May you have many birthdays to come, and may every year bring you this day!

Back at Shifangwu, Du Yuan, having finally put the cat to sleep, returned to the central courtyard and brewed tea at the stone table next to the cat and dog kennels.

Seeing Sangye return, she raised her eyebrows and smiled: "Sangsang is back. Come on in."

She gestured for Sangye to come closer.

The aroma of tea wafted through the air. In the teacup that Du Yuan handed to Sangye, white tea liquor floated, and green tea dust in the cup evoked the charm of green mountains and misty smoke.

Du Yuan came from a noble family and had learned these things since childhood, but she never deliberately taught Sangye Rongcheng or anyone else. At most, she would let them join in when they were interested to calm their minds.

In her view, the education of "noble ladies" only stifled individuality and provided a good topic of conversation, but was of little use in real life.

"Your birthday is coming up." Du Yuan suddenly blurted out this sentence while Sangye was concentrating on sipping his tea.

"Huh?" Sangye was stunned. She had been here for over a year and had long forgotten about her birthday.

“I had Eve calculate the lunar calendar date; your birthday is in eight days,” Du Yuan said with a smile, pointing to the terminal. But she quickly became melancholy. “In the past, I could always give you something new and interesting for your birthday, or at the very least, I could catch a little spirit beast. But now, magical artifacts are basically useless, and spirit beasts are out of the question.”

As she spoke, Du Yuan rummaged through her storage ring: "Now there's nothing left to give you."

Sangye hurriedly finished his tea: "It's alright, Master, you don't need to give me anything! It's my birthday, I've had many birthdays already, and I'm so old, what else could I possibly want?"

Sangye was telling the truth; she was already very content. If it weren't for Du Yuan, she would have frozen to death in the wilderness back then.

Sangye thought for a moment and said, "On that day, Master, please make me a bowl of cold noodles."

"Huh?" Du Yuan was taken aback. "Don't we eat longevity noodles on our birthdays? We're having cold noodles instead?"

Sangye nodded.

Du Yuan was a little hesitant.

Kuwano stood up: "I'm going to take a nap too."

When Sangye walked back to the second floor and looked back, Du Yuan had already ordered a bowl of tea.

Du Yuan had no idea that Sangye had started eating complementary foods on the very first day she had memories.

On a hot summer day, Du Yuan made cold noodles, served with scallion-oil chicken thigh meat, and mixed with cucumber shreds, and fed them to them.

A gentle evening breeze blows, and the buckwheat noodles used for cold noodles are incredibly chewy; a single bite can last a long time for a child.

The scallion-oil chicken drumsticks were seasoned with a touch of chili oil, and they ate them with slurping noises, but they wouldn't stop.

Sang Ye had food all over her face. When Du Yuan wiped her face, Sang Ye's consciousness suddenly became clear, and she uttered her first word. She didn't call for her master, but for her mother.

She didn't want rare treasures or mythical beasts. It was enough that Du Yuan was alive by her side.

After thinking it over, Sangye decided not to tell Lin Changli the "secret" he had just learned from Melusin. It wouldn't be too late to tell him when he returned.

Moreover, there is no evidence for this matter unless someone tests the DNA or the person involved admits it personally.

However, if we connect the dots, we can well explain Song Yu's psychological motivation when he committed the crime.

She cannot react in place of Lin Changli.

*

Lin Changli is indeed on the snow-capped mountain at this moment, but he is not testing new weapons.

He and Rong Cheng were currently in a cave beneath a snow waterfall, with Brian's heart buried in the snowfield not far above their heads.

Minur stood far away from the two, his face reflecting the intense light from the collision of flames and metal materials.

She almost wanted to stand at the entrance of the cave, but she still felt like her tail hair was going to be burned.

The two men borrowed her cave, explaining that it would keep out snow and be far from people, so no matter how much noise they made, it wouldn't attract attention.

The two were making a tremendous racket, and she still couldn't understand what they were doing.

Minur shook his head, left the cave, and his two fox ears twitched freely on his head as he listened to the sounds from all directions.

"Bye-bye." Rong Cheng waved to her.

Lin Changli didn't turn around. The light flickered in his hand, and the material emitted an icy chill as it struggled to deform in his grasp.

After climbing to the top of the snowfield, Minur went to check on Brian as usual, then rode the nine-tailed snow fox to the foot of the mountain, preparing to return to the tribe from a warmer place.

