At the end of Laokeng Village, Cheng Baozhu lay on the bed, pretending to be dead.
Of course, she wasn’t actually dead—her consciousness had just entered a different space.
She found herself standing in a quaint, classical kitchen, spacious and bright, with every kind of ingredient and seasoning neatly arranged.
Biubiu~
The system excitedly displayed a little firework on its panel. Since its activation, it had served four or five hosts, but none were as difficult as Cheng Baozhu.
No matter who received it, they were usually thrilled, eager to use it to achieve something great.
Only Cheng Baozhu needed coaxing and reassurance just to come into the space and learn.
The system said enthusiastically: [Our Chef God System encompasses all dishes in the world, from ingredient cultivation and preparation to knife skills, heat control, and even plating, with professional instructors available for one-on-one guidance.]
“Cultivation?” Cheng Baozhu asked, puzzled.
[Yes.]
It displayed a panel showing various modes, even several types of kitchens.
Cheng Baozhu understood immediately and switched the “kitchen mode” to “vegetable field mode.”
In the next moment, her surroundings transformed.
Seven or eight acres of vegetable fields spread out from her feet, a small stream winding through them, with distant rice paddies and dry fields visible beyond.
So amazing!
Cheng Baozhu stared in awe for a long while, her eyes sparkling, asking expectantly, “There’s a one-click planting feature, right?”
The system hesitated: […No, this is a learning system, not a production system. Everything in this space is virtual; whatever you cultivate here cannot be taken out, including the dishes you prepare.]
It paused before quickly adding: [In other words, you can only enter the space with your consciousness and only take knowledge out.]
Worried she might be disappointed, it hurriedly added: [But humans have a saying—knowledge is priceless.]
Cheng Baozhu: …
Thanks, thanks for telling me that as a student who’s always in the lower ranks.
She tried some other functions, but after exploring the space, she left disappointed.
For others, this space would be a treasure, but for her, it might be of limited use.
Ultimately, she was just too lazy. And more fundamentally, she didn’t want to change.
For now, she’d just bide her time, especially since she still had money.
The system: …
It could foresee that once her money ran out, she’d be scrambling again.
Cheng Baozhu sat up, her stomach growling, debating whether to eat the dishes on the table, when a door suddenly opened.
“I’m back,” Xu Chuan’s voice called.
He returned under the night sky, habitually turning on the light next to the door.
Xu Chuan had always been someone who enjoyed comfort. Before moving out, living with his parents and siblings, it was hard to get the light on.
Now, with his own home, he used it daily, paying no mind to the “frugality” his parents had drilled into him.
But tonight, he hesitated slightly after turning on the warm yellow light.
Things were different now—he wasn’t alone anymore; he had a wife.
Under the warm glow, Xu Chuan took a careful look at their house for the first time.
The house was small: a single yellow mud room serving as both living and sleeping area, with a wooden kitchen and outhouse, no bathroom, and bathing required moving a bucket into the room.
Rarely did Xu Chuan feel the urge to improve, yet at that moment, he did.
But laziness prevailed. After roughly calculating the cost of a proper courtyard, he awkwardly gave up the idea.
Newlyweds’ thought processes were surprisingly in sync at that moment.
Noticing the dishes on the table, he asked, “Why haven’t you eaten?”
Cheng Baozhu stared at him: “I can’t eat.” Then, matter-of-factly, she added, “I’m taking back the betrothal money.”
Xu Chuan, about to sit and pick up a bowl, blinked: “Hey, you don’t keep your word!”
Cheng Baozhu admitted cheerfully: “Exactly.”
She had said she’d give him the money if she was happy, but now she wasn’t.
Xu Chuan choked.
They stared at each other in silence.
Finally, Xu Chuan gave in, reluctantly fishing a stack of money from his pocket: “Your brothers didn’t give it all. We only got ninety-five from them.”
Cheng Baozhu snatched it: “Then go get the rest tomorrow, I’ll lend you half of the remainder.”
She realized that the betrothal money in this place was substantial, enough that a hundred eighty yuan could cover a house, yet they still spent it on a wedding despite living in a run-down house.
Tsk, Cheng Baozhu pouted.
“Steam me some egg custard, I’m hungry,” she said, annoyed at the crumpled bills, putting the money in her pocket and instructing Xu Chuan.
Xu Chuan, still eating hastily, froze at her request, incredulous.
“Steam me a custard with two eggs,” Cheng Baozhu said, swallowing hard. “Skim off the foam, or it won’t look right. Near the end, drizzle some soy sauce and rice wine, and finally a bit of sesame oil. Don’t use too much water; not too firm, not too soft.”
Clang!
Xu Chuan stared at her in disbelief, finishing the last bite of rice, putting down his bowl, cheeks puffed, eyes fixed on her.
Cheng Baozhu looked innocent, wide-eyed.
Xu Chuan: “Here’s the rice.”
Cheng Baozhu: “Too dark, I can’t eat it.”
Xu Chuan: “This is pork stir-fried with preserved vegetables!”
