Han Cheng stared at the few tiny objects in his palm, feeling inexplicably excited. A smile lit up his face.
Who says there’s no surprise? Didn’t the surprise arrive?!
It’s Sichuan peppercorns!
In Han Cheng’s mind, Sichuan peppercorns were among the most essential spices, ranking just after chili peppers and garlic.
Especially when combined with chili peppers, the wonderful flavors and effects they produced were truly indescribable.
Chili peppers were a precious ingredient that he couldn’t expect to find in the tribe. If time and space hadn’t gone awry, this would likely not have appeared in the tribe.
But Sichuan peppercorns had appeared before him in a completely unexpected way.
Thus, after sweet, salty, sour, and bitter, another flavor had arrived at the Green Sparrow Tribe.
To verify whether these were indeed Sichuan peppercorns, Han Cheng decided to try one for himself.
He removed the black seeds from the peppercorn and placed them in his palm. When cooked in hot oil, they released an incredible fragrance.
Han Cheng placed the pepper shell in his mouth, chewing slowly. A strong, somewhat bitter numbing taste spread from his teeth, quickly spreading through his mouth with the help of saliva.
Even though Han Cheng had long missed the taste of Sichuan peppercorns, he couldn’t help but spit them out repeatedly.
Was this Sichuan peppercorn? Even the numbing peppercorns weren’t this strong!
His whole mouth felt numbed, and he spat out saliva, grinding his teeth as he silently complained in his heart.
But despite the discomfort, he was still quite happy. Well, he was numbed, but still enjoying it.
Just as Han Cheng was spitting saliva and crushed pepper shells, a panicked shout came outside the door.
Before the sound even faded, the person had already run in.
Liang, who specialized in medicine, was one of the more leisurely people in the tribe.
Of course, his work was hazardous, as one wrong move could lead to poisoning.
When Han Cheng passed by, Liang saw him but didn’t pay much attention. After a while, however, he suddenly remembered the fruit that had made his mouth feel like it was about to explode. He rushed over in a hurry.
The Divine Child wasn’t like the children in the tribe; when checking the things exchanged back, he was very meticulous. Although he had stuffed the fruits into the pile of furs, there was no guarantee that the Divine Child wouldn’t find them.
He could experience that taste for himself, but he couldn’t let the Divine Child taste it.
Thus, he hurried over.
However, by the time he arrived, it was too late. Looking at Han Cheng crouching there and spitting saliva, Liang immediately understood that the Divine Child had already tasted it.
Thinking about the feeling that seemed to make his tongue not even his own, Liang couldn’t help but shiver.
Noticing that there was no water bottle, a necessary tool for tasting things, Liang hesitated briefly before turning to run outside.
While running, the image of the horrible “toilet bucket” from that summer flashed in his mind.
If the Divine Child ate too many of those fruits and couldn’t wash them down with water, he might have to use the toilet bucket…
Recalling the scenes from the summer, Liang shivered involuntarily.
That thing—just thinking about it was already stimulating.
Han Cheng, unaware of Liang’s thoughts while rinsing his mouth with the water he brought, probably would have been grateful if he had known what Liang was thinking…
After rinsing and waiting, the numbing sensation in his mouth slowly faded.
Feeling the diminishing numbness, Han Cheng’s eyes lit up as he looked at the Sichuan peppercorns on the floor.
It seemed that Liang had misunderstood his intentions. He thought the Divine Child was angry and wanted to throw the fruits away.
Thus, Liang rushed in with a broom and a copper shovel, eager to clean up these troublesome fruits and bury them deep in the ground to prevent others in the tribe from mistakenly eating them.
However, when Liang entered the room, he was surprised to see Han Cheng picking up the fallen fruits from the ground, unwilling to let them go.
He said, moving forward with the broom and shovel, ready to clean up, thinking it would be much faster than picking them up by hand.
“No need for that,” Han Cheng said quickly, speaking with his still somewhat numbed tongue. “These are meant to be eaten. Just pick them up by hand.”
Liang froze on the spot. What did he hear?
These things are meant to be eaten?
He had just eaten one and felt his mouth numb for a long time. He could barely speak after rinsing his mouth with water for a while. Now, Han Cheng was saying they were meant to be eaten?
No wonder Liang was so shocked; the impression Sichuan peppercorns had left on him was so strong.
At that moment, Han Cheng explained that Sichuan peppercorns had other uses, but it was still tricky for Liang to imagine they were edible.
After tasting them, he had immediately put these spicy little fruits into the “not for eating” category.
He even deliberately hid them in a secluded spot to prevent anyone from accidentally poisoning themselves…
“Divine Child… can we eat these?”
Standing there stunned, Liang looked at Han Cheng, who was picking up every Sichuan peppercorn, unwilling to leave a single one behind, and asked in disbelief.
“Mm, you can eat them,” Han Cheng said, thinking about the numbing, spicy chicken, Sichuan-style hot pot, and grilled gluten. He couldn’t help but lick his lips.
Those dishes were just so incredibly nostalgic.
Seeing Han Cheng salivate at the sight of the Sichuan peppercorns, Liang couldn’t help but grin.
Yes, the taste of these little fruits was truly “memorable.”
Seeing Liang’s reaction, Han Cheng knew precisely what he was thinking. He smiled, knowing that Liang had probably already tasted the Sichuan peppercorns himself.
He wasn’t trying to tease the honest people in the tribe; after thinking for a moment, he smiled and spoke again, with his still slightly numb mouth: “Yes, they can be eaten, but not directly. They’re like salt. They need to be added to food. Once you do, the food will taste even better.”
When Han Cheng compared Sichuan peppercorns to salt, Liang’s eyes immediately lit up.
The people of the Green Sparrow Tribe had a deep understanding of the increasingly important role that salt played in their lives.
Having heard Han Cheng’s explanation, Liang’s attitude towards the Sichuan peppercorns immediately shifted.
Watching Han Cheng salivate over the peppercorns, Liang couldn’t help but swallow his saliva.
“Divine Child, shall we make food to eat?”