He was personally in the kitchen braising meat; the minced meat couldn’t be done with a grinder because it would be too fine and unsuitable. Instead, it was chopped with two knives, making the pieces slightly larger and not compressed, resulting in a better texture when eaten.

After chopping the meat, he fried some spice oil over a low flame, allowing the aroma of the spices to fully meld into the oil.

He then started braising the meat with the spice oil. This wasn’t particularly difficult, but it was time-consuming and labor-intensive.

He stood in front of the stove, constantly stirring the pot so that the meat was evenly heated, braising it slowly over medium-low heat. Only when the oil became clear did he add the chopped compound sauces.

After a couple of hours of fussing, he finally had a pot of braised meat. This meat was delicious with noodles or buns, best accompanied by lotus-leaf pancakes. The meat and bun portions weren’t vast, but just right, allowing you to savor other flavors while eating. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Wen Yan was cooking personally, and the whole family was watching. Sparrow Cat was the most shameless, dragging a plastic stool over, lying there watching, and asking now and then, "Is it ready to eat yet?"

Little Zombie, Shishi, and the steward couldn’t eat, but they still buzzed around, passing by the kitchen from time to time.

When Wen Yan mentioned needing lotus-leaf pancakes, the steward immediately came to the kitchen, claiming to be an expert at this, and promptly started kneading and proofing the dough to steam the pancakes.

By the time Chen Qimo got back from school, the rich, oily aroma of the meat had already filled the living room.

As for why they didn’t turn on the range hood, Sparrow Cat said, "Others can’t eat it, and now you’re not even letting them smell it, huh?"

Wen Yan divided the large pot of meat, sending some to Pei Tugou’s Home and some to Xiao Wu’s Home.

He took the steamed lotus-leaf pancakes from the steward, stuffed them with meat, placed them on plates, and then ladled a few bowls of convenient eight-treasure porridge, bringing it to the basement to place in front of a tablet.

Finally, he placed a plate in front of the nameless tablet, sucked on his fingers stained with red oil, and felt a bit hungry again.

"As we agreed, I took two days off after coming back and made this for you. Come try my cooking.

I won’t claim it’s exceptional, but for something that’s not too difficult, just time-consuming, I think I’m reasonably skilled at it."

Wen Yan lit incense, paid respects to those below, and then came to the living room on the first floor to start the afternoon meal.

As usual, there was a little of everything to eat: noodles, rice, Yang Energy food, something fragrant, something fiery...

A regular meal, yet everyone ate with great joy; even Chen Qimo had three lotus-leaf pancakes stuffed with meat.

At the same time, in the village of Xiao Xiang County, the villagers were equally happy.

It wasn’t just about the previous celebrations; they could now relocate, without fearing when a curse might suddenly hit them upon leaving.

The Scorching Sun Department had coordinated with local government, and there were always allocated houses in the nearby small town for such a village.

When they moved, the children could seamlessly enter the schools there.

The villagers moved slowly, a bit behind modern times, but they weren’t foolish. They knew what was better for them.

All the enrollment procedures for the students were completed, and the progress of studies was considered, allowing for suitable placement in higher or lower grades.

The students might not understand everything, only knowing they had some time off and would soon go study in the city, where everyone would have the chance to become a college student like Big Sister Ye and work for the government.

Some of the older villagers were reluctant to leave the chickens, ducks, and pigs raised here. Even though they were told they could choose to live in town or in a suburb village after leaving the mountains, they still hesitated.

Yet, they couldn’t help but smile, as the elders described it as a justified year-long smile, something the Ye Clan had not experienced in two thousand years.

So, when they saw Brother Ye with a neck brace, someone would laugh every time they saw it.

As night fell, the villagers gradually went to sleep.

In the mountains, a trekking team was advancing deeper into the unpaved area.

By nightfall, they began searching for a suitable site to camp. Once everyone was asleep, a person emerged from one of the tents.

The man took off his glasses and mask, revealing a face with a strange smile that didn’t touch his eyes.

He had been waiting for several days, wandering around nearby cities. Only after confirming that the Scorching Sun Department’s main force had left did he enter this area.

He knew they had left because the area had been previously sealed off. Hikers, among others, were kept out.

Today, it was open again.

He quietly entered the mountains, possessed in someone’s body.

As he moved through the mountains, he quickly reached his planned location. From the mountain top, he took out a telescope, precisely viewing what he intended to see.

He saw a wide flat land in the valley, noting some residues left behind.

In some areas, the plants were withered, yet around them, lush greenery remained.

The traces of camp setup and equipment usage were visible, leaving quite a mark.