully recovered yet.

Huo Huakang spoke up instead. "Your arm is still injured. Head back with Qin Lan—you can help each other on the way. Xiaoyu can assist me later."

Huo Liangya—fine.

He thought he'd bounced back, but after losing so much blood, even though the fever had subsided, now he was wiped out.

"Alright, I'll head back first. Xiaoyu, you and Dad need to come down the mountain with the others," Huo Liangya said.

Then he walked over to Qi Mo and said, "You're Liangzhou's wife, aren't you? Thank you for the medicine last night. If you need anything, just holler. Come over for dinner tonight."

Qi Mo smiled and replied, "Sure, I'll definitely come tonight."

Huo Xiaoyu watched as her elder brother and Qin Lan left. "I never really planned on getting married, and now with the world like this, I have even less interest," she said.

Hearing this, Qi Mo chuckled. "That guy’s not bad-looking, at least. But you should still take a closer look, especially since he grew up with your sister-in-law."

"I haven’t thought about it. He saved my brother’s life—he protected him and Yaya on their way back. Without him, my brother might’ve been killed. He saved their lives—as long as he doesn’t pull any shady stuff, our family will make sure he’s taken care of. Other things can wait," Huo Xiaoyu sighed.

Qi Mo checked the dead pigs’ wounds but couldn’t figure them out.

The meat was cut off and set aside.

Qi Mo then checked outside the pig farm and found some footprints. He sized them up with his hand—they were way too big.

Definitely mutated.

But it was probably just starting to mutate, as their strength hadn’t increased much yet. Otherwise, the pigs—and the people—would’ve been wiped out.

Mutated beasts, plants, and awakened humans—they all eat way more. They’re bottomless pits.

As villagers scrambled to buy, more kept coming in, and the wolf-killed pigs sold out fast.

Next came the injured pigs.

Qi Mo didn’t buy any of those. Only when the pig farm owner brought out fresh, healthy cuts did Qi Mo grab trotters, pork belly, and tripe.

He grabbed six or seven trotters, three tripe pieces, and about ten pounds of pork belly.

Stuffing everything into two bags, he shoved them under the cart.

Then Qi Mo headed down with the others.

Back home, bricks and cement were stacked by his door.

Qi Mo didn’t need to look—it was the Elder Clan Leader’s doing. Probably from Aunt Wang, Huo Liangya, or Qin Lan.

He opened the courtyard gate.

He wheeled the baby into the living room.

Aunt Wang and the others arrived quickly.

"Momo, let’s haul this stuff into the yard first," Aunt Wang called out.

Qi Mo nodded. "Got it, thanks Auntie."

"Hard work? I’m on the clock," Wang Miaomiao laughed. Qi Mo’s cash had let them dig up extra potatoes and sneak in some rice.

Otherwise, with just the little food they had at home, they wouldn’t have dared to invite Qin Lan to stay.

"Oh, right, Aunt Wang, do you still have any sweet potatoes at home?" Qi Mo stepped out, ready to help.

Shooed away by Aunt Wang: "Just stay back and watch, don’t lift a finger. You’re pregnant—if you strain yourself, you’ll regret it. The hospital’s too far if something happens."

Qi Mo could only watch as Huo Liangya and Qin Lan got started.

Back inside the kitchen, Qi Mo started blanching the pig trotters, preparing to make braised pig trotters.

And braised pork—the marbled pork looked perfect.

The pork tripe was also cleaned and blanched.

The yard kept filling up with bricks, sand, and cement.

Huo Huakang knocked on Qi Mo’s kitchen door and said, "Qi Mo, we can get to work tonight. With Liangya and Qin Lan helping, we’ll make quick work of it."

Qi Mo replied, "Alright, I have two lanterns at home—that should work."

"That’ll work. Don’t forget to come to our place for dinner tonight. Your medicine saved Liangya and Yaya," Huo Huakang said. Though his face showed no smile, you could tell he was happy.

Having medicine to spare at a time like this—Huo Huakang was deeply grateful.

There was some disinfectant alcohol, but villagers were running low on anti-inflammatories or fever meds.

Especially for children—most hoarded it for their own kids. What’d they do if their kid got sick?

From now on, they’d have to be extra careful with their children’s health. Medication was scarce.

He’d asked around today—a single dose of baby cold meds ran hundreds, and a whole box was at least a thousand, if you could even find it.

