All the heavens, starting as the ruler of the universe

Chapter 81 A-Shu A-Qiu

Ashu carried a sack and walked through the crooked shack area at the foot of the city wall.

The gravel road beneath his feet was full of potholes, but he walked steadily, his hands gripping the mouth of the burlap sack, his knuckles turning white from the force.

He turned into a shack made of scrap metal and tattered canvas. The shack was so low that he had to bend over to get in.

A little girl was curled up in the corner, so thin that her cheekbones protruded high, wrapped in an old blanket that had been washed so many times that the original color was no longer discernible.

She heard a noise, looked up, saw Ah Shu, and her eyes lit up. "Brother."

"Ah Qiu." Ah Shu squatted down, put the sack on the ground, and opened the sack.

The round potatoes rolled out of the bag, along with a few ears of corn, their kernels plump and glistening with a pale yellow sheen in the dim shack.

A-Qiu stared at the bag of grain for a long time, then reached out and picked up a potato, running his fingers over the skin several times as if to confirm that it wasn't a hallucination.

After all, in this wasteland world, most of the land can no longer grow food.

"Where did you get this?"

"These were given to us by the new people who just came to the city." Ashu picked up a corn cob, wiped it on his clothes, and handed it over. "He said you can eat this directly."

A-Qiu took the corn but didn't eat it right away.

She handed the corn back to him, then looked up at Ashu.

"Brother, have you eaten?"

"I've already eaten over there." Ashu squatted down and took the grain out of the sack one by one.

"That superhuman said there was a temporary canteen behind the warehouse where the workers could eat. I ate two of these."

A-Qiu stared at his face for two or three seconds before slowly peeling off the corn husk and putting it in her mouth.

A-Qiu took a bite of corn. The sweet corn kernels burst with juice in her mouth, and her eyes lit up instantly, as if something had illuminated her whole being.

"It's sweet! It really is sweet!" She held the corn up to Ashu. "Brother, you have to try it! It's a million times better than the dry rations we found in the ruins last time!"

Ashu looked at the corn with a bite taken out of it, and his Adam's apple bobbed up and down.

He took the corn and took a small bite.

When the sweetness exploded on his tongue, he paused for a moment, then stuffed the corn back into A Qiu's hand.

"It is indeed sweet."

"Take another bite."

"I've already eaten."

Ashu took a potato out of the sack. "That superhuman said this is called a potato, and it tastes better roasted. You don't need to wipe the mud off completely; it'll be more fragrant when roasted with the mud on. Once it's cooked, the skin will peel off easily."

The superhuman said a lot of things he couldn't understand, but he remembered one thing: the person gave them food.

So now, in his mouth, Zhang Jingyuan has changed from "that new human" to "the superhuman."

A-Qiu threw off the blanket and ran barefoot to the back of the shack.

There were some dry branches and broken planks picked up from the ruins. She squatted down, carefully picked out a few of the driest ones, hugged them to her arms, and ran back.

Ashu had already cleared out the location for the fire, and in the open space in front of the shack, he used a few pebbles to build a small circle.

A-Qiu set up the tree branch and took out half a flint from her pocket. She had picked it up from the ruins and used it many times, and it could always produce sparks.

Sparks landed on the dry kindling, and soon a wisp of smoke appeared. She lay down on the ground and gently blew on it. After a few blows, flames leaped out from between the branches.

She buried a few potatoes in the ashes at the edge of the fire, then used a twig to spread the ashes evenly before patting the dirt off her hands and sitting back down on the blanket.

The firelight reflected on her face, making her thin cheeks appear slightly red.

Ashu used a twig to stir the ashes around the edge of the fire and moved the charred potato half a finger's width away.

She glanced at the potatoes piled up beside her, counted the remaining potatoes in the sack, and looked up at Ashu.

"We just ate one of these, and one more of these round things will be enough. We can save the rest for tomorrow; there's still plenty left in the bag."

As she spoke, she tightened the sack again, her movements very careful, as if she were handling some precious treasure.

Ashu reached out and pressed her hand down.

He opened the sack again and took out two more potatoes, putting them into the ashes at the edge of the fire.

"No need to be so frugal. I'll go work for the superhuman tomorrow and get new food every day."

He leaned against the tin wall of the shack, the firelight casting flickering shadows on his face.

A-Qiu looked up, the firelight reflecting in her eyes. A hint of worry flashed in her large, thin eyes. "Is it dangerous?"

He thought for a moment, then shook his head. "It's not dangerous. I'm not a superhuman; dangerous things don't happen to me."

A-Qiu stared at him for a few seconds, then lowered her head and used her hand to push a potato that was about to roll out of the fire back. "Is the superhuman still hiring?"

Why are you asking this?

"I want to work too," A-Qiu said earnestly, looking up.

"No, you're too weak." Ashu reached out and ruffled her hair. Her hair was dry and yellow, but it still felt soft to the touch.

"Once you've eaten well these past few days and recovered, we'll talk about it then."

"Okay," A-Qiu replied, and the only sound in the small shack was the crackling of firewood.

After a while, Ashu felt that the potatoes were almost done roasting, so he used a twig to dig them out of the ashes.

The potatoes were roasted until their skins were charred black, and they were still sizzling as they rolled out of the ashes. The aroma of roasted potatoes spread with the night breeze, filling the entire shack with their fragrance.

He picked one up, and because it was so hot, he tossed it back and forth between his hands several times.

Then peel off the skin to reveal the pale yellow, steaming potato flesh inside, and hand it to A Qiu.

A-Qiu took it with both hands, wincing from the heat, but couldn't bear to put it down. She brought it to her mouth, blowing on it and taking a small bite.

The potato and meat filling was tender and soft, with the aroma of charcoal. Her eyes were narrowed into slits, and she curled up in the blanket like a cat that had stolen some dried fish.

Ashu also tore open his own and took a big bite without caring that it was too hot.

The two sat facing each other, neither of them speaking, only the sound of smacking their lips could be heard.

After finishing the last bite, A Qiu licked the potato scraps off his fingers and then carefully put away the corncob.

Then she wrapped herself tightly in the blanket and leaned on Ashu's shoulder, "Brother, do you think the superhuman will still be here tomorrow?"

'

Ah Shu threw the last branch into the fire. "Yes, he said he wouldn't leave."

"Then you must ask for me tomorrow."

"Don't worry, I definitely won't forget." Before Ashu could finish speaking, Aqiu had already fallen asleep, with streaks of black charcoal ash still hanging from the corners of her mouth.

He draped the blanket back over her and added another branch to the fire.