Chapter 54

Ye Baizhi remembered that every time she had seen him in the tribe, it was always at night.

One day, during the daytime, he had even carried an umbrella. It was said that when he treated people in the tribe, he mostly traveled at night. Yet, the legendary Enchanter Demon tribe was not afraid of sunlight.

Moreover, he was a pureblood Enchanted Beast—such a limitation should not apply to him.

Unless… Ye Baizhi’s expression subtly changed.

With a quiet sigh, Ye Wulan explained, “On the day the Enchanter Demon tribe was wiped out, I was severely wounded in battle.”

“At that time, I was barely holding on, with only a single breath left. My father and the high priest of our clan placed me in the sacred ice coffin and sealed me underground.”

“A hundred years later, when the seal was lifted, I was able to emerge. But ever since then, exposure to sunlight causes my old wounds to flare up again.”

“So whenever I can block out the sunlight, I do.”

After his injury, he hardly dared to move around under the sun—his body couldn’t handle it. Most of the time, he had to carry an umbrella or only go out at night.

Ye Baizhi could sense that, though he spoke of it lightly, the battle back then must have been brutal.

His injuries were severe. Even now, his body seemed pieced together like a patchwork, with old wounds that had never truly healed.

Looking at the melancholy in his eyes, Ye Baizhi’s heart tightened. For some reason, when she looked at Ye Wulan, she felt an instinctive ache of sympathy.

Lowering her voice, Ye Baizhi reassured him, “It will get better!”

“Mm, it’s fine. One gets used to it.”

Ye Baizhi felt even more heartache. Getting used to it meant becoming numb to the pain.

At that moment, Da Bao was nestled in Ye Wulan’s embrace, arms wrapped around his neck. With a serious expression, he said, “Father Ye, once you and Mom have a little sister, your body will recover.”

Ye Wulan gently stroked Da Bao’s head and said warmly, “Da Bao, thank you.”

Ye Baizhi asked, “How do you know it will be a sister?”

Da Bao insisted, “It just will be!”

Ye Wulan didn’t dare to entertain the possibility of a daughter. In the Enchanter Demon tribe, pureblooded Enchanter beasts had always been male throughout history. If it really turned out to be a girl, the entire clan would be beyond ecstatic. As they spoke, they arrived at the sugarcane field.

Ye Baizhi pointed to a row of sugarcanes and said, “Look, these are sugarcanes. They’re simple to process.”

“When we leave, we can try selling red sugar for money.”

“Alright!”

“Let’s cut them down first.”

Before Ye Baizhi could make a move, Da Bao had already extended his hand and released his power. With a sharp cracking sound, the entire row of sugarcanes collapsed instantly.

“Da Bao is amazing!”

Ye Baizhi sighed inwardly, thinking that among the three of them, Da Bao was probably the most capable.

Ye Wulan and Ye Baizhi bundled up the sugarcane and carried it back to the wooden house. Then, they peeled the stalks with a knife, crushed them in a stone mortar to extract the juice, filtered it, and boiled it in a pot. Since they both had special abilities, extracting the juice was easy. It didn’t take much effort.

“Once we simmer it down until it thickens, we can pour it out and let it solidify—that’s red sugar.”

“These sugarcane leaves, once cleaned, can be used to wrap the sugar.”

The method was similar to weaving—they wrapped the sugar blocks neatly, keeping them clean. Most of the food sold at stalls and shops was meat-based, usually tied together with clean straw ropes. The higher-quality ones were wrapped in oil paper. But using sugarcane leaves worked just as well—they were clean and practical.

It was still before noon, and Ye Baizhi thought of making noodles for lunch. For her, making noodles was simple. She began kneading the dough, rolling it out, and slicing it into strips.

During the apocalypse, all flour-based foods were synthetic, and noodles were machine-made—far less chewy than handmade ones.

