Setting Up Stalls – Chapter 281

Closing the Stall and Going Home

The little nurse had come with her colleague. Because Sun Miao often had a purchase limit¹ of one item per person, she could no longer buy for the entire department like before. On top of that, a nurse’s work hours were truly awkward and incredibly busy; with rules stating they couldn’t be too far from the hospital even on some days off, the little nurse’s visits had dropped sharply.

This time it was her day off. She had even gotten a guide from the Hip-hop Yabi Duo and had come early with a small folding chair to wait in line. The people in the queue had arrived very early. Although the crowd was a bit smaller than on the first and second days, it was still huge, and the Hip-hop Yabi Duo once again failed to get first place.

The first person in line this time was the eating broadcaster Lizi. She sat on a small stool, holding a selfie stick and filming. Not only that, but the little nurse’s sharp eyes also spotted a thermal container at her feet. She guessed it was probably filled with rice.

The little nurse counted the number of people and breathed a sigh of relief; she would be able to get her turn this time.

She waited quietly for a long time before Sun Miao finally arrived.

Sun Miao spotted the little nurse in the crowd at a glance and gave her a smile before heading to her stall position. Lizi, who was first in line, had already folded up her small chair and approached with a smile on her face.

“Hello, Little Boss Sun! It’s been a while. How was your National Day holiday?”

“It was great, thanks for asking.”

“I actually came by a few days ago, but I saw there were too many people and I wouldn’t get a turn, so I left early. Today, I made a special trip over right at 12 AM and have been waiting until now. It’s a good thing I brought a power bank, or I wouldn’t even be able to film.”

Hearing that she had come at midnight, Sun Miao couldn’t hide her astonished expression. “Huh? You really didn’t need to come so early, did you? I didn’t think everyone would roll up² to this extent.”

“Haha, I know they probably wouldn’t come this early to line up, but I was curious about when everyone arrives, so that’s why I came so early. But it’s pretty exaggerated, you know? Besides me, the earliest person actually got here a little after 3 AM, not much different from me.”

Sun Miao’s expression at that moment was just like a panda wiping sweat³. She truly felt a little ashamed.

There was nothing she could do. Sun Miao could only let out a dry “haha” and leave it at that.

Lizi bought the pagoda meat but didn’t leave right away. Instead, she carried the meat and her thermal container to a small table on the side. This little table hadn’t been used recently, having been neglected for six days. Today, someone finally chose not to run off immediately but to sit down and eat.

As Lizi sat there, many people who hadn’t gotten a spot in line or had never tried the pagoda meat naturally gathered around to watch. Lizi didn’t mind.

She was a streamer, after all, and was used to having many people watch her in her daily broadcast room. Even now, being watched from a distance by people in person, she could still smile at everyone, maintain her professional demeanor, and start her eating broadcast for the camera.

Lizi first opened her thermal container. It was a good one with two layers; the top layer was an empty bowl, while the bottom layer was filled with rice.

Next was opening the packaging for the pagoda meat. After Lizi lifted the lid, she pulled out another small handheld camera from her bag and began filming the pagoda meat from all angles, leaving no blind spots. “I won’t lie to you all, this isn’t Lizi’s first time eating pagoda meat, but it’s the first time I’ve seen one so beautiful.”

“This takeout box kind of affects the dish’s visual appeal. If it weren’t in a disposable container, but placed on one of those large platters from a restaurant with a couple of bright green vegetables on the side, its looks would definitely go biubiubiu up.”

As she filmed, she didn’t forget to provide commentary:

“Looking down from above, you can see more directly how well the pagoda is made and what the chef’s knife skills are like. Look, everyone, the side of each layer of the pagoda is exceptionally round. Little Boss Sun is truly skilled to be able to cut it like this. And some layers aren’t single, but two or three layers thick. You can only achieve this effect by slicing the meat as thin as a cicada’s wing⁴.”

“Friends who often eat pagoda meat will definitely know that some chefs’ knife skills aren’t up to par, and they cut the pagoda meat very thick, almost as thick as braised pork. Only then can they stack it up, but that’s a sign of truly poor knife skills.”

“There’s really nothing to say about Little Boss Sun’s knife skills.”

Lizi didn’t forget to praise Sun Miao a couple of times. After she was done showing it off, she didn’t rush to sit down. Instead, she called out to one of her fans from the crowd. She had called out directly in her group chat, and someone responded on the spot. She had the person help her hold the small handheld camera, then pulled the pagoda meat apart in front of the camera.

“Next up is the moment to witness a miracle.”

As Lizi spoke, she unfurled the meat. At that moment, the surrounding people cooperated by letting out gasps of amazement. Their attitude, as if they were watching a magic show, made Sun Miao’s toes curl into the ground; she felt like they were playing at being awkward⁵.

But you couldn’t blame everyone for gasping. The layer of meat that Lizi pulled apart was truly very long and exceptionally thin. Even though it had been soaked in sauce and was a bit heavy, it still looked thin, and it was amazing that such a long strip didn’t break at all.