It was fatty, all meat, served by his mother.
Cheng Baozhu craned her neck stubbornly, refusing it no matter how hungry.
Then let yourself starve, Xu Chuan thought.
Considering her condition, he patiently fetched two eggs and went to the kitchen.
He had never steamed eggs for anyone before.
Cheng Baozhu, watching him, couldn’t resist smelling the dishes on the table. The blackened food smelled surprisingly appetizing.
Yet the aroma wasn’t enough to change her mind.
She complained to the system: “See? I told you I can’t survive here. No malls, no yachts, I only have food left, and even that I can’t eat properly…”
Might as well find a solid wall and end it.
The system silently received her words.
It was coaxed: [Host, don’t forget, I am the Chef God System.]
“I know. Too bad you’re not a money-spending system, that would’ve been perfect,” she sighed.
The system: …
The night was deep, the moon dim.
Bored, Cheng Baozhu leaned against the door, observing her surroundings.
Outside, except for their home, it was pitch black, not a single streetlamp in sight, unnervingly quiet.
Their house was truly remote; the nearest household was about two hundred meters away. Yet the courtyard was large enough to plant vegetables.
In the southeast corner, a small vegetable patch was already cultivated, with a persimmon tree nearby, its green fruits hanging from the branches.
The kitchen had no wired lights; under the kerosene lamp, the space was hazy, dreamlike.
Honestly, Cheng Baozhu still felt as if the day’s events were a dream.
Sigh!
Cheng Baozhu and the system sighed together; in a sense, they were both struggling, worried about their future.
[Beep—]
Suddenly, the system emitted a sound.
The electronic voice announced: [Potential talent detected within 100 meters.]
“What’s happening?”
“What’s happening!”
Cheng Baozhu and the system spoke simultaneously.
The system panicked: [So close, just so close!]
It nearly escaped from Cheng Baozhu’s body.
Watching Xu Chuan carry the egg custard from the kitchen, the system regretted everything, wishing it could reset to factory settings.
Lazy as he was, how did Xu Chuan have potential?
Cheng Baozhu, not stupid, blinked and stared at Xu Chuan, her gaze burning: “You’re skilled?”
Xu Chuan boasted: “Of course, my skills surpass my elder sister-in-law. Hunting sparrows, fishing in the river, I always do the cooking.”
Is that so?
Cheng Baozhu suddenly had an idea.
Surprisingly, the system got it too.
“I have an idea.”
[Please, go ahead.]
Cheng Baozhu said earnestly: “After marriage, property is jointly owned by both spouses. We’re both working hard for this family…”
[Speak plainly.]
“Alright. I mean, since he has talent, to avoid unnecessary waste, why not let him learn in your… space?”
Cheng Baozhu showed no embarrassment, her heart unmoved by any sense of fairness.
The system fell silent for half a minute, then she realized her idea was feasible.
Indeed, it was workable.
The system, however, was still calculating the likelihood of the main system discovering this plan, and by the time Cheng Baozhu finished her custard, it still hadn’t produced a result.
After going a whole day without eating properly, the egg custard satisfied her, sparking some anticipation for future meals.
She complimented sincerely: “You’re not completely useless.”
Xu Chuan: “…Thanks, I see, you really are useless.”
Cheng Baozhu frowned; don’t underestimate her—she knew a lot.
Even just her particularly discerning tongue could outmatch many people.
She could detect that this custard had slightly too much water; reduce it by about two spoonfuls and the texture would be perfect.
And she wasn’t just good at eating; she could cook.
Thanks to her family background, her first childhood cooking book was Soup Head Songs.
Her grandmother was an old Chinese doctor. Seeing that her older cousins had little medical potential, she focused on Cheng Baozhu from birth.
Thus, Cheng Baozhu grew up under her grandmother’s guidance. Had her grandmother not died when Cheng Baozhu was fifteen, she might have been forced to pursue medical school.
But her grandmother left early, and no one could control her afterward. Cheng Baozhu wasted her three high school years and ended up taking the art exam for university.
Long story short, Cheng Baozhu had some medical knowledge.
—Knowledge that even her three-year-old nephew feared.
—Her little yellow dog preferred visiting the vet for shots rather than let her touch it.
Even with half-baked skills, Cheng Baozhu was confident she could beat Xu Chuan at anything.
She was just about to roll up her sleeves for a showdown when Xu Chuan pulled out folded bedding from the cupboard and tossed it to her: “Go, make the bed.”
Cheng Baozhu: “Why?”
“To make the bed.”
“Why make the bed?”
Xu Chuan rubbed his arm: “Didn’t you notice it’s cooler at night? I can lie on the straw mat, can you?”
Cheng Baozhu’s eyes widened: “Do I have to sleep with you?”
Xu Chuan choked, then exclaimed in disbelief: “Otherwise, where else am I supposed to make you a bed?”
Lie on the floor?
Not a chance!
Cheng Baozhu took a deep breath, ready to resist, when the long-silent system suddenly chimed: [You really do have to sleep with him.]