21
It’s Immortal Grass!
The unnamed grass with serrated leaves that Xiaohui loved to eat, it was Immortal Grass!
She had been it in Yao Yao’s journal, though only its dried form, used to make a dessert called ‘grass jelly’. It looked a bit different from the fresh version, which was why at first she only found it familiar but couldn’t quite remember where she’d seen it before.
Because she had never actually seen it fresh.
It was today, while making wild yam tofu, that inspiration struck and she suddenly remembered, this unnamed grass was the young, fresh form of the Immortal Grass recorded in Yao Yao’s journal.
Both the young fresh form and the dried form could be used to make grass jelly. Yao Yao had said there was no difference in taste, only in color.
She had always been very interested in the desserts featured in Yao Yao’s journal. Little did she know that the raw ingredients for making those desserts were already in her home without her realizing it.
This was truly…
He Tian’s heart was racing with excitement.
Her hand, holding the fresh sprig of Immortal Grass she had snatched from Xiaohui’s mouth, trembled slightly with excitement, she had the raw material, the method wasn’t too difficult, so why mot make it right now?
Rong Yan glanced at the thin quilt that had landed perfectly of him. he was now quite certain that her skills were decent. Judging by her walk and posture, she didn’t seem to have studied under a proper master, perhaps she was self-taught, either through unconventional means or natural talent.
That was nothing unusual, he had subordinates like that.
He wasn’t too surprised by this.
It was just…
Looking up, he noticed He Tian, who had finished tidying up the kitchen was about to head back to sleep, suddenly stopped at the door. She was staring at the grass the rabbit was eating under the moonlight, and the more she looked, the more excited she became. This caught his attention.
What was going on?
That grass—wasn’t it just ordinary grass?
Could there be something on it?
Rong Yan immediately grew alert.
Forget it, He Tian thought seriously for a moment before ultimately abandoning the idea of making it right away.
It was too late.
Besides, there wasn’t much Immortal Grass left at home. She hadn’t had time to go up the mountain to cut more for Xiaohui these past two days, and he had almost finished the last batch she brought back.
She would go up the mountain first thing tomorrow morning and cut more. The fresh ones would be used to make the tender green grass jelly, and whatever she didn’t use, she would dry in the sun, store away, and use to make the black grass jelly in winter!
“Let’s go,” she said, nudging Xiaohui, who was munching on the grass while leaning against her foot. “Time for bed.”
With that, she returned the sprig of grass she had snatched from him—there was plenty on the mountain; no need to take a little one’s food.
Before Rong Yan could figure out why her mood had shifted so dramatically, the kitchen door had already been closed.
“Rawr~” Dahuang pounced onto the quilt, trying to paw at him.
Rong Yan snapped back to attention and instinctively dodged.
Only after avoiding Dahuang’s outstretched paw did he realize the tiger wanted to play with him, not attack him.
Seeing the obvious hurt and bewildered look in Dahuang’s eyes, he reached out and rubbed the dog’s head.
Dahuang, now happy, nuzzled against his palm, rolled into his arms, and promptly burrowed under the covers.
He Tian was right—Dahuang really was like a little furnace. The moment he crawled in, the chest area instantly warmed up.
Tugging at the edge of the quilt and tucking it back in, Rong Yan pulled Dahuang closer, found a comfortable position, and went to sleep. Everything else could wait until tomorrow. Right now, he desperately needed rest.
He Tian felt the same way. But tonight, her mind was fixated on the grass jelly. Images of the finished dessert kept replaying in her head, making her crave it so much that she tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep for a long time.
“What’s wrong?” Liu Erniang hesitated for a long while before finally asking, “Are you feeling unwell? Or is something on your mind?”
She had been restless for so long.
He Tian immediately stopped moving. “Nothing’s wrong. I was just thinking about selling the wolf we caught today. We’ll be able to buy so many things—it got me a little excited.”
Liu Erniang smiled, though the smile carried a hint of sadness. “Mother will be better soon. Once I’m well, I’ll go up the mountain with you.”
He Tian didn’t tell her not to think about that and just focus on recovering. Instead, she smiled and agreed, “Okay!”
“Now get some sleep,” Liu Erniang said, her heart aching for her daughter.
He Tian hummed in response, scooped Xiaohui up from the floor, and stroked his soft, fuzzy belly, forcing herself to fall asleep. She had to admit—Xiaohui just didn’t feel as nice to touch as Dahuang. Not having petted Dahuang before bed for two days, she kind of missed him.
Dahuang, who was sprawled out sleeping soundly in Rong Yan’s arms, twitched his little nose, completely oblivious, and continued sleeping peacefully.
That night, He Tian rarely had a restless sleep—she was too eager to taste the grass jelly!