A hint of pleasant surprise flashed in Lizi’s eyes, and she said, “It didn’t break at all! For those of you not here on site, you might not know, but this meat is so thin, which is why it can be stretched so long. Plus, it’s thin, long, and doesn’t break when pulled. I have to say it again, Little Boss Sun’s knife skills are too cow⁶!”

After showing off the strip of meat, Lizi thanked her fan and sat down to eat. Logically, since her fan had helped her and hadn’t been able to get any pagoda meat, she should have at least offered them a bite.

But not Lizi. She was a foodie, and a Big Stomach King⁷ at that. How could she possibly give away the delicacy right in front of her? This one bowl of pagoda meat wasn’t even enough for herself, let alone inviting someone else to share it.

After sitting down, Lizi started by taking several bites directly. This time, she didn’t forget her lines. She also added a few more words than last time’s “Mmm~,” changing it to “Delicious,” “So good,” and “This is so good.” When she said these things, you couldn’t tell at all that she was a streamer whose mouth was like a flowing river⁸; instead, she seemed like a silly little fool with a limited vocabulary who could only say Aba aba⁹.

After eating for a while, she finally took out her thermal container and added the second layer of rice to the battle. That thermal container of hers was actually huge; otherwise, the little nurse wouldn’t have noticed it at a glance. When the container was at her feet, it was truly impossible to ignore.

If Sun Miao had to describe it, it would be—bigger than her face.

Lizi truly lived up to her Big Stomach King title; even her food container had to be that big.

And she finished it incredibly fast. That large portion of rice, paired with the pagoda meat, was quickly nearing the bottom. There was a small spoon inside the container, which she took from the lid, lifted the disposable box, and used the spoon to pour all the remaining contents onto the rice. She even scraped the sides with the spoon, not leaving a single thing behind.

After that, she ate every last bit of the rice until it was spotless.

When she finished, she raised a smiling face to the camera and said, “This portion is too small for Lizi. Even with all this rice, it’s not enough. It might also be because Lizi came here to line up last night and didn’t eat breakfast, so I feel especially hungry.”

As she said this, the people near the front of the line couldn’t help but look at her. Because Lizi was lying! Lying! She had clearly ordered takeout and had snacks around three or four in the morning, but now she had completely forgotten about it. It was terrifying. Good thing Sun Miao had a limit; if there were no limit, she could probably finish half of the 20 portions herself.

“But for someone with a normal appetite, finishing this portion will leave you really full. Lizi recommends two people share it. It’s just that today is Little Boss Sun’s last day selling pagoda meat, and with her willful personality, who knows when we’ll get to eat it again. Anyway, this is definitely not a loss. For all the food Little Boss Sun sells, I recommend rushing to buy it without a second thought. It’s so delicious! I’ve never eaten anything from her that wasn’t good!”

At this point, Lizi’s filming ended. She began to clean up the table, and after she was done, she carried her trash over to Sun Miao’s side to throw it away. By this time, Sun Miao’s stock for the day had also sold out, and she had said “see you next time” to all her regular customers.

Seeing Lizi, Sun Miao smiled. “You’ve still got a grain of rice on the corner of your mouth.”

Lizi took out her phone to check her reflection, a little annoyed. “I do! I wonder when it got stuck there. I hope it doesn’t affect the video!” She picked the grain of rice off with her hand, looked around to see if anyone was watching, and simply popped it into her mouth.

Sun Miao was a bit stunned, but Lizi just chuckled twice. “It still tastes a bit like the pagoda meat. Can’t waste it.” After saying that, Lizi waved to Sun Miao and said goodbye.

Sun Miao packed up her table and chairs, folded up the stall, pushed the food cart down the steps, hopped on, and was a flash person¹⁰. She didn’t go straight home. Instead, she had the system shield her first, then drove the food cart to a cake shop in the commercial district near her neighborhood.

She had ordered it early. She walked right in, gave her phone number, and the clerk brought out the cake. The clerk showed it to Sun Miao for confirmation. Once she verified there were no issues, she took the cake. After getting home, she first put the cake in the fridge before going out again to buy groceries.

She spent the entire afternoon busy. Su Ruixi came home around 4 PM. She didn’t have much to do, just took out the things Sun Miao had bought online under her guidance and hung them up.

It wasn’t until five-thirty in the afternoon that the system was called out again by Sun Miao.

It opened its eyes in the void, and the darkness before it vanished. The scene that met its gaze made the system feel its non-existent heart tremble. Sun Miao really cared about it. For their farewell, she had meticulously decorated the small home she shared with Su Ruixi.

Next to their dining table, a small colorful banner had been hung up with a string of words written on it—Thank you, system, may we meet again by fate!

And on the table, a feast had been prepared, along with a cake. The cake also had the four large words “Thank you system” written on it. And directly facing the cake, a placeholder with the word “system” was set up.

To be honest, doing all this was quite strange. The clerk had even confirmed with Sun Miao if she really meant “system,” asking if it was a mistake, but Sun Miao had insisted. At this moment, she was certain it was worth it.

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