Bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new.
This is the meaning of the New Year.
It is also the heartfelt wish of countless suffering people.
To leave behind the old self and embrace a new life.
For now, Xu Xi is unable to ensure that every member of the Survival Army can live a happy and fulfilling life.
But as the New Year approaches, Xu Xi feels there are things that can be done.
For example, giving the Survival Army a "good" meal.
"Niu, catch those chickens over there."
"Gou Dan, hurry, surround them!"
"Chase them! Chase them!"
On the outskirts of Pingshui County, Xu Xi led a large group of disheveled and hungry people, setting up several large iron pots and pouring water and rice into them.
Not far away, Niu and a few others were catching free-range chickens.
With their seasoned experience,
they quickly captured the chickens.
After carefully cleaning and processing them, they finely chopped the chicken meat, even crushing the bones.
The number of people in the Survival Army was too large, making it unrealistic for everyone to have a proper serving of meat.
Xu Xi could only use this method to spread the flavor of the chicken throughout the entire pot of rice soup, allowing everyone who drank the soup to taste a hint of meat.
In reality, there wasn’t enough rice either.
So, they had to add water—lots and lots of water.
In the end,
they even added bran.
Bran wasn’t particularly tasty, but compared to the cold and bitter demon meat, it was a delicacy in the eyes of the starving people.
"Boom—!"
"Boom—!"
Under Xu Xi’s watchful gaze, the dozen or so large iron pots began to boil fiercely.
The firewood burned intensely, crackling and popping, its scorching flames licking the bottoms of the pots, transferring the heat to the water inside.
Gradually,
the water began to boil.
Someone stepped forward, carefully sprinkling a pinch of salt into the pots.
The flames roared, and steam billowed.
At some point, people began to gather around the large pots, their eyes fixed on the boiling water, their throats bobbing as they swallowed repeatedly.
The aroma of the porridge was faint, diluted by the excessive amount of water.
Neither the finely chopped chicken nor the pinch of salt could be distinctly smelled.
All they could detect
was the simple scent of steam.
Yet, despite this, the people’s eyes were filled with longing.
They looked at the pots as if they were rare and precious treasures, suppressing the rising stomach acid, swallowing their saliva over and over, patiently waiting for the rice soup to finish cooking.
Finally, the rice soup was ready.
The people of the Survival Army all turned their eyes to Xu Xi, who nodded with a smile, and only then did they rush forward to ladle the soup.
The soup was scalding hot, with nine parts water to one part rice.
It burned their mouths, making them cry out.
The water they drank entered through their mouths but seemed to flow out through their eyes—the more they drank, the more they cried.
"Big Brother Xu, it’s so hot, so hot!" Niu, with his rough hands, held a bowl and gulped down the rice soup. He winced at the heat but couldn’t stop himself from drinking more.
"It’s so good."
After finishing,
Niu gave this simple yet heartfelt praise, licking his lips in satisfaction.
He even used his tongue to clean the rim of the bowl, savoring every last drop of the soup.
"Do you like it, Niu?"
"Yes, I do!"
Looking at the honest man before him, Xu Xi advised, "That’s good, but next time, don’t drink it so hastily."
"Hehe, I understand, Big Brother Xu!"
Niu scratched his head and grinned foolishly.
He ladled another bowl, not for himself this time, but for his mother who was nearby.
There were far too many people in the Survival Army.
Even if they kept adding water endlessly,
the amount of rice soup in the pots was limited, and each person could only have a small bowl, no more.
No one complained. After enjoying the simple pleasure of the rice soup, they wore expressions of happiness and returned to gnawing on the dry, tough demon meat.
They ate quickly, laughing as they did.
Hearts that had once been cold, desolate, and dead
seemed to have been warmed by that small bowl of rice soup.
"Things will get better in the future…" Xu Xi gazed at the crowded crowd, his eyes sweeping over the smiling faces, and his mood lifted as well.
"It’s time to go back. There’s still a lot of administrative work to handle."
"As for cultivation techniques and the second stage of the Innate Realm, I need to continue my research. I have a feeling that I’m not far from reaching the Soul Nurturing Realm."
Xu Xi turned around,
about to head back to his official residence.
But from behind, he heard Niu and the others calling out to him.
They ran over, holding a large plate with two plump and juicy chicken legs in the center.
These were for "Sir Xu" and "Miss Wu."
The people said this with enthusiasm, handing the plate to Xu Xi and urging him to take it.
Xu Xi was momentarily stunned. Meeting the expectant gazes of the crowd, he suddenly realized that he couldn’t refuse their kindness.
At the very least, he couldn’t leave without taking a bite.
So,
Xu Xi smiled, using his inner energy as a blade to cut a large piece of meat from the oily chicken leg. Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he popped it into his mouth and chewed.
"It’s delicious," he said as the rich flavor of the fat burst in his mouth.
Even though no special seasoning had been added,
it was incredibly tasty.
"Remarkable… they’ve added something special to this," Xu Xi murmured to himself. What had been added to the chicken leg was the collective hope and gratitude of tens of thousands of people.
It was something intangible, yet irresistibly compelling.
A uniquely Eastern "poison,"
one that, once tasted, was hard to let go of.
"It’s time to go back," Xu Xi said, using his inner energy to cut the remaining meat from the chicken leg and adding it to another pot of "meat soup."
The growling of his stomach made him want to devour it all.
But reason reminded him
that skipping this meal wouldn’t make a difference to him.
