CH 35

TL: Moonlit

The man once known as the War God never imagined he would have such a day. He looked at the dormouse’s expectant expression and then turned his gaze to the bowl in front of him.

The fruits in the bowl were particularly enticing in the resource-depleted world of Cang Zhan Star. However, the grasshoppers were equally eye-catching. Some of them had indeed started crawling out. One of them reached the edge of the bowl, preparing to use its hind legs to jump out. In that crucial moment when the grasshopper was about to leap, the dormouse’s two chubby paws closed together with precision, capturing the grasshopper.

Shu Shuishui skillfully stunned the grasshopper and placed it back into the bowl, showing great thoughtfulness. “Gugu, you can take your time eating. I’ll be here watching.” He patted his own little chest, giving off a reassuring “leave it to me” vibe.

Although Gu Langu didn’t have a sense of taste, the act of eating raw grasshoppers was not something that existed in his memory. He was momentarily caught off guard.

On the other side, Yu Jin also noticed the strange atmosphere around Gu Langu and curiously approached.

Shu Shuishui, seeing Gu Langu’s hesitation, tilted his little head and flicked his ears. “I forgot the utensils! Do you prefer chopsticks or a fork?”

The dormouse took out a pair of chopsticks and a stainless steel fork from his own spiritual storage, holding them up, one in each paw, waiting for Gu Langu to choose.

Gu Langu “… ” It seemed that the issue was not about utensils.

After holding them up for a while and seeing Gu Langu’s rare expression of confusion, Shu Shuishui pondered for a moment and believed he had found the reason. “You don’t know how to eat, right? It’s okay, I’ll teach you. Luckily, I just roasted one myself, so it should be about right.”

With that said, the little dormouse put away the utensils and scurried to the side of the campfire. He picked up a small branch standing upright near the fire pit. The branch had a forked shape, and on one side of the fork was a roasted grasshopper, perfectly cooked.

The little dormouse ran back to Gu Langu with the roasted grasshopper in hand, standing in front of him with great seriousness. Then, he held up the grasshopper high. “Pay attention, first step, the grasshopper is a bit hot, so you need to blow on it.” He brought the grasshopper close and earnestly puffed his cheeks, blowing on it.

After a moment, Shu Shuishui continued, “But yours isn’t hot, so you don’t need to blow. Just move on to the second step, remove the wings. These wings don’t have any flavor and can get stuck in your teeth, so it’s better to remove them beforehand.” Saying that, Shu Shuishui demonstrated the technique with great precision, even explaining how to apply force to remove them cleanly and quickly.

Gu Langu, clearly a diligent student, carefully stored each step of the process of eating a grasshopper demonstrated by the little dormouse. However, as he looked at the grasshoppers in his own bowl, something still felt off.

Moreover, he had such a large bowl, while the little dormouse only roasted one for himself. Gu Langu’s heart softened.

Shu Shuishui had reached the final step of his demonstration. “The last step is to eat it. Open your mouth, ah, stuff it in, and it’s crispy and delicious.”

Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!

Gu Langu: … The sound did indeed seem crispy.

Shu Shuishui’s little mouth moved quickly, devouring the roasted grasshopper without leaving a trace. He looked up and saw Gu Langu still holding the bowl, lost in thought. Shu Shuishui scratched his little chin and took small steps to the side of the bowl, gently touching Gu Langu’s hand. “It’s okay if you can’t learn. I’ll handle it for you, just wait.”

With that said, the little dormouse stood on his tiptoes, leaning over and making an effort to pluck a grasshopper from the bowl. He carefully flicked it with his claw tip, preparing to remove the wings.

Watching for a while, Yu Jin couldn’t hold back and burst into laughter. He laughed so hard that he couldn’t straighten his waist, gasping for breath. “Shuishui… it’s not… it’s not that you didn’t learn, it’s… it’s that we… usually… don’t eat insects… hahaha… especially not raw… hahaha…”

Yu Jin found this scene incredibly funny. The former war god, clumsily holding the bowl in his hands. And in Shu Shuishui’s eyes, Gu Langu was probably a useless guy who couldn’t even eat a meal. He couldn’t catch food that ran away, and he needed Shu Shuishui’s help to keep an eye on it. If he couldn’t catch it while it was alive, Shu Shuishui would demonstrate it once again, and if that still didn’t work, he would take matters into his own paws and feed him directly!

Shu Shuishui made an effort to understand what Yu Jin was saying. His little ears drooped and flattened against his head, and he loosened his grip on the grasshopper, causing the entire dormouse to seemingly shrink by two centimeters. “So that’s how it is, but what should I do with just one grasshopper?”

Two slender fingers reached over and gently rubbed Shu Shuishui’s little head. Gu Langu’s voice came from above. “I prefer the roasted ones. Shuishui, can you teach me?”

