Another year has passed and time has come to January.
Because of the cold wave that is gradually spreading in the northern part of the continent, this year has also been designated as the year of winter by the Sages.
Winter is gradually passing through the most difficult part. Although it is still cold, many places in the south are gradually getting warmer.
When walking in the mountains and forests outside the city, there are mostly withered and yellow grass roots underfoot, but near the roots of some trees, you can always see a few dark green and oily plants.
They have finely chopped and slightly thick leaves that seem to be able to withstand the cold and retain moisture.
Lorraine Hill did not wear armor today, but wore a black dress with white edges, walking in the mountains and fields.
Normally, she had to wear armor to hide her identity, but occasionally she wanted to run out for some air. It just so happened that she now needed to explore the environment around the city to see if there were any suitable minerals or places suitable for development.
The small leather shoes bounced lightly on the ground, and then he crossed the thorny bush, and Lorraine Hill landed lightly on a dark gray stone.
Silver hair fell slowly in the wind, and a few strands brushed against her ears, making the girl feel a slight itch. There was still a chill in the air, and a few small fruits like red beans under the trees in the distance came into her eyes.
The footsteps walked across the ground again, easily passing through stones and several roots. Lorraine Hill bent down and crouched down, looking at the plants in front of him.
Looks like I haven't seen it before.
She gently touched these small fruits with her fingers, and they trembled and swayed slightly on the twigs. The paper strips of the shrubs were not as soft as flowers and plants, and they would tremble and sway when the wind blew.
Pick a small fruit with your light-colored fingertips, simply wipe it clean, and then carefully peel it open to reveal the delicate seeds.
I carefully tried it on my tongue, and a sour and sweet taste came into my mind.
They were not very tasty. The girl looked at these small fruits.
Can it be improved? This kind of fruit seems to be relatively common in the local area. If it is improved well, it should become a good economic crop.
Many fruits in life are actually gradually improved. The original version is always somewhat unsatisfactory.
For example, banana seeds are very big in the original version, watermelons are also very small, and peaches are green and astringent. If you want to ask the girl why she knows this, it is because she saw the original peach when she was playing with her friends in the mountains when she was a child.
It's very small, the core is huge, and it's not tasty at all.
Recalling the scenes of his childhood in his mind, Lorraine Hill picked a lot of small fruits, put them in small bags and kept them before heading to other places.
The further you go to the top of the mountain, the more tall trees there are, perhaps because it is inaccessible and less felled.
Walking under these thick fir trees, this silver-haired figure flashed between the trees from time to time, like an elf in a fairy tale, his fingers gently brushing the trees in the forest, light and moving.
The trees in the mountains are mostly pine, tangerine and the like. Occasionally, fallen pine nuts can be seen among the grass and rocks on the ground. They are in perfect harmony with the surrounding fallen leaves and soil, and are very harmonious.
Compared with the bustling towns, the mountains in winter are very quiet, with few animals coming out and activities, and only a few birds chirping.
At some point, the silver-haired girl stopped and stood in front of a short tree.
This is
Lorraine Hill looked at this tree, which was quite different from the surrounding trees. He pressed his hand lightly on the trunk, and the small undulating ravines on the bark and the faint coolness came to his mind.
She closed her eyes and felt it for a moment, then searched for comparisons in the system, and then she knew its name.
A chokecherry tree is a bit strange. Shouldn't such a tree grow in tropical places?
But if there is only one plant, it may be a seed accidentally dropped by human activities many years ago.
Although there is a cherry in the name, the fruit of this tree is actually not very similar to a cherry. If we really want to compare it, it is similar to a pumpkin that has been reduced countless times. It is divided into eight ribs and its color changes from light green at first to vermilion when it matures.
to purple.
When Emenas was in second grade, the only time this plant was mentioned in class was because its fruit can be used to make a sleeping potion, which is very useful for some people with insomnia.
The price is quite expensive, because most of these products come from the Southern Islands, and it will cost a lot of money to purchase them from alchemy workshops on the mainland. And for some nobles, they really need this kind of medicine to help sleep and calm the nerves.
.
Because this is one of the few sleep medicines with minimal side effects.
With this thought in her mind, the girl tapped her chin with her fingers, then lowered her head and looked around. Finally, her eyes lit up and she found a seedling that had not yet grown up in a corner of a stone crevice.