However, for these suffering people, this might very well be the last "meat" they would ever taste.
No one knew how many members of the Survival Army would still be alive by next year.
As for Wu Yingxue’s chicken leg, Xu Xi didn’t touch it.
He was willing to sacrifice his own share, but he wouldn’t force others to do the same.
"That girl has been working hard too."
"Recently, she’s been helping to slay demons and gather enough demon meat to alleviate the food shortage in the city."
"On top of that, she’s been assisting me with administrative tasks."
"Both in terms of sentiment and reason, a chicken leg is a well-deserved reward for Yingxue—if anything, it’s not enough."
Xu Xi wrapped the chicken leg in his inner energy
and soared through the air, swiftly returning to the county town.
But when he arrived at the girl’s residence, he found the house empty, dark, and devoid of even a single candlelight.
"Strange, is she not home?"
Puzzled, Xu Xi could only return to his official residence. Pushing open the creaky wooden door, he entered to find the young girl sprawled on the desk, fast asleep.
u Chenyuan transmigrated into a female-oriented novel about a real and fake heiress, becoming the CEO elder brother of both. Unfortunately, the entire Lu family—including himself, the CEO—were mere cannon fodder in the story. Determined to save himself, Lu Chenyuan took action. The spoiled, attention-seeking fake heiress? Thrown into the harsh realities of the working class to learn humility. The love-struck real heiress? Pushed toward academic excellence, so lofty goals would blind her to trivial romances. As for the betrayed, vengeful arranged marriage wife… the plot hadn’t even begun yet. There was still time—if he couldn’t handle her, he could at least avoid her. "CEO Lu, are you avoiding me?" Mo Qingli fixed her gaze on Lu Chenyuan. For the first time, the shrewd and calculating Lu Chenyuan felt a flicker of unease.
reezy rom-com) Good news: Jiang Liu is quite the ladies' man. Bad news: He’s lost his memory. Lying in a hospital bed, Jiang Liu listens to a parade of goddesses spouting "absurd claims," feeling like the world is one giant game of Werewolf. "Jiang Liu, I’m your first love." "Jiang Liu, you’re my boyfriend—she’s your ex." "Jiang Liu, we’re close friends who’ve shared a bed, remember?" "Jiang Liu, I want to have your baby." The now-lucid Jiang Liu is convinced this must be some elaborate scam... until someone drops the bombshell: "The day before you lost your memory, you confessed your feelings—and got into a relationship." Jiang Liu is utterly baffled. So... who the hell is his actual girlfriend?! ... Before recovering his memories, Jiang Liu must navigate this minefield of lies and sincerity, fighting to protect himself from these women’s schemes. But things spiral even further out of control as more people show up at his doorstep—each with increasingly unhinged antics. On the bright side, the memories he lost due to overwhelming trauma seem to be resurfacing. Great news, right? So why are they all panicking now?
] This is a dark fantasy-themed dating simulation game. The main gameplay involves containing various monster girls and investigating the truth of a world shrouded in mist alongside your companions. However, due to his love for the dark and bizarre atmosphere, Luo Wei ended up turning a dating game into a detective mystery game. Women? Women only slow down his quickdraw! To Luo Wei, the female leads in the game are more like tools to perfectly clear levels and squeeze out rewards. For Luo Wei, flirting with every girl he meets and then discarding them is standard procedure. Worried about characters losing affection points? No need. With his maxed-out charm stat, Luo Wei is practically a "human incubus." A little psychological manipulation and those points come right back. It's a bit scummy, but the paper cutout heroines in the game won't actually come at him with real cleavers. However... Luo Wei has transmigrated. He's accidentally entered the second playthrough of this game. His past actions have caused all the girls to transform into terrifying yanderes. Due to the game's setting, most of the heroines he once contained are "troubled girls." Obsessive, twisted, mentally unstable, all aggressive yanderes... The type who will kill you if they can't have you... Luo Wei wants to cry but has no tears left. "I really just want to survive..." In short, this is a story of battling wits and engaging in a love-hate relationship with yanderes.
esick Sect? Well, at least it's considered a respectable orthodox sect. Wait a minute— What kind of vibe are you all giving off? Shouldn’t this be a love-struck, romance-obsessed sect? Why does everyone here sound more like demonic cultivators? "Master, today he’s getting married. This disciple wishes to descend the mountain and crash the wedding, then toy with him to death right in front of his wife..." "Elder, I only got into your sect through connections, so why won’t you teach me anything?" "Because I also became an elder through connections." Thankfully, Su Ji was just an outer sect labor disciple. Surely, nothing too crazy would— "Junior Brother, you’ve broken through to Qi Refining. Once you sever your useless spiritual root, you can officially become an outer sect disciple." "The Great Dao is merciless. Don’t let a worthless spiritual root waste your essence and spirit, hindering your cultivation." Is this really the Lovesick Sect? ... Three years later, Su Ji sat in the seat of the Lovesick Sect’s sect master, sighing with emotion. His rise to this position all started when his junior sister adamantly insisted on preserving his "spiritual root." "Mmm... Senior Brother, what’s our relationship now?" "Stop talking. Keep going." "By the way, that newly promoted top-tier sect—didn’t they come to buy our Love Beans?" "One top-grade spirit stone per Love Bean—is that really so expensive?" "I suspect they’ve eaten too many Love Beans." "Now they’re lovesick." Well, this really is the Lovesick Sect after all.
