5. A beautiful corpse was discovered in the stream.
◎My handsome husband is online!◎
Among the common seasonings such as light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and soy sauce, chicken bouillon is the simplest and quickest to make, so Yan Yunzhao decided to start by figuring out how to make chicken bouillon.
She picked a few shiitake mushrooms, used a simple fire spell to summon a small cluster of flames, and baked the mushrooms inside and out until they were completely dry. Then she chopped them into small pieces on a cutting board and set them aside.
Chicken bouillon, chicken bouillon, you can't do without chicken. If she went down the mountain to buy it now, the vendors would probably have already closed up shop, so Yan Yunzhao took her Blade Snow and went out to get ingredients from nature. A moment later, she returned home carrying a plump pheasant.
The pheasant kept flapping its wings, but fortunately, Yan Yunzhao had lived in the countryside since childhood in her previous life and often helped her grandmother with farm work, so she was quite skilled at tasks like killing chickens.
She swiftly killed the pheasant with a single stroke, then, holding it by its two lifeless wings, submerged it entirely in a wooden tub. Using her arson technique, she quickly boiled a pot of water and poured it all into the tub with a splash.
Scalding the pheasant with hot water made plucking its feathers easy, but the smell emanating from it was truly unpleasant, even for Yan Yunzhao, who had been exposed to it since childhood. After several unbearable attempts, he cast a spell to temporarily disable his sense of smell.
After removing the pheasant's internal organs and cutting it into small pieces, I cooked it and then dried it. After working hard in the kitchen for a while, the key step was left: grind the dried chicken shreds and dried shiitake mushrooms into powder, and add a little salt, white pepper powder, and sugar.
Holding the powder, Yan Yunzhao regained his sense of smell and took a gentle sniff. He smiled with satisfaction: This is the taste!
She packed all the powder into a jar and was about to take it out to store in a dry place when she froze: where did the pheasant innards that she had just picked out and put on the table go?
All was quiet except for the chirping of insects echoing outside. Gazing at the hazy moonlight outside, the words the old man had spoken when I was selling mushrooms earlier that day slowly came to mind: "There are man-eating monsters in Cuiliang Mountain that bewitch people."
Yan Yunzhao shook her head violently: How could that be? She had lived in Cuiliang Mountain for two hundred years and had never seen any man-eating monsters.
But she stood on the hillside for two hundred years without moving... How could anyone know what was happening elsewhere?
Two voices were battling within Yan Yunzhao, neither able to convince the other. After taking a deep breath, she decided to muster her courage and go out to see what was going on.
Holding the Blade Snow in her hand, a cold wind blew outside, and her figure was shrouded in darkness. She could only hold her breath and carefully observe her surroundings.
After she was refined into human form, her cultivation dissipated, leaving only a meager amount of magical power within her. She could no longer sense even the slightest movement of the wind or grass around her as before. Like a blind and deaf person, she waited for the monster of the night to devour her completely.
Just as Yan Yunzhao was about to take a step forward, his ankle suddenly went weak.
"Ah!" she screamed in fright, taking several steps back, but the soft touch at her feet seemed to still be there.
Could there be giant caterpillars in these mountains? Yan Yunzhao was on the verge of tears. She stood back inside, trembling, and slammed the door shut with a loud bang.
With a stern face, she turned around to rush to the warm bedding, only to find a dark, shadowy thing under her feet.
Yan Yunzhao gasped and stumbled back a few steps. In a daze, he glanced down and saw a small calico cat.
"Meow~" The fluffy and chubby calico cat meowed affectionately and snuggled up to her.
Yan Yunzhao breathed a sigh of relief, realizing what the soft touch under her feet had been. Her fear vanished, replaced by joy. Gazing at the adorable creature before her, she crouched down and gently stroked it: "Are you hungry?"
"Meow." The kitten stared at her obediently with its round eyes.
Yan Yunzhao was overjoyed. He stroked the cat's fur, got up, and took a few pieces of leftover chicken from the kitchen, placing them in front of the kitten. However, the kitten remained unmoved, licking its fur.
"Could it be that it ate too much chicken giblets earlier?" Yan Yunzhao guessed, raising his hand to pat the fluffy head of the "culprit".
"How about I call you Rongrong from now on?"
The little calico cat was incredibly cute, and had a gentle, unassuming personality. She couldn't help but feel overjoyed; with a kitten as her companion, life in the mountain village would be infinitely happier.
Farmland, chicken coop, a small wooden house nestled against a beautiful landscape, a cat, and a capable farm girl. The elements of a heartwarming infrastructure game are finally complete.
Before she could finish licking her fur, Rongrong suddenly stood up and started scratching at the door.
Confused, Yan Yunzhao opened the door as it wanted, and it darted into the darkness, meowing as if trying to get her to come over.
By this time, it was completely dark. Yan Yunzhao held a small spark in his palm and stumbled along with Rongrong by the sliver of moonlight cast through the shadows of the trees.
"Where exactly do you want to go?" Yan Yunzhao muttered curiously as he watched the person and cat gradually disappear from the cabin.