Once she finished cutting them, she stir-fried some meat and cabbage in oil for the broth. Fortunately, the kitchen had two pots, so Ye Wulan could tend the fire simultaneously. After simmering the broth, she ladled some out and boiled the noodles in water. Once they were cooked, she briefly rinsed them in the spiritual spring water before draining them. Then, she poured the cabbage and meat broth over the noodles—it was ready.

“Wash your hands and come eat.”

Da Bao pointed to the other pot where the red sugar was still boiling. “Mom, this isn’t ready yet.”

Ye Baizhi reassured him, “It’s fine, it probably needs to cook a while longer.”

“Just keep the fire going and let it simmer—we’ll eat first.”

When Ye Wulan and Da Bao washed their hands and sat down to eat, they stared at the noodles. It was a food they had never encountered before. But the taste was unexpectedly delicious. They not only finished the noodles but also drank every last drop of the broth.

Seeing how much they enjoyed the meal, Ye Baizhi felt even more motivated to cook.

“Mom, this is so good. I’m really full.”

“Mom, I love eating noodles now—and wontons too.”

Da Bao wanted to keep eating, but he was completely stuffed, his stomach unable to take any more.

Ye Baizhi always prepared meals according to everyone’s appetite.

“In the future, you’ll have even more favorite foods.”

“Some dishes shouldn’t be eaten every day—let’s make them every few days so you won’t get tired of them.”

“Mm-hmm, alright! Da Bao will listen to Mom.”

Ye Baizhi couldn’t help but plant a soft kiss on his little cheek.

Da Bao’s face instantly turned red with embarrassment.

Ye Baizhi laughed at his reaction.

Watching from the side, Ye Wulan felt a stir in his heart. On the Beast Continent, it was rare for female beasts to be so affectionate toward their offspring. Even if they cared, they seldom showed much closeness. But she was different. Her approach to things was unlike any other female beast; some even abandoned their young. It was cruel.

He couldn’t help but think of his own mother. After she gave birth to him, she never once held him. It was his father who patiently raised and taught him. He had always thought that was normal, since most female beasts behaved the same way. But after meeting her, he realized things could be different.

That afternoon, they watched the pot as the red sugar continued to simmer. Meanwhile, Ye Baizhi kneaded dough and chopped fillings, preparing for the evening’s dumpling-making. Once the sugar finished cooking, she ladled it out and let it solidify in a container.

“Once it solidifies, we can cut it into pieces and wrap them—then we’ll have blocks of red sugar.”

Ye Baizhi thought that, in the future, she could start an entire food street.

The culinary culture of the Beast Continent was so underdeveloped. The dishes in her mind could all be used to open stores. Wontons, noodles, and dumplings could each have their own shops. However, she felt that meat-stuffed flatbreads would be even more practical.

In the Beast Continent, meat was the staple food—or perhaps deep-fried meat rolls.

Right now, Ye Baizhi was entirely focused on business—making money and building an elite army. Only then could she better protect those around her.

As if struck by a thought, Ye Baizhi asked, “By the way, are there hawthorn fruits here?”

“The ones people call red berries?”

In the Beast Continent, they were known as red berries.

Ye Wulan replied, “There are plenty of fruit trees in here. I’ll take you to them.”

Ye Baizhi’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Once we harvest hawthorn, we can make candied hawthorn (tang hulu).”

“Oh, and when we leave, candied hawthorn could also be a business.”

“No need for a stall—just set up a stand, stick the skewers onto it, and sell them while calling out.”

So far, she hadn’t noticed much variety in sweets here. It seemed that the nobles only consumed honey. But with her methods, she could create all kinds of sweets.

Candied hawthorn was cheap to make—it should be profitable.

Ye Wulan said softly, “In the marketplace, many lower-level tribes lack food. They likely wouldn’t trade food for other foods. They usually exchange for necessities like salt or clay pots.”

“But in the bustling streets of the city, where noble beastmen live, people would buy these.”