Medicine like this was a lifesaver—no small favor.

Qi Mo stewed the braised pig trotters until they were tender.

Then, he packed them into containers one by one, ready to heat up whenever.

The braised pork was also stewed until soft and portioned into containers.

After preparing the pork tripe, he sliced it into strips—ready to stir-fry whenever he felt like it.

For lunch, he had cold noodles and a serving of shrimp.

The baby got plain noodles and unseasoned boiled shrimp.

For Snowball the cat, Qi Mo raised her the same way he did the baby—both were babies, so same rules.

By evening, Qi Mo had cleaned up the kitchen.

On the dining table sat a chopped-up pig trotter and a plate of braised pork...

After buying so much, he couldn’t just leave the table empty.

The courtyard gate clicked.

Huo Liangchuan stared at the door, then at the key in his hand. "The hell?" he muttered. Why wouldn’t the door open?

"Xiao Mo, Xiao Mo, are you home? Why won’t the door open?" Huo Liangchuan shouted.

Chen Xia, who had just stepped out with a bucket of water, heard him and said in surprise, "Liangchuan, you’re back! The lock’s been changed. I told you not to give the key to that Huo Jingzhong—he’s no good. Momo went to ask for the key, but first they claimed she wasn’t from Liangzhou. When the Elder Clan Leader went to demand it, that bastard Huo Jingzhong said he’d lost the key. Momo had to change the lock."

"That bastard! My brother gave them money for free, and they still dared to give my sister-in-law trouble? Aunt Chen, where are you headed?" Huo Liangchuan asked.

Chen Xia smiled and said, "Since the fields are so dry, I'm using the gray water from washing faces and hands to water the vegetables."

"Right, we should save up more water. It evaporates very quickly now," Huo Liangchuan replied.

Qi Mo opened the courtyard gate and looked at the visitor. "Shouldn't you be with your brother? What are you doing here?"

Huo Liangchuan gave Qi Mo a pitiful look. "Xiao Mo, I've been riding my bike for a whole day and night. I'm parched and starving."

"Come in quickly. There's food on the table. Clean up and grab a bite first. Hold it right there! Don't go near Chubby Baby before you've showered and changed clothes," Qi Mo warned loudly as Huo Liangchuan rushed toward the chubby baby.

Huo Liangchuan froze at the shout, then grinned at Baby Yan on the crawling mat. "Baby Yan, wait for Uncle to take a shower before playing with you, okay? Be good. Uncle needs to drink some water first—my throat's dry as a bone."

Huo Liangchuan quickly washed his face and hands before dashing to the dining room.

He grabbed a glass of water and chugged it in one swallow.

Seeing the meat on the table, his mouth watered, and he immediately reached for a piece.

One bite—soft, tender, rich but not heavy, sweet and delicious.

"Don't eat the pig's feet yet—that's a delicacy we're taking to the Elder Clan Leader's family. Have some porridge first," Qi Mo said, bringing chopsticks and a bowl of porridge from the kitchen.

The porridge was cold and thin, mostly just the starchy water from rice.

After gulping it down, Huo Liangchuan asked, "Xiao Mo, do you have any pickled vegetables?"

Qi Mo went back to the kitchen and brought out a glass jar filled with red carrots and pickled peppers.

He took a crunchy bite. Huo Liangchuan’s eyes widened. "Xiao Mo, when did you learn to cook like this? It's so good!"

Huo Liangchuan genuinely had no idea that this spoiled rich kid could cook.

He'd only just learned to make baby food by following along with the nanny.

But this cooking skill? Now this? That's some serious progress!

"Even delicious food can't shut you up. Guess I'm just naturally gifted," Qi Mo said with sarcastic flair. "Finish eating and go take a shower. We'll go over to the Elder Clan Leader's later for dinner."

At the Elder Clan Leader's house, the village chief was also present.

"The water got cut off this morning. We haven't had that happen in years," the village chief spoke up.

"Seventeen, eighteen years now. So what the officials said might be true. Did you store water in the old village reservoir?" the Elder Clan Leader asked gravely.

The village chief nodded. "After the town sent me the message, I organized villagers to refill it."

"I heard Momo say we must seal the well opening, or the water will evaporate," the Elder Clan Leader muttered.

The village chief replied, "I'll ask Momo later about the proper way. As Liangzhou's wife, she must know more than we do."

"Right, we should trust her on this," the Elder Clan Leader agreed.