That afternoon, on the forum.
Come and have some barbecue!: Setting up the stall at the usual place in thirty minutes! A thousand surprises, limited to one per person! First come, first served! To prepare these a thousand surprises, I am completely penniless, and even 20,000 in debt... Are you moved by my dedication? I’ve certainly moved myself.
1st Floor: [I’m already in line at your stall, first in line! A little moved... but you are really so poor. If you sold tens of thousands of skewers a day or something, you’d probably be rich, right?]
2nd Floor: [I came an hour early to line up, and I’m still outside the top hundred. You guys are too much! So moved... Our junior is too poor! But hahahaha...]
3rd Floor: [I’m already on my way, don’t know what place in line I’ll get. Seeing that our junior is actually in debt, I express my deep sympathy but can’t help laughing out loud! Our junior is so pitiful hahaha!]
...
In front of the stall, Gan Lan looked at the countless heads and jumped in fright. There were even more people than yesterday!
"Junior!? Is this big mud ball the surprise you mentioned??" Wu Mingyu held the mud ball, looking at it left and right in sheer amazement.
"That’s right. There are hammers on the table next to you. Smash it open with a hammer and peel it back layer by layer—isn’t that a surprise? The specific instructions on how to smash and eat it are written on the sign," Gan Lan answered calmly, looking down as she arranged the food.
The first few people who got the Beggar’s Chicken were already smashing their mud balls. Wu Mingyu was the first to crack his open, revealing the tin foil inside. After unwrapping the foil, he exposed an object wrapped in lotus leaves and carefully untied the straw rope.
He felt a slight thrill of excitement, wondering what it would be like. He had never felt this nervous, excited, and expectant even when opening gifts worth millions or tens of millions. Glancing around, he saw that most of the others shared the same expression.
As he peeled back a corner of the lotus leaf, a faint, fresh fragrance wafted out. When he uncovered the entire leaf, an intoxicating aroma quickly spread. Resting on the lotus leaf was a vibrant, date-red Zhenzhen Chicken!
Following the tutorial, he pulled out the sealing needle on the Zhenzhen Chicken’s belly. The savory juices slowly flowed out, making the aroma even richer. He scooped up a bite of the stuffing mixed with the broth, and the taste made him feel as if he were floating on air.
He tore off a chicken leg. The skin was crispy and the meat tender, carrying bursts of the lotus leaf’s fresh scent. He could barely bear to swallow it, and once it was in his stomach, the aftertaste lingered endlessly. A bite of the juicy stuffing followed by a bite of meat—the flavor and texture were absolutely phenomenal!
After the spectacle of rows of people squatting and gnawing on pork knuckles, now there were rows of people squatting and gnawing on whole chickens. The sight was simply unparalleled!
Meanwhile, the bustling Food Street witnessed another beautiful sight.
Yan Yifei and Gao Haiyang, two incredibly handsome men in uniform, were casually strolling toward Gan Lan’s stall.
They stopped in front of two people who were among the first five in line. Seeing that their employers had arrived, the two proxies quickly collected their payment and gave up their spots.
It turned out they had negotiated a price beforehand to have someone queue and hold their places. Tsk, rich people really were different—they didn’t even have to wait in line.
Yan Yifei’s gaze was completely composed. He didn’t feel there was anything wrong with this; in fact, he felt he was a bona fide genius for thinking of it.
With his hands in his pockets, he stared straight ahead, completely ignoring the hesitant glances of the people around him.
His eyes swept the area and were quickly drawn to the people smashing mud balls. He wondered if this was the surprise. It certainly was quite a surprise, very much in the style of the Culinary Department.
Looking at the sign standing to the side, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly. He instantly found it even more amusing. She really was a talent.
Gan Lan looked up at the exquisitely elegant and noble young man in front of her. She thought to herself that his smile made him look even better.
Her inquiring voice unconsciously softened a great deal. "Senior, we have meat skewers, Choubei, pork knuckles, trotters, and mud balls. Mud balls are limited to one per person! What would you like?"
Yan Yifei raised an eyebrow and glanced down at the questioner’s name tag. Gan Lan, Culinary Department freshman. Her eyes were earnest and bright, and her voice was crisp and pleasant. "Two hundred meat skewers, twenty each of Choubei and pork knuckles, and a mud ball as well!"
"The skewers will take a moment. I’ll have the robot pack the rest for you first." Gan Lan once again felt frustrated over her distinct lack of height! Every time she looked at someone, she had to crane her neck upward, which was exhausting.
