The Joy of Carbs

"My Lord!" The moment Moqi Feng saw He Lingchuan, he rose immediately to his feet. His movement drew the gazes of the Bailong people, who lifted their heads one after another to look at He Lingchuan and Lu Qingbang. "Lingguang." At He Lingchuan's command, Lingguang leaped to the ground, gently feeling for Moqi Tong's pulse at the neck before inspecting his wounds. Finally, it gave He Lingchuan a slight shake of its head. "He passed away about half an hour ago. It was likely while he was still unconscious." At the very least, it had not been painful. Hearing those words, the surrounding Bailong women and children burst into tears once more. Showing proper respect for the dead, He Lingchuan bowed respectfully several times toward Moqi Tong's body, observing full propriety. Only then did He Lingchuan ask Moqi Feng, "Who speaks for the tribe now?" With both their old and young leaders slain in battle, the Bailong tribe was suddenly left without a helm. Moqi Feng looked around the gathering before leading over an elder with a grizzled beard. "This is my grand-uncle, Moqi Yao. Now that the young clan leader has passed, he is our most senior elder." He Lingchuan spoke at once. "Elder Moqi, might we step aside to speak?" "Of course, of course." Elder Moqi wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes and followed He Lingchuan away. Amid the weeping and wailing here, it was no place to discuss business. He was a man of vast experience and knew He Lingchuan wanted to talk about handling the aftermath. Once the four of them had walked more than a dozen zhang away and the noise had faded, He Lingchuan said gravely, "The ships brought food, fresh water, and medicine. I've already ordered men to unload and distribute them. It isn't fine dining, but it will at least fill empty stomachs. Elder Moqi, please organize your people to receive provisions as needed." Gathering so much food on such short notice was by no means a simple feat. Elder Moqi nodded repeatedly. "Island Master He has gone to great trouble." After two days of fierce fighting, the tribe's warriors were battered and bleeding, while the elderly, weak, women, and children were starving. They had discarded much of their baggage along their flight, and finding a bite to eat now would have been nearly impossible—there were nearly forty thousand souls here! The moment the battle ended, the harshest reality stared them in the face. Had it not been for Island Master He's foresight, where could they have found rations for forty thousand people? "A small matter," He Lingchuan said with a smile, glancing at Lu Qingbang. "Once we rest here for a short while, we must board the ships. The Ya Kingdom holds the entrance to the peninsula, and we cannot linger in Storm Bay for too long, lest unexpected trouble arises!" Storm Bay was not far from the border of Bailie. By land, it was only a march of several dozen li. Yet the Bailong could not make the crossing. Wulu's army had not fully retreated, and they were not yet out of danger. Their warriors were thoroughly exhausted from the prolonged battle, and the elderly and weak were starved and spent; how could they march any further? Elder Moqi instinctively looked at He Lingchuan. This Island Master He possessed ample troops, and escorting the Bailong people overland across the border should have been an easy task. However, that would incur pointless risks. Having no kinship or ties with them, why should he go to such lengths? Island Master He had already risked his neck to rescue the Bailong from the Ya Kingdom's army and had provided them with food and water. He had fulfilled his duty and shown supreme benevolence; how could they dare ask for more? Considering the Bailong tribe's present predicament, Elder Moqi made up his mind without hesitation. "We are truly imposing upon you, Island Master He!" Others treated them like the plague, shrinking back in dread. Even Bailie, despite receiving word from the Mou Kingdom, was less than eager to accept them into its borders. Only this Island Master He before them showed genuine warmth and welcome. It was truly charcoal delivered in the snow. With that thought, the gratitude in Elder Moqi's gaze deepened. Drawing one step closer to his goal, He Lingchuan was overjoyed inside, though his voice grew three parts more sincere. "It is my sincere wish, so where is the trouble? To speak plainly—and Brother Lu, please don't take offense—even if these forty thousand Bailong entered Bailie, the locals would likely struggle to accommodate them." Lu Qingbang could not help rubbing his nose. The Mou Kingdom's orders had arrived abruptly, and he had rushed out with troops to reinforce Moqi Tong. As for how forty thousand Bailong were to be settled once brought into Bailie, where they would eat, and where they would sleep—that was for the Lu family to arrange, and he had little say in it. Still, forty thousand was indeed a staggering number. Forty thousand mouths dropping in out of nowhere to be fed and sheltered would throw Bailie into utter chaos for a time. Knowing the Lu family as he did... he could only sigh inwardly. Elder Moqi smiled bitterly. "Indeed. Finding food and shelter for so many has racked our brains from the start." Back then, Moqi Song and his nephew Moqi Feng had set out with only a thousand-odd people, yet they had run themselves ragged just trying to feed their followers, eventually falling on hard times and heading to the Yangshan Archipelago to seek employment and labor. One could only imagine the agony Moqi Tong had endured trying to sustain forty thousand people! Now that the young clan leader was gone, the mere thought of this problem made the world seem utterly bleak to Elder Moqi. The fighting was over, but the tribe's crisis of survival remained. "With everyone putting their heads together, a way will be found," He Lingchuan consoled them. "Heaven never seals off every path. Enough talk for now; Elder Moqi, please go have something to eat first." The fleet from the Yangshan Archipelago began taking turns unloading supplies at Luting Beach. The emergency had developed abruptly, and the Island Master had demanded that Yangshan prepare vast quantities of food within a single day and load it onto ships bound for Storm Bay. Consequently, the options for food had been severely limited; anything requiring time-consuming processing was ruled out entirely. As a result, what the ships carried in greatest abundance were oats, sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, peanuts, taro, pumpkins, yams, and various legumes. These were all high in starch, deeply filling, easy to transport, durable in storage, and simple to cook. Boiled in salted water, they were ready to eat, and most of them did not even require bowls or utensils. Next came boiled eggs. The Bailong people received eggs of all sizes, from giant goose eggs down to grape-sized quail eggs. The Yangshan Archipelago had practically bought out Blade Harbor and the surrounding settlements of every poultry egg available. There was also aphid sugar, beloved by young and old alike. Pansi Island just happened to have a batch of finished sugar that had not yet been packaged for sale, so Ding Zuodong had commandeered it without a second thought. Aside from energy, what sugar brought was happiness. In addition, there were sturdy fruits such as apples, pears, and bananas, which traveled well. The Bailong people sat upon Luting Beach, washing down their first meal in two days with freshly boiled hot water. As they ate, tears streamed down the faces of many. They wept while devouring the food like starving beasts. Huang Zhao watched an eight-year-old boy wolf down two potatoes the size of goose eggs in under two minutes, his cheeks puffing out like a chipmunk hoarding nuts. Before he had even swallowed what was in his mouth, his little hand reached out to snatch a third potato. "No more!" Huang Zhao grabbed the child's small hand. "Drink some water in a bit, and your belly will burst!" The boy refused to give up, so Huang Zhao shoved a bright red wild apple into his hand. "This tastes better than potatoes." Though the wild apple was small, it was both tart and sweet, perfect for easing digestion and bloat. The Bailong people had never dreamed that this post-disaster meal would be far better than anything they had eaten over the past two months! Wandering through foreign lands by the tens of thousands, they could never count on finding food at any given time or place. Many of them had chewed on tree bark and grass roots just to leave an extra bite for their children. To eat their fill, to stuff their bellies with real, honest food—how long had it been since they had known the simple joy of carbs?