Storage spaces are storage tools crafted by interstellar scientists using space-compression technology, appearing in various forms like rings, earrings, necklaces, and bracelets.
The interior space varies in size; smaller ones are only five cubic meters—about the volume of a few large suitcases—while larger ones can store an entire interstellar warship.
Unfortunately, regardless of their size, storage tools were currently locked in the shop, so Lu Xuan had no way of knowing how expensive they were.
In any case, with the ninety points remaining in his account, he certainly couldn’t afford one.
However, based on the viewers’ chatter today, the value of a Star Coin wasn’t much different from modern currency. It stood to reason that once he could earn a thousand or eight hundred points, he should be able to afford a small storage space, right?
He had already gained over a hundred points this morning; a thousand points shouldn’t take too long to earn.
Lu Xuan temporarily shifted his gaze away from the storage space and began looking at other items in the mall that piqued his interest.
For instance, a medical pod that could save anyone as long as they had a single breath left—whether suffering from a terminal illness, missing limbs, or even missing internal organs, everything could be cured with the right specialized medical fluid.
Then there were various models of hovercars, aircraft, and even spaceships…
These were also locked, and judging by their functions and their placement deep within the mall’s pages, it was clear that they wouldn’t be unlocked anytime soon, and their prices would undoubtedly be astronomical.
But no matter how expensive, since they were in the mall, he would surely be able to afford them one day, right?
So, there was no harm in getting an early look at his future possessions.
As Lu Xuan browsed, he didn’t forget to do some simple prep work on the remaining two boars.
·
Half an hour later, lunch was finally ready.
Lu Qing was usually frugal, but today, with such a feast, she hadn’t held back on the seasonings. The food she made was not only fragrant but also looked incredibly appetizing.
A large basin of braised rabbit meat, a plate of golden scrambled eggs, and a large bowl of egg custard with a few drops of soy sauce—just looking at it made one’s mouth water.
Lu Chen’s eyes were glued to the table.
Lu Xuan asked, “Did you set aside a portion for Brother-in-law?”
Lu Qing’s expression softened. She scooped a bowl of brown rice for each of them and smiled. “Don’t worry, I saved some.”
After saying that, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of heartache. “Our family hasn’t eaten like this even during the New Year. It’s really too extravagant. It’s fine to eat like this once in a while, but we can’t do it every meal from now on; we can’t afford it.”
Lu Xuan didn’t comment.
Lu Chen sat with his bowl, watching the braised rabbit meat while swallowing his saliva, but when he picked up his chopsticks, he didn’t reach for the meat. Instead, he picked up some scrambled eggs, shoved them into his mouth, and narrowed his eyes in satisfaction, radiating happiness.
The livestream viewers, who were also drooling over the dishes on the table, felt a sudden ache in their hearts.
Although their own diets weren’t great—nutrient paste, nutrient paste, nutrient paste—at least the low cost of the paste ensured that all citizens didn’t have to worry about hunger.
But this child was clearly used to being underfed; seeing him act so precious over a decent meal made him look pitiful!
[The little brother is so cute; the streamer better make sure to feed him well every day!]
[Tossing a gift—feed the sweet little brother!]
[Little brother, pick up some meat! Whatever you eat helps you grow! Don’t be polite with your brother; eat him out of house and home!]
Lu Xuan picked up a large chunk of meat and placed it in Lu Chen’s bowl. “Don’t be reluctant to eat. It’s hot today; if we don’t finish it now, it’ll go to waste.” He then added a piece of meat to Lu Qing’s bowl, who had worked hard to cook the meal.
Lu Qing, who had intended to save the meat for her brothers, firmed her expression. “That’s right, we can’t waste it!”
Farm folk despised waste, especially meat—even if they had to burst, they would eat it all!
Soon, the three of them stopped talking and buried their heads in their bowls.
The viewers who had been pitying little Lu Chen a moment ago fell into silence.
Pitiful? Who is pitiful?
Instead of pitying the streamer’s family, they should hug themselves and cry! Wuwuwu!
A viewer asked a soul-searching question: [Although it definitely has the vibe of a prehistoric eating stream, we can’t taste or smell it—doesn’t this just make us hungrier the more we watch!?]
Countless viewers chimed in with curses and complaints.
Yet, the number of online viewers kept growing without the slightest decrease, a testament to what it means to say one thing and do another—their mouths were complaining, but their eyes were honest.
·
Lu Qing and Lu Chen stuffed themselves to avoid waste, but halfway through, they were too full to take another bite.
Seeing they were full, Lu Xuan no longer held back. He sped up his eating, finishing the remaining dish and meat in front of the astonished siblings and viewers.
Lu Qing: ?? Didn’t he say he couldn’t finish it?
She looked at Lu Xuan’s stomach with worry: “Don’t force yourself; it’ll be bad if you burst your stomach.”
Lu Xuan replied calmly: “It’s fine. I have a large appetite; this little bit won’t stretch me.”
Lu Qing noticed his stomach hadn’t ballooned like Lu Chen’s, nor was there a hint of discomfort on his face. While relieved, she couldn’t help but let her imagination run wild.
Back when the family was poor, had Lu Xuan always been hungry and just suffered in silence so as not to upset his sister?
Thinking of this possibility, Lu Qing felt a wave of guilt and heartache.
The viewers in the livestream, however, quickly recovered from their shock.
The streamer is an ability user. Ability users naturally have huge appetites, and the higher the level, the larger the appetite. For a normal person, one tube of nutrient paste is enough for the day, but it’s normal for an ability user to need two, three, or even more.
Compared to the streamer, they were more surprised by the sister’s appetite.
Lu Xuan felt the same.
