Disaster Apocalypse: Farming, Family, and My Hidden Secret Space-Chapter 67. Surprise

"Is this also from the space?"

"Yes, it’s called a sweet orange, very sweet and delicious. Grandpa, do we have this fruit here?" Jin’er asked curiously.

Old Hua shook his head, but mentioned he had vaguely seen something similar outside the shops that rich people frequented, though those were much larger and not as fresh as this one.

Jin’er wasn’t too disappointed, as oranges are originally southern fruits, and it’s normal not to have them here.

She then took out a couple more and placed them in her small satchel to save for her mother, brother, and little brothers.

As she was taking them out, she said to her grandpa and father, "Grandpa, Dad, don’t throw away the orange peels after eating. Give them to me, I want to put them back."

Even though the small sweet oranges in the fridge were the most abundant among the fruits, she was very careful with each one, making sure not to waste any of the peels.

"Okay," Old Hua and his son exchanged a glance and nodded; the child must have a reason for saying so, and since she didn’t explain, they didn’t ask.

Remembering the moment when the girl disappeared on the mountain, Hua Chengtian realized that the child had entered the space. His previously worried heart finally found peace, no longer fearing that the girl would vanish at any moment.

He was even grateful that his daughter had such a space. Otherwise... he couldn’t help but shiver at the thought of that wild boar.

... Wild boar...

Suddenly, Hua Chengtian realized something: they went up the mountain for the cotton, so... the cotton his daughter brought back yesterday might not have been from the mountain.

He thought so. He had been up Qinggu Mountain countless times since he was young and had never found cotton there. It must have been something his daughter took out from the space.

When he saw the cotton yesterday, he thought there was something unusual about it but couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was. Now he understood; it was too clean. On a mountain exposed to wind and sun, with so many animals around, how could it have remained so pure white?

Hua Chengtian turned to his daughter, "So the cotton was taken out from the space by you."

"There’s no doubt you’re my smartest dad. You figured it out without much effort," Jin Chong smiled cheekily at her father, praising him without hesitation.

But she didn’t forget that if it weren’t for the cotton, her dad wouldn’t have gone up the mountain with her, they wouldn’t have stayed long, and they wouldn’t have encountered the wild boar, averting any danger. Jin’er felt rather guilty about this.

Old Hua also realized what had happened. He pointed at his granddaughter, finally summarizing his feelings in two words: "You rascal!"

But the granddaughter was not wrong; she was just too filial, wanting to share the good things she discovered with her family, to keep them from being cold or suffering.

Moreover, the child had thought it through; she attributed the discovery of cotton to the mountain.

In the end, wasn’t it his own greed, hoping that if the seeds weren’t just seeds, they could find that spot and continue to harvest next year?

Luckily, his son and grandchildren were okay, or else he’d feel like dying.

"Grandpa..." Jin’er, while acting cute, suddenly had a new idea.

Coarse salt had always been a concern for her, and she hadn’t found the chance to purify it. Thinking of this, the space’s exposure wasn’t such a bad thing; the refined salt in the space could finally have a plausible source, and the purifying process could be put on the agenda.

Thinking of it, Jin’er couldn’t wait any longer.

"Grandpa, look at this," Jin’er no longer hesitated, revealing a packet of salt.

Within this short moment, the granddaughter had already performed her floating object transformation technique several times in front of them. But each time, Old Hua was still taken aback. He passed the bow and crossbow to his son and carefully examined what his granddaughter handed him.

Wrapped in some peculiar paper, the paper felt very tough and smooth, covered with many words. But with Old Hua’s limited literacy, he could only make out the largest character, which seemed to be "salt."

Feeling the fine texture of the paper bag, Old Hua’s heart trembled—could it really be salt, just as he thought?

He felt some hesitation. How could salt be this fine?

"What is this?" Old Hua couldn’t help but ask.

"Grandpa, take a guess?" Jin’er responded with a cunning smile, teasing him.

"Could it be salt?" Old Hua said uncertainly.

"Grandpa, drop the ’could be,’ it’s salt," Jin’er took the salt from her grandfather and tore open the sealed area. "Grandpa, hold out your hand."

Old Hua eagerly extended his hand, understanding his granddaughter’s intention.

He wanted to see what the fine salt he was feeling really looked like.

Then, tiny, snow-white grains as pure as the cotton his granddaughter took out yesterday fell into his hand.

Seeing the impurity-free salt, Old Hua’s first thought was that it must be food for immortals; otherwise, how could it be so pure and completely different from their usual salt? Every grain seemed meticulously crafted.

Excitedly, he carefully picked one and put it in his mouth. It was salty, with a very pure, unadulterated saltiness.

Unlike their usual coarse salt, which was not only bitter but also astringent, yet despite this, they were always reluctant to eat it. They only used a bit every time. In his excitement, Old Hua took another pinch and placed it in his mouth.

Hua Chengtian, seeing his father’s excited expression, couldn’t resist either. He took a small pinch and put it in his mouth, his eyes widening.

This salt... is too good!

Jin’er didn’t speak but rather let the two elders slowly experience the difference in salt.

After calming down, Old Hua carefully poured the salt back into the salt bag. Such good stuff couldn’t be squandered. He looked at his granddaughter.

The child wouldn’t randomly take out salt; she must have a purpose.

"Jin’er, if you have any plans, just say them," Old Hua said, his eyes filled with the wisdom of years, looking at his granddaughter.

"Grandpa knows me best. I do have a plan," Jin’er responded with a bright smile, following the momentum.

"Grandpa, Dad, what if I say I can purify salt like this? Would you believe me?"

Jin’er said something that left Old Hua and Hua Chengtian unable to stay calm; their eyes filled with surprise and delight as they looked at Jin’er.

"Daughter, can you really purify salt as white as snow?" Hua Chengtian instantly became excited, holding his daughter’s hand, his arm trembling with excitement.

They knew that their daily coarse salt had substances harmful to the body, but it was indispensable; people couldn’t live without salt.

Without salt, there would be no strength; without strength, nothing could be done.

The refined salt that rich people ate was prohibitively expensive, utterly unaffordable. More importantly, even the supposedly high-quality refined salt couldn’t compare to the salt their daughter presented, especially in terms of color.

If his daughter could really purify such fine salt, they wouldn’t need to worry about consuming too much salt and burdening their bodies.

Thinking of this, Hua Chengtian couldn’t contain himself.

"Grandpa, Dad, I can."

"That’s great, that’s great. Come, let’s go now." Overwhelmed with excitement, they forgot all about testing the crossbow, pulling Jin’er towards the kitchen.

Recalling that they could gather the necessary tools for purification at home, Jin’er didn’t refuse. Helplessly smiling, she found herself being led to the front yard by her eager grandfather and father.

The crossbow in her father’s hand wasn’t put back into the space but left for him to hold. She thought, considering her father’s interest when he first saw the crossbow, he would probably study it later.

"Daughter, whatever you need, just say it, and Dad will gather it right away." Arriving at the front yard, Hua Chengtian anticipated her needs, preparing to guarantee it by pounding his chest.