The NO.1 Food Stall in the Wasteland novel Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Chapter 14: How Long It’s Been Since She’s Seen a Girl So Full of Life

She poured clear water into one of the compartments of the spicy hot pot cooker, dropped in a spicy soup base packet, and cranked up the heat.

The bright red soup base came to a rolling boil. Shen Lu put in the beef balls and fried tofu puffs, which take longer to cook. Once they were nearly done, she added the cellophane noodles and lettuce.

The aroma of the spicy hot pot wasn’t as overpowering as the egg waffles, but it was more tantalizing. The scent drifted out through the doors and windows, once again delivering a critical blow to the nearby residents.

"Damn it all, who the hell is eating good food at home every day?! We’re living in the Seventeenth District, how could anyone possibly have the money for something like that?"

"This is insane! It’s completely insane!"

"Fuck, I can’t take it anymore! I’m gonna go find this person!"

"That’s enough. Can’t you see it’s getting dark outside? Did you forget someone died last night? You want to lose your own worthless life?"

...

Shen Lu was completely unaware of the commotion she had caused. Not that it would matter if she did know. She was eating well by her own merit; if they had what it takes, they could do it too.

After all, it wasn’t that this place had no ingredients at all. It was just that the cultivation costs were very high and the prices exorbitant, so ordinary people couldn’t afford them.

She had used a few too many ingredients, and it made two large bowls.

Shen Lu had overestimated her appetite. She was full after just one bowl, and she couldn’t give the spicy food to Fu Cheng.

She thought for a moment, then put the extra spicy hot pot into a bucket and secured the lid. This way, no one could see it, and it would also mask most of the smell.

Shen Lu left with a self-defense baton in her left hand and the bucket in her right. Several of the streetlights outside were broken and had never been repaired, but thankfully, the moonlight was bright enough to see by.

After turning left and walking less than ten meters, Shen Lu knocked gently on a door.

"Granny Jin, are you there?"

A faint light shone from inside the room. After a few seconds, Granny Jin’s voice rang out.

"What is it?"

"Yeah. Can I come in?"

The door opened, revealing Granny Jin’s deeply lined, aged face. "Come in."

Shen Lu entered the house, and Granny Jin immediately shut the door behind her.

"It’s the middle of the night. You should be staying inside. Are you looking for a death wish?"

Shen Lu didn’t pay much mind to Granny Jin’s displeased tone. She knew she shouldn’t be out at night, but it wasn’t far—it wouldn’t even take a minute if she walked quickly.

"I wanted to bring you something."

"No need. Keep it for yourself." Granny Jin refused without a second thought. She had a vague idea of what Shen Lu was up to—it was just a thank-you for what happened this morning.

Shen Lu lifted the lid of the bucket, and the spicy aroma immediately rushed out. "I made too much. My brother and I can’t finish it. If you don’t mind, you could have a taste."

Granny Jin stared at the bucket in disbelief, then slowly moved her gaze to Shen Lu’s face. "Just who are you?"

She could tell from Shen Lu’s clothes that she wasn’t an ordinary girl. To have ended up in the Seventeenth District, she must have suffered some great misfortune.

But she had no desire to find out the details.

When people get old, they aren’t as nosy as they were in their youth. All she wanted now was to hold onto her rental unit and live out her later years without illness or disaster.

"Me?" Shen Lu gave a wry smile. "Just someone trying to live a better life."

"Do you know how many Star Coins a bowl like this would sell for?" Granny Jin’s voice unknowingly rose in pitch. "A single leafy green costs over a thousand Star Coins, let alone other food. You..."

’If you can afford such expensive food, why are you still living in the Seventeenth District?’

Granny Jin had the strange feeling she was being played.

But Shen Lu had no reason to play her. Before this, they didn’t even know each other.

The original owner of her body had never been to a market, and Shen Lu herself had only just arrived in this world and had been sticking around the Seventeenth District, so she had no idea about food prices.

She knew ingredients would be expensive here, but she hadn’t expected them to be *this* expensive.

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