Chapter 2231: Chapter 2206: Slice and Dice

Manbao then grabbed a knife and started chopping around, cutting two or three pieces from every cactus she spotted. She decided to collect a piece for the encyclopedia museum, give one to Teacher Mo or Doctor D, and hang the remaining piece on the forum.

Bai Shan followed behind with enthusiasm, occasionally suggesting things to cut or advising on where to chop.

Daji carried a medicine basket behind them, seeing them disregard the distinction between edible and inedible, even slicing a chunk from a round cactus only foot-high when they had just cut three pieces from a similar large round cactus nearby.

Manbao’s reasoning was sound, "Don’t be fooled by their similar appearance; they likely aren’t from the same family. Even if they are, there are differences between adults and juveniles. Just look at the wheat and rice we plant, every year we select the best batch from the same plot for seeds. Clearly, they come from the same family, yet some grow well while others don’t, and their offspring differ too, showing those variances."

Daji didn’t quite understand, "But Miss Man, what’s the use of these things?"

Manbao replied with a solemn expression, "There’s nothing useless in this world. I suspect these things are poisonous."

Daji’s pupils constricted, almost tossing away the medicine basket.

Manbao reassured him, "Don’t worry, you haven’t eaten it nor been pricked by it, so what’s there to fear?"

Daji exhaled in relief and asked, "If they’re poisonous, why are we studying them?"

Manbao replied, "It depends on how they’re used; though toxic, they may have other uses. I want to see if they possess anesthetic or pain-relieving properties."

Daji looked at the items differently now.

Manbao finally chopped a whole basketful, initially wanting to explore further into the Gobi, but since the basket was full, they regretfully headed back to the inn.

Even though they wore veils and covered their necks and limbs, they were still heavily sunburnt, arriving back at the inn with flushed skin.

Yin Huo hadn’t returned yet; clearly, he intended to stay by the lake during the hottest part of the day, waiting until the sun became less intense before coming back.

Only the remaining guards, the cook, and two helpers were in the courtyard. Seeing them return, they quickly stepped forward, leading the horses away and carrying their belongings.

The cook was surprised to see the basketful of green cacti, "These..."

Manbao instructed Daji, "Take it to the attic for me; I’ll handle it later."

Daji agreed.

Sister-in-law He didn’t ask further.

The two helpers, not very fluent in the language, stood aside and didn’t speak. Manbao used local dialect to ask them, "Do you know anything about the cacti on the Gobi?"

They blinked, glanced at the items Daji was carrying, and gestured to Manbao, "Those are round cacti and flat cacti, they’re poisonous, but some can be eaten."

Manbao’s eyes lit up, she asked, "Can you distinguish which ones are edible and which ones aren’t?"

One nodded, indicating, "The tender ones are edible, the older ones aren’t."

The other disagreed, "No, tender ones can also be poisonous; the ones with very yellow tops can’t be eaten, the ones that aren’t as yellow can."

The two of them started to argue.

Manbao paused for a moment, thinking that their description was too abstract and seemed chaotic. Isn’t it risky not to eat correctly?

The two helpers said it was normal to eat incorrectly but added, "If you eat the wrong one, it doesn’t matter; you’ll just see devils or fairies, and you’ll be fine once you wake up."

"Those without evil will wake up; those with deep-seated evil won’t make it."

Manbao and Bai Shan: "..."

The two of them were speechless for a long time, finally finding their voices to tell the helpers to rest.

Sister-in-law He boiled water for them hesitantly asking, "Miss, should I brew some tea?"

"No need, we don’t drink tea." Manbao decided to drink plain water.

Bai Shan, however, took the teapot, "I’ll brew some."

He turned to Manbao, "It’s too hot; let’s have some tea. I know the teacher has a stash of black tea that’s not bitter, with a rich aroma, let’s have some."

"You know where it is?"

"Yes, the trunk is still in my room; wait here."

So the two went upstairs quickly, Manbao remembering halfway and poking her head out to say, "Bring up a plate of melon too."

Sister-in-law He responded with a smile.

Bai Shan brewed the tea while Manbao carried the delivered fruit platter upstairs.

The attic was empty; its purpose was to store valuables for guests staying there, as access required passing by all room entrances.

But now it was vacant, with only the basket and a chopping board brought up by Daji in the center, along with two short knives as Manbao requested.

Bai Shan set the brewed tea on the wooden board, bent over, opened the window, and sat cross-legged on the wooden board, looking at Manbao, "How do we handle so much?"

Manbao rolled up her sleeves, "Let me ask."

Bai Shan sat with a solemn demeanor.

Manbao asked Keke in her mind, "How large should they be to be recorded?"

Keke seemed to have an insight, "About half the size of a fist; if from our world, just a small piece suffices for propagation, but primitive species might surprise us, hence the larger requirement."

Manbao was delighted, wrapped her hands in burlap, "Luckily we chopped big pieces."

She picked out a piece and said to Bai Shan, "Cut them to the size of half a fist."

Bai Shan nodded.

Manbao measured the round cactus she took out, then sliced off a piece, trying to keep the cut area small.

She looked at it in her hand, felt it was vibrant and juicy, and silently recorded it.

Bai Shan watched as the item vanished from her palm, his back straightened; he placed a cut piece respectfully in the middle and stared wide-eyed.

Manbao glanced at him, asked Keke, "Are these the same?"

Keke: "Different."

"Then record it."

To her, they all looked similar, while some that looked obviously different were actually the same species, which endlessly fascinated Manbao.

According to Keke, "They’re misshapen, but most of their genes remain unchanged; they’re the same species, albeit with a repeat record for reference. The second record is classified as differentiated, so point rewards will be minimal."

Manbao expressed understanding.

Bai Shan and Manbao cut quite a few pieces together, setting aside duplicates, already collected ones left aside, collectable ones recorded, then sliced out two more pieces from each, one for the forum, another for storage, planning to contact Teacher Mo and Doctor D at night to see if they were interested in receiving some.

Of course, Bai Shan didn’t know this; he only saw them place items in the middle and then they disappeared.

Some didn’t need cutting as Manbao said they were repeats, previously collected.

After they sorted through the basket’s contents, gave Uncle Zhou his share, and turned around to find they still had plenty left.