Before dawn, at the first crow of the rooster, she got up.
Afraid of waking Liu Erniang, she tiptoed out of the main room, planning to make breakfast first. After eating, she could head up the mountain early to cut the Immortal Grass.
Rong Yan was sleeping in the kitchen. She could avoid waking Liu Erniang, but not him.
In fact, the moment she pushed open the main room door, Rong Yan who never fully let his guard down even while asleep was already awake. He just didn’t move.
The kitchen door was pushed open, the fire was relit for light, followed by the sound of scooping water, rinsing rice…
Rong Yan couldn’t pretend anymore and opened his eyes.
Strange.
Watching her busy back, he felt a slight confusion. Why was she up so early today?
As she added water to the pot, she caught a glimpse of Rong Yan’s strikingly handsome face and raised an eyebrow. “You’re awake?”
Rong Yan: “…”
With all that noise, unless he was dead or in a deep coma, it would be hard for him not to wake up.
She didn’t seem to have the slightest awareness of having woken him… Oh no, she knew. She knew she had woken him, but she just didn’t care.
This realization made Rong Yan suddenly want to laugh.
And he did.
Just a faint twitch at the corner of his lips, but it was indeed a smile.
Oh?
He Tian’s eyes widened slightly. He looked even better when he smiled.
Tsk, she really didn’t know how this guy was put together. Each of his features seemed ordinary on its own, but together they were so pleasing to the eye.
Still, no matter how good-looking he was, eating and cutting Immortal Grass were more important. She only glanced at him once before looking away and continuing her work.
Today, she’d cook wild yam and rice porridge, plus make a batch of egg pancakes. Simple for now, saving room for the delicious grass jelly later!
Rong Yan, realizing he had smiled again, pressed his lips together slightly and lowered his head, lost in thought.
The rice porridge slowly cooked in the large pot over the stove. Simmering it gently was the only way to bring out the rice oil—she loved drinking that layer of rice oil.
The egg pancakes were simple to make. In a bowl, add flour and water, stirring into a slightly thin batter. Crack in six eggs, then add salt and scallions, mixing well. Light a fire in the clay stove, heat the pan slightly, add oil, scoop in a ladle of batter, and manually turn the pan handle to spread the batter evenly into a circle across the bottom.
Once the surface of the batter set and turned semi-transparent, it was time to flip it and continue cooking the other side. When both sides were golden brown, it was ready to come out of the pan.
Whether making scallion pancakes or egg pancakes, the most important thing was heat control—the key was low heat and slow frying.
But “slow frying” didn’t mean a slow output.
Each pancake took no time at all to cook.
It was still early, and Liu Erniang was still asleep. It wasn’t the right time to wake her for breakfast, so He Tian ate as she cooked.
The pancakes were slightly crispy on the outside, soft and sticky on the inside—a completely different texture from scallion pancakes.
Fragrant and delicious.
She cooked one, ate one. Cooked another, ate another. Half of the batter in the bowl was gone, yet the plate meant for holding the egg pancakes remained empty.
Rong Yan hadn’t felt hungry at first, but watching her eat one pancake after another, the aroma of the pancakes constantly wafting into his nose, he suddenly felt hungry.
Upon closer reflection, he realized he wasn’t so much hungry as he was craving.
He was stunned.
Craving?
How could something like that happen to him?!
Already on edge and puzzled by the unfamiliar reactions he was experiencing within himself, Rong Yan’s gaze toward He Tian grew more probing—who exactly was she?
“Don’t rush,” He Tian said without looking up as she poured batter into the pan, aware of his stare. “This batch is for you.”
Caught in his thoughts, Rong Yan felt an inexplicable embarrassment. He had never been someone driven by appetite or craving.
He forced himself to look away from her.
But he couldn’t stop the aroma from wafting into his nose.
Just as he attempted to hold his breath and silently recite a purification mantra—
“Here,” He Tian handed him the freshly cooked egg pancake. “Straight from the pan, best eaten now.”
It wouldn’t taste as good once cooled.
Rong Yan didn’t move.
He Tian shoved the plate right up to his face. “Stop pretending. You were swallowing your saliva.”
Rong Yan: “——!”
He had simply held his breath too long and momentarily struggled to breathe, so he had rolled his throat to aid his breathing!
Seeing that he still wouldn’t take the plate, He Tian said with displeasure, “Come on, eat up. I have things to do today.”
Daybreak was near, and she needed to head up the mountain to cut Immortal Grass.
Unable to explain himself and with no way to—Rong Yan could only silently accept the false accusation of being a glutton. He reached out, took the plate, and buried his head in eating the delicious egg pancake.
Setting aside the fact that she had just slandered him, the egg pancake was indeed very good. He had never eaten such a delicious egg pancake before.