Rongrong would run a few steps and then turn back to stop and wait for her, trying to lead her somewhere. Yan Yunzhao walked like a blind man for half an hour, and was even beginning to suspect that this was some kind of terrible conspiracy by a jungle monster, when Rongrong stopped by the stream.
The stream flowed gently, shimmering in the moonlight. Yan Yunzhao could clearly see a large, motionless dark shadow on the bank.
Alarm bells rang in her mind, and she instantly recalled a case of a body being dumped in the wilderness that she had seen on a legal education program. A chill ran down her spine, and the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end.
"Rongrong, come here!" Yan Yunzhao called softly, as if afraid of disturbing something, but Rongrong did not move and even stood on the shadow.
Oh no, I have to wash the cat when I get back. The thought of such a cute little cat like Rongrong smelling like a corpse made Yan Yunzhao feel a little short of breath.
"Meow—" A fluffy little figure stood on the shadow, as if urging her to come over. Yan Yunzhao tried to reason with herself for a while, but in the end, she couldn't resist the kitten's meows and reluctantly went over.
Being afraid was useless at this point. Yan Yunzhao mustered his courage and placed the small flame next to the dark shadow, finally seeing what it was.
There was a person lying there.
Yan Yunzhao sniffed carefully but didn't smell any stench. He guessed that this might be a living person who had somehow been washed here by the stream.
After confirming that it wasn't some giant with a high level of decay, she moved the firelight to the side of the man's face and gently brushed away the hair covering his face. At that moment, her breath caught in her throat.
Her profile was like jade, with long eyelashes and a high nose bridge, but her thin lips were a bit purplish-white, and her face was also frighteningly pale.
Not knowing where this guy had come from, Yan Yunzhao checked his breathing and, finding he was still alive, kindly carried him back to the hut. It would be too terrible for him to die here.
When a person loses consciousness, they become extremely heavy. Yan Yunzhao's magic power was exhausted, and the little flame had been extinguished, so he could only carry him back with faltering steps.
The sky had completely darkened, and the forest stretched endlessly down the mountainside, its large leaves blocking out even a sliver of moonlight. Yan Yunzhao couldn't see the path clearly, but fortunately, Rongrong was leading the way, meowing and guiding her, until she finally reached the shop.
Back in the cabin, Yan Yunzhao carried him like a half-pig on the bed and slumped down on the edge of the bed, catching his breath.
She wasn't very knowledgeable about medicine, and seeing the person who had fainted on the bed, she didn't know what to do. She could only touch his forehead as usual and found that he had a fever. So she brought a bucket of cold water and placed it by the bedside, and put a wet towel on his head to cool him down.
There was nowhere to find a doctor right now, so all Yan Yunzhao could do was change the towels frequently and pray that the towels wouldn't hang on his bed in the middle of the night.
Perhaps due to the excessive exertion of the day and working late into the night, Yan Yunzhao lay by the bedside, unable to resist the drowsiness, and fell into a deep sleep without realizing it.
When he woke up again, it was already broad daylight. Bright sunlight streamed in through the window, so dazzling that Yan Yunzhao couldn't help but rub his eyes groggily.
She casually picked up a towel from the side and wiped her face, but suddenly stopped: Where is the person on the bed?
The velvety rice bowl was full, the wooden floor gleamed with the light of freshly mopped water, the window was propped open to let in the spring sunshine, and the wild vegetables picked yesterday were washed and laid out on the table.
The cool morning breeze woke Yan Yunzhao up a bit. She was stunned for a while, not quite understanding what was going on.
Just as I was standing there in a daze, the young master I had picked up last night pushed open the door carrying a basket of fresh mushrooms.
This person had an air of otherworldly elegance and refined demeanor, but his complexion was not good; he was as pale as paper, and his body was thin and frail, as if he could be blown away by a gust of wind.
Looking closer, her eyebrows and eyes seemed to hold the beauty of peach blossoms in March, and the water rippled in spring; her black hair hung softly over her shoulders, like a willow in February, swaying gently.
Seeing that Yan Yunzhao had woken up, he paused, then put down the basket and said solemnly, "I am staying downstairs. Thank you for saving me, young lady."
Yan Yunzhao stared in a daze for a moment before realizing he was being asked a question. He cleared his throat and said, "Ahem, you're too kind, young master. It was just a favor."
It seems he must have cleaned the shop today. Yan Yunzhao frowned and sized him up for a moment. The man was dressed in rags, like a beggar who had fled from disaster. Looking at his frail appearance, he didn't seem like someone who could do housework, yet he did the work quite well.
She nodded thoughtfully and reached out to take the mushroom basket beside him. Matsutake, oyster mushrooms, cordyceps... all kinds of high-quality and expensive mushrooms were available.
“The young lady was exhausted from saving me, and I was afraid that it would affect the business of my small shop, so I took the liberty of going up the mountain to pick these. I hope you won’t find them offensive.”
Yan Yunzhao was naturally pleased and waved his hands repeatedly, "Thank you so much, young master. You fainted by the stream yesterday, how are you feeling today? Do you need to go to the town clinic?"
