"You've come at the perfect time, I need your help!"
Jiang Fan said without looking up, busy with the task at hand.
Zhou Niannian's heart fluttered. This dense straight man usually rejected her help with disdain.
Today, he was so proactive. Had he finally realized her worth?
Indeed, her charm was irresistible, capable of making even an ancient iron tree bloom.
Thinking of this, Zhou Niannian couldn't help but blush, a smile blooming on her face. She took a deep breath and trotted towards Jiang Fan.
"Don't move, just stand there."
As Zhou Niannian was about to reach him, Jiang Fan suddenly spoke.
"Bend over at a seventy-five-degree angle and close your eyes."
Zhou Niannian froze, utterly bewildered by Jiang Fan's intentions. Nevertheless, she followed his instructions.
Meanwhile, various speculations swirled in Zhou Niannian's mind.
This steel-plated straight man asked her to close her eyes. Could it be that when she opened them, he would surprise her?
Ever since she realized her feelings for Jiang Fan, being alone with him made her heart race like a startled deer.
With her eyes closed, Zhou Niannian could only hear Jiang Fan pacing around her, constantly inserting something into the ground.
Then, a violent gust of wind swept past her ears, accompanied by the sound of wood cracking.
A few minutes later, Jiang Fan gently patted Zhou Niannian's head, dusting off some debris from her hair.
"You can open your eyes now."
What the heck? Zhou Niannian mumbled, opening her eyes. Had all that been for a pat on the head? What was the point?
The moment she opened her eyes, Zhou Niannian saw a dense cluster of wooden stakes around her, each stake precisely at the height she was when she bent over.
Wood shavings were still falling from her hair.
Being as sharp as she was, Zhou Niannian immediately figured it out: Jiang Fan had used her as a measuring tool!
The sound of wind she heard was the axe slicing past her head.
The pat on the head was to brush off sawdust.
Thinking about the axe that had grazed her head, Zhou Niannian shivered uncontrollably.
I thought you were my crush, but you were trying to harm me?!!!
"Jiang Fan! I'm never speaking to you again!"
Zhou Niannian clenched her fists and roared, then stomped away from the wooden stakes.
Jiang Fan, however, was scratching his head. Wasn't she the one who had eagerly offered to help?
Women's emotions were indeed more unpredictable than the weather.
He then proceeded to reinforce each stake, quickly enclosing a three-square-meter area with a one-and-a-half-meter high fence around the campsite.
He then released a pig-rabbit and tossed it into the enclosure.
The pig-rabbit leaped with all its might, soaring over two meters high, attempting to escape.
Jiang Fan reacted swiftly, grabbing it and tying it up again.
As expected of a creature with the appearance of both a rabbit and a pig, its jumping ability was astonishing. It seemed a one-and-a-half-meter fence wouldn't hold these pig-rabbits.
This didn't stump Jiang Fan. He stacked two stakes on top of each other, binding them tightly with vines, instantly increasing the fence's height to three meters.
Next, Jiang Fan threw all the pig-rabbits into the enclosure.
One by one, the pig-rabbits leaped forcefully, crashing against the fence, trying to break it down.
However, despite their amazing leaping ability, their impact force was not significant. After several attempts, the fence remained as steady as a rock.
Jiang Fan clapped his hands in satisfaction. His task was complete.
"Jiang Fan, you're amazing. It looks like a small zoo."
Zhou Niannian pouted and fumed for a while, but she couldn't resist. She walked over, still annoyed, but her eyes lit up with surprise at the sight of the fence. She peered at it from the outside.
She even picked up some grass and fed the pig-rabbits through the gaps in the fence.
Seeing the grass, the pig-rabbits swarmed towards her, some even sticking out their tongues to lick her hand.
"Mmm... so cute~"
Zhou Niannian closed her eyes contentedly. With a flourish, she tied a bow with a vine from the fence and gave Jiang Fan a radiant smile.
