Sweetness

It was completely dark.

The snow outside hadn't stopped; fine snowflakes drifted along the forest floor. There was no wind, no sound; the entire Frost Forest was eerily quiet.

Lu Heng moved some stones and pushed the stone door of the cave shut, sealing the entrance completely. The Geothermal the cave slowly dissipated, keeping the cold air out, and the chill that had seeped into his body from the outside gradually dissipated.

He looked up at his wound.

The two spots on his neck and forearm where he had been stung by wild bees were swollen, his skin was slightly hot, and he was experiencing waves of itching and throbbing pain. With no medicine available for external application, he remembered a folk remedy he had heard of years ago: fresh honey could relieve swelling and pain and reduce inflammation. For now, he could only wait until the honey was extracted and then try it.

The beehive they had brought back from their adventure during the day lay flat on the ground. Its shell was frozen solid, and the cracks from the knife cut during the day were clearly visible. Recalling the day's ordeal, they had assumed the wild bees would be dormant in the dead of winter, allowing them to quickly cut off the hive, store it in their Wristband, and leave. They had underestimated the cold-hardy nature of the forest's creatures, nearly being chased and trapped by the swarm. They had barely escaped by burrowing into the snow. The process was perilous, but thankfully, they had brought the hive back intact.

Lu Heng squatted down and began to dismantle the beehive.

He had never handled a wild beehive before, and his movements were clumsy and awkward. He first brushed away the snow, thin ice, and frozen dead bee remains stuck to the outer wall with his hands. The outer layer of beeswax was frozen solid, and he slowly pried it open along the gaps in the honeycomb.

The nest splits apart, revealing neatly arranged cells inside.

Many cells contained plump, milky-white bee pupae, round and full, lying motionless in the low temperature. Some tiny young bees were curled up deep inside the cells, their activity suppressed by the severe cold, barely making a sound.

He had once heard people casually mention that bee pupae could be eaten raw and were high in protein. Lu Heng gazed at the bee pupae, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly. In this environment, anything edible was precious energy. He gently picked out a whole bee pupae with the tip of his knife and put it in his mouth.

With a thin outer skin, a gentle bite reveals a soft, juicy interior, releasing a subtle savory aroma with a faint hint of fishiness, followed by a slightly sweet aftertaste. The texture is incredibly tender, a flavor rarely experienced when eating meat.

After tasting it briefly, he picked up a knife and began to cut open the wax seal on the surface of the honeycomb.

His technique was not yet proficient, and sometimes he used too much force, the tip of the knife cutting through the lower cells of the honeycomb, occasionally letting a small amount of honey flow out through the gaps. He slowly adjusted his pressure, peeling away the layers of beeswax sealing the honeycomb one by one. Once all the wax was removed, the thick, golden honey was revealed.

Hold the honeycomb in both hands and squeeze gently. The wild honey here is thick and viscous, flowing slowly, with strands of honey dripping gently into the stone pot. After most of the honey has been squeezed out, carefully scrape the remaining honey off the walls of the honeycomb with the tip of a knife, not wanting to waste a single drop.

Before long, the pot was filled with honey, and a faint honey aroma slowly spread throughout the narrow stone cave.

Lu Heng scooped out a small amount of honey and applied it thinly to the two red and swollen stings. The sticky honey adhered to the skin, and the burning and itching sensation gradually subsided, leaving only a slight soreness.

After treating his wound, he found the empty mineral water bottle he had kept earlier. The bottle opening was narrow, and the honey was viscous and did not flow easily. When he poured it, most of the honey stuck to the bottle wall and flowed down very slowly. He could only pour the honey into the bottle in small amounts several times, and after filling it, he tightened the cap and stored it in a dry, dark corner.

After everything was tidied up, he dipped a little of the remaining honey on his fingertip and put it in his mouth.

Since arriving in the Frost Forest, our daily diet consisted only of smoked or roasted food and bread, with a strong, salty and fishy flavor. We hadn't tasted anything sweet for a long time. The aroma of honey mixed with the scent of forest plants was refreshingly sweet and gentle, not cloying at all. This simple sweetness spread across our tongues, and the tension that had accumulated from days of patrolling and avoiding danger slowly relaxed, bringing a long-lost sense of peace to our hearts.

His appetite was whetted. He took a piece of meat from the freezer, sliced it into even slices, and used a small spoon to scoop out honey, brushing it evenly onto the surface of the meat.

The cave's Geothermal continues to radiate heat, allowing the meat slices to be slowly roasted over the rocks. As the meat heats up, it gradually releases its oil, while the honey caramelizes slightly, releasing a sweet aroma that mingles with the fragrance of the meat fat.

The meat was slowly roasted until the skin was slightly charred and the inside was cooked through. Lu Heng picked up a piece and took a bite. The honey on the surface gave it a subtle caramelized sweetness, which seeped into the meat, mellowing off the gamey smell. The fat coated the meat with a sweet flavor, and the juices were plentiful. In the midst of a monotonous and rough daily diet, such a meal brought a strong sense of satisfaction. The fatigue from a long day's journey gradually dissipated as he slowly ate.

After dinner, he gathered and stored the remaining bee pupae. The large pieces of beeswax that he had removed were piled up separately to the side. After the beeswax was heated and melted, it could be used to seal the cracks in the stone cave to block the cold wind, or it could be applied to the surface of the outer fabric of his coat to act as a waterproof and cold-proof agent.

Reflecting on his rash act of taking the beehive during the day, he realized that his reliance on his past experience to judge the habits of wild bees in the forest had led to a misjudgment. After the trial, the habits of the creatures in this forest could no longer be measured by his old world experience. Although his impulsive actions had resulted in the acquisition of resources, they had also exposed the risks involved.

Over the next period of time, he planned to melt and process the beeswax to carefully seal all the gaps in the Shelter, strengthen the airtightness of the dwelling, and further improve the protection of the base.