Chapter 6: Hatred in the Heart

Wen Nanxi asked softly, "Do you need more?"

If she did, he would continue catching fish.

Su Muyao shook her head. "No, this is enough."

However, she had discovered many good things here by the river. When she needed food in the future, she could come back here to find it.

Su Muyao put all the food into her spatial dimension, and Wen Nanxi carried her home.

By the time they returned to the stone house, the sun had not yet set. Su Muyao estimated the time by looking at the sun; it was roughly around four in the afternoon.

At this time, Xiao Jihan and Hua Linye had not yet returned.

Wen Nanxi took the initiative to explain, "Xiao Jihan and Hua Linye went into the mountains to hunt. They might have gone quite far; they should be back by nightfall."

Su Muyao said indifferently, "It's fine. They can come back whenever they want."

In truth, Su Muyao also wanted to say that it wouldn't matter if they didn't come back at all. If these two disappeared just like the other two beast husbands, it would be perfectly fine; the food she had obtained today was enough for her and Wen Nanxi.

Wen Nanxi watched Su Muyao's expression closely and found that she didn't seem to care. If it were before, she definitely would have cursed a few times.

Wen Nanxi said softly, "Mistress, you've been tired all day. Go rest first, and I will cook."

Su Muyao spoke up, "You don't know how to prepare this food. I'll do it."

Su Muyyao had originally planned to make steamed fish, but she changed her mind. A single fish weighed five or six catties, and some were over ten catties, making them perfect for making fish noodles. Since there was no flour, she couldn't make traditional fish cakes, but she could make pure fish noodles using only the meat. She looked at the catch and saw several fish suitable for this.

Wen Nanxi was curious about what she intended to do. Back in the Beast Emperor City, he had eaten all kinds of delicacies, but he had never heard of sweet potatoes, sweet potato leaves, or things like ginger and scallions.

After washing his hands, Wen Nanxi stepped forward to help. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

Su Muyao said, "Help me wash the mushrooms, wood ear fungus, sweet potatoes, and sweet potato leaves!"

"Alright."

Wen Nanxi took a wooden basin to the courtyard to wash the items. Su Muyao also took a wooden basin, drew water from the water vat, and began processing and cleaning the fish one by one. Next, she used a bone knife to fillet them from the middle, making it easy to remove the head and bones in one piece. The head and bones could be used to make soup, while the meat could be used for the pure fish noodles. The most important step was using the knife to scrape the meat into a fine paste.

Su Muyao's knife skills were very fast.

The spatial system said, "I get to see the Host cooking again! The food the Host makes smells so, so good. It's a pity the System can't eat it."

"You're just a system. Can you even smell aromas?"

The spatial system replied, "Since I follow the Host, I have developed emotions. The Host is exceptionally, exceptionally good. I like the Host the most!"

Hearing the system's words, Su Muyao's heart softened. "I wish I could let you taste my cooking too."

Unfortunately, the spatial system had no physical form.

The system said, "But being able to smell the aroma makes me feel wonderful regardless."

Just then, a sound came from outside the door. It was Hua Linye returning. He carried a wild boar directly on his shoulders.

Seeing the items in the courtyard, Hua Linye's magnificent eyes instantly darkened. "Did you bring these back?"

"Your injuries are so severe, yet she doesn't even let you rest? She makes you go find food?"

Wen Nanxi said, "It wasn't like that. This is all food gathered by Mistress."

The corners of Hua Linye's mouth curled into a faint, mocking arc. His fox-like eyes took on a cold hue as he said, "Wen Nanxi, don't you loathe her too?"

"Don't start speaking up for her just because she used her ability to heal you once!"

"No male beast is willing to enter a kitchen, let alone our Mistress!"

Hua Linye's tone grew heavier as he spoke. "And don't forget what she did to you before. Who knows what tricks she's playing this time."

Hua Linye did not believe that Su Muyyao would suddenly become a good person. In the past, to get them, Su Muyyao had used every means necessary, even pretending to have amnesia or pretending to have changed for the better just to make them lower their guard and trust her. In the end, she had been even more excessive than before.

Wen Nanxi's movements while washing the sweet potatoes paused. He said intently, "Hua Linye, Mistress is in the kitchen. If you don't believe me, go take a look."

Hearing this, Hua Linye finally looked toward the kitchen. There, he saw Su Muyyao busy working inside.

For a moment, Hua Linye thought he was hallucinating. At home, Su Muyyao had always been someone who expected to be served—to have clothes brought to her and food placed before her—making them do everything. Of course, as beast husbands, it was their duty to take care of their mistress, but Su Muyyao had never treated them as husbands; she had treated them as slaves. She had nearly caused them to die several times, subjecting them to physical and mental torment. Because of that, they could never treat her as a true mistress. They loathed her in their hearts and only wanted to stay away from her.

Hua Linye possessed elemental abilities and excellent vision; he could even see that her knife work was incredibly fast. She was actually filleting fish.

"What is she doing?"

"Cooking!"

"Eating fish? Doesn't she loathe that fishy smell the most? Doesn't she complain about the bones?"

Su Muyyao had been extremely demanding regarding food. Even now, having been exiled here, she would still find fault with the prey they worked hard to hunt. Verbal abuse and whipping were considered light punishments; when she went mad, she would even use knives. She refused to eat certain wild meats if they had a gamey or fishy smell, only being somewhat less picky with wild boar.

Knowing the resentment in Hua Linye's heart, Wen Nanxi said softly, "When you weren't here this morning, she made breakfast too. She can even make delicious soup out of those sour red fruits."

Hua Linye clearly did not believe him. He silently picked up a bone knife to skin the boar and cut the meat.

Hearing the noise, Su Muyyao looked toward the courtyard and saw Hua Linye working in silence. She remembered that in her previous life, she had once gone mad at Hua Linye; while he was heavily injured and his true form was exposed, she had wanted to skin him to make a fox-fur pelt. His fiery red fox fur was indeed noble, brilliant, and beautiful.

Thinking of these memories gave Su Muyyao a headache. Without a doubt, if she were to write them divorce papers now, they would turn around and kill her the moment their relationship was severed.

Su Muyyao's eyes lit up as she looked at the wild boar. The skin could be used to make pig skin jelly, and the fat could be rendered into oil. Lard could also be used for oil; although the yield wasn't as high as pure fat, rendering it would produce crispy pork cracklings that could be eaten as a snack.

She knew that in this beast world, the appetites of the beastmen were exceptionally large, especially for those with abilities like Wen Nanxi. Yet, they often went hungry.

After Hua Linye finished cutting the boar meat and arranged it in wooden basins, he saw that the water in the vat was running low. He picked up two wooden buckets to fetch more water. Regardless, once they were home, they couldn't afford to be idle.

As if thinking of something, Hua Linye's expression turned numb, and a feeling of suffocation gripped his chest.

When Xiao Jihan returned, he happened to see Hua Linye carrying the water buckets. Seeing his strange expression, he asked, "What's wrong? Did she do something to you again?"

Hua Linye said with a dark expression, "Nothing. She's in the kitchen cooking. When has she ever gone into a kitchen to cook?"

"She has never stepped foot in a kitchen since she was a child; she doesn't know how to cook at all."

"And yet, suddenly, she's cooking."

"Do you think she's planning to drug and poison us this time?"