RIIDMDR chapter 17

 

“What are you doing?” Tingchuan asked.

Nanxu’s forehead was covered in sweat, but not from the heat. It was from the frustration of trying to get the shape he wanted. He had been kneading for a long time, unable to achieve the desired result, and was becoming increasingly impatient. He had made tables and chairs before, but he never expected to be so stumped by something as simple as kneading clay.

“I’m making bowls and plates,” Nanxu said. Then he thought the pieces in front of him seemed a bit too ambitious, so he added, “I’m trying to make bowls and plates.”

Tingchuan watched for a long moment, then looked back at Nanxu’s hands and said, “You can’t knead like that.”

Nanxu’s plan was to use a large piece of clay and shape it with grooves. He kept doing it that way but couldn’t produce anything satisfactory. He assumed it was a matter of skill, but he didn’t expect Tingchuan to point out his method.

Nan Xu: “So how do we do it?”

Tingchuan was at a loss for words for a moment. After composing his thoughts, he finally said, “Have you ever seen birds build their nests? From the bottom up.”

Nan Xu understood instantly. He patted his head, gave Tingchuan a thumbs-up, and said, “Thank goodness you reminded me.”

He had clearly built his kiln and stove from the bottom up, too. Why hadn’t he thought to make bowls and plates the same way? If he only shaped a lump of clay, how would he ever make pottery jars?

Nan Xu rolled the clay into strips and built them up, polishing them with his fingertips and a bamboo stick as he went. By the time the basin of water beside him had grown exceptionally turbid, his bowls and plates were complete.

After checking the weather forecast, which predicted no rain for the next few days, Nan Xu placed the bowls and plates on a stone slab in the courtyard to dry.

Tingchuan watched Nan Xu knead the dough, his brow furrowed. He knew what bowls and plates were for, so he couldn’t imagine eating off the same bowls and plates that had been kneaded with dirty mud.

“You skin the rabbit. I’m going to cook.” Feeling that his afternoon’s hard work had paid off, Nan Xu was in high spirits and gave Tingchuan instructions.

Tingchuan was the last person who would do such chores, but it was getting late. With night approaching, he resigned himself to his fate and went to the stream to clean the rabbit.

The two wild boar brothers slept until dinnertime. Tingchuan had caught a large rabbit and cooked a potful of spicy rabbit meat. The pungent aroma of chili peppers and the fragrant aroma of rabbit meat filled the whole yard. The wild boar brothers could smell it as soon as they left the guest room. They wondered what the unscrupulous innkeeper was cooking, but they had to admit that his food was amazing. They just hoped that there would be the spiritual, energy-boosting fruit for dinner.

By the time the meal was served, it was completely dark. Without the lights of the human world, the group could only eat by the light of the yard fire.

After another delicious meal, their plates were completely empty. The two wild boar demons slumped in their chairs, clutching their bellies. Nan Xu was fine, though. He had gone to bed early and had tried to eat only until he was 60% full that night to avoid being unable to sleep.

“What kind of chili peppers are in this rabbit meat? Why is my mouth watering so much that I can’t swallow?” the younger wild boar demon asked Nan Xu.

Nan Xu was a little puzzled. Could they be different from the chili peppers they were eating now? The dried chili peppers produced by the system tasted more authentic. However, after tasting many varieties of chili peppers in the human world — especially those from regions where they jokingly require a trip to the proctologist — Nan Xu was open to trying them.

Nan Xu said, “Maybe it’s a different variety.”

“This rabbit meat is delicious! It’s completely different from the fishy kind we had!” The wild boar brother smacked his lips as if savoring the taste.

The incident at noon was still fresh in his memory. Nan Xu wasn’t enthusiastic about the two wild boar demons’ attitude. He knew they weren’t as harmless as they appeared and didn’t say anything more about treating them like ordinary guests. He cleared the dishes and went into the kitchen.

Tingchuan followed, and the two wild boar demon brothers stared at each other for a few seconds.

“Brother, the potato cake we had tonight seems to be made from that spiritual fruit,” whispered the wild boar.

The eldest wild boar nodded. His face was always simple and honest in front of Nan Xu, but now it revealed a hint of greed. “I heard that thing is called a sweet potato, and it grows in the fields.”

The younger wild boar said, “I went to the back of the house after lunch, but I didn’t see any such fruit in the fields. They must have been picked from the mountains. Our guest room is across from the warehouse. Why not steal some at night while they’re asleep?”

In the kitchen, Nan Xu washed dishes while Tingchuan squatted by the stove, checking the eggs in the basket as usual.

“It’s been about half a month. In another half a month, the chicks should be hatched,” Nan Xu said, counting the days.

Tingchuan hummed and covered the eggs tightly with straw again.

“Once the pottery is fired, I plan to build a row of chicken huts at the foot of the eastern hill. I’ll fence off an area for them to roam,” Nan Xu thought to himself. “When they’re older and more familiar with their home, they’ll be able to run around in the hills behind the house. I’ve been there many times, and there aren’t any weasels.”