Unlike He Tian, he ate slowly and carefully. Even when ravenous, he maintained the dignified composure of a prince.
At first, He Tian thought he ate slowly because he was weak, so she got another plate to hold the finished pancakes. But by the time she had stacked up a whole pile, Rong Yan still hadn’t finished his first pancake. Only then did He Tian realize—he wasn’t eating slowly because he was weak; it was his manner of eating.
Refined and graceful. She couldn’t quite describe it, but it was very pleasing to the eye, like watching a moving ink painting come to life.
“Hey,” He Tian’s curiosity got the better of her. “Who exactly are you?”
Even though she had crossed over from the apocalypse, she knew very well that such behavior and demeanor could only come from nobility or an aristocratic family.
Rong Yan paused mid-bite.
Using the moment of chewing the pancake in his mouth, he quickly adjusted his expression and composure, then looked up at her calmly with a hint of puzzlement.
He Tian: “Your background isn’t ordinary, is it?”
Rong Yan blinked imperceptibly, but inside, a storm was raging—she noticed?
Then something occurred to He Tian. She suddenly leaned close to him, her bright, clear eyes locking directly onto his. “Your family must be pretty wealthy, right?”
This time, Rong Yan’s confusion was genuine, not feigned.
But He Tian suddenly smiled. “Then don’t forget to give me a generous reward later to repay me for saving your life.” If his family had money, he could just go home and get it—that would be far more convenient and efficient than slowly earning it after recovering.
Rong Yan blinked again. She was short on money?
That made sense.
In a hunter’s household like this, in such living conditions, being short on money was the norm.
So, he nodded.
Seeing his agreement, He Tian was very happy. She extended her hand. “Then let’s high-five.”
Looking at her outstretched palm, Rong Yan hesitated for a moment but eventually raised his hand.
He Tian didn’t wait. She slapped his palm directly.
Smack.
“It’s settled,” He Tian’s clear, cheerful voice echoed in the kitchen. “No backing out.”
As her words faded, she had already returned to the clay stove to continue making egg pancakes, leaving Rong Yan standing there in a daze.
Someone had once high-fived him like that.
But later, they crossed swords.
In his last life, he came to kill him first.
In this life, he would kill him first.
He didn’t regret it. It was just that, for a moment, he had felt a bit dazed.
By the time he snapped back to his senses, He Tian had already finished the entire plate piled high with egg pancakes. She had just cooked another one and, using the spatula, flung it directly onto the plate in his hand. “Eat.”
Like feeding a dog.
Rong Yan’s brow furrowed quite noticeably.
Then he lowered his head, picked up the pancake with his chopsticks, and began eating slowly and deliberately.
Around daybreak, He Tian went to wake Liu Erniang.
Liu Erniang was now recovering well and no longer needed anyone to watch over her while eating. She simply asked He Tian to leave the porridge and pancakes at her bedside. But He Tian, carrying her basket, was already preparing to head up the mountain.
Immortal Grass, here she comes!
Seeing her wanting to go up the mountain so early, Liu Erniang didn’t even have time to eat. “The dew is still heavy right now. Wait until the sun comes out before going up.”
He Tian couldn’t wait any longer. “It’s fine. I’ll go early and come back early. Xiaohui has nothing left to eat, and we still need to go into town today.”
Unable to dissuade her, Liu Erniang could only tell her to be careful.
He Tian, carrying her basket, had already hurried out the gate without a moment’s delay, heading straight for the mountain.
Before, she hadn’t paid attention, but now that she was looking, she found that the mountain was covered with Immortal Grass. Without much effort, she came across a large patch.
Not only did she fill her basket to the brim, but she also cut another large bundle, tied it with vines and bark, and carried it on her back as she descended the mountain.
The thought of soon eating the delicious grass jelly kept the corners of He Tian’s mouth turned up the entire way home.
Before she even reached the house, a cacophony of noises drifted toward her in the wind.
Amid the overlapping clamor, she heard Liu Erniang’s exasperated voice.
Hmm?
She listened carefully. It was indeed Liu Erniang’s voice, and the noise was indeed coming from the direction of her home. He Tian’s expression changed. She quickened her pace and hurried toward the house.
From a distance, she could see that the area in front of her home was crowded with people.
Drawing closer, she heard two familiar but nauseating voices.
He Erlang? Mrs. Li?
What were they doing here?
**
Xiaohui, who made a great contribution: Cross out your spicy rabbit ding from your recipe right now! [sunglasses][sunglasses][sunglasses]
Little Rong: It wasn’t me, I didn’t, you’re slandering me! I was not craving anything!
Later, Rong Yan: Why aren’t you slandering me anymore?