I woke up to find myself transmigrated into a disabled child.

Chapter 101 Let's Have Hot Pot

The numbing and spicy aroma was carried by the evening breeze throughout the camp. The tribespeople, who had previously relied mainly on raw ingredients for their food, had never experienced such a flavor before. At first, everyone was not used to it, and sneezing echoed throughout the camp.

The tribesmen who had come out of curiosity to watch all quickly moved away from the source of this biological weapon. Even Leyou, who was closest to Lezhi, did not stay away for long. He ran away with tears streaming down his face, staring in terror at the pot in front of Lezhi, not daring to approach.

Even the fur ball that had been clinging to Lezhi's head had to abandon Lezhi and quickly retreat with the crowd.

Everyone else could run, but Chef Lezhi couldn't. Fortunately, he had the foresight to choose a position upwind from the beginning, and he had already held his breath when he started adding the ingredients, so he's in good condition now.

With the spatula in her hand constantly stirring the ingredients in the pot, the next task was rather arduous and tedious, all physical labor, which was a considerable burden on Lezhi's recent physical condition. Before long, Lezhi's forehead began to sweat, and her breathing became somewhat rapid.

Just as she was about to switch hands again, Lei Xiu, who had disappeared for a while, came to Le Zhi's side, took the spatula from Le Zhi's hand, and took over Le Zhi's work.

"Zhizhi, go over there and rest for a bit. All you need to do next is stir-fry, right? I'll help you."

"Phew, Lei Xiu, oh right, just stir-fry it, and add the other seasonings when it's almost cooked."

Raising her hand to wipe the sweat from her forehead, Lezhi shook her slightly sore arms and watched Lei Xiu stir-fry the base ingredients with a blank expression. His movements seemed to be in sync with a metronome, quite rhythmic.

After observing for a while and confirming that Lei Xiu was capable of handling the following tasks, Le Zhi then walked towards Le You, who was still watching from a distance.

"Lezhi, what did you just make? It smells a bit scary~" Leyou's voice trembled, showing that she was indeed quite stimulated by the smell.

She pursed her lips and smiled secretly. "That's the broth for spicy hot pot. It's like this when you add Sichuan peppercorns. You'll see when you eat it later. It has a very unique flavor."

"Okay... then!" Le You looked at Le Zhi with some skepticism, then straightened up.

At this moment, Leshan, who had been drawn by the smell to check the situation, also walked over. Looking at the tribesmen who were gradually dispersing, he jokingly asked, "What is Lezhi doing now? That smell has even reached my area."

When Leshan came to ask, Leyou mumbled an explanation to him, emphasizing the power of the newly found Sichuan pepper fruit.

"Oh, I just found it in the woods." Leshan nodded knowingly, waiting for Leyou to continue, who clearly had more to say.

Unaware that he had been seen through, Le You quickly nodded. "Yes, yes, it was Le Ting who discovered it. We were just thinking of going out again before leaving here. Le Ting only collected a little bit of Sichuan pepper fruit, and we wanted to collect more, since we don't think we've ever found this in Yunmeng Forest before." With his true intentions revealed, Le You finally told everyone what he was planning.

"No." Leshan refused outright, as expected. "You absolutely cannot act on your own. Since it's here, it means the Windwalker Clan should be able to find it too. If you really want it, you can always wait until the Hunting Tournament starts and trade with someone at the trade fair."

Leyou puffed out his cheeks, somewhat unconvinced, but unable to defy Leshan's decision. When traveling, Leshan's decisions were the team's guiding principle, and no argument was allowed.

Lezhi, who had initially held a sliver of hope, had now completely given up. However, he wasn't too disappointed. Leshan was right; they were now in the territory of the Windwalker Clan. If they wanted the Sichuan pepper fruit, there would be plenty of opportunities later. Besides, he had just specifically asked Leyou to collect all the Sichuan pepper fruit seeds and store them separately. If necessary, he could just grow them himself later.

“Leyou, I think Uncle Leshan makes sense. We were planning to set up a stall anyway, so we can just let people exchange Sichuan peppercorns for food. I’m sure there will be people who would come specifically to find Sichuan peppercorns for food.”

Lezhi squeezed Leyou's arm to comfort him. He could understand Leyou's resentment. It was indeed frustrating to miss someone you were so close to.

However, one cannot only consider individuals within a group. As a manager, Uncle Leshan cannot set this precedent for them.

Seeing that Leyou's attitude had gradually softened, and knowing that he had taken Lezhi's words to heart, Leshan nodded in satisfaction. "Alright, you guys go and cook. I just came to check on things. If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving."

"Hey, wait a minute." Lezhi called out to Leshan, "Uncle Leshan, you and the guards have been busy for so long, haven't you had time to eat yet? I have a lot of base ingredients in my pot. If you don't mind, please come and have a taste with the guards when you have time later."

"Ah, isn't this too much trouble?" Although he said this, Leshan's obvious pause in his steps revealed that he didn't mean it.

“The most troublesome part of hot pot is frying the broth. The rest is just washing and chopping the ingredients and cooking them. It’s very simple and not troublesome at all.” With a slight smile, Lezhi noticed Leshan’s interest and quickly tugged at Leyou beside her, asking him to persuade her, “Leyou, don’t you think so?”

"Ah, um, yes, yes." Coming back to her senses from her annoyance, Leyou quickly replied at Lezhi's prompting, "If everyone feels embarrassed, just tell them that we'll provide the hot pot base, and they can bring their own ingredients. That way, it won't be considered freeloading."

"Alright, I'll go back and inform those guys now. I'll be bothering you for a while." Seeing that Lezhi and Leyou were genuinely inviting him, Leshan stopped refusing.

The tribesmen who had been lingering nearby overheard their conversation. Their eyes darted around, and they quickly asked, "Leyou, can we join too? We can provide our own ingredients, okay? Is that alright?"

As soon as he said that, everyone around fell silent, waiting for Leyou's answer. Leyou, who was at the center of the incident, exchanged a glance with Lezhi. Seeing the affirmation in Lezhi's eyes, Leyou answered loudly and cheerfully, "Sure, anyone who wants to try is welcome. We have plenty of broth."

"Great……"

Leyou's voice echoed throughout the campsite, like a drop of water thrown into a boiling oil pan, instantly creating ripples.

The tribespeople, who had been eagerly anticipating the event, immediately cheered. Lezhi, who was used to the frequent large gatherings within the tribe, was also infected by the tribespeople's excitement, and a smile spread across his face.

After saying goodbye to Leshan, Lezhi and Leyou returned to the fire pit. Thanks to Leixiu's steadfastness, the broth in the pot had already emitted the unique aroma of a spicy hot pot. Lezhi looked at the color of the flaming herbs and Sichuan peppercorns, calculated the time, and estimated that it was about time. So she added the other seasonings to the pot, stirred them well, and simmered it for a while longer before it was ready.

The rest of the team already knew they were going to provide the hot pot base for their gathering, and they all stepped forward to help.

The moon was already high in the sky, but the camp, which was glittering with fire, was unusually lively. A lively gathering successfully dispelled the shadow left in the hearts of the tribesmen by the previous insect attack.