“Roasted, it’s not bad.”
As he spoke, Li Shu noticed the fear in his younger sister Li Qiao’s eyes. He then glanced at the curious Li Mai and replied stiffly.
Hearing that it was something tasty, Li Mai immediately became interested and instructed:
“Then make it and let me try.”
The moment the words fell, Li Qiao, who felt disgusted by the idea, turned her head and retched. Overwhelmed by both fear and nausea, her face turned pale as she vomited.
Everything she had eaten in the morning came out. She was exhausted and hungry, looking pitiful.
Li Shu glanced at her and suggested:
“How about we go down to the stream at the foot of the mountain first to rest, and eat lunch there?”
Hearing this, Li Mai glanced at the donkey chewing grass. It seemed to have recovered somewhat.
Then she looked at Li Qiao, worried that she might vomit herself to death here, and said:
“You sit on the cart. Go down quickly. I want to eat.”
“Thank you, Eldest Sister.”
Hearing this, Li Shu felt as if he had heard heavenly music. He immediately helped Li Qiao onto the donkey cart and reminded her:
“Little Sister, you must hold onto the cart shaft tightly. I will also hold the reins to keep you from falling.”
“Okay.”
Li Qiao replied weakly, her twig-like hands gripping the shaft tightly as she stared ahead, bracing herself.
As the two began descending the mountain, Li Mai picked up her spoils, the snake.
She bent down and grabbed it by the tail.
To her surprise, the snake’s body still had nerve reactions. It twisted weakly, trying to escape.
Li Mai had no intention of letting food go. If she could not eat donkey meat, eating some delicious snake meat was just as good.
With a flick of her wrist, the snake coiled around her forearm.
The black body with white patterns wrapped around her sallow arm, creating a strange sense of beauty. She shook her hand slightly, already imagining the taste of the snake meat.
On the other side, because they were going downhill, Li Shu and Li Qiao were almost rushing down with the cart, flattening large patches of grass along the way.
If not for the tall trees blocking their path, Li Mai figured that by the time she got down, she would only see a wrecked cart and dead bodies.
The descent was full of danger. Li Shu had not even had time to relax when he suddenly saw Li Mai, who should have been behind them, standing beside him.
He was immediately startled and took a step back, saying in shock:
“Eldest Sister, how are you so fast?”
Li Mai had no interest in answering such a pointless question. She raised her hand, and the black-and-white patterned snake instantly entered Li Shu’s field of vision.
Li Shu was startled again, feeling his chest pounding abnormally.
He felt that he truly needed to develop a stronger heart. He had a vague sense that situations like this would not be rare in the future.
Seeing that Li Shu had no reaction, Li Mai urged:
“Roast the snake.”
“Oh, oh, I will do it now.”
At this moment, Li Shu regained his composure and reached out to take the snake.
Seeing this, Li Mai tilted her hand downward. The snake wrapped around her arm loosened and slid off in coils.
In the end, only the tail remained in her hand, making it look somewhat small.
Li Shu took the other end and carried it toward the stream.
Upstream, Li Qiao was continuously scooping water to wash her face, trying to use the cold to suppress the unpleasant feeling and regain her composure.
When she noticed someone nearby, along with the faint trace of blood flowing in the stream, she immediately shut her eyes, stepped forward a few paces, refilled all the water pouches, and quickly left.
Only when the stream was no longer within her peripheral vision did her tense body gradually relax.
When she looked up, she saw her eldest sister resting under the shade of a tree. She immediately quickened her pace and ran over.
As soon as she approached, she took off the water pouch and handed it over.
“Eldest Sister, I just filled this with fresh stream water. It’s very cool. Drink it quickly to cool down.”
Li Mai accepted it.
Then she handed over the kudzu root beside her, indicating for Li Qiao to eat some as well.
“Thank you, Eldest Sister.”
In Li Qiao’s eyes, the fact that her eldest sister was willing to share the kudzu root she valued most was a pleasant surprise. She eagerly took it.
At the same time, her entire body seemed filled with energy again, and the shadow left by the snake completely vanished.
After finishing the sweet and refreshing kudzu root, she grabbed the donkey’s reins and led it closer to the stream.
Eating grass, drinking water, resting.
A relaxed atmosphere flowed among the three of them, with no sense of fleeing for their lives.
The most comfortable of all was Li Mai. Leaning against the green mountains and clear waters, she ate naturally sweet and refreshing kudzu root, along with soft, chewy vegetable cakes carrying the fragrance of wild greens. When thirsty, she drank cool, unpolluted water.
Even the leaders of her previous life’s base would not dare imagine such a life.
And she, Li Mai, was living it at this very moment. She would continue to live such a happy life in the future.
Just thinking about it made a trace of joy appear on her face.
As she immersed herself in thoughts of a beautiful future, a captivating aroma suddenly drifted through the air.
She instinctively sniffed, searching for the source. Her body turned along with her sense of smell.
Once she found it, she suddenly opened her eyes. Her gaze was instantly drawn to the snake meat roasting over the fire.
The snake that had once been black with white patterns was now a tempting golden-yellow, paired with an irresistible aroma. She felt she could eat an entire snake by herself.
