Initially, she had Gulu bring Xiaomi along, intending to host a proper food stream. But plans could never keep up with changes. With so many people around, it just wasn’t the right setting for a live broadcast.
She wondered if she could pack up the leftover food to take home. It would be such a waste to leave so many unfinished shrimp—especially since, thanks to Master Mo Ran, she had managed to score another variety of Jade Shrimp. It was simply wonderful.
She just found it odd that not a single VIP or host had stepped up to give a speech. The banquet was essentially a massive buffet-style gathering. Still, this wasn’t necessarily a bad thing; she had been dreading the possibility of someone droning on and on at a podium.
Although she secretly grumbled about the lack of entertainment—she had really been looking forward to pairing good food with a futuristic performance—Gan Lan was actually highly satisfied with the banquet. She had devoured numerous dishes she had never seen or tasted before. It was an eye-opening and mouth-watering experience.
A voice echoed over the banquet’s PA system: "It looks like everyone has had their fill and is in high spirits. Before we bring this banquet to a close, let us invite the renowned Master Mo Ran of the Culinary World to say a few words. Let’s hear what valuable advice Master Mo Ran has for the one hundred contestants heading to the Red Demon Star for the grand finals."
Just as Gan Lan finished her silent complaints, the clear announcement rang out, calling the very man sitting beside her, Master Mo Ran, up to the stage.
"I suppose it was inevitable," Master Mo Ran said. He swallowed his last bite of shrimp, stood up, and sighed, shaking his head. "And here I thought I could dodge it." Just as he turned to head to the stage, a thought seemed to strike him. He paused and patted Gan Lan’s shoulder. "I’ve already given you my advice. I hope you shine in the grand finals on the Red Demon Star. Remember to send me that chili sauce when you get back. I’ll see you on the Red Demon Star, little girl."
Gan Lan stood up as well and gave him a sincere bow of gratitude. "Thank you, Master Mo Ran. You’ve given me such an engaging culinary lesson today; I definitely won’t let you down!"
"I merely gave you a few pointers. I hardly deserve to be called your teacher," Master Mo Ran said with a hearty laugh, though he was clearly pleased by the reverent tone.
"Didn’t the ancients say, ’A teacher for a day is a teacher for a lifetime’?" Gan Lan bantered. "You’re more than worthy of the title, or do you think I’m just trying to ride your coattails?"
"You’re something else." Master Mo Ran pointed a finger at her, shaking his head with an amused smile. "I won’t joke around with you anymore; I need to go give my speech." With that, he strolled leisurely toward the temporary stage that the robots had quickly assembled nearby.
Gan Lan couldn’t help but marvel at the technology of this era. They had managed to set up such an elaborate stage in the blink of an eye.
By the time the banquet ended, Gan Lan was completely stuffed. As she was getting ready to leave, she noticed the sheer amount of leftover shrimp. It felt like a shame to leave them behind. In fact, she... kind of wanted to pack them up and take them with her.
"Dean Chu, what’s going to happen to all the leftover shrimp?" Gan Lan asked, her eyes lingering wistfully on plate after plate of jumbo shrimp being cleared away by the robots. What was wrong with the people at this banquet? How could they leave so much of this incredibly delicious and expensive seafood behind? It made her heart ache just looking at it.
"They’ll be disposed of as trash, of course," Chu Yuanyi replied, shaking his head as he walked beside her. "Even though we have temperature-controlled boxes that can preserve food in its original state, it’s always best to eat meals while they’re fresh."
Gan Lan froze in her tracks upon hearing that. These were shrimp! Big, beautiful jumbo shrimp! Back in her original world, a single one of these would have cost hundreds of dollars—not to mention the premium varieties mixed in. And they were just going to throw them all away?!
It looked like she was going to have to become a scavenger. Before leaving, she would do the Banan Star a favor and take out some of the "trash" they didn’t want.
Mentally bracing herself, Gan Lan flashed a cheeky grin at Dean Chu, who was looking at her in confusion. "Dean Chu, since no one wants these shrimp anymore... can I take them?"
