Chapter 115 Fire and Winter
Since the beginning of winter, the snow has been falling intermittently without completely stopping.
It's rare that the dark clouds cleared up a bit this morning.
Su Yun then dragged the two unconscious people out to move around a bit.
She walked slowly ahead, pulled by the night breeze, with a sleepy little feather trailing behind her.
The three people cleared a path through the snow-covered road.
As a bird, Little Feather is more sensitive to temperature changes. Once outside, it shivered and kept muttering, "So cold, so cold, so cold... Why do we have to go out? Can't we go back inside?"
The little feather curled up its head, wanting to go back every moment.
Su Yun grabbed the other person's scarf and pulled them forward: "Come on! You've been lying at home for days, it's time to get out and move around."
As the temperature dropped, the two of them would mostly huddle in deck chairs by the fire when it snowed, often falling asleep with their eyes half-closed.
They were moving so silently that Su Yun had to stand up every now and then to check if the two of them were still breathing.
Seeing the two of them sleeping longer and longer, Su Yun wondered, "Did you two always sleep like this in the winter?"
Little Feather: "Whoosh whoosh whoosh..." No response.
Night Breeze rubbed her sleepy eyes. "No, it's just that this fire, the warmer it gets, the more sleepy I feel. I wanted to talk to you for a while, but... but... I don't know why I fell asleep again. I've felt sleepy before when I'm alone, but it never seems this bad. Maybe it's because it's so comfortable here..."
As Ye Feng spoke, his tail draped softly over Su Yun's hand, and his eyes narrowed again.
Seeing the two people in front of her looking drowsy, Su Yun had no choice but to sigh. They were probably too comfortable right now. She began to gently stroke the little tail's fur with her warm hands.
After a while, Su Yun heard the night breeze begin to breathe evenly. Staring at the little tail that was curling and twisting in her hand, she subconsciously wondered if she'd been living too comfortably lately...
It seems that since the beginning of winter, there's basically nothing to do except warm ourselves by the fire.
Aside from Su Yun taking apart and sewing a few pieces of clothing to create custom-made clothes for the two of them, the rest of the time was spent either eating or sleeping.
In Ye Feng's words, this was the most comfortable winter he had ever had.
Su Yun: It really felt too comfortable...
In that case, it is essential to maintain necessary basic activities.
So, taking advantage of the brief clearing up after the snowfall, Su Yun dragged the two of them for a stroll. They first went to check on the chicken coop next to the pond, and Su Yun had the two of them clean the roof of the chicken coop to prevent the snow from collapsing it.
Then they inspected the vegetable garden and cleared the snow off the greenhouse roof.
Finally, we circled around to a house at the end of the village, where a pomelo tree stood, its branches laden with bright yellow pomelos covered with a thin layer of snow.
Su Yun asked Night Breeze Little Feather to pick a few, intending to take them back to eat.
Little Feather trembled as she reached out to grab a pomelo, asking, "Is this still edible?"
Su Yun: "Sure, I remember some pomelos need to be left for a while to get sweeter flesh inside, and the longer they're left, the sweeter the flesh inside becomes."
"Really?" Little Feather looked at the pomelo, whose peel was already somewhat frozen, with some skepticism.
"Take it back and try it, then we'll know." Actually, Su Yun wasn't sure either. These pomelos were a few left over from the fall. He was thinking of coming back to pick more later, but then he encountered a mutated bear and stayed in the city for more than half a month. When he came back, he was busy preparing for winter and forgot about it.
Su Yun tapped the hard pomelo, muttering to himself, but showing no sign of it on his face.
"You'll know once you get home and peel it!"
After picking the pomelos, seeing that today's activities were almost over, Su Yun called the two of them to go home along the snow-covered road.
The village was still quiet.
It was especially quiet after it snowed, because the weather was so cold that there were no traces of animals, no insects or birds, and everything was quiet except for the occasional gust of wind that swept by with snowflakes, followed by the little feathers shivering and complaining of the cold.
Another gust of north wind blew by, and snowflakes fluttered down from the eaves.