But when she thought of the two people who had contributed to her being able to eat roasted snake, a trace of reluctance appeared in her joyful gaze.
Even as she hesitated, Li Mai had already stepped toward Li Shu.
She deliberately chose a spot where she could clearly see the roasting snake but would not be scorched by the heat of the fire, and sat down.
Her footsteps were not quiet, and Li Shu noticed immediately. He was about to say something, but saw her sit down five steps away.
His mouth opened, but no words came out. He could only nervously turn the snake meat in his hands to ensure even cooking.
Gradually, as the aroma grew richer, he could feel an increasingly intense gaze fixed on his hands.
At last, the pale snake meat turned into an enticing golden color, and the fat that had been roasted out began to drip into the fire.
“Sizzle…”
The fat hit the flames with a dull sound, then merged with the fire, making it burn even more intensely.
At that moment, Li Mai could no longer wait.
She directly channeled her ability into her legs. In the blink of an eye, she moved from five steps away to right beside the fire.
Her eyes were fixed on the snake meat. Her usually expressionless face now showed a hint of impatience.
Seeing this, Li Shu could not help but smile. Just before Li Mai could speak, he said:
“It’s ready to eat.”
The moment those words were spoken, a bright light flashed in Li Mai’s eyes, more dazzling than the stars in the night sky.
Li Shu was so stunned that he froze, not even noticing when Li Mai snatched the roasted snake from his hands.
Holding the two skewers, Li Mai quickly made her decision. As the greatest contributor, it was not excessive for her to eat two. The remaining one could be shared between the other two.
She tossed out a sentence, “You two can split the rest.”
Then she eagerly bit into the roasted snake.
The moment her tongue touched the meat, she could feel the bubbles of rendered fat bursting against it, releasing the rich roasted aroma.
Even though the meat was scorching hot, she did not care. Baring her teeth, she took her first bite.
The outer layer was crispy, the inside tender. As she bit down, she could feel the juices bursting within, combined with the unique chewiness of snake meat.
Her eyes widened in shock again and again. Paired with her expressionless face, it somehow created a strangely delightful sight.
Li Mai ate in complete absorption, fully immersed in the deliciousness of the roasted snake.
When Li Shu came back to his senses, he saw his eldest sister eating with oil all over her mouth, still looking shocked.
A surge of joy rose in his heart. At the same time, he recalled what Li Mai had just said.
He immediately raised his head and shouted toward Li Qiao, who was far away:
“Little Sister, do you want some?”
As he spoke, he waved the roasted snake in his hand to show what it was.
When Li Qiao saw the golden snake meat on the stick, even from a distance, she instinctively stepped back.
No matter what form it took, in her memory, snakes were always disgusting and terrifying.
Faced with her brother’s encouraging gaze, she chose to avoid it. Turning her head, she continued chewing her vegetable cake.
Seeing this, Li Shu understood. It seemed that today’s meat would only be shared between him and his eldest sister.
Their family had not eaten meat for a long time. He had hoped his younger sister could also have some nourishment.
But since she was unwilling, he decided that while they were in the mountains, he would try to catch other game so she could eat more.
“Whoosh!”
The sudden sound pulled Li Shu out of his thoughts.
Looking over, he realized that Li Mai had finished eating and tossed the stick into the fire.
Thinking of the snake meat he had yet to eat, he no longer dwelled on anything else and took a big bite.
The rich, roasted flavor was so fragrant it nearly overwhelmed him.
He could not help but marvel inwardly, when had his cooking become this good?
After happily finishing the snake meat, he extinguished the fire with water. After a brief rest, they set off again.
This time, they followed the direction of the stream, moving through the lower parts of the valley, which required less effort.
Along the way, under Li Qiao’s guidance, Li Mai picked a large number of wild fruits, such as kiwifruit and bayberries.
Anything she saw was almost entirely collected.
When Li Qiao saw the unripe green bayberries, she could not help but warn that their sourness could make one’s teeth ache, telling her eldest sister not to waste her effort.
But what she did not know was that even this sourness, to Li Mai, was refreshing and satisfying.
In her past life, even if she wanted to experience such a sharp, invigorating sour taste, she would not have known where to find it.
As long as it was edible, it was worth her time.
Thus, under the astonished gazes of the two, Li Mai tossed green bayberries into her mouth one by one. The sourness made her mouth water, and she became increasingly engrossed.
Before they knew it, the three had reached the end of the valley. To continue, they had to climb another mountain.
With their previous experience, Li Shu and Li Qiao stayed on either side of the cart, while Li Mai walked ahead to clear the path.
Finally, as night fell, the three of them reached the mountaintop.
After finding a place to camp, Li Mai immediately sat down to rest and eat, relaxed and at ease, as if she were on a leisurely outing.
Li Shu tied the donkey to a tree, then looked around, preparing to gather firewood to guard against possible dangers at night.
But when he lifted his head, he froze.
In the distance, he saw a patch of orange-red light, and it was growing larger.
Li Qiao turned around and saw her brother standing there in a daze. She instinctively followed his gaze and cried out in shock:
“What is that?”