Chapter 524 - 358: Ya! Ssibal!

Chapter 524: Chapter 358: Ya! Ssibal!

Just as Lin Chen had described, the Treasure Crab’s roe had a rich, milky flavor that matched its scent, as if a few drops of butter had been added to it.

It didn’t need any extra seasoning at all; it was delicious enough to eat on its own.

Though there wasn’t much roe, the flavor was sublime—enough to be called the most delicious thing they’d eaten on the trip so far.

Lin Chen wasn’t idle either. He tore open his own Treasure Crab and began to eat ravenously, not forgetting to toss all the cleaned ’wild potatoes’ into the remaining broth from boiling the crabs.

After they were cooked through and taken out, he placed all the crab shells—which had been set by the fire to toast until slightly charred—into the mess tin, refilling it with water until it was eighty percent full.

After the crab shell broth in the pot had simmered for twenty minutes, all the crabs were processed. The Treasure Crab shells, now used as bowls, were piled high with delicious crab meat and roe.

He scooped all the crab shells out of the mess tin and tossed them into the fire, leaving only half a tin of orange crab broth. Because the ’wild potatoes’ had been cooked in it, the liquid wasn’t clear but had a slightly thick consistency.

Next, he sliced the gutted sea cucumbers into knuckle-sized pieces and tossed them into the broth along with chopped kelp.

"Fresh sea cucumbers need different cooking times depending on their size. A whole one takes about twenty to twenty-five minutes, but for pieces the size I just cut, eight to ten minutes is enough. If you cook them too long, they get tough like shellfish and shrink."

"Sea cucumbers don’t have much flavor on their own; you eat them for the texture and nutrition. They have very high nutritional value. While there’s no scientific consensus on this point, in our Great Xia, they’re considered great for skin beauty because they’re rich in collagen."

She didn’t hear anything else he said. The word "beauty" was on repeat in her mind, and she secretly resolved to eat a few extra pieces later.

As the kelp was added, a faint layer of green began to float on the surface of the orange-red broth, gradually turning the overall color of the soup a pale yellow.

Crab, sea cucumber, and kelp soup, plus mashed potatoes with crab meat and roe... Just thinking about it made her swallow uncontrollably. She couldn’t believe they were about to eat such a feast in the middle of a forest.

The Treasure Crab, despite its size, didn’t have much meat. Considering she hadn’t eaten much yesterday and had swum for over an hour, it had only served to whet her appetite. After waiting for half an hour, what little feeling of fullness she’d had vanished without a trace.

Lin Chen was starving too. He worked quickly, rubbing the skins off the boiled ’wild potatoes’ with his fingers, leaving only the pale yellow flesh inside.

"Go ahead and mash," he said, placing a dozen potatoes in the crab shell in front of her and drizzling two spoonfuls of broth over them. "If you like it smooth, mash it finely. If you like it chunky, just press it a few times. Then mix it with the crab meat and roe. Add more broth if it’s not smooth enough. Seasoning is just salt and black pepper, add it yourself."

"Leave it to me! I’m confident in my mashed potato skills!"

She lifted her chin confidently and patted her chest firmly. Unexpectedly, it made no sound, but it did set off a series of ripples.

Both of them froze, their gazes subconsciously drawn to the spot. Lin Chen immediately tore his eyes away as if he’d been shocked, while a blushing Jin Meiyan quickly bent over, using her knees to shield her chest again.

She kept her head bowed, her small white teeth biting hard on her lower lip. She unconsciously crushed the small potatoes with her fingers, feeling her cheeks burn.

Ah! Sibal!!!

How could I forget something so important, that I wasn’t wearing a bra!!

This T-shirt is light-colored and form-fitting, and it’s broad daylight. Oppa, he just now...

At the thought, her body swayed. She wished she could faint on the spot.

This was too embarrassing! How was she supposed to talk to Oppa after this?!

The crab, sea cucumber, and kelp soup she had been so eagerly awaiting, and the mashed potatoes with crab, held no allure for her now. She didn’t even know how she finished her meal.

By the time she had calmed down a little, Lin Chen had already returned with the cleaned mess tin full of fresh water. He placed it over the coals to boil, planning to let it cool and drink it later.

He glanced at the girl who had buried her head in her knees like an ostrich, licked his dry lips, and handed her the mashed potatoes he had set aside on the mess tin lid. He then picked up the little wolf pup by the scruff of its neck and placed it in front of her.

"Why don’t you feed it? I’m a little tired, going to catch up on some sleep. You should take a nap later, too. Staying up late is bad for your skin."

She nodded slightly, still not daring to look up and meet Lin Chen’s gaze.

I clearly decided to be more cautious in front of the camera, to keep my distance whether I was speaking or acting.

And now I’ve completely ruined it. When Erica Oppa sees the footage, will she think I was deliberately trying to seduce Oppa?

