Chapter 8: Salted Duck Eggs, Two-Fifty Each
Unlike Rong Ziyin, the system could directly view item attributes, which is why it was even more shocking. For a split second, it even suspected whether the Heavenly Dao had been drinking counterfeit wine.
Rong Ziyin sensed the odd tone in its voice and was about to open the item to check. But then, over a dozen identical items popped up in quick succession, pushing the storage slot to the front and leaving him no time to react.
Soon enough, the fifty consecutive pulls were exhausted. One glance at the gray storage box told Rong Ziyin he’d crashed again.
Yet unlike previous runs where he’d only ever get salted duck eggs, this time—though still pulling N-grade items—the haul wasn’t solely salted duck eggs. There was also that earlier unidentified strip-shaped object.
Rong Ziyin finally found an opening to click on the item details. A magnified, pale-green salted fish now boldly displayed itself before him.
Salted Fish: Tender yet resilient flesh, intensely savory and briny. Paired perfectly with millet porridge after deep-frying. A secret recipe from the sea women. This is a salted fish with dreams. When its dead fish eyes fixate on you, it feels like being observed by the abyss.
The system had long since given up on Rong Ziyin’s perpetual bad luck.
“Hahahahahaha, Host-sama! Quickly pull one out and compare it! Maybe it’ll fill you with confidence for the future.”
Curious about what it meant to be observed by the abyss, Rong Ziyin took out a salted fish to examine it closely.
A pair of dead fish eyes rolled back, glaring at Rong Ziyin.
Salted Fish: …
Rong Ziyin: …
Whether spurred on or not, Rong Ziyin hadn’t really felt it. What concerned him more about this dried fish was another aspect—namely, its taste.
So, he swiftly tore a small strip of flesh from the fish’s spine and popped it into his mouth.
Salty! That was Rong Ziyin’s immediate reaction. The moment it touched his tongue, the saltiness—almost bitter—made him shudder.
He quickly grabbed the nearby water cup and gulped down a mouthful. But strangely, as the saltiness faded, the distinctive freshness of sea fish burst forth.
In the days before refrigeration, people preserved food for extended periods by salting and sun-drying it. While this process seemed to dry out the tender fish flesh, it also imparted a unique firmness and chewiness.
Salty yet savory, soaking it to remove excess salt, then cutting it into pieces and deep-frying it resulted in a soft, crispy texture—salty yet fragrant, truly a perfect accompaniment to congee.
More importantly, salted fish was more valuable than salted duck eggs! So this time, the fifty-yuan deal was still a win for him.
Thus, Rong Ziyin happily grabbed another basket, arranged the remaining fifteen salted fish inside, then changed clothes, intending to wash up and sleep.
Of course, before bed, he didn’t forget to send today’s earnings to the loan shark.
According to the livestock station’s regulations, castrating a boar earned five yuan. As the lead veterinarian performing the procedure, Rong Ziyin received three yuan fifty—a truly substantial sum!
Five minutes later, Rong Ziyin successfully collected the six thousand anger points gifted by the loan shark and drifted off to sleep, thoroughly satisfied.
Another six-digit figure. Judging by the money-lender and rich kid’s production rates, Rong Ziyin felt he’d soon become the richest man in the world.
A good night’s sleep.
Early the next morning, Rong Ziyin deliberately left before 5:30 a.m., carrying forty salted duck eggs and fifteen salted fish to meet the couple running the snack shop.
Rong Ziyin recalled the couple left the village for town punctually at 6 a.m. daily. Arriving now should not disrupt their plans.
Sure enough, when Rong Ziyin arrived, the couple had just climbed onto their tractor, ready to depart. The trailer behind the tractor was packed full of breakfast items to be sold that morning.
“Doctor Rong’s here!” The husband jumped down first to greet him.
“Right, I brought you salted duck eggs. Also…” Rong Ziyin pulled out another basket of salted fish and handed it to them. “This basket has salted fish. You need to soak them in water first, then cut them into pieces and deep-fry them. Take it to test the market first. If it doesn’t sell, just bring it back to me.”
“Salted fish… I don’t think many people around here eat that?” The husband hesitated, but then thought, Rong Ziyin was a skilled cook—maybe this salted fish would be surprisingly tasty!
Besides, Rong Ziyin himself said it was a trial run, so he didn’t need to worry about profit or loss. As for frying, they used oil every morning for selling fried dough sticks and such anyway. They could just set aside a small pot to fry the fish.
