Farming Games are All About Grinding

"Wheee! Wheee! Wheee!"

Little Shui pointed to the waterweed net on the ground.

Then pointed to its own round belly.

And let out a satisfied belch while it was at it.

It looked like it had thoroughly enjoyed the feast.

Han Qiwu chuckled and guessed, "Did you eat all the other fish?"

"Whee!"

Little Shui quickly nodded, gesturing animatedly to emphasize just how incredibly hungry it had been.

"How strange," Han Qiwu comforted Little Shui then opened its attribute panel to check.

Oh, so that's what's going on.

[Your fishing pet: Little Shui is currently evolving. Fullness cap temporarily raised to 150. Will return to normal after evolution is complete.]

So, Little Shui is evolving again.

Well, that makes sense. After eating so many tasty things, evolving seems pretty reasonable.

Looks like the pinecones we got today will finally come in handy.

"Little Shui, you're growing up, don't worry about eating too much. Eat as much as you want. We've got plenty stocked up." Han Qiwu smiled, patted Little Shui on the head, and pulled out three large pinecones from his storage compartment, setting them in front of Little Shui. Just as he was about to call over Little Dian for a lesson in pinecone cuisine, he turned and saw Little Prince bounding over on all fours, eyes sparkling with excitement at the sight of the pinecones.

"Roar!"

Little Prince's voice was filled with excitement.

"Little Prince, you want to eat this too?" Han Qiwu asked curiously, holding out two large pinecones to Little Prince.

If Han Qiwu has something to eat, there's always enough for everyone to eat their fill!

Little Prince nodded vigorously, skillfully picking up the two pinecones and smashing them together.

"Crack, crack."

After smashing them together, Little Prince placed one pinecone in its bear-like paws, clasped its hands together, gave it a firm squeeze, then lightly twisted its wrist a couple of times.

"That easy?" Han Qiwu stared in surprise at the neatly-opened pine nuts in Little Prince's paw.

Who would've thought? Little Prince has gotten so good at controlling its strength!

"Crack, crack."

After shaking off the remaining bits of wood, Little Prince expertly pinched the nuts open with its claw tips and started eating them one by one with Little Shui.

It was a lighthearted and joyful snack time.

Little Shui was tasting these oily nuts for the first time. When it ate the first one, it seemed a little hesitant. But after trying a few more, it was so delighted that it kept nodding repeatedly, eventually pushing its three large pinecones over to Little Prince.

"Wheee! Wheee! Wheee!"

Han Qiwu chuckled. The high oil content and pleasant flavor of the pine nuts had clearly won over Little Shui, which was no surprise.

"Little Prince, help me crack open a few more pinecones. I'll fry some up for you guys to try." Han Qiwu said with a smile.

"Roar!"

And so, the bear-powered Pine Nut Opener, far superior to Little Dian, was back in action.

Before long, Han Qiwu had over sixty opened pine nuts ready to go.

Normally, roasting pine nuts would require soaking, steaming, and other tedious preparation beforehand.

But with Little Prince's help, all he needed to do was cook them directly. Easy as that.

Hot pan, pine nuts in, roast!

Fifteen minutes later, the unique aroma of roasted pine nuts began wafting out, eventually drifting outside and instantly stirring the cravings of both Little Shui and Little Prince.

"Wheee! Wheee! Wheee!"

"Roar!"

After a bit of back-and-forth negotiation, the two pets reached a consensus.

Little Prince happily carried all of their shared pine nuts over to Han Qiwu and presented them with both hands.

"So you guys want the roasted ones now?" Han Qiwu smilingly asked.

"Mmhmm!"

Han Qiwu used a spoon to scoop out a few roasted pine nuts and set them on a tile by the stovetop to cool. "Don't rush, give it a try and see if you like the roasted ones better than the raw ones."

But before he even finished speaking, the impatient Little Prince was already reaching out to grab a couple.

"Hold on, they're hot." Han Qiwu quickly warned.

But Little Prince, tough-skinned as it was, just blew at the pine nuts a bit, carefully peeled them, and tossed the fragrant kernels into its mouth.

After chewing a couple of times, Little Prince's face lit up with joy.

Delicious!

It had never tasted pine nuts this good before!

Han Qiwu himself also cautiously picked one up, peeled away the shell, blew on it, and popped the nut into his mouth.

The perfectly cooked kernel practically melted on his tongue, turning into a rich, velvety delicacy with a subtle nuttiness and gentle crunch.

The flavor was incredible.

Meanwhile, Little Shui, perched on Little Prince's back, glanced left at the happy Little Prince and then right at the satisfied Han Qiwu. Feeling left out, it started crying out urgently, "Wheee! Wheee! Wheee!"

Am I not still the little princess of this household?!

Seeing Little Shui's expression, Han Qiwu and Little Prince exchanged a glance and burst into hearty laughter.

Teasing Little Shui was always such fun.

After feeding Little Shui a few roasted pine nuts, it shook its head. Maybe because of its unique taste buds, Little Shui seemed to prefer the raw ones, while Little Prince enjoyed the roasted ones more.

Han Qiwu checked Little Shui's attribute panel again. Its fullness was already maxed out at 150.

The high oil content in these pine nuts clearly made them very satiating as well as delicious.

Big thanks to that giant squirrel—without it, they wouldn't have gathered so many pinecones!

Much appreciated!

After everyone had eaten their fill, Han Qiwu stored the remaining pine nuts and went out into the yard to toss the wetland catfish and yellow eels into the Hospital River.

Initially, he had spotted some eggplant among the vegetables Aunt Ding had brought over and had planned on making braised catfish and eggplant for dinner. But after feasting on pine nuts, he was too full to cook anything else.

Might as well save it for tomorrow.

With a full belly, Han Qiwu felt like taking a walk. He strolled over to the snow-and-ice area to check how things were going.

The Frost Dwarf statue's effects were still noticeable. The icy area had expanded by about a third of a grid, and the ice mushrooms growing within were flourishing, looking picture-perfect. Just snapping a photo could produce a stunning scene for any album. The snowballs, now free from the mischief of Little Prince and Little Shui, were thriving and had plumped up considerably as well.

The Giant-Winged Icebird statue, however, wasn't as impressive in its performance. For starters, the first effect it offered—boosting yields—hadn't shown any real results yet, as none of the crops in the ice-and-snow environment were ready for harvest.

As for the second effect, it had only activated once, producing a single Venus flytrap with willow-shaped leaves. That odd plant was still growing, and Han Qiwu decided to wait until it fully matured before cutting it down. Who knows? The loot it dropped might have better effects after it fully ripened.

After finishing his inspection of the snow-and-ice environment, Han Qiwu felt nicely digested. Slowly, he headed back inside, took a bath, and comfortably lay on his bed, pulling out "The Circus Without Horses" to read.

The coziness was all thanks to the ancient glacial stone under his desk, which continuously let out a refreshing chill that kept the room at an ideal temperature.

Time to read.

The cover of the book pictured a medieval circus, but instead of horses pulling the wagons, there was a sheep.

Well, that checks out—it *is* called "The Circus Without Horses" after all.

Opening to the first page, a series of pop-up illustrations suddenly jumped out, scaring Han Qiwu out of his wits.

"Holy crap!"

He flung the book across the room.

This thing was terrifying. One of the pop-ups was a giant red-nosed clown, another was a wingless parrot, and the last one was some unidentified creature lying on the ground.

"What kind of nonsense has Zack cooked up now? Gave me a damn heart attack!"