Tingchuan had always been responsible for overseeing the hatching of the eggs, so Nan Xu didn’t see anything wrong with telling him all this. But to Tingchuan, it sounded strange. It wasn’t just a matter of hatching the chickens. Why did it sound like he was telling him what to do with his chicks?

Tingchuan remained silent, so Nan Xu assumed he had no opinion. He continued, “Seeing the rabbits you caught today made me realize that there’s actually quite a large area down the hill to the east of our house. We could raise a few more rabbits. They reproduce quickly, and after they hatch, they give birth to a whole litter of baby rabbits. We can keep them for later, saving you from having to hunt every day. Especially when the weather gets cold and the animals in the mountains hibernate, it’s too much trouble to hunt wild animals in the cold.”

Influenced by the human world, Nanxu always felt that raising animals was more secure than hunting, even though Tingchuan was a fox demon who had mastered hunting skills.

Tingchuan was stunned. How could this human talk about hunting so often? His idea wasn’t bad, though. The rabbits he raised would probably be fatter than those in the mountains, and their meat would be even more tender.

However, rabbits dig holes and escape, so they can’t be kept in a cage.

That wasn’t a big problem. Nanxu said, “I’ll weave a few cages out of bamboo strips and put the rabbits in them.”

Tingchuan remembered Nanxu’s bamboo and wicker baskets and thought the idea would work. He agreed to catch two rabbits the next day or the day after.

That evening, they went to the stream to bathe. After washing the dishes, Nanxu and Tingchuan returned to their room. It was the first time they had rested in the same room, but it wasn’t a big deal at first. However, once they entered the room, they saw that it was completely empty except for the bed, and the layout seemed strange.

Tingchuan knew the inn was poor, but he hadn’t realized that the owner’s room and the guest room were identical, down to the mattress. It was unbelievable.

Nanxu coughed softly and said, “You see, there’s only one bed. Let’s just make do for now. Where will you sleep?”

Surprised, Tingchuan sat down on the inner bed. The room was pitch black, illuminated only by moonlight from the window. Nanxu could vaguely see Tingchuan’s shadow and lay down on the outer side of the bed.

A man and a fox lay on the bed. The bed wasn’t very big, with only half a person’s distance between them. In the quiet atmosphere, they could hear each other’s breathing.

Nan Xu usually fell asleep as soon as he hit the bed, but tonight, perhaps because of the extra person beside him, he felt strange. One moment he worried that his unruly sleeping posture would disturb Tingchuan’s sleep; the next, he wondered if he snored. He had never slept with anyone before and had never heard anyone mention such a thing.

After thinking about it for a while, when the chirping of insects and birds outside died down, Nan Xu finally felt vaguely sleepy. Half asleep, he heard Tingchuan get up. He opened his eyes in confusion. Foxes are nocturnal, but Tingchuan had recently changed his sleep schedule. What was he doing up in the middle of the night?

He was about to ask when Tingchuan raised his hand, signaling him to be silent and follow him.

Nanxu didn’t understand what was happening, but he sat up and followed Tingchuan’s lead, walking lightly behind him.

Tingchuan opened the door and silently walked to the warehouse entrance. Nanxu marveled at the fox’s silent footsteps as he looked up and saw that the warehouse door was open and heard a rustling sound inside.

Thanks to his improved vision in the mountains, Nanxu could clearly see the two wild boars frantically stuffing sweet potatoes into their bags.

They looked excited, as if they had found something remarkable. He knew sweet potatoes were used to feed pigs in the countryside, but he had no idea the wild boar demons in this world enjoyed them too, stealing them in the middle of the night.

Tingchuan and Nanxu stood at the doorway for a long moment; the two wild boars were completely oblivious. Nanxu wondered, “Are there rules in the demon world for how demons who steal things are punished?”

His sudden voice startled the two wild boar demon brothers. Recognizing his voice, they raised their heads and attacked.

In a split second, Nan Xu felt an invisible force attack him. He instinctively tried to dodge, but then he heard two faint sounds as if the incoming force had been blocked.

His heart still pounding, Nan Xu glanced at the people around him. He saw Tingchuan swing his arm, his long sleeves swirling in a wild arc. The two wild boar demons were thrown to the ground, their bodies thrashing against the wall with dull thuds. They fell to the ground and transformed into their rough, thick-skinned wild boar forms. They lay on their stomachs, feigning death.

Nan Xu almost applauded Tingchuan. He could finish off both opponents in the blink of an eye. It was a shame he’d been worried about losing the fight that morning.

Nan Xu generously praised him: “Tingchuan, you’re amazing.”

Tingchuan tilted his head to meet Nan Xu’s gleaming eyes, but his gaze quickly averted.

Human eyes are a bit like stars in the night sky, Tingchuan thought.