Judging from the appearance of this seedling, it should be difficult for it to survive until spring. If it can grow up smoothly, there will not be just one chokecherry tree here.
Carefully taking the seedlings out of the grass, putting them into a cloth bag and putting them away, Lorraine Hill looked around and continued walking forward.
Passing through the sparse and cold mountain tops, walking through the humid lowlands covered with dense forests, and crossing the quiet rivers in winter, time gradually passed.
The sky gradually darkened.
Do you want to go back to eat? Lorraine Hill looked at the setting sun in the distance. The afterglow was separated by the roots of the trees, forming scattered light and shadow on the ground.
She still won’t go back. Although the chef in the mansion does a good job, she is a little tired of it. She will make something by herself today.
There happened to be no outsiders, so I could use the things in the storage space without any restrictions.
After a while, Lorraine Hill found a thick tree. The wide trunk just blocked the cold wind behind it, forming a small leeward harbor.
The breeze swirled and scattered the fallen leaves on the ground, and Lorraine Hill simply made a small fire pit.
Then some dry fallen leaves were ignited, emitting curling green smoke, and then burst into bright yellow flames, illuminating the surrounding area.
Sitting next to this small fire, Lorraine Hill looked at the swaying flames, added with branches and small wood.
The loose shrub branches are bent in the hands, the green bark is twisted, the pale wood is pulled out, and then it is picked up and placed on the fire to ignite. A trace of water vapor overflows from the fiber gaps of the shrub branches, and small bubbles pop out.
, making a slight sizzling sound.
After the bent part was burned off, the remaining part no longer had to worry about rebounding, and the girl put it into the fire.
The flame gradually grew larger, emitting warm heat, dyeing the surrounding environment orange. Lorraine Hill's eyes also reflected a faint light yellow color, like flames swaying in the water.
What should I eat? Lorraine Hill checked his storage space and put some ingredients on the fire. Among them were the taro he bought in the East, the mushrooms that he and Keti had not finished eating before (they had become dry goods),
The potatoes she grew in the forest, the Bingyan honey Yi Xue gave her, and the purple-shelled peanuts they gave her during Zhaoye Palace.
Sure enough, I still need some meat. Although I don’t have to worry about nutrition and development, it seems not good to be a vegetarian all the time.
With this in mind, she rummaged in the storage space for a while before she found a piece of dried bacon. Thinking about it carefully, it seemed that it was a gift from Niya.
That year she and Niya went to the grassland. When they were returning, Niya was afraid that she wouldn't be able to find anything to eat on the way. After all, the grassland was very big and there was very little food, so she gave her some bacon and bread.
Naturally, the pancakes had been finished long ago, but the bacon had been forgotten in the corner.
It shouldn't be broken. Lorraine Hill blinked and looked at the salted bacon on the stone plate. He poked it with his hand and felt the hardness.
Scanning the ingredients carefully with her senses, the girl was surprised that this piece of bacon was actually edible.
But even so, you still have to cut off the outer layer, which will be better.
Well, there's no need to add salt.
A small clay pot was placed next to the fire. Lorraine Hill put water into it, then cut the bacon into several pieces and added it to it, then added some spices such as peppercorns, and then moved his eyes aside.
of other foods.
You can put mushrooms and taro, they match perfectly. As for the purple shell peanuts, just bury them under the fire. When you finish eating, you can use them as snacks.
The same goes for honey. If you mix it with some water, it becomes a very sweet drink that goes well with rice.
Next to the small campfire, with the lid of the clay pot closed, Lorraine Hill sat aside, holding his head with both hands, quietly waiting for the dinner to be cooked.
The night is getting darker, and the occasional bird song can be heard from the black mountains in the distance.
The silver hair hung in front of her body, shining brightly in the firelight. The bubbles danced slightly, and a burst of fragrance slowly overflowed outwards along with the white air.
Carefully picking up the lid with slender hands, a pair of chopsticks reached into the jar, and then the white taro was pinched out.
In the bright yellow firelight, the taro cubes are steaming with white steam. They are gently rotated by the breeze to dissipate the heat, and then put into the mouth.
Still a little hot, the girl thought.
Then, a light, sweet and waxy flavor gradually melted away.
In the peaceful night, this silver-haired sage girl sat under the big tree, the bright yellow firelight swaying, and the time passed leisurely.
