"Splash..." He Pingsheng poured the two buckets of water from his carrying pole into the water vat.
The large water vat was only half full.
Today's five trips were complete.
He used the old pottery basin to scoop some water to wash his hands and face, then thoroughly cleaned the basin inside and out, before filling it halfway and taking it back to his room.
This half basin of water was for drinking, so he wouldn't have to go out if he got thirsty at night.
Returning to his room, He Pingsheng locked the door from the inside and then secured the door bolt.
Moonlight, like water, streamed into the room through the gaps in the window lattice, creating a dappled, dreamlike scene.
He Pingsheng flopped onto the bed and quickly fell asleep.
Early the next morning, a rapid gong sound came from outside!
Time to wake up!
He Pingsheng dragged his tired body up quickly, then grabbed his iron bowl and ran towards the kitchen.
Because it was mealtime.
One needed to eat a full breakfast to have the strength to work, didn't they?
Utility Disciples walked out of their respective rooms one by one, heading towards the dining hall in front.
Over twenty people, a chaotic group.
Zhang Laoda, still bare-chested but wearing dark red pants, called out names one by one after seeing everyone assembled. After the roll call, he said, "Mealtime... Old Bao, give this kid more meat. Make sure he eats his fill... Otherwise, he won't have the strength to carry water!"
He wasn't pitying He Pingsheng; rather, Zhang Laoda deeply understood the difficulty of carrying water.
He Pingsheng was already young, only fourteen this year. If he didn't eat his fill, how could he have the strength to work?
If the work wasn't done, then it would ultimately be Zhang Laoda who suffered.
Don't forget, he was the head of this Utility class!
"Thank you, Zhang Laoda!" He Pingsheng, still a bit muddled, thanked Zhang Laoda with a grateful expression.
He was still young, and his understanding of social etiquette and basic principles wasn't yet clear enough, so he naturally couldn't grasp the deeper meaning.
It had to be said, the Immortal Sect's food was quite plentiful.
There was enough meat for breakfast too.
After finishing his meal, He Pingsheng washed his bowl clean, then returned to his room, preparing to go to the waterfall behind the mountain to fetch water. But as soon as he entered the room, the scene inside made him somewhat dumbfounded.
The basin he had used yesterday to hold spring water was left by the window. Originally, it only had half a basin of clear water, but now that half basin of clear water had turned into a full large basin, and it was a vibrant green.
"How strange, has the water gone bad after just one night?"
He Pingsheng put down his iron bowl and walked to the window, leaning his head in to observe carefully.
Only when he got closer did he realize the water was truly green, a vibrant emerald green.
It clearly looked spoiled.
"It seems I can't use this basin to hold water anymore!" He Pingsheng reached out, picked up the basin, and poured the basin of emerald green water out the window. "From now on... I'll use it to wash clothes!"
With a clang, he casually dropped the basin on the ground, then He Pingsheng picked up his carrying pole, opened the door, and headed towards the mountain spring.
Since he had already fetched water five times yesterday, today he only needed to fetch it fifteen times.
Fifteen times, it didn't seem like much, but by the time He Pingsheng finished all this work, it was already deep into the night again.
He dragged his exhausted body back to his small room.
He Pingsheng immediately became worried: fetching water fifteen times a day was almost his limit, and tomorrow there would be twenty times. How could he manage that?
He had just laid down on the hard plank bed when he heard a knock at the door from outside.
No, to be precise, it was a pounding on the door, accompanied by a rough voice: "He Pingsheng... open the door..."
It was Zhang Laoda's voice.
He Pingsheng unlatched the door bolt, then opened the door with a creak.
He saw Zhang Laoda carrying a bag, walking in with a chuckle, and saying, "Pingsheng, how are you? Are you tired today?"
He Pingsheng, thinking Zhang Laoda was concerned about him, said gratefully, "A little tired!"
"Hehe..." Zhang Laoda chuckled and said, "I saw it too. You ran five times yesterday, and today you haven't been idle for a moment, running a total of fifteen trips."
"Oh, I know you're tired!"
"Can you complete the task tomorrow?"
Facing Zhang Laoda's question, He Pingsheng felt uncertain.
He could only say, "I will definitely work hard tomorrow!"
"Good!" Zhang Laoda patted his shoulder and said, "Working hard is good, but I'm afraid you'll die of exhaustion and still won't complete this water-carrying task!"
"Look, what's this?"
Zhang Laoda opened the cloth bag in his hand.
A small half-bag of glistening white rice appeared before He Pingsheng.
He Pingsheng asked curiously, "Is this rice?"
"It's not rice!" Zhang Laoda shook his head. "The Immortal took pity on us Utility Disciples, and issued a decree that everyone would receive a certain amount of Spirit Rice each month. Others get two jin a month, but you're different; you get ten jin every month!"
"Ah?" He Pingsheng said, "Why?"
Zhang Laoda said, "Why else? The water-carrying work is heavy. But brother, every newcomer has to go through this stage, and I'm not tricking you. If you don't believe me, ask the others; they've all carried water!"
"Later, when new people arrive, you won't have to carry water anymore!"
"Come on... find something, I'll pour the rice for you!"
He Pingsheng looked around the room and found that the only thing capable of holding the Spirit Rice was that old pottery basin.
He picked up the dark pottery basin from the floor and placed it on the table.
Zhang Laoda then poured all the rice from the bag with a rustle into the basin.
The night was dim. By the moonlight, He Pingsheng could see a faint green glow emanating from within the glistening white rice grains.
It was indeed Spirit Rice!
He Pingsheng had seen Spirit Rice before!
When Uncle Jiang, Jiang Jian, was an Outer Sect Disciple, he also received ten jin of Spirit Rice every month.
Each time, He Pingsheng helped him collect it, but Jiang Jian's Spirit Rice was that emerald green kind.
The color of the Spirit Rice varied, and so did its quality.
It was said that the supreme grade Spirit Rice appeared golden yellow.
High Grade Spirit Rice was emerald green.
As for the Spirit Rice in He Pingsheng's pottery basin, it was the worst kind that Immortals disdained; otherwise, how could it have fallen into the hands of these Utility Class Disciples?
"Remember, just cook two handfuls a day. Eat half before working in the morning, and half before working in the afternoon!"
"Eat more of this rice, and I guarantee you'll be able to carry water twenty times a day!"
After speaking, Zhang Laoda simply lifted his foot and left.
He Pingsheng's brows furrowed.
Because He Pingsheng used to collect Jiang Jian's Spirit Rice for him, he knew exactly how much ten jin of Spirit Rice was.
How could there be ten jin of Spirit Rice in the basin before him?
There was clearly only half, at most five jin.
That damn Zhang Laoda, he wouldn't have embezzled my Spirit Rice, would he?
With these thoughts in mind, He Pingsheng locked the door again, then lay down and went to sleep.
Thinking too much was useless.
Because his strength was currently weak, even if he knew someone had embezzled his Spirit Rice, what could he do?
Could he get it back?
No!
Since he couldn't, it was better not to bother with such thoughts and just go to sleep first!