During famine years, I had a divination slip in hand, and my whole family ate chicken, duck, fish, a

"Um... Big Zhuang, you're a bit too strong... Ouch..."

Ye Qingqing cleared her throat, wondering why her voice had become hoarse.

Brother, I know you have a strong grip, but you can't pinch her so hard that it hurts her back!

"Um……"

Ye Dazhuang abruptly released his grip as if he had been burned, his ears turning red at a visible speed.

He hurriedly turned his face away, stood up quickly, and reached out his hand to her, "Come here."

Ye Qingqing took his hand and stood up, patting the water stains off her cotton-padded coat, pretending to be nonchalant as she said...

"Sorry, I wasn't watching my step... These stones are so slippery... Ugh, so treacherous! Big Zhuang, be careful."

Ye Dazhuang responded sullenly and turned to tidy up the fishing nets on the ground.

Ye Qingqing secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

But when I caught a glimpse of him out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that even his neck was red.

She suddenly felt a little amused, and then a strange, indescribable feeling welled up inside her.

This man is usually a quiet, reserved person, but he's surprisingly thin-skinned.

After hurriedly repacking the fish, Ye Qingqing saw the indicator arrow appear before her eyes again.

The arrow floated in mid-air, pointing in another direction from the cave.

"Discovering the underground river is really lucky, Brother Dazhuang. We haven't looked over there yet. Maybe we can find something good there."

Ye Qingqing found an excuse to put the fish down first, and then led Ye Dazhuang in the direction of the arrow.

"Um."

Ye Dazhuang nodded slightly.

That's the good thing about being a silent person; he goes wherever Ye Qingqing points without asking a single question!

Ye Qingqing walked briskly, following the direction of the arrow along the underground river.

Underfoot were lush weeds, and above them, the vast dome of the sky shone with bright sunlight. The more they walked, the more spacious the area ahead seemed to become.

There were more cracks in the cave ceiling, allowing more light to filter in, making it less dark.

"Ding ding ding ding..."

After walking about ten zhang, the arrow pointed to the bottom of the stone wall on the right, flashed a few times, and disappeared in front of Ye Qingqing.

This is it!

Ye Qingqing couldn't see any trees full of fruit, so she had to search through the bushes and grass in the direction the arrow disappeared.

"what?"

Sure enough, tiny purplish-red fruits suddenly appeared under the bushes!

They look a bit like figs, but smaller, yet several sizes larger than sweet grapes. They are densely packed together, like little landmines, hidden under the lush green vines.

Ye Qingqing had never seen such a fruit before, let alone eaten it.

She looked at Ye Dazhuang, who also looked blank, probably not knowing what it was either.

But can the fruit pointed to by the divination sticks be wrong? Just pick it!

"Big Zhuang, do you know what this is?"

Ye Qingqing squatted down, picked one, put it in her mouth, and said in a pretentious manner, "I don't know if this thing is edible. I'll test for poison first!"

"Qingqing..."

Ye Dazhuang reached out to stop him, but it was too late.

"Pfft..."

As soon as her teeth broke through the fruit peel, a burst of sweet juice exploded in her mouth, making Ye Qingqing squint her eyes.

"Wow, not bad! It's so sweet!"

She ate with gusto, her mouth filled with the sweet taste, and couldn't resist picking a few more and popping them into her mouth, nodding repeatedly as she said...

"Big Zhuang, you should try this! It's much sweeter than an apple!"

Ye Dazhuang also squatted down, picked one, and tasted it. His brows relaxed unconsciously.

"Mmm, it's sweet."

"What's this fruit called...?"

Ye Qingqing frantically searched her memory, muttering to herself as she picked the fruit, "They bear fruit in winter, are purplish-red, and about the size of grapes..."

Suddenly, a brilliant idea struck her...

This thing isn't called a ground pear, is it?

In her own time and space, although she had never seen or eaten this thing in person, she had seen people picking it on Douyin!

It looked exactly like the fruit in her hand!

"Ground pear" or "wild ground strawberry", its scientific name may be something like Rhizoma Cypriniforme or Rhizoma Cypriniforme, anyway, it is a plant of the Rosaceae family, the fruit is sweet and juicy and rich in vitamin C.

However, this thing definitely won't bear fruit in winter, which is only possible because this cave is warm and humid enough.

With sunlight, water, and warmth, the cave develops its own ecosystem.

"What?"

Ye Dazhuang didn't hear what she was muttering, and turned to look at Ye Qingqing.

"Oh, I mean this thing should be a ground pear!"

Ye Qingqing looked at Ye Dazhuang and said with certainty, "There's no mistake, this is it!"

Ye Dazhuang didn't understand these things.

But seeing Ye Qingqing's happy expression, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curve into a smile as well.

"Big Brother Zhuang, hurry up and pick some! Pick more so you can take them back for Dad and Sister-in-law to try."

It's not easy to get fresh fruit in the dead of winter. Hey, what do you think would be a suitable price to sell our unique fresh produce in town?

Thinking about making money, Ye Qingqing's eyes lit up with excitement.

She took out a small cloth bag from her bosom, which she used to store soap samples, and used it to store fruit.

The two squatted down in front of the bushes and picked the bushes one by one.

The ground pears grow close to the ground; some are right at your feet, while others are hidden under the leaves, requiring you to part them to see them.

Ye Qingqing picked the fruit carefully, and soon her small cloth bag was half full.

"There are more here!" She moved to the side and reached for a cluster of fruit growing on the high slope.

She couldn't reach it.

She stood on tiptoe and leaned forward... but still couldn't reach it!

Be careful.

A large hand supported her waist from behind.

Ye Qingqing turned around, and Ye Dazhuang was standing behind her. He reached out his arm and helped her pick the cluster of fruit.

His arm brushed past her ear, carrying the dampness of the hot spring and his pleasant scent of sweat.

Ye Qingqing suddenly felt her ears getting hot.

"It's alright!"

She took the fruit, smiled, and stuffed it into her cloth bag.

"There's another one over there."

Ye Dazhuang pointed to a spot not far away.

The two walked over and, sure enough, found another large patch of wild pears, even more than the previous one.

This time, Ye Qingqing learned her lesson and directly asked Ye Dazhuang to help her pick the items from the higher places.

Ye Dazhuang is tall and can reach the fruit quickly and accurately.

"Big Brother Zhuang, it's definitely better to have longer arms!"

Ye Qingqing watched as his slender fingers deftly parted the leaves, picked a fruit, and handed it to her, saying with envy, "This job takes me half a day, but you'll finish it in no time."

Ye Dazhuang didn't say anything, but picked another one and handed it to her.

Ye Qingqing took it, her fingertips touching his palm, and both of their hands paused for a moment.

"Why are your hands so hot? Are you alright?"

She didn't think it through and just blurted it out.

Actually, she wanted to ask if you were feeling unwell.

"No... I'm fine."

Ye Dazhuang abruptly withdrew his hand, lowered his eyes indifferently, and continued working.

"You're really something, I ask you ten questions and you only give one word in response."

Ye Qingqing couldn't help but roll her eyes at him, stuffing the fruit into her cloth bag and saying, "It's good that you're alright. I'll need you to carry that big basket down the mountain later!"

Ye Dazhuang's lips twitched, as if he wanted to say something, but he suddenly swallowed it back.