The mouse’s ears perked up again, and he stood up straight. “Sure, sure!”

Abandoning the laughter-stricken Yu Jin, Gu Langu held the bowl in one hand and carried the dormouse in the other as they walked to the fire pit.

Seeing this, Yu Jin’s laughter immediately halted. The world seemed surreal, and he couldn’t help but follow along. Just as he approached, he witnessed the scene of a man and a dormouse sitting side by side by the fire pit. The dormouse asked earnestly, “Do you like spicy, sweet, or salty flavors?”

Yu Jin: “…” Gu Langu didn’t have taste buds, okay?

But Gu Langu seriously recalled and replied, “Spicy.”

The little mouse nodded. “I also like spicy! Especially spicy! Do you prefer it medium-rare, medium, or well-done?”

Gu Langu answered, “Crispy is fine.”

The dormouse’s ears twitched. “Great, I also like it crispy!”

If Yu Jin hadn’t seen the grasshoppers with his own eyes, he would have almost believed they were roasting steaks. Of course, steaks weren’t crispy. “Boss! You’re not really going to eat insects, are you?”

Gu Langu turned his head, his tone somewhat dangerous. “What’s it to you? Do you want to eat them too?”

Yu Jin: “…”

Remaining vigilant and observing the situation, Liu Du: “…”

At this moment, Yu Jin felt as if he was being haunted by the question, ‘Do you want to avenge the mosquitoes?’

Yu Jin shook his head frantically, firmly expressing his unwavering belief that he would never eat insects. Gu Langu withdrew his gaze in satisfaction.

As for Shu Shuishui, he spared no expense to indulge his pet’s love for grasshoppers. He took out various treasured seasonings from his own spiritual storage, and his exclusively made chili sauce stood out, a small jar the size of a human thumb. Shu Shuishui hugged it and rubbed against it.

First, he thinly coated the grasshoppers with oil, then added honey, finely chopped scallions, ginger, and garlic, and a bit of salt, vinegar, soy sauce, and oyster sauce. Finally, he applied the chili sauce and sprinkled a fine layer of cumin powder on top.

Of course, the fruits were not neglected either. Shu Shuishui skewered them and placed them on both ends of the roasted grasshoppers. This way, the roasted grasshoppers would have a fruity flavor, and the roasted fruits would have a hint of grasshopper taste. It was a win-win situation.

The gaze of the crowd gradually gathered around the cooked grasshoppers. They seemed to smell the aroma of meat, and with various seasonings accompanying it, the flavor was simply incredible!

At this point, even Yu Jin was feeling a bit unsettled. What was happening? Were they really roasting grasshoppers? The tantalizing aroma made his mouth water.

On Cang Zhan Star, simply being full was considered a luxury. The variety of flavors had almost been selectively forgotten by the people. In a certain sense, they were not even comparable to the tasteless Gu Langu.

Yu Jin eagerly approached, and Gu Langu glanced at him before focusing on the small dormouse’s serious demonstration of how to eat a grasshopper. Step by step, Gu Langu followed along, carefully mimicking the process, until finally, he ate the grasshopper. Although Gu Langu couldn’t taste the flavor, he felt a profound sense of satisfaction within his heart.

Seeing the joyful expression on Gu Langu’s face, Yu Jin regretted his previous refusal. He thought it might be too straightforward, and now it seemed like changing his mind would probably get him killed. Well, forget it. Just smelling the aroma would do. After all, no matter how delicious it was, it was still bugs. Yu Jin consoled himself with that thought.

Soon, one grasshopper after another was roasted. With Gu Langu’s assistance, the speed of roasting increased significantly. By the fire pit, the human and the dormouse happily ate the roasted grasshoppers, while others enjoyed their own dry and hard lunches, complemented by the spicy aroma of the grilled meat.

After lunch, Yu Jin hesitated whether to continue guarding the area or start heading back. As for Gu Langu, with the dormouse by his side, he felt content and wasn’t in a hurry to return to the base. Yu Jin noticed Liu Du, who was inside the energy shield with the simulator, grinding his teeth. Giving up was regrettable, but continuing to guard meant an uncertain end. It was a torment for someone with decision paralysis.

Seeing Yu Jin’s lingering hesitation, Shu Shuishui took out his newly made small tent and prepared to take a nap. Yu Jin’s gaze skipped over and quickly returned to Shu Shuishui’s tent. Why did the fabric look so familiar? Yu Jin leaned in suddenly, startling Shu Shuishui, who quickly hugged his small tent. “There are no grasshoppers in the tent!”

Yu Jin sighed. The gazes of the others also shifted, and they soon discovered the problem. When Shu Shuishui landed earlier, it was evident that he had used two parachutes, which were the same material as the tent. So, where did Shu Shuishui get the parachute to make the tent?

