Volume 2: Winter’s End
In the quiet villa, only the occasional crackling of flames remained. In the warm glow of the fire, Ye Qian sat expressionless to the side, motionless except for the occasional turn of the grilled fish in his hand.
Not far away, Shu Xun was nestled comfortably in gloves, sleeping soundly. The cotton gloves had a layer of fluff, providing perfect insulation. At least by the bonfire, Shu Xun felt no trace of cold. The little dumpling would occasionally roll over, smelling the increasingly rich aroma of grilled fish, smacking his lips, seemingly enjoying a feast in his dreams.
Finally, tempted by the rich aroma, Shu Xun opened his eyes from slumber. Yawning, he emerged from the gloves, put on his little clothes, took a few steps with a patter, walked to Ye Qian’s side, sat obediently, and waited for the fish to be cooked.
“What kind of fish is this?” In the continued quiet, Shu Xun realized that this was actually a good opportunity to enhance team camaraderie, so prompted by the fragrance, he blurted out.
“Golden Edged Redfish,” Ye Qian replied without moving a muscle.
Shu Xun was slightly surprised. Unexpectedly, Ye Qian really stated the name of the fish. Suddenly, Shu Xun felt that Ye Qian was indeed a top-tier player.
Although Ye Qian didn’t look at the little dumpling, he seemed to sense what Shu Xun was thinking. While controlling the grilled fish, he reached into his pocket and quickly pulled out a thick book, placing it in front of Shu Xun. “Found this in a villa.”
As Ye Qian released his hand, the book returned to its normal size. Shu Xun looked and found it was a recipe book. The book was thick, beautifully made, and adorned with various dish illustrations, instantly capturing Shu Xun’s attention.
The recipe book was categorized by ingredients, with several pages devoted to introducing various fish and their preparation methods. Among them, the Golden Edged Redfish they were currently grilling was a specialty delicacy of Micro Lake. Shu Xun stood on the recipe book, carefully browsing through various mouth-watering dishes. Occasionally, he ran to the edge of the book, lifted the sturdy pages, and turned to the next one.
In the live broadcast:
“The first time I feel like reading a book is a physically demanding activity.”
“After reading the recipe, the little dumpling seems even hungrier, tired!”
“I’m only worried that when Shu Shu flips through the book, the pages might hit the bottom.”
“Watching the little dumpling read, why do I feel a sense of busyness…”
As Shu Xun, busy reading, turned another page, suddenly his eyes lit up. Pattering over to the page, he pointed to a special grilled fish recipe. “This fish should be delicious!”
Ye Qian turned to look, discovering it was a silver-white Silver Daggerfish, marked as a specialty of Si Mi City. “I don’t know,” Ye Qian answered truthfully. These fish were creatures from the Frigid Ice Star System, and Ye Qian did not know their taste.
Shu Xun listened attentively and said, “There’s a kind of fish that looks just like it, but much smaller, only this big.” As he spoke, he extended his little arms and indicated a distance. “But it tastes exceptionally good. After grilling, even the bones become crispy.”
[TL’s note: Please tell me it’s not the fish from the aquarium (;¬_¬)]
Ye Qian paused for a moment. “Silver Lamp Ornamental Fish? Indeed, it looks very similar. I have them at home; I didn’t know they were edible.”
Shu Xun thought about the small silver fish it caught in the fish tank for the first time, recalling the taste. Nodding its little head confidently, it said, “Yes! It tastes really good!”
[TL’s note: It really is (╥﹏╥) General, your aquarium is in danger (ᗒᗜᗕ)՛̵̖…]
In contemplation, Ye Qian mentioned that in terms of fish, he didn’t know if there were new species of fish food in this world. Considering his love for keeping fish, Ye Qian had already incorporated the collection of fish food into the game’s progress.
Shu Xun continued flipping through the recipe book. It was evident that the culinary development in this world was impressive, with a rich variety of species. Shu Xun could always find one or two species that resembled those he had eaten before. Whenever this happened, he would extend his chubby paw to show Ye Qian.
Although Ye Qian didn’t speak much, he always answered when asked. After a discussion, Ye Qian realized that Shu Xun, the teammate he had chosen at first sight, had a taste for fish that was surprisingly similar to his own preference for raising fish. It was rare to find such like-mindedness. (Lao Xuan: Hahaha!)
Thus, the tacit understanding between teammates, cultivated inadvertently, began with fish.
In the live broadcast:
“I bet God Ye is about to embark on another journey to collect fish food!”
“Shu Shu seems to love eating fish, and it sounds like they are all ornamental fish, laughing till tears!”
“Mainly because of the size of the little dumpling, eating ornamental fish is just right!”
“I’m getting a fish tank! Little dumpling, come quickly!”
“I remember every time Ye Qian plays a game, whenever he discovers new fish species and fish food, he chooses to bring them back to reality. I wonder what Ye Qian’s fish tank looks like?”
