RBNTW Ch 11

Zhao Chen felt relieved after hearing him and told him to rest while he went to the kitchen to prepare dinner.

 

That afternoon on the mountain, he had caught a pheasant and gathered mushrooms and wild vegetables. Even without staple food, it would be enough to fill two people.

 

The kitchen of the thatched hut had pots and pans left by the old hunter. The metal items were rusty, but the porcelain and clay pots were still usable.

 

With no seasonings, and considering Chen Jiu’s weak body seemed unfit for roast chicken, Zhao Chen decided to keep it simple and made a stew.

 

First, he cleaned and chopped the pheasant with a freshly sharpened knife, then put it in a clay pot to stew. He added the mushrooms, and once the flavors melded together, he added the cleaned wild vegetables. When the vegetables were cooked, the pheasant, mushroom, and wild vegetable soup was ready.

 

Though it had no seasoning, it smelled delicious.

 

Zhao Chen put out the fire, brought the clay pot to the table, washed two sets of bowls and chopsticks, and placed them on the table. Then, he went to call Chen Jiu.

 

Chen Jiu had already smelled the aroma, and his stomach had been rumbling for a while.

 

However, being in someone else’s home, he didn’t want to seem rude, so he obediently waited in the room.

 

When Zhao Chen called him, he immediately went out.

 

“My humble abode is simple, and there’s not much here. Please make do,” Zhao Chen said politely as he served him a bowl of soup.

 

Chen Jiu smelled the rich aroma of the chicken soup and couldn’t help but swallow.

 

“This is already very good, thank you.”

 

Feeling a bit embarrassed, Chen Jiu thanked him and gently blew on the hot soup, feeling a sense of surrealism.

 

An hour ago, he had been tormented in the dungeon by Chen Ling. An hour later, he had been reborn and changed many things.

 

Seeing that he genuinely didn’t mind the simplicity, Zhao Chen’s expression softened.

 

Both of them weren’t talkative, so after a few polite exchanges, they quietly ate their meal.

 

Even though they were strangers, Zhao Chen acted as if it was completely natural for Chen Jiu to be there, making it seem like there was nothing awkward about it.

 

Affected by his demeanor, Chen Jiu also felt at ease.

 

The simple meal was light but delicious, with the pheasant, mushrooms, and wild vegetables tasting quite good. They both ate heartily.

 

Slowly, they finished about two-thirds of the large pot of stew, with most of it going into Zhao Chen’s stomach.

 

Chen Jiu, with his small appetite, was full after a small bowl of soup and some meat and vegetables.

 

Worried he might get hungry at night, Zhao Chen didn’t eat more, covered the clay pot, and started cleaning the dishes.

 

Chen Jiu stood there watching him, feeling an inexplicable warmth.

 

After cleaning up, it was completely dark outside.

 

In this ancient rural village, there wasn’t much entertainment, and everyone would go to bed once it got dark.

 

Zhao Chen heated some water, and by the light of the fire, they each took a bath and then went to bed to rest.

 

The old hunter had been a lifelong bachelor, and the bed was a single bed, so it was a bit cramped for two people.

 

Zhao Chen didn’t mind. In his previous life, the early days of his entrepreneurship had been tough, with many people squeezing together on a large shared bed, so this was nothing.

 

But except for that one time in his previous life when he was unconscious, Chen Jiu had never shared a bed with anyone. He couldn’t help feeling uneasy, his body stiff as he pressed against the wall to avoid touching Zhao Chen.

 

Zhao Chen, being sensitive, noticed his discomfort and moved a bit further away, gently saying, “Sleep now. We have a tough battle to fight tomorrow.”

 

His natural demeanor once again calmed Chen Jiu. With his hand touching the jade pendant hidden in the inner layer of his clothes, he closed his eyes.

 

In the darkness, the jade pendant emitted a faint glow and slipped out of the inner layer, escaping from Chen Jiu’s hand.

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