Even though she was truly a pauper right now, she knew her friends were just trying to help her live a little better and ease her debt. Tens of millions or even hundreds of millions to them were as casual as a few dozen or a few hundred bucks.
Still, she felt she didn’t deserve it. It was obviously her trying to be generous while broke, yet they ended up footing the bill. Her face grew slightly hot.
Touched but helpless, she said, "These are just things I made in passing. They don’t compare to the gifts you sent. You also don’t need to worry about me not being able to pay off my debt. Do you guys not believe in me?"
Feiran: [We believe you, but I really like the little cake you sent. Tipping gifts is just a way to express my happy mood.]
Sky Blue: [Of course we believe you, but that doesn’t conflict with us tipping gifts! Alright, Junior, hurry up and start cooking. Look at how much time has been wasted!]
Spicy Fried Crab Is True Love: [Junior, stop dwelling on it! Hurry and start, I’m still waiting to eat!]
Gan Lan saw the barrage of comments changing the subject and urging her to hurry up and start.
She collected her emotions, restored her smile, and picked up the cleaned pork ribs resting in a large basin. "Then we’ll start with marinating the ribs. Take the washed ribs and add an appropriate amount of cooking wine, light soy sauce, oyster sauce, salt, and honey. Mix well by hand, cover with plastic wrap, and let it marinate for about an hour."
Gan Lan clapped her hands together. "They’re marinated. Next, we’re going to make a very simple milk tea beverage. It’s a lifesaver for the clumsy-handed among you."
Lamb Skewers Are True Love: [Another lifesaver for the clumsy? I... failed the fresh-squeezed fruit juice last time.]
Master of Courting Death: [Then you really are a total klutz!]
Osmanthus Rice Cake: [You say that as if you aren’t! You didn’t succeed either! I watched you make it!]
...
Gan Lan held up a jar of black tea leaves, shook it, and addressed her stream’s viewers. "...Once the water in the pot boils, add the black tea leaves. If you prefer green tea, you can boil that instead. Boil it for about two minutes, then pour in pure milk. Stir over low heat, and try not to let it reach a rolling boil."
She continued to stir the milk tea. "Once the color gets a bit dark, filter out the tea leaves. Then, add an appropriate amount of brown sugar, though white sugar works too. I suggest not adding too much. A slight sweetness is perfect. If it’s too sweet, the tea and milk flavors will be overpowered."
Retreat: [Smells so good! The milk and tea fragrance in the air is so rich, and it even carries a hint of sweetness.]
Moonlit Grace: [I’m going to line up first.]
Binbin: [Wait for me, I’m going too.]
The green of the Qingtuan is really beautiful: [Bites handkerchief, sob sob sob. I want to line up too, but I’m already on my way back. If I had known, I would have come back later.]
Love Ugly Shellfish, Love Kale: [Sorry, everyone, but I’m the first in line today. Thanks for letting me win!]
Gan Lan turned off the heat. "Our simplified milk tea is done! Next, we put it in the fridge for a quick five-minute chill, and it’ll be ready to drink!"
The robot that had finished skewering the ribs was already waiting on the side. Gan Lan placed the chilled milk tea into another temperature-controlled box. "Let’s go. Time to set up the stall."
Love Ugly Shellfish, Love Kale: [Junior! Hurry up, I’m already waiting for you at the stall!]
Moonlit Grace: [I’ve arrived too! So excited! I feel like I’ve gained ten pounds, but I just can’t help wanting to eat. What a sin!]
...
Gan Lan had specifically chosen their lunch break to set up the stall. The sooner she set up, the sooner she’d be free. After all, she still had to review her coursework that night.
There was already a sea of people in front of the stall. The first person in line looked familiar. Gan Lan stared at the gorgeous woman for three seconds before finally remembering who she was. Wasn’t this the stall owner who had fed her grilled flowers?
"Hello, Junior! Remember me? I’m the one who made you the grilled flowers last time. My forum name is ’Love Ugly Shellfish, Love Kale’." The absolute beauty smiled radiantly.
Gan Lan put on a fake, professional smile. "...Of course I remember you, Senior! Your grilled flowers were truly unforgettable."
She scoffed inwardly, "’Love Ugly Shellfish, Love Kale’—is she sure that name isn’t meant as sarcasm? If she loves me, how could she bear to traumatize my fragile little heart?" Thinking about the taste of those grilled flowers still cast a bit of a shadow over Gan Lan.
