Chapter 74 Hot Pot and Gathering, An Uninvited Reunion
Watching He Liang scoop mushrooms out of the canvas bag one handful at a time, Yu Miaomiao burst out laughing.
"I think I made a mistake. I shouldn't have made the tomato broth; I should have made the mushroom broth instead."
"It's not too late now."
"Alright, then let's also have some mushroom soup."
They then found a soup pot and a portable gas stove in the space, and added mushroom soup base with various kinds of mushrooms that He Liang had brought.
The pot was full, and soon it started to bubble and gurgle.
The preparations for the hot pot were quick. Lu An and Xu Nanwei set up the table together and placed the three hot pot bases side by side on the table.
Four people sharing three hot pot bases, that's perfectly reasonable, isn't it?
Lu An loves to eat fish, and following the principle of spoiling her best friend, Yu Miaomiao was definitely going to arrange fish slices for her.
Anyway, there were still so many fresh fish in the space. With a thought, a lively, leaping fish fell onto the chopping board.
After cleaning, lay the fish horizontally on the cutting board with its back facing you and its tail on the left. Hold the fish head down with your hand, and with the knife blade facing left, make a cut one millimeter above the backbone.
Feel the resistance with the knife blade, use a short, sharp force to push through the ribs one by one until you reach the tail of the fish, cut it off, then flip the fish over and repeat the same process. Soon the fish fillets are plated and served on the table.
After finishing everything, Yu Miaomiao couldn't help but marvel at how her swordsmanship was becoming increasingly superb.
With everything ready, orange juice was prepared for the little girl, while the three of them enjoyed beer—a rare moment of leisure, a time for quiet enjoyment.
If Liu Pei's family were here at this time, it would be perfect.
Sometimes when I look at Xu Nanwei, I think of that little girl who called me "teacher".
I wonder how they are doing in the provincial capital. I wish they were in the capital too.
But the ideal state is ultimately nothingness in the apocalypse, and each of them has their own journey.
Beer with ice, down one glass and you're blown away with amazing refreshment.
The doorbell rang again at that moment.
All four of them frowned; it was truly inappropriate.
Especially when the door opened and he saw Chu Bai and Chen Haohua standing in the doorway, his lips twitched slightly, and he immediately prepared to close the door.
"Wait a minute! I have a surprise for you."
Chen Haohua quickly stuffed his foot into the crack in the door, only to be forced to slam the door shut by Yu Miaomiao, causing him to grimace.
"Please don't, every time I run into you two, it's a scare."
"Hey, wait a minute!!! I can smell it... This smell, extra spicy and numbing! Seriously, life in the space system is too good. Is it possible that I'm saying, 'Everyone who sees it gets a share'?"
Chen Haohua's nose is as sensitive as a dog's; he immediately smelled the Sichuan peppercorn scent in the air and kept sniffing, trying to inhale the aroma into his stomach.
Don't even think about it.
Yu Miaomiao firmly refused and tried to close the door again.
"Sister Miaomiao."
That familiar voice stopped her from closing the door.
It was the voice of their child.
"distant?"
I never imagined that after a brief separation of just over a month, we would be able to reunite so soon.
Chu Bai and Chen Haohua stepped aside, and behind them stood Liu Pei and his family of three.
"Come inside and sit down. An'an, it's Yaoyao, come out quickly."
Before Yu Miaomiao could finish speaking, Ma Jiang rushed out and pounced on Liu Yao, licking her repeatedly.
The fluffy fur rubbed against Yao Yao's neck, making the little girl ticklish and laugh.
Lu An was cooking vegetables at the table when he heard the news. He threw his chopsticks into the pot and rushed out.
The family of three looked healthy and in good spirits. "How did you end up in the capital?"
"Thanks to Yao Yao, our family has found a place to stay in this apocalyptic world."
He Xin was genuinely happy to see Liu Yao and Ma Jiang having so much fun; it had been so long since she'd seen the child smile.
"Yes, last time you suggested we try going to the military base. After thinking it over, we think you have a point. The child's special ability is likely to attract envy, and we may not be able to protect him. We still need to rely on the country."
"So you didn't go to the provincial capital? You just arrived in the capital?"
"No, no, no, we went to the provincial capital's military base first, where we weathered the earthquake. Later, the provincial capital's leaders reported Yao Yao's special abilities to the capital. After discussions, they wanted Yao Yao to come to the capital to assist with the base's construction, so the provincial capital's military escorted her all the way to the capital..."
"Ahem, be sure to keep the mission a secret."
Chu Bai interrupted the conversation at the right moment, saying that it felt like they were about to leak secrets. These were military secrets, how could they just tell them casually?
"That's good too. Seeing that you're all doing well makes us happy too."
I don't know if this counts as breaking the ending of the previous life, but Liu Yao's family is all well and he is not alone like in the previous life.
"But what about Grandma Liu? Didn't she come? Where are you staying?"
Lu An looked behind Liu Pei and the others, but did not see Grandma Liu.
"She had a bit of a cold, so she asked them to take her to her grandmother to rest first."
"Since you're here, let's have dinner together. Our Ningcheng team has reunited, which is worth celebrating."
He Liang had already downed half a bottle of beer and was becoming more talkative.
"Then we won't stand on ceremony. To be honest, the taste of your hot pot is too irresistible."
"Come, come, I'll get you some cutlery."
"Oh right, Yao Yao, come here, let me introduce you to a good friend."
Yu Miaomiao introduced Xu Nanwei to Liu Yao. The two girls were about the same age and quickly became friends.
The adults all sat down at the dining table, and Chen Haohua dragged Chu Bai to sit down as well, his movements natural and practiced.
After all, they were acquaintances from the previous life... and they would inevitably have to interact in the dungeon in this life, so Yu Miaomiao and Lu An did not ask them to leave.
However, Lu An had other thoughts. She was actually quite curious about her own background, but she didn't know where to start asking. Perhaps today was an opportunity.
Chen Haohua took the bowl and chopsticks and skillfully began to cook the tripe, without any hesitation.
Chu Bai didn't act as naturally as him, sitting awkwardly next to Lu An, glancing at him every now and then, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.
In the end, he silently downed a bottle of beer without saying a word.
Lu An ate a bite of food and drank a sip of wine, but didn't ask any questions.
Looking at the two awkward people, Yu Miaomiao wondered why she hadn't noticed it in her previous life. The more she looked at them now, the more they seemed like siblings.
"A toast to our long-awaited reunion."
Let's raise our glasses and celebrate together.
Such moments are so beautiful and so rare.
Now, with nine people and three pots, it's more reasonable, but the food gets consumed too quickly.
However, with Liu Yao around, there's no worry about food and drink.
Liu Yao touched the plate, and a new plate of fatty beef appeared on the table, with the plate being an exact replica.
I love this incredibly overpowered ability.
Although there is an upper limit to fission mutation, it is still not a problem to feed a few people.
Even if things don't go well, Yu Miaomiao can still afford to treat someone to a meal.
"We've bought the villa behind yours, so we'll be neighbors again."
"That's great! So, Yaoyao is going to school too? Nanwei will be starting school next week, so we can keep each other company."