Chapter 85 Cooking Seafood
After the rain last night, the air on the island was exceptionally fresh.
Henry couldn't help but take a deep breath, vaguely feeling the coolness travel from his nostrils all the way to his lungs.
Having lived in a big city for so many years, it had been a long time since he'd smelled air this crisp!
Henry couldn't help but look in the direction where they had disembarked from the yacht. "I wonder if the program team has come to pick us up."
Kendall, holding her toiletries, shook her head. "I don't think so. We didn't walk very far. If the program team had arrived, we would have heard them if they used a loudspeaker."
"That's true," Henry agreed.
Kendall walked to one side. While organizing her things in the tent last night, a thought suddenly struck her, the reason she was stranded on this deserted island overnight was because the program team didn't show up today. What if they didn't show up tomorrow either?
Life is full of difficulties, and you can never pin your hopes on others!
So, last night before the rain started, Kendall took out the metal water bottle and insulated cup from her backpack, unscrewed the lids, and placed them outside the tent, secured with a few stones, to collect rainwater.
The method worked well. As Kendall leaned over to check, she found both the water bottle and insulated cup were full. She still had half of the mineral water bottle Henry gave her yesterday, so she wasn't currently short on drinking water.
The collected rainwater couldn't be drunk directly, but it could be used for brushing her teeth and washing her face.
Kendall squatted down and quickly finished her morning ablutions using the collected water.
Seeing her washing up, Henry also hurried over to check his small pot. After seeing Kendall do this yesterday, Henry, although he didn't have an insulated bottle, did have a titanium pot. So, Henry had thoughtfully put out his pot to collect rainwater, and now it was also full.
After they finished washing up, they climbed to the top of the rock hill nearby to look out at the ocean. Just as Kendall suspected, there was still no sign of the program team's yacht.
Henry sighed, feeling a bit disappointed. "It's been an afternoon and a night. Why hasn't the program team come yet? What do we do now?"
Kendall turned and walked away. "Go eat breakfast."
Henry: "...???"
Neither of them had eaten much last night, and after a night of digestion, their stomachs were empty. He had been woken up by hunger this morning! Henry quickly followed.
Kendall had her survival knife with her and was also carrying a bag. When she stood on the rock, she wasn't just checking for the program team, she was also assessing the surrounding sea conditions.
Kendall walked with the bag in hand in another direction, and Henry followed closely behind her. The two soon arrived at a new stretch of coastline.
After the heavy rain stopped, the tide receded, leaving many seafood items that had been washed up by the waves overnight stranded on the shore. Although most had been carried off by nearby wild birds, a small portion was available for the two of them to collect.
user @CutieMiMi: "Wow wow wow! So many crabs and shrimp on the beach!"
user @UltimateFoodie: "Ahhh, I see a conch!"
user @HappyGoLucky: "The scenery is so beautiful. I feel the freshness even through the screen. If I lived in a place like this, I would be in a good mood every day."
user @LazyPanda: "Henry really looks like Kendall's little sidekick, following behind and picking up scraps, looking all timid."
user @AngryTeen: "Is this clamming? It looks like fun."
user @MiaIsTheBest: "I'm defeated. Mia and the others were rained on in the forest for most of the night, and their tents and supplies were washed away by the seawater.
These two wake up and, instead of worrying about them, come to the beach to find things to eat?
How can they be so completely at peace with themselves? "
user @CoolUncle: "Huh?? What the heck?"
user @UnapologeticallyHonest: "Mia's fan? Why are you uselessly barking here instead of going to Mia's live stream? Get lost!"
user @JustHereForFun: "I was just watching a live stream to pass the time, but some celebrity fans insist on stirring up trouble. They are truly moving tumours."
user @EvilMind: "Hahahaha, I took a peek at the live stream next door, and I'm dying of laughter.
Those big celebrities, oh my goodness, they've all been soaked.
They sheltered from the rain in the forest all night, and now they've finally come out, only to find that several tents and many of their supplies were washed away. How miserable."
