The NO.1 Food Stall in the Wasteland

Shen Lu couldn’t get into the Upper City District right now. As for the Lower City District, it seemed Gold Street was the best option.

After all, the people who came here had higher spending power and could actually afford to buy things.

However, storefronts on Gold Street were always in high demand, with no vacancies. She hadn’t asked about the price, but she estimated it would be quite high.

But Gold Street was also very chaotic.

Shen Lu had to consider her own safety.

Besides, she didn’t really want to do business at night. It would be best to sell out of all her ingredients during the day.

’Oh well, I’ll just take it one step at a time.’

Shen Lu rubbed her brow and silently initiated the lottery draw.

[Congratulations, Host! You have drawn the prize from Blind Box #309: One large, multi-function electric rice cooker.]

[Large Multi-Function Electric Rice Cooker: Far larger than standard models, it integrates steaming, boiling, baking, and stewing. One pot, multiple uses, giving consumers real value for their money!]

Shen Lu beamed.

She had said it before: the System was her best partner, an expert at providing a pillow just when she was getting sleepy.

It must have known she needed an electric rice cooker and happily sent one right over.

Shen Lu took out the electric rice cooker. Whoa—she’d underestimated its size and nearly lost her grip.

It was definitely far larger than standard models—a whole size bigger and much deeper than the ones she’d seen at construction sites.

’This thing is a treasure!’

Fried rice was best with day-old rice, of course. But in her free time, she could also make braised dishes, stewed rice, and a variety of other meals in the rice cooker.

Shen Lu remembered the Advanced secret recipe for braised dishes. Unfortunately, the last two ingredients weren’t available in the System Mall. Otherwise, she’d be dying to try it. ’What makes it so Advanced, anyway? Would it taste better than my own recipe?’

Shen Lu redeemed five jin of rice and an appropriate amount of water. This rice was pre-washed, so she could just put it directly into the rice cooker and add water.

She placed the rice cooker in the corner farthest from the bed, lest the aroma of cooking rice disturb her sleep.

It was a good thing she had an air purifier. Otherwise, no matter how far away she put it, she’d be smelling the fragrant rice all night long.

Shen Lu stretched and, as usual, lay down beside Fu Cheng.

"Time to change your dressing tomorrow," she rambled on, a familiar habit. "By the way, should we buy a set of sheets and a duvet cover? Or a mattress? When I went to buy the air purifier the other day, I passed by a furniture store and saw a mattress that cost over ten thousand Star Coins. So expensive."

"It’s not that I can’t afford it, but it’s just too much."

"I can live with sleeping on a metal slab. Maybe we should just get a set of sheets and a duvet cover to make do for now."

"Once we move somewhere new, then..."

Before long, Shen Lu’s voice grew quieter and quieter, until it faded into the soft sounds of her breathing as she fell asleep.

Fu Cheng listened quietly, silently answering Shen Lu’s questions in his mind.

’A set of sheets and a duvet cover would be fine. I don’t need them, but Shen Lu’s a girl. Sleeping on a cold metal slab every day is too chilly. Even if the weather isn’t cold, it’s bad for her health.’

Fu Cheng’s left hand suddenly twitched, his little finger hooking around one of Shen Lu’s.

The soft, warm feeling was deeply satisfying to Fu Cheng. His consciousness sank, and he drifted into a deep sleep.

After a full night’s sleep, Shen Lu woke to find something was amiss.

Lifting her right hand, she saw... huh? ’How did I end up holding Fu Cheng’s hand?’

’What in the world!’

’I’m usually such a still sleeper!’

Shen Lu quickly let go, feeling a little guilty.

She got out of bed as quietly as possible, washed up, and went to check on the rice cooker.

The rice was cooked. Each grain was glistening and distinct, and its aroma was mellow and rich. Shen Lu felt she could eat a whole bowl of it plain.

It was of even better quality than the ready-made rice from the System Mall.

’Just how delicious would egg fried rice made with this be?’

Her mouth watering, Shen Lu swallowed and decided to just have the rice for breakfast!

To keep things simple, Shen Lu had some pickled radishes with her rice and a cup of water. It was a simple yet delicious meal.

’As for Fu Cheng, he’ll just have to stick with fruit puree.’

After eating her fill, Shen Lu grabbed her tools and headed out to scavenge.

When she opened the door, she found the intense stench had dissipated quite a bit. With a mask on, she couldn’t smell it at all.

She had fallen asleep before midnight, so she didn’t know when the drones had sprayed the deodorizer, but the effect was pretty good.

Perhaps it was because of the rice she’d eaten for breakfast, but Shen Lu felt full of energy today, her steps especially light and quick.

Once at No. 3 Landfill, Shen Lu picked a random area and began to scavenge.

As her detector passed over a small pile, it began flashing red frantically.

Shen Lu immediately crouched down, passing the discarded components under the detector one by one.

When she passed a long, thin piece of scrap steel underneath, the red light started flashing again.

Curious, Shen Lu examined the piece of steel carefully.

She couldn’t see anything special about it. It was a piece of steel about as thick as a chopstick, very hard, about an arm’s length long, with cut marks on both ends.

[The core of this steel rod is laced with a small amount of Vibranium, one of the hardest materials in existence.]

The System answered Shen Lu’s unspoken question right on cue.

Shen Lu asked, "So that means it’s very valuable, then?"

[Correct. Although this steel rod’s Vibranium content is less than 5%, it’s worth 5,000 popularity value.]

5,000 popularity value?!

Shen Lu’s eyes went wide. ’That’s a huge amount!’

Gleefully, Shen Lu stored the steel rod in her System Warehouse and continued searching for other valuable scrap.

At nine-thirty, Shen Lu finished up and headed home, where she happened to run into Cai Su right at her door.

Cai Su was holding a frail child who looked to be less than three years old. He was listless and sick, with an unnatural flush on his cheeks.

Cai Su walked right past her and knocked on Granny Jin’s door.

"Grandma Jin, are you there?"

Cai Su’s voice was trembling. "It’s me, Cai Su. Xiao Lang... Xiao Lang, he’s not going to make it."

Granny Jin opened the door and let Cai Su inside.

"Can I borrow some money from you?" Cai Su’s mind was a mess, and she struggled to get the words out. "Xiao Lang... he needs to go to the hospital. His breathing is getting weaker, and his body is so hot it feels like he’s being cooked."

Granny Jin felt Xiao Lang’s forehead, then looked at Cai Su. "In his condition, it would take over ten thousand Star Coins to save him at the hospital, and there’s no guarantee they could even cure him."

Cai Su’s face paled. She gritted her teeth and said, "We still have to try. If we don’t go, Xiao Lang has no chance of survival at all."

Granny Jin sighed. "You think too highly of me. Where would I get ten thousand Star Coins?"

She did have a few properties she rented out, but the rent was very cheap. The most expensive was Shen Lu’s unit at 100 Star Coins a month; the cheapest was only 70.

After her fixed monthly expenses, she was left with less than a few hundred. To date, she had only managed to save a little over 4,000 Star Coins—a far cry from ten thousand.

Cai Su knew Granny Jin was telling the truth. A tide of despair washed over her, and the tears she had been holding back finally burst forth.

In the end, Granny Jin couldn’t bear it. She took out a few hundred Star Coins and gave them to Cai Su. "Take Xiao Lang to a clinic for now. If nothing else, at least you can make him a little more comfortable."

Looking at the few flimsy bills, Cai Su felt a pain like a knife in her heart. The child in her arms started breathing rapidly again. She couldn’t worry about anything else. Murmuring her thanks as she took the money, she hugged Xiao Lang and ran for the clinic without looking back.