Rebirth in the 50s: The Couple with the Hidden Space-Chapter 356 - 271: Zhou Jiao Goes Up the Mountain

Zhou Jiao had always listened to Zhang Guoqing describe Daqing Mountain multiple times, and she was especially intrigued by the mysterious forest he mentioned—the one with unusual temperatures. She had long wanted to explore that place, hoping to achieve several goals at once, including gathering some herbs.

The most important thing is that she now has the recipe for the sedative—a great item for robbery and thievery. She had wanted to see the effects it produced, wondering if it was as described in martial arts novels.

If her dream could come true, then she would truly be an iconic heroine, Zhou Jiao. Don’t be fooled by Zhang Guoqing’s strength; with just a bit of the sedative, she could blow him over with ease. Not to mention, the forest was filled with meat. The more she thought about it, the more excited she became, imagining animals in the forest falling before her with a wave of her hand.

Zhang Guoqing and Mother Zhang came over and saw her already dressed in old clothes, neatly standing in the main room while waiting.

Upon seeing Mother Zhang, Zhou Jiao didn’t say anything, instead, just kept giggling foolishly.

Mother Zhang entered the main room, picked up the child from the kang bed, and, pretending to be impatient, waved at the two eager adventurers, laughing, "Go... go ahead. Be careful. Don’t go deep into the mountains. Remember to come back early."

Zhang Guoqing strapped on his backpack and led Zhou Jiao along the old North Mountain road. The couple avoided passersby and quietly reached the foot of Daqing Mountain. Standing at the foot, Zhang Guoqing crouched down to help her tie her legs securely and adjust her clothes. After a careful check, he found that there wasn’t much else to pay attention to, so he patted her on the head and said with a smile, "Let’s go!"

Heading north, Zhang Guoqing instructed her to hold onto his clothes. He carried a hatchet in his left hand and a few stones in his right hand as he led Zhou Jiao towards their target location.

The closer they got to the mysterious forest, the more excited Zhou Jiao became. The resources in Dashan exceeded her expectations, and she bit her lips tightly, watching wild chickens occasionally fly away from the thickets.

Seeing small animals fly and scatter, with more and more herbs on the ground, she grew impatient to keep moving, gripping Zhang Guoqing’s clothes tightly.

"What’s wrong, Jiao Jiao? We’re not far, we’ll be there soon," Zhang Guoqing immediately turned around to look around, thinking Zhou Jiao might have encountered something.

Zhou Jiao imitated him, looking around carefully before whispering, "Can we talk now? Let me gather some herbs first. Check for any danger here."

Zhang Guoqing nodded at her words, focusing his hearing. After a while, not detecting anything unusual, he removed his backpack and gave Zhou Jiao a look.

Understanding his signal, Zhou Jiao nodded. She immediately reached into her backpack for cover and took out a small shovel. After Zhang Guoqing’s repeated instructions, she dared not be careless with the use of space. No one knew when an accident might happen, so it’s better to be cautious to avoid it.

Zhou Jiao started picking anything she saw along the direction of the mysterious forest. She frolicked joyfully, while poor Zhang Guoqing remained vigilant, holding the stones tightly and keeping his eyes on their surroundings.

Even though Zhang Guoqing had visited this place multiple times and never felt anything amiss, with Zhou Jiao here now, his nerves were tense, fearing an accident.

They finally reached the small creek near the mysterious forest. Zhang Guoqing had always felt this was his blessed land.

At this moment, Zhang Guoqing asked Zhou Jiao to stop picking herbs and led her toward the creek. They stealthily approached the area.

A moment later, standing under a big tree, Zhang Guoqing looked at that treasure spot in astonishment. He hadn’t expected that his spontaneous idea to bring Jiao Jiao here for a walk, to pick some wild fruits, and check out the herbs would result in such a bounty. Truly, heaven had once again gifted Zhang Guoqing a surprise.

Inspecting the tree for any danger, Zhang Guoqing gently lifted Zhou Jiao up onto a tree branch, indicating the area in front of them.

Seeing her worriedly grab his clothes, trying to hold him back, Zhang Guoqing chuckled, shook his head to indicate that he was truly fine, and motioned for her to wait while he went on.

He took the bag full of stones and walked a few steps further, then turned back to glance at Zhou Jiao. Seeing they weren’t far apart and he could quickly reach her if anything happened, he felt reassured to walk a few more steps.

