Chapter 6: White Rice Porridge

Chapter 6: White Rice Porridge

Lin Su laughed in disbelief and exasperation: "So you knew how to break the fever, and you had the herbs, but you made your brother spend money on purpose, didn’t you? Now your brother is left with only eight copper coins to his name—Happy now?"

Fu Yun blinked his lively big eyes, as if that made sense. Feeling a little guilty, he called out to Lin Su.

"Brother!"

Lin Su flicked him on the forehead and motioned for him to sprinkle the Sichuan peppercorns into the pot. Once the rich aroma of the peppercorns filled the air, he took the whole pot off the heat to cool, then poured the contents into a small bowl.

After that, using the thin layer of pork fat left at the bottom of the pot, he added water and rice, and began to simmer.

The clay pot held heat exceptionally well. In about the time it takes to drink two cups of tea, the fragrance of rice had already wafted out.

Lin Su lifted the lid to stir, and the rich rice aroma made both of them swallow instinctively. He had to use all his willpower to put the lid back on.

After another couple cups of tea, the water in the clay pot had boiled down significantly. A delicate, clear layer of fat floated on the surface of the porridge, the rice cream and pork fat blending perfectly.

The white congee was ready. A drop of liquid formed at the tip of Lin Su’s finger and fell into the porridge.

Fu Yun, completely missing that tiny detail, took the bowl of white rice porridge Lin Su handed him and started eating eagerly.

The porridge was soft and smooth on the tongue. His eyes lit up—it was savory.

A hint of confusion flickered in his eyes. Why is it salty? Brother didn't add any salt!

Seeing Fu Yun's little eyebrows scrunch up, Lin Su thought maybe it tasted bad.

Was it too salty?

That couldn’t be—after spending ten years in the apocalypse reading countless cookbooks and watching videos, his salt measurements shouldn't be that off.

He took a spoonful. The saltiness was just right, present but not overwhelming. The star was still the rich, fully bloomed white rice, bursting on the tongue to wake up the taste buds, leaving a sweet aftertaste.

This rice was amazing. Even before the end of the world, he’d never had rice with such a strong, pure flavor.

So delicious!

Fu Yun, for his part, stopped worrying and served himself another bowl, then a third, then a fourth…

Finally, scraping the bottom of the pot, he licked his lips regretfully and said, "Brother, there’s none left."

Lin Su was at a loss for words.

Was this kid a little pig? Who could afford to feed someone this much!

After the meal and the medicine, it was already pitch dark outside.

Fu Yun felt his way in the dark toward Lin Su’s pile of straw, but Lin Su grabbed him and threw him onto his own little straw bed.

"Wrong spot. Sleep in your own nest."

Lin Su lay back on his straw pile, relaxed, when he heard rustling beside him, and then a weight plopped down next to him.

He opened his eyes and irritably waved him off: "Sleep in your own nest. Don’t bother me, understand?"

Lin Su never slept with anyone. If Fu Yun lay beside him, he was afraid he’d wake up in the middle of the night and strangle him like a zombie.

He threw him back again, but as soon as he closed his eyes, the kid came crawling back, whining: "Brother… I want to be with you."

Lin Su lowered his voice sternly: "If you don’t behave, I'll leave you. Be a good boy, okay? Go back to sleep."

Fu Yun’s movements suddenly stopped, and he stayed still for a long time.

Seeing the kid had calmed down, Lin Su closed his eyes again. But the next moment, the straw pile beneath him shook hard.

Then Lin Su was hugged tightly from behind, a head burrowing into his shoulder, accompanied by a voice full of grievance and anger.

"Brother just wants to have a baby, doesn't he? He doesn't want Fu Yun anymore!"

That line jolted Lin Su wide awake.

What the hell was that about? Lin Su was utterly baffled.

Then he remembered the aunt who had said something to him earlier in the afternoon, and couldn't help laughing at how ridiculous it was.

"Who’s having a baby?" he asked.

Fu Yun snuggled closer into his shoulder, his voice muffled against his shoulder: "...Me."

Then he added: "Don't want a little baby…"

The more he spoke, the more aggrieved he became, his voice fading until it was almost inaudible.

Lin Su found it amusing and casually replied, "Alright, no baby. Your brother isn’t that beastly. I won't take advantage of you, Little Fool, so no little baby. Don’t think about such nonsense anymore."

"...Really?" Fu Yun murmured, then gradually fell silent, as if asleep.

Lin Su couldn’t be bothered to throw him back again, not wanting the Little Fool to keep tossing and turning.

But having someone behind him felt too strange—warm, yet somehow creepy. Lin Su’s apocalypse-hardened mind refused to let down its guard for a long time.

Just as he was struggling to relax, a whisper as faint as a mosquito's buzz came from behind him.

"Liar… you’re not my brother."

"You are… my husband!"

"Is it because I’ve become stupid that you don’t want me anymore… wu…"

Lin Su: "…"

It seemed that after the high fever broke, Fu Yun’s intelligence had noticeably increased. He even knew how to hide things. Before, he probably had the mind of a three-year-old. Now, at least seven or eight, maybe.

A long time later, the Little Fool behind him let out tiny snores, and the room fell silent.

-

Dim morning light streamed in from all directions through the dilapidated house, casting beams that scattered patches of light, dust dancing in the rays.

A vein suddenly bulged on Lin Su’s forehead.

He hadn’t slept all night—his state of resting with eyes closed had just been broken.

He opened his eyes and took a few seconds to confirm that the hard thing pressed against him from behind wasn’t his imagination.

Lin Su thought: Kid, you just recovered from a serious illness, and you’re this energetic first thing in the morning? Is that really okay?

Have you considered the feelings of your ‘lame’ brother?

You’re making this very awkward for me!

He got up in a huff, splashed some water on his face, and lit a fire to cook.

Although Yucheng County was to the southwest, the early winter mornings had already turned chilly, perhaps because of the year-round snow-covered mountains within its borders.

Lin Su warmed his hands near the flames, and the pain in his broken leg eased slightly.

Though he could use his superpower to keep the bone from moving out of place, he couldn't eliminate the pain from the injury or the unbearable itching during the healing process.

In the firelight, Lin Su's expression twisted for a moment before returning to normal.

He stirred the porridge in the pot nonstop to prevent it from burning, his face blank as he thought.

The food bought yesterday would last for a week or two; he might as well just hole up at home and rest for a few days.

Just gotta wait till this damn healing pain stops!

As soon as the porridge was ready, that little dummy woke up to the smell, rubbed his eyes, stared at the porridge, then looked at Lin Su with sparkling eyes.

“...”

Damn, he forgot that with this little piglet around, he probably couldn't even stretch the food for three days.

“Brother, is breakfast ready? Smells amazing!”

The little piglet had a sweet smile and a honeyed tongue.

“...Yeah, come eat.”

Crap, the little piglet was too cute; he could eat as much as he wanted—if it wasn't enough, Lin Su would just cook up more!

After the meal, Lin Su lay on a pile of straw to rest.

Fu Yun had recovered a lot and couldn't sit still; after washing the dishes and downing his medicine, he paced around the house.

Rustling, clinking, the broken door creaked open and shut.

Lin Su let it all become background noise, basking in the sunlight streaming through the roof's gaps, dozing off lazily.

When he opened his eyes again, the dilapidated house had completely changed.