“I remember too! God Ye’s fish tank must be priceless, with even rare and extinct species. Let’s team up to steal the fish tank!”
In the villa, when Shu Xun reached about a third of the hefty recipe book, the grilled fish was finally ready. Seeing this, Shu Xun immediately ran to the side of the book, closed the recipe, then went to his small backpack, searched for a while, and pulled out two white porcelain plates used for the last meal. Carrying the plates, he trotted back to the bonfire, arranged the plates, and sat down! This series of actions was completed in one go, agile and nearly perfect. Just as Ye Qian finished cutting the grilled fish, Shu Xun had perfectly arranged the plates.
Ye Qian placed a piece of fish belly on Shu Xun’s plate. Shu Xun looked at his own plate, then glanced at Ye Qian’s plate.
Ye Qian expressionlessly spoke, “Not enough to eat?”
Shu Xun pointed to the fishtail in Ye Qian’s plate. “I want to eat the fishtail.”
After a moment of silence, Ye Qian said, “It has many bones.”
Shu Xun patted his little chest. “Can handle it!”
So, the plates of the two were exchanged. When Shu Xun started eating the fish, Ye Qian finally understood what “can handle it” meant, as Shu Xun’s mouth was not hindered by fish bones.
“Hahaha! God Ye must be bewildered, it’s really ‘can’t handle it’!”
“Because it simply can’t go in. It turns out the little dumpling loves eating fish tails.”
“Every time I see the little dumpling sitting on the plate eating, I inexplicably feel that my appetite improves. What’s going on?”
A fishtail successfully made Shu Xun overeat again. In the plate remained neat fish bones and a small pile of fish bones, clean without a trace of meat. Ye Qian had long noticed Shu Xun’s habit of eating everything cleanly, without any waste. Regarding this, Ye Qian expressed that this habit was quite good. (A certain ornamental fish without remains: “…”)
After lunch, neither of them felt sleepy. The world outside the window was invisible to sunlight but still bright. Ye Qian got up to check the ventilation facilities to prevent the vents from being frozen by winter ice. The villa they chose was the first one Shu Xun searched for, and it was the only one that remained tidy. The furniture and decorations inside the villa were untouched by both, as Ye Qian was someone who adapted to circumstances, and Shu Xun… only needed a pair of gloves.
Shu Xun, with nothing else to do, was about to continue perusing the recipe when it suddenly occurred to him about the black notebook he found on the frozen body. It was the perfect time to read it, perhaps to discover some clues. After all, that was the first indigenous body, and there must be some clues on it.
Finding a comfortable spot, Shu Xun took out the black notebook from his backpack. After the book returned to its normal size, Shu Xun began to carefully examine the A4-sized black notebook. It was much smaller than the recipe book, reaching only to Shu Xun’s waist, making it much simpler to flip through.
The surface of the black notebook depicted smooth dark gold patterns, giving it a classical look. Opening the hardcover, Shu Xun saw a name written in the bottom right corner of the blank pages: Qing Mo.
The handwriting was very fluent, elegant, and natural, making it pleasant to look at. Shu Xun nodded his little head; indeed, it seemed like the name of the man starving outside. Qing Mo should be his name.
Continuing to flip through, Shu Xun discovered that the black notebook was a journal, documenting various things in a disorderly manner, seemingly depending on the owner’s mood. Moreover, the period was significant; Shu Xun skimmed through it, finding a difference of about six years between the first and last pages.
The initial part of the journal documented expenditures and daily expenses, along with what looked like a life directory. It wasn’t until more than ten pages later that actual events began to be recorded.
The owner of the journal seemed to have found a new job and recently integrated into a new environment. It appeared that everything was going smoothly, getting along well with colleagues. Notably, there was an increasing frequency of a person’s name, someone named Qu Yan.
Later on, a significant portion of the entries focused on this person. It covered their acquaintance, growing familiarity, and interactions for two years. Alongside the diary owner’s complex emotional journey, Shu Xun admitted not fully understanding but was amazed at how someone’s emotions could be so intricate, as if fragile at times, yet indestructible at others.
Based on the intermittent recordings, Shu Xun gained some understanding of the journal’s owner, someone who gradually settled into life, eventually finding tranquility. Midway through the journal, the owner finally confirmed their relationship with Qu Yan, becoming partners. Then followed a long period of everyday life together, characterized by peaceful and warm moments. Some small and detailed matters were documented, including a few illustrations, though they depicted objects, and Shu Xun couldn’t find an image of Qu Yan.
Unfortunately, life couldn’t remain so calm forever; otherwise, players like Shu Xun wouldn’t have arrived.
About a year ago, the journal began to show some anomalies. Initially, it was just a brief mention of new developments in renewable energy, but soon the owner of the journal seemed to sense something. Their words conveyed a sense of unease, hinting at something happening around them that was hard to comprehend. The expressions were unclear, with phrases like “monster,” “gone,” and “missing,” lacking complete context.