He had expected the two of them to eat a third of the food at most. He hadn’t expected Lu Qing to eat three full bowls of rice and meat, matching any grown man.
Lu Qing noticed Lu Xuan’s curious gaze and blushed, pouting: “What are you looking at? Can my appetite be bigger than yours? It’s not like it’s the first time you’ve noticed I can eat a lot.”
Lu Xuan said: “To be able to eat is a blessing. It’s a good thing.”
Lu Chen looked down at his bulging belly, which hadn’t been filled with much, and felt a bit discouraged.
It seemed he was the one who ate the least in the whole family.
Lu Xuan looked at him, his gaze falling on the round belly, and teased: “Oh? How many months along is that?”
“What nonsense are you talking about.” Lu Qing shot him a look, speechless.
But soon, something occurred to her; she looked down at her own stomach and sighed inwardly.
While digesting, Lu Xuan shared his plans.
“The meat won’t last long in this heat. I’m going to town later to sell the remaining wild boars and buy some daily necessities. The remaining rabbits and pheasants won’t sell for much, so let’s keep them and cook them for dinner. I’ll keep the pork fat; Sister, could you please render it into lard?”
Lu Qing nodded. “Okay!”
The pork fat from two pigs should be around twenty pounds. Rendering it should yield fifteen pounds—enough to last them a long time. It would be perfect to use more oil when cooking for her brothers later to help them build up their strength.
Lu Xuan asked: “What does the family need? I’ll buy it all at once.”
Lu Qing waved her hand quickly. “We don’t need anything. Didn’t we just trade for over a hundred pounds of grain for that wild boar? We have everything. Just buy whatever you want; keep the rest of the silver.”
In the past, she had kept the money. Now that Lu Xuan had recovered, the family’s assets should naturally be managed by him.
Lu Xuan nodded. “Then I’ll just buy what I see fit.”
After they finished talking, Lu Qing got up to clean the dishes, and the two brothers helped. Lu Xuan took the opportunity to survey the kitchen.
They had the hundred pounds of grain they’d just traded, so they weren’t lacking food, but the villagers had traded coarse grains, which didn’t taste very good. Refined rice and flour were definitely needed.
Also, the clothes the family—including him—wore were threadbare, faded, and covered in patches; he didn’t know how many years they’d been wearing them. Then there was the bedding, the wooden beds, the wardrobe…
Lu Qing said they didn’t need anything, but in Lu Xuan’s eyes, the house was lacking everything. If he really wanted to improve their life, the silver earned from today’s hunt was likely far from enough.
For now, he could only focus on improving their diet.
Lu Xuan had a rough idea. He greeted Lu Qing, hoisted the two wild boars in the courtyard onto his back, and headed out. Before leaving, he told Lu Chen: “Watch the house well; I’ll bring you something tasty when I get back.”
Lu Chen, who had just eaten and hadn’t digested his meal yet, once again had shining eyes.
Walking from Yunlu Village to the nearest town takes an hour. For those who travel often, the distance is manageable, and the villagers didn’t find it particularly tiring.
But walking light and carrying nearly five hundred pounds of game are two completely different things.
Yet, look at Lu Xuan—he carried the two wild boars as if they weighed nothing. Once out of the village, he even started running to save time, managing to cut an hour-long journey down to fifteen minutes.
The livestream viewers were stunned, especially when they realized Lu Xuan wasn’t even breathing hard, nor was he sweating!
[Is the streamer even human!? Carrying such heavy game is basically weight training, and he’s running so fast without sweating! Is this reasonable??]
[It’s really not reasonable. The livestream shows the temperature there is 28 degrees Celsius. While not extremely high, it’s the peak of solar heat right now. Even just standing outside for a while would make you break a sweat, wouldn’t it?]
[Is this physical fitness comparable to a regular soldier’s?]
[Could we have guessed wrong? Is the streamer not a Strength-type ability user, but a Speed-type?]
Lu Xuan glanced at the barrage, said a casual “You guess?”, and walked into Baishong Town.
Modern times have many ancient towns turned into tourist attractions—beautifully restored and bustling. But a real ancient town was much more dilapidated than those modern tourist sites; truthfully, there wasn’t much to see.
Lu Xuan didn’t have the heart to sightsee. He asked a passerby where the popular restaurants were and started from the closest one.
The first two restaurants didn’t need wild boar meat, and the third offered too low a price. Finally, he reached “Xiangxue Tower,” the largest restaurant in town. The manager, seeing the boar meat was truly fresh, bought both pigs at twelve coins per pound.
Domestic pork here goes for about twenty-five to thirty coins per pound depending on the cut. Wild boar meat doesn’t taste as good as domestic, and it’s mostly lean, so it sells for less, averaging about twenty coins per pound.
A restaurant looking to make a profit wouldn’t pay market price, but compared to the ten coins offered previously, the price at Xiangxue Tower was quite decent.
Two pigs totaling about five hundred pounds—at seventy percent net meat, that’s three hundred and fifty pounds. Lu Xuan walked away with a net profit of four taels and two hundred coins.
**[Barrage]:**
[Can someone tell me roughly how much four taels is worth? Is that a lot?]
[Based on my experience watching prehistoric livestreams, it converts to about 4,200 Star Coins? That’s an average monthly wage. Making that much in a day is pretty good.]
[Exactly! Some poor people in the ancient times might only earn that much in a whole year. If the streamer keeps hunting, getting rich isn’t a dream!]
[Buy food with the money! Buy more delicious things! I want to watch more eating streams!!!]
[I have a question! Why did the streamer specifically keep the pig stomach when selling the meat? Is that thing valuable?]
Lu Xuan, having tucked the silver away, replied: “That depends on who you’re selling it to.”
With that, he walked into the pharmacy located diagonally across from Xiangxue Tower.