Seeing that he remained silent and was staring intently at the small talisman on her wrist, Yan Yunzhao raised her hand and waved it in front of his eyes.
Lou Su snapped out of his daze, looked away from the small talisman, and smiled faintly: "Okay."
Yan Yunzhao was taken aback when he was surprised that the man agreed so readily, thinking he would be polite.
"I happen to be going down the mountain to sell mushrooms today. Why don't you come with me, young master?"
Yan Yunzhao, being from a celestial sect, wasn't particularly wary of strangers. After all, even though her cultivation was now completely gone, few mortals could defeat her. Besides, what could this sickly young master, who looked like he could be blown away by a gust of wind, possibly do to her?
Lou Su nodded and even offered to carry the basket for her.
The two walked side by side, chatting idly for a while. Yan Yunzhao, recalling the scene from yesterday, hesitated before speaking, "This... Young Master Lou, what happened to you? How did you end up by the stream?"
He remained silent for a moment, his eyes lowered. Yan Yunzhao then explained, "It doesn't mean anything else. If you don't want to say, I won't force you."
“No,” he shook his head gently, walking slowly along the uneven cobblestone path, “I have suffered from a strange illness since childhood. As I grew older, the onset of the illness became more and more rapid, so I left home to find medicine. Perhaps I fainted during the onset of the illness and was swept here in a coma.”
"If it weren't for your rescue, young lady, I would probably be facing a near-death experience."
Lou Su nodded slightly to her, and Yan Yunzhao smiled and said, "It's nothing to mention, nothing to mention."
While exchanging polite words, Yan Yunzhao thought to herself, "This handsome young man is really too pitiful. Is this what they mean by 'beauty is fleeting'?" She couldn't help but sigh, lamenting that such stunning looks were wasted on such a terminal illness.
Cui Liang Wild Game wasn't too far from the town, and before they knew it, the two had arrived at the market.
The town market was still crowded, and the two of them didn't look like locals at all, attracting some ambiguous stares from the crowd.
After glancing over the various stalls, Yan Yunzhao chose an open space and skillfully took out a coarse cloth to lay out the mushrooms.
As soon as she set up her stall, several regular customers came up to her: "Young lady, are you here to sell mushrooms today too? Cuiliang Mountain is steep and the roads are complicated. The young master of the Liu family has tried many times but has failed to pick wild mushrooms. How did you manage to get up there?"
The man hadn't had a chance to ask yesterday, but today, seeing Yan Yunzhao picking so many mushrooms to set up his stall as usual, he was amazed and couldn't help but ask more questions.
Yan Yunzhao had already prepared his explanation, and explained with a smile, "I have been hunting in the mountains with my grandfather since I was a child. I am as familiar with the mountain paths as a mountain goat, so it goes without saying that I am good at it."
The others marveled but didn't doubt it, accepting their explanation. Lou Su, however, couldn't help but turn to ask, "Young lady, you were originally a hunter, so why have you switched to running a restaurant?"
"Young master, you may not know this, but my grandfather has long since passed away. I only inherited a little bit of his hunting skills, but I have excellent cooking skills, which is perfect for opening a restaurant."
Lou Su nodded slightly upon hearing this and did not ask any further questions.
Just like last time, the wild mushrooms were snapped up in no time.
The last time she sold mushrooms, her reputation spread far and wide, throughout the alleyway market. A young woman with considerable skill had even picked highland mushrooms to sell, attracting many customers. Yan Yunzhao took advantage of the situation to promote the newly opened Cui Liang Wild Game shop.
"Most of the noodles and dishes in our shop are made with freshly picked mushrooms from Cuiliang Mountain. The number of mushrooms sold in Lixi Town each day is limited. If you want to try them, you might as well come up the mountain. There are plenty of wild mushrooms to eat."
Everyone was overjoyed and echoed the sentiment.
Some people claiming to be restaurant owners wanted to buy them all at low prices, but Yan Yunzhao refused them all: he would only sell them individually.
Otherwise, if you negotiate the price, what start-up capital will your small shop have left to earn?
Despite complaining about the price, everyone was reluctant to leave, thinking to themselves: "This stall is so eye-catching today, these mushrooms are so white, these mushrooms are so beautiful."
"Everyone, fresh mushrooms, buy one!"
Lou Su's tone was calm, and his face was expressionless. He sat upright on the stool, unlike most people who would loudly hawk their wares. The crowd found it strange, not knowing whether to laugh or not, but could only smile and open their purses as a tip for this inexperienced young man.
Yan Yunzhao watched with amusement while counting his money with great relish: Who says good looks can't put food on the table? This is a windfall!
[Author's Note]
Protecting wildlife is crucial; hunting wild animals is prohibited in modern times! Many pheasants in the mountains are protected species. The book is set in an ancient era, so please don't take it too literally.
Wild mushrooms in the mountains are highly poisonous; do not eat them casually. [heart emoji]
Don't imitate the female lead's act of picking people up from the stream in the middle of the night. If you're easily scared, don't do it; it's terrifying.
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