Braised Dragon with Soy Sauce

Chapter 5 Valley of Heartbreak

"There are dozens of households in the Grand Canyon, most of whom live in Yishi Valley. Only a small number live in Ruimu Valley."

Xianghe Valley is the home of the Homo sapiens, a race of mythical creatures. There are tens of thousands of them. The Homo sapiens and we humans are very close, and Grandpa often goes there to treat their illnesses.

The little girl led Mo Yuming to climb onto a huge rock that jutted out from the ground and sat down. The rock was about two zhang high and three or four zhang in diameter. Its surface was crisscrossed with grooves and cracks, and the low-lying areas were covered with moss. From a distance, it looked like a huge, withered tree stump stuck in the ground.

In front of the boulder is a small pool, only a few feet in diameter. The clear, calm water is like a bright mirror, reflecting the colorful trees and flowers, creating a magnificent ink painting.

There is a gap at the edge of the pool, from which a small stream of spring water flows out, meandering into the distance.

This is a place the little girl often comes to; it's only a few dozen steps from her home, and she gets her drinking water and other water from here.

The little girl's grandfather often went out to make house calls, often leaving early and returning late. When she was little, he would take her with him if it was convenient, and if it wasn't, he would leave her with Zhang the blacksmith who lived closest to his home. After the little girl got a little older and was able to take care of herself, he left her alone at home most of the time.

Mo Yuming couldn't comprehend the loneliness of living alone without playmates, and how much solitude his young heart had to endure.

Because this boulder is located on a high elevation, it offers a wide view. So, whenever Grandpa went out, the little girl would often sit on this boulder alone, gazing into the distance, hoping that Grandpa would appear on his way home.

Looking at the little girl with bright, sapphire-like eyes before him, Mo Yuming felt a pang of sorrow, a sense of shared experience welling up within him. Hadn't he, too, often stood at the village entrance, leaning against a big tree, waiting for his grandfather, the shepherd, to return home when he was little?

"grandfather?"

……

Mo Yuming suddenly felt dizzy, his head throbbed, and fragments of memory flashed through his mind, sometimes clear, sometimes blurry:

A blurry image of an old man in a black robe, wielding a large knife, flashed through his mind. There seemed to be some kind of mark embroidered on his clothes… a wolf? It was… an embroidered wolf head! A wolf head embroidered in white thread!

he?

……

He looks like the grandfather?

……

I think I also call him grandpa...

"what---"

Mo Yuming suddenly felt a sharp pain in the back of his head and couldn't help but cry out!

What's wrong with you!?

The little girl was startled by his shout.

"It's nothing!... I accidentally touched the wound on my hand... but it's fine now!"

Mo Yuming was jolted awake by the little girl's high-pitched scream. To avoid worrying her, he gritted his teeth and endured the excruciating pain. However, fine beads of sweat still covered his forehead.

"Oh, be careful from now on. Grandpa said that several bones in your arm are broken and it will take a month to heal!"

The little girl said with concern.

"I'll be more careful in the future, thank you!"

Mo Yuming glanced at the thick bark wrapped around his left arm and smiled slightly.

The figure that just appeared in my mind must be my grandfather, right? But why is there only a blurry image left, and I can't remember anything else?

And what about my current name? What should I be called in this world? Should I use my original Earth name? That would be fine, but what if the naming conventions here are different and arouse suspicion? I can't exactly say I'm from another planet, can I?

Sigh! I might as well pretend I've forgotten everything! Anyway, all I have left of my original memories is a blurry image.

"Little sister, you just said that many Homo sapiens live in Xianghe Valley. Is that valley bigger than Yishi Valley?"

Mo Yuming was eager to learn about this unknown and mysterious world in the shortest possible time, so he asked the little girl for information.

"It is larger, but it has little to do with the size of the grain. Grandpa said that the most important thing is that Xianghe Valley has a relatively flat terrain and there is a kind of rice tree that grows there. Each rice tree can produce thousands of grains of rice every year."

The little girl answered in a very serious tone.

Rice? Is it paddy rice? If it is paddy rice, then the yield here is too high. The best paddy rice plants on Earth only have three or four hundred grains per plant.

So, the rice yield here should be as high as four or five thousand catties per mu! Hmm? Something seems off. The little girl just said how many grains each plant can produce, not how many catties per mu. She's not a rice expert, so what's the use of studying how many grains each plant produces? It can't be that! Then why is that?

Mo Yuming pondered and felt something was amiss, but he didn't know how to ask.

The little girl, of course, had no idea what Mo Yuming was thinking, and then continued:

“When Grandpa goes to Xianghe Valley for medical treatment this time, he will definitely bring back some rice grains.”

"Only a few?"

Mo Yuming wondered if he had misheard. What use were a few grains of rice? To be used as seeds? But even if they were used as seeds, a few grains of rice were far too few. Rice is not a tree; no matter how well it grows, it's still just so-so.

Once the rice has headed and matured, the seedlings have reached the end of their life. They need to be sown again in the spring to start another cycle. How many years will it take for a few seeds to be sown and spread into fields?

"That's quite a lot. It's good to get a few grains of rice from just one doctor's visit. It's enough for my grandpa and me to eat for several days!"

When the young girl saw that Mo Yuming thought it was too little, she quickly explained. But her explanation only confused Mo Yuming more.

This time he heard correctly; the little girl was indeed talking about a few grains of rice. A few grains of rice could feed the two of them for about ten days! One grain could feed a person for several days! What kind of rice is this? Yu Ming was a little confused.

