Chapter 114 First Snow and Hot Pot

The first snow finally fell slowly, accompanied by light rain.

Overnight, the world was draped in a pristine white hue. A cold wind howled down, and specks of white light could still be seen among the green mountains. Glistening white sand fell from the bare branches of trees.

A cold wind blows, stirring up gusts of white sand, like clouds, mist, and gauze.

A thin layer of snow had already fallen in the yard.

People walk over it, and their feet turn into mud and water when they step on it.

Su Yun, holding a cup of hot tea and wrapped in a heavy military overcoat, admired the sudden beautiful scenery. The vast expanse of sky and earth, contrasted with the withered branches and broken trees, and the white snow, made her exclaim in admiration, "How beautiful!"

Su Yun leaned against the threshold, admiring the view for a few minutes, then turned to look into the house. "Aren't you coming out to take a look?"

The two orcs inside shook their heads vigorously, refusing Su Yun's invitation, and then tried their best to get closer to the fire to warm themselves, wrapping their cotton-padded clothes even tighter.

"Hmm? The first snow! It's beautiful." Su Yun held out a cup of hot tea and warmly invited her over.

"Huh?" Ye Feng's eyes were dazed, his gaze fixed only on the warm campfire.

Little Feather, like a broken doll, was completely stunned, showing no reaction whatsoever.

The two orcs completely disconnected in winter, and calling out to them was useless.

"Sigh, I'll see for myself then!" Su Yun sighed and closed the door. Ever since winter officially began, these two orcs had wilted like frostbitten eggplants...

Little Feather suddenly changed from her usual talkative self and became taciturn...

The night breeze has lost its former vitality, increasingly favoring the sun and the warm campfire... and the soft blankets...

Then the two of them started feeling sleepy more and more often, and their sleep durations became longer and longer...

At first, Su Yun was a little worried, but then Ye Feng told her that the two of them had just entered the orcs' winter mode... sleepy, afraid of the cold, and unwilling to move... similar to hibernation.

So just let them stay quiet.

Only after realizing that this was a normal phenomenon did Su Yun finally feel relieved.

There's not much to do in winter, except for three meals a day—oh no, given these two love to sleep in, it's been reduced to two meals a day.

The vegetable garden has basically been moved to the backyard and next to the house. Su Yun even moved the flower pots indoors, where a few bok choy plants are growing.

It's so cold outside; it's only warm inside.

"It'll be frozen over soon. When the snow stops, let's go catch some fish in the pond. It's cold, so we can freeze them," Su Yun said, looking at the snow and lifting the thick curtain.

To prevent drafts, Su Yun specially made a thick curtain out of cotton quilts and hung it behind the main door of the hall to block the cold wind from coming in through the gaps. It has to be said that it was very useful, and the room was warm and cozy. In order to prevent carbon dioxide poisoning, in addition to keeping the room windows open, Su Yun would also open the door from time to time, like now, to let in some fresh air.

A cold wind whistled in from outside, dispelling the stuffy heat inside and causing the two people warming themselves by the fire to shiver.

"Whoosh—" A cold wind, mixed with snowflakes, came towards me, hitting my face and turning into icy water.

"Wake up~" Su Yun waved her hand in front of the little feather.

A cool, damp sensation spread across her face, and Little Feather awoke from her drowsy state. Slowly realizing what was happening, she tilted her head, looking utterly bewildered: "What did you say?"

Night Wind showed no reaction whatsoever, his expression blank, his ears tucked in.

Su Yun repeated, "Let's go catch fish in the pond later!"

After he finished speaking, the two people still didn't react.

There was a pause of a few minutes.

"Huh? We're going to the pond?" Little Feather turned her head mechanically, like a rusty machine, and looked at Su Yun. For the first time, emotion appeared in her dull eyes—resistance.

I strongly resist it.

It's kind of fun.

Su Yun waved her hand in front of him, teasing him deliberately, "Hey, wanna go fishing together?"

