Chen Lan and Xu Mingxuan, along with Xiang Xi, returned to the camp. Without a moment's rest, Xu Mingxuan headed straight to the camp office. Chen Lan retrieved half a wild goat from the system's storage and began discussing the ingredients for the evening's feast with Xiang Xi.
Chen Lan pondered for a moment and then suggested, "Little Watermelon, water is quite scarce due to the drought. How about we make a dish that's both soup and delicious?"
Xiang Xi nodded in agreement, "Mmm! I think that's a great idea, Little Basket. It's quite cold now, so we can make hot pot. Plus, drinking a bit of wine with hot pot will warm us up and comfort our stomachs."
Chen Lan felt Xiang Xi was right and said, "Little Watermelon, you're absolutely correct. Winter and hot pot are a perfect match. Eating hot pot in winter not only keeps the cold at bay and warms the stomach but also dispels wind and dampness. Hot pot has meat and vegetables, offering comprehensive nutrition. It's truly a great pleasure in life to gather with friends and family around a simmering pot, eating and chatting."
The two began to discuss the side dishes. Xiang Xi said, "We have Napa cabbage and radishes here. We can use the hearts of the Napa cabbage. We're close to the sea, so we also have fish we traded for. With sea fish, there should be kelp. We brought potatoes, sweet potatoes, and vermicelli. We also have the mushrooms Auntie exchanged for us. It's just that we're a bit short on green vegetables."
Chen Lan thought about it and agreed that they were indeed a bit short on greens. "There's no helping it. It's winter and a drought, so having these few vegetables is good enough. Little Watermelon, I think Battalion Commander Liu would prefer more meat, so let's prepare plenty of meat."
With that, she took out the side dishes Xiang Xi had mentioned from the system storage and purchased seasonings like ginger, garlic, and scallions from the system. She then said to Xiang Xi, "Little Watermelon, let's divide the work. You handle these vegetables and the ginger, garlic, and scallions – soaking, peeling, and slicing them are all your responsibility. I'll prepare the lamb bone broth as the base and slice the meat and fish. Russian sausage should also be delicious for hot pot."
Xiang Xi asked, "Little Basket, aren't you going to prepare some tripe and duck blood that you like?"
Chen Lan replied, "No, if we use these items for hot pot, I'm afraid Battalion Commander Liu might misunderstand and think we're not sincerely inviting him for a meal. To them, these are considered offal, after all."
Xiang Xi thought it made sense and didn't press the matter further. The two continued their work, chatting intermittently.
Although there was a small window in the room, it was winter, and glass wasn't common in this era. They kept the door and window open most of the time, but it was quite cold. So, Chen Lan closed the door and window and took out two miner's lamps from the system storage, putting one on her head and one on Xiang Xi's as they continued working.
Chen Lan used purified water purchased from the system to simmer a large pot of lamb broth. After it came to a boil, Chen Lan added large pieces of firewood to the stove to maintain a slow simmer. While the lamb broth was stewing, Chen Lan was also busy slicing lamb and fish.
Before long, the enticing aroma of lamb broth filled the small room. Xiang Xi asked, "Little Basket, is the lamb broth ready? Why is it so fragrant!"
Chen Lan smiled and said, "What? Haven't you had enough at the pool? Are you craving more now?"
Xiang Xi chuckled and replied, "I was so hungry by the pool, I only focused on eating the meat and didn't drink much lamb broth. What a waste of that pot of lamb broth, and I couldn't bring it back."
Hearing Xiang Xi say this, Chen Lan washed her hands and skillfully added salt and pepper to season the lamb broth in the large pot. Then, she ladled out a large bowl of steaming lamb soup and handed it to Xiang Xi. She also poured herself half a bowl. Taking a sip of the steaming lamb broth, the fresh and rich aroma soothed her throat and warmed her heart. After finishing half a bowl, she felt a warm sweat breaking out all over her body – it was incredibly comfortable.
She glanced at Xiang Xi, who was also wiping sweat from his forehead. She then took out a pack of tissues from the system storage, pulled out two sheets, and handed them to Xiang Xi.
After drinking the lamb soup, they continued preparing the side dishes for the evening. Chen Lan suddenly remembered, "How can we eat hot pot with just one large iron pot in the room? We can't all stand around the pot to eat, can we?" Chen Lan became quite dejected.
Xiang Xi watched Chen Lan stand there, lost in thought for a long time, and curiously asked, "Little Basket, what's wrong?"
Chen Lan said dejectedly, "Little Watermelon, I forgot we don't have a stove. How will we eat hot pot?"
Xiang Xi replied, "Little Basket, this is a small matter. Brother will get it done for you." With that, he opened the door and left.
Not long after, he returned empty-handed. Chen Lan's heart sank. To her surprise, Xiang Xi was followed by Er Zhuang, who was struggling to carry a wooden basin. Strangely, the basin was coated with a thick layer of wet mud.
As Er Zhuang awkwardly entered with the basin, Xiang Xi said, "Er Zhuang, place the basin by the mouth of the stove. Let the fire slowly dry the wet mud."
Chen Lan curiously asked, "Little Watermelon, is this the stove you prepared?"
Xiang Xi retorted proudly, "How is it, Little Basket? Not bad, right?"
Chen Lan glanced at the basin and asked, "Where did you get this broken basin?"
Xiang Xi replied triumphantly, "I saw it when I was running drills this morning. It was left by the firewood pile next to the kitchen."
Chen Lan couldn't help but praise, "Not bad! Little Watermelon, your observation skills are really something. You could be a scout."
She then looked at the mud-covered wooden basin again and noticed something amiss. "Little Watermelon, you've sealed the basin too tightly. You haven't left a vent for adding firewood."
Xiang Xi heard this and quickly said, "It's okay, there's still time." He then took out the dagger Chen Lan had given him by the pool from his pocket and made a hole in the broken basin.
Chen Lan and Xiang Xi continued with the preparation work they had been doing. With Er Zhuang's help, the work went much faster! To be honest, Er Zhuang was much more efficient at work than Xiang Xi. Before long, Er Zhuang came to help Chen Lan clean and slice the fish.
Soon, all the preparations were completed. Chen Lan ordered a small iron pot from the system to stir-fry the hot pot base. Worried that Battalion Commander Liu couldn't handle too much spice, she decided to make a mildly spicy and numbing base.
Fearing the fumes from stir-frying chili peppers would be too irritating, Chen Lan opened the window and put the miner's lamps she and Xiang Xi were wearing back into the system storage.
As soon as the pot base was stir-fried, Chen Lan asked Er Zhuang to help pour some of the boiling lamb broth into the pot. Immediately, the spicy and numbing aroma filled every corner of the room.
Er Zhuang, not paying attention while pouring the lamb broth, was choked by the spicy fumes, causing him to cough.