"Hehe, the grilled flowers weren’t my idea! That guy selling ribs egged me on! I was just naive for a moment, and I regretted it so much afterward! So, Junior, please don’t make mine extra spicy later—I can’t handle too much heat!" Senior Xianhua pleaded pitifully to Gan Lan.
"I’m not that petty!" Gan Lan brought out the charcoal grill and started the fire. She placed the rib skewers on the grill, waiting for the meat to dry out a bit before brushing on a layer of oil.
"Junior definitely isn’t that petty, I’m the petty one here!" Senior Xianhua said insincerely. She knew Gan Lan absolutely was that petty, but she didn’t dare say it aloud.
Wen Ningyue, who was waiting in the middle of the line, shouted at Gan Lan, "Junior, sell the milk tea first! Waiting has made me so thirsty!"
"Yes, exactly! Junior, sell the milk tea first! I’m so thirsty too! The sun is so intense today; I’m going to faint from the heat." After saying that, the speaker stuck out his tongue and shielded his eyes from the sun with his hand.
Hearing this, Wang Bin, who was standing in front of him, looked up at the sky. It was completely overcast and gray. Where was the sun?
Gan Lan was speechless. It was a cloudy day. Did they think she was blind?
She had the robot fill and seal the milk tea cups, selling them one by one to the people in line.
Senior Xianhua was the first to get hers. She immediately stabbed a straw into the cup and took a massive drag. Swallowing with a loud GULU, she sighed in praise, "So delicious! Having an ice-cold cup of milk tea like this on a hot day is absolutely amazing!"
"How can it taste this good with such a simple recipe? Why didn’t I think of this before?" someone behind her remarked.
"Because you’re an idiot. Do you think everyone is like our junior? Is it that hard to admit someone is better than you?" A boy in a white T-shirt shook his head and tapped the back of the head of the person standing in front of him who had just spoken.
The boy in the purple T-shirt in front turned around and rolled his eyes dramatically at the boy in white. "I’m certainly better than you! You can’t even make fresh-squeezed orange juice right! You’re completely useless!"
Enraged, the boy in white immediately put the boy in purple in a headlock, and the two started wrestling.
Meanwhile, the mouth-watering aroma of grilled ribs gradually filled the air. Gan Lan brushed another layer of honey over the nearly finished ribs and roasted them for a little while longer.
She picked up five skewers and handed them to Senior Xianhua, the first in line. "Senior, the limit is five skewers per person. That’ll be a total of two hundred and fifty Credit Points."
Yes, Gan Lan really was just that petty. Since she couldn’t secretly brush on an extra layer of chili, slipping in a slang joke from her original world—where "two hundred and fifty" meant "idiot"—wasn’t a bad alternative. They wouldn’t understand the hidden meaning anyway.
Gan Lan’s lips curled up in a slightly smug smile.
After paying the Credit Points, Senior Xianhua simply stood off to the side and started eating her grilled rib skewers.
She took a bite. The crust was crispy, but the meat inside was tender and juicy. Combined with the sweetness of the honey, the taste was so heavenly it made her feel as if she were floating.
She recalled the "grilled ribs" her friend had made before. What even was that garbage? Was it even fit for human consumption?
Taking a sip of milk tea, then a bite of the ribs—life was truly beautiful.
Sky Blue: [Why did you have to set up the stall at this time?! I can’t go, I’m still in class! I want to eat it so badly! I’m dying of cravings here! Eating virtual data isn’t satisfying at all!!]
Just Looking: [As a newbie, I have to say this rib and milk tea combo is way too delicious! I’m going to tip gifts too!]
Just Looking: [Huh? Why can’t I send out a Flying Ship?]
The green of the Qingtuan is really beautiful: [The streamer turned off the main gifting channel. You can only send gifts under one hundred points.]
Spicy Fried Crab: [Yeah, and even the hundred-point gifts are capped at a maximum of one thousand per person. What is Junior thinking?]
Delicious Flower Pastry: [Is this forcing me to upgrade to a Crown User?]
...
While grilling the ribs, Gan Lan was turning over an idea in her head: should she rent a window at the cafeteria to sell snail noodles?
After all, the pickled goods she stored in the warehouse couldn’t be kept forever. Renting a window would allow her to further promote snail noodles. Once snail noodles became famous, would she really have to worry about finding a market for her pickled goods?
It would let her make money, promote Huaxia cuisine, and even further improve the standard of living for the people of Star 2122—killing three birds with one stone!