Chapter 47
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Yuan Li never expected that with a casual push of the door, he would be greeted by the sight of Chu Hechao naked.
Years of battle and exposure to the elements had sculpted Chu Hechao’s physique, filled with strength. The water droplets on his body had not been wiped away, sliding down his well-defined abs and disappearing into the V-line.
Yuan Li’s gaze involuntarily followed the downward path for a moment.
Nestled in the lush forest was a sleeping giant bird. Yuan Li quickly averted his eyes, astonished. With just one glance, he could tell how intense Chu Hechao’s desire was.
In fact, this wasn’t the first time Yuan Li had seen Chu Hechao bathing. During the peak of summer, he had encountered Chu Hechao and others bathing at night. However, it was dark at the time, and Yuan Li knew better than to be impolite, so he only glimpsed at the scars on Chu Hechao’s body.
Now, there was still a hint of twilight outside, and candles were lit in the room. Yuan Li could clearly see everything.
Jealousy? Not really. Envy? Yuan Li thought he was doing fine himself. The atmosphere felt a bit awkward, so he deliberately spoke in a casual and indifferent tone, “General, taking a bath?”
Chu Hechao: “…”
The man’s expression subtly changed.
Under Yuan Li’s gaze, he instinctively used the towel to cover his waist.
After covering himself, Chu Hechao realized what he had done and his face turned pale with anger. He almost wanted to tear off the towel.
Why did he cover himself up?
This was not something he would normally do.
Yuan Li felt a bit embarrassed by his reaction. He cleared his throat and averted his gaze. “I’ll wait outside for you, General.”
With his eyes cast down, as if he didn’t dare to look at Chu Hechao, Yuan Li was about to close the door and leave.
Yuan Li was about to leave, and Chu Hechao should have felt relieved. However, seeing Yuan Li’s demeanor, an inexplicable sense of stifling pressure weighed on Chu Hechao’s heart. His brows furrowed, and before he could think, he blurted out, “What, you’re leaving after taking a look?”
Yuan Li was taken aback. In that moment of hesitation, the man near the bathtub walked towards him with a stern face and forcefully pulled him into the room, slamming the door shut. By the time Yuan Li regained his senses, he found himself backed against the wooden door, trapped inside.
He didn’t know what Chu Hechao intended to do, but his peripheral vision accidentally caught sight of Chu Hechao’s hands.
It was the first time Yuan Li had seen Chu Hechao’s hands without the leather gloves. His gaze paused.
Chu Hechao’s palms were large, with extraordinarily slender and distinct fingers, each one powerful and sturdy. If one were to judge solely based on the bones, this would undoubtedly be a pair of handsome hands that exuded strength and masculinity when wielding a knife or holding a gun.
However, in the center of those hands, there was a hideous burn that disfigured the skin.
The burn extended from the palm to the sides of the hand and even spread over the five fingers of the right hand. The burn marks had healed, leaving behind deep red scars.
And it turned them into a pair of very ugly hands.
So ugly that if they were exposed, they might even frighten children to tears.
Yuan Li lowered his gaze.
Was this the reason why Chu Hechao never showed his hands?
During the confrontation with Dadan, Dadan had mentioned the burns on Chu Hechao’s hands. But at that time, Yuan Li and Chu Hechao were maintaining a polite and courteous demeanor towards each other. Yuan Li believed that if Chu Hechao didn’t voluntarily mention the burn on his hands, it would be impolite for him to inquire about it, so he had never paid much attention to Chu Hechao’s hands.
He pursed his lips.
However, Chu Hechao didn’t seem to care about his hands at all. He only noticed Yuan Li’s expression and suddenly sneered, “What? Are you so devoted to guarding your purity for Chu Mingfeng that you’re afraid to even look at other men?”
Yuan Li raised his head in confusion, “What?”
Chu Hechao looked down at him condescendingly, then suddenly grabbed Yuan Li’s hand and placed it on his own chest. His lips curled, but there was no trace of a smile in his eyes, “Then, if I made you touch another man, would you feel like your hands are instantly dirty?”
Yuan Li’s eyes were filled with bewilderment.
What did Chu Hechao mean by this?
Yuan Li tried to pull his hand back, but he couldn’t move it at all. It was forcefully pressed against the man’s chest.
The more he struggled, the angrier the man became.
Their breathing rose and fell, and Chu Hechao’s chest heaved along with it. Having just finished bathing, his skin was still scorching hot, and that fiery temperature was transmitted to Yuan Li’s palm.
The touch was quite pleasant, with firm and elastic muscles. Even though he had agreed not to feel envious, Yuan Li couldn’t help himself. However, after a while in this position, Yuan Li began to feel somewhat awkward. “Chu Hechao, what do you want to say?”
Chu Hechao lifted his eyelids and looked at Yuan Li with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “You’re unwilling to touch another man? Afraid that Chu Mingfeng will come out of the coffin and eat you?”
Yuan Li replied, “…It’s not that extreme.”
Furrowing his brow, Yuan Li continued, “But why should I touch you?”
