Chapter 213 - 96: Iron Blind Box
After Xiao Huihui and Ti Zi mixed together, Chen Zhou found that the sayings "Feelings develop over time" and "Proximity gives priority" were truly accurate.
The wisdom of the ancestors can always prove its worth in peculiar fields, extending a five-thousand-year-old civilization.
During the mating season, Xiao Huihui and Ti Zi quickly became inseparable, completely attached to each other.
However, their relationship was not without obstacles—don't forget, Ti Zi still had a suitor, the big black cat, who constantly lingered at the forest's edge, never leaving.
...
Since June 17th, Chen Zhou had to treat Xiao Huihui's wounds daily.
That stubborn "old third cat" had a fierce fight with Xiao Huihui that day and ultimately escaped with its life.
But you can evade once, not forever—on June 22nd, while Chen Zhou was out with Lai Fu, he found it under a large tree, barely clinging to life.
Without anyone to care for it, its head injuries had severely worsened, and the eye socket was festering, already targeted by greedy flies, rendering one eye completely blind.
Wounds on its body had also become breeding grounds for parasitic eggs; after Chen Zhou killed it, he saw wriggling bugs within those wounds.
On this island lacking top predators, wild cats are considered at the top of the food chain, yet their lives are akin to walking a tightrope, where one mistake could lead to death.
If these creatures on the island were smart enough to realize the good life that Ti Zi had — food and shelter in exchange for catching mice and wild rabbits — they would rush to the cave to live.
No wonder, after several years of living on the island, Robinson's house was overrun by cats, so much so that he needed to shoot some to curb the situation.
Surviving in the wild is so tough, who wouldn't love free food?
...
On June 24th, the day before a mysterious reward arrived.
On that day, Chen Zhou completed the construction of the foot-powered stamp mill and successfully processed the husked and screened rice stored as food, enjoying some cooked rice.
In his childhood, electric rice cookers were not widespread in rural areas.
His grandfather worked outside, and his grandmother, who couldn't read, was more accustomed to cooking rice over a fire.
Cooking rice this way isn't as simple as using an electric rice cooker.
One needs to first put cold water in the pot; when the water becomes lukewarm, then add the rice.
With the strong firewood flames, the warm water quickly approaches boiling; at this point, use a skimmer to take out the partially cooked rice to prevent it from being overcooked, then place the rice in a pot to continue steaming with the residual heat.
Typically, when the wood in the stove is fully burned, the rice is ready.
Even though it's still rice, there's a huge difference in taste and texture between rice cooked in a rice cooker and this way.
This method makes rice heavy with moisture, lacking stickiness, with distinct grains and an aromatic chewiness, enhanced by the smoky flavor of the stove, leaving a lasting impression after just one taste.
For Chen Zhou, this way of cooking rice was more than just a method.
The slightly dark, lackluster grains were like his hometown, seen by outsiders as remote and backward, shabby and broken, yet the most precious memories of his life.
Using a big iron kettle and two canned bottles, he barely completed the entire rice cooking process, and after 269 days, he finally tasted rice again.
The rice from two canned bottles was not enough for even one meal for Chen Zhou.
However, the first crop of rice had limited yield, and most of it was used as seeds for the next season; the remaining rice scarcely lasted four to five days, rarer than meat, essentially becoming a luxury item.
He dared not eat to his heart's content, frying some seal meat to accompany the rice, and while eating, he nostalgically reminisced about the taste of his grandmother's cooking.
...
On the same day, June 24th, he witnessed a dramatic farce.
By then, Ti Zi had finished her heat period, and her relationship with Xiao Huihui had greatly improved.
Xiao Huihui, shedding its usual bullied demeanor, could again freely wander into the kitchen, enjoying its beloved dried fish at will.
Around June 17th to 19th, Ti Zi likely became pregnant with Xiao Huihui's offspring, returned to her usual behavior, and continued her fierce attacks on the mice around the fields.
During these hunts, Xiao Huihui would sometimes accompany her.
Having suffered in its early years and then rescued by Chen Zhou, Xiao Huihui had lived a pampered life ever since, completely oblivious to how to hunt or the habits of mice or birds; when hunting with Ti Zi, it often spoiled the strategy, scaring away the prey.
Yet, Ti Zi didn't mind its clumsiness, always like a mother to Xiao Huihui, guiding it in tracking, learning, and practicing, sometimes even catching mice alive for Xiao Huihui to play with.
To Chen Zhou, it seemed quite like an old wife with a young husband dynamic.
On the afternoon of the 24th, Ti Zi went out, and as usual, Xiao Huihui shamelessly followed her.
At that time, Chen Zhou was weeding in the field, squatting and working until his back ached; he took a rest with his small hoe at the field's edge, just in time to see the big black cat emerge from the bushes and block the couple.
It first set its gaze on Xiao Huihui, cautiously glanced at Chen Zhou, who was spectating, and decisively commenced its attack.
For Xiao Huihui, even defeating the frail "old third cat" required considerable effort, let alone facing this more seasoned opponent, and within a few rounds, it was already on the losing side, becoming the one to flee.
Chen Zhou, extremely protective by nature, could not bear to watch his own family member being bullied, so even before he could intervene with his small hoe, Ti Zi, at Xiao Huihui's side, was already agitated.
Without announcing her attack, she directly intervened, forcefully joining the battle between the big black cat and Xiao Huihui.
Well-nourished, she was naturally heavier than the big black cat, her fighting skills on par with it.
Individually, she might slightly fall behind due to the female physique disadvantage.
However, with Xiao Huihui as a capable and resilient reinforcement, they could overpower and secure victory.