An unexpected person appeared at the foot of the mountain.

That was General Wu Huansheng, who was sent to the base for this rotation.

Her personal warship was moored beside her, bearing the family crest with nine tail tips.

Previously, Minur remained hidden in the shadows, and the base was unaware of her existence. Now that she has led the entire tribe and signed a new cooperation agreement, it is natural for her to come out and make contact with these officers.

"What are you doing here?" The nine-tailed snow fox stopped running and Minur, a small person, grabbed the snow fox's ear.

Before she could even get off his back, Wu Huansheng heard her soft voice, as gentle as fox fur.

"Shall we take a walk together?" Wu Huansheng asked, wearing a winter coat with her ears exposed, which were slightly red.

The nine-tailed snow fox shrank and suddenly jumped onto her tip, its large tail covering its forehead and ears, leaving only its facial features exposed.

Although Minur did not understand its meaning, the crow's call was clearly not malicious.

The pure white snow crunched underfoot, like cracking tree branches.

"Yesterday I provided the base and the Empire with the latest mining progress of the Snow Mountain. The Snow Pear Plain has been destroyed, the Black Crystal veins have disappeared, the impact of radiation and magnetic field fluctuations has decreased, and the mining speed has accelerated. Moreover, due to the harsh natural environment, most Sentinels want to leave after the Snow Mountain is fully mined. Therefore, according to the base's AI prediction, this place will surpass the Loda Plain and become the first place on Black Tower to be fully mined."

Wu spoke softly, as if chatting.

When the snow mountain loses its value and the Black Tower Star loses its value, the base will be evacuated, and all tribes will be left behind, clinging to their current lives, unchanged.

Wu Huansheng opened her mouth, but being tactful was never her style, so she chose to ask directly.

"Someone asked me to ask you about your future plans."

"Huh?" Minur turned to look at her. The scar on Wu Huansheng's face obscured her features, and when only her features were visible, Minur thought she looked somewhat familiar. "Who would ask me?"

Wu Huansheng pursed her lips.

“Minur… My name is Wu Huansheng. My mother’s name is Wu Xiangchuan, and my grandmother’s name is Wu Jinyue, the current marshal of the G5, G6, and G7 legions. Our family’s main star is Mingyang Star, which was specially approved by the emperor for the legion to be stationed there. Mingyang Star has a warm climate, cooler than the Loda Plain and drier than the Chaohai Sea, making it very habitable and known as the Empire’s Botanical Garden.” Wu Huansheng made no hints or euphemisms.

Minur stopped walking after saying the first sentence.

The little nine-tailed fox coiled on Wu Huansheng's head also turned its head and looked at her in astonishment.

“Minur, haven’t you figured it out yet?” Wu Huansheng asked quietly. “You’re so smart, is it that you haven’t figured it out, or that you don’t want to figure it out?”

How can Minur answer this question?

“After Brian died, Grandma paid close attention to information from Black Tower. When she learned that the Snow Mountain area was about to be mined out, she asked me to come and ask you what your plans were,” Wu Huansheng said. “Without mineral veins, Black Tower has no value. If there is no further development, it may be used as a dumping ground by the Empire. It is located in a remote area, so even if it is burned and destroyed along with the garbage, it will not affect the operation of other planets. When that time comes, you will have to leave whether you like it or not.”

“…” Minur stared intently at Wu Huansheng’s features. Wu Huansheng felt the gaze was icy cold, as if the ice and snow were melting on his face.

*

A week passed quickly, and a new shift change began on the snow mountain. Wu Huansheng and his wife, along with Rong Cheng, returned to the base one after another. As soon as Wu Huansheng arrived at the base, before he could even rest, he immediately rushed to the West Building to pick up Wu Jianing.

The mother and daughter hugged each other tightly. Sangye packed hot pot, various ingredients and braised dishes for them to take away so that the family could reunite.

Sangye leaned closer to examine Wu Huansheng's scars.

Thanks to the persistent efforts of Sangye, the hospital doctors, and the guides, even the sentries on the top floor of the hospital who were deeply involved in the riot were gradually able to awaken and return to normal.

However, Wu Huansheng's scars did not improve much; although the color had faded a bit, there was still no sign of improvement.

Sang Ye was sad.