"Is the rice delicious?"

Mo Yuming asked curiously, "This old man always brings back a few grains of rice every time he goes out to make a house call. It seems that these grains of rice must be extraordinary."

"Of course it's delicious! Haven't you already eaten it? The porridge I made for you earlier was made with the last half grain of rice we had at home. Didn't you taste the flavor?"

"...Hehe...It's okay, if Grandpa can bring back some millet today, I'll cook rice for you, and I promise you'll eat your fill!"

Mo Yuming didn't know what to say. He just hoped that his grandfather could come back soon so that he could see the beauty of this mysterious rice.

"Why don't the people living in Yishi Valley grow their own rice? Don't they know how?"

Mo Yuming was very curious. If rice was so magical, why didn't they grow it themselves?

"No, Grandpa tried before, but he didn't succeed. As long as you cross that small hill in the canyon, the rice tree won't grow. After many trials, Grandpa finally discovered that the rice tree can only grow in Xianghe Valley!"

The young girl knew quite a lot and answered Mo Yuming's question without hesitation.

"Is something really that strange?"

"Of course! Otherwise, why would it be called Xianghe Valley?"

The little girl said in a pretentious manner.

Mo Yuming smiled slightly and said:

"Then why is this place called Yishi Valley? And what good things are there in the valley?"

"I'm not quite sure why this place is called Yishi Valley, but its unique feature must be these trees and flowers!"

Grandpa said that every tree, every blade of grass, and every flower here is unique; they can't be found anywhere else. Moreover, many of them are rare medicinal herbs and treasures.

The little girl thought for a moment and then answered.

"Oh! What about Rimu Valley? Is there anything unique about it?"

Mo Yuming couldn't help but ask again.

"Yes, the trees there are exceptionally tall and thick, and the forests are filled with all sorts of exotic flowers and rare herbs. It's a paradise for wild animals, except that there are many magical beasts there!"

"Warcraft? Really? Are they powerful?"

Mo Yuming became interested as soon as he heard about magical beasts. His intense curiosity made him extremely excited, and he couldn't wait to catch one, no, a whole group of them, to see what they looked like and what was so special about them.

I've raised all sorts of animals on Earth, but I've never raised a magical beast, and I don't know what the fun is in raising one.

"Magical beasts are very powerful. Many magical beasts can unleash powerful magic. Unlike spirit beasts, magical beasts are naturally hostile to humans, so they pose a great threat to us!"

The little girl said in a mysterious tone.

"You can use magic? What kind of magic?"

Mo Yuming's jaw dropped once again. Magic! Spells! This is World of Warcraft! Mo Yuming was inexplicably excited, completely ignoring the danger the little girl had mentioned. His mind was filled with the magical effects and thrilling fight scenes from fantasy movies.

"I don't know either, but Grandpa said that every magical beast seems to have magic, and their magic is all different!"

The little girl said earnestly.

"Are magical beasts powerful? Are they as powerful as tigers?" Mo Yuming asked.

"Some are powerful, some are not so powerful. Tiger? Grandpa seemed to have said that there was a magical beast called the Golden-Winged White Tiger that was very powerful. Not only was its magic power extremely strong, but it could also fly like a bird."

There's another kind called the Black Fiend Tiger, which is also incredibly powerful. It's completely black, extremely fast, and can spew out black, poisonous fiendish energy. I don't know of any other kinds of tigers!

The girl scratched her head and said.

Does Grandpa often make house calls?

Mo Yuming didn't know what to ask. He just felt that everything was too mysterious. There were many kinds of beasts in this world, and there were also distinctions between spirit beasts, wild beasts, and magical beasts. There seemed to be some differences between them, and the division between them must not be so simple.

He didn't know how to ask, so he simply changed the subject and asked casually.

"No, it's just that I've been making more house calls lately, sometimes for several days at a time. Grandpa said that a powerful monster has appeared in Xianghe Valley and often harms the children there."

That monster can fly and runs very fast; many people can't handle it. That's why Grandpa often has to go there to treat the wounded.

……

"Come quick, there's another big mushroom here!"

The lively and active little girl could sit on the big rock for less than fifteen minutes before she grabbed Mo Yuming's hand and ran ahead to pick mushrooms in the flower bushes.

As Mo Yuming was searching for mushrooms with the little girl, a slightly hoarse voice sounded behind him.

"You're so inconsiderate! Your little brother's injury hasn't healed yet, and you're already taking him out for a walk. What if he gets hurt again? You should rest at home more to avoid aggravating the wound!"

"grandfather!"

The little girl tossed the few mushrooms she had just picked into Mo Yuming's arms and pounced on him, hugging his feet and acting all cute.

Hello, Grandpa!

Mo Yuming called out with deep gratitude.

"Alright, alright, little girl, stop fooling around. Go back with your older brother. I told you to take good care of him and not to move around, but instead you're leading him all over the mountain!" the old man said, feigning anger.

"Don't blame your sister, I just wanted to come out because I was feeling bored!"

Seeing that his grandfather was blaming the little girl, Mo Yuming quickly explained.

"Your injuries are quite severe, and you should not go out for the time being!" the old man said to Mo Yuming.

"...Yes! I'll be careful!"

Mo Yuming nodded.

"Girl, here, take this and we'll have millet rice for dinner tonight!"

Grandpa Mo smiled and took out a bright yellow object from his pocket and handed it to the little girl.