A scent of food wafted from the camp.
Wei Wen looked at Yang Tao, who was holding a spatula with a confident expression, and couldn't help but swallow, saying, "Brother, your cooking is amazing."
"Nothing special, just practice makes perfect!"
Yang Tao looked at the temporarily built stove in front of him, a satisfied smile on his face: "Food cooked over firewood just tastes different. It's just that the fire is a bit weak. Later, I'll go cut two trees to make an old-fashioned bellows."
"But, you came over now not just to praise my cooking, right?"
Wei Wen said with a slightly embarrassed smile: "Brother, your cooking smells so good, the others also want…"
"Wait, I know what you mean."
He pointed to the unlit stoves nearby and said: "I thought of this long ago. Look, I built three stoves directly. However, each group must provide one person's worth of food, and only then will I help."
Hearing Yang Tao's request, Wei Wen immediately nodded and said: "Alright, I'll go tell them."
Although it was inhumane, in this environment, people had to contribute to each other.
But accidents always arrive early. Soon, a man who looked to be around twenty-five years old walked over aggressively. Wei Wen, red-faced and red-necked, yelled loudly at him, but the other party completely ignored him.
"Kid, what do you mean? You want me to give you an extra portion just to cook? Besides, this food isn't yours…"
Yang Tao said with a brilliant smile and a very calm tone: "Eat if you want, otherwise get lost."
"You motherfu…"
Slam! A spatula directly hit the other person's face. The other party screamed and spat out a broken tooth.
"I'm not your father, I don't need to spoil you. What a shame, I still have to wash the spatula…"
He washed the spatula in the basin nearby, then continued to stir-fry.
Just then, several soldiers walked over, and the one in charge asked: "What happened?"
The guy who had two molars knocked out, with half his face swollen high, pointed at Yang Tao and rambled incoherently, adding fuel to the fire.
After listening, the leading officer looked at Yang Tao, who was focused on cooking, walked forward and said: "Comrade, why did you hit him? Don't worry, we won't be biased."
"Oh~ nothing, I just heard him curse at me. When I'm cooking, I don't like to be disturbed, let alone being cursed at for no reason."
"I… I just asked you to cook, and you told me to get lost!"
Yang Tao put the cooked food into a basin nearby, and while scrubbing the pot, he said: "No, why are you ordering me around? I just said, I'm not your father, why should I spoil you? Of course, if you call me 'Dad' from now on, never mind tonight, I'll cover your meals from now on."
The officer frowned upon hearing Yang Tao's inflammatory words, and just as he was about to warn Yang Tao, he heard a muffled voice from behind him: "Dad!"
Yang Tao's movements stopped. He stared wide-eyed at the man of about twenty-five years old in front of him.
At this moment, the offense and defense switched!
No wonder such a person could become a manager, even if it was at the grassroots level.
"Dad, you said this. From now on, you'll take care of all my meals. If you can't do it, I won't make it difficult for you, just take back what I called you."
Yang Tao suddenly smiled, threw the steel wool he was using to scrub the pot aside, and said: "Able to bend and stretch, you're a character. What's your name?"
The other party squinted, covering his cheek with his hand, and said: "Xu Cheng."
"Alright, from today onwards, as long as you call me 'Dad' once, I'll provide you with one meal, and I guarantee you'll have meat every meal. I'll definitely make you plump and healthy."
"Now, stay and help me out."
Xu Cheng looked at Yang Tao's expression and simply gave up, thinking, since he had already been beaten, even if these soldiers were here, at most they would just reprimand Yang Tao a few times. Could they really lock him up in this situation?
Wouldn't being locked up mean living a good life? At that time, food would be served and clothes would be handed to him, and he wouldn't even have to work.
It was better to maximize his benefits now. If Yang Tao couldn't deliver, then both his and Yang Tao's reputations would be ruined here. He had already lost face, so he wasn't afraid of that.
But if Yang Tao delivered on his word!
Then no one could criticize his biological father!
Seeing this, the officer could only suppress his laughter, sternly reprimanded them both for a few words, then quickly turned and left. As soon as he left, a burst of laughter erupted.
With someone helping, Yang Tao's cooking speed increased. Because of Xu Cheng's prior example, no one from the other groups jumped out.
They obediently gave up one person's worth of food.
The sky gradually darkened, and bonfires were piled up all around the camp.
Yang Tao sat on a small stool by the temporary kitchen, holding a large metal basin. This thing was easy to carry and took up little space; there were many such small stools in the camp.
While eating, he observed Xu Cheng, who was scrubbing the pot. His cheek was still swollen like a steamed bun.
"Once it's clean, come over and eat."
Soon, Xu Cheng finished his work and sat beside Yang Tao, saying indistinctly: "Dad, what are we eating tonight?"
"You can still eat like that?"
"You don't worry about it, I'll stuff it in even if I have to."
Yang Tao heard this and knew that this guy was still holding a grudge, but seeing as he was a good son, he said carelessly: "Tell me, what do you want to eat tonight? Even if I have to risk my old life, I'll satisfy you."
"Hmph, I won't make it difficult for you. A serving of Fish-Flavored Shredded Pork, plus a serving of Braised Pork, with a serving of rice will do. I won't drink beer…"
"That's it?"
Originally, Yang Tao thought Xu Cheng would take the opportunity to ask for something like charcoal-grilled panda, but he didn't expect it to be just some home-cooked dishes.
"You help me hold this first."
He shoved the rice bowl in his hand into Xu Cheng's arms, then, pretending to be mysterious, picked up a pot lid and placed it on the cutting board, saying with a smile: "Ta-da! Dinner's ready, son."
He lifted the lid, and inside were steaming hot Fish-Flavored Shredded Pork, Braised Pork, rice, and a bottle of beer.
"The beer is a bonus, hurry and eat."
"You… You…"
Xu Cheng was too shocked to speak. Yang Tao reached out and placed his hand on his shoulder, activating his healing ability. The digitized healing not only fixed his injuries, but even Xu Cheng's broken teeth grew back.
"Eat."
With that, Yang Tao took the rice bowl from the stiff Xu Cheng's hand and began to eat without hesitation.
"How… how did you… my… my injuries are healed?" Xu Cheng incredulously put his hand into his mouth, realizing that what his tongue had just touched was not an illusion; his broken teeth had really grown back.
"You can just think of me as a super-soldier like Qiangwei, except I'm more focused on logistics. Combat isn't my strong suit."
That's right, my main job is mining, followed by building houses, farming, and finally, combat.
Just then, the familiar sound of an engine came from a distance. Yang Tao stopped eating and looked over.
The one driving the motorcycle was, naturally, Qiangwei with her long red hair.