Chapter 374: Chapter 374: Jiang Dog
No wonder Taylor Vance said Ethan Dawson would never betray them. His identity was sensitive, so to avoid being hunted by the base, he had to hide carefully. He was even less likely to stir up trouble.
Evelyn Ford felt much more at ease about Ethan Dawson and was willing to cooperate with him.
On the tenth day of the temperature drop, a sudden, heavy snowstorm at two in the morning woke everyone on the farm.
Ronan Kendrick glanced at the heavy snow falling outside the window and added some firewood to the heated brick bed. Just as he lay down, Evelyn slid into his arms.
"Is it snowing?"
Ronan hummed in agreement.
"It’s snowing hard. I bet by morning, the snow outside will be deep enough to build a snowman."
Evelyn rested her head in the crook of his shoulder. "It’s snowing again. I hate snow now. If we have another five years of this extreme cold, I’ll be old by the time we see a warm sun again."
"Getting old?"
Evelyn nodded. "Yeah. Getting white hair, moving slowly, a face full of wrinkles, a hunched back, plagued by illness."
Ronan was silent for a long time. Evelyn thought he might not grasp the concept of aging, or perhaps he was afraid of facing his own decline. She smiled, about to lighten the mood, when Ronan flipped over and pinned her underneath him.
"Wh-what are you doing?"
Ronan watched her quietly. "I feel like not a single moment with you can be wasted."
’Wait a minute...’
’Is that how you’re supposed to use the phrase "can’t be wasted"? Evelyn had thought he was going to say that in his heart, she would never grow old. This guy’s train of thought was truly something else.’
Just as Evelyn was about to protest, he silenced her with a kiss.
She tried to escape, but he caught her by the foot and pulled her back.
"Ronan, are you a dog?"
"If that’s what you like, I can be."
"Help me."
"Begging me might work. Focus. Don’t close your eyes. Look at me."
"Eee~"
——
Snow swirled wildly outside the cabin. Evelyn pulled out her pocket watch and glanced at it—it was twelve noon, and her stomach was growling. She yawned and climbed laboriously off the heated brick bed. Ronan wasn’t in the cabin. Wendy and Ian Yates were building a snowman outside, Quincy’s radio was playing a song, and the fireplace was full of wood.
Evelyn slumped down in front of the fireplace and let Mina and the others out.
She could hear other people talking outside. Paul Pence and Austin Moss had gone to feed the livestock, while Nathan Xavier and Drako were bringing over some firewood with a wheelbarrow.
"Director, are you there?"
Evelyn quickly stood up. "I’m here." She pushed the door open, and a blast of cold wind hit her in the face.
"We put the firewood here. Do you need any charcoal?"
Evelyn shook her head. "Not today."
"Should we bring some blocks of ice over?"
"There’s still water in the cabin. No need to shovel the snow outside for now."
After the two left, Evelyn carried some firewood inside, went to the bathroom for a hot shower, and then Ronan returned.
"Where’d you go?" Evelyn asked, drying her hair. She was curious, seeing how weather-beaten he looked.
"To get some air."
Evelyn: ???
"Get some air for what?" Evelyn walked over to feel his forehead, but Ronan grabbed her wrist.
"I thought carefully about your question from last night. From what I’ve observed, you haven’t changed at all these past few years. If you’re worried about getting old, you can drink a cup of my blood every day. And if one day, you really do get old, that’s okay too." Ronan smiled.
"I’ll grow old with you."
"So you went out into the wind just because of this?" Evelyn’s heart ached for him, but she also found it amusing.
"No." He glanced at Evelyn, his expression serious. "I felt I needed to go out into the cold wind to cool down. Otherwise, I really can’t control myself."
Evelyn threw the towel at his face. "Pervert."
Ronan chuckled softly. "So I’ve gone from a dog to a pervert?"
"Be serious."
"I am being serious. Come on, it’s time for you to drink my blood." As he spoke, he held his hand out to Evelyn’s mouth.
The spark of flirtation and romance was instantly extinguished.
"AWOO~" Evelyn bit down hard on his wrist.
"Tsk tsk, so our Felicity is the little puppy after all."
Incensed, Evelyn bit down again.
On a day of extreme cold and drifting snow, nothing was more satisfying than a hot pot.
In the afternoon, Evelyn called Quincy over, gave him a few packets of hot pot base, and told him to arrange dinner for that evening.
It was rare for Quincy to receive a task directly from Evelyn, so he boldly declared that he would handle everything. A moment later, Evelyn heard a series of pitiful cries coming from the livestock area.
A little while after that, Quincy returned, wrangling chickens, ducks, and an argali sheep.
"My lady, how many dishes do you want?"
Evelyn couldn’t bear to look at his devil-may-care attitude.
"Make a lamb offal soup, a lamb hot pot, a big plate chicken, and a roast duck. Sound good?"
Quincy winked at her. "More than good! I guarantee everyone will get to eat hot pot. Where’s Miles Vaughn? Come help me!"
Miles Vaughn was expressionless. "So you think of me when it’s time to slaughter chickens and sheep?"
"Evelyn said this is our task. Are you trying to defy the Director’s orders?"
Seeing him throw his weight around using her name, Evelyn rolled her eyes, speechless.
But Quincy was reliable enough. At six-thirty in the evening, fragrant aromas wafted from the kitchen. Evelyn pulled a handful of mint from her space and dragged Ronan over to eat.
"Hey now, you’re already here, no need to bring anything! We’re all family, why be so formal?" As soon as they entered the cafeteria, Quincy ran over and took the mint from Evelyn’s hand.
"Huh? Where’d you get mint?"
"I grew it myself. It’s in my bedroom. Want to go see?"
Quincy shook his head. "Nah, forget it. I’m afraid Ronan will beat me up. Mint with lamb soup... you really know how to live."
Everyone had arrived, including all the short-term workers.
Ian Yates wanted to sit next to Evelyn, but Wendy beat him to it. The two little rascals shot each other a look.
"Director, is today a special occasion? Why such a feast?"
Evelyn nodded. "It is indeed a special day. To celebrate the return of the extreme cold, we have to slaughter some chickens and sheep for a proper feast."
Nobody understood, so Quincy coughed and explained to everyone.
"Compared to the beast tides, the extreme cold is definitely a good thing. The beast tides are over, and the extreme cold is back. It’s freezing, sure, but at least there’s no danger. Wouldn’t you all say that’s a good thing?"
The others nodded in agreement. Evelyn and Ronan glanced at each other, and both of them smiled.
"Everyone, after you’ve tried tonight’s food, don’t forget to give me a five-star review!" Quincy said, flashing a smug smile at Miles Vaughn.
"Quincy is amazing! He actually made so many dishes."
Miles Vaughn and Aunt Crane rolled their eyes in unison. Quincy had just been bossing everyone around from the sidelines while Miles assisted and Aunt Crane did the actual cooking.
"Alright, enough chatter. Everyone, dig in." At Evelyn’s command, everyone picked up their chopsticks and started to eat.
"On a day this cold, eating lamb is the best way to warm up."
"This time last year, I was still digging up tree roots. I never thought I’d be eating lamb hot pot now."
"Director, how do you still have hot pot base?"
Evelyn smiled. "I traded for it in Tarr City."
"Who wants this piece of lamb blood?"
Officer Graham spoke up quickly. "Give it to Ronan. He needs to build up his strength."
Everyone looked at Ronan’s white hair, concerned for his health. Only Evelyn knew there was absolutely nothing wrong with a certain someone’s body, and if he built up his strength any more, she was the one who was going to die.
