Qian Chuanchuan nodded, watching the group depart. It seemed they intended to stay for a few days, which meant her bun sales for the next few days were secured.
In fact, if more people showed up, she might not even have enough. Actually, she already didn’t have enough; otherwise, they wouldn’t be staying here temporarily—they would have bought a sufficient supply and headed straight back to the base.
Qian Chuanchuan felt she was still making too few buns. At her current pace, it would take another four days to complete her 1,000-bun KPI. She wasn’t in a hurry, but the customers certainly were!
This group of a dozen or so people had arrived together, so any conflicts were resolved internally. But if another group arrived right now, things would turn into a chaotic mess! However, if she were forced to make more, she felt it would be a bit much. It had taken her over two hours just to finish this afternoon’s batch!
Tomorrow morning would be the same amount, meaning she’d have to crawl out of bed at three or four in the morning to start kneading! If she added any more, she might as well not sleep at all!
Qian Chuanchuan turned it over in her mind and decided against it—her life was more important! She drifted off into a daze as she thought, her face practically spelling out the word “worry.”
She only snapped out of it when the sunlight in front of her was blocked, casting a shadow over her vision. She looked up to find the man already standing at the window, looking down at her.
“You’re back? Is the guinea pig processed?” Qian Chuanchuan immediately tossed her troubles aside and asked.
“Mhm,” the man grunted briefly in response.
So fast? She was a bit surprised. She remembered that butchering a pig was a rather tedious process.
On second thought, a regular domestic pig required processing internal organs, the skin, the head, and even repeated cleaning of the intestines, which was naturally time-consuming. But this mutated pig… likely only the meat on its body was edible, so processing it would naturally be much faster.
“Want this?” The man took out a crystal nucleus glowing with a faint blue light and held it out to Qian Chuanchuan.
“Huh?” Why was the Wealth God suddenly giving her a crystal nucleus again? Had he run out of water already? It hadn’t been that long since she filled it.
“It’s a mutated animal nucleus,” the man added, seemingly sensing the confusion in her eyes.
This was the first time Qian Chuanchuan had seen a mutated animal’s nucleus. She didn’t take it immediately, but examined it closely; it didn’t seem much different from a zombie’s nucleus.
She asked in her mind: “Sansan, can mutated animal nuclei be exchanged for points too?”
【Yes, Host! And they can be exchanged for double the points of a zombie nucleus!】 System Sansan replied instantly.
Qian Chuanchuan’s eyes lit up like a small light bulb that had suddenly been switched on. She didn’t rush to reach out, though. Instead, she tilted her head and asked, “If I want it, you’ll just give it to me?”
“Mhm,” the man replied expressionlessly, without even moving an eyebrow.
This reaction actually made Qian Chuanchuan’s heart drum. She narrowed her eyes and pressed further: “Why?”
“Hmm?”
Seeing his puzzled look, as if he didn’t quite understand what she was asking, she simply laid it out: “I mean, why are you giving this nucleus to me?”
—The pork could be explained as a return gift, but what was the deal with this nucleus? Qian Chuanchuan was baffled. She felt something was a bit off, but she couldn’t put her finger on what it was. She just felt that this man seemed… unusually good to her.
Wait! Unusually good!
Qian Chuanchuan shuddered, her mind uncontrollably producing a very bold guess.
This man… he wouldn’t happen to be… trying to date me, would he?!!
But the thought only lasted for a single second before she firmly shook it out of her head. When had she become so narcissistic? She’d never had this problem before!
Ling Zhanlou watched the girl’s constantly changing expressions, a trace of an unnoticeable smile flickering in his eyes. He cleared his throat and asked quite seriously, “Do you… not accept mutated animal nuclei here?”
“?” Qian Chuanchuan didn’t react for a moment. “You want to buy something? But today’s buns are all sold out…”
“I’m out of water.” After saying that, the man took out his thermos and handed it over.
Qian Chuanchuan took it and gave it a shake; it really was empty.
Is this man a water buffalo? How can he drink so much?
See! She really had overthought it! Even though she was beautiful and had a great figure, it wasn’t as if every man would want to date her! Especially such a handsome guy! He was probably just being very polite and generous!
“Actually, you don’t need to give a nucleus every time you want water. Water is precious, but it’s not that expensive. If you insist on paying, a Level 1 nucleus is enough,” Qian Chuanchuan said earnestly.
The man, however, seemed to turn a deaf ear. With a gentle push of his long fingers, the nucleus made a crisp clink on the windowsill.
Qian Chuanchuan stared at the nucleus right in front of her, the corners of her mouth twitching. Fine, fine—since the Wealth God was determined to throw money at her… she would reluctantly accept it!
“The water just boiled, it needs to cool for a bit,” Qian Chuanchuan pointed to the steaming kettle. Although tap water was drinkable, she felt safer with it boiled.
“No rush.” Ling Zhanlou lifted his hand, and a bulging transparent plastic bag swayed. “The meat still needs to be cleaned.”
Only then did Qian Chuanchuan notice he had been carrying something in his left hand. While sitting, her view had been blocked by the windowsill, but now that she stood up, she could see the bag was filled with bright red meat, with a thin layer of blood pooled at the bottom.
It definitely needed a good washing.
“Wait for me!” She suddenly turned and rushed into the bathroom.
Ling Zhanlou raised an eyebrow slightly, watching the girl’s energetic silhouette. A moment later, Qian Chuanchuan emerged carrying a plastic basin nearly the size of a bathtub, with a long hose trailing from her other hand.
They looked brand new.
“Here, put the meat in this!” She nimbly placed the basin on the ground and connected the hose to the tap on the counter, her movements smooth and fluid. This way, the meat could be washed directly outside without making a mess inside the shop. It would also make rinsing much easier.
Ling Zhanlou looked at the large plastic basin the girl had brought out and glanced through the window toward the bathroom. The space didn’t look very large. To think it could hold such a big basin.
What he didn’t know was that this large plastic basin was something Qian Chuanchuan had just bought on the spot for 20 points. The hose, too, had cost 30 points.
Ling Zhanlou dumped the pork from the bag into the basin. With a splash, the bright red meat poured in, instantly piling up into a small mountain. He took the hose, and Qian Chuanchuan turned on the tap in synchronization.
Splaaaash—
The high-pressure stream hit the meat, and bloody water immediately swirled in the basin, overflowing the rim in an instant.
“Tch.” Ling Zhanlou suddenly signaled Qian Chuanchuan to turn off the water, his brow furrowed.
“What’s wrong?” Qian Chuanchuan leaned in, asking with some confusion. A strong scent of blood filled her nose.
“This bloody water might attract zombies.”
“Does mutated animal blood attract zombies too?” She had thought only human blood could do that.
“But you don’t need to worry. Even if zombies are attracted, they won’t get close.” Without waiting for Ling Zhanlou to speak, she continued, “Let’s wash the meat first, then we can rinse down the ground later. We have plenty of water!”
After saying that, she turned back to turn the tap. She clearly didn’t intend to explain why the zombies wouldn’t get close.
Ling Zhanlou watched her back, the corners of his lips curving into an almost imperceptible arc. In this apocalypse, she was probably the only one who could say the words “we have plenty of water” with such confidence.