Xiao Nuo was picking up firewood in the dark forest while waiting for Ding Ning's return with trepidation. She was still wondering where he was going to clean the snake meat.
It didn't take long for Ding Ning to come back. Xiao Nuo couldn't help but ask curiously, "Where did you clean the snake meat?"
"There is a stream not far ahead. It is absolutely natural and pollution-free. Albino King Cobra likes to live near the water, so there must be a water source near the place where it appears."
Ding Ning said naturally. Of course, he would not tell Xiao Nuo that his extraordinary hearing had long heard the subtle gurgling sound of water ahead.
Although it was a tropical rainforest with few dry branches, it was not difficult for Ding Ning to light a bonfire. He could easily solve the problem of starting a fire by finding some branches with oil. The price was that Ding Ning had to do it himself, making the branches Xiao Nuo found useless, in exchange for her endless complaints.
But when the snow-white snake meat was roasted to a golden color and the fragrance of oil came to the nose, Xiao Nuo's complaints stopped abruptly, and her stomach began to growl.
She couldn't be blamed. After all, Xiao Nuo had not had a good meal since last night. She just came out of the underground base and had not eaten a big meal before she went to perform a task again.
Although Ding Ning had found some fruits and plant roots for her to eat before, those things could only barely fill her stomach. How could they compare with the barbecue?
She didn't care about the table manners and reached out to eat heartily, but was stopped by Ding Ning, "Wait a minute, although the snake meat is delicious, it is not fragrant enough."
After that, without waiting for Xiao Nuo's protest, he took out a strange plant root, crushed it in his hand, and dripped it on the snake meat.
Suddenly, a strange fragrance came to the nose, which made Xiao Nuo's appetite increase. She asked in surprise, "What is this? It smells so good."
"This is a kind of spice that has not been widely accepted by humans. I thought only my hometown had this spice. I didn't expect to find it here when I went to clean the snake meat."
Ding Ning's expression had a trace of nostalgia and sadness. Although it flashed away, it was still keenly noticed by Xiao Nuo.
"Do you miss home?" Xiao Nuo asked softly.
"Yeah, it's been five years. I haven't been home for a long time."
Ding Ning calmed himself down and smiled. "Let's stop talking. Tianxiang is a pure natural spice. If it is dried and ground into powder, it will be more fragrant. But now the conditions are limited. Although it is not as fragrant as dried spices, it also has a natural fragrance and a unique flavor. Try it."
Xiao Nuo had been salivating for a long time. She reached out to take the snake meat that Ding Ning handed to her. Regardless of how hot her hand was, she stuffed it into her mouth like a reincarnated hungry ghost.
"My heart is burning!" As soon as Ding Ning's voice fell, Xiao Nuo pouted because of the scalding and fanned herself hard with her hands, but she was still unwilling to spit out the snake meat in her mouth. While chewing, she mumbled vaguely, "Delicious, delicious, it's really delicious. I have never eaten such delicious food."
He swallowed a mouthful of saliva, and before his tongue could rest, he started stuffing snake meat into his mouth again.
"Now you won't find it ugly." Ding Ning gently took a bite of the snake meat and teased with a smile.
Xiao Nuo rolled her eyes. "Can you stop reminding me that this is snake meat? I never eat these strange things."
"Humph, you are a special police officer. I really don't know who taught you field survival training. For real survival in the wild, let alone snakes, rats, ants, scorpions, tree bark, grass roots, and even maggots, as long as it can keep people alive, there is nothing that can't be eaten."
Ding Ning said disdainfully. He gulped down the golden snake meat with an intoxicated look on his face.
"Can you not say such disgusting things? It's as if you have experienced field survival training."
Xiao Nuo knew that what Ding Ning said was true. Whether it was her father or her brother, they had all told her that in order to survive, let alone maggots, she even had to drink her own urine.
"This is not disgusting. I have eaten those things, and they are still raw. Although the conditions in this rainforest are harsh, there are too many things to eat. There is no danger of life and death at all. When you have the opportunity to face the desperate situation of the threat of death, you will know how happy we are to be able to eat roasted snake meat now."
Ding Ning said with deep emotion. He remembered that when he was ten years old, his third master, Uncle Xiaowu, left him in the Luochuan Mountains for a whole seven days and survived by eating insects.
Xiao Nuo looked at him in a daze and suddenly asked, "Who are you? Why do you have such an experience? "
Ding Ning was stunned and knew that he had accidentally let the cat out of the bag again. He immediately made up a story. "I am a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner. When I was a child, I went into the mountains to collect herbs and got lost. I was trapped in the mountains and had no food or drink. I only survived by eating some herbs and various insects."
Xiao Nuo took a deep look at him. He didn't know whether she believed him or not, but she didn't ask again. She ate the snake meat in big mouthfuls. After a long time, she showed a touch of firmness on her face and said faintly,
"If it comes to that, I will definitely be able to do it."
Ding Ning shook his head with a smile and said meaningfully, "You are a special policewoman. Generally, you will not encounter this kind of situation. Why do you want to make yourself suffer? I tell you this because I want to tell you that no matter what kind of desperate situation you are in, you should not easily give up. As long as you work hard, there will always be a way."
Xiao Nuo nodded noncommittally and raised her chin proudly. "I am Xiao Nuo. I will not easily give up."
