Chapter 80: Chapter 80: Bone Broth Rice Noodles

“I’ll try to draw what birch and maple trees look like and ask Granny Su Ye for help. But Chen Rong, you’re right—we shouldn’t be too greedy,” Chang Xia nodded seriously. “Besides looking for trees, we can also search for sugarcane and beets.”

Compared to birch and maple, sugarcane and beets were more suitable for sugar-making. Plus, those two could be cultivated on a large scale, and the process was much easier.

“I can help too,” Bai Qing chimed in.

As the shaman’s successor, Bai Qing had the same authority as Su Ye.

“Alright, let Bai Qing help as well,” Chang Xia replied cheerfully.

Soon, the rice noodle sheets in the bone broth pot were steamed and ready.

Chang Xia peeled off the noodle sheets and poured in more batter to steam another batch.

For toppings, she used bits of meat from the bone broth and sprinkled on some chopped scallions. The result was a bowl of fragrant, delicious bone broth rice noodles.

Taste-wise, it was even better than the soup noodles she’d made for Nuan Chun earlier. The key was that the bones had been stewed for a long time, so all the flavor had come out.

Chang Xia sliced the noodle sheets and let Chen Rong ladle his own soup and add meat. She washed and chopped the scallions, then sprinkled them into the bowls.

Chen Rong didn’t stand on ceremony—he picked up his bowl and took a sip of soup. The hot broth warmed him from head to toe. After a day and night of work, he wasn’t physically tired, but he was a bit mentally worn out.

At a time like this, a steaming bowl of bone broth rice noodles was pure comfort.

Watching this, Bai Qing couldn’t help but swallow hungrily.

Seeing this, Chang Xia burst out laughing and reassured him, “Don’t worry, Bai Qing. Once the next batch of noodle sheets is ready, I’ll slice them for you and you can help yourself to the soup.”

She had originally thought to call Granny Su Ye over to eat with them, but then changed her mind.

Right now, Granny Su Ye was probably staying with Nuan Chun to look after her and the cubs. Besides, with Mu Qin and Nan Feng there, there was no way Granny Su Ye would go hungry.

So Chang Xia decided to finish her lunch first, then go over herself without calling anyone.

“Chang Xia—”

Just as Chang Xia started eating her bone broth noodles, she heard Nan Feng calling out. Looking up, she saw—

“Hey! What are you all eating? Why didn’t you call me?” Nan Feng blurted out before Chang Xia could answer.

Chang Xia put a hand to her forehead. The calm, steady Nan Feng she remembered was gone, replaced by this boisterous, carefree person—equal parts exasperating and amusing.

After all, who wouldn’t want to let loose if they could?

“Bone broth rice noodles,” Chang Xia said. “Didn’t you eat with Nuan Chun?”

It was already late for lunch. When she’d left, she’d seen Mu Qin preparing the meal.

So why hadn’t Nan Feng eaten before coming over?

“Ahem!” Nan Feng coughed and said in a low voice, “I did eat, but I think I could manage another bowl.” As she spoke, she didn’t wait for Chang Xia to get up. Instead, she took a bowl, grabbed some noodle sheets from the steamer, ladled in soup, and sprinkled on scallions.

She moved so naturally that it was only after she sat down at the long table that Chang Xia and the others realized what had happened.

Nan Feng dug in, slurping down more than half a bowl of noodles and several mouthfuls of broth before finally looking up and saying, “Chang Xia, the shaman has decided to hold a hot pot feast tomorrow night. My mother said it’ll be in the tribe square, and everyone will take part. You’ll be in charge of deciding what food to prepare, and the tribe will help out…”

“Tomorrow night?” Chang Xia was a little surprised.

Nan Feng nodded. “That’s right, tomorrow night. The shaman said the first rain of the rainy season will arrive tomorrow and last six or seven days.”

After listening, Changxia and Chen Rong exchanged a glance.

If the first rain of the wet season lasts six or seven days, then tomorrow night would be the perfect time to hold a hotpot feast.

However—

“There's no need to worry about collecting red maple sap at Red Leaf Ridge, but will building the kilns here in the tribe be delayed?” Changxia asked hesitantly.

The sap collection at Red Leaf Ridge was almost in its final countdown. Now, it was enough to send someone to check on things every few days. There was no need for constant supervision. Once the wet season gave way to the hot season, the red maples would stop producing sap, so there’d be nothing left to collect.

“I asked Shankun about it. The kilns at White Lake are already built, and now they’re smoothing the kiln walls and mudding them. The tribe’s kilns are being renovated, so the work is more complicated and progressing slowly. But with today and tomorrow, there should be enough time,” Nan Feng explained.

Actually, as long as the kilns were dug out, the rest of the work could be finished during the wet season. Beastfolk were used to rough living; few were as particular as Changxia and Muqin. Still, maybe it was Changxia’s influence, but the tribe’s females were becoming more refined and detail-oriented.

In the past, beast dens only had vine baskets and a few clay jars. After visiting Changxia’s home, the tribe’s females fell in love with all sorts of little utensils—flour sifters, vine sieves, baskets of all shapes and sizes—gradually filling their dens with furniture.

Changxia guessed that the main reason for the tribe’s rapid expansion was that their dens couldn’t hold all this new furniture. Never mind all the kitchenware and tools; just the tables, chairs, benches, and wooden beds alone were too much for the old dens.

But building kilns was different. If you wanted more space, you just dug the kiln bigger or built more chambers. Dens could only be made so big; you could add more, but you couldn’t expand the space—just the area. And if they weren’t connected, it was still inconvenient in wind and rain.

“Looks like everyone really will be able to move into the kilns before the wet season,” Changxia said happily.

Nan Feng grinned. “I’m moving into the kiln tonight to make my parents jealous.” She wasn’t stupid—her father agreed to expand the tribe, most likely for her mother’s sake.

Nan Feng had even overheard her father comforting her mother, saying that if the kilns weren’t ready before the wet season, they’d just move into Nan Feng’s kiln and let Nan Feng stay in the old den.

Seriously—was that something a father should say? She used to be the apple of her parents’ eye. When did that change?

Changxia looked at Nan Feng, who was lost in thought and wearing a mischievous expression, and couldn’t help but shake her head.

Chen Rong glanced at Nan Feng out of the corner of his eye, making her shrink her neck unconsciously.

So cold—why did she suddenly feel a chill?

“Changxia, should we move into the kiln tonight?” Chen Rong asked gently.

The shaman and Baiqing were coming over, and there wasn’t enough space in the den. If they let the shaman and Baiqing stay in the kiln, they probably wouldn’t feel comfortable—it was Changxia’s new home, after all.

“Yes, let’s move,” Changxia nodded. “Nan Feng, did the tribe prepare animal skin bedding and washing supplies for Granny Suye and Baiqing?”

She was too poor—aside from some food, she had nothing at home, not even animal skins.

“Don’t worry, the tribe had me move all the shaman and Baiqing’s things over. The bedding and everything else are in the right-side kiln,” Nan Feng replied.

Changxia nodded in relief.

“Don’t worry. Once I’m cured, I can go hunting with the team. We’ll have plenty of animal skins and bones for our home,” Chen Rong said confidently.

What others had, Changxia would have too. What others didn’t have, Changxia would also have. That was what Chen Rong promised.