Everyone was very excited when they heard they were going to have hot pot.
Although they had enough to eat and drink these past few days, it had been torture for the two girls who were used to eating out and ordering takeout.
An Nuan was alright. With her memories of surviving the apocalypse, even having a warm bun to eat made her grateful.
Luo Luo was different. She was craving so many things!
An Nuan went downstairs to the kitchen.
Her kitchen had all sorts of cookware and small appliances, and there were plenty of spare sets prepared in her storage space.
An Nuan took an electric dual-flavor pot from the cabinet and placed it aside.
She took spicy hot pot base and a packet of tomato hot pot base from the refrigerator.
Both An Nuan and Luo Luo liked stronger flavors.
She first added star anise, Sichuan peppercorns, chili peppers, and a little bean paste to the pot, stir-frying them to release the aroma. Then she poured in the chili oil, brought it to a boil, and mixed it with the hot pot base, adding a little glutinous rice wine to simmer.
Luo Luo helped her by boiling the peeled tomatoes in a pot until they softened and released a thick tomato juice.
An Nuan poured the simmered tomato concentrate into the tomato base and cooked them together.
She added chopped scallions, ginger, and garlic to the pot.
She then took two more tomatoes, cut them into eight pieces, and tossed them in.
While the soup base was simmering, An Nuan took some ingredients from the refrigerator.
"Enoki mushrooms, frozen tofu, dried kelp, radishes, and winter melon. Is this enough vegetables?"
"It's enough! Hot pot is mainly about the meat, who eats vegetables!"
Luo Luo and Chang Kaitong helped wash the vegetables, their four eyes eagerly watching An Nuan take out the meat.
Lamb rolls, beef rolls, tripe, fresh duck intestines – the classic four must be prepared.
Crab sticks, shrimp paste, and duck brains – the little trio also had to be arranged.
An Nuan liked to eat pork kidney, but she didn't want to cook it in the hot pot today.
She didn't use the minced meat for the filling. She sliced it directly, then mixed it with chili, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, bird's eye chilies, and scallions by hand. Finally, she drizzled a little sesame oil.
An Nuan asked, "Is this enough? Should we cook some rice?"
"We're eating hot pot, who eats rice! Let's take out some dried noodles and cook them, they're delicious that way!"
Luo Luo reminded An Nuan.
When the dried noodles absorbed the broth, their flavor was comparable to that of the gods!
An Nuan, who already loved noodles, almost drooled at the memory of the taste.
She took a packet of noodles and placed them on a plate, then took a few small bowls.
Coarse chili, bird's eye chilies, scallions, cilantro, minced garlic – all packed into small bowls.
She also prepared oyster sauce, sesame oil, sesame paste, and most importantly, chopped celery and beef bits, which were essential for the tomato soup!
Chang Kaitong brought the pot to the coffee table in the living room, plugged it in, and then went to help Luo Luo bring the dishes over.
An Nuan took out two different brands of beer.
"Luo Luo, which one?"
"The one on the left, it's sweeter, my taste buds have been a bit dull lately!"
"Alright, my brother is underage, you drink coke."
Chang Kaitong disliked being treated like a child by An Nuan a little bit.
But he did want to drink coke.
Icy cold coke was the perfect match for hot pot!
The three of them sat cross-legged on the carpet. As Luo Luo adjusted the TV, she saw a news warning about a strong wind coming.
Many people were cheering, grateful for the drop in temperature.
Luo Luo sighed, "They don't know about the hurricane yet, poor things."
"Feeling pity?"
"Just saying. That old geezer was loitering around our doorstep again today, I'm a bit worried she'll break in."
After these past few days, Luo Luo knew that sympathy could kill.
She was now worried about that old woman. This afternoon, she saw her on the surveillance camera wandering in front of a villa.
She probably didn't believe their story and wanted to check things out.
An Nuan was actually quite impressed with that old hag.
The wind had started to pick up on the very day they began distributing supplies. In three days, with the hurricane raging, no more supplies could be distributed.
In other words, today's distribution was the only one within the week.
The old woman was now looking around for targets to rob of supplies, which would indeed increase her chances of survival.
An Nuan said, "Let's not worry about her for now. If she dares to make a move, then eliminate her."
"Sister Nuan is right. Phase three is still under construction, and with the hurricane, it's very easy to deal with someone in this environment."
"Brother, you're starting to sound more like a man! Come here, let big sister give you a kiss!"
"Sister Nuan, quickly stop Sister Luo! Her mouth is full of chili oil!"
An Nuan didn't stop them and even egged them on from the side.
After the three of them finished their hot pot, An Nuan opened the window to ventilate.
A cool breeze blew in.
Luo Luo: "It's so cold! It must be in the low teens Celsius, right?"
"The gale is coming, and extreme cold won't be far behind. From today onwards, we'll all sleep in the rooms on the second floor."
"Sister, me too?"
"What's wrong, are you uncomfortable?"
Chang Kaitong's cheeks turned slightly red.
He was less than a month away from turning eighteen, which, rounding up, made him an adult male.
Having him sleep with two girls…
He was shy!
An Nuan didn't see anything wrong with it.
After the gale and temperature drop would come extreme cold. Gathering together for warmth was the smart choice.
After the apocalypse began, there were often alternating periods of extreme heat and cold. This was how everyone survived.
An Nuan leaned against Juanzi, rubbing its big head. "It's good to grow up, this layer of fat is perfect for keeping warm."
"Meow meow meow~"
Juanzi: I'm not fat, not at all!
Daizi: Anyway, you're fatter than me!
One cat acted as a pillow, the other as a foot warmer. The two girls were very comfortable.
After everyone had eaten their fill, they started cleaning up the dishes.
They still had water, so Chang Kaitong filled all the containers in the house with water, not even sparing the pots and pans.
An Nuan felt a bit awkward to tell him that she had enough water in her space for ten people for a lifetime.
She didn't dampen his enthusiasm and let him do as he pleased.
Luo Luo tidied up the trash and threw it outside. When she came back, her expression was a little off.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing, the wind stings my face. Xiao Nuan, do we still need to go out and chop zombies these few days?"
Luo Luo was still quite worried.
Although they were all Tier 1 espers, and An Nuan was infinitely close to Tier 2, she hadn't officially broken through yet.
But they were still human. Standing in a hurricane for two seconds would be enough to get windburn.
When she went out just now, she already felt uncomfortable, her small face blown pale.
Luo Luo was worried that Hei Yan would call them out to chop zombies at a time like this.
Ding!
The TV screen switched to text.
[How much do I look like a pervert?]
Pfft!
Through the screen, An Nuan seemed to see Hei Yan rolling his eyes.
[Just stay home and laze around.]
The subtitles disappeared for two seconds, and then another line appeared.
[You sleep by yourself!]
A bright yellow arrow on the screen pointed directly at Chang Kaitong, accompanied by a row of rolling skulls.
An Nuan almost burst out laughing.
She had imagined Hei Yan to be cool and handsome, but sometimes he was also very childlike.
His image was quite split!