Ai Li took a light sip of the floral tea, faintly sweet. He really liked these flower teas—they quenched thirst and tasted far better than plain boiled water. Back when the red-fruit trees in Qi Ze City were blooming, he had collected many fresh blossoms to dry and brew. Unfortunately, ever since the outer wall was completed, going in and out of the tribe had become troublesome. Ai Li hadn’t stepped beyond the plains in months.

“Did you come looking for me for something?” Lang Yan poured himself a cup as well before finally asking.

Ai Li took out a small booklet from the cloth pouch at his waist. Drawings of various medicinal plants filled its pages—not many, only about a dozen—but each illustration was detailed and even colored, making the herbs instantly recognizable. Next to each drawing were notes in small handwriting, explaining the plants’ main effects. Unfortunately, Ai Li had never had time to properly study reading and writing, so he couldn’t understand any of it.

He opened the booklet and pointed to several herbs—heatgrass, wild ginseng—plants that Qi Ze City had few of, and with very limited seed reserves.

Puzzled, Lang Yan followed the direction of his finger. Before he could ask what Ai Li meant, Ai Li got straight to the point, “I’ve been helping tend the crops out on the wasteland for several months now. You know these plants only grow from seeds. They’re hard to find. If our tribe could grow some ourselves, then when people get hurt or sick, we wouldn’t have to worry anymore.”

Lang Yan lifted his head, studying Ai Li’s serious expression. “You mean… you want Qi Ze City to give us some seeds to take back and plant? But it’s nearly winter. Isn’t it already past planting season?”

“Have you been to the greenhouse in the past few days? When it was first finished, they tested it—it can keep the room within a stable temperature range. That’s also why people in Qi Ze City want to raise animals there. We can’t build something like that right now, but growing a few plants indoors is still possible. I’ve learned a lot about planting these past weeks. If it works, we can harvest a batch of seeds before next summer. Then we’ll have enough time to grow two full rounds of crops during summer.”

“There aren’t many of these seeds, though, are they? I heard Axiang didn’t bring anything to trade this time. What can we exchange for them?”

Lang Yan frowned lightly, hesitating. Qi Ze City probably didn’t lack anything their tribe could offer now.

“It’s not a trade.” Ai Li shook his head. “These seeds—they’re all kept by Chen Qi. He once prepared a portion of heatgrass to give to our tribe, but since they don’t grow many to begin with, the amount was small. If something like last time happens again—people falling ill with fever one after another—that bit of heatgrass won’t be enough.”

“I’ve heard,” he continued, “that to prevent accidents wiping out their crops, Chen Qi always sets aside some backup seeds. I’ve observed these past weeks—the survival rate of the new herbs is very good. After the first snow, before winter fully settles, a batch should mature. There’ll be no shortage of seeds then. So… the stored seeds Chen Qi set aside might as well be given to us first. And if he insists on a trade, I can bring whatever he wants next summer. We can treat this as receiving the goods in advance.”