Butter, vinegar and lees hot pot, a peaceful and idyllic life.

It's likely that since Kuwano's previous "sentence reduction case" was handled by Chief Justice Ushokawa, this time when the sentence reduction document was submitted, it was directly approved by her as well.

Surprisingly, the emperor approved it so quickly.

The two events occurred within a mere three minutes of each other.

It's like waiting by your side.

But thinking about it, it's impossible. The emperor is busy with countless affairs of state; how could he have time to care about such a trivial matter?

It was probably just a coincidence.

The army has always rewarded officers based on merit. All the other guides were just completing their normal tasks, but Sangye exceeded his quota.

Among them, rescuing Executor Aso Ment, assisting in killing Brian, successfully degenerating and mutating, promoting peace talks among the Snow Mountain Clan, and mentally sorting out the Sentinels are listed in chronological order. This time, they made a big move, directly reducing Sangye's sentence by 1,500 years and adding a bonus of 3 million.

Sangye stared in disbelief at the prize money. Before she could recover from the shock of this huge sum, another message arrived: the court had deducted 3 million yuan from her account and deposited it into the compensation account.

Kuwano had a thousand curses he wanted to utter, but in the end he kept his mouth shut and could only pretend he hadn't seen it.

We can only look on the bright side; a reduced sentence is a good thing for her.

Another piece of news made her even happier: the base sent her a subsidy of 100,000 yuan, and Jiang Siwei also received a dividend of 200,000 yuan. Keep in mind, this was just for instant noodles and a beverage.

Not far away, Wu Jianing, holding a small pig doll, directed her robot nanny to rush towards the west building.

"Sister Sangsang!" The little girl's voice was loud and clear, her cheeks rosy, full of joy at seeing someone she was close to.

"Ningning!" Sangye's tone softened as he lifted her off the robot arm. "Oh dear, you've gotten heavier again. Have you been eating properly lately?"

Wu Jianing nodded happily, and Sangye led her towards the west building, noticing the little pig doll in her hand. It was pink and tender, adorable, and lifelike. It was clearly handmade, without a trace of the heavy industrial feel of Black Tower Star.

"Who made this for you?"

“My great-grandmother!” Wu Jianing hugged the little pig that was half her arm’s length and leaned against Sangye’s chest. “My great-grandmother had a lot of toys sent over.”

Sangye looked at her face, which resembled Wu Huansheng's. Because she had incorporated some of Mu An's genes, her eyes were not so obviously fox-shaped and appeared somewhat round.

Wu Jianing's great-grandmother, Wu Jinyue.

This morning, Minur sat beside Sangye, the snow-capped mountains reflected in his eyes.

She didn't suffer much growing up; on the contrary, she received preferential treatment because she was a "royal descendant."

The Snow Mountain Tribe doesn't live in the icy wilderness that Sangye imagined. They occupy the warmest area of ​​the Snow Mountain range, a dormant volcano within the mountain range. The temperature there is much more stable than at the base.

All the hardships she endured stemmed from her closest relative, Brian. Unresolved resentment and jealousy from childhood, along with differing views on the future, led to a complete rift between them, culminating in armed conflict. Minuel even sought to use the base to eliminate him.

At that moment, Kuwano asked her one last question: "Brian said you let your mother go?"

Minur shook her head, saying she didn't have that ability: "Back then, Father was the first to break free from the spiritual mark, but he couldn't find her anywhere. I knew Mother was in the cave, so I ran to see her one last time. I just didn't tell Father, but in Brian's eyes, it became that I let her go."

Minur chuckled mockingly, "As if finding her would stop her. My mother is an S-rank guide; her mental power can cover the entire snow mountain region. No one can escape from her mental power."

“That cave was where my mother taught me to observe the universe. She told me a lot about other planets and her past.” Minur gripped the necklace. “My mother wasn’t surprised that I found her, or rather, she was waiting for me there. She asked me if I wanted to go with her.”

“I asked her what to do about her brother? Her mother didn’t say anything; she wasn’t disappointed or angry.”

Wu Jinyue left calmly.

Wu Huansheng, based on Black Tower Star, participated in numerous military operations to suppress the Snow Mountain rebellion. Wu Jinyue couldn't possibly be unaware of everything.

Looking at the pink pig in Wu Jianing's hand, Sangye sighed and chose to look away, gazing at the bright sunshine outside.

Lin Changli walked beside her and suddenly spoke, without any explanation: "There's no need to feel sorry for them. They are ambitious politicians, unquestionable supreme commanders, and can be anything, except mothers. Children are the continuation of life, but they must also be the most steadfast allies."

Sangye turned to look at him, as if he had thought of someone, showing no resentment, disappointment, or anger.

"Think about it, it makes sense. As long as they're willing, they'll always have new children." Lin Changli smiled calmly at Sangye.

Creating life and taking life are completely different concepts.

Wu Jianing was too young to understand what the two were saying, and just listened in a daze.

*

Bright Sun Star.

The G5 Legion, led by the Wu family, is stationed here. The G5 Legion has grown from a small detachment first led by Marshal Wu Jinyue into the behemoth it is today, and was specially granted permission by the royal family to be stationed on Mingyang Star, which belongs to the Wu family.

