Apocalypse: Last Traveler

The west of Tongzhou County and the east are almost the same scenery.

After leaving Tongzhou County, Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei drove all the way until they finally encountered a river just before dusk.

A gentle stream less than a meter wide.

When the two got out of the car to replenish their water, Yao Wei looked into the stream for a long time, then withdrew her gaze somewhat disappointed.

"What's wrong?"

Lu Xi'an asked.

"No shrimp..."

Yao Wei replied, her tone somewhat wistful.

Lu Xi'an noticed that this woman was still reminiscing about the small stir-fried shrimp outside Jiang Yu.

He couldn't help but smile and said, "We have fish and meat now, why miss the shrimp?"

"But I just want to eat it."

Yao Wei answered. She was straightforward, expressing whatever she thought.

That meal of small stir-fried shrimp with rice, although a bit dry and needed to be eaten with water, left a great impression on Yao Wei, making her want to experience it again.

Lu Xi'an said, "If we have the chance in the future, we'll eat it again. We're heading south, the weather should get better, right? We might come across some shrimp occasionally."

"Hmm."

Yao Wei nodded.

Lu Xi'an made this statement based on his feelings moving from north to south.

But Yao Wei had really been to the south before; she was merely retracing her steps. Thus, she still had impressions of the further southern areas.

"So what should we eat this time?"

After putting the filled water bottles back in the car, Lu Xi'an pointed to the fish and the dog carcass in the car and asked, "Fish or dog meat?"

Yao Wei looked at the fish in the pot and then the dog meat, unable to decide for a moment.

Lu Xi'an thought for a bit and said, "Let's eat the fish first. Mengxin's environment is quite suitable for making dried meat, we can process the dog meat together, and try to see if we can make it."

"That way, we can preserve the meat for a while and don't have to finish it all at once."

"Okay."

Yao Wei nodded, thinking that things like this indeed relied on Lu Xi'an. This guy always knew things she didn't and offered different suggestions.

However, Lu Xi'an immediately added, "But let's agree beforehand, I don't really know the exact steps to make dried meat, I'll just try as much as possible. Don't blame me if it doesn't work out."

"Hmm, I won't blame you."

Yao Wei smiled gently and said.

She felt that Lu Xi'an's disclaimer was quite unnecessary. If the conditions weren't suitable and they lost preserved food, it wouldn't be the first time she'd encountered this; it was normal, and she wouldn't blame anyone.

But for some reason, when she heard Lu Xi'an saying this, she just felt like smiling.

"Then you handle the fish, I'll handle the dog meat."

Lu Xi'an then assigned tasks for the two of them, and they both got busy with their respective tasks.

Yao Wei took the fish out of the pot, scraped off the scales and removed the guts, dug out the gills, and then roasted it over the fire.

It was her only specialty, along the way, whatever meat they got was roasted, which is why she fondly remembered Lu Xi'an's small stir-fried shrimp.

——That was the first stir-fried dish she had ever eaten.

In fact, when she roasted fish in the beginning, she didn't even know to remove the gills, which resulted in the fish meat always having a bitter taste. It was only through repeated experiences that she figured out this step.

Lu Xi'an, on the other hand, took out a blade, and with effort, skinned and cleaned the dog meat, cutting it into long strips, removing the tendons and membranes, and washing it clean with stream water.

He only remembered that in his past life, the dried meat he had eaten came in long strips, so lacking experience, he attempted to make it according to the shape in his memory.

His idea was to try as best as he could; if it worked out, they'd have preserved food, if not, they could just grill or boil and eat it in the next couple of days.

In any case, nothing should be wasted.

"Here, the salt."

Lu Xi'an handed the salt to Yao Wei.

This pack of salt was opened at the Tan Village Shelter.

At the time, the small bag of salt Lu Xi'an brought had run out at the shelter, so they opened a new pack, which tasted much better than what Lu Xi'an had found elsewhere.

The newly opened salt pack was barely used, so they didn't want to waste it and brought it along from the shelter.

A pack of salt doesn't take up much space, so when they left, they took as many as five packs, plus the open one, totaling five and a half packs.

With sufficient supplies, they naturally didn't need to be overly frugal at this time.

Though Yao Wei was accustomed to saving, on the roasted fish, she applied a bit of it to the prepared fish, but not too much.

In comparison, Lu Xi'an used relatively more.

After Yao Wei finished using it, Lu Xi'an evenly rubbed salt on the meat strips, giving the dog meat strips a thorough massage, completing the marinating step, then hung each strip on the car's iron window mesh.

Yao Wei watched Lu Xi'an's actions with some curiosity but didn't ask.

She felt that since Lu Xi'an knew so much, what he was doing must be right.

However, Lu Xi'an took the initiative to explain to Yao Wei, saying, "The wind is strong in Mengxin, tonight I'll try to see if it can naturally air-dry."

Without professional knowledge, Lu Xi'an could only rely on these makeshift ideas he thought of.

"Hmm."

Yao Wei nodded, although a bit worried that the salted meat strips might attract bugs, she still firmly believed in Lu Xi'an.

"What do you think is happening in Tongzhou County now?"

While hanging the meat strips, Lu Xi'an asked.

Yao Wei thought for a moment and said, "It should have erupted into conflict."

"Really?"

Lu Xi'an looked in the direction of Tongzhou County. They had traveled too far, and the abandoned city was no longer in sight.

He didn't continue with this topic, casually mentioning it.

Apart from the seized arrows, dog meat, and refueled gasoline, that place was already none of their concern.

"It's done."

After a while, Yao Wei finished roasting the fish and handed Lu Xi'an a portion.

Lu Xi'an had also hung meat strips on the back seat and the car's rear window mesh. Even the door handles and roof rack were covered.

From a distance, the car looked quite unique, as if it was straight out of a bizarre movie.

He took the roasted fish from Yao Wei's hand and asked her, "Do you think our dried meat will turn out well?"

Yao Wei said, "It will."

Lu Xi'an: "..."

This woman spoke with more certainty than he did.

The two extinguished the fire, returned the leftover dry wood to the car, and then sat quietly by the stream, chewing on the roasted fish.

And indeed, this time the roasted fish tasted much better than the last time they roasted pork.

After all, their salt reserve was indeed sufficient; Yao Wei used more now than when they roasted pork before, despite trying to be economical.

Lu Xi'an carefully tasted the fish, spat out a fishbone, and said with a smile, "The taste is excellent."

"Hmm."

Yao Wei ate her fish silently and gave a muffled "Hmm," but inexplicably felt a little happy inside.

Night had fallen, and the nights in Mengxin were different from other places. The night sky was exceptionally deep, giving the starlit sky a strong sense of depth.

The two of them soaked in the night, eating the roasted fish, looking forward to another harvest tomorrow.

——A harvest concerning the dried meat strips.