Wu Huansheng noticed her distress and comforted her, "It's okay, it's fine as it is, I'm used to it."

Du Yuan also leaned closer to take a look: "How did this happen?"

"Insect poison."

"As for the toxins, I'm afraid ordinary dietary therapy won't be enough." Du Yuan touched it lightly, and the toxins sealed under the scar were still surging. Guides are generally helpless against insect poisons, which is why battles between humans and insects always result in the highest losses.

Wu Huansheng never wastes time and energy on things she can't solve, so she quickly put them out of her mind, took Wu Jianing's hand, and the latter clung tightly to her leg, while the robot carrying the ingredients followed behind.

After watching them leave, Sangye was still pondering what Du Yuan had just said.

Dietary therapy involves consuming foods that possess spiritual energy, which are then infused into the mental landscape through spiritual energy infusion, while simultaneously calming the spiritual body.

Both guides and sentinels rely on the power of their spiritual bodies to heal injured limbs.

The area corroded by the insectoid toxins has always restricted the entry of mental energy.

The scars on Wu Huansheng's face were merely formed by covering the corroded area with spiritual energy to prevent further expansion.

"If dietary therapy doesn't work, would it be feasible to add medicinal herbs?" Sangye and Du Yuan discussed.

"Drink Chinese medicine?" Du Yuan's eyes flashed with surprise. "It's not that it's impossible, but can you even swallow it?"

Some Chinese medicinal herbs have good effects, but they put a great burden on the liver, and most Chinese medicines are bitter, so not everyone can drink them.

But you can give it a try, or take a medicinal bath like before.

You'll never get cured if you don't try.

Since planting the medicine at the hospital, Sangye has not planted any more in the cave, but the ones he planted before can still come in handy.

As for Bertha, there has been virtually no progress at this stage. The mature plants she uses for research all come from the fields in front of the hospital, and they can only grow by relying on Sangye's spiritual power; however, weeding, fertilizing, and so on are all handled by her team.

Rong Cheng returned to the West Building before Lin Changli.

In the daily messages Lin Changli sent to Sangye to ensure safety, he always said that the weapons tests were still in progress.

He was away for quite a while this time, and Sangye was curious about what kind of weapon test it was, so she asked Rong Cheng. However, Rong Cheng stammered and couldn't give a clear answer.

This aroused Kuwano's suspicion.

Without making a sound, Sangye sent a message to Aso Mente, asking if the base had recently developed any new weapons and if it needed to send people to the snow mountain to conduct power tests.

Others may not know, but Asso Ment certainly does.

Aso Ment was still on maternity leave, so the message came back quickly: I checked the records and the base has not produced any new weapons or sent any personnel recently.

Sangye put down the terminal, a cold smile appearing on his lips: Lin Changli, you're finished.

They've only been talking for a short time, and they're already lying! What will happen if this continues? Won't they become a walking lie machine?

We can talk, but if we can't, then we're breaking up!

Kuwano was furious; she hadn't been this angry in a long time.

A sudden storm erupted in her mental landscape.

The sycamore tree strained to support its canopy, sheltering the precious herbs painstakingly planted beneath it and the little foal that ran to seek shelter from the rain.

The sycamore tree sensed something was wrong and hurriedly contacted the little sycamore tree on the other side through telepathy: What are you doing?

Before he could finish speaking, Sangye's voice rang out: "Don't contact those three! They've gone too far! They dare to team up and lie to me!"

The sycamore tree trembled, ignoring the cries of "What's wrong? What's wrong? We're still in the snow mountain!" coming from the little sycamore tree.

Sisters, may you find your own good fortune. The sycamore tree stands silently.

Outside, Sangye paced angrily in the courtyard, while Rong Cheng was forgotten in a small corner and dared not speak.

I wonder if it's too late for her to explain that Lin Changli was preparing a birthday gift for her?

Seeing her little apprentice looking pitiful, Du Yuan quickly waved her away from the mulberry field and helped her peel the loofah.

Have some loofah soup tonight to cool down.

*

Lin Changli returned to the West Building the next morning.

Kuwano's birthday.

He brought with him a "birthday gift" forged in the snowy and icy environment of the mountains.

Eve's simulated natural weather caused a layer of clear, sparkling dew to fall on the flowers, plants, and trees in the back garden and courtyard.

While all things are still asleep, the laurel droops, and the roses and monthly roses bloom in full glory, regardless of whether anyone appreciates them.

