CHAPTER 58: CHAPTER 58: DIGGING POTATOES IN THE BEAST WORLD

Lin Muyu’s eyes lit up more and more as she listened to Su Qinglan explain. The thought of tasting something new made her chest stir with excitement.

But soon, their movements caught attention.

From a little distance, the other females who had been laughing and playing noticed them crouched in the dirt. Curious, they came walking over.

One of them tilted her head. "What are you two doing? Playing in the mud?"

Lin Muyu rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Who’s playing? We’re finding food. Qinglan said these can be eaten."

With that, she bent down and started digging again, pulling out another potato as proof.

The others blinked in surprise, and then their gazes fell on the pile of dirt-covered tubers at Su Qinglan’s side.

"Eh? These... these can be eaten?"

Su Qinglan gave a calm nod and brushed soil from the potato. "En. You can roast them, boil them, or fry them. They may not look special now, but once cooked, they taste very good. You’ll know once you try."

The females’ eyes lit up instantly. After last night’s roasted meat, they already trusted Su Qinglan without question. If she said it was delicious, then it must be delicious.

They exchanged looks, and one of them clapped her hands. "Then we’ll help dig too!"

Soon, everyone starts digging for the potatoes.

It was hard work, because the soil was stubborn, and their fingers soon turned brown with dirt, but not a single one backed down. The thought of new food was enough to give them strength.

Laughter and chatter filled the clearing as they pulled potato after potato from the ground.

By the time Su Qinglan finally straightened her back, she was stunned.

The whole patch had been dug bare. The earth was overturned everywhere, and beside them lay a mountain of potatoes.

At a glance, it was at least fifteen kilograms.

Su Qinglan’s lips twitched. There was no way she could carry all of this in her hands, and the small hides they used as bags wouldn’t work either. They couldn’t hold much, and they would be ruined by the dirt.

She frowned slightly, then let her gaze sweep the forest.

Her eyes stopped on a cluster of thick vines hanging from a tree.

An idea struck her.

Walking over, she pulled the vines down and began working them with her hands. Her fingers moved quickly, twisting, looping, and tying them into a simple but sturdy pattern.

The females gathered around her curiously.

"What are you making?"

"Why are you tying those together?"

Su Qinglan didn’t answer right away. She kept weaving steadily, her movements practiced and sure. In her past life, during the apocalypse, she had made things like this countless times. With no containers, no tools, she had been forced to use whatever nature offered.

Soon, under their wide-eyed stares, a strong vine basket took shape in her hands.

Gasps echoed around her.

"So fast!"

"It looks like... like something to hold things?"

Su Qinglan smiled faintly and set it on the ground. "A basket. Now, instead of carrying potatoes in our arms, we can put them inside."

The females let out sounds of awe as Su Qinglan began loading the potatoes in. They crowded closer to her, chattering nonstop.

"Qinglan, how did you make it?"

"Can you teach us?"

"With this, we can carry so much more back!"

Su Qinglan only gave a small nod, her hands moving calmly as she filled the basket. But inside, she was secretly pleased.

Not long after, a few beastmen who had been protecting them from a distance finally walked over.

They had noticed the commotion, and when their eyes fell on the pile of potatoes and the strange basket woven from vines, their expressions shifted to surprise.

One of them crouched down, touching the basket carefully. His voice carried a hint of awe. "This... this is made from vines?"

Another glanced at the females, who were still buzzing with excitement, their eyes shining as if they had just discovered treasure.

Su Qinglan saw their curious faces and chuckled softly. "Alright. Let’s sit for a while. I’ll teach you all how to make a basket like this."

Her words drew instant agreement. The females quickly sat down in a circle, while even the beastmen lowered themselves to the ground to join.

Su Qinglan pulled more vines from the trees and laid them out on the ground. She held one up and said patiently, "First, you have to strip away the rough edges; otherwise, it will hurt your hands. Like this."

She used her fingers to peel off the outer skin of the vine, then bent it slightly. It bent smoothly without breaking. "See? You need soft and flexible ones."

Everyone leaned closer, watching carefully.

"Next, you take three vines, cross them, and twist them like this," Su Qinglan continued. Her fingers moved quickly, weaving the first layers together. "The bottom must be tight, or the basket won’t hold things properly."

The females gasped at how her hands seemed to dance. "So fast...!"

Lin Muyu frowned in concentration and picked up her own set of vines. "I’ll try!" She copied Su Qinglan’s movements, twisting them clumsily. After a few tries, her vines slipped apart, and she puffed her cheeks in frustration.

One of the beastmen chuckled, his deep voice amused. "Looks easier when Qinglan does it." He tried as well, his large fingers moving stiffly. The vines snapped with a sharp crack. His ears reddened slightly, and the others laughed at him.

Su Qinglan smiled faintly, "It takes practice. If the vines break, it means you chose ones that were too dry. Pick softer ones and try again."

Encouraged by her, they start searching for better vines.

Some females managed to shape small, crooked circles, while others tangled their vines into messy knots. The beastmen tried too, though their baskets looked more like bird nests than anything usable.

Su Qinglan corrected them patiently. She guided Lin Muyu’s hands, showing her where to tighten and where to loosen. She helped a young beastman redo the base until it held firm.

Bit by bit, the piles of vines turned into rough, uneven baskets.

They were far from perfect, but when the first one was finished, the female holding it shouted in joy, "I made it!"