Qin Ziwen looked at the meat in Zhao Pu's hand and joked, "Doctor Zhao, is this meat safe to eat?"
Zhao Pu smiled helplessly, "From a medical perspective, this type of meat carries risks. We should boil it thoroughly in water, chop the meat before boiling, and remove any parasites or similar contaminants."
He paused, then added, "The main thing is the snake was still alive, not dead. If it had died, bacteria inside would multiply rapidly, like salmonella, anaerobic bacteria, along with endotoxins and cortisol triggered before death. Endotoxins can't be broken down even by high-temperature cooking."
Although the floodwaters had receded, the river remained swift, and the water level had risen considerably compared to before.
Following the residential complex's perimeter wall eastward, behind the complex, cars parked against the wall were scattered in disarray by the flood. Those with scratches were considered lightly damaged, while some had dents in doors and rear ends, many had shattered windows, and all were filled with standing water.
Only a few cars parked on higher ground had escaped unscathed.
But compared to the cars parked outside, the garage was the real disaster zone.
The accumulated water hadn't drained away with the receding flood but remained trapped inside the garage.
It looked like a "giant fish tank."
Huang Tao retrieved a gasoline-powered water pump from the property management office.
The blue water hose was laid into the water, with the other end aimed at the slope.
"Who has gasoline?" Huang Tao called out several times.
"I have some in my car, take it."
"My car has some too, sigh, probably won't need it anymore. Using it for pumping water counts as a contribution."
Many watching neighbors actively offered their gasoline.
In the crowd, Zhao Pu looked at the flooded garage and stepped forward to ask, "Do you need 95 or 92 octane gasoline?"
A property management staff member beside Huang Tao said, "92."
Zhao Pu nodded, "Perfect, my car has 92 octane gasoline."
With everyone chiming in, many neighbors came forward, freely donating gasoline from their cars, and soon they had gathered enough.
Huang Tao stepped forward, "Alright, I won't take this gasoline for free. No one knows if there are fish in this garage, so we'll distribute according to the proportion of gasoline each donated. We can't let people donate for nothing."
Zheng Yuan was the first to voice support, "Quite fair, I think it's acceptable."
Qin Ziwen said, "I think it's fine too."
Qin Ziwu looked strangely at him, "Big brother, we don't have a car."
Qin Ziwen laughed heartily, "I don't, but Zhao Pu and Deng Guang just donated."
Most watching neighbors expressed agreement, while the few with differing opinions were drowned out by the majority.
As the water pump started up, large amounts of water were pumped out, flowing into the nearby river.
Some residents whose cars were trapped in the garage actively helped by scooping water with basins.
But the garage was large, and after pumping for over an hour, the water level showed little noticeable decrease.
Qin Ziwen returned to his residence.
Arriving at the blacksmith shop, Li Tieshan was still forging the spearhead, which had now taken initial shape. He continuously swung the hammer, sending sparks flying everywhere.
After a round of hammering, he used tongs to place the spearhead into the furnace, pulled the bellows, and the coal in the furnace burst into dazzling red light as the temperature gradually rose.
After completing this stage, Li Tieshan wiped his sweat, "Master."
Qin Ziwen said, "You've worked hard."
"All within this humble one's duties."
Qin Ziwen took out the Powerful Animal Trap Blueprint obtained from last night's settlement and handed it to Li Tieshan, "Take a look. With this blueprint, can you forge this animal trap?"
Li Tieshan received the animal trap blueprint, holding it carefully with both hands as he examined it seriously.
He occasionally made surprised sounds.
"It's somewhat complex... but with the blueprint, I can attempt it."
"That's good. After finishing this spearhead, focus on making the animal trap first."
"Yes."
"About how much longer for this spearhead?"
"It will be completed tonight!" Li Tieshan patted his chest in assurance, then hesitated slightly, "But there's no suitable spear shaft. Does Master happen to have a spear shaft available?"
"Not currently, but what about this one?" Qin Ziwen took out the wooden clothes-drying rod.
Li Tieshan took the clothes-drying rod, bent it slightly, then swung it a couple of times.
He then shook his head, "Master, this might not be suitable. It's too short—a proper spear shaft should be at least two meters, especially for dealing with wild beasts. Too short and you're easily injured by the beast. This drying rod is only one and a half meters, the length isn't appropriate. Although it's made of wood, it lacks sufficient flexibility, it's somewhat 'brittle.' It might work for small to medium-sized beasts, but against large beasts, it could easily break."
"For spear shafts, the best choice is birch wood, followed by hickory, cudrania wood, oak, or vitex wood. If there's bamboo with good flexibility and quality, that can work too. Actually, a proper spear shaft requires special processing. From what this humble one knows, one method involves soaking it in tung oil, then air-drying it in shade for over a month. Such spear shafts are more resilient than ordinary wooden shafts and less prone to insect damage or decay."
Air-drying for over a month... that's such a long time.
The special processing method could be considered later, but finding suitable wood was feasible. With the wilderness rich in species, finding appropriate wood shouldn't be difficult.
Hearing this, Qin Ziwu ran back to the secondary bedroom and brought out the branch he had cut in the wilderness earlier.
"Do you think this one will work?"
At the time, he just thought this branch had the right thickness and was straight—rarely seeing such a "premium branch."
Li Tieshan took it and smiled, "Oh, this is vitex wood, perfect for making long weapon shafts. It's a bit curved here, but Master needn't worry, this humble one can straighten it by heating it with fire."
"Great, then use mine!" Qin Ziwu waved generously, contributing his precious long stick.
After making arrangements, Qin Ziwen was about to leave when Li Tieshan hesitated slightly and requested, "Master, if we want to speed up efficiency, could Martial Master perhaps assist? With help, this humble one could shorten the construction time."
Qin Ziwen said to Qin Ziwu, "Xiao Wu, help Master Li out."
Qin Ziwu laughed heartily, "Sure, I can learn some real skills from Master Li."
Although he'd never done blacksmithing before, he was somewhat interested in it.
This craft seemed quite fascinating.
After Qin Ziwu went forward to learn from Li Tieshan, Qin Ziwen left the blacksmith shop and went to the bathroom area, first taking out the solar panel.
It was a foldable solar panel with a 2x3 layout.
Normally it needed to be placed in open areas like the rooftop to absorb sunlight.
But putting the solar panel outside raised security concerns.
So he planned to install it inside his home, inspired by the farmland. According to conventional logic, growing crops requires sunlight.
But since the farmland could grow, it suggested the light above the expanded area might actually be sunlight.
The solar panel would most likely work.
He installed the solar panel on top of the bathroom area, spreading it out like putting a hat on the bathroom.
On the side of the panel, there was an electrical wire connected to a small machine for storing electricity.
As long as the solar panel worked properly, he wouldn't have to worry about his phone running out of power anymore.
......