Chapter 122 (First Release)...

After all, they are close companions, and they are currently living under the same roof. They don't know how long they will live together, so temporary tolerance won't last.

Ning Wanwan looked at Ansel, who fell silent.

Ning Wanwan waited patiently for a while, then calmly said, "If you can't give a reason, then don't do it next time."

Ansel: "..."

Ansel moved his lips, as if he wanted to say something, but then he glanced at the small boat that had been watching the scene, and then pressed his lips tightly together again.

Then, he let out a heavy, cold snort, it was unclear who he was addressing, and then, without saying a word, he turned and strode into his house.

The door slammed shut, deliberately used to highlight the homeowner's angry mood as if announcing something to the world.

Ning Wanwan: "..."

With one less troublemaker, the scene suddenly calmed down, which actually made her feel a sense of relief.

The small boat remained standing in the same spot, quiet and well-behaved, neither making a fuss nor causing any disturbance.

His silver-gray eyes gazed at her silently, as if reflecting her every reaction into his pupils.

Ning Wanwan looked at it and couldn't help but feel emotional. Compared to Xiao Zhou, Ansel was more like that child.

Continuing to remain silent like this isn't a good idea, so she glanced at Xiaozhou again and said softly, "I'm sorry, that's just his personality..."

"Are you apologizing on his behalf?" Xiao Zhou suddenly asked, as if she was thinking about something.

Ning Wanwan: "Well, I guess so..."

"Why"

“Because we are companions…” Ning Wanwan didn’t quite understand why Xiaozhou was paying attention to this aspect; it was different from what she had imagined.

Xiao Zhou: "In your eyes, are companions a very close relationship?"

Ning Wanwan was taken aback by the question and began to think about it seriously: "...Well, since I'm here, I don't have any other close friends or family."

Xiao Zhou: "I understand."

Xiao Zhou: "So, have you considered building closer relationships with other people?"

"A closer relationship?" Ning Wanwan blinked, confused. "For example..."

Xiao Zhou: "For example."

Xiao Zhou looked up at the girl, then paused for a moment, a rare hint of hesitation appearing on his usually expressionless face.

Ansel's words did have some effect on Xiaozhou.

Would she find it "disgusting"?

He used to be able to say it without any reservations, but now he inexplicably feels a bit worried, not wanting her to reject him...

Is this worry? Or panic?

Xiao Zhou substituted the names of the emotions he observed in others, matching them to the descriptions, and it seemed that something else had appeared in his empty, silver-gray pupils.

"What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?" Ning Wanwan looked back at him, somewhat confused. "What are you trying to say, like, is there nothing more to it?"

Ning Wanwan was quite curious to hear what would follow Xiaozhou's "for example," such as friends and family.

Xiao Zhou paused for a moment, but did not answer.

He is not good at lying.

But the girl was blinking at him.

Xiao Zhou's snow-white eyelashes drooped slightly, and she suddenly brought up another topic.

“I heard it. The way he called you was Wanwan.”

Ning Wanwan was taken aback for a moment: "Um, what's wrong?"

Ansel always called her Wanwan, and when he called her that, the reduplicated word always had a sticky, sweet tone at the end.

Ning Wanwan had gotten used to it.

Xiao Zhou: "I don't want to call you the same way he does."

Ning Wanwan chuckled: "Call me whatever you want, there's no need to call me the same way he does."

She thought Xiao Zhou really didn't care about Ansel's rejection at all, but it seems she is a little bit.

Ning Wanwan assumed that Xiao Zhou said that because of his discord with Ansel.

Xiao Zhou: "I understand."

Then, while Ning Wanwan was still thinking about the matter between Xiaozhou and Ansel, Xiaozhou suddenly called her name.

"Ning Wanwan".

"Mmm," Ning Wanwan responded subconsciously.

She came to her senses and saw that Xiao Zhou had already run away at some point.

He waved to her somewhat stiffly and awkwardly, speaking earnestly, word by word.

See you tomorrow, Ning Wanwan.

...

The small boat ran very fast, and Ning Wanwan soon lost sight of him.

She turned and walked home.

For some reason, Ning Wanwan felt a strange sense of déjà vu when she thought of Xiao Zhou's awkward and stiff waving goodbye.

Hmm...right! It's somewhat similar to the scene when Ansel blew on her and said "pain, fly away."

They were all very awkward, as if they were doing it for the first time.

But waving goodbye is a very common and ordinary gesture; surely it's not the first time Xiaozhou has ever waved goodbye to someone.

Ning Wanwan initially found it a bit funny, but after realizing the possible reason, she couldn't laugh anymore.

Does no one in the village interact normally with Xiaozhou?

She remembered the brown-haired, freckled boy named Jeremy. The first time they met, he was like a god descending from the heavens, saving Xiaozhou from being bullied by a group of children.

Jeremy was also very kind to Xiaozhou, as if he wanted to befriend him and save him.

"Isn't that Jeremy Xiaozhou's friend?"

Ning Wanwan thought to herself.

Reaching the front door, she temporarily set aside her complicated thoughts and reached out to open it.

