Chapter 24: Savory, Spicy, and Crisp Pickled Radish
Just past noon, the survivors who had spent the entire morning toiling away in the fields began to take a break.
They clustered in the clearing before the stall, some squatting, some sitting, all happily munching on roasted potatoes in their hands.
Or roasted sweet potatoes.
At midday, the blazing sun beat down, bringing the thickest concentration of emerald mist of the day.
Back when they scavenged under normal circumstances, noon was always the most grueling time. Even through thick face cloths, their noses stung, and every breath of emerald mist burned their throats.
Yet to scavenge and earn enough City Coins for rations, they had no choice but to bear it.
Dying of toxic corrosion was death, but dying of starvation was death too—and starvation killed much faster.
Now, however…
Here at the miraculous boss’s “Chinese Restaurant,” they could bask in the pure, toxin-free air sheltered by the white light, resting in total comfort.
Better yet, they held piping-hot, fragrant roasted sweet potatoes and potatoes in their hands!
What kind of paradise was this?!
Crunch, crunch.
A few had even paired their potatoes with the pickled radish.
The salty, spicy radish strips tasted crisp and delightfully refreshing, bringing an invigorating warmth to their entire bodies.
“Hey, have you noticed? After eating this pickled radish, digging for vegetables doesn’t make my nose sting nearly as much.”
“Really?”
“Of course! Isn’t it written right on the sign? It cuts down on inhaled toxins!”
“Huh?! I didn’t even notice that! Does it taste good?” someone asked.
“It’s insanely good! If you can’t bring yourself to buy the big stew, get this instead. It makes the roasted potatoes taste so much more flavorful.”
“Is it expensive?”
“Not at all—just one City Coin.”
“That cheap?!”
Hearing the group’s chatter, Old Hu leisurely chewed on a strip of radish. “If you want some, you’d better hurry. I bought a tub just now, and there wasn’t much left. It might be like those pork cracklings yesterday—once they’re sold out, they’re gone.”
“Wait, there was pork yesterday? What on earth are pork cracklings?”
“A delicacy made from meat,” Long Shi chimed in, stepping over as if charitably enlightening the newcomers from yesterday. “It’s like deep-fried pork fat, where every drop of grease has been fried out. When you bite into it, it’s crunchy and deeply savory, not greasy in the slightest, with grains of salt dusted over it… Tsk.”
In reality, he was clearly just showing off!
The listeners’ mouths pooled with drool.
Damn it, did arriving just a day late mean they had missed out on something that delicious?
They couldn’t afford to miss today’s pickled radish!
Besides, it was so cheap—only a single City Coin!
A single haul of contaminated produce earned several coins anyway. What was one measly coin?
Buy, buy, buy!
And oh boy, they certainly weren’t disappointed.
This pickled white radish was genuinely fantastic.
It crunched with every bite, bursting with flavor.
Paired with a potato, it tasted even better!
Not to mention, the pickles could even lower the amount of emerald mist they inhaled! It was an absolute steal.
Once they finished the potatoes in their hands, they would head back to the farm for a few more hauls!
Gathering in small groups, they chatted and savored the food in their hands, the air brimming with lighthearted, cheerful banter.
Sssss—!
With a sharp hiss, the sliced scallions, ginger, and garlic hit the smoking-hot oil, releasing a tremendous burst of aromatic fragrance.
Having finished her prep, Ling Jing began cooking the second batch of the hearty stew.
The dried chili peppers crackled in the heat, their spicy punch mingling with the fried aromatics to draw the eyes of every single customer.
Next, the thinly sliced pork belly was tipped into the wok, sizzling merrily as she tossed it evenly and splashed in dark soy sauce.
Whoosh—!
A far more complex, layered meat aroma rose into the air, drifting right into everyone’s nostrils.
…What was going on? Why did the potatoes in their hands suddenly lose all their charm?
“Boss, what are you making?” someone couldn’t help asking.
Ling Jing didn’t even lift her head. “One-pot hodgepodge stew.”
“So that’s how it’s made… No wonder it smells so incredible.” The questioner gulped down his saliva.
Everyone knew the finished stew was delicious, but no one had realized that watching it being cooked smelled even better!
This wasn’t the gentle, mellow braised aroma of a completed dish blending multiple vegetables together.
This was a fierce, punchy, aggressive fragrance.
Even if you clamped your hands over your nose, the scent of scallions, garlic, and fried chilies would slip right through the cracks between your fingers.
They had thought eating potatoes with pickles was plenty good, finding an affordable way to enjoy a meal without splurging on the stew… But now, more than a few survivors were mentally tallying their morning earnings, calculating whether they could afford a bowl to try.
It smelled so heavenly it could make a person faint from longing.
Before long, the miraculous boss dumped the prepped cabbage, string beans, and other ingredients into the hot wok.
Stir-frying fresh vegetables over high heat brought a completely different dimension of aroma, especially as it drank in the soy sauce and pork juices.
The sizzling oil and the scrape of the wooden spatula kept every eye glued to the cauldron.
“So this is how the one-pot stew is made? It smells so good,” Auntie Yun marveled.
This was completely different from how they used to cook before the apocalypse. The boss truly came from an unfathomable background.
“Fifteen City Coins a serving, right…?” Someone was already scheming.
“How about the two of us pool our money and split a bowl?”
Ling Jing naturally felt the feverish gazes of her customers.
Sometimes, the cooking process stoked the appetite far more effectively than the finished product.
Compared to a plated dish, cooking was dynamic.
As the ingredients broke down under the heat, their aromas were instantly unlocked by the hot oil, drifting toward the diners’ noses to ignite their imagination.
They imagined the flavor of that food hitting their tongues.
Cooking live engaged far more than just the sense of smell.
Sight and sound played their parts as well. The sizzle of vegetables hitting the pan, the rhythm of the stir-fry, and the visual shift as the meat and greens browned all contributed to painting a vivid picture in the diner’s mind.
This was precisely why, back in Ling Jing’s old world, countless people doom-scrolling late at night would immediately freeze their thumbs whenever they saw videos of piping-hot, sizzling street food fresh from the pan.
Through a cold smartphone screen, just watching those glossy, chili-slicked dishes steaming in the wok was enough to keep you awake with cravings.
To say nothing of the fact that these people could actually smell it right now.
She was doing it on purpose, of course.
Whipping up a massive pot of bubbling stew right before their eyes was designed to tempt them.
Only when their cravings peaked would sales soar.
As the proprietor of a Chinese restaurant, there was nothing wrong with a little smart marketing, was there?
The more ravenous their gazes, the better.
However…
Stirring the stew in the wok, Ling Jing subtly lifted her eyes.
Her gaze swept seemingly at random across two individuals.
It seemed uninvited guests had arrived.
For regular customers, showing shock upon their first visit was entirely standard.
Yet these two, after their initial shock, hadn’t rushed to check the prices, inspect the item attributes, or scramble to join the queue like the others.
Instead, they had begun observing her with quiet calculation.
Ling Jing had felt those two pairs of eyes ever since she started prepping the ingredients.
They were laden with scrutiny, suspicion, and greed.
After sizing her up, they had proceeded to study every customer dining or trading ingredients at her stall.
They clearly harbored ulterior motives.
Ling Jing lowered her gaze, refocusing on the simmering wok.
Let them plot whatever they liked.
Whatever comes, she would face it. She had nothing to fear.
When push came to shove and their blades were drawn, she certainly wouldn’t be the one on the losing end.
Ling Jing possessed absolute confidence in that.
