Chapter 15: So Busy, So Busy!
Sizzle, sizzle—
Ling Jing sliced the fattiest pork fat into small pieces, tossing them into the hot wok with a sharp hiss.
Before long, the fatty slices turned translucent, their edges curling slightly as a layer of rendered lard pooled at the bottom of the wok.
Soon, as the temperature climbed higher and higher, more liquid lard was rendered out from the meat. The pork fat began to change color, shrinking noticeably in size.
Splashes of hot lard danced across the wok. When the sizzling turned into a rolling simmer, the fat trimmings had contorted dramatically.
Every drop of grease was fried out. The flat slices of fat hardened, firming up as their edges curled tight.
Gradually tinged with a rich golden hue, they released a deep, savory aroma of meat.
Sniffing closely, it carried faint, mouthwatering undertones of toasted nutty char.
Ling Jing checked the color of the pork cracklings in the wok. Once they fried to a uniform, deep toasted brown, she picked up a piece with chopsticks and shook off the excess grease.
Blowing on it gently, she brought it to her lips.
Crunch.
Fresh out of the wok, the pork crackling was piping hot and delightfully crisp. With the grease fully rendered out, nothing remained between her lips and teeth except pure, savory meat aroma.
Mhm, the timing was just about right.
Nodding to herself, she scooped up the cracklings with a slotted spoon and laid them across oil-absorbing paper to the side.
While they were still hot, she dusted them with a pinch of salt.
Now they were perfect.
“Boss Sister!”
A young girl’s voice called out, and Ling Jing looked up.
What met her eyes was a large crowd of people that had just tracked down the scent.
Long Qian’s crew was in the lead, trailed by more than a dozen unfamiliar faces behind them.
The scene descended into utter chaos in an instant.
“Whoa! Is this a new food?!”
Lina dashed over, her face cloth pulled down who-knew-when, practically drooling as she stared at the freshly scooped pork cracklings.
Lilin and Long Ya followed right behind her, standing in front of the tricycle to inspect them.
They craved it so badly, desperately wanting a bite, but they didn’t have a single coin on them.
Every last City Coin they had was spent on roasted potatoes yesterday.
At the edge of the white light, the people trailing at the very back were lost in dazed shock and pure disbelief.
“What is this place? How come I’ve never seen it before??”
“Wait, it looks like it keeps out the toxic mist inside…”
“Could this be some kind of hallucination?”
Meanwhile, another group of newcomers lost their minds in front of the roaster loaded with roasted potatoes and roasted sweet potatoes.
“There really are roasted potatoes?!!”
“They’re unmutated! They’re actually edible!”
“Four City Coins for a roasted potato, six City Coins for a roasted sweet potato!”
Someone pointed at the placard in front of the roaster: “Roasted potato purges one percent… of toxins?! Roasted sweet potato purges two percent!!”
“So cheap!!! For real? Can it really purge poison?!!”
“Purge poison?!!!”
Long Shi was busy gloating at the man who had bickered with him earlier.
“Yes, yes, yes, there’s no toxic mist inside this white light. You definitely think I’m lying to you, so don’t come in if you’ve got the guts.”
“Like hell I won’t! Huh? It really seems…”
“Dumbfounded, aren’t you? Told you so, but you wouldn’t listen. Go on back now! We tricked you, totally lied to you, everything you see here is fake.” Long Shi winked and smirked at the middle-aged man, thoroughly enjoying himself.
Old Hu stood beside him, nodding along. “Exactly, exactly.”
The twenty-some people fractured into several clusters, each occupied with their own commotion.
“These are pork cracklings. They’ll be done in a bit,” Ling Jing told Lina and the others.
Turning her head, she nodded to the crowd gathered before the roaster. “That’s right, the prices are exactly as written on the sign. They purge trace amounts of toxins.”
“Then I’ll take a roasted potato.” Amid the stunned crowd, someone stepped forward to make a purchase.
“Certainly. Just drop the City Coins into this box.” Ling Jing reached out and handed over a wrapped potato.
“Hurry, take a bite! How does it taste?”
The crowd by the roaster swarmed around the frail young man who had bought the potato.
“Yeah, see if it’s actually edible!”
“Pork cracklings? Is it pork?!!!” Lina’s eyes went wide as saucers, asking in pure disbelief.
“Yes, it’s pork with all the lard rendered out,” Ling Jing answered while tending to her work.
It was so chaotic—a complete mess.
“Boss… is what’s written on this sign true?”
A voice sounded.
Long Qian was standing before the newly added Item Exchange Box.
Having read the text inscribed upon it, she still found it hard to believe.