The moment the words left her mouth, a wave of déjà vu washed over her. It reminded her of the time she used to collect empty bottles back in her original world—a character-building experience that had thoroughly trained her thick skin and stripped away her sense of shame.
She remembered being around eleven or twelve years old. Desperate to buy a doll she liked, she had asked her parents for the money, only to be rejected. She had been heartbroken for days until she happened to overhear the old lady next door mention that empty bottles could be sold for cash.
And so, her days of digging through public trash cans began. Whenever she saw someone drinking water, she would stare longingly at the bottle in their hands before eventually asking, "Are you going to finish with that bottle?"
After painstakingly collecting bottles for the entire summer vacation, she finally saved up enough money. But when the time came, she couldn’t bear to spend her hard-earned, blood-and-sweat money on a mere toy.
That was the first time she had truly understood how hard it was to make a living. To earn just a few dozen bucks, she had run around crowded, bustling places in the sweltering heat, digging through foul-smelling garbage bins. Even now, looking back, she could still vividly recall the conflicting feelings of wanting to give up, yet being too stubborn to quit.
But collecting bottles had been honest, glorious labor! And now, taking these unwanted shrimp off their hands was simply a noble act of conservation! She was carrying forward the excellent traditions of Huaxia: never let good food go to waste! Besides, as a chef, she simply couldn’t bear the thought of someone’s hard work being casually tossed into the trash.
"Are you... still hungry?" Chu Yuanyi cast her a surprised look, his gaze seemingly unintentionally dropping to her stomach. He could have sworn her mouth hadn’t stopped moving from the moment the banquet started.
"Dean Chu, I just think it’s a massive waste to throw them away. I want to take them back and study them to see what other delicious dishes can be made from pre-cooked shrimp. After all, buying these varieties for experiments would cost a fortune. This is the perfect opportunity to get some free practice in!" Gan Lan had managed to find an impeccable, bulletproof excuse for her gluttony and penny-pinching.
"Alright. Mingzong covered the bulk of the expenses for this banquet anyway, and it was held specifically to celebrate your first-place victory in the finals." Convinced by her reasoning, Chu Yuanyi waved a hand, summoning the robots over to pack up all the jumbo shrimp for her.
Hearing the dean’s response, Gan Lan’s last shreds of embarrassment vanished, replaced by complete self-righteousness. This was a banquet hosted by her school in her honor! By that logic, these shrimp had essentially been made for her!
Gan Lan nodded to herself. "Exactly! That’s precisely how it is."
Gulu had been utterly flabbergasted listening to Gan Lan ask for the leftover shrimp, and even more so when Chu Yuanyi actually agreed. Throwing all caution to the wind despite the crowd still lingering in the hall, he bellowed at the top of his lungs, "Gan Lan! Have you lost your mind from being broke?! You’re actually packing up leftover food to take home?! This is so humiliating!"
The moment Gulu’s shout echoed through the hall, Dean Chu and Mr. Liang swiftly turned on their heels and walked away.
"We have an emergency to attend to," the dean tossed over his shoulder as they made their hasty escape.
The remaining guests stared at Gan Lan with a complicated mix of expressions. Some offered looks of sudden realization and pity, while others outright sneered at her.
Gan Lan was speechless. It was over. Thanks to Gulu’s outburst, she was absolutely certain she would be making headlines again tomorrow. She could already picture the clickbait titles: *SHOCKING! You Won’t Believe What Contestant Number Nine Did After the Banquet!*
Apathetic to the world, Gan Lan lugged her oversized temperature-controlled box out of the banquet hall and dragged her lifeless body onto the Flying Car.
She grumbled endlessly to herself. Did the dean and Mr. Liang seriously think that by running away first, they could wash their hands of the embarrassment? Did they forget that she was a representative of Mingzong?!
She never would have guessed that Dean Chu and Mr. Liang were such fair-weather friends. Well, she had finally seen their true colors!
Gan Lan slumped back in her seat, feeling completely dead inside. Even Gulu had abandoned her to flee the scene. In the end, she was left entirely alone, forced to silently shoulder a burden of shame far too heavy for someone her age...