Because the current rulers prefer warm and bright weather and a vibrant atmosphere, Mingyang Star spends a fortune every year planting trees and controlling the weather.

The trees in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows are lush and green, and a gentle breeze blows through them.

A dark-haired woman whose age was hard to discern was reading announcements from within the legion: successful colonization of the Sulfurfire Galaxy, the Zerg needing reinforcements on the border, the Federation proposing trade negotiations...

All sorts of things came together until finally arriving at an inconspicuous announcement with only one sentence: Statistics on the total mining output of Black Tower Star and the change of clan chief in the Snow Mountain region.

Her gaze, which had initially swept past the last sentence, returned and lingered on it.

She clicked on it.

The announcement briefly explained the vicious riot that occurred in the snowy mountains of Black Tower Star and its background: Lin Changli destroyed Snow Pear Plain, Brian died, and the High Priest Minur, who had never appeared before the Empire, became the new clan chief.

She was stunned for only a few seconds, but her eldest daughter immediately sensed something was wrong.

"Mom?" Wu Xiangxi leaned closer, noticing the message on her terminal. "Black Tower Star? I wonder if Shengsheng participated in this operation. That child doesn't send back many messages. Ningning, on the other hand, calls me frequently..."

"Mom, are you alright?" Wu Xiangxi asked instinctively, her mind already scarred after her previous attempt to mentally manipulate Lin Changli failed.

Wu Xiangxi didn't think such a trivial matter was worth paying attention to; she was just worried about Wu Jinyue's health.

"It's nothing." Wu Jinyue closed the message and gently stroked her eldest daughter.

"Mom, one of the trees you planted in the backyard died this morning," Wu Xiangxi reported to her mother, as this was more concerning than the minor incident that had occurred on Black Tower Star.

The trees in the backyard were planted by Wu Jinyue herself after her family moved to Mingyang Star. There were five trees in total, and Wu Jinyue carefully nurtured them with her spiritual power.

Wu Jinyue let out a long breath and leaned back against the soft backrest again: "Is it dead? Dig it out and throw it away."

"Would you like some iced peach tea? Yinyin brought it back from the capital planet. I heard it's the masterpiece of that guide from Black Tower Planet, and it really tastes much better than what we make."

Wu Huanyin, Wu Huansheng's sister-in-law, returned from the capital planet to prepare for childbirth. Staying with her family makes her feel more at ease.

A new life is about to be born.

Wu Jinyue smiled genuinely.

*

Sangye compromised with the opinions of the two people who only knew how to eat and decided to make hot pot tonight, a half-and-half pot.

As for the broth, half is made with beef tallow and the other half with fermented rice wine.

Both of these pot bases require the preparation of fermented glutinous rice in advance. With the help of technology, the fermentation time can be reduced. After the glutinous rice is soaked and cooked, it is mixed with yeast and left to stand. Then it is placed in a glass house to ferment. It will be fermented in about half an hour, and the aroma of alcohol and the sweetness of rice will be extracted. The fermentation time should not be too long, otherwise the alcohol will become stronger and stronger.

First, put the snow-white butter into the pot and melt it into oil. Then, add star anise, ginger, scallion segments, rock sugar, Sichuan peppercorns, small red chilies, and freshly made fermented rice wine and stir-fry until fragrant. After that, just add spring water and bring it to a boil to make the butter hot pot base.

Zhaopo vinegar is a traditional delicacy from the southern islands. It is made by mixing wine lees with various ingredients and spices. It is sweet and sour, and is very suitable for cooking seafood.

Once the oil in the wok is slightly smoking, add ginger, garlic, and chili peppers and sauté until fragrant. Sauté the chili peppers until the skin is slightly wrinkled. Then add the red and yellow bell peppers and sauté with the fermented rice wine until fragrant. At this point, you'll smell the rich aroma of the fermented rice wine. You can add the bell peppers in several batches; this will make the dish even more delicious.

Finally, add water and simmer. The fermented vinegar hot pot base is now ready.

As for Lin Changli and Du Yuan, they had already been sent by Sangye to prepare hot pot ingredients.

As for where the ingredients came from, Lin Changli had long since stopped asking, and Sangye would not say it outright either; the two simply took it as an unspoken understanding.

Du Yuan could suddenly appear, so why bother about the ingredients?

Slightly frozen but still elastic beef was cut into rolls; two free-range chickens just over two months old were cut into small pieces; three full plates of pork belly were cut; and the tenderloin, chuck, and shank were categorized separately.

Sangye specifically asked for more high-calcium mutton, as she especially loved the high-calcium mutton mixed with cartilage, which had a delicate and crisp texture.

Lin Changli did not hesitate to refuse at all, and did whatever Sang Ye asked him to do.

Du Yuan, with her mouth pursed wide enough to hold an oil can, deboned the chicken feet, brushed the oysters, brushed the duck intestines, and washed the seaweed.

Wu Jia Ning was tearing oyster mushrooms, breaking off corn kernels, and cutting potatoes with a knife.