“Mhm.” Ling Jing nodded.
“We can put all kinds of corrupted, mutated ingredients in here to exchange for City Coins?”
Long Qian asked once more.
A placard rested atop the box.
The large characters read “Item Exchange Box.”
The smaller text beneath provided the explanation: Exchange for City Coins. Accepted Items: Crystals, metals, and other items convertible into City Coins within the city; ingredients (including corrupted and mutated flora and fauna).
She had read it several times before daring to ask aloud.
“Yes, that’s right.”
Ling Jing nodded.
The pen and signs were bought from the Mall. A permanent marker cost 0.5 points, and ten plastic signboards cost 0.5 points.
One point in total.
Currently, she had set up three placards: one planted before the roaster clearly listing the prices of roasted sweet potatoes and roasted potatoes, saving her from having new customers ask repeatedly later; one set beside the Item Exchange Box clarifying what could be traded; and one resting before the cash box indicating that payment for purchases went inside.
Clear, concise, and saved plenty of hassle.
She also planned to write a placard marking the price of pork cracklings once they were ready.
Ling Jing had woken up very early today. After washing up, she had thrown herself into prepping for the stall.
Aside from the signs and pen, she had also exchanged for a large slotted spoon to scoop out the cracklings.
Five points.
A large box of small food-grade paper boxes for serving pork cracklings: one point.
A large pack of oil-absorbing paper: one point.
A set of simple wooden cooking utensils, including a pair of chopsticks, a wooden spoon, and a wooden spatula: two points.
Thankfully, the paper bags for roasted sweet potatoes and potatoes were complimentary with the roaster, sparing her from spending extra points.
She truly didn’t have a single point left to her name.
She had relocated the stall here because the clearing was larger, and it was closer to the abandoned farmland.
If customers ended up queuing to exchange items or buy food, there would be ample room.
Originally, she had planned to finish frying the pork cracklings and then plant a sign with an arrow pointing this way at her old spot. Who knew Lina and the others would track down the scent on their own?
Hearing this, Lina and the others crowded around as well.
“Whoa! We can trade those contaminated potatoes and cabbages for money?!”
Long Qian’s crew, including the two young girls, had walked away yesterday having spent every last coin on Ling Jing’s food, arriving today with completely empty pockets.
They had originally planned to scout the outer perimeter to hunt for small crystals, only to stumble upon such an unexpected windfall!
“That’s correct.” Ling Jing nodded.
“Then what are we waiting for! Let’s hurry! I want to eat the new delicious food Boss Sister made!” Lina grabbed Lilin’s hand and sprinted toward the abandoned farmland.
Compared to searching aimlessly for crystals, gathering poisoned vegetables from those sprawling farmlands was far too easy!
Hearing this, Long Ya called the others to follow right on the sisters’ heels, dragging along Long Shi and Old Hu, who were still busy bickering.
Long Qian took the lead, reminding everyone to stay sharp as they walked, since mutated beasts might be lurking around the farm.
“Whoa… it smells so good.”
Before the roaster, the frail young man took a bite and couldn’t even spare the breath to speak, making the onlookers drool uncontrollably.
“Say something! How is it?”
The frail young man couldn’t be bothered to talk, nodding frantically while wolfing down the roasted potato.
He didn’t even bother blowing on it, biting straight into the scalding potato.
He desperately wanted to swallow it whole, yet yearned to savor every nuance.
It kept his tongue thoroughly occupied.
Seeing this, the others stopped asking questions and surged forward. “Boss, I want a roasted potato!”
“I want one too!”
“It really feels so comfortable here, so miraculous… What are they doing over there?”
With the primary bickerers gone, the last group lingering at the edge of the white light finally stepped up to the stall.
“Roasted potatoes?? Roasted sweet potatoes??”
“Purges poison??”
“For real?!”
“Seeing them eat like that, it’s got to be real!”
“We want some too!”
The middle-aged man and his companions joined the frenzy.
“Why did Long Qian and her crew run off in such a rush?”
“Who knows? Sob, sob, sob, this potato is so delicious! Who cares what they ran off to do? Sob, sob, it’s been so long since I tasted food like this, sob.” A person already munching on a potato wept tears of joy.
“Aaah, save one for me! You’re buying two? Don’t buy them all, damn it!”
On the road:
Lina glanced back over her shoulder.
“Huh? What are they shouting and fighting over back there?”
Lilin spread her hands. “Boss Sister has so many roasted potatoes and sweet potatoes, what is there to fight over?”
“No idea…”
Busy.
Both groups were extremely busy.
Yet neither could fathom what on earth the other was busy doing.