Little Feather's eyes were glazed over, her neck shrank back, and her resistance level skyrocketed to twenty points.

And try to pull back as a sign of refusal.

Ye Feng was still clutching the blanket, his eyes glazed over.

Su Yun sighed helplessly. It seemed that she couldn't count on these two people anymore, so she had to go by herself. So she said, "I'll go to the pond to catch fish after the snow stops."

"Fish?" Ye Feng was stunned for a moment before slowly reacting and blankly saying, "Okay—let's go together."

"Come along? Are you sure you can?" Su Yun looked at the kitten whose eyes had narrowed again, reached out and stroked its head, feeling sorry for it. "Why don't you just stay home and sleep?"

A familiar, gentle, and warm touch came from the tip of her ear. Her dark golden eyes narrowed into slits again, and she almost fell asleep again.

But looking at Su Yun and then at the snow falling outside, he forced himself to cheer up, "Let's go together—"

Finally, Xiao Yumo added a blanket, Su Yun added a scarf for Ye Feng, and the two of them took their fishing nets and went out.

Both of them were dressed very warmly. Su Yun put a thick military overcoat over Ye Feng and stuffed a small glass thermos inside to keep him warm.

This kind of clothing is thick and easy to preserve, unlike those pretty down jackets that have lost all their down feathers over the years, only having a nice style but not much warmth.

Su Yun had stockpiled several items while scavenging for supplies. Due to the small feather wings, she could only wrap herself in a cotton quilt. She and Ye Feng were both wrapped in this kind of cotton clothing.

but--

The cold had a greater impact on orcs than

Since the night breeze went out,

"I'll be in charge of catching the fish later, you just need to watch from the side."

Ye Feng's dark golden eyes were slightly lowered, and it was unclear whether he heard her. Helpless, Su Yun took his hand and walked slowly.

"Just rest at home, there's no need for you to come out."

At this moment, Ye Feng reacted somewhat, slowly taking her hand in his and whispering, "It just snowed; animals will still come out looking for food. I'm worried about you being alone..."

Hearing the other person's response, Su Yun felt a warmth in her heart and slowly tightened her grip on the other person's hand. "Okay, let's do it together then."

The two walked along the snowy road, the fine, glistening snowflakes blown from the branches by the wind and landing on their faces and bodies.

Looking at the dark sky, Su Yun had a premonition that the snow would fall even heavier, so she tried to catch as many fish as possible.

The fish, which had been raised all summer and were now fat and large, were gutted and placed on a snowdrift outside to freeze.

Following the example of a winter market in the north, Su Yun laid out the cleaned fish one by one on the snow. Finally, the remaining chickens and ducks were also cleaned and placed on the ground.

The scene was spectacular.

Now that it's snowing, the outside world is like a giant natural refrigerator, so Su Yun decided to stock up on meat before the heavy snowfall.

Have a hearty meal.

So Su Yun picked up the pot and placed it directly on top of the fire in the main room. The bright fire was suppressed by the iron pot, and the heat was reduced slightly.

The night breeze and the little feather both turned to look at her.

Little Feather tilted her head, staring at her movements with dissatisfaction, and pouted slightly to express her discontent.

Night Breeze paused, looked at the iron pot, and slowly asked, "What are you doing?"

Su Yun ignored the two of them, carried over a small table, and then brought over all the prepared ingredients to start boiling water in a hot pot.

Without looking up, she said, "Hot pot, huh?"

The first snowfall of the season is definitely time for hot pot!

Sliced ​​fish, cleaned chicken and duck intestines, chopped chicken and duck meat, and thinly sliced ​​cured meat.

Wash the bok choy, slice the potatoes and white radish.

The two people who had just started warming themselves by the fire still had blank stares. These two drowsy people, in a state of "hibernation," not only wanted to sleep and craved warmth, but their appetites had also decreased significantly.

But this situation was quickly broken by the rising aroma. The hot water was boiling in the pot, and the aroma of chicken spread throughout the house. Su Yun lifted the lid, and the aroma became even stronger. Su Yun had added red dates and soaked matsutake mushrooms to this soup, making the aroma even more intense.

