King of the Wilderness

"That’s the one." He picked out four and handed them to the staff beside him for weighing.

Then he took Max to the meat section, grabbed a few pre-packaged chicken breasts, and found some peeled peanuts, dried chili peppers, and pepper oil in the spice section.

"What are you doing?" Max looked at the utterly different assortment and couldn’t help but ask, "The trout is for December, what about these?"

Lin Yu’an smiled, "Of course, it’s for us. I haven’t had breakfast yet. I plan to make Kung Pao chicken for you to try."

Max’s heart was filled with curiosity at the moment.

Passing by the snack section, he stopped in his tracks; it was a whole row filled with childhood memories from the East.

He saw familiar shrimp sticks, Langweixian, and even mung bean cakes. His gaze eventually locked onto a row of red packaging, extremely eye-catching.

He casually picked up several packets of different flavored spicy strips, then also grabbed a bag of sweet and sour, appetite-stimulating hawthorn slices, along with a bottle of classic packaged iced red tea.

"Try this." He handed a packet of spicy strips to Max like presenting a treasure, "Our national snack, every child’s childhood memory has its taste."

Max took it with curiosity, looking at the exaggerated cartoon image and fiery red chili pattern on the packaging, his face showed a mix of curiosity and a bit of fear.

Finally, they found a bottle of high purity, completely unseasoned wild Alaska salmon oil in the neglected corner of the health product section.

Lin Yu’an looked at the cart full of ingredients and nodded satisfactorily but still muttered to himself.

"Trout meat, fish oil... it’s a shame, you couldn’t find any fresh animal innards here. Otherwise, it would be perfect."

He remembered when December first met him, eating the life-saving mince which mixed the heart and liver bits of the wolf he had hunted then.

The innards, with their rich bloody taste, can trigger the primal appetite of carnivores to the greatest extent, December must remember that taste.

While in line at the checkout, Lin Yu’an suddenly remembered he forgot to get green onions and ginger, so he said to Max, "Wait for me a moment," then turned around towards the vegetable section.

Behind the checkout, the plump Vietnamese aunt skillfully scanned the barcodes, while softly speaking to Max in strongly accented English.

"Miss, your boyfriend is Chinese, right?"

Max was slightly taken aback and instinctively nodded.

"Oh dear, you’re really lucky!" The aunt wore a blissful expression, her scanning hands never paused.

"My husband is Chinese, a student from Chengdu, oh my, the dishes he cooks, the aroma, it keeps the whole building awake and hungry!"

After scanning those packets of spicy strips, she continued in a knowing tone, "He won’t say sweet words but puts all his love into the dishes, and even..."

Max listened to the aunt’s chatter without refuting.

But her ears uncontrollably flushed with a trace of unnoticeable blush, and her mouth held a gentle smile she was unaware of.

When the two carried back two large bags full of groceries to the car, the wind and snow outside started getting heavier, now visibility might not allow them to return to Fairbanks.

Outside the car window, snowflakes danced wildly, the world became blurred. But inside the car, because of the heater’s presence, it appeared particularly warm and serene.

Max skillfully started the car, the wipers diligently worked, sweeping clear arcs on the blurry glass.

When the Subaru rejoined the city traffic, a subtle silence fell in the cabin.

Only the engine’s hum, the wipers’ scrape and the tires crunching over snow could be heard.

Max drove, pretending to unintentionally cast a sidelong glance at Lin Yu’an, who was staring pensively out the window.

The cashier aunt’s words were like a stone dropped into a calm lake in her heart, the ripples stirred yet hadn’t settled.

Eventually, she couldn’t hold back and broke the silence.

Her voice wasn’t loud but in the small cabin, it was distinct, "Just now... that aunt asked if your boyfriend is good at cooking, right?"

It was a borrowed question, filled with hints and probing.

Lin Yu’an’s heart also warmed. He slowly turned toward her, seeing her elegant profile with a touch of blush.

Her lips were tightly pressed, seemingly a bit tense from her bold inquiry.

"Oh?" He deliberately elongated the tone, his mouth showing a playful curve, "Then what did you reply?"

Max didn’t speak, just let out two soft "hum hum" sounds from her nose, considering it a non-committal reply to the question.

The ambiguous atmosphere in the cabin intensified because of the adorable "hum hum".

Lin Yu’an watched her with warmth rippling in his heart.

But he knew some things must be addressed in a gentle yet clear manner before they become more complicated.

His playful smile reduced somewhat, replaced by a more sincere tone.

He slowly said, "However, the aunt was right, my cooking skills are indeed quite good."

Max’s ears twitched slightly, evidently listening intently.