Night Breeze pulled Su Yun close, took her hand tightly, and placed it in his own palm.
Su Yun had just finished picking pomelos, and her hands were still a little cold. The night breeze, being a bit warmer than hers, automatically acted as a heater for her.
Seeing the two people walking closely together ahead, Xiao Yu Mao lagged behind. Shivering from the cold wind, he followed along, also huddled close to the other side of the night wind. "I'm cold too—let's squeeze together."
Night Breeze glanced at him with disdain, but instead of pushing him away, she turned slightly to the side.
Little Feather, preoccupied with warming himself, brazenly squeezed in. Su Yun, who was comfortably close, suddenly felt a push and was almost pushed to the side of the road. Unwilling to give up, she pushed back in. Little Feather lost his balance and was almost pushed aside, but how could he bear to give up the heater so easily?
So he mustered all his strength and squeezed back in.
Seeing that the little feather moved again, Su Yun got even more excited and started pushing and shoving again. As a result, Ye Feng was sandwiched in the middle, and the three of them pushed and shoved each other all the way home.
It was too cold because of the snow.
The dining area has been completely moved from the kitchen to the main room. For convenience, Su Yun installed an iron chain on the main beam of the main room. This chain was taken from another kitchen. When not in use, it is fixed with hooks. When needed, the hooks are lowered and can be directly hooked onto the four corners of the iron pot to start setting up the hot pot, which is very convenient.
Su Yun picked up the pickled cabbage and chili peppers from the jar, washed them, chopped them, and prepared to make pickled cabbage fish.
After the sauerkraut and chili broth has been cooked and brought to a boil, add the thinly sliced fish.
Fresh, tender, and tangy – perfect for winter.
The three of them had been active a little later today, so they were all more energetic and ate more enthusiastically.
Su Yun wasn't in a hurry to eat the meat; instead, she slowly drank the soup. It was sour, fresh, and delicious, with a hint of spiciness, which was very appetizing.
Then came the fish slices. The fish was farmed by themselves, so it was incredibly fresh and tender. It was soaked in a tangy and spicy flavor... One bite, and the deliciousness was balanced with a refreshing tanginess. Even Ye Feng, who doesn't usually eat spicy food, ate a lot of it.
The three of them finished all the fish.
Little Feather stared at the sauerkraut pot that was now just broth, smacking her lips with a hint of lingering satisfaction, "This is so delicious!"
Night Breeze nodded in agreement, "It feels like I haven't eaten enough."
Then the two of them looked at Su Yun expectantly.
Su Yun understood what the two people meant very well.
Unfortunately, she had only thawed two fish, enough for two people to eat less, so she could only regretfully say, "There are no more thawed fish..."
The two people in front of him looked somewhat disappointed upon hearing this.
Suddenly, Su Yun remembered something and suggested, "But it seems like we could make some noodles, would you like?"
"Noodles?!" Little Feather nodded excitedly. "Yes, yes, yes!"
Su Yun took out the noodles she had stockpiled. Although she had eaten most of them while hospitalized in the city, there were still some left.
Su Yun poured the noodles directly into the pot and added some bok choy. After the noodles were cooked until soft, they absorbed the sauerkraut juice and fish soup.
"It's so delicious!" Little Feather said, holding the porcelain bowl and slurping up the noodles.
Even the night breeze kept praising how delicious it was.
Judging from their fondness for noodles, they almost prefer them to meat.
Perhaps it's because carbohydrates provide a greater feeling of fullness than meat?
Therefore, they are welcomed by both of them.
"Eat more, so we can plant more wheat next spring and make our own noodles then." Su Yun pondered, planning for next spring.
"Let's plant noodles next spring!" Little Feather nodded in agreement.
After eating and drinking their fill, the three of them slumped in their chairs and warmed themselves by the fire.
It started snowing again outside, but it was warm and cozy inside.
Holding the old clothes he had picked up, Su Yun began to take them apart and alter them by the bright red campfire.
Night Breeze and Little Feather nestled in the chair and began to doze off, and then Little Feather started to snore softly.
