A simple canopy was erected above the campfire in the parking lot to keep the rain off.
Everyone was over there grilling fish or boiling water and transporting things back to the Bamboo House.
As Liang Yuan walked downstairs, he saw Ding Yan, Song Wen, Dong Yan, Dong Jie, Gu Feng, Liu Feifei, and Zhao Kai enjoying a hot pot meal inside the cave.
Seeing Liang Yuan approach, Zhao Kai quickly shouted, "Brother Liang, come and have some food."
Liang Yuanās stomach rumbled just in time, so he walked right in.
Ding Yan and Song Wen both looked at him and instinctively moved aside a bit.
Their intention was clearāthey wanted Liang Yuan to come over and sit.
When the two made space, they immediately realized something, exchanged glances, and quickly looked away, their eyes lifting to Liang Yuan.
Liang Yuanās heart skipped a beat; wherever he sat, it wouldnāt feel right.
Rolling his eyes, he walked straight to Zhao Kai and Dong Jieās middle, saying, "Iāll sit here; I have something to discuss with Dong Jie and Zhao Kai."
With a serious look on his face, he appeared all business, making Ding Yan and Song Wen quickly shift their attention, their budding competition vanishing.
Dong Jie and Zhao Kai quickly scooted to the sides to make space.
Standing up, Zhao Kai said, "Brother Liang, you sit on this stone. Iāll go outside and fetch another."
Seeing them all sitting on stones, Liang Yuan couldnāt help but laugh, "No need, I brought a chair."
He casually pulled out a small folding chair from his storage space.
This item was something almost every household had a few of, very handy for train trips and such.
In his resource collection, Liang Yuan naturally found plenty.
Seeing him produce a folding chair instantly, everyoneās mouths gaped in envy.
Zhao Kai slapped his forehead, "Oh, my brain! I totally forgot you have storage space."
"Wow, Brother Liang, your storage ability is so useful. How many things do you even have stored?" Dong Jie expressed in awe.
Liang Yuan smiled and said, "Iāve got plenty. Just tell me what you need."
As soon as he finished speaking, Ding Yan suddenly said, "Iām missing a bed in my room; I canāt get used to the bamboo one."
Song Wen wanted to speak too but hesitated in front of everyone.
Liang Yuan laughed, "Thatās easy. Iāll get each of you a bed later."
Everyone was instantly overjoyed, clapping and cheering.
"Mr. Liang, Iāll toast you with water in place of wine, thanks for your generosity," Gu Feng immediately raised a bamboo cup with a big smile.
He knew he wasnāt that close to Liang Yuan; getting a bed was a huge stroke of luck thanks to Miss Ding.
Looking at Gu Fengās cup, Liang Yuan laughed, "Why use water when thereās actual wine?"
He took out a few cases of Snow Beer from his storage, smiling, "Come on, you treat me to hot pot and Iāll treat you to beer."
Zhao Kai, Ding Yan, and Gu Fengās eyes all lit up.
Even Song Wen couldnāt resist a pleased smile.
"Wow, Mr. Liang, you even have beer. Didnāt see these in the supplies youāve been trading," Gu Feng cried out in surprise.
Liang Yuan chuckled, "I donāt have much of this; kept it for close friends to enjoy."
His words made Gu Fengās heart swell with pride, feeling very honored.
Liang Yuan handed each of them a can, except for Dong Jie.
Being young, Liang Yuan naturally wouldnāt let him drink.
But he thoughtfully found a cola for him from the storage. The kid beamed, calling him Brother Liang repeatedly.
"Come on, eat some meat. Brother Liang, this is a bamboo rat I caught today in the bamboo forest. Itās big and fresh." Zhao Kai said, smiling.
Liang Yuan saw there was indeed a basin of meat on the ground, with ice chunks. The meat was sliced into thin pieces.
Zhao Kai made a few more ice cubes and put them in the beers of the older men.
In the warm October weather, a sip of ice-cold beer and a bite of spicy hot pot was sheer delight.
Zhao Kaiās Frost Superpower was absolutely perfect for hot pot.
Liang Yuan picked up a slice and found bamboo shoots inside, exclaiming, "You even have bamboo shoots?"
"Yeah, I found them," Gu Feng bragged, "Surprising to find shoots in this season, they taste pretty great, quite tender."
Dong Yan attentively served Liang Yuan a slice, "Brother Liang, try it."
Taking a bite, Liang Yuan found it crisp and tender. He looked through the pot, finding only meat and shoots.
"Just these few ingredients? Nothing else?" he asked, surprised.
Song Wen replied, "This is already great. Others donāt even have meat and veggies. We dug up some mushrooms and wild greens but didnāt know if theyāre edible, so we left them out."
Liang Yuan laughed, "You shouldāve said so earlier, I have vegetables."
He took out various vegetables from his storage space.
He hadnāt finished the Vegetable Gift Package and had plenty left.
There were varieties like lettuce, crown daisy, and cilantro, as well as broccoli and kelp.
With these, the spicy hot pot suddenly became much richer.
Everyone was ecstatic, devouring the food eagerly.
Eating with oil all over their mouths, it had been so long since they enjoyed hot pot like this.
Liang Yuan also learned from Liu Feifei where the hot pot spices came from.
Initially, there were many hot pot restaurants in Henglong Building. While the food had gone bad, the seasoning packets were all intact and still within their best-before dates.