In fact, Ning Wanwan had already mentally prepared herself for Ansil to lock her out of the door because she was too angry and dissatisfied... after all, Ansil seemed really angry at the time.

Unexpectedly, before Ning Wanwan could even turn the doorknob, the door creaked open as soon as her fingertips lightly touched it.

Ning Wanwan: "..."

Okay, that's so deliberate!

She walked in hesitantly. Ansel was in the kitchen, his back to her, preparing ingredients for dinner.

The knife slammed down on the cutting board with great force, making Ning Wanwan's heart tremble with fear.

Ning Wanwan slowly walked over and looked at Ansel from behind from a distance. She saw Ansel viciously chopping up a fish that was still on the verge of death, his method so ruthless it was as if he were skinning and dismembering it.

The sight, coupled with the pitiful fish scales and gills scattered all over the ground, and the fish's tail occasionally thrashing weakly on the cutting board, made Ning Wanwan want to back away.

Forget it... Maybe we should just not say anything more today and see how things go tomorrow.

Thinking of this, Ning Wanwan turned around and quietly made her way back to her room.

Ansel: "Where are you going?"

Ning Wanwan: "...I'm going back to my room to rest for a bit."

Ansel: "It's the same if you rest in the living room. I'm making dinner tonight, it'll be ready soon, just wait a little longer."

After pausing for a few seconds, he continued torturing the fish without turning his head, saying in a stiff tone, "I brought back some candy, it's on the table, you can take it and eat it when you're resting."

Ning Wanwan was stunned for a moment and didn't react immediately, but Ansel had already continued to immerse himself in the great cause of "cooking". Judging from his back, he was very busy with his head down and didn't even have time to speak.

Ning Wanwan was about to walk towards the living room when she suddenly saw the fish on the cutting board leap up as if it couldn't bear the way the fish was being killed!

Then the fish tail slapped Ansel's face hard.

Then, it fell back onto the cutting board and became a dead fish, motionless.

Ansel was a little stunned by the fish tail slapping him. He stood there blankly, holding the kitchen knife, and subconsciously glanced back at Ning Wanwan.

When he realized that Ning Wanwan was also looking at him, he quickly snapped back to reality and abruptly turned his head back. Ning Wanwan almost wondered if his neck didn't hurt at all.

After a few seconds of silence, Ning Wanwan finally couldn't help but chuckle.

Ansel: "..."

Ansel: "You didn't see anything!"

Ning Wanwan: "Mmm, I didn't see it."

Ansel: "Go and rest in the living room. Dinner will be ready soon."

Having witnessed him cook, Ning Wanwan was genuinely skeptical of the claim that "dinner will be ready soon." However, since he insisted he didn't need help, she naturally wouldn't offer to assist.

Of course, the main reason is that Ning Wanwan isn't very good at cooking... These past few days, she and Ansil have been eating ready-made things like bread and noodles, and Ning Wanwan has only cooked or heated them up at most...

However, Ansel wasn't picky about this. He ate whatever Ning Wanwan ate, and he didn't complain even when it was bland and watery.

Ning Wanwan could sense that before she lost her memory, she definitely wasn't a good cook...

In short, cooking a fish to the point of being edible was truly beyond Ning Wanwan's knowledge.

I don't know where Ansel got this fish in such cold weather.

Ning Wanwan stopped thinking about it and tried to ignore the chaotic noises coming from the kitchen, but she still glanced in that direction every now and then with some worry, afraid that Ansil might accidentally blow up the kitchen.

She slowly walked into the living room and saw a neatly wrapped paper package on the table. When she opened it, it was indeed candy.

Ning Wanwan picked up a piece and put it in her mouth. The candy was probably freshly made, as it was still warm, and the sweet taste instantly spread between her lips and teeth.

It tasted the same as the candy Anseil had given her when they were sheltering from the snow in the cave. It must have been bought from the candy shop that Anseil had mentioned was very popular in the village.

I don't know why Ansel suddenly bought candy and brought it back today.

Ning Wanwan squinted her eyes slightly with satisfaction, savoring the sweetness.

Although having hot food in the village is much better than outside, sugar is still relatively scarce.

Ning Wanwan ate another piece of candy and was wondering whether she should go to the kitchen to check on Ansel's cooking when she suddenly heard a loud crash from the kitchen, followed by complete silence.

Could something have gone wrong?

Ning Wanwan quickly stood up and was about to walk towards the kitchen when she saw Ansel carrying out a pot of soup.

It must be said that the sight of a handsome young man with blond hair, purple eyes, and delicate features walking out wearing an apron and carrying a soup pot was quite pleasing to the eye.

The mist obscured his overly handsome features, inexplicably adding a touch of...married womanly charm.

However, Ansel's slightly smug expression quickly broke the mood: "Wanwan, look, dinner is ready!"

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Author's Note: Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 16:13:51 on March 16, 2024 and 14:58:58 on March 17, 2024!

Thank you to the little angel who watered the nutrient solution: Yixuanmo (10 bottles);

Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!