Su Yun couldn't help but push Xiao Yu Mao away, "After washing your feet, go back to bed."
Little Feather was woken up, half-closing her eyes and stubbornly refusing to leave the warm fire. "No, I'm not asleep. I'll warm myself here by the fire, it's warm here..."
"Take advantage of the boiling water now, quickly wash up and go back to sleep. Once the fire goes out, no one will care about you," Su Yun insisted, then reached out and nudged the drowsy Little Feather. "Fill the glass bottle with hot water first, then you won't be cold when you put it in the blankets later."
Su Yun found a lot of glass bottles, filled them with hot water, and used them as hot water bottles. She put them inside the quilt to keep warm and comfortable.
A pot sits over the campfire, filled with water boiled from dried mugwort. This mugwort water is used for foot baths in winter to improve blood circulation and warm the body.
At Su Yun's insistence, the two slowly stood up and stuffed the thermos into the quilt.
Su Yun poured the boiled water into a bucket and placed it in front of the two people. "Come on, wash your faces, soak in it, and then go back to sleep."
This is mugwort collected in late spring. It was dried and stored away. When soaking your feet, you can throw a handful in and boil it to make water that can dispel cold and make you feel warm and comfortable.
All three of them had broken out in a light sweat, and their limbs had warmed up considerably. Su Yun extinguished the fire and shooed the two of them to bed.
The quilt on the bed was very thick, with a thick layer of padding. Su Yun had sunned and patted the quilt repeatedly in the summer. The quilt was soft and warm when she brought it back, and she could sink into it.
However, the air was still a bit cold after taking off her coat, and Su Yun shivered and quickly crawled under the covers.
The night breeze covered the blanket, leaving only a pair of sleepy eyes peeking out as they waited for Su Yun.
Su Yun reached out and rubbed her exposed ear, her tone gentle: "Didn't you say you didn't need to wait for me?"
"We'll sleep together." Ye Feng shoved the thermos into her arms and reached out to wrap his arms around Su Yun, who was shivering from the cold.
It has to be said that feline beastmen are great. In winter, Ye Feng's entire back, the back of his hands, and his arms grew thick winter fur again, which was fluffy and much warmer than Su Yun's body.
"A portable heater~" Su Yun couldn't help but bury her head in the other person's neck.
Feeling a slight tickle on his neck, Ye Feng instinctively shrank back, and the tip of his ear twitched involuntarily.
Cats don't like having their necks touched, so he held back, his body trembling slightly.
Seeing the other person's reaction, Su Yun suddenly felt like teasing them and stuck out her tongue to lick the small patch of smooth skin that was exposed.
Feeling the slightly damp touch on its neck, a strange pleasure surged from the base of its tail. Night Breeze unconsciously shrank its neck again, its faint golden eyes looking blankly at Su Yun. "Hmm? It tickles—"
The boy's eyes were hazy, and his drawn-out voice sounded more like an invitation than a rejection. Su Yun skillfully pulled the boy's head down, covering his breath with her own.
The warm blankets raised the temperature of their entanglement, and Su Yun almost couldn't resist, but considering the other's physical condition, she reluctantly separated.
The cat-eared boy's eyes were slightly red and moist, and he looked at her with a dazed expression, tilting his head slightly as if to ask why they weren't continuing.
Su Yun gently stroked the tail that was desperately wrapped around her waist, her fingertips lightly touching the hideous wound on the other's chest. She struggled to create some distance between them and said hoarsely, "Um... let it rest a little longer?"
Night Breeze couldn't understand what she was saying, but his body felt a strange urge to get closer to her. Su Yun still had that pleasant, sweet scent, soft and alluring, making him unable to resist...
So he lowered his head and inhaled deeply the other's slender, white neck, and couldn't resist sticking out his tongue...
The abrasive texture traveled down her neck and throughout her body. Su Yun tensed her toes, trying to control her nerves. She breathed heavily, maintaining her composure. She was just about to say, "Stop messing around!"
Unfortunately, the boy wouldn't allow it; his moist lips pressed against hers again, stealing her thoughts.
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