Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

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Venomous Insect Garden (독물원) 3

The day after catching the Chinese hamsters.

Grandfather was busy day and night strategizing against the Blood Cult with his guests.

With the Blood Cult showing themselves openly and apparently attacking us, it was clear they were resuming their activities in the Central Plains.

For thirty years after their downfall, they had been hiding away, but openly attacking a major clan like the Tang Clan was a sign of their confidence, wasn’t it?

Moreover, since it had been revealed that they had infiltrated the Tang Clan because of the Blood Water Poison Claw, discussions were swirling on how to protect that and how to lure them in further.

“How about storing the Blood Water Poison Claw in the alliance?”

“Well, there’s no guarantee that it’s safer there than with us, is there? It’s a place people come and go all the time.”

“Indeed. Then let’s wait for the military officer from the alliance to arrive. He’s from the Zhang family, so he must have a good idea. Since he is a ‘Zhang,’ after all.”

The original was already inside Mandok Hall, where the secret techniques were kept, so there was no need to worry. Grandfather held the copies himself, but given that they might attack again, the Tang Clan was on high alert.

Rumors of the Tang Clan being attacked were causing quite a stir in Sichuan’s martial world too.

“I thought this was the top assassination clan in the Central Plains, but they’re being fooled and robbed too? Maybe the Tang Clan is surprisingly incompetent?”

Grandfather was also preoccupied preparing for the arrivals meant to support him.

Since there were no accommodations nearby, the clan had to prepare food and lodging for every guest who came.

Thus, it became quite difficult to see Grandfather’s face within a day.

‘I hope Grandfather is alright?’

Since he was taking care of clan matters in front of my father-in-law, I wasn’t too worried, but still, Grandfather is old.

And with a big incident at home, I felt like my father-in-law needed to return quickly.

I heard that a few swift warriors from the Tang Clan had already departed towards my father-in-law, so he would likely be back soon.

“So-ryong, we’ve dried the bark of the dry oak. And we’ve also prepared sawdust as requested. Oh, we brought that rice hull as well, what should we do about it?”

It was while I was lost in thought inside the Venomous Insect Garden that a warrior’s question reached me.

“Ah, let’s store it cleanly in bags.”

“Roger that, So-ryong.”

“Oh, the bark for the shavings need to be spread for the mice, so please dry it today and prepare it right away.”

“Understood, So-ryong!”

Like Grandfather, the Venomous Insect Team and I were also busy preparing the setup for the garden.

We had to finish the setup quickly and bring over the Hoban Yusa.

We needed to prepare venom samples to show to the military officer from the Martial Forest Alliance, so we definitely required the breeding facilities for the Hoban Yusa as they needed food.

“So-ryong, we’ve also brought roasted and cooled clean sand. Where should we put it?”

“Hmm. Over there.”

Today, we divided the Venomous Insect Team into two; ten would focus on setting up inside, while ten would focus on capturing the Chinese hamsters.

Thinking back, we needed to set up the breeding facilities for them before capturing the hamsters.

So while one team captured the Chinese hamsters, the other hurried to expand the hamster breeding facilities.

‘Got too excited and confused the order, huh?’

The most important thing for breeding hamsters or similar rodents is the bedding and separate space for their care.

Since bedding could be replaced with rice hulls, I prepared that, and for the breeding space, we used the jars like we did at Hainan Island.

We couldn’t get glass aquariums or breeding boxes here, after all.

Wooden boxes would be the easiest to make, but I was worried the hamsters might gnaw and escape, so I prepared the jars.

“Once we finish catching those we captured yesterday and eliminate parasites from their bodies, we’ll put them in today’s jars with the rice hulls. We must put them in one by one.”

“Yes, So-ryong.”

These Chinese hamsters had nasty personalities, so they had to be kept separately.

Otherwise, the females could end up biting the males to death.

So with that caution in mind, I headed towards the makeshift quarantine area where the captured Chinese hamsters were being kept.

We were currently conducting quarantine on them.

Quarantine means checking if any ticks, fleas, or bedbugs were on the wild-caught hamsters and eliminating them.

If they had any diseases or parasites, it could lead to mass deaths when breeding them in our internal facilities.

Also, since they could transmit diseases to the reptiles that ate them, it was crucial.