The hot spring water flows continuously, its gentle murmur carrying steam.

The spring does not produce limescale, and robots regularly clean the hot spring, stone piles, and crossroads.

Lin Changli walked through the bushes that shielded him from the hot spring, the bushes snagging at his clothes and hair, making a rustling sound—he planned to build a door in the backyard sooner or later.

The sansevieria had already woken up and was surveying its territory in the yard, chest puffed out. The calico cat had a haughty posture, its tail held high, looking very proud.

But when it saw Lin Changli, its eyes lit up, and it immediately rushed forward, meowing and rubbing against his trouser leg affectionately.

Lin Changli scooped it up, his warm palm resting on its belly, and the mulberry violet whimpered contentedly.

Back in the living room, Lin Changli took out a few pieces of chicken breast from a locked cabinet on the top shelf, cut them into small pieces, and fed them to Sang Sejin; Sang Ye usually didn't allow them to eat much.

Sang Sejin, with a chicken breast in her mouth, hid on the sofa.

Lin Changli walked very lightly, not going to Sangye's bedroom, but returning to the room opposite to take a bath.

As they got closer, Sangye sensed Xiao Wutong's presence even without using his spiritual body.

This carefree child was so excited to be back in the womb that he was dancing around with joy.

Sangye woke up from a light sleep, sneered, threw off the covers and got out of bed.

She had barely entered the room across the hall when she saw something conspicuous before she could even react.

Lin Changli never litters; he sorts his clothes by color and puts them in different laundry baskets.

His work from a week's hard work was solemnly laid out on his cold, gray bed—there was nowhere else in his room to put anything.

That was a set of chef's knives. A set of 16, ranging from cleavers and antique knives to slicing knives, fruit knives, and even pot-bottom knives.

Sangye once wanted Rongcheng to refine it, but Rongcheng's flame temperature was not high enough to shape it, so he had to give up.

Sangye drew one of the blades; it was icy cold to the touch, the unique, bone-chilling coldness of the Tengshe bone, and the sharp blade revealed its cold iron material. This material could remain icy cold even in the high-temperature environment of the kitchen.

Even the best knives from Shifangwu were no better than this.

The sound of water in the bathroom stopped abruptly. Lin Changli, wearing a bathrobe, opened the bathroom door and stared at Sangye, who was carrying a knife and had a forced smile on his face.

Sangye raised an eyebrow, holding the knife: "So, you lied to me about this?"

Lin Changli paused, keenly realizing that the situation was not good.

Giving a gift before Kuwano discovers the lie is a completely different situation from giving a gift after she discovers the lie.

One is called a surprise, the other is called a remedy.

The nature of the matter changed so easily, and the nature of the gift also changed.

Kuwano was never one to deceive.

Lin Changli's brain was spinning rapidly.

“…” Kuwano lowered his head and gripped the knife in his hand.

The knife perfectly fit the curve and size of her hand, and it was forged in her absence.

Lin Changli really put a lot of effort into understanding her, her preferences, her needs, and everything about her.

Forging knives is not an easy task; even Lin Changli spent more than a week in the snow-capped mountains, which shows how difficult it is.

Thinking of this, Sangye's anger completely disappeared.

If Sangye happily returns with gifts, only to be met with Lin Changli's cold treatment and his persistent nagging about the lie he told her to create a surprise, she would also be heartbroken.

Forget it, what's there to be angry about? Why hurt the feelings of someone who truly cares over such a trivial matter?

Thinking of this, Sangye looked up.

"I really like this gift, thank you."

"I'm sorry, I'll never lie again."

Two voices rang out simultaneously, and the air fell silent once more.

As they looked at each other, Sangye chuckled, dispelling the awkward silence between them.

She put the knife back in its sheath and embraced Lin Changli, who was still damp with sweat.

*

When Rong Cheng saw Lin Changli appear unharmed at the dining table eating breakfast, she gave him a thumbs up with sincere admiration: "Amazing, bro!"

Lin Changli: ......

*

The complete set of kitchen utensils that Sangye had been longing for was solemnly placed in the knife section of the food preparation area.

Lin Changli has always had good taste; as for the original Xixiaolou, that was wartime minimalism.

The gilded scabbard looks incredibly luxurious, even inlaid with pearls. Who would have thought it was used to hold a cooking knife?