But immediately after, he received even more ‘collapse (breakdown) points’ from the townspeople. What was even more subtle was that half an hour later, among these collapse points, Rong Ziyin actually received one that stood out from the rest?
[True Deliciousness Points 300 from Townsperson Zhang Dagou]
So what exactly was happening in the town? Both Rong Ziyin and the system were utterly baffled, unable to make sense of the situation.
Little did they know that the townspeople’s enthusiasm, boosting Rong Ziyin’s emotional (mood) value, stemmed entirely from the fifteen salted fish he’d brought to the snack shop couple that morning.
———–
The town’s breakfast street.
This was the town’s sole commercial thoroughfare and the main route for everyone commuting to work. Naturally, most breakfast vendors set up shop along this street.
Because Rong Ziyin had unexpectedly delivered salted duck eggs and fish earlier, the couple had left late that morning. By the time they arrived, all the prime spots were taken, leaving them no choice but to set up their stall in a secluded corner by the wall.
The poor location meant even regular customers couldn’t spot them easily, effectively missing the first wave of the breakfast rush.
“It’s okay, we’ll come out earlier tomorrow!” her husband patted her shoulder reassuringly.
She laughed along, “Alright, stop fussing. If we can’t sell here, we can always go back to the village. Do I look like someone who can’t roll with the punches?”
“No, no—my wife’s the most easygoing person!” Seeing his wife unfazed by the slow business, the husband grinned despite being teased.
Since today’s sales were already a lost cause, the couple decided not to rush. They leisurely heated oil in the wok—the wife frying dough sticks while the husband soaked two pieces of salted fish.
By the time the first batch of fried dough sticks was done, the salted fish had softened just a bit.
The husband sliced the fish into pieces, heating another pot of oil to fry them.
Little did he know, this frying would spell disaster.
Who knew how Rong Ziyin had prepared this salted fish? Left in the basket, it smelled like ordinary salted fish, but the moment it hit the oil, the scent transformed.
A thick, fishy stench instantly filled the air, spreading with the terrifying speed of a biochemical weapon.
“Holy crap, isn’t this smell a bit much?” My husband stood frozen in place, holding his chopsticks.
My wife was choked and dazed.
“Seriously, what the hell are you two doing?” The woman making pancakes nearby couldn’t take it anymore. She thought these two must be crazy! Why start the morning off so miserable? If business was slow, did they have to stink up the place with rotten fish and drag everyone down with them?
Clearly, many others shared her thoughts. Soon, nearly every passerby on the street instinctively covered their noses.
“This stinks! What is it?”
“My steamed buns smell like rotten fish now.”
“Who’s selling this? Are they crazy?”
The stench spread fast, drawing people straight to the source.
The first to arrive was none other than Zhang Dagou, the guy who’d first praised Rong Ziyin’s food.
He was unlucky. Today was his first day at work, and he had a romantic date planned with his new girlfriend that evening. So the first thing he did that morning was groom himself, shave, and pull out his treasured three-piece suit. Before stepping out, he checked the mirror three times to ensure he looked utterly dashing.
He planned to grab a quick breakfast on the limited options available on Breakfast Street, then report to work looking his absolute best.
But he never imagined that the moment he stepped onto Breakfast Street, he nearly stumbled over the stench of rotten fish wafting toward him.
Glancing down, he caught the stench clinging to his suit. Rage surged through Zhang Dagou, who vowed to track down the offending stall and confront the vendor.
He practically planted himself in front of the couple running the stall.
“You…” What the hell is wrong with you people?! Zhang Dagou opened his mouth to curse, but before the words left his lips, he suddenly felt something watching him from the shadows.
The gaze was icy cold, unsettlingly eerie.
It must be my imagination! Zhang Dagou took a step back, cautiously scanning his surroundings.
Instead, he locked eyes with the basket of salted fish. A dozen salted fish heads were perched high on the basket’s rim, their eyes rolled upward, glaring at him. That gaze, no matter how you looked at it, was utterly mocking.
It seemed to spell out the words “useless office drone” in bold letters.
Zhang Dagou felt a sharp pang in his knees and couldn’t speak for a long while. His gaze drifted to the menu beside him, where Rong Ziyin’s bold, sweeping calligraphy declared:
Summer Cooling Salted Duck Eggs
Two-Fifty Each
Dream Salted Fish
Twenty-Five Per Plate
He bought the salted fish, added a salted duck egg, and ordered a bowl of millet porridge.