She didn't know if it was an illusion, but behind Ding Ning's smile, Xiao Nuo seemed to perceive a trace of imperceptible relief.
Indeed, Ding Ning hinted at Xiao Nuo vaguely to let her not give up.
He was scared by Xiao Nuo's empty eyes just now. He was really afraid that his pseudonym You Xumo would hurt this girl's heart and make her feel hopeless and commit suicide. This would make him blame himself and feel guilty for the rest of his life.
After eating, they took a short rest and started on the road again.
Xiao Nuo was full and her physical strength had recovered a lot. The speed of the two gradually sped up.
When passing by the clear stream, Xiao Nuo also washed her face. Of course, the price was that she once again suffered the stimulation and strange smell of the bug repellent grass.
However, after what had happened before, Xiao Nuo seemed to have been reborn. She didn't even frown, as if she had become a different person after eating.
Although she still kept a straight face and rarely spoke, it made Ding Ning feel a lot more at ease. He could feel that Xiao Nuo seemed to have gone through a transformation and had become stronger.
The dense rainforest was dark and damp. The sounds of insects and birds filled the entire primeval forest with vitality. Occasionally, there was the roar of large beasts in the distance.
Xiao Nuo followed closely behind Ding Ning with sweat all over her body, but her beautiful eyes flashed with curiosity.
She didn't understand how Ding Ning did it. Along the way, she had long been dizzy and could not tell the direction at all.
However, following Ding Ning, she was like an old horse that knew the way. Unexpectedly, she didn't even encounter a large beast. It was as if he was familiar with this place as if this was his home. Occasionally, he would make a big detour to avoid a certain place, but soon he would return to the original route.
Xiao Nuo was not a fool. She remembered that the places where they made detours were all in the direction of the large beasts' roars. What did this mean?
It meant that Ding Ning was very clear about the location of the large beasts and deliberately avoided the places that could threaten them. Was this an intuition for danger or a full understanding of the habits of the beasts?
If it was the former, then Ding Ning's intuition was too terrifying. She thought it should be the latter.
What kind of person would know the habits of the beasts and the distribution of their territories so well? That was the hunter, a hunter with rich hunting experience all year round.
However, the word "hunter" had a special meaning for Xiao Nuo. It reminded her of the ironwood arrow and the hunter's apprentice, Huntsman, who didn't even tell her his real name.
Who was Ding Ning? Why was he, a little doctor, so experienced in hunting? What was the relationship between him and Huntsman?
As for Ding Ning's claim that he had practiced the skill by picking herbs in the mountains, Xiao Nuo didn't even believe a word of it.
So many doctors of traditional Chinese medicine went to the mountains to pick herbs, but she had never heard of anyone who could master the skill of hunting.
Although Huntsman was a bastard and made her heart hurt when she thought of him, there was no reason for feelings. What was more, that guy was Xiao Nuo's first love, which was even more unforgettable to her and she couldn't forget him.
Looking at Ding Ning's back, she gradually saw him and the shadow in her memory were gradually blurred.
This feeling made Xiao Nuo frightened. They couldn't be the same person. The most powerful direct evidence was the difference in their height.
But why did he always give her a sense of inexplicable familiarity? Whether it was the reassuring smell on their bodies or the identical action of spanking, they were all so similar. Even their voices were 99% similar. If it was a coincidence, it was too outrageous.
Xiao Nuo's heart was full of worries. Although she knew that Huntsman was fooling her, she just couldn't let him go and wanted to know his news.
She remembered that scientists once did research. When two people stayed together for a long time, they would subconsciously imitate each other's movements, expressions, body language and even habits.
Over time, the living habits and body language of two people would be surprisingly similar, and even their appearance would be somewhat similar.
If one man and one woman were husband and wife, it would be called husband and wife. If two men or two women, it would be called brother and sister.
Since Ding Ning was so similar to him, Xiao Nuo boldly speculated that these two people must have a great relationship. Even if they were not biological brothers, at least they were brothers of the same school.
So Xiao Nuo intended to test Ding Ning. Even if there was no relationship between him and Huntsman, he should at least give her an explanation, not to mention that the bastard had kissed her twice.
"Doctor Ding, where are you from?"
Ding Ning was startled by her words and a touch of nostalgia flashed across his face. He replied, "I am from southern Yunnan, a very remote town, but the scenery is picturesque and very beautiful."
"Are you an only child?" Xiao Nuo asked persistently.
"Yes, I should be." Ding Ning answered with some uncertainty.
"What do you mean by should be?" Xiao Nuo was very dissatisfied with his answer and felt that he was fooling her.
Ding Ning was silent for a moment and then said with some sadness, "As long as I can remember, I have never seen my mother, and no one has told me whether she is dead or alive. I don't even know whether I have brothers or sisters."
"Ah, sorry, I didn't know you were an orphan."
Xiao Nuo heard the sadness in his voice and apologized with some guilt.
"Who told you that I am an orphan? I have a father, OK? It's just that he is a man of few words. Every time I ask him who my mother is and whether she is dead or alive, he just keeps silent and keeps smoking. I get annoyed when I ask too many questions without an answer, so I don't ask him anymore." Ding Ning didn't expect that Ding Ning would be so annoyed by his words. "Who told you that I am an orphan?
"I'm sorry, I misunderstood you."
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