As the aroma of the broth filled the entire kitchen, Sangye began preparing high-gluten beef balls and pork patties.

Having housekeeping robots can save a lot of manual steps and physical effort; they can do things like pounding and mixing.

Looking at the small, shimmering hot pot broth and the gradually forming beef balls and pork patties, Sangye pondered to himself that keeping them fresh this time was far too easy.

The little phoenix hopped and skipped among the group with great interest; the kitchen was too small for him, and it was difficult for him to fly there.

He wandered around like a free-range chicken, looking here and there, occasionally pecking at Lin Changli to get a bite of raw meat.

When he got tired of playing, he would walk over to Wu Jia Ning and use his sharp beak to help her tear the cabbage.

Only when Sangye politely refused its approach, the high temperature emanating from its body would prevent the beef balls from forming.

After Rong Cheng returned, she joined the bustling team preparing ingredients and shared the latest news with everyone.

"People from Chaohai District have arrived."

Sangye's entire impression of the Tide Sea came almost entirely from Lin Changli, who would dive down into the Tide Sea to calm Little Phoenix down.

"It's the lieutenant general from the Chaohai Base who came with the Chaohai Clan's little prince." Rong Cheng said excitedly, "This is the first time I've ever seen a Chaohai Clan member! They're actually real mermaids!"

She seemed to be surrounded by dreamy bubbles from the ocean: "He's so handsome, I can't even describe his looks. And his voice is so beautiful, when he opens his mouth I can't hear anything else, it's like he's singing."

Kuwano found it amusing: "Is it really that exaggerated?"

“Really!” Rong Cheng nodded exaggeratedly. “If General Jiang Sili hadn’t sent me back, I would have stayed there and not moved.”

Rong Cheng had never seen a mermaid in the Tide Sea area. In fact, on the entire Black Tower Star, only the Snow Mountain Clan had been constantly fighting against the base and revolting.

The Tide Sea Clan has lived in the Tide Sea for generations. The Tide Sea is rich in resources, so the black crystal is dispensable to them. In fact, they are valuable assistants in the base's mining operations, and they occasionally gift the base with minerals from the Tide Sea, each gift being a precious item worthy of decades of research by the Academy of Sciences.

The base is very satisfied with this cooperation and will reciprocate by providing the Chaohai people with the spiritual comforts they need most and the latest products for stabilizing their spirits.

But the Chaohai tribe is in far greater danger than the Xueshan tribe.

They are the most prone to mental riots, often capable of stirring up huge waves and churning the sea, causing mining operations to be suspended for months.

The kitchen was filled with a warm, fresh, and spicy aroma, making that dangerous area seem very distant, and at that moment it sounded like some kind of magical story.

Kuwano turned the ventilation up to the highest setting, and the silent fan spun wildly.

Then the hot pot and all sorts of cleaned ingredients were served together on the table, creating a feast for the eyes.

The only drawback is that Sangye doesn't have much seafood, because seafood must be eaten fresh. Once it dies, it quickly produces seafood toxins, which are neurotoxins that are incurable by medicine.

Seafood can only live in seawater, and Sangye's current cave level is not high enough, while Du Yuan has lost his cave. They can only wait until they upgrade to farm seafood.

One of the great things about hot pot is that you can enjoy a variety of ingredients in one meal, which is very satisfying.

Kuangye also prepared a variety of seasonings, including several dishes of satay sauce from the South China Sea. Everyone could mix their own to their liking.

This time, Sangye made a hot pot with butter that catered to those who couldn't eat spicy food and the children. It wasn't made too spicy, but Du Yuan was given an extra small piece of the broth and plenty of chili oil.

After the bottom of the pot boiled, the oil and fermented rice first floated to the top.

Add the vegetables you want to eat, blanch them for only half a minute, and then you can mix them with seasonings and enjoy a satisfying meal.

Zhaobocu could fill two bowls just from drinking the soup; if Sangye hadn't persuaded Wujianing to eat the vegetables first, she could have drunk her fill.

Although Du Yuan doesn't like doing things, she is very serious when she does them. She removes boneless chicken feet so that not a single bone fragment is visible, and cuts oysters in half so that they can be eaten one bite at a time.

Any dish that enters the butter pot will be tainted by its indelible, overbearing aroma.

Even though Lin Changli and Wu Jianing aren't very good at eating spicy food, they couldn't resist being tempted to eat a few bites of beef and mutton.

As for Du Yuan's occasional nonsensical geographical references, such as, "This beef is good, it must be from the Supo Grassland, right?", he simply ignored them.

As for why the mermaid prince came to the base?

Rong Cheng, captivated by the beauty, paid no attention to what was being said.

Since things have come to this, let's eat first.

The delicious food washed away the chill of the snow-capped mountains and the memories of cold danger, leaving only the warmth of the moment.

The moon shines brightly outside, while inside, the aroma of sour, sweet, and spicy food fills the air.

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Author's note: After finishing writing, I ordered a hot pot with fermented soybean paste and vinegar, and cooked it when I got home. [doge emoji with rose in hand]