Free Web NovelChapter 657: Chapter 618: Having Both the Fish and the Bear’s Paw
While the three women were choosing their favorite foods and starting to cook, Zhao Rong went over and selected some bear meat.
Munching on a bear paw, Zhao Rong laughed and said to everyone, "I never expected to be eating bear paws in a place like the Arctic..."
When Xuelian saw Zhao Rong eating a bear paw, she brought over the cod she had cooked. Placing it in front of him, she urged, "Brother Zhao Rong, try some of the cod I made. The flavor is amazing; it’s sure to make you drool."
Holding a bear paw in his left hand and the cod in his right, Zhao Rong took a bite of each in turn. "Who says you can’t have both fish and bear paws?" he said as he ate. "Look at me, I’m enjoying both right now, aren’t I?" With that, Zhao Rong began to enthusiastically devour the bear paw and deep-sea cod.
The assistant, who was eating an Alaskan king crab, saw that the three women and Zhao Rong were eating even better than he was. He immediately sidled over and said with a slimy grin, "Brother Zhao Rong, I’ll give you a taste of my Alaskan king crab if you let me have a bite of your bear paw..."
Zhao Rong immediately refused him. "I already have both fish and bear paws. Why would I want any Alaskan king crab? Go on, get lost and cool off somewhere."
The assistant then approached Lili with a smile. "Miss Lili, if I give you a piece of my Alaskan king crab, could I have a little of the Arctic abalone you made?"
Lili rejected him without a second thought. "Compared to your Alaskan king crab, my Arctic abalone is tastier, more valuable, and far more mouth-watering."
Next, the assistant approached Yu Lan, who was cooking Arctic krill. Practically drooling, he said, "Yu Lan, the krill you’re cooking can’t possibly be tastier than my Alaskan king crab. How about this? You give me 100 krill, and I’ll give you one of my crab claws. We can trade. What do you say?"
Before the assistant could finish, Yu Lan lifted the lid of her pot, pointing to the Alaskan king crab and Arctic krill cooking inside. "Are you blind, Assistant? Can’t you see I’m cooking Alaskan king crab and krill myself? Since I already have my own crab, why on earth would I trade 100 of my krill for just one of your claws? What a terrible deal! You crafty, scheming opportunist! Scram and stop trying to leech off me!"
Rejected by Yu Lan, the assistant shamelessly approached Xuelian. Watching her cook the cod, he pleaded while drooling, "Xuelian, please, just give me a piece of your deep-sea cod. I’ve eaten so much Alaskan king crab that I’m getting a little sick of it..."
Before he could finish speaking, Xuelian pointedly took a bite of the cod she was holding and said, "Don’t you know, Assistant? I already ate an Alaskan king crab."
Hearing this, the assistant blinked. He looked down at the discarded crab shells on the ground and asked in astonishment, "Xuelian, who gave you an Alaskan king crab?"
Xuelian glared at him and pointed to Zhao Rong. "Didn’t you see that Brother Zhao Rong cooked all of this food?"
Indeed, Zhao Rong was not only eating bear paw and cod but had also cooked all the various dishes, sharing them generously with the three women.
Once everyone had eaten their fill, they continued on their journey. They journeyed over mountains and across rivers, covering a remarkable 1,000 kilometers in a single day.
As darkness descended, the Eskimos immediately began to build snow houses.
Zhao Rong and his group of four companions disembarked from the dog sleds. Standing in the vast, snowy landscape, they shivered from the intense cold. "Finding shelter for the night in this frozen wasteland is a huge problem," one of them remarked.
Feeling drowsy, the assistant yawned. "I’m so sleepy... Are we really going to sleep in a snow house built by the Eskimos tonight?"
Zhao Rong stepped forward to help the Eskimos build the snow house. "In a frozen environment like this, a snow house is the best shelter there is," he said. "The alternative is to stay out here in the ice and snow and wait to die."
Hearing Zhao Rong’s words, Lili, Yu Lan, and Xuelian also stepped forward to help the Eskimos with the construction. In no time at all, a small shelter was complete.
The Eskimo Chieftain stepped forward and pointed to the newly erected snow house. "Friends from afar," he said to Zhao Rong’s group, "your home is ready. You won’t feel the cold at all if you stay inside tonight."
Zhao Rong thanked them gratefully. "Thank you so much for building this for us while enduring the freezing cold and hunger."
Lili also gave the Eskimos a thumbs-up for the house they built. "You Eskimos are an incredible people," she praised. "To have invented such a simple yet effective shelter in this frozen land is amazing."
As Yu Lan crawled into the snow house, she laughed. "I never expected a house made of ice and snow to be so warm inside!"
Xuelian followed her inside. "I really can’t believe a house made of ice and snow can provide so much warmth," she said with a contented sigh.
Zhao Rong crawled in next. Sitting inside and looking at the walls of ice, he laughed. "This isn’t bad at all. The thought of spending the night in here is pretty incredible."
When the assistant saw everyone else crawl into the snow house, he squeezed in after them. But as soon as he was inside, the cramped space made him complain. "What the heck? This snow house the Eskimos built is way too small! How are all five of us supposed to sleep in here?"
Lili shot him a dirty look. "In this frozen wasteland, you should be grateful we have a place to sleep at all! Stop being so picky, you idiot."
Yu Lan chimed in with her own criticism. "If you’re not satisfied with this shelter, Assistant, feel free to go sleep outside in the minus-40-degree open snow. I’m sure you won’t freeze to death."
Xuelian added, "Assistant, if you think this place is too small, you can always rely on yourself. Go build your own snow house and sleep in it alone. No one will bother you. Wouldn’t that be better?"