While we didn’t have disinfectants or parasite medications like in my previous life, the Tang Clan had cultivated a type of chrysanthemum known for its insecticidal properties, so we were using that for external parasite elimination.

I left the separate chamber and reached the area where we had gathered the hamsters caught yesterday, just in time to see Gu Pae bringing the hamsters.

Gu Pae’s face lit up when he saw me.

“So-ryong, we caught about thirty today! Some seem to be pregnant too.”

“Oh! Good! Then keep those separate from yesterday’s and don’t forget to apply the chrysanthemum root.”

“Understood, So-ryong!”

The setup of the Venomous Insect Garden and the production of Pinky were well underway.

*

I saw the warriors of the Tang Clan again.

No, I encountered the martial artists again.

The setup was completed after three days.

I had heard that decorating a shop could take almost a month, yet we finished in just three days.

I hadn’t realized it, but martial artists are specialists in labor work.

With their endless stamina and strength, they were geniuses at manual labor.

If I had been in the military in my past life, I felt I would have become a favorite soldier of the sergeant.

Digging holes, moving heavy objects—whatever it was, they excelled.

As I nodded at the completed Venomous Insect Garden, I said, “Everyone worked hard.”

“No, it’s what we’re supposed to do.”

“Now we need to feed these mice clean food, and when the rice hulls in there get dirty, we need to replace them properly.”

“Understood, So-ryong. Uh, some of them have already given birth, though.”

“Is that so? For the ones that give birth, try not to check them too often. They might eat their young.”

“Understood! I’ll be careful.”

Now that we were ready, we just needed to go to the Rat Cave tomorrow and bring back the Hoban Yusa.

Although we couldn’t yet feed the Chinese hamsters since we needed to increase their numbers, we could give them something else as food.

“Thank you for your hard work! Tomorrow, let’s go capture the Hoban Yusa at the Rat Cave. Oh, and I’ve informed my mother-in-law, so let’s have a drink tonight.”

“W-What!? You mean alcohol!?”

Gu Pae blurted out in surprise as soon as I mentioned alcohol.

I cautiously asked, wondering if he might not like to drink.

“Do you dislike alcohol?”

“No, not at all! I really love it! Thank you, So-ryong!”

“Thank you!”

“Right, I’ve told the kitchen attached to the guesthouse, so you can let them know to serve you. You’ve all truly worked hard.”

In my previous life, I would have comforted everyone while sipping alcohol, but my body is fifteen.

I wasn’t of the drinking age, so I just made space and headed towards my older sister.

The reason I was looking for my sister was to check on the conditions of Chao, Hyang, and Bin, as she had been taking care of them since I had collapsed.

The reason my sister had been with them for so long was that they wouldn’t leave her side since they clung to her.

“Is Little One here?”

This was the first time visiting my sister’s place.

Even during the day, a dim light was coming from within when her voice soon echoed.

“Come in, So-ryong.”

As the door opened along with her voice, I saw a black curtain draped right in front of me.

The reason there was a black curtain in my sister’s place was that it was all because of Chao, Hyang, and Bin.

These critters hadn’t left my sister’s side since I collapsed, but the issue was that until now, they just clung to her outer garments, while strangely, they were trying to crawl inside her clothes now.

So to keep them from crawling into her body, she maintained the darkness around her.

Centipedes prefer dark places and are nocturnal creatures, after all.

While I thought crawling inside clothes was no big deal, my sister had a hard time tolerating them crawling against her bare skin.

“How’s it today?”

As I entered, I caught sight of my sister lighting a very small lantern and sitting at the table.

And on her shoulders and back were the Ogong clinging tightly.

“They seem to be sleeping again today.”

“Must be tired, huh?”

“By the way, I just realized. Venomous creatures get tired after using their venom.”

The reason Chao, Hyang, and Bin were clinging to my sister.

It wasn’t that they had swapped owners; it was all for the food!

People often misunderstand that the venom of a venomous creature is naturally produced from their saliva or bodily fluids, but that’s a one-sided way of thinking.

Venom is a completely different substance from saliva.

Also, there is a unique characteristic: after venomous creatures use their venom, they expend more energy than usual.

Venom is a crystal composed of countless enzymes and proteins.

It takes a tremendous amount of energy to produce more venom.

Even snakes can take from fifteen days to a month to regenerate their venom after using it, and scorpions need a lot of energy when using their venom, especially during breeding seasons, they might even eat their young.

I thought the Blood Cult warriors had become deadlier than before when I was in Hainan Island, but it was perhaps that they were squeezed to the limit, enough to melt a person.

Given the Hoban Yusa’s body hadn’t melted after being bitten by Bin in the pit, that was certainly the case.

Even though they were smaller snakes, they still retained their forms.

Typically, poisonous animals like snakes or venomous insects adapt their venom delivery based on their prey.

The larger the prey, the more venom they inject, and vice versa.

Yet, it seemed the Ogong, feeling my presence inside my clothes, just sprang out and bit indiscriminately, failing to regulate their venom.

So now, Chao, Hyang, and Bin were desperately trying to absorb the energy flowing from their mother, the Blue-Spotted Centipede.

“Well, usually they wouldn’t know. By the way, this seems to be Little One’s place.”

“Yes, So-ryong must be visiting for the first time, right? Usually, the inner quarters of the Four Harmonies Courtyard, where unwed young ladies reside, are not places men can freely enter. Uh…?”

Thinking about it, it was a women’s room.

It seemed like there was a nice fragrance wafting from inside.

Cough…

Also, being alone with my sister in such a dim environment.

Maybe she finally realized that, as she stumbled over her words in a flustered tone.

“W-Well, I meant to say… that So-ryong… is… my…”

Just then, someone outside called out.

“Miss, Gu Pae is here looking for So-ryong.”

“Gu Pae, you say?”

The voice of the servant, announcing Gu Pae, the leader of our Venomous Insect Team, sent a wave of embarrassment through my sister as she covered the Ogong with a black cloth.

“So-ryong, let’s go out.”

“Yes.”

Since I rarely got to see my sister’s shy face, I thought the timing was quite good as I headed to the entrance of the Four Harmonies Courtyard.

Then, I was met by the somewhat irritating sight of Gu Pae along with four of our warriors, all of them with serious expressions and their heads down.

They had all come here carrying drinks, suggesting we enjoy a feast together.

“Gu Pae?”

“So-ryong…”

He looked at me with an apologetic face, deeply bowing.

He suddenly appeared with an extremely sorry expression.

“I’m sorry, So-ryong. The warriors made a huge mistake…”

“A mistake?”

I cocked my head in confusion, wondering what kind of accident they had caused, as Gu Pae glanced back at the warriors standing behind him, furrowing his brow.

One of the warriors, who seemed to have ketchup smeared around his mouth, flinched.

‘What’s going on?’

And then, Gu Pae spoke out with something unbelievable.

“I’m sorry, So-ryong. Half of the mouse babies born this time…”

His apology began with the report that half of the baby mice had died.

Well, it was a fact that rodents sometimes eat their young when stressed, so there was nothing to be done there.

It seemed they had caused some ruckus while drinking inside the Venomous Insect Garden, but that was my fault for not warning them.

I had planned to say it was alright, but…

“It’s fine. It’s perfectly normal for mice to be a bit sensitive, so if it got noisy…”

“No, the warriors were drinking and… as a side dish…”

“?”

At first, I thought I had misheard.

“What side dish?”

Then Gu Pae bowed his head once more to answer.

“Actually, there are two guys from Gwangju in our Venomous Insect Team… While I briefly stepped out, they reminisced about their hometown and decided to eat a few baby mice as snacks, but got carried away and ended up eating half…”

“Baby mice?”

Blinking in confusion, my sister watched the warriors with a look of disdain, explaining the situation.

“They’re called ‘Sanji-in.’ It’s a dish where you dip baby mice in soy sauce. When you pick them up with chopsticks, dip them in soy sauce, and when you put them in your mouth and chew, it makes three distinct squeaks, hence the name ‘Sanji-in.’”

“What!? Eating mice!?”

“Yes, alive too.”

No, hearing that they had eaten mice, which were not even venomous, my first thought was that.

‘Is the Tang Clan failing to feed them properly? What kind of crazy person eats baby mice dipped in soy sauce?’

Indeed, adjusting to the Tang Clan was no easy task.

Or should I say, adjusting to the Central Plains?

And didn’t the warriors also need to be fed properly?

‘Why on earth are they eating that!?’