Gan Lan had a good night’s sleep. Today was a day full of energy, and it was also the day her rundown shop would welcome its first guests. She had to get up early to prepare the ingredients and materials. She had spent 1,000 Credit Points from yesterday’s earnings on an ordinary wok, watching the money vanish in seconds. Out of her initial 8,000 Credit Points, after buying ingredients, spices, and other necessities, only about two or three thousand remained.
If business didn’t pick up soon, she might as well just live here until the competition ended—and her ranking would definitely be dead last. She prayed that her fellow competitors were also dealing with this same infernal difficulty level; if she was the only one stuck in hard mode, it would be far too depressing.
She struggled to sit up. Although she had slept well, it had been a long time since she had walked so much and done so much physical labor. Her entire body ached. If she had money, she could buy a bottle of recovery agent, but now? She just had to endure the soreness. After washing up with difficulty, she flipped Shrimp’s switch.
"Good morning, Shrimp." Seeing Shrimp open her eyes, Gan Lan suddenly felt the urge to chat. She always wanted to share happy moments with others. "My business was a huge success yesterday. Didn’t expect that, did you? We’re going to have customers today. Our guests are coming..." She babbled on.
"You’re quite impressive, then. Tell me, what do you want me to do today?" Shrimp stood up, patted her skirt, and asked casually.
"I just need you to catch more Ugly Shrimp and clean them while you’re at it... Thank you, Shrimp! You’re the best!" Gan Lan arranged Shrimp’s tasks clearly, as she herself had a mountain of work to do today.
"That’s easy! I’m off, then!" Shrimp grabbed a large basin and hurried out excitedly. Catching and preparing Ugly Shrimp was currently her favorite activity.
Gan Lan also went on the Star Network and bought what she needed. Today, she planned to add one new item, offering both garlic-flavored Ugly Shrimp and spicy Ugly Shrimp. She was really out of money, and since the competition organizers only provided one set of kitchenware, she couldn’t make much anyway. It was perfect: one non-spicy dish and one spicy dish. She would also stir-fry two side dishes for them—vegetables, of course. Meat was too expensive; she couldn’t afford it at all.
Originally, she had planned to make some barbecue or something similar, but she was all alone, and Shrimp had been sent out to catch the shrimp. Washing vegetables and other prep work completely relied on her alone. In short, she had it incredibly rough.
While Gan Lan was washing vegetables, she heard a loud complaint from the door. "Holy crap! How did this place get so rundown!"
"Gan Lan, Gan Lan! Are you inside?" Guo Daixuan stood outside the shop. Looking at the dilapidated door, she hesitated to step inside, afraid that a single push might destroy it completely.
Hearing the familiar voice, Gan Lan realized her guest had arrived far too early. She had just gotten up and started working! However, a guest meant free labor. With Guo Daixuan’s tall stature, she looked especially capable, and perhaps she could be ordered around. At worst, Gan Lan would give her free drinks for the day, along with a complimentary bowl of the vegetable congee she had just put on the stove.
"I’m inside! Come in!" Gan Lan shouted back without putting down her knife, continuing to chop vegetables.
She was hungry too, and without eating, she wouldn’t have the energy to work. That was why she had decided to cook the congee first; it was simple, saved rice, barely cost any Credit Points, and could quickly fill her stomach.
Guo Daixuan gently and cautiously pushed the door open. She only breathed a sigh of relief when the battered door remained intact. As soon as she stepped inside, she caught a faint, refreshing fragrance in the air, instantly putting her in a great mood. She had purposely come over to Gan Lan’s place on an empty stomach early in the morning to see if she could scrounge some food. It seemed she had made the right choice. After all, if Gan Lan could make even Ugly Shrimp taste so delicious, her other dishes would definitely be outstanding.
She walked in happily. "What delicious food are you cooking now?"
"I’m cooking congee. Why are you here so early?" Gan Lan turned to glance at her. "Why are you alone? Where’s Uncle and Yuanyuan? And what about the people you promised to bring to support my business yesterday? Where are they?"
Remembering something, Gan Lan added, "Oh, I forgot. Uncle mentioned yesterday that you don’t have many friends. So, were you lying to me?"
Guo Daixuan was left speechless. She had only asked one question, yet Gan Lan had fired back several—and barbed ones at that!
"Yuanyuan slept in. My dad is waiting for her; they’ll be here in a bit," Guo Daixuan replied honestly, despite feeling attacked. "As for bringing people to support you, I already invited them. I don’t know exactly how many will show up, but it won’t be fewer than five. Is that enough for you?!"
"Only five! It seems Uncle really does know you well. You truly have no friends," Gan Lan said, shaking her head in sheer disgust.
Guo Daixuan choked. This woman was going too far! Five people was already quite good, okay? The moment she mentioned treating them to Ugly Shrimp, people had either vanished or mocked her, saying she had fallen so low that she was serving bugs that crawled everywhere. Did they think they were only fit to eat Ugly Shrimp?! Only a few of her close friends had agreed to come and support her, sparing her from total embarrassment. It had infuriated her at the time. Their absence was their own loss, and they would definitely regret it!
Flushed with frustration, Guo Daixuan couldn’t find a reason to retort. Any excuse would sound too feeble. She sulkily found a chair and plopped down. To her surprise, with a loud CRACK, the decrepit chair shattered beneath her, sending her tumbling onto her back, limbs flailing in the air.
Gan Lan happened to see this and let out a SNORT before bursting into laughter. She laughed so hard she gasped for breath. The sight was absolutely hilarious, so much so that she completely forgot to mourn her broken chair. She felt as if the chair had exacted revenge on her behalf. Yesterday, this violent woman had lifted her off the ground; today, the chair of her temporary home had struck back. It was a thoroughly satisfying scene!
"Did you do this on purpose to get back at me?" Guo Daixuan pulled in her flailing limbs and simply sat on the floor. Miraculously, after yesterday’s events, her moderate germaphobia seemed to have vanished. She was now a carefree person!
Sitting on the floor actually felt quite novel. She looked around and noticed that although it was slightly better than the exterior, everything inside was still incredibly shabby.
"How can you even live in such a rundown place? My God! You don’t even have the most basic cooling unit, and the chairs break the moment you sit on them. Could you be any poorer?" It was Guo Daixuan’s first time setting foot in such a dilapidated house. Aside from being spacious, it had absolutely nothing going for it.
Thinking that Yuanyuan would be arriving soon, Gan Lan decided to steam an Osmanthus Rice Cake for her. Since she had bought rice and had a food processor, she would make it using the simplest method. It was all because she was poor. Once she was a bit better off, she would definitely bake a small cake for Yuanyuan. However, the rice sponge cake was still very delicious. She had once used this recipe in a competition and won first place. It was in no way inferior to a regular cake, though right now, she had to skip several steps, meaning the texture wouldn’t be as fine.
Just as she placed the cake in the steamer, she heard a certain woman complaining about this and that. She didn’t mind; instead, she played along and lamented her poverty. "Since you know I’m poor, remember to pay the bill after you’re full later. This poor kid is about to run out of money for rice."