Chu Hechao burst into laughter, gripping Yuan Li’s hand tightly and giving him a cold gaze. “Then, my dear, who else would you like to touch?”
“I don’t want to touch anyone,” Yuan Li’s lips twitched, his gaze meeting Chu Hechao’s with clear determination. “Can’t I just not touch anyone?”
That sentence seemed to strike a nerve with Chu Hechao. Veins popped on his forehead as he laughed in a low and urgent voice. “How many times have you even seen Chu Mingfeng? Just because of him, you dare not look at or touch any other man?”
Yuan Li’s eyelid twitched. “That’s not true.”
Chu Hechao sneered, releasing Yuan Li’s hand. Yuan Li turned around, intending to leave, but Chu Hechao raised his hand to block the doorframe, trapping Yuan Li within his arms.
Yuan Li’s face had turned red from the heat inside the room, his eyes watery as if they had been washed. Helplessly, he looked at Chu Hechao and asked, “What’s wrong with you now?”
Chu Hechao had an expressionless face, emanating a profound aura of authority. He lowered his voice and commanded, “Touch me.”
Yuan Li looked at the man’s chest and abdominal muscles, feeling both envious and jealous, and reluctantly said, “I don’t want to touch.”
Chu Hechao’s voice grew lower. “Hurry up!”
Impatiently, Yuan Li replied, “Once I touch you, will you let me leave?”
Yuan Li had no choice but to raise his hand and lightly touch Chu Hechao. It was just a light touch, but it managed to quell much of Chu Hechao’s anger.
Chu Hechao glanced at his hand and mockingly asked, “Is your hand dirty now?”
Yuan Li shook his head. “You just took a bath, so you’re clean.”
Finally, Chu Hechao smiled with a hint of satisfaction. He straightened up, retracting his hand, and emphasized, “Remember, just because you’re preserving yourself for Chu Mingfeng doesn’t mean you can’t look at or touch other men. Do you understand?”
Yuan Li nodded absentmindedly, eager to turn around and leave.
Chu Hechao’s smile disappeared, and he raised his voice slightly. “Do you understand?”
Yuan Li sighed, feeling exhausted. “I understand, really, I understand.”
Chu Hechao scrutinized him and, seeing that he had truly taken it to heart, nodded. “Alright, go.”
Yuan Li walked out, feeling a sense of relief.
In his heart, Yuan Li repeated to himself: For the potatoes, for the potatoes, for the potatoes…
Everything was for the potatoes.
He maintained a smile as he left.
Yuan Li didn’t have to wait long in the courtyard before Chu Hechao came out dressed and led him back into the room. “What brings you here so late, Yuan Li?”
“General, I heard that Lord Yuan sent a batch of spoils from Liaoxi County,” Yuan Li perked up. “I’m extremely curious about these spoils and wondered if I could take a look?”
Chu Hechao was usually accommodating when he was in a good mood. He immediately had someone light a torch and took Yuan Li to see the collection of spoils arranged in the courtyard.
There were hundreds of crates filled with spoils, and at the sight of them, Yuan Li rubbed his temples in a headache, hardly able to believe it. “General, are all these things sent by Lord Yuan?”
Chu Hechao nodded. “That’s right.”
With so many things, how long would it take Yuan Li to find a potato among them?
Yuan Li let out a sigh and forced a bitter smile. “General, did Lord Yuan send anything particularly rare?”
Chu Hechao pondered for a moment and had a few crates opened. “They did mention finding some things we haven’t seen before. Everything is here. Take a look and see if there’s anything you want.”
Yuan Li smiled with excitement and quickly started rummaging through the crates. “Thank you, General.”
Chu Hechao watched him flipping through the items and lifted his robe, squatting down beside Yuan Li. He placed the torch on one of the crates to provide light and asked, “What are you looking for?”
Yuan Li turned around and gestured with both hands, indicating the size of a potato. He looked at Chu Hechao with eager anticipation. “I’m looking for a crop about this size. It has a yellow skin and yellow flesh, with a bumpy surface. There might even be some mud on it. Have you ever seen it, General?”
Chu Hechao replied, “No.”
The brightness in Yuan Li’s eyes dimmed slightly, but he still smiled and said, “Could the General help me find it?”
Chu Hechao rose slowly, indifferent. “No.”
Yuan Li remained silent, turned away, and continued searching for the potato, ignoring Chu Hechao. As he watched Yuan Li’s figure, Chu Hechao clicked his tongue and also squatted down, rummaging through the other crates. After a while, Chu Hechao suddenly said, “Is this what you’re looking for?”
Yuan Li turned around and saw Chu Hechao crouching next to a wooden crate. The crate had been opened, revealing a pile of oval-shaped crops.
Yuan Li immediately became excited, quickly stood up, and walked over with an eager stride. Before he even reached it, he was already certain that this was the potato he was looking for. “Yes, this is exactly what I’m looking for!”
Yuan Li eagerly picked up one of the potatoes to examine it.
Yuanzhou is quite dry, and these potatoes are still covered in patches of mud, which helps preserve them well.
