Chapter 17: Yuli poor girl
After taking another plate containing warm rice, Arjuna then invited the woman to eat together with him.
While eating, Arjuna didn't say much because he knew now wasn't the right time, especially when he saw the woman's eating speed which was quite fast, Arjuna realized that maybe this woman was quite hungry.
Until suddenly the woman stopped eating, and with a face full of doubt she fell silent.
Realizing this, Arjuna then asked, "Why did you stop eating?" Arjuna asked.
"I...can...I... take the leftovers to home?" asked the woman.
Seeing the woman's expectant face and her pleading eyes, Arjuna felt pity and he answered softly.
"Yes, you can bring the rest of the food," answered Arjuna again, looking at the dining table which currently only had half rice left, with half boiled meat and soup.
Receiving this answer, the woman felt happy, so she said "thank you very much" and then began to tidy up the remaining food.
As she continued to speak "sorry for my rudeness, my name is Yuli and I have a 7 year old younger sister at home who is currently waiting for me, so I ask permission to go back first, and I will return this food container to you later" Yuli who had finished tidying up the rest of the food then said goodbye to Arjuna and left the village hall.
Seeing Yuli's departure, there was a deep view in eyes Arjuna. (For the record, decent leftover food in the current era is something that is not taboo or not dirty, as long as it is suitable to be eaten, many people will accept it, not without reason. Once again because as a result of the war many people died of hunger, and currently it can be said that it is becoming increasingly difficult as time goes by, because many places have a shortage of farmers and on the other hand, increasing demand makes food scarcity a general trend)
After seeing Yuli leave, Arjuna started cleaning his food utensils, while then he decided to wait for the village head to come back to talk about his accommodation at night.
And half an hour later on the terrace of the village hall, Arjuna, who was currently enjoying a cup of hot tea, saw the arrival of the village head Tigor again.
"How about Arjuna, have you had lunch?" asked the village head of Tigor.
"You can rest assured, village head, rest for a moment and taste the tea I brought from town," replied Arjuna again while inviting the village head to drink tea.
"Wow...this tea smells so good," praised the village head.
"This tea is quite good, I got it at the city cooperative," said Arjuna to the village head.
While enjoying tea, Arjuna then talked a lot to the village head about the real conditions of the Batu village.
"Currently there are many widows and orphans in Batu village. Due to previous military service, many strong people had to leave.
Unfortunately after several years only a small handful were able to return, and this clearly damaged the foundations of the existing Batu Village.
However, Batu village is also said to have quite fertile land with good agricultural products compared to several surrounding villages.
Apart from relying on agriculture, there is a medium-sized river at the end of the village which is a source of water for fields and rice fields which holds lots of fish and good river products.
And as you also know, there are well-maintained forests with good yields around the village which can also support the village population.
It's just a shame that there are no more generations of skilled hunters in the village, so the benefits of the river and forest are very rarely enjoyed." The village head told Arjuna about the general conditions in Batu village.
"So where did this stone village come from?" Arjuna asked in surprise after many stories but he still didn't know the origin of the name Batu Village.
"Ohhh...the original name of this village comes from the large rock cliff behind the village which used to be the residence of the ancestors, until over time.
"Its function has changed to become a place to store harvests and protect against war," replied the head of Tigor village.
"Apparently that's where the name Batu Village comes from," Arjuna commented after he realized where the name Batu Village came from.
Then not long after, several other residents started coming back to sell their goods and Arjuna was busy again.
And after several busy hours, Arjuna got another pretty good harvest from his second sale.
This time he got 4 chickens/ 3 rabbits/ 10 kg bacon/ 5 kg eggs/ 3 kg fish, minus grains.
Even so, Arjuna is happy because in the factory meat and eggs are the favorite commodities to be handed over, whole grain is something common, because the factory is still young to get it.
Seeing that it was 4 pm, Arjuna closed his buyer's session and said he would continue tomorrow morning at 9, before he decided to return to town.
"Arjuna, your room in the village hall has been prepared, I hope you can understand that," the village head Tigor said.
"It's okay, village head, I'm grateful to have a place to escape the rain and heat," Arjuna replied back.
"Oh yeah...and this is for your dinner" handed over a rooster.
"Ahhh...is this okay village chief??" Arjuna asked doubtfully.
Because it is clear that chicken is an important source of protein for village communities, and if it were not for urgent reasons they would be unwilling to sell it.