Sangye spent her birthday with her family. She didn't invite anyone else from the base; it was just a family reunion where they had a delicious lunch together.

Sang Ye couldn't just do it herself for her birthday, but she couldn't stay idle, so she and Lin Changli made a blueberry cake base together, which was sweet and sour.

Rong Cheng sat on the veranda, preparing swimming crabs.

This type of crab is slender and flat, with little to no roe; the meat is concentrated in the claws and sides of the body.

After cleaning, cut it in half with a knife.

Cut the rice cake into thin slices so it's easier to absorb the flavor and eat.

Du Yuan likes to coat the inside of an iron wok with lard before heating it with hot water. As the lard melts, it coats the wok, preventing the frying process from causing the food to stick.

First, add ginger slices, scallion segments, and minced garlic, stir-fry them in oil until fragrant, then remove them from the oil.

The cut blue crabs are coated with starch liquid and then placed one by one into the oil pan to set and cook.

Then add the chopped rice cakes and a little water and simmer together.

Then add cooking wine, light soy sauce, rose salt, sugar, chicken bouillon, and pepper. Stir-fry over high heat, then simmer over low heat until the sauce thickens.

The sauce seeped into the crab meat and blended into the creamy rice cake, making both incredibly tempting and fragrant.

On the other side, Rong Cheng was washing the ribs. She added a spoonful of salt and flour to the basin of water, repeatedly kneading and washing the ribs to remove any loose dust. Then she took out another bowl, added minced scallions, ginger, garlic, light soy sauce, oyster sauce, salt, and fermented bean paste, marinated them for twenty minutes, and then added steamed rice flour and a little water, mixing well.

As for the steamed meat powder, Du Yuan had already prepared it last night, mixing rice, glutinous rice, soybeans, and peanuts in a specific ratio. Without adding oil to an empty pot, he added the above-mentioned dried grains along with seasonings such as star anise, fennel, Sichuan peppercorns, and bay leaves, stir-fried them until cooked, and then put them into a blender to grind them into small pieces.

After marinating the ribs, place bamboo leaves or two potatoes at the bottom of a bowl, then put the ribs in to steam until they can be easily pierced off the bone.

After Rong Cheng finished her work, Sangye came over with two pineapples in his hand: "Let's make some pineapple fried rice. It should be enough for the four of us."

Kuwano couldn't wait to use her new knife. She cut the pineapple vertically in half, then scooped out the flesh and cut it into two or three small cubes about the size of a thumbnail. She also diced radish, ham, onion, green beans, and shrimp.

A knife forged from cold iron and the bones of a serpent is truly excellent. It fits the curve of her hand perfectly, and she doesn't even need to exert any force. With a gentle stroke, everything under the knife is cut into the perfect size and thickness according to her wishes.

Sangye took out the leftover rice from yesterday, poured the egg mixture into the rice and stirred it well before stir-frying it in a pan.

Then I added a few more eggs and stir-fried them with diced radish, diced ham, onion, green peas, and shrimp. I added salt, oyster sauce, and other seasonings, then added rice and stir-fried it together. Finally, I added diced pineapple. Fruit cooks the fastest, so adding it last prevents it from becoming mushy and keeps it crisp and sweet.

Place the fried rice into four pineapple shells, and the delicious pineapple fried rice is ready.

Du Yuan then made the cold noodles that Sangye had requested.

Cold noodles are naturally sweet and sour, making them perfect for children. Mix white vinegar, sugar, light soy sauce, salt, chicken bouillon, and sesame oil with ice water until well combined.

After cooking the buckwheat noodles, add them directly to the broth. Ice cubes can help cool the noodles down quickly, achieving a refreshing taste. If you like it spicy, you can add chili oil separately.

The last four cakes to come out of the oven were blueberry cakes, covered with blueberry jam and a generous layer of blueberries.

Each one was small, only about the size of a small bowl. Only Sangye's blueberry cake had a candle on it.

There weren't many dishes, but the portions were huge; one bowl wasn't enough to hold them all. The table was completely covered.

The aroma of seafood, pork ribs, and pineapple mingled and wafted into my nostrils.

Surrounded by her family, Sangye slowly made her wish for the year: May every year bring her this day, and may every year bring her this morning.

She is living the best life she can. Her career is thriving, and her family is by her side. She is content.