"Thank you for your hard work."
Her smile was as gentle as the warm sun, and Jiang Fan couldn't help but feel a stir in his heart.
A fragrant aroma wafted over, and Zhou Niannian couldn't help but sniff the air, looking like a greedy cat.
"Let's eat."
Jiang Fan beckoned, moving towards Zhou Niannian. However, Zhou Niannian had already scampered off to find Dai Xiaomei.
Seeing the bow Zhou Niannian had tied, Jiang Fan's playful spirit was ignited, and he tied an identical one beside it.
In the live stream, a wave of jealousy immediately arose.
"These two bows, does it signify everlasting love?"
"It seems they're planning to stay here long-term, preparing for the future."
"I'm afraid they'll multiply like the pig-rabbits, generation after generation."
"That head-pat earlier, I was so envious!"
"Was that a head-pat? It felt like it was killing me, a single dog, boohoo!"
A horde of lonely souls wailed, rolling around frantically in the live stream chat.
Meanwhile, in the jungle, a bonfire had been lit, with two iron forks propped up over it.
The plump pig-rabbits had already been disemboweled, de-haired, and skewered onto the forks.
Yao's technique was professional, handling them with great care.
He handed the cleaned pig-rabbits to Jiang Fan. As Jiang Fan rotated the two branches, a fragrant aroma filled the air.
Two golden, glistening roasted pig-rabbits slowly turned on the natural charcoal fire.
Rich oil dripped from their skin, accompanied by a constant sizzling sound.
As the pig-rabbit meat gradually cooked, its aroma permeated the air, emitting an irresistible allure.
It was like an invisible, enticing hand caressing everyone's noses.
Jiang Fan then brushed his homemade secret sauce onto the pig-rabbit meat.
The aroma of oil was rich, yet there was no acrid smoke to sting the nostrils.
The dancing charcoal flames swayed like a dancer's hips, and the enticing, mellow fragrance wafted over repeatedly. The charm of the exquisite food was irresistible.
As the saying goes, "Among birds, none are as flavorful as the partridge; among beasts, none are as delicious as the rabbit," referring to the tenderness of rabbit meat.
These pig-rabbits were the crème de la crème of rabbit meat, surpassing even ordinary wild rabbit in flavor.
Zhou Niannian's mouth began to water.
"I'm... I'm starving."
"I can't wait!"
Dai Xiaomei, ignoring the heat, immediately cut off a slice of pig-rabbit meat with a small knife and put it in her mouth.
The moment the meat touched her tongue, Dai Xiaomei felt the fragrance flood her senses, a refreshing aroma that reached deep within her.
"It's... it's so delicious."
Dai Xiaomei's eyes glazed over, lost in ecstasy.
Jiang Fan also began to prepare his portion, cutting off pieces from the back, ribs, and legs of the pig-rabbits and skewering them onto wooden sticks.
Zhou Niannian stared, her big, watery eyes fixed on the meat in Jiang Fan's hand.
Jiang Fan smiled and, in a gentlemanly manner, offered the skewers to Zhou Niannian.
Zhou Niannian eagerly put the meat into her mouth, and in that instant, she felt transported to paradise.
The leg meat was thick and savory, the back meat thin and crispy, and the ribs had a unique crispness and chewiness.
As soon as it entered her mouth, it was like Zhu Bajie eating the Ginseng Fruit – she couldn't stop.
Zhou Niannian devoured the meat in two greedy bites, still licking her fingers reluctantly, almost as if she were going to eat them too.
Even for a straight man, Jiang Fan had basic etiquette. He politely skewered several more pieces of meat for Zhou Niannian.
Yao, following suit, skewered meat for Dai Xiaomei.
The two foodies, with oil around their mouths, finally managed to calm down.
Jiang Fan and Yao exchanged glances, finally releasing their long-restrained desires, and pounced on the remaining roasted meat with gusto.