Finally finding a satisfactory position, Zhang Guoqing stopped, calculating the distance to the animals near the creek. He didn’t plan to go any farther; not having Zhou Jiao in his sight made him uneasy.

Carefully crouching down, Zhang Guoqing took out his bow and arrow, prepared the stones, and once everything was ready, he glanced at Zhou Jiao, aiming at a wild deer, and gently pulled the bow. With a plop, he didn’t pay much attention to the sound of its fall. He immediately grabbed stones, throwing them at the wild deer and roe deer scattering around.

At this moment, with his shower of stones, the animals that fell let out mournful cries, causing those that escaped to bolt away quickly. Unable to leave Zhou Jiao alone in the tree, he couldn’t stupidly chase them; he could only watch helplessly as the remaining animals scattered everywhere, leaving behind a few fallen wild deer and other animals.

"Haha... Jiao Jiao, we encountered a herd of wild deer. Last time, I caught several and didn’t expect them to appear again. This is my treasure spot. When luck comes, nothing can stop it." Without bothering to look at the fallen deer, Zhang Guoqing ran to the big tree and lifted Zhou Jiao down, speaking excitedly.

"Quick, clean them up. Be careful of the smell of blood." Zhou Jiao nudged him forward, afraid to look at the fallen deer. The earlier frenzy reminded her of the brutal reality of survival of the fittest. Strength is paramount; those who run fastest survive unscathed. The lone standout dies the quickest.

Animals are like that, and humans are no different. Therefore, one must be low-key and store power. She aspired to be a hunter like Zhang Guoqing, stepping out of the circle of the game to observe the chessboard.

Carrying her to the creekside, Zhang Guoqing patted her, laughing, "Don’t be afraid, a little cleaning will make it less scary. Look at the plentiful grass by the creek; you can continue playing." After speaking, Zhang Guoqing let her stay in a safe place to gather herbs while he quickly dragged a few deer and other animals to the creek to process them.

Without much processing, he swiftly removed the unwanted entrails, cleaned them, and placed them in the bushes.

Listening to his words about letting her continue to play, Zhou Jiao immediately laughed with joy. She wasn’t a child anymore.

At this time, seeing the creek water gently flowing and the clear water revealing many fish inside, she couldn’t care about gathering herbs, finding a dried tree branch cautiously stirring the creek—concerned that the crocodiles or monster fish from novels would suddenly appear and come upon her.

After swiftly finishing the cleaning, Zhang Guoqing looked around again, noticing no abnormal movements. He quickly dragged the cleaned animals to the concealed spot in the bushes, asking Zhou Jiao to store them in space. Hunters occasionally appear on the mountain, and although he trusted his vision and hearing, cautious prevention never goes wrong.

With the task completed, Zhang Guoqing picked up his backpack, lifted Zhou Jiao, and immediately ran away from the creek. After the cleaning, the creek had become risky and definitely wasn’t a place to linger.

On the way, Zhang Guoqing carried Zhou Jiao to a wild fruit tree he’d taken note of previously. At this moment, he let out a sigh of relief.

He realized that bringing Jiao Jiao here was a mistake. Besides the convenience of using space, his heart had been beating wildly, pounding heavily against his chest so loudly that even he could hear it, not to mention the constant tension he’d been under.

This time was more exhausting than any previous ones. But when he turned to see Zhou Jiao bouncing and picking fruits under the tree, Zhang Guoqing’s lips curled into a silly smile. Seeing her happiness made him feel this outing was the best idea after all.

With his nerves calmed, Zhang Guoqing accompanied Zhou Jiao in her frolicking, picking wild fruits, gathering chestnuts, listening to her directing him to chop dried trees, and collecting firewood. Watching her beam with joy and letting go of her reservations, Zhang Guoqing fulfilled Zhou Jiao’s every demand throughout the day, making her happy and fulfilling her without regrets.

The joyous time passed remarkably quickly; in a blink of an eye, evening had arrived, and Zhang Guoqing saw that Zhou Jiao was finally satisfied. He carried the wild chicken they’d caught and led her down from the mountain.

Nearing the foot, Zhang Guoqing took a wild deer from the space and carried it on his back, leading the cheerfully Zhou Jiao as they returned home laughing—yes, home, their family of three’s home. This home held tremendous significance for Zhang Guoqing. It was his root, the future root for generations!