raknovel Chapter 309: On the Road 2
Chapter 309: On the Road 2
Evelyn Ford handed the whetstones to everyone, and the others took out their long knives and began to sharpen them. The originally calm rest stop was suddenly filled with the sound of grinding blades, which gave the truck drivers hauling coal behind them such a scare that they started their engines in the middle of the night and all fled.
"What happened? Why did they all leave?"
Smelling the truck exhaust, Quincy looked bewildered. "I was hoping to go over and get some information from them."
"They were probably scared off by the spectacle of us sharpening our knives."
It had to be said, Wyatt Vaughn had hit the nail on the head.
"But we’re the good guys. What are they afraid of?" Quincy shrugged and continued to sharpen his knife.
"When we were coming over earlier, I saw a few Callery pear trees over there. Ronan Kendrick and I are going to cut some branches."
"Callery pear trees? You don’t need to be picky about branches for the livestock. They eat pine needles, too."
"No, I’m going to use the Callery pear wood for bows and arrows. It’s a shame we don’t have any jujube wood, but Callery pear is a top-quality material as well." Evelyn Ford handed her knife to Ronan Kendrick, and the two of them left the rest stop.
"I was sitting in the truck bed and glanced outside just now. I happened to see a particularly sturdy Callery pear tree. What great luck."
The night wind was cold, and the ground was a bit slippery. Evelyn Ford took out a pair of night-vision goggles and put them on. Ronan Kendrick took her left hand, and the two quickly headed into the mountains.
Callery pear trees were very easy to recognize. Although their branches were completely bare, they were dense and thorny, with curved trunks that made them easy to distinguish from other trees.
When they reached a few Callery pear trees, Ronan Kendrick took on the task of chopping, while Evelyn Ford went to look for seedlings. Callery pears were edible and could also be used to make wine.
Ronan Kendrick chopped down the Callery pear tree and sorted out the sections that could be made into bows and arrows. Evelyn Ford found several seedlings, which she dug up along with some nearby pine saplings and put into her space.
In addition to the parts for bows and arrows, Evelyn Ford also collected the remaining wood. It could be taken back for grafting or used as firewood.
There was still some snow on the ground in the mountains. Evelyn Ford took out a thermometer to check the temperature. It was negative forty degrees. Humans had already adapted well to this temperature.
Whenever she saw a sapling along the way, Evelyn Ford would dig it up and take it with her. It had become a habit.
When they returned to the rest stop, everyone had already finished sharpening their knives. Evelyn Ford placed the Callery pear branches over the fire to roast them. Once they started to steam, she took them down to peel off the bark.
Callery pear wood is very tough. The thin branches were set aside for arrows, while the knot-free branches with a clear grain could be crafted into bows.
’We still have some cowhide and sheepskin left. They’ll come in handy.’
They had made bows and arrows before on the ship, but the wood they used back then wasn’t good enough. This time, with Callery pear wood, the range could exceed one hundred meters.
It wasn’t until three in the morning that everyone packed up and returned to their truck beds to rest. At seven the next morning, after feeding the livestock and having a quick bite of dry rations, the group had to get back on the road.
During the day, the number of vehicles on the road increased. They were all trucks hauling coal and lumber, along with some mobile homes. Some drivers would approach other vehicles with goods and knock on their doors. If the other party was willing, a trade would be made.
In the afternoon, another truck passed by, this one hauling kudzu vines and roots. The vines could be used to make clothing, while the roots were edible and could also be planted.
The roads were clear, so they could indeed cover seventy to eighty kilometers a day. However, there were also many bandits on the road; almost every mountaintop had a bandit lair.
Of course, there were also villages that were doing relatively well, with proper two-story houses, large iron gates, and even servants.
As the truck hauling kudzu root passed, Evelyn Ford deftly snapped off a piece. She sniffed it; it didn’t smell much different from any other root. The inside where it had broken was white. Kudzu root could be eaten raw, but eating too much would make one’s mouth go numb.
Evelyn Ford didn’t eat it, storing it directly into her space instead. Even though it was just a small piece, she could try planting it.
’There are quite a few things in the mountains. They can even dig up kudzu root. It seems the people at the top are still living pretty well.’
Evelyn Ford tightened the scarf around her neck. Watching the vehicles pass by outside the sliding window, she couldn’t help but sigh.
"I feel like we’re back in Westeria," Ronan Kendrick suddenly said.
"But I don’t want to rob my own compatriots," Evelyn Ford replied, which made Ronan Kendrick laugh.
"We were both wanted criminals back then." If they hadn’t been worried that Quincy and the others might be in danger, the two of them might have continued their raids for a while longer.
"The situation here is a little better than in Westeria. Over there, you could smell blood and the stench of corpses coming from the sewers just walking down the street."
Evelyn Ford was surprised. "You’ve never told me that before."
"I was worried you’d be scared back then."
"So why aren’t you worried now?" Evelyn Ford huffed deliberately.
"After returning to our homeland, your state of mind has improved. You’re not so guarded, and you’re more relaxed. Even when we face a crisis, you don’t particularly panic. But in Westeria, you would often wake up startled in the middle of the night. During our time in The Vextan Desert, you lost a lot of weight because you were so tense."
It slowly dawned on Evelyn Ford. "I guess that’s true. Setting aside the fact that we needed to be in disguise, being in a foreign country just made me feel uncomfortable all over. My heart was always in my throat; I could never feel at ease."
’After the apocalypse, everywhere is the same. But you still feel a greater sense of security in your own homeland.’
"Passing by these service stations these last two days, I’ve noticed everyone is using kerosene lamps. Once we get the grocery store set up, I plan on making some candles to sell."
’Candles are a solid form of currency, too. They should sell well.’
Ronan Kendrick raised an eyebrow. "Then what do you want to trade them for?"
"Seeds, saplings, charcoal, coal... We can trade for anything useful."
"Oh, right, I also plan to raise silkworms and grow cotton. If we have silk, we can trade it for petroleum and gasoline."
Evelyn Ford looked at Ronan Kendrick. "Do you think that’s feasible?"
"Of course. If it’s something you want to do, you’ll definitely succeed." Ronan Kendrick remembered that *Heavenly Craftsmanship* included instructions on how to raise silkworms; he could learn and help, too.
At 9:30 that night, the group stopped at a dilapidated temple, and Quincy suddenly ran over.
"Evelyn Ford, Sprout has diarrhea!"
Sprout was the name of the Pallas’s cat Quincy was raising. It had gotten much fatter recently, but it was usually kept in a cage, so Evelyn Ford had only seen it a few times.
"What did you feed it?"
"Water and raw meat. It fell asleep after eating, and I just noticed that it’s in a really bad state. It’s having yellow, watery diarrhea."
Evelyn Ford sighed. "I’ll go with you and take a look."
Boarding Quincy’s horse-drawn carriage, Evelyn Ford saw the listless Sprout in his nest and picked him up.
"It’s probably just a regular case of diarrhea. Give him some medicine. Oh, and you need to let him out more to move around. He’s going to get depressed being cooped up in a cage all day."
Sprout normally had a fierce disposition, but he couldn’t muster any of it now. He looked utterly pathetic.
Only then did Quincy let out a sigh of relief. "That scared the hell out of me. I thought he was a goner."