In a chaotic world of infrastructure development, a woman's path to survival after being reborn

Completely unaware of the Pei family's thoughts, Zhao Zexuan was currently telling Su Li about his day's gains.

"We were lucky today. On the way back, we encountered a herd of deer and caught them all in one go," Zhao Zexuan said happily.

Looking at the deer that had just died but was still somewhat alive, Su Li was also very happy and said, "Everyone will have meat to eat again. Let's cook two of the deer and make the rest into meat floss like last time."

Zhao Zexuan had no objection and said, "You can make the decision."

Su Li nodded, then thought for a moment and said, "Can I go for a walk with you outside the mountain tomorrow? I know quite a few plants, and maybe we'll find something unexpected."

Su Li had discovered so many wonderful things on the mountain these past two days that she was really looking forward to it, thinking that exploring further might bring some surprises.

Under normal circumstances, Zhao Zexuan would not interfere with Su Li's decision. However, he was worried about Su Li's health and wondered if she could handle it, since going for a walk in the mountains was quite physically demanding.

"Can your body handle it?" Zhao Zexuan asked.

Upon hearing this, Su Li naturally nodded and said, "Of course, I consulted Doctor Liu, and he said that as long as I don't make any strenuous movements, there won't be any problems."

Since Su Li had said so, Zhao Zexuan naturally wouldn't refuse anymore, so he nodded and said, "Then you can set off with us tomorrow. You can wander around the area, and I'll have Mo Bei accompany you."

Su Li was already very satisfied with being able to go out, so she nodded and said, "Okay."

……

Everyone was happy to be able to eat meat that night. For a moment, the people in the camp were quite excited. Some of the women with good cooking skills couldn't help but rub their hands together and look at the prey in front of them, wishing they could immediately show off their skills.

Seeing the eagerness of the women in the group, Su Li couldn't help but smile and say, "Tonight, we'll see how the women cook. How about we put some salt in the meat and vegetables tonight, so everyone can taste the salt?"

Upon hearing this, the others in the crowd couldn't help but chime in, "Yes, yes, we also want to try what fine salt tastes like."

With Su Li speaking up, and others echoing her sentiments, the aunties in charge of cooking naturally wouldn't refuse. In fact, they were also very curious about what the salt on the fruit tasted like.

In the past, this would have been dinner time, but today there was meat to eat, so it was a little later. In order not to waste too much time, the aunties started to get busy.

In this era, the vast majority of meat is cooked by boiling or steaming, and very few people stir-fry it. So this time was no different, and the cooking method chosen was boiling. A large pot of meat was cooked, but with so many people in the group, each person probably couldn't get more than two pieces.

Su Li is a good cook, but she doesn't have a chance to show off her skills right now, so she can only stand aside and watch like everyone else.

Watching the prey being cut into very small pieces and then blanched and boiled, with no other seasonings added except for salt, Su Li couldn't help but realize, "Is this how the meat is supposed to be eaten? Wouldn't that be too fishy?"

Once Su Li realized this possibility, she looked around at the others who were also staring at the pot. Seeing that they showed no surprise, she knew that her guess was correct.

People in this era rarely ate meat, so they naturally didn't care about its taste. Being able to eat meat was already a great privilege, so they wouldn't think of adding anything to make it more delicious.

Others might not care too much about whether the meat has a fishy smell, but Su Li does. Although she often goes to her space to find something to fill her stomach, it's mostly rice and noodles, and rarely meat. How could she possibly eat meat poorly when she finally gets a meal?

Looking at the boiling pot, something popped into Su Li's mind that could be used as a seasoning.

Seeing the steam rising from the large pot, Su Li couldn't stand it any longer. She quickly got up and grabbed a few processed hydrochloric acid fruits, handing them to the aunties who were cooking. She said, "Aunties, try cutting these fruits into pieces and cooking them with the meat. It will taste much better."

Looking at the fruit being stuffed into her hand, Aunt Liu said with some confusion and disbelief, "Can this thing be cooked with meat? Without salt, this fruit will only be sour. Won't the meat turn sour too?"

Upon hearing this, Su Li shook her head and said, "No, Aunt Liu, don't worry. This fruit won't taste sour when cooked with the meat. In fact, it will make the meat taste even better."

Su Li was always right, so Aunt Liu and the others had no more doubts. They quickly cut the fruit into several pieces and cooked them together with the meat.

Stewing meat naturally takes longer, so in no time, the aroma of the meat spread throughout the camp, stirring up the gurgling sounds in everyone's stomachs.

The Pei family members sat in a corner of the camp and also smelled the aroma, but they were all silent this time because they knew that there would be no meat for them tonight.

"Father, what should we do next? We're running out of food!" Pei Dalang said anxiously.

Upon hearing this, Old Master Pei, the head of the Pei family, asked, "What do you want? What do you want to do?"

Upon hearing this, Pei Dalang immediately replied, "Of course we should find a way. Since we can't leave alone, let's join them. They would be happy to have so many of us."

Upon hearing this, Old Master Pei shook his head in disappointment and said, "No, they won't be very happy. In their eyes, we are a burden."

Pei Dalang asked in bewilderment, "How could you be a burden? We have quite a few experts among us."

"That also has many drawbacks. Can you fight on the front lines or go with the others to find food?" Old Master Pei said directly.

Upon hearing this, Pei Dalang said somewhat guiltily, "Don't we already have so many experts? Joining them and being at their beck and call is enough!"

Hearing this, Old Master Pei became even more disappointed and shook his head, saying, "You want to be someone who does nothing but eat? Haven't you noticed these past few days that none of these people have been idle?"

Could Pei Dalang say that he noticed it, but didn't want to put himself in that shoes at all, and never thought that he would do those things himself?

Pei Dalang, of course, dared not speak, so he remained silent.

Old Master Pei had a longer-term vision than anyone else in the Pei family. He naturally understood the Pei family's current predicament, which is why he had remained silent. He was thinking about what to do, and he also wanted his family to understand what choices they needed to make.

……

The fire was burning brightly, and the meat in the pot was cooked quickly. The aroma of the meat in the air made many people swallow hard and their eyes couldn't help but glance at the pot.

Meat tastes best when it's stewed until it's very tender, so after opening the pot lid, Aunt Liu poked at the meat with her chopsticks to make sure it was soft before smiling and saying, "Alright, you can start eating now."