"It's okay, you can accept this chicken with relief, because this is the village's decision," replied the village head of Tigor
He knew that maintaining a good relationship with Arjuna was important, moreover, Arjuna was honest and easy to get along with, making the Tigor village head happier dealing with him.
Thinking back to some shady buyers who came to their village previously, the village chief snorted in class after he found out that they were so unscrupulous in taking advantage of them.
"Okay, because this is the village's decision, I accept it happily," replied Arjuna again.
As he then said again "ahhh...almost forgot, village head later I will go around the village to see the atmosphere of Batu Village, and if permitted I also want to go fishing and hunting" Arjuna asked for permission.
"Ohhh...you can hunt Arjuna?" The village head was shocked after hearing Arjuna's words.
"Yeah, just a beginner, I learned it from someone," replied Arjuna again.
"Then you have to be careful and if you need help, please contact me. Regarding permission, you are free to take it as long as you can catch it with your own hands," answered the Tigor village head.
"That's good, then I can relax." Arjuna felt happy after getting permission.
After returning to tidy up his purchases, Arjuna then decided to take a shower and change clothes.
He, feeling hot with sweat, immediately locked the village hall door and made sure there was no one there.
Only then did he enter the room, "ahhh...it's still cooler here than outside, and look at how high the rice and wheat are here...tomorrow can definitely be harvested."
Arjuna was happy to see the growth of rice and wheat in the room, after seeing enough he immediately bathed in the river.
It took Arjuna more than half an hour to finish his bath, until he was neat and dry. Arjuna, who was preparing to come out of the room, saw the forest mango tree he had planted before.
Now it has a lot of fruit, "wow... the mangoes are ripe!!!!" Exclaim with joy when you see the mangoes hanging from the branches of the mango tree.
"This is very fragrant...smelling the fragrance of the mango, Arjuna then chose a medium sized mango to pick, peeled it quickly. Arjuna saw the yellowish red color of the mango.
He couldn't wait to take a bite "umm ... .sweet…..fragrant…..this is so delicious!!!" Scream with joy when you taste the sweetness of the forest mango.
"Ahhh...pick some and take it outside, enjoying it at night would be good" Arjuna decided to bring some mangoes out of the room.
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After Yuli left the village hall, she quickened her footsteps and walked towards the edge of the village, where a simple house made of mud could be seen.
Even though it is simple, the house looks beautiful and well maintained, especially as several flower plants can be seen decorating the yard which makes the atmosphere even more beautiful.
"Dina ... .Dina…Sister is home" Yuli's soft voice echoed in the house as she entered.
Inside the house, a simple wooden table with 4 bamboo chairs can be seen, with a small pot of roses made from bamboo sticks adorning it.
"What's wrong sis? "The gentle voice of a 7 year old girl was heard.
And then a beautiful little girl with a slightly pale face appeared, "Ahh...what is this delicious smell, Sis?" Dina asked Yuli.
"Quickly, sit down, big Sister has brought food for you." Yuli immediately made her little sister sit down and opened the food dish she had brought from Arjuna.
When the box opened, the fragrant aroma of boiled meat could be heard, although it was no longer as warm as when Yuli ate with Arjuna.
But that couldn't change the delicious taste that came from there, "Sister, where does this food come from?" Yuli asked hesitantly.
She and her older sister's could currently be said to be living in poverty, apart from the few kg of rice and sweet potatoes they had, there was nothing else good they could eat at home.
So when she saw half white rice and boiled meat and soup she became confused.
"You can rest assured, big sister Don't steal this food, today you didn't hear about the buyers coming to our village.
When my big sister came there to sell some medicinal plants, big sister Didn't think he was eating, and he kindly offered to have lunch with big sister.
"And when my sister ate with him, my sister remembered you, so she embarrassedly asked for the rest of the food, and this is what he gave to her. Hurry up and eat so you can get well soon," answered Yuli as she started serving her sister and urging her to eat quickly.
"Emm...answered Dina then started devouring the food.
"It's delicious... this boiled meat is really delicious sis, and this white rice with soup is very delicious to eat together," replied Dini while greedily eating the food.
Seeing her sister eating heartily, Yuli's eyes became red. Since the death of their parents, Yuli and her sister have been living in hardship.
And now that she saw her sister's happy face again, she became even more determined to make her sister happy, so she made a decision in her heart.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone