Chapter 29
Zhang Liu came to gather stones, recalling the abundance of small square ones scattered near a huge rock, including two particularly rectangular natural stone slabs, fulfilling the requirements for crafting a simple stove.
Finally, he heard Qin Rushuang's words. At this moment, Zhang Liu felt a bit puzzled. The notion of abandoning Anya and Qin Rushuang wasn't part of his considerations. The island's resources were proven to sustain all three for an extended period; there was no need for drastic measures like life-and-death competition.
So why did Qin Rushuang ask about this?
Curiously, he looked at Anya, who shook her head blankly, indicating she had no idea. Qin Rushuang, with her back turned to Zhang Liu, remained oblivious to the awkwardness and interpreted Anya's headshake as denial.
Qin Rushuang smiled and nodded, saying, "You're right, Zhang Liu has a nice personality, and he definitely won't get angry with us."
Returning, she noticed Anya's increasingly strange expression that met Zhang Liu's confused gaze. In shock, Zhang Liu asked, "Qin Rushuang, are you okay?"
Even though Qin Rushuang usually had a calm demeanor, the sight of Zhang Liu stunned her when she turned around.
"You... You... You..." She struggled to utter a complete sentence, and Anya stepped in to voice the question lingering in her mind.
"Zhang Liu, what are you doing here?"
"Picking up stones to cook grilled fish later!" Zhang Liu emerged from behind the rocks, holding a massive stone slab, adding, "There are a lot, so I'll try two. Boil them in water and grill them on the stone slab."
His gaze fell on Qin Rushuang again, who remained stunned with flushed cheeks. Despite intentionally ignoring certain details, "the two pink spots on the other person's chest" Zhang Liu understood there were aspects beyond his control, echoing the ancient saying, "Do not do that, for the body is very trustworthy."
Continuing the casual conversation, he asked Qin Rushuang about her earlier reaction while heading towards the cave. Qin Rushuang, still in turmoil, remained silent, prompting Anya to explain that Qin Rushuang thought he might be upset initially, causing the misunderstanding.
"Weren't you afraid that Zhang Liu would leave us alone this morning?" Qin Rushuang defended herself after Anya blamed her.
Listening to the Magic Brain Circuit questions and answers from the two girls around him, Zhang Liu immediately lost his temper.
He had almost forgotten about it, but why were these two girls still intertwined?
He stopped and turned to look at Qin Rushuang and Anya. Zhang Liu remained speechless for a long time, finally turning around again under the stimulation of two pink dots on Qin Rushuang's chest.
With a long sigh, he glanced at the girls of the same age behind him, holding fruits like little quails and not daring to speak. "Let's eat first, and then we can talk about this topic after eating!"
Zhang Liu only had a very superficial understanding of Qin Ruoshuang and Anya and their celestial behavior of having a romantic brain even when hungry.
This means you are not hungry enough!
Of course, it's also possible that you're very hungry, and you're probably hallucinating...
.........
Fire is a weapon born from the womb of civilizational progress, as evident in history.
For example, Liu Huang cooperated with Sun Xuan to burn Cao's million-strong army into pigs' heads, and so on.
Nowadays, Zhang Liu also has a deep understanding of this magical effect.
Of course, not for military use but for civilian use.
After moving the fire source to the cave, he started preparing dinner.
Anya and Qin Rushuang stood beside him and watched the process.
The windproof stone wall that Qin Rushuang placed before now serves the dual purpose of blocking the wind and keeping the fire alive.
Even though the wind outside flowed into the cave, they were not afraid of the flames touching the foam board.
Right now, Zhang Liu was still making preparations, such as heating hot water.
Place three pebbles in the fire and burn them until they are almost red and translucent, then pour fresh water from a mineral water bottle into the oyster shell.
Then carefully support the pebbles in the fire with wooden sticks and place them in the shell.
"Chilla…" The pebbles were instantly cooled, releasing heat; the water inside the entire oyster shell was rolling, and bubbles continued to emerge from around the pebbles.
He did not stop this behavior but rather put the other two pebbles on the fire inside the oyster shell.
Suddenly, the water inside the entire oyster shell began to boil.
"Zhang Liu, what are you doing?" Anya stood beside Zhang Liu, unable to help but ask.
In her opinion, isn't this just polluting perfectly clean, fresh water?
"The water should be boiling, right?" Unlike Anya, accustomed to drinking cold water, Qin Rushuang looked at Zhang Liu's actions and made a guess: "Put the hot stones in the water; the stones will heat the water, then boil it.!"
"Yes, I'm boiling water." Zhang Liu nodded, expressing his agreement with Qin Rushuang's statement.
When he saw Anya's still confused expression, he continued his explanation:
"There was no fire before, so we couldn't drink boiling water."
"But now that we have this situation, I think it would be better for all of us to drink boiled water in the future."
"After all, the water in that pond has a slightly bitter taste. Although I don't know if it is useful to boil it, it is safer than not boiling it. Moreover, the plant ash on the cobblestones also contains antioxidant, inflammatory, and sterilizing effects."
"That's... okay!" After taking a look at the gray and turbid liquid inside the oyster shell, Anya felt a little disgusted.
But Zhang Liu's series of explanations are indeed correct.
Just as she reluctantly nodded, Zhang Liu continued to smile and said, "Don't worry; under normal circumstances, the water will be clear after a while. I just want to try the method of boiling water with stones now."
After saying that, he moved the shell that was still rolling away and then began to shine a light into the night.
This is the head of a fish boiled in the shell, the tail of a fish grilled on a stone slab, the liver of a fish, and the skewers of a fish!
However, everything has its own sequence, especially the firewood resources that Zhang Liu currently has, which are not luxurious enough to light two fires to roast and boil at the same time.
But it is clear that the simplicity of cooking fish heads is above all recipes.
So he decisively placed the largest oyster shell over the fire, then poured water from another mineral water bottle into it.
"I'll get water!"
Only when Zhang Liu was helpless because there was not enough water did Qin Rushuang take the initiative to get up, pick up two bottles, and come down the side of the cave.
"I'll go down there and get the firewood!"
Anya, who also wanted to find something to do, immediately came out of the cave and went to the firewood pile below to choose firewood of suitable thickness.
While sitting there for a while, a smile suddenly appeared on Zhang Liu's lips, and then he began to cut the fish liver.
As for his head, Zhang Liu had already cooked it into shells.
While it's boiling, it can also be grilled, and that's his plan.
But he looked at the fishtail wrapped in seaweed on the ground, and then he looked at the sunset.
Zhang Liu suddenly felt a warm and contented feeling flowing through his heart.
Under the cave, Qin Rushuang and Anya, who were collecting water and firewood, looked at each other and also smiled.
Few people know that getting protein and meat foods allows their depressed mood to return to a truly optimistic and relaxed state.
Among them, Zhang Liu, who was feigning optimism, felt better.
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