Chapter 174: Chapter 174: Extra Chapter for All are stars’ Tip

She sat there for over an hour.

Changxia put down the ugly snowflake stone bracelet in her hands.

Up, down, left, right—

She turned it over in her hands, examining it from every angle.

Totoro paws were just too delicate—nothing like Chen Rong’s wolf claws—so it was hard to grind the stone. Changxia could only use her little paws to slowly work at it, using the small wooden stick as a file.

In the end, she finally managed to make a bracelet.

“Tsk tsk! So ugly—” Changxia complained, even though she’d made the snowflake stone bracelet herself, she didn’t go easy on her criticism.

She put down the bracelet and rubbed her sore neck.

Getting up, she decided to take a walk around the cave courtyard, and while she was at it, turn over the chili peppers and stir the chopped chilies.

So Changxia wandered around the cave courtyard.

By now, it was almost noon.

Changxia went into the kitchen to prepare lunch.

But she wasn’t sure if Chen Rong would be back for lunch.

As she pondered this, her hands didn’t slow down at all. The tribe had given her plenty of python bones; Changxia had already deep-fried two-thirds of them at low temperature to extend their shelf life, leaving a small portion fresh.

She lit the fire and added water to the pot.

Then she went to the cellar to get python bones for soup.

She planned to stir-fry some python meat for a topping, and have python soup noodles for lunch.

She could make extra noodles, store them in a clay pot in a basin of water—about the simplest way to preserve them.

That way, if Chen Rong came home for lunch, there’d be enough for him too.

She brought up the python bones from the cellar, washed them, and put them in the pot to simmer.

Changxia started mixing flour paste to steam noodle sheets. She planned to finish the noodles first, then stir-fry the python meat topping. Since she was alone in the cave, there was no need to rush.

She slowly mixed the flour paste, washed the bone pot, and started steaming the noodle sheets.

Thinking of Chen Rong’s appetite, Changxia deliberately made extra noodles.

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The rice noodles were steamed to perfection, and the aroma of the python bone broth was wafting through the air, making mouths water. Changxia minced the python meat, added salt, scallions, garlic, and other seasonings, heated up the wok, and started to stir-fry.

Very soon, the delicious smell spread throughout the house.

“Changxia—”

Shen Rong’s voice called out from the courtyard outside the cave dwelling.

Changxia was slightly startled. She poked her head out of the kitchen to look.

She saw Shen Rong carrying a large rattan basket into the wooden shed next door.

“I was just wondering if you’d be back for lunch. Good thing I made extra rice noodles,” Changxia said with a smile, then asked, “What about Nuanchun and Nan Feng?”

“They didn’t come back—they’re staying out on the wildlands for lunch and plan to return in the evening,” Shen Rong replied.

He’d come back to find Changxia and ask about the water diversion project.

“So what are they planning to eat for lunch?” Changxia asked with concern.

They’d gone to the wildlands south of Bai Lake this morning, but she hadn’t seen them prepare any food. Were they planning to catch fish from the stream or go hunting?

“Don’t worry, they brought food with them,” Shen Rong reassured her.

He set down the basket and squatted by the water jar to wash his face and hands.

The sun was blazing, and Shen Rong’s face was a little sunburned.

“Shen Rong, your face is sunburned. Go put some jade cream on it,” Changxia said, pointing at his face. Such a handsome face—she couldn’t let it get hurt.

Shen Rong’s mouth twitched.

Changxia—

So, she really did marry him for his looks.

Every time Shen Rong gave Changxia a little smile, she’d get lost in a daze.

“Alright,” Shen Rong replied with a smile and a nod. He sighed inwardly, but didn’t refuse Changxia’s concern. After washing his face, he obediently went inside to find the ointment and apply it, then returned to the kitchen.

Changxia ladled the stir-fried python meat topping into a bowl.

She took a bowl, added rice noodles, scooped in the python bone broth, and topped it with some of the stir-fried python meat.

A bowl of python meat noodle soup was ready.

The courtyard in front of the cave was too hot, so the two of them carried their bowls to sit at the square table under the kitchen eaves, sipping the python bone broth and slowly slurping the noodles.

“It’s so fresh—better than fish noodle soup,” Shen Rong said.

Changxia smiled and replied, “Python is a rare delicacy from the Twilight Forest. Comparing it to fish noodle soup is just unfair!”

“You’re right,” Shen Rong agreed after a moment’s thought. The two were worlds apart.

Python noodle soup was a rare treat.

But fish noodle soup could be made any time you wanted.

Once the python meat was gone, you’d have to rely on luck to eat it again.

Some people might go their whole lives without tasting it even once.

“Shen Rong, how’s the water diversion project coming along?” Changxia asked. She cared a lot about this—it was a big deal for the cave dwellings. If they could bring water directly to the caves, they’d never have to haul water again.

“I’ve already planned out the water channel, but the pipes are a bit tricky,” Shen Rong said helplessly.

After all, they couldn’t just dig a stream straight to the caves. There were dozens of households around Bai Lake, each cave at a different elevation. They had to use pipes—not only for easier water flow, but also to keep the water clean.

“Can’t we build it like the drainage ditches for the caves?” Changxia frowned. The drainage pipes were made by gluing wooden planks together with resin. Aside from being square, they worked pretty well.

Shen Rong shook his head. “There’s not enough resin.”

“All the resin the tribe stockpiled was used up building the caves,” Changxia realized. She tried to think of alternatives, but couldn’t come up with anything. The Heluo tribe didn’t have any bamboo, so hollowing out trees would be a massive project.

“If we really can’t find another way, we’ll just dig a channel and divert the stream water over,” Shen Rong said after thinking for a moment.

Changxia thought about it and agreed there wasn’t a better solution. She told Shen Rong about her idea of hollowing out one side of a log and covering it with a plank. That would make it easier to direct water along a slope, though it would need more maintenance later on.

As they chatted, Shen Rong ate a few more bowls.

Changxia only managed a bowl and a half before she slowed down and just sipped the broth.

Her eyes fell on the ugly bracelet on the table. No matter how many times she looked at it, it was still an eyesore. Changxia prided herself on her handiwork—so why did the snowflake stone bracelet she carved look so awful?

Shen Rong followed her gaze and saw the snowflake stone bracelet on the table. “You made that?”

“Yeah,” Changxia sighed. “I spent ages on it, and this is all I got.”

“I think it looks nice,” Shen Rong said.

Changxia didn’t have much strength, so the bracelet was a bit uneven.

But honestly, for her to carve it this well was already impressive.

“…Don’t just try to make me feel better. I’m just not strong enough—my little paws aren’t up to the task.” Changxia waved her right hand, using her beast claws to grab the bracelet and rub it.

She found that no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t smooth out the bumps.

When she’d watched Shen Rong and the others polish stone pots, they made it look so quick and easy. She’d thought maybe the stone was just soft—but when she tried it herself, she realized the truth.

It wasn’t that the stone was fragile—Shen Rong was just superhuman.

Even among beastfolk, Shen Rong showed her that there were big differences in strength. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be strong and weak clans.

Innate bloodlines—no amount of effort could make up for them!

Luckily, Changxia had her own “cheat.”