Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Zhang Zian and Snowy approached the stall. Snowy then pointed at the items sold in the booth and asked, “What is this for?”
The items sold in the stall were all very simple. There were a few small, plastic storage boxes with their lids stacked on top of each other to the side. Each storage box was filled with half a box of seawater. From glancing over the boxes, there seemed to be more than a dozen different types of marine life swimming. Most of the other stalls were selling creatures of the same kinds.
Zhang Zian gave it some thought and understood what was going on. “If I’m not wrong, this is not the stall owner’s profession,” he explained. “She’s just here to sell the creatures she caught in her wild harvest during her free time out in the sea.”
“Wild harvest?” Snowy did not understand him.
The audience in the broadcast channel did not understand him, either.
“Wild harvest… what? I’ve only heard of field operations in the wild…” one mentioned.
“I’ve only heard of jungling for neutral creeps…” another said.
“I’ve only heard of going on a wild hunt…”
Zhang Zian further explained. “Wild harvest, just like what its name suggests, is when you go out in the wild to collect plants and animals as a harvest. In fact, most of you here have gone on a wild harvest before, right? For example, when you were younger, you headed out to play and caught some butterflies, grasshoppers, or crickets. Generally speaking, that is considered a wild harvest, too. However, the term wild harvest is now commonly known for wild harvest activities by a river or the sea, also known as ‘hand gathering.’”
“So I have unknowingly participated in such an upper-class activity?” someone watching the broadcast asked.
“If I had known about this earlier, I would have told my parents that I’m on a wild harvest when I went out to play during my younger days. That would’ve saved me from so many beatings…”
“Don’t. You might confuse them and end up with a double beating!”
A wild harvest was a way of returning to nature. It was a mixture of an outing in nature and short-distance travel. It was trending among fishermen.
Life was just like a box of chocolates, and the sea, too, was also like a box of chocolates. One would never know what the sea would wash up on shore each day. That was also the fun in a wild harvest or a hand gathering. Collecting shells, crabs, and starfish was also considered a wild harvest, and occasionally, there would be unexpected surprises. But strictly speaking, going on a wild harvest meant that one was taking the initiative to go out in the wild for a harvest––they had a clear objective.
Most of the audience listening to Snowy’s broadcast channel were locals of Binhai City, and they were deeply attracted to the term “wild harvest.” Soon, they started to call on their friends to organize a wild harvest and hold an offline meeting over the weekends.
Zhang Zian hurriedly persuaded them to stop. “Hold an offline meeting if you want, but don’t be so gullible. Do you all think that it’s very easy to go on a wild harvest? Just all you lazy people with weak limbs and lacking exercise… it’s better if all of you just remain in the city!”
A single word from him invoked 1,000 waves. All the netizens in the broadcast channel expressed their unhappiness.
“What’s so hard about a wild harvest? Isn’t it just picking up shells that we see?”
“Manager Weak Bird is being pretentious again!”
“Hehe, picking up whatever you see… that’s not called a wild harvest, it’s just a blind bird picking!” Zhang Zian mocked. “Do you all think that you can just pick up whatever you see? Let me tell you, sometimes dangerous creatures are washed ashore, and if you were to pick them up, you better prepare to turn into a corpse in the hospital!”
Zhang Zian knew the netizens well––those that were fond of watching live streams were normally those that remained cooped up in their house. It was precisely because they were too lazy to move that they loved watching Snowy’s outdoor live broadcast. Watching her was just like an excursion around Binhai City without leaving their home––it didn’t cost any money, they didn’t get exhausted, and they still got to enjoy the fun.
Some marine creatures were dangerous. Usually, they were hidden in the sea and would not harm anyone, but it was a different matter once they were washed ashore.
The regular person would not have the knowledge to identify such dangerous creatures, often confusing them with the other ordinary marine life. The more dangerous it was, the more attractive it was. If a regular person were to reach out and pick it up without knowing the consequences, then it would bring them lethal danger.
Similar things could often be seen on the internet. For example, a certain someone sometimes picked up an octopus by the beach and it turned out to be a blue-ringed octopus, or another person sometimes picked up a jellyfish by the beach, which ended up being a Portuguese man o’ war. The result of the two was definitely a tragedy––it was just like going to the wilderness in the mountains and gathering poisonous mushrooms, then drinking the stew made from it… Then, death.
Even if people had no intention of picking them up, sometimes they just accidentally stepped on a stingray that was hiding under the sand and got stung by the poisonous sting on their tail. So, going on a wild harvest wasn’t exactly like an outing or a trip through nature. It was necessary to have the knowledge on commonly seen dangerous creatures so they could know their appearance and habits.
Being carried away in the heat of the moment, the netizens on the broadcast channel were all planning to go on a wild harvest, and if anything were to happen, Zhang Zian did not want to be held responsible for instigating them.
Fortunately, the netizens were just carried away in the moment. Once they heard the severe consequences from Zhang Zian, they all decided to pull out of their wild harvest ideas. But the offline meeting would still be held––who knows if they could meet a pretty girl!
After he succeeded in persuading the netizens, Zian looked at the stall owner who was being surrounded and verbally attacked by a group of adults. The stall owner was a young lady who was quite tanned. She looked quite muscular, and her skin had a healthy glow. She looked like someone who loved outdoor activities, standing out from the current trend of people from the younger generations that remained in their own houses.
The middle-aged woman was holding her child’s hand while holding on to a lunch box in her other hand. She was very emotional as she pointed at the stall owner and cried out, “Everyone, listen to this––what do you think you’re doing? Selling such a dangerous thing to my child! Are you plotting a murder intentionally? You want my child’s life? We don’t have any grudges between us, so why are you trying to harm us? If we didn’t meet a knowledgeable friend, my son could have…”
The surrounding onlookers all looked serious as they spoke out in favor of the woman.
“That’s right! Such a dangerous thing… How could you just sell it off like that?”
“Are you that crazy about earning money? Going so far to sell this to a child who doesn’t even know anything?”
“So young, and you’re not attending school properly! Coming out here to set up a booth, selling such dangerous things to the children… You will end up in jail if anything were to happen, you know?”
“This is really… Cough! Fortunately, it was discovered early by someone knowledgeable, or else two families would have to suffer!”
“What are you doing just standing there? Quickly apologize! Do you want to make it a big thing?”
Everyone standing around said a sentence each. There was saliva flying everywhere, and the young girl who was surrounded by them was completely terrified. Her face was pale with fright, and she couldn’t say a single word. She didn’t even dare to wipe off the saliva stain on her face, and tears were welling up in her eyes.
After a long time, she squeezed out a sentence. “I’m… I’m sorry. I apologize… I’m really sorry…” Her voice was very soft.
Because her precious child almost lost his life for nothing, the middle-aged woman was very angry. The young lady’s apology did not seem sincere to her.
“You’re sorry?” she said while gritting her teeth. “This is your apology? Hehe! I don’t accept your apology! I’m going to call the police! If there’s anything to say, say it to the police!”
The middle-aged woman was not just threatening her––she really took out her phone and intended to call the police.