“Shuishui, can I ask you a question?” Yu Jin tried to smile gently.

But in Shu Shuishui’s eyes, Yu Jin resembled the legendary Big Bad Wolf. “No, I want to sleep. Ask me next year.”

Everyone was speechless.

Yu Jin was even more speechless because it wasn’t the first time he had heard the phrase “Ask me next year.” “Just one question, Shuishui. How did you get this tent?”

Shu Shuishui held his rolled-up blanket and casually answered before entering the tent. “I found it. And Gugu, do you like it? I’ll make one for you when I have time. I found a whole nest of them.”

Gu Langu replied, “Sure.”

Shu Shuishui happily crawled into the small tent with a satisfied expression.

“Boss! What are you saying at a time like this? The simulator!” Yu Jin nearly lost his mind. What did he just hear? What did “a whole nest” mean? Could the simulators be referred to as a nest?

Others held their breath and carefully observed the situation. They also wanted to know what “a whole nest” meant, but it was simply impossible. Even a single simulator caused so much trouble, and it was impossible for all the simulators in the world to be concentrated in one place.

Gu Langu’s smile faded slightly. “Even if it’s a whole nest, it still belongs to Shuishui. I have no right to demand anything from him, and neither do you.”

Yu Jin was momentarily stunned and then realized that Gu Langu might be upset. He also realized that he had already taken two simulators from Shu Shuishui, even without Shu Shuishui fully understanding their value. Yu Jin felt a sense of shame. How could he have deceived a dormouse? And not only that, but he was also in such a hurry to continue doing so.

This behavior clearly contradicted Yu Jin’s principles. It was probably because he had never truly regarded Shu Shuishui as an equal. What use did a dormouse have for a simulator? Moreover, it was a dormouse raised by Gu Langu. Such thinking had led him to see requesting a simulator from Shu Shuishui as a matter of course.

Realizing what he had done, Yu Jin turned red from his face to his neck. He wanted to apologize to the little dormouse, but the dormouse had already crawled into the tent, not even showing its tail outside. Yu Jin shamefully retreated to a corner for self-reflection and contemplated how to make amends. His gaze shifted to the small tree branch next to Shu Shuishui’s tent, where four lucky grasshoppers were tied. Maybe he could roast them? Once the dormouse woke up, it could eat them directly.

Yu Jin’s eyes lit up. Since the dormouse liked grasshoppers so much, he could catch some and give them to the dormouse. Shu Shuishui should be happy, right?

So, during that afternoon, Shu Shuishui slept soundly, the people inside the energy shield suffered, and those outside the shield were still in a dilemma. After all, they were the ones who had previously said they would go to Zone B. Gu Langu didn’t have the habit of napping, and Yu Jin ran around the place searching for grasshoppers.

Unfortunately, catching grasshoppers was not as easy as he thought. After a busy afternoon, Yu Jin had nothing to show for his efforts. Maybe there were no grasshoppers around here to begin with, or maybe they had been scared away long ago. Yu Jin could only return to the base with a dejected feeling, realizing that it wasn’t easy for Shu Shuishui to catch so many grasshoppers.

Since catching grasshoppers didn’t work out, Yu Jin had to resort to roasting the grasshoppers. Shu Shuishui tied them outside his tent, meticulously selected as livestock ready for breeding, only to fall into the clutches of Yu Jin.

Shu Shuishui stirred in his sleep, rubbing his little nose a couple of times before abruptly sitting up. He quickly dashed out of the tent, flinging open the curtain to find a pile of leaves arranged in front of his tent. On the leaves were four roasted grasshoppers, neatly lined up. His gaze then shifted to the small tree branch where he had tied the grasshoppers before, only to find it empty.

Shu Shuishui stomped his feet in frustration, actually stomping his feet. He hopped up and down in place.

Yu Jin appeared with a smiling face. “Shuishui, would you like to taste them? They might not be as delicious as the ones you roasted, but my cooking skills are pretty good. I even learned specifically…”

Before Yu Jin could finish his sentence, he saw the dejected little dormouse walking over to the pile of leaves. This expression didn’t look like happiness at all.

Holding the leaves and looking at the four grasshoppers on top, Shu Shuishui raised his head and burst into tears. “My grasshoppers! My livestock! I can’t raise them anymore. Cooked ones can’t reproduce, and Gu Langu won’t be able to eat them in the future. I won’t be able to find four more handsome grasshoppers in the entire mountain range.”

Yu Jin turned to stone for a moment, then panicked. What?! Livestock? Reproduce? It seemed like he had heard some incredibly important information. He slowly raised his head and indeed saw the dangerously intense gaze of Gu Langu.

Yu Jin “…” He felt a chill run down his spine.

I’ll pray for your soul, Yu Jin… ~.~