Dandelion Beef Sauce Noodles

Lin Ye thought for a moment, then said, "Follow me."

Lin Ye took two lunchboxes and led Xing to the riverbank. Early this morning, when she was washing clothes by the river, she had noticed a large patch of lush dandelions growing there.

Dandelion, as it was commonly called, had a sweet and slightly bitter taste. It possessed properties that cleared heat, detoxified, reduced swelling, and dissipated nodules. It could be eaten raw, stir-fried, or cooked in soup. It was a plant with many medicinal benefits.

Lin Ye led Xing to dig up a very large dandelion root. Xing did not understand why Lin Ye wanted to dig up a wild weed. Watching her back as she stood by the river washing the grass, Xing could not help but think: *Could she be planning to feed me wild weeds?* Although their tribe would dig up wild vegetables when food was scarce, that did not mean they liked eating tasteless wild greens, especially since what Lin Ye dug up was a common weed found by the roadside, not even a proper wild vegetable.

In her heart, Xing was extremely resistant to eating wild weeds.

After washing the dandelions, Lin Ye returned with the two lunchboxes filled with water. Xing's mind was in a tangle; if they were using these boxes to hold wild weeds to eat, she might force herself to take a few bites.

The newly built stove had not yet dried completely under the natural sun and wind. Thus, Lin Ye lit a fire next to it to dry the stove. Once the stove was dry, it could be used.

Lin Ye lit the fire inside the stove first, then placed the two water-filled lunchboxes on top of it.

Xing kept watching her movements. So this thing called a "stove" had such a use. Their tribe usually just piled stones directly, but they collapsed easily and were inefficient. Lin Ye's stove was not very difficult to build; when she returned, she would try making one too.

After watching for a long time, Xing finally could not help but ask hesitantly, "Lin Ye, are we really going to eat this weed? I still have some meat at home. How about I bring it over so we can eat together?"

Lin Ye picked up a dandelion stalk and smiled at her, "This isn't a weed. It's called dandelion, and it's an edible wild vegetable."

She then explained the benefits of dandelions to Xing, causing Xing's eyes to widen in amazement. So this wild weed was actually edible, and it had so many benefits!

But to her, even if dandelions were wild vegetables, how was the taste of wild vegetables any different from weeds?

Once the water boiled, Lin Ye opened a pack of dried noodles. Losing a pack of noodles all at once made her feel a bit pained. Despite her heartache, she did not hesitate to share it with Xing. After all, her food supply was very limited; no matter how much she scrimped, it would never last her a lifetime. Therefore, finding new food sources was the most important task.

She divided the noodles and dandelions into the two lunchboxes. Once the noodles and dandelions were cooked, she poured out more than half of the water.

She sprinkled a bit of salt into the lunchboxes, then took out the beef sauce and poured it over the noodles. After stirring it well with chopsticks, it was ready to eat. A fresh and delicious dish of dandelion beef sauce noodles was ready.

With simple conditions and a lack of spices, this was the best she could do.

Lin Ye felt the noodles were quite ordinary, but Xing did not think so.

Xing kept inhaling the aroma from the noodles. It was incredibly fragrant!

At first, she had seen Lin Ye drop a long, straight thing into the box. After soaking in water for a bit, it became soft, and then she added something else. That aroma instantly conquered Xing completely. She had never smelled anything so fragrant in her entire life! Her stomach had been growling for a long time.

Lin Ye took the lunchboxes off the stove and handed Xing a pair of chopsticks. "It's ready to eat. Hurry and eat."

Suddenly she remembered something, paused, and asked, "Do you know how to use chopsticks?"

Were these two small wooden sticks called chopsticks? She had seen Lin Ye use them just now and did not think it looked difficult, so she said, "Of course I know how to use them!"

Seeing her speak so confidently, Lin Ye did not doubt her.

Xing took the chopsticks and saw Lin Ye use the two small sticks to pick up the food called "noodles" and eat. She copied her movements to pick up the noodles. But while Lin Ye did it with ease, when it was her turn, her hands refused to cooperate, and she could not pick up the noodles at all. Even when she managed to lift them, they fell back down before she could bring them to her mouth.

Seeing it but being unable to eat it was truly driving her mad!

In a huff, Xing simply gave up on the chopsticks and wanted to use her hands directly. However, the noodles were still quite hot, making her cry out in pain. Even so, she did not forget to lick the soup clean from her fingers.

Mmm, it was truly too delicious!

Xing's commotion finally caught the attention of Lin Ye, who was buried in her meal. She saw Xing holding the chopsticks in both hands, staring furiously at the lunchbox, the noodles inside still untouched.

Suppressing a laugh, she said to Xing, "Actually, chopsticks can also be used like this." She demonstrated for Xing, using the chopsticks to grab the noodles first, then twisting them a few times so the noodles wrapped neatly around the sticks.

Back when she was in the countryside, young children who were just learning to use chopsticks often ate noodles this way.

Sure enough, applying Lin Ye's method, Xing was finally able to eat the noodles!

How should she describe this taste? The noodles were thin and smooth, sliding delightfully into her mouth with a chewy texture. She had never eaten anything with such a flavor before. The soup was perfectly savory; with one sip, her tongue warmed up slightly—a flavor that made one want to eat more and more.

In the end, she drank every last drop of the soup, leaving nothing behind.

Having eaten such a delicious meal from Lin Ye, Xing felt very embarrassed. Thus, she helped Lin Ye gather firewood for the entire afternoon, a quantity that would probably last for four or five days.

After Xing left, Lin Ye neatly stacked the firewood next to the cave. Then, she went into the cave to rest, carrying a bundle of palm leaves she had plucked while organizing the wood.

The palm tree was a plant with great economic potential. Its bark could be used to make ropes, palm mattresses, palm raincoats, and so on. Young leaves could be used to weave hats, fans, baskets, and bags of various kinds; its uses were incredibly diverse. There was an agricultural proverb that said: "With a thousand palm trees at home, generations will not suffer."

Lin Ye had not expected to find palm trees here, so she had plucked a few palm leaves to bring back. Thinking that she had nothing to do now, she decided to use the palm leaves to weave a small basket. In the future, having something to hold things would be more convenient.

In the past, she had watched an online blogger use palm leaves to weave a basket. Finding it interesting, she had followed the video and successfully woven a few small baskets.