My Pokémon Story of Seasons

Chapter 116 Mixed Bathing

Acorn beamed with delight, flipping the skewers as he said, "Alright, alright, since Tong Hua wants to hear it, I'll tell you more!"

He proudly began recounting a big order he'd recently landed, gesturing excitedly as if he'd almost forgotten about the skewers. Mu Mu seized the opportunity to wink at Tong Hua, signaling him to quickly chime in.

Tong Hua nodded knowingly: "Master Acorn is indeed amazing! He has finally made Chicory Wood Hall famous!"

"Master, you've made so much money. As your half-apprentice, I'm truly overjoyed."

Upon hearing Tong Hua's words, Xiang Shi immediately realized what was happening, and still smiling, he took out a banknote from his pocket.

"Here, take this, let it bring you some good luck."

Tong Hua accepted the ten thousand Union Coins and thanked him with a smile.

Having achieved his goal, Xiang Shi continued to share his carpentry insights. Tong Hua quietly took 5000 Alliance Coins from his wallet and gave them to Mu Mu. Afterward, they borrowed the open-air kitchen to start making scallion-baked crucian carp.

Mumu took the money, grinned, and whispered, "Pleasant to do business with you, let's do it again next time!"

Tong Hua skillfully prepared the crucian carp, then suddenly remembered the requested method of roasting with scallions. He added extra scallion segments and slowly roasted the fish over low heat until the bones became tender.

The aroma gradually wafted through the air, attracting some of the hotel guests.

"So there's an outdoor barbecue here."

Besides Tong Hua and his group, there were three other groups of guests at the hotel.

One group consisted of a sports club that had booked the entire hot spring, while the other two groups were parents with children. The children, drawn by the aroma, gathered around Tong Hua, their bright eyes filled with curiosity as he grilled the fish. One little girl pointed at the crucian carp and asked, "Big brother, can I have a bite?"

Tong Hua smiled and squatted down: "Okay, but be careful of fish bones. Let me take care of them for you first."

Although the crucian carp is so tender after being grilled with scallions that even the bones are edible, it may still be a bit dangerous for children.

With skillful knife work, Tong Hua quickly dissected the fish, deftly removing all the small bones. He then chopped the prepared fish into small pieces and distributed them to the eagerly waiting children.

"So delicious!" the little girl clapped her hands happily. "Big brother is so amazing!"

Another child came over, and Tong Hua patiently prepared the fish for him.

The parents followed, saying apologetically, "How could you take other people's things? We're so sorry, the children ran around everywhere without us watching them for a moment."

I'm sorry to have troubled you.

"No, no," Tong Hua waved her hand generously, "They are both very well-behaved. Anyway, it's just a little fish, consider it my treat for the children."

"How can this be?" Several parents exchanged glances, and one of the mothers took out a beautifully packaged box of rice crackers from her bag.

"Here, please accept this. It's a local specialty, Kama-en Senbei (rice crackers), perfect for eating after soaking in a hot spring."

Karamura Town, a small town at the foot of a volcano in the Hoenn region, is rich in geothermal resources and is therefore famous for its hot springs.

"So you're from the Hoenn region." Tong Hua accepted the rice crackers and started chatting with the parents.

"Hoenn is a great place, I've always wanted to go and see it."

I heard that area is quite close to the Carlos region; apparently, some people have even swum all the way from Hoenn to Carlos.

One parent laughed and chimed in, "Yes, yes, that incident became quite famous, and many people imitated it afterward."

As the group chatted, they became acquainted.

Tong Hua then learned that the two families had come from Qiuye Town for a vacation and happened to arrive just in time for the opening of the hot spring hotel.

"Is the inspection very strict when entering the country? I remember that the customs here check items like Poké Balls very carefully."

"That's true, but none of us have Pokémon, so it's relatively easy."

To be honest, raising children is much more tiring than raising Pokémon. Several parents looked at each other and smiled wryly. One father rubbed his sore shoulders: "Taking the kids on a trip is like moving house. You can't leave out any of their toys. And you have to keep an eye on them to make sure they don't run around."

