Humming a catchy little tune he'd made up, Lu Fan carried a rabbit and a pheasant in his hands, his steps light and quick, like a triumphant general, as he strode into the shelter.
Hearing the noise, An Lan looked up and saw the plump wild rabbit. Her eyes widened instantly, and she blurted out, "Wow, it's so big!"
Lu Fan smirked and teased, "You'd better say it's a rabbit."
An Lan was speechless for a moment.
"I'll take on two of them!" Lu Fan said smugly, putting his prey down on the ground and quickly rolling up his sleeves, ready to go all out.
Big Black followed behind, its tail wagging like a propeller, as if to boast: "I also deserve credit, don't forget me!"
Lu Fan peeled and cut the skin into pieces with practiced skill and swift movements, which impressed An Lan.
Looking at the fire burning in the shelter, Lu Fan asked with curiosity, "How did you start this fire?"
It is important to know that in this wilderness, there are still many people who do not have fire and can only eat raw and cold food.
An Lan smiled and explained, "During a thunderstorm, a tree was struck by lightning. I seized the opportunity and preserved the embers."
Upon hearing this, Lu Fan gasped. The risks involved were self-evident; few people had the courage and luck to do it.
He couldn't help but feel more admiration for this petite yet strong-willed girl, and gave her a thumbs up, praising, "You're really brave!"
An Lan smiled, her expression serious: "There's no such thing as being brave or not. Even if it's not for myself, for the sake of the country, I have to grit my teeth and keep living."
"What a high level of awareness!" Lu Fan exclaimed, then turned around and began preparing dinner.
Since we didn't bring the pot back, we had to bake it.
He picked up the dagger and deftly whittled the wood into several skewers, then placed the pheasant and rabbit on the fire.
Flames licked at the prey, and the surface of the rabbits and pheasants gradually turned golden, with oil sizzling out and emitting an enticing aroma unique to the primal wild game.
Lu Fan took out the salt and sprinkled it evenly on top.
Looking at the snow-white fine salt, An Lan couldn't help but praise, "You're really amazing. You managed to find such good salt in this desolate place."
Lu Fan smiled and looked up, his gaze landing on An Lan's face: "You look good, you must have a way to replenish your salt, right?"
An Lan nodded and explained, "I found some plants with high salt content, and their roots have a lot of salt attached to them."
"No wonder you studied traditional Chinese medicine, you know so much!"
"So what did you study?" An Lan asked curiously.
"Me? I studied to be a kindergarten teacher, but I wasn't very good at it," Lu Fan replied while flipping the meat on the grill.
"I really can't tell." An Lan looked him up and down, her eyes full of doubt.
The two chatted back and forth, while Big Black, lying to the side, stared intently at the roasted meat.
He would occasionally glance at the two of them with a puzzled look, as if wondering: What's there to talk about? Isn't meat delicious?
Finally, the meat is grilled. "Come on, try my cooking!"
Lu Fan used his dagger to cut off a large chicken leg and handed it to An Lan.
"Thanks."
An Lan took it, blew on it gently, took a bite, and her eyes instantly lit up like stars: "It's so delicious! With your cooking skills, it's a real shame you're not a chef."
Lu Fan scratched his head and chuckled, "I've loved studying food since I was a child. I never thought it would come in handy in this wilderness."
For An Lan, who hadn't tasted meat in a long time, she couldn't care less about being reserved and started eating heartily.
Lu Fan didn't forget Dahei either, cutting off half a rabbit meat for the eagerly waiting dog.
Big Black took the meat and immediately devoured it, eating with great relish.
After eating and drinking to her heart's content, An Lan leaned against the wall and couldn't help but let out a loud burp.
"Excuse me."
She blushed instantly and quickly covered her mouth with her hand.
"Haha, it's okay. You need to be full to have the energy to keep surviving." Lu Fan laughed heartily.
With their combined efforts, the food was quickly devoured.
"Burp... I'm so full."