The two people who were already close to the fire were instantly sobered up by the aroma.

Their eyes, which had been half-closed, were now wide open, staring intently at the chicken bubbling in the pot. However, laziness still dominated their minds, so the only movement they made was to widen their eyes slightly, while their bodies remained firmly tucked in their chairs, motionless.

Seeing the two of them standing there in unison, Su Yun was both annoyed and amused. She shoved the large porcelain bowl she had prepared into their arms and said, "Here you go, dinner's ready!"

The two people were holding bowls, not moving at all.

Su Yun shook her head and started serving soup to the two of them again, ordering, "Drink up quickly, we'll be cooking meat later."

The porcelain bowl emitted a warm temperature, and Ye Feng was the first to come to her senses. Holding the bowl, she obediently began to drink the soup. The warm chicken soup rushed into her stomach, dispelling the chill.

Su Yun also added some ginger to the soup, which had a slightly spicy taste that blended perfectly with the umami of the chicken broth, making it very comforting.

Su Yun drank two bowls and felt her hands and feet gradually warm up.

The other two were also a bit lazy at first, but after Su Yun forced them to drink a sip of chicken soup, they seemed to be recharged and began to slowly drink the soup.

Next comes the fish and chicken intestines.

Su Yun's cooking skills have always been excellent. She slices fish into thin pieces, pours them into the pot, and in the blink of an eye, they turn a crystal-clear white.

The grass carp in the pond don't usually have any feed; they rely entirely on the grass they cut to feed them. As a result, the meat of the fish is delicious and has a slightly sweet taste.

Su Yun skillfully picked up a piece of fish, dipped it in the prepared chili soy sauce dish, and took a bite. The fish was fresh, sweet, spicy, and delicious, leaving her completely satisfied.

"Delicious!"

So the second piece, the third piece...

During this time, Su Yun thoughtfully boiled some fish and gave it to Ye Feng. As expected, the kitten loved fish the most. After Su Yun fed it once, it stared longingly at Su Yun's hand, waiting to be fed again.

Su Yun also doted on him, repeatedly scalding fish for him and feeding him; after all, he was a patient, so it was always understandable.

The single dog, ignored by everyone, and without any injury, could only watch helplessly as he huddled up, clutching his empty bowl, looking pitifully at the loving couple before him, and weakly asked Su Yun, "Where's mine?"

After stuffing all the fish into Ye Feng's bowl, Su Yun slowly said, "In the pot, self-reliance is the key to a good life."

Little Feather complained, "Then why did you still give Night Breeze a perm?"

Su Yun said in a serious and righteous tone, "The other person is sick, but you aren't! Do it yourself!"

"But I'm so cold..." Little Feather curled up and began to act pitiful.

Su Yun turned her head to the side, not even looking, and started rinsing the fish slices for herself again. "It's not like I'm hibernating right now. If you can still move, then move around, or you might as well starve to death." On the surface, she was cold, but in her heart, Su Yun thought, "It's only the first snow. What if I fall into a deep sleep when it snows heavily?"

What if wild animals come? No, I have to exercise and keep myself active.

Therefore, Su Yun turned her head away, determined not to soften her stance towards her opponent's attempts to charm her.

"If you want to eat, then cook for yourself—" Su Yun didn't even lift her eyelids.

Little Feather waited for a few minutes, and seeing that Su Yun really showed no sign of making a move, it finally let out a few helpless whimpers.

Finally, lured by the aroma of food, she braved the cold, picked up her chopsticks with trembling hands, and began to cook for herself.

Meanwhile, Su Yun continued to be extremely attentive to Ye Feng.

He wanted to say something about Su Yun's double standards, but after realizing his own situation, he honestly accepted his fate. There was nothing he could do; Su Yun had a girlfriend, while he was just a single dog.

Waaaaah, he really wants a girlfriend too, I'm so jealous!