The children of the wolves and Li Yuren were speechless because of Lu Xinyi’s explanation. With her bright smile and excited att.i.tude, one wouldn’t think that she was being kept captive by this group. Even Li Yuren was surprised by her eagerness. The herbs she was going to use… did this mean she planned to help this mercenary group?
“Oh, then, that’s good. Little bunny will get better then.” Jiao Jiao smiled.
Lu Xinyi returned her smile, but her stomach began to growl again, reminding her that she hadn’t eaten anything since morning. The past twenty-four hours was too tiring for her; thus, it was also twenty-four hours since she had a decent meal. Once the child’s fever broke, maybe she and Li Yuren should part with the group and find rescue.
They started to cook with Jiao Jiao pouring water inside the pot they found while Lu Xinyi seasoned the three pigeon, intent to roast it, while the other two would be used for their soup.
Li Yuren sat against the cave wall with his eyes closed, but Lu Xinyi knew better. He was only taking a rest but still aware of his surroundings. The cave was silent, and only the clattering of the pot and Lu Xinyi’s blade could be heard. She cut the pigeon until it was flat enough to be roasted on fire.
The other members of the Children of the Wolves kept their eyes on Lu Xinyi. With the number of herbs and aromatics she pulled out from her bag, they thought she was some kind of a weird foodie that got lost in the mountains.
Lu Xinyi made small incisions on the meat before rubbing the seasonings on its skin. Jiao Jiao lifted the bottles beside Lu Xinyi and tasted its contents. She found out that they were just ordinary rock salt and ground pepper.
“Can you pick up that flat rock and put it over the hot coals?” Lu Xinyi asked Jiao Jiao. Following her gaze, Jiao Jiao saw a piece of flat rock beside Fu Rui. She wondered what this woman was planning to do.
After following Lu Xinyi’s instructions, they waited for several minutes until the rock was hot enough before Lu Xinyi told her to put the first pigeon she seasoned and look after it. Meanwhile, Lu Xinyi took wild lemongra.s.s from her bag and started pounding it with a small rock to release its natural oil and flavor. Satisfied with its outcome, she started to peel some turmeric and ginger.
Fu Rui wanted to burst into laughter as he continued to watch Lu Xinyi. What kind of foodie she was that she really brought spices and seasonings with her as she travels?
“You seem knowledgeable about food, Miss…” The other woman spoke to Lu Xinyi.
“Lu,” Lu Xinyi replied, “My surname is Lu.”
“I’m Zhang Qing, and this is my little brother, Zhang Sheng. We really troubled you this time, Miss Lu…” The woman introduced herself. The brother she was referring to was the sick child sleeping on the straw mat.
Lu Xinyi didn’t have any impression on her since she hadn’t spoken to her until now.
“Don’t mention it, but it would be better if someone can check on him soon,” she reminded everyone. She dared not to ask why the heck was a child traveling with them. She then remembered Jiao Jiao mentioned the lost treasure hunters. Were they also hunters? Was it the reason why Li Yuren hadn’t let his guard down around them?
“Are these also have medicinal properties?” Jiao Jiao asked as Lu Xinyi started to collect the herbs and aromatics she would be using.
“That’s right. Turmeric is one of the unsung heroes of the medicinal plant world. This k.n.o.bby little root has so many healing properties. Besides the anti-inflammatory qualities it’s packed with, turmeric is also good for relieving pain. This ginger is not only good for an upset stomach, but it is also a pain reliever when it comes to upper respiratory infections and bronchitis.”
Lu Xinyi dropped the three inside the improvised spice bag she made using the gauze. She then picked up the chopped garlic and lemongra.s.s.
“Garlic is great for healing coughs and colds, and this lemongra.s.s here can also help relieve some pains.”
It was really good that her Grandmother Lu had forced her to learn these medicinal plants before. She hadn’t thought that she was able to use this knowledge at this critical moment.
After explaining everything, Lu Xinyi cut the remaining two pigeons into pieces. Once everything was sliced, diced, and pepped, she grabbed the largest stock pot Jiao Jiao brought with them and sweated the aromatics in a small amount of oil. The scent of it instantly filled the cave they were in. She then tossed the small bag of herbs she made earlier and cooked it for a few more minutes.
Next, she added the pigeons and water into the pot, seasoned it with salt and pepper, and brought the mixture to a boil. Once the soup began to boil, she reduced the heat and covered the pot. Lu Xinyi initially planned to let it simmer for an hour or longer and skim the surface of any foamy, gray impurities later.
She stopped midway as if forgetting something. She raised her bag and found the things she was looking for.
The group saw a weird kind of plant on her right hand, but they knew what the other one was. Lu Xinyi had managed to collect some gingko with Meng Jiao on the way to the mountain. She got the weird plant on top of the mountain when she got lost.
“In traditional Chinese medicine, gingko is believed to have a healing effect on the lungs. I’ll add gingko nuts since it was said that it can cure coughs.”
Zhang Qing eyed the weird plant on Lu Xinyi’s hand.
“Oh, this one? This one is called cordyceps. It is believed to increase one’s stamina.” Lu Xinyi laughed awkwardly.
She omitted the part where this plant was a parasitic fungus growing on the larvae of insects. When these fungi attack their host, they would replace its tissue and sprout long, slender stems that grow outside the host’s body.
Although cordyceps was commonly used in traditional medicine and was proven effective, Lu Xinyi wasn’t sure if these people would find it repulsive. She knew people could be a picky eater as she also was one. Although she really liked eating foods, she also considered how it would affect her own body.
Didn’t some smart dude said ‘let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food’? So what if she decided to make a medicinal soup today? All of them were tired and needed some nourishment to fully recover.
After an hour of waiting, the roasted pigeons and pigeon soup were finally cooked. Since there were only three stainless bowls available, they decided to let the Zhang siblings and Lu Xinyi have their fill first. Li Yuren didn’t complain since he hadn’t contributed anything to it. The meal was limited so he didn’t dare to ask for his share.
Zhang Qing shredded the meat into bite-sized pieces and helped her younger brother eat. The boy slowly savored the soup and gulped down the meat. Once he was done, he went back to sleep while Zhang Qing and Lu Xinyi ate in silence.
Fu Rui wasn’t expecting that he would eat a decent meal in the wilderness. Since they started the Children of the Wolves, they were accustomed to hunting for their own food and eating within limited time.
The three pigeons that Lu Xinyi cooked were roasted to perfection. While it was cooking earlier, Fu Rui couldn’t stop drooling. The enticing aroma hit them like a truck, unexpected and strong. The slight fat of the pigeon melted from the inside and gave the skin a glossy brown color, glistening down to the hot coal as it cooked.
Jiao Jiao pa.s.sed one of the roasted pigeons to him which he had to share with his elder brother, Fu Zhihao. He broke the meat into two and gave the other half to his brother.
“Aren’t you going to eat?” Lu Xinyi turned to Li Yuren who hadn’t spoken a single word for an hour.
“It’s fine. You still have some fruits in your bag which I can munch later. Eat, you need it more. Your husband will get worried if you miss your meals.”