Another mother nodded in agreement: "That's right. If it were a Pokémon, it could help with the luggage, but with a child, you have to rely entirely on yourself."

Hearing them say that, Tong Hua recalled her own experiences that day and shook her head with a wry smile.

I'm not so sure.

After finishing the cooking, Tong Hua took the remaining crucian carp back to her room.

Unfortunately, the fish was processed for a bit too long. Its freshness decreased, and the quality wasn't very good, so it only provided some basic relief of fullness and energy.

"Ha ha ha ha!"

The wind and Pokémon were still leisurely watching cartoons on TV. Judging from her lazy appearance, you could imagine what she was like at home.

"Oh, you're back. Mmm~ It smells so good! Hurry up and bring it over, I'm dying to get it."

She quickly sat up, her eyes shining as she stared at the plate in Tong Hua's hand.

"Let's dig in!"

Tong Hua placed the carefully prepared scallion-baked crucian carp on the low table, and Feng, like a cat, eagerly picked up his chopsticks.

"Meow~" Charming Cat also came over, waiting for the wind to share some with her.

"Mmm! Delicious!"

While eating, she exclaimed, "It's definitely the way I chose to cook it; it's such a perfect match!"

Charming Cat also got a small piece, its eyes squinting as it ate. The other Pokémon shared the rice crackers Tong Hua had brought back, filling the room with crunching sounds.

"By the way, isn't one fish missing? And where did this senbei (rice cracker) come from?"

After Tong Hua explained, Feng didn't say anything, but just smiled and took a rice cracker from Tong Hua's hand.

"You should eat less, or I won't be responsible if you can't eat dinner later."

"Oh, it's alright, these are just snacks. We still have room for dinner."

Tong Hua looked out the window. It was already sunset, and the dry landscape garden in the courtyard had a unique charm under the glow of the setting sun.

"Speaking of which, I just went to check it out, and it seems that the hot springs here have mixed-gender bathing."

Let's go to a bar together later.

"Pfft! Cough cough cough!" Tong Hua's words made him choke, and he quickly drank some water.

"What are you saying, you shameless bastard!"

Tong Hua scratched his head in confusion as he looked at her reaction.

"Why are you scolding me? Soaking in a hot spring with Pokémon, what's so shameless about that?"

Oh, you didn't think I was talking about mixed-gender bathing, did you?

Tong Hua said with a mischievous grin that this was his revenge for Feng's previous teasing of him.

"Huh?" Feng was stunned, a shy blush creeping onto her face. "You mean Pokémon—"

Tong Hua smiled smugly: "Otherwise what? Did you think I meant—"

"Shut up!" Feng grabbed a pillow and threw it at Tong Hua, her face turning even redder. "You definitely did that on purpose!"

"Huh?"

The Pokémon watching TV nearby watched the two playfully bickering with curiosity. The adorable Meowth gracefully jumped onto the low table, snatched the last piece of crucian carp, as if to say, "You two keep arguing, I'm eating first."

While dodging the attacks, Tong Hua tried to suppress his laughter and joke, but he couldn't help it at all.

"Haha, so you're overthinking it, aren't you? There are mixed-gender bathing facilities, though, but they're only open to families."

If you really want to take a mixed-gender bath, I can pretend to be part of your family.

"Dream on!" He grabbed another pillow and threw it at her. "Go take your Pokémon bath!"

Just then, Maggie knocked on the door and brought in dinner.

Seeing the pillow fight in the room and Feng's flushed face, she smiled and said, "If you two would like to soak in the hot springs, the private session is over now, you can go anytime."

Taking advantage of the situation, Feng changed the subject: "Let's go, charming cat, let's go to the hot springs!"

She didn't even bother with dinner. She picked up Charming Cat, turned around, and walked out, trying to hide her embarrassment. Tong Hua watched her hastily fleeing figure and couldn't help but burst into laughter again.

This little act of "revenge" put him in a great mood, and even the frustration of losing the fishing competition dissipated considerably.

"Let's go soak in the hot springs first, and then have dinner later."

"Oh my god!" "Terrifying!"