Ch115 No Way, I Can't Take These
"Woof, woof!"
Eggplant's paws kept kneading Meng Ci's waist, but the scent of meat in the air had him utterly hooked.
His head kept turning toward Shen Que, his kneading motions halting and resuming intermittently.
Shen Que could only say, "Keep kneading well, and I'll boil some bones for you."
At this, Eggplant gave two whines, turned its head, and resumed massaging with renewed focus.
Shen Que fetched a clay pot and set it on the stove. He placed the bones inside, tossed in some scallions, ginger, and cooking wine, added water, and let it simmer.
Shen Que continued preparing the other ingredients, his mind already mapping out the dishes he would make.
Sweet and sour eggplant, scallion oil chicken, salt and pepper chicken wings, crucian carp and tofu soup, pickled cabbage and spare ribs, plus corn and tender rabbit.
Six dishes-just right for two people.
Meng Ci had actually woken up while Shen Que was making the sweet and sour eggplant, but he just rolled over and continued playing his match-three game.
Seeing that it couldn't press Meng Ci's waist, Eggplant crouched beside his head, begging for a chicken leg.
Meng Ci wasn't one to break promises, especially since he'd need Eggplant to press his waist later!
So Meng Ci quietly pulled a chicken drumstick from his spatial pocket.
Eggplant had already mastered opening packaging. The moment it saw Meng Ci holding the drumstick,
its eyes lit up, and it snatched the leg from Meng Ci's hand. It then crouched nearby, tearing open the packaging itself.
"You're like a starving ghost reincarnated," Meng Ci teased. "You make me wonder if I've been mistreating you."
One meal for Eggplant equaled a day's worth of food for both Meng Ci and Shen Que.
To celebrate the New Year, Meng Ci and Shen Que had laid out a lavish spread on the table.
Leftovers wouldn't be a problem -Eggplant was there to handle them.
Observing Eggplant's size, Meng Ci suggested, "Shen Que, how about we bring Eggplant along next time we go chop firewood?"
"Otherwise, we'd be wasting its potential."
Shen Que nodded. "Sounds good."
Besides, after Shen Que's training, Eggplant could now easily take down an adult-though its bite strength still needed work.
And just like that, the two effortlessly ended Eggplant's leisurely life of eating, sleeping, and eating again.
Meanwhile, the clueless Eggplant was still wrestling with the plastic bag from the chicken drumstick, completely unaware that its idyllic existence was about to vanish.
After dinner was ready, Meng Ci selected a comedy film, and the two ate while watching.
Knock knock knock.
Suddenly, they heard knocking at the door. Meng Ci and Shen Que hurried out to find Zhang Mingtian standing there, carrying something in his hands.
He must have come to pay New Year's greetings.
Opening the door, Zhang Mingtian beamed, "Happy New Year, both of you!"
"Happy New Year!" Meng Cl replied.
Zhang Mingtian handed the bag to Meng Ci, grinning. "Thanks for lending me that rubber boat earlier. It's what kept me alive."
"It's small, just a token of appreciation."
"I hope you two won't look down on it."
Meng Ci accepted the items without hesitation. "Thank you."
"You've helped us so much before, there's no need to be so formal."
After all, it was Zhang Mingtian who had gathered all that soil, enabling Meng Ci's space to possess fertile, infinite earth.
As grown men, they couldn't quite find more intimate words to say. After exchanging a few updates on recent outside events, Zhang Mingtian prepared to take his leave.
Meng Ci spoke up, "Wait a moment."
"I've prepared a New Year's gift for you, too. Wait here while I fetch it."
Zhang Mingtian hastily declined, "No need, Brother."
"You keep the food for yourselves. I don't need it."
Zhang Mingtian had joined the security team, leaving early and returning late each day.
Though exhausting, the government rations combined with their homegrown vegetables were enough to feed three people if they were careful.
Leaving his pregnant wife and sixty-something mother at home was unavoidable.
If he didn't go out, the family would go hungry.
So Zhang Mingtian found some iron rods and modified the door. After he left, they could lock it from the inside, only opening it when they heard his voice.
Meng Ci remarked, "Exchanging New Year greetings is about conveying well-wishes to one another."
"What? Are you unwilling to accept my blessings?"
Meng Ci's words carried such weight that Zhang Mingtian, startled, dared not utter another word of refusal.
"Wait here for a moment. I'll be right back," Meng Ci said before entering the house.
Zhang Mingtian and Shen Que were left staring at each other.
Zhang Mingtian considered himself quite talkative, but facing Shen Que's stern expression, he dared not say much.
Fortunately, Meng Ci moved quickly.
Zhang Mingtian quietly exhaled a sigh of relief when he spotted Meng Ci's figure.
The items were identical to those given to Yun Jingcen and the others.
Two dried fish, a block of frozen meat weighing about five pounds, five sausages, and a packet of white sugar.
Upon seeing the items, Zhang Mingtian hastily shoved them into Meng Ci's hands before taking two steps back.
"Brother, I can't accept this. Please take it back," Zhang Mingtian repeated the same line Yun Jingcen and the others had used.
Meng Ci stepped forward, took Zhang Mingtian's hand, and placed the items firmly back into his grasp.
"Take it when I tell you to take it.. Besides, your wife is pregnant-she needs the nutrition."
Zhang Mingtian froze mid-motion to push the items back when Meng Ci mentioned his wife's pregnancy.
"This fish-Shen Que and I snatched it during the downpour, cleaned it, and stored it."
"As for the other three items, we seized them after raiding a bandit hideout earlier."
"Since we don't know when the downpour will end, we've been rationing our food carefully."
"Our supplies are running low now. If you truly want to show your gratitude, help us gather more vegetable seedlings and seeds."
"Those are far more useful than these items."
Fish meat runs out once consumed, but vegetable seeds are different.
Some people deliberately save them to extract the seeds for planting later in life.
Peppers, cucumbers, yardlong beans-all these vegetables can be saved for seeds.
Moreover, most of the cold-resistant vegetable seeds distributed by the government mature within a month, so these are currently in high demand at trading posts.
Zhang Mingtian listened and agreed that Meng Ci's point made perfect sense. He quickly assured him, "Don't worry, brother. I'll handle getting you those vegetable seeds."
After seeing Zhang Mingtian off, Meng Ci and Shen Que returned to continue their game.
"Shen Que, how did you build such a beautiful house?" Meng Ci maneuvered his character to fly in front of Shen Que, circling his dwelling.
White quartz blocks, stone brick walls, birch railings, Enders' Candles...
Compared to Meng Ci's self-proclaimed novel mushroom house, this two-story villa with a pool built from these simple materials was truly Incomparable.
Shen Que, diligently laying bricks, explained upon hearing the compliment, "I was just messing around."
Just a little something? If this was "Just a little something," then what would be left for him if Shen Que ever decided to build seriously?
No, he absolutely couldn't let Shen Que continue building like this.