Chapter 13: It Smells Too Good
When Su Muyao was about to leave, the chief’s wife held her hand, reluctant to let her go. “Miss Su, you must come and visit whenever you have time!”
Su Muyao smiled and nodded. “Alright!”
After she had left, the chief looked at his wife. “It’s rare to see you take such a liking to someone.” He had never seen his wife be so warm to anyone before.
“I don’t know why, I just feel like I really like this child,” the chief’s wife said. “I think we might have misunderstood Miss Muyao in the past. She seems like a very good person, and she saved Ningning. She’s our benefactor. You are the chief of the Beiluo Tribe; you should take good care of them from now on.”
The chief was a man who knew how to repay kindness. “Of course,” he said seriously. “They have done us a great favor, and we must repay it. I’ll have some of our best kills sent over to them.”
At that moment, Gu Ningning spoke up in a small voice, “Father, Mother… I… I really like Sister Su.”
Hearing this, the chief’s wife became emotional. “Ningning, what did you just say?” Ningning had been frail and timid since she was a child. She rarely expressed her own preferences and had no friends. She was afraid of getting close to anyone.
Gu Ningning looked down. “It’s just… Sister Su feels so warm, and she smells so nice.” She felt that Sister Su was a good person, and she wanted to repay her kindness too.
The chief’s wife was overjoyed. “Your Sister Su said you need to get more sun. When you’re feeling better, you can go and play with her.” It was a good thing for her to have something she liked. And since she also thought Su Muyao was a good person, she was more than willing to let Ningning spend time with her. It would be even better if the two of them could become good friends.
Using her wood-based ability had tired Su Muyao out. She went straight to bed as soon as she got home. The weather was still a bit warm, and she felt hot lying on the animal hide. What’s more, there were mosquitoes in the middle of the night.
“Looks like I’ll have to go into the mountains tomorrow to find some insect-repelling herbs,” Su Muyao sighed. There were no mosquito nets here, so her only option was to find some kind of repellent. She also planned to find some grass to weave into a mat, which would be more comfortable to sleep on in the warm weather. With these thoughts in mind, she quickly fell asleep.
The next morning, Su Muyao woke up just as the sky was beginning to lighten. It was a habit she had developed in the apocalypse: going to bed late and waking up early.
She got out of bed and had just opened the door to her inner room when she saw Hua Linye in the courtyard. When he heard the sound, a flicker of surprise crossed his foxy eyes. In the past, she would sleep until the sun was high in the sky; she had never woken up this early.
He quickly walked over. “You’re awake, my lady?”
Su Muyao was taken aback. “You’re up this early too?”
“Yes.” They were all used to waking up early to train and improve their strength. In a harsh environment like the north, the stronger you were, the safer you were. Besides, it was his turn to take care of her today, so he had been waiting in the courtyard for her.
Hua Linye brought a basin of water and toiletries over to her so she could wash up. Su Muyao wasn’t used to this at all.
“You all should just focus on your own things from now on. You don’t have to take care of me like this.”
Hua Linye replied, a bit awkwardly, “As your beastman husbands, this is what we are supposed to do.” Although she wouldn’t let them touch her, there were still other duties they had to perform.
Su Muyao said coolly, “You are only my beastman husbands in name. You’ll be leaving in three months, so there’s no need for this.” The main reason was that she wasn’t used to it. Being waited on from the moment she woke up until she went to sleep felt strange, like she was being constantly watched. She preferred to have more freedom.
For some reason, an uncomfortable feeling washed over Hua Linye when he heard her words. He couldn’t quite put his finger on why.
“But there are still three months. We should take care of you during this time.”
“You don’t have to force yourselves,” Su Muyao said. “I can take care of myself without you. I won’t starve.”
Hua Linye’s heart sank. “No, it’s not like that.” She wasn’t yelling at him, but her words felt heavy and oppressive. He wanted to explain, but he didn’t know how. It was true that they were the ones who wanted to leave. But why didn’t he feel as happy as he had expected to when he heard her say it?
Su Muyao figured that her predecessor’s horrible behavior was to blame for their distrust. It was understandable.
“Don’t worry,” she said seriously. “I will keep my word.”
With that, she ignored him and went about washing her face. She had a lot to do today.
The beastman world here wasn’t entirely primitive. People would use willow leaves dipped in salt to brush their teeth. Salt was expensive, but her predecessor hadn’t cared about that, only about her own comfort.
After quickly washing up, Su Muyao prepared to make breakfast. She used the spices that had appeared in her dimension the night before to stew the pork offal.
Hua Linye watched her bustling figure—small and thin, looking almost as if she had been abandoned by them. It was a pitiable sight. When she wasn’t being arrogant and yelling, she wasn’t actually that difficult to be around.
“Is there anything I can do to help?”
Su Muyao turned to look at him. Seeing the genuine desire to help in his eyes, she knew he wasn’t just being polite. “I see the sweet potato starch from last night has settled. The water on top needs to be poured off, then we need to add more water, stir it, and let it settle again.”
With their abilities, they could do these things much faster. Besides, she wasn’t just cooking for herself; they were all eating together, so it was only right that they all contributed.
“Alright.” Hua Linye went to work.
While Su Muyao was making breakfast, Xiao Jihan and Wen Nanxi also came over to help. They were early risers as well and had overheard the conversation between her and Hua Linye. It seemed she was really serious about ending their relationship this time. This filled them with complicated feelings.
Wen Nanxi said nothing and naturally went to help with the fire. Xiao Jihan went to chop firewood, a cold, sharp aura surrounding him even as he performed the mundane task. The memory of her first day here made Su Muyao feel a bit repulsed, and she was reluctant to have too much contact with him. But he had protected her diligently the night before, and she convinced herself that she only had to endure for another three months.
After a night’s sleep, she could feel that her own abilities had grown stronger. It was only a matter of time before her full strength returned.
Stewing the pork offal took a long time and required careful attention to the fire. When steam began to rise from the pot, carrying a rich, fragrant aroma, Wen Nanxi and the others all caught the scent, their faces filled with astonishment.
It smelled too good.
Even Lin Qin, who was still asleep next door, was woken up by the fragrance. She had been drooling in her sleep. The smell was making her crave it so much she could cry.
“What is that amazing smell? It’s just like last night,” she murmured. “What are my little sister’s husbands cooking now?” Lin Qin assumed it was the husbands cooking, since most females with beastman husbands didn’t cook for themselves.
After the offal was done, Su Muyao used another pot to make corn and egg porridge. She poured cornmeal into a wooden basin, added well water, and stirred until it was smooth. In another bowl, she beat some bird eggs, adding a tiny drop of vinegar from her dimension to remove any gamey taste. She set the beaten eggs aside.
When the water in the pot came to a boil, Su Muyao poured in the cornmeal mixture, stirring continuously. After it had cooked for a while, she continued to stir to prevent it from sticking to the pot, then poured in the beaten eggs.
Wen Nanxi was slightly taken aback as he watched her prepare the cornmeal. Her method was quite different.
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