Chapter 87: 87 Unexpected Surprise

Chapter 87: An Unexpected Blessing

Ronin stared at the white, oval “white fruit” in his hand, utterly stunned.

If his guess was right, this so-called white fruit was none other than what he had often seen back home on Earth—and even helped raise as a child—silkworm cocoons.

“What’s wrong?”

Eileen blinked at Ronin, puzzled by his shock. Had he eaten so much of it that he couldn’t help but marvel?

Ronin snapped back to himself and hurriedly asked, “You say this white fruit is made by a worm? And when you peeled it open just now—were you eating the pupa inside?”

“Is that what you call it? ‘Pupa’? We’ve always called it the ‘core.’”

Sir Horn spoke up. Unlike the less industrious Jenny, he spent much of his time traveling beyond the settlement and knew more about the white fruit.

“My lord, as you’ve guessed, the white fruit is indeed made by worms. I don’t know if they exist elsewhere, but here in the Purple Fruit Tribe, they’re quite common.”

Ronin’s eyes lit up. “Tell me more.”

Sir Horn continued, “When Jenny and I first led our group here, we noticed the grove of purple trees outside. Beneath the leaves, I saw many fat, gray worms—I named them ‘Big Gray Worms.’”

“After we settled here, I watched them for a while. I discovered they fed on the leaves of the purple trees. When they grew large, they spun this white, sticky fluid around themselves. One day, curious, I peeled open the white shell—and found the core inside.”

He chuckled. “When we first arrived, life was harsh. We had little to eat, so I boiled one of these things and tried it. Not only was it harmless—it actually strengthened the body. Since then, it’s become a specialty of our Purple Fruit Tribe.”

Ronin was now certain: this so-called white fruit was a silkworm cocoon.

The “Big Gray Worms” Sir Horn described must be silkworms—but different from the domesticated kind, these lived wild.

And the purple trees, the purple fruits—he guessed they were mulberry trees and mulberries.

The yellow forest he’d seen atop the crater must have been a mulberry grove; the fallen leaves turned golden.

His heart pounded.

Silkworms were a treasure. Their cocoons could be unraveled into silk thread, woven into silk fabric.

Silk—now that was a true marvel.

In ancient China, it was astronomically expensive, worn only by nobility and high officials. Exported beyond borders, it fetched fortunes.

In this world, Ronin had no memory whatsoever of silkworms or mulberries.

Clothing here was made from only three materials: wool, leather, and cloth.

The cloth was mostly coarse or fine linen, spun from flax.

Common folk wore coarse linen; nobles flaunted fine linen, wool, or precious furs to display status.

Some said cotton cloth existed in the south, but it was rarely cultivated and exceedingly rare.

Silk? He’d never even heard the word.

He never imagined the Purple Fruit Tribe would have silkworms. If he could turn these cocoons into silk, it would become the flagship industry of Forest Town—far more valuable than black iron trees.

“How many of these white fruits do you still have?” Ronin asked.

“There are still many!”

Eileen gestured wildly. “Several chests!”

“Come on, take me to see them.”

Ronin grabbed Eileen’s hand and hurried toward the room she’d just exited.

Jenny and Horn exchanged glances. The latter looked baffled. “Why is the baron so fascinated by white fruit? He didn’t even listen to your plan for the Gray Earth Tribe.”

Jenny shook her head. “I don’t know. But I feel the lord understands white fruit better than we do. Let’s go see for ourselves.”

The room resembled a storage shed, filled with wooden chests.

Eileen opened all four. Inside, they were piled high with cocoons.

“My father saves one chest each year as seed. Come spring, the white fruits sprout like buds—and produce even more!” she said.

So many!

Ronin crouched beside the chest, examining them closely.

A few cocoons here were grayish-yellow, but most were pure white, clean, untouched by leaf fragments or dirt—clearly cleaned by Horn.

These cocoons were at least half a circle larger than the domestic silkworm cocoons he remembered. Given Horn’s description of gray worms, these must be a distinct variety.

“Horn, do you know how to raise them?” Ronin turned to the knight who’d followed.

“I… sort of? A little?”

Horn scratched his head. “My lord, you know life in the mountains is dull. When I had nothing else to do, I studied them. Those Big Gray Worms spin their shells and hide inside to survive winter. Then, come summer, they crawl right out again!”

As if recalling a thrilling moment, Horn grew excited.

“You might not believe this, but when they emerge, they turn into moths! The moths live only briefly—lay their eggs and die. But those eggs? So many, so dense—they hatch into even more Big Gray Worms!”

He pointed to a chest in the corner. “Each year, we only need to save a small portion from one chest—and next year, we’ll harvest several!”

Ronin listened, thinking.

He was certain now: these were cocoons. What they ate was the pupa inside.

But these silkworms were different from the ones he knew.

The mulberry silkworms of his world hibernated as eggs, emerging only in spring and autumn.

These, however, spun cocoons in autumn, pupated inside, and remained dormant as pupae through winter, only emerging in summer.

He guessed the difference lay in temperature.

Forest Town lay at the northernmost edge of the Ushan Domain, where the seasons were sharply defined.

Spring and autumn hovered between 5°C and 15°C—too cold for silkworms.

Only summer, with its 20°C to 30°C heat, allowed them to hatch and grow.

Since September, Ronin had felt the temperature dropping—though as a mid-rank knight, he barely noticed.

Here, under natural conditions, only one silkworm crop per year was possible.

Unless the environment could be altered—to simulate warmth in spring or autumn—multiple harvests were impossible.

And that, clearly, was beyond reach.

Ronin crouched beside the chest, picking up a few cocoons, turning them over in his fingers.

“Horn, how many cocoons do you save each year as seed? I mean, your ‘white fruits’?”

Horn paused thoughtfully. “About a dozen. Never more than twenty.”

“Why not save more?”

Horn spread his hands. “I’ve thought of it, my lord. But the mountain’s mulberry trees aren’t enough. Too many worms, and they starve.”

Ronin nodded slowly. He’d forgotten that.

He lifted a cocoon, addressing Horn and the others. “The ‘white fruit’ you speak of is called a cocoon. The ‘core’ inside is the pupa. The pupa can be eaten—but the cocoon has other uses.”

“Oh, and the purple trees? They’re mulberry trees. The purple fruits? Mulberries.”

Jenny and Horn exchanged glances. They’d been right—this baron knew far more about white fruit than they ever had.

“Your wisdom humbles us, my lord!”

Jenny laughed: “Starting today, we’ll correct these titles.”

Eryn blinked beside her, surprised. “So should we call it the ‘Mulberry Tribe’ now?”

Hearing this, Luo Ning couldn’t help but smile.

“Actually, what we call it doesn’t matter much.”

He said: “I originally planned to relocate all of you to Mountain Forest Town, but now I’ve changed my mind. Since the Purple Fruit Tribe already has silkworms and mulberry trees, this resource must be properly harnessed!”

Luo Ning had already decided—he would convert the wheat fields of the Purple Fruit Tribe into mulberry groves.

(End of Chapter)