Night fell.
Yan Jin stood before a table full of vegetables. She picked up a peeled potato and made a plate of shredded potatoes with sour and spicy seasoning. After cooking for several days in a row, she realized her cooking skills had become increasingly proficient.
After that, she made another simple dish, stir fried eggplant.
Hot oil splattered as the eggplant was added to the wok. She stirred it quickly, releasing the pleasant fragrance of rapeseed oil.
Because there was a patient to take care of, she did not add any chili.
Before long, the two dishes were finished. She placed them on the stove to keep warm, then went to check whether the lamb ribs simmering in the pot were ready.
As soon as she lifted the lid, the rich aroma of lamb ribs drifted out.
Bai Ruozhu was feeding the two big white geese in the courtyard. Her nose twitched, and the instincts of a foodie immediately awakened. It was braised lamb ribs.
The wolf king beside her was far less restrained. Large drops of drool fell onto the ground.
“Sister? Did you braise lamb ribs?” Bai Ruozhu pushed open the kitchen door and asked. Both she and the wolf were already eager to start eating.
“They’re already done. Over there. You can start first,” Yan Jin said, pointing toward the stove beside her.
Bai Ruozhu showed a silly grin.
The wolf king also crouched beneath the table. There was a plate of boiled lamb ribs prepared especially for it, seasoned with only a tiny pinch of salt.
Yan Jin was raising the wolf king exactly the way someone would raise a pet dog. If this were not the apocalypse and dog food still existed, she probably would have poured out a huge bag of it for the wolf king.
The wolf king sniffed its completely flavorless lamb ribs and turned its head away in disdain.
Its eyes stared longingly at the large plate of braised lamb ribs on the table. From time to time it licked its tongue, which was covered in small barbs.
“You want some?” Bai Ruozhu asked.
The wolf king nodded.
It absolutely did not want to eat those tasteless boiled lamb ribs.
“Sister, can we give the wolf king some braised lamb ribs? It wants to eat them,” Bai Ruozhu asked softly when she saw its pitiful expression.
“No. Wolves cannot eat heavily seasoned food,” Yan Jin replied seriously.
In the end, the wolf king compromised. Its stomach was already rumbling loudly. Later, it would simply send its pack to hunt something for it.
Yan Jin had braised quite a lot of lamb ribs in that pot. There was a whole large pot full. Since the inn now had several people staying there, she naturally needed to prepare more.
At the other side of the table, Ji Yanting also picked up a bowl and began eating. At first he had only planned to take a few bites, but once he started, he found it impossible to stop.
Moreover, his injured body gradually began to feel lighter. Ji Yanting was astonished.
He picked up another piece of meat and chewed it slowly. He could clearly feel his previously depleted ability gradually recovering.
“This… is lamb ribs?” Ji Yanting asked, almost in disbelief. He could not believe that such a small inn would casually serve meat like this.
“Yes, and there’s plenty more. Eat as much as you like,” Yan Jin said as she brought over the shredded potatoes.
Bai Ruozhu, who was happily gnawing on lamb ribs, heard Ji Yanting say this and glanced at him. She had been too busy eating earlier to notice, but when she looked carefully now, she suddenly realized that the man Yan Jin had picked up from the back hill was actually very handsome.
He looked even better than the male leads she had seen in television dramas before.
Feeling a little embarrassed, Bai Ruozhu asked, “Your injuries are healed?”
Ji Yanting set down his bowl and chopsticks and smiled. “Yes. Thank you for saving me. My name is Ji Yanting.”
Yan Jin froze slightly and raised her head. “Wait, didn’t you say you didn’t remember your full name?”
“I suddenly remembered it later,” Ji Yanting replied with a slight smile.
“Do you remember anything else?” Yan Jin asked immediately.
Ji Yanting shook his head.
Yan Jin felt a slight sense of disappointment. After a pause, she collected herself, picked up her chopsticks, and placed several pieces of stir fried eggplant into Ji Yanting’s bowl.
“You’re still injured, so you should eat more.”
Bai Ruozhu immediately became alert. This man had only just arrived, yet her sister was already paying so much attention to him. Would her own position be threatened in the future?
Meanwhile, when Ji Yanting swallowed another piece of lamb rib, he felt faint traces of his ability slowly gathering again. His gaze darkened as he quietly contemplated something.
Over the next few days, Bai Ruozhu devoted all her attention to caring for the young seedlings.
The random seeds rewarded by the system had sprouted tender green shoots within just a few days.
The first person who could no longer resist investigating was Ji Yanting.
Originally, Yan Jin had told him to rest quietly, worried that the Shaping Essence Pill might leave some side effects. However, unable to sit still, he had already begun secretly probing the inn’s secrets.
But the inn was simply too small. In less than half a day, he had already walked through the entire place.
At present, there were only two guests staying in the rooms upstairs.
The rest were empty rooms that had never been occupied. The door locks were broken and could not be opened. Thick layers of dust covered the doors.
As for what Ji Yanting had initially believed to be the inn’s secret, the lamb ribs…
He eventually discovered that they came from a mutated goat hunted by one of the guests.
In the past, none of them had ever considered eating mutated goats, afraid that they might be infected with mutated viruses. He had never imagined that mutated goat meat could taste this good, without even a trace of the usual gamy smell.
Originally determined to uncover the inn’s secrets, he suddenly lost all motivation.