Yuan Li held the potato in his hand and began to reminisce about various delicious dishes, such as stewed meat with potatoes, spicy shredded potatoes, and potato pancakes. He couldn’t help but salivate as he stared at the crate of potatoes, treating them like gold. “General, can I have this crate of potatoes?”
Chu Hechao casually replied, “Take it, it’s yours.”
However, seeing something that excited Yuan Li so much also piqued Chu Hechao’s curiosity. He bent down, took a potato from the crate, and tossed it in his hand with precision, hitting the point. “You said this is a crop, so it’s edible?”
“It’s edible,” Yuan Li nodded confidently, “and there are various ways to eat it. It can be as satisfying as corn.”
“Oh?” Chu Hechao looked at the unimpressive thing in his hand with a different expression. “How do you eat it?”
Yuan Li smiled at Chu Hechao, his eyes narrowed. “It’s incredibly convenient to eat. Just wash it clean like a fruit, and you can eat it.”
Chu Hechao glanced at him and actually washed away the mud spots with water, then presented the potato to Yuan Li. “Go ahead, eat.”
Yuan Li looked sincerely at Chu Hechao. “But I want to see General eat it first.”
Chu Hechao sneered, whispering, “Are you trying to trick me, Yuan Li?”
Yuan Li changed the subject and, in a good mood today, picked up two potatoes and led Chu Hechao to the kitchen. “I’ll show you the true way to eat potatoes.”
Since there was no iron pot in the kitchen, Yuan Li used a clay pot as a substitute. As the available pork was too gamy and there was no castrated pork to be found, Yuan Li had someone kill a chicken and used chicken meat as a substitute to make a pot of stewed chicken with potatoes.
Yuan Li rinsed the chicken meat thoroughly and rendered the fat from it. He added Sichuan peppercorns, green onions, and garlic, and a strong aroma wafted up. The chicken meat was then added to the clay pot, and water was poured in to simmer the soup.
In an era without iron pots, soup and roasting were the only cooking methods. Yuan Li hadn’t paid much attention to his culinary desires before, and even after acquiring an iron pot, he hadn’t thought about creating one specifically for his own use. But now, smelling the aroma in the air, he truly missed the taste of stir-fried dishes.
Chu Hechao, standing by the side, waited patiently, looking extremely eager for the taste of the potatoes. Yuan Li felt it was dangerous to think about his appetite and said, “General, have you eaten your meal tonight?”
Chu Hechao replied, “I have.”
Yuan Li breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that two potatoes and a chicken would be enough.
The clay pot simmered and bubbled, and the aroma filled the air through the cracks. Chu Hechao thought that the flavor might be strange because Yuan Li had added many medicinal herbs as seasonings, but to his surprise, the more it cooked, the more fragrant it became.
Halfway through, Yuan Li washed the potatoes and cut them into pieces, adding them to the pot. Chu Hechao pondered for a moment and said, “So, they are meant to be cut and eaten.”
Yuan Li raised a finger and shook it, saying casually, “No, no, General. Potatoes can be enjoyed in more ways than just cutting them open.”
This potato and chicken stew had been simmering for half an hour. After the half hour passed, Yuan Li lifted the lid of the clay pot and saw that the broth had become exceptionally thick. The potatoes had absorbed the broth, becoming plump and juicy, while the meat pieces were tender and succulent, emanating a rich aroma.
Yuan Li glanced at the presentation and was satisfied. “Not bad.”
He looked around but couldn’t find a cloth, so he was about to use his sleeve to lift the clay pot. Chu Hechao was startled by his reckless action and quickly pulled Yuan Li back. With a stern face, he said, “Move aside. Do you want to scald your hand?”
Saying that, he placed the clay pot on the table himself.
Yuan Li frowned and said seriously, “Chu Hechao, can you stop being so harsh with me all the time?”
Chu Hechao was bewildered. “When did I ever treat you harshly?”
Yuan Li took a deep breath. “Never mind.”
They sat down at the table, and Yuan Li took the first bite of the potato. It was soft and hot, causing him to squint his eyes in comfort. “Delicious.”
Chu Hechao also took a bite and then quietly increased the speed of his chopsticks.
Soon, the pot of potato and chicken stew was consumed by the two of them. Chu Hechao was still not satisfied and developed a liking for this thing called a potato. “What is this thing called?”
Yuan Li burped and said, “Potato.”
Chu Hechao nodded. “I’ll send someone to inform Yuan Congyun and the others to bring back more potatoes.”
He was curious to ask Yuan Li how he knew it was called a potato and how he knew how to eat it. But Yuan Li always had many secrets, and Chu Hechao couldn’t get the answers out of him.
Anyway, as long as it posed no harm to them, there was no need to pry.
Yuan Li agreed, “Good.”
But he felt that they probably wouldn’t be able to find any more. This was a reward from the system’s task, and it wasn’t something they could have at any time. Having this box of potatoes already exceeded Yuan Li’s expectations.
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Thanks for the update
nothing beats potatos