She couldn’t stare for too long either, as she had to stay busy grilling meat. Such an exceptionally top-tier handsome guy was a rare sight, and she secretly sighed in pity.
Standing right behind him, Gao Haiyang’s eyes lit up when he saw Gan Lan, and he greeted her with practiced ease.
"Junior, we meet again! Do you still remember me? Can we exchange contact info? Sometimes I’m too busy with classes and don’t have time to wait in line. I skipped class yesterday, and I skipped class again today. Although the price I pay is a bit heavy, seeing how miserable I am and how much I love your food, could you give me your contact? Please, please!" Gao Haiyang whispered, looking at Gan Lan with deep anticipation. He kept his voice extremely low—what if others started asking for her contact info too?!
Gan Lan tilted her head and glanced at the handsome yet somewhat adorable young man who had spoken. He had left a deep impression on her. "Sure, leave your contact ID. I’ll add you after I close the stall later." She agreed without a second thought. After all, she had already added quite a few regular customers on her Light Brain; adding one more wouldn’t make a difference.
...
Another busy day passed, and she could finally close up her stall. Since she finished early today, Gan Lan planned to cook a proper meal to reward herself for her hard work over the past few days.
No sooner said than done! She picked up her Light Brain and browsed the ingredient shops on the Star Network.
Gan Lan prepared to make sweet and sour pork ribs, braised pork belly, fish and tofu soup, steamed egg custard, and blanched lettuce.
And she would add a dessert: milky mango jelly!
After selecting her ingredients, she handed the items that needed prepping over to the robot.
Gan Lan started with the milky mango jelly. She added the appropriate amounts of milk, sugar, and white jelly powder to a pot, brought it to a boil, and then turned off the heat. She then tossed in the diced mango, stirred the mixture evenly, and poured it into molds to chill.
Next, she heated some oil and melted rock sugar to create a caramel color, then added the pork belly to coat it. She tossed in seasonings and spices, stir-frying everything evenly. After adding two bowls of hot water, she brought it to a boil over high heat, reduced it to medium-low to simmer for about an hour, and finally turned the heat back to high to reduce the sauce before serving.
Once again, she heated oil and melted rock sugar to make caramel. She added the blanched pork ribs to coat them, poured in a prepared sweet and sour sauce, and stir-fried everything rapidly. Then, she added enough water to submerge the ribs and let them braise over low heat for about forty minutes.
For the eggs, she beat them, stirred in appropriate amounts of warm water and salt, and passed the mixture through a sieve twice. She covered the bowl with plastic wrap, poked a few small holes in it, and placed it into a steamer over boiling water to steam for fifteen to twenty minutes.
When a fresh pot of water boiled, she dropped in the prepped lettuce with a pinch of salt and a few drops of oil. She blanched it for exactly three seconds before scooping it out and drizzling it with a prepared soy sauce dressing.
She pan-fried the fish until both sides were golden brown, poured in boiling water, and cooked it until the fish broth turned white. She then added the tofu, simmering the soup until it achieved a milky white color before seasoning it and taking it off the heat.
Once the mango jelly had chilled, she removed it from the molds and sliced it into cubes.
Done! Looking at the table completely packed with dishes, Gan Lan took a quick photo and posted it to the forum.
Come and have some barbecue!: [A whole table full of dishes. What should I do if I can’t finish it by myself?] [Image attached]
Come and have some barbecue!: [I will now randomly draw two spots from everyone who has spent money at my stall to have dinner with the stall owner. Is anyone interested? The draw will begin in three minutes!]
1st Floor: [Interested, very interested! Pick me quickly!!!!]
2nd Floor: [It’s me, it’s me, it’s definitely me! I’m blessed by the gods of luck!]
...
Come and have some barbecue!: [Alright, the draw starts now.]
Come and have some barbecue!: [Congratulations to Blooming Beauty, Moonlit Grace and Sky Blue! I’ve already sent the address via private message. I will only wait for ten minutes, so don’t be late!]
600th Floor: [Why isn’t it me, isn’t it me, how can it actually not be me!? I’m so mad and sour, boohoo~]
700th Floor: [Ah!! What kind of insane luck do those drawn people have!?]
Beneath Gan Lan’s post, the discussion was still raging about who the two lucky winners were, demanding they come out and take a beating...
Meanwhile, the two lucky winners who had received the private messages were still entirely oblivious to what had just happened.