"You don't say, it really looks amazing!"
She could hardly wait any longer.
It looked so appetizing.
At this moment, Song Zhan and Cheng Mo returned.
As soon as they walked in, they smelled the fragrance, and their eyes lit up.
"What is this? How can it smell so good? 'Lulu, what are you making? How can it smell this incredible!' Song Zhan exclaimed, sniffing the air.
Earlier, he had finished gathering firewood and went hunting with Cheng Mo.
Now, they had just returned.
And what a haul they had!
The two of them dragged in a bunch of animal carcasses tied together with vines. There were quite a few.
Among them, there was a deer of some sort, a wild boar, a piglet, and even some wild rabbits.
Of course, rabbit meat, piglet meat, and venison are all quite tender, perfect for cubs and females to eat, so they brought them back.
They were lucky, hunting them as they came across them.
But as soon as they returned, they were hit with this tantalizing aroma. Just the smell alone made their mouths water.
What on earth were they cooking?
"Come over and see, then you'll know. Hehe, looks like you guys had quite the haul!" Si Lu said with a smile.
The two of them had large animals slung over their backs and dragged behind them.
Although the sight was a bit intimidating, she had gotten used to it.
These beasts looked intact, without any of the bloody mess, so she wasn't scared.
"Yeah, we were lucky. We caught a deer, and the venison is really tender. You can roast it or make soup with it," Cheng Mo said with a smile.
"Impressive," Si Lu praised.
Of course, even though they were deer themselves, this was a different kind of deer.
Moreover, these deer weren't sentient like the beastmen. They were just wild animals, beasts, not beastmen.
Beastmen are beastmen, and wild animals are wild animals—two different things entirely.
Though beastmen are small animals in their younger forms, they are intelligent and can speak as they grow.
It's just different.
"Wow, what is this?" Song Zhan asked as he approached the large stone pot, staring at the contents being stir-fried. He was stunned.
Chili peppers?
Shrimp? Is this…?
Can this really produce such an enticing aroma?
He had no idea!
Also, beastmen rarely eat shrimp or fish. After all, these things aren't as filling as wild beasts and are more troublesome to catch.
But he never expected that the little female not only liked fish, but she also liked shrimp.
Of course, the method of cooking was different too.
He could barely resist drooling at the smell.
"It'll be ready soon, no need to rush," Si Lu said with a smile.
"Mmm, I really didn't expect shrimp could be made to smell this good. Before, no beastmen would ever eat it, but Lulu, you're amazing," Song Zhan said in surprise.
"Hehe, I only gave a few instructions. Ah Yao and Ah Di did most of the work," Si Lu said.
And it was true.
"Ah Di, are your hands sore? If they are, let Ah Yao take over the stir-frying," Si Lu asked.
"Actually, you don't need to stir constantly. You can take breaks in between," Si Lu added.
"I didn't know that at first. My hands are a bit sore, but it's not too bad. If you ever want to eat this again, I'll make it for you. I've memorized the recipe this time," Bai Di said with a smile, looking at Si Lu.
"Great, you can make it for me next time. You're the one cooking it this time too, hehe. Hei Yao even helped you out, while I didn't do much," Si Lu laughed. Of course, she gladly accepted her mate's thoughtfulness.
"No, no, if you hadn't told us, we wouldn't even know that shrimp could be eaten like this," Bai Di said.
True enough.
They really didn't know.
"Lulu, you're amazing. This shrimp smells incredible. I bet it tastes fantastic," Cheng Mo said as he walked over, eyeing the large pot of chili and shrimp.
You have to admit, just looking at it made it look so appetizing.
Who would have thought that this dish would turn out to be so beautiful?
I bet the taste will be just as good!
"You'll find out when you taste it," Si Lu said with a smile.
"Alright, Ah Yao, Ah Zhan, let's go take care of these wild beasts while Bai Di helps Si Lu with the cooking," Cheng Mo suggested.
They had plenty of animals to process.
Of course, being near the river made it easier to clean and prepare them.
But they had to move a little farther away, just in case the little female got scared by the sight.
"Mm-hmm," Hei Yao nodded.
"Come on, let's hurry up and finish so we can eat the shrimp! I'm really craving it!" Song Zhan said eagerly.
He was practically drooling.
"You guys go on, no need to rush," Si Lu said, watching them.
Seeing her nod, they dragged the wild animals a little farther away. Soon after, a large tree blocked her view, so she couldn't see them anymore.
By now, the shrimp were almost ready, but it wasn't enough to feed everyone!
So Si Lu had Bai Di start another fire, then she pulled out some meat from her space, cutting it into small, evenly sized pieces. She began stewing the meat and marinating it with chili powder, salt, green onions, and garlic.
The meat was sliced thin to cook faster.
She figured that once they were done processing the animals, they could start grilling the meat, which would be quick and wouldn't take too long.
She also pulled some potatoes and sweet potatoes from her field, and had Bai Di toss them into the fire, burying them in the ashes.
Of course, these were things she had previously planted after digging up some plants with Cheng Mo and tossing them into her field, which had turned into all this food.
There was a whole patch, about an acre, with all sorts of things growing. She hadn't even had the chance to fully explore it.
Whenever she needed something, she'd take a closer look to see if it was there.
These were all good things—what a treat!
"Lulu, what were those stone-like things just now? Why did you bury them in the fire?" Bai Di asked curiously.
He didn't recognize them and had never seen plants like those before.
But whatever Si Lu told him to do, he did. He couldn't help but ask out of curiosity, though.
"They're food—potatoes and sweet potatoes. Burying them in the fire to roast makes them delicious. You'll see. You'll love them," Si Lu said with a smile.
Especially sweet potatoes—roasting them makes them so fragrant!
"Alright then, I'll make sure to try them later," Bai Di said with a smile, still busy skewering the meat to make it easier to grill later.
If Lulu said it was good, then it had to be good.
He trusted her taste completely.
"Mm-hmm, I wonder how they're doing with the processing. It's already getting dark," Si Lu said.
Time flies so fast! It was already evening.
"They're almost done. They'll be back soon," Bai Di said.
He could hear them working.