Ahhhhhh!!!!

Jin Meiyan, you idiot!!!

After she saw Lin Chen crawl into the grass shelter and lie down out of the corner of her eye, she viciously pinched the opposite thigh, hissing as she sucked in a sharp breath of pain.

Just then, the little wolf pup, which had long been driven mad by the aroma, staggered onto her shoe, trying to climb over it to get to the mash that was just within reach.

Its thumb-length legs scrabbled a couple of times, and with a final push, it managed to climb onto the top of her shoe.

Before it could take another step, a clear, warm stream gushed out from between its spread hind legs.

Jin Meiyan was still in a daze, subconsciously reaching for the mess tin lid to feed the pup.

At that moment, a faint smell of ammonia drifted through the air.

She wrinkled her small nose in confusion, sniffing left and right. Just as she was wondering why the smell of urine was coming from her left, her shoe suddenly felt warm, followed by the sensation of dampness.

The smell of urine, the warm liquid...

?!

Her chaotic thoughts cleared in an instant. She snatched the little wolf pup up by the scruff of its neck, a small, intermittent stream still trickling from it.

"YAH!"

"Aish..."

She looked down in shock at her shoe, now completely soaked in urine, then at the little wolf pup, which was staring back at her with wide, innocent blue eyes. She managed to choke back the curse that had risen to her lips.

Oppa was definitely still awake. She couldn’t curse in front of him; he would definitely understand.

The only silver lining was that it had peed on her shoe and not her clothes. Otherwise, she really would have lost her mind.

She took the wolf pup to the nearby stream, soaked her shoe and sock, and scrubbed them with a rock. She wrung them out as best she could and gave the little one’s backside a quick rinse for good measure.

After setting her shoe and sock on the rack to dry with her underwear, she finally started to feed the little pup.

After that incident, her behavior became exceptionally cautious, and no other strange events occurred.

Early on the morning of the fourth day.

The sun had just poked half its head above the sea when the two of them woke up. They personally tore down the simple shelter that had been their home for three nights, recovering all the modern materials.

When the grass hut collapsed with a crash, the recording segment was officially over.

Jin Meiyan stared at the two thick piles of branches and pine needles on the ground with a complex expression, sighing silently in her heart.

This day had finally come.

Life in the wild was certainly full of anxiety and lacked any entertainment, but in these three days, she had learned so many new things she never could have learned otherwise.

Things like weaving rope from weeds, making crowns and bracelets from wildflowers, building a shelter and fish traps from branches, and even practical little skills like diving and using a slingshot, with which she had personally hunted a delicious pheasant.

This kind of life was an experience unimaginable for a city dweller—particularly memorable and unforgettable. She suspected that in the future, every time she went swimming or played a shooting game, she would be reminded of the scenes from these three days.

The two walked along the edge of the forest by the coast, one behind the other. She was still using the tree branch walking stick that Lin Chen had given her on the first day.

With the cameras gone, they were both quiet as they traveled, neither knowing what to say to break the strange silence.

The shelter wasn’t far from their landing spot in a straight line. Following the coastline was a slight detour, but it still took them less than half an hour to arrive.

Standing by the sea, gazing at the golden disc of the sun rising over the sparkling water, Jin Meiyan secretly glanced at him a few times.

She wanted to ask something, but the words all died on her lips. In the end, only one sentence came out: "Oppa, what time is the boat coming?"

"Around seven, I think. That’s the time I arranged with the boat captain."

He glanced at his watch. There were only about ten minutes left until the appointed time. Captain Hei could show up any second.

The thought of having to arrange the whale-watching trip as soon as they got back, and that she would be leaving after that, stirred an unexpected reluctance in his heart.

He had been wondering off and on for the past two days what it was about him that could make such an outstanding girl develop feelings for him after just a few days.

It was true for Erica, and it was true for Jin Meiyan.

And strangely, their upbringings were somewhat similar.

In the end, while he didn’t reach a firm conclusion, he did discover a commonality between them.

They were lacking love.

On the surface, one was a rich heiress with money to burn, and the other was a self-sufficient and very popular beauty and travel blogger and aspiring trainee. In theory, neither of them should be short on pursuers.

But it’s often these seemingly perfect personas that lack true, close friends. Most people who approached them had ulterior motives.

He was different. He was simply fulfilling his professional duties and, on top of that, providing a bit of appropriate care and consideration.

The fact that this small amount of concern could move the hearts of two beautiful women was proof enough of how starved for affection they were.

After figuring out part of the reason, he felt more and more that his choice to remain restrained was the right one.

Erica, working by his side, would meet all sorts of people in the future and would inevitably have to interact with them. As a travel blogger, Jin Meiyan would also meet a wide variety of people on her journeys.

Once they’ve experienced more people and more things, they’ll probably understand that this isn’t love, but a simple crush, right?