An Lan clutched her stomach, a satisfied smile spreading across her face. This was the most sumptuous meal she had ever had since she began surviving in the wilderness.
As darkness fell, the afterglow of the setting sun shone through the gaps in the leaves, casting golden patches of light into the shelter, creating a scene resembling a dreamlike stage.
After the two had eaten and drunk their fill, they found themselves in an awkward situation where they didn't know what to say.
"Uh... this pheasant is pretty plump today." Lu Fan broke the silence first, trying to make conversation.
"Yes, thanks to you and Dahei." An Lan echoed, her gaze drifting elsewhere, her fingers unconsciously tugging at the hem of her clothes.
"That Big Blackie did a great job today. Let it catch a few more fatter ones tomorrow." Lu Fan said, reaching out to pat Big Blackie's head.
Big Black squinted comfortably, enjoying its owner's praise, and let out a contented purr.
"Yeah, Big Black is really amazing." An Lan nodded, then didn't know what else to say.
The atmosphere fell silent again, with only the crackling of the burning firewood adding to the awkwardness.
Lu Fan racked his brains, trying to find a topic to talk about.
In the live stream room, the comments flew like snowflakes.
"Oh my god, this is so embarrassing!"
"Lu Fan, you'd better say something. You're usually quite talkative with Da Hei."
"Oh dear, these two, it's not like they're on a blind date, why is it so awkward?"
"Haha, I was just like that the first time I went to my father-in-law's house, I was so nervous that I didn't know what to say."
The atmosphere grew increasingly silent. Suddenly, Lu Fan had a brilliant idea: "Do you think there might be other strange animals in this wilderness?"
"Maybe, but I've never seen them before." An Lan became interested, sat up straight, and her eyes sparkled with curiosity.
"I think there definitely are, maybe even fire-breathing dinosaurs!" Lu Fan said seriously, with a mysterious expression on his face.
"Don't talk nonsense, dinosaurs went extinct a long time ago." An Lan was amused.
"What if a few escaped the net and secretly reproduced in this wilderness?" Lu Fan's words became more and more outrageous, and he gestured in the air as if a dinosaur was baring its teeth and claws.
"Then we're in real trouble. We might become dinner for dinosaurs." An Lan joked along with him, her eyes full of laughter.
"That won't do. I'm sure I can run faster than you. I'll ride off on horseback and throw you to the dinosaurs as bait." Lu Fan grinned mischievously, leaning back as if he was about to run away at any moment.
"You...you've gone too far!" An Lan pretended to be angry and reached out to hit him, and the two burst into laughter.
The atmosphere immediately became relaxed, and the awkwardness vanished.
After laughing for a while, An Lan asked curiously, "So, what do you think the athletes from other countries are doing right now?"
"Who knows? Maybe they're still starving. Not everyone is as lucky as you to have met a 'survival guru' like me." Lu Fan said smugly, his chin slightly raised, his face full of confidence.
“Maybe they’ve caught quite a bit of prey and are enjoying it,” An Lan retorted, crossing her arms and tilting her head to look at him.
"I can't speak for others, but our Chinese athlete Ling Yue is definitely enjoying good food. I often hear his rebate announcements." Lu Fan patted his chest, his tone confident.
"What I hear about most is your rebate, Lu Fan. Sometimes I really wonder if you're even in the same wilderness survival world as us," An Lan teased with a smile, her eyes full of envy.
"Haha, just lucky." Lu Fan scratched his head, a humble smile on his face.
The two chatted back and forth, discussing the situation of the other contestants, speculating about what dangers they might encounter and what adventures they might have.
Before we knew it, the sky had completely darkened, and the stars filled the sky like jewels set in black silk.
"Look, the stars are so beautiful." An Lan pointed to the sky, her face filled with fascination, her eyes reflecting the dazzling starlight.
“Yes, you can’t see such a beautiful starry sky in the city.” Lu Fan also looked up, a hint of emotion in his eyes, his thoughts seemingly drifting back to the past.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com