Kendall and Henry spent nearly half an hour collecting food, filling a large portion of the bag with various fish, shrimp, and crabs, as well as a few small octopuses and some shellfish and conches.
With their abundant haul, Henry was pleased. "Besides the titanium pot from this morning, I also have a small camping stove with fuel and a titanium spoon in my backpack. We can use them to cook later!"
Hearing this, Kendall turned her head and gave him an extra look. Kendall had seen that set of titanium cookware when packing, but she hadn't taken it because her backpack didn't have enough space. She didn't expect to end up using this set of cookware after all.
The two cleaned the seafood by the sea and then walked back together.
Upon their return, Henry couldn't wait to take the small camping stove out of his backpack. He still had two bottles of mineral water in his backpack, and Henry used one of them to boil the seafood.
While Henry was busy, Kendall took her survival knife and went to the patch of grass where she had brushed her teeth, and began to dig.
She was strong, and with the survival knife, she quickly dug out the root of a plant.
Kendall cleaned the root with the rainwater from her insulated cup, then walked back.
Henry had already put the seafood into the pot and was about to start cooking. Looking at the pot full of seafood, he couldn't help but say, "If only I had some ginger. All I have in my backpack is salt and chilli powder."
"Here." Kendall handed him the root in her hand.
"What is this?" Henry curiously took it. "Ginger? It doesn't seem like it..." Henry knew how to cook, so he knew what ginger looked like. The piece Kendall handed him was somewhat similar to ginger in appearance, but it was round and plump, unlike the ginger he usually cooked with.
"It's wild ginger. I just dug it up behind the tent," Kendall nodded slightly. "It's edible, has a spicy taste, and tastes similar to regular ginger."
"You know so much," Henry's eyes lit up. He immediately cut it up with his knife and tossed it into the pot.
Although this pot of seafood only had wild ginger and salt, the moment he lifted the lid, Henry was still captivated by the aroma emanating from the fresh seafood. It was incredibly, incredibly fresh!
Henry turned the heat down a bit, then took a piece of bread out of his backpack.
The flatbread was something Henry's maternal grandmother had forced into his luggage when he left home.
Later, when the director told them to switch to hiking backpacks, Henry brought it along. Thank goodness for Grandma!
Henry tore the flatbread into palm-sized pieces and placed them on top of the steaming seafood.
Because their setup was simple and they didn't have a steamer, Henry had poured half a bottle of mineral water into the pot when cooking the seafood.
Now that the seafood was cooked, he could use the steam to warm up the bread.
user @SiSiOnTop: "Wow wow wow! Warming bread on top of seafood, typical Henry!"
user @StiffBamboo: "Haha, I suddenly want to eat flatbread. The one he has looks really authentic."
user @HotCocoa: "I noticed when he secretly stuffed that bag of bread into his bag yesterday.
I've been watching the live stream specifically to see when he'd eat it.
It reminds me of when I was in college, and every time I left home, my mom would make a big bag for me in advance to put in my luggage. "
user @QueenBee: "So that's flatbread. It looks delicious!"
Once the flatbread had softened, Henry signalled to Kendall that they could come and eat breakfast. The two ate their bread and seafood, enjoying every bite.
While eating, neither Kendall nor Henry spoke, allowing the viewers in front of the screen to enjoy an immersive eating experience.
user @IceCream: "Ahhh, damn it! I'm watching the live stream under my blanket, and now I'm hungry."
user @PotatoChips: "I want seafood!!!"
user @NoFriends: "Woowoo, I want to eat too. This poor kid hasn't eaten since last night, and now I'm starving to death watching this."
user @GymBuddy: "Haha, am I the only one who already ate breakfast?"
user @InterestedPasserby: "Shock!! I couldn't resist peeking at the live stream next door, and I saw the other guests are coming over!"
user @ApplePie: "What?"
user @DetectiveSoo: "Hmm... I checked, and they really are coming over."
user @JustHereForFun: "They arrived right on time, when the meal is almost finished! Haha, why didn't they come earlier? They could have scored some breakfast."
(End of Chapter)