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As the meat hit the pan, it sizzled as the combined aroma of meat and oil exploded in the air.
The scent drifted next door, where the survivors waiting in line suddenly caught a whiff of this new, enticing aroma, causing them to be immediately drawn into it.
Sure, hotpot was delicious, but the barbecue looked equally tempting. Seeing the well-marbled, thick cuts of meat, the survivors’ mouths drooled even more.
“Maybe… we should try the barbecue today.”
“Alright, let’s have barbecue today.”
Conversations like this were heard widely amongst the survivors, and soon, the barbecue restaurant managed to attract a large number of customers from its neighbouring hotpot restaurant.
There’s a big difference between boiled meat and grilled meat after all. The barbecue had a strong, smoky flavor with a hint of charcoal, with the fat in the meat all rendered out, giving it a melt-in-your-mouth texture, much like Wagyu beef.
The survivors in the barbecue restaurant ate with a sense of deep satisfaction. Reflecting on the past decade, they wondered just what kind of life they had been living.
In the kitchen, Jiang Ci, Li Hong, and Zhao Shi were swamped, hurriedly chopping meat, kneading dough, and preparing ingredients.
The kitchen of the neighboring hotpot restaurant was entirely managed by Mao Jing.
Mao Jing had adapted well to her wheelchair. In just three days, she had already become familiar and proficient with it.
Jiang Ci noticed that Mao Jing was quite perceptive and kept the kitchen spotlessly clean. When maneuvering her wheelchair, she was even faster than Mao Qianqian.
Jiang Ci had signed a formal contract with her, officially making her a part of the hotpot restaurant.
After learning that Mao Jing, a person with a disability, had been hired, the two of them heard even more envious, jealous, and disparaging remarks than before.
In the evening, Aunt Mo Yun from next door came over specifically to comfort the two sisters, telling them not to listen to the gossip outside.
Aunt Mo Yun was happy for them, “It’s great to see you find such a good job. No matter what others say in the future, as long as you two sisters live well, that’s all that matters.”
“Thank you, Auntie. Today, our boss mentioned that the place next door is still hiring. Why don’t you give it a try? You’re efficient and hardworking, and those jobs are actually much easier than our missions.”
Aunt Mo Yun was momentarily tempted but then shook her head, perhaps because she suddenly thought of something, “Forget it, I’m just an old bag of bones. I shouldn’t go and embarrass myself.”
“What’s there to be embarrassed about? Look, even I don’t feel embarrassed at all. There’ll be many people going to the interview tomorrow, and everyone is eager just to give it a go. Just give it a try. If you get the job, great, if not, just come back. After all, Sister Sisi is so capable and can support you regardless of the outcome,” Mao Jing said with a smile.
They all knew that Aunt Mo Yun had always been very independent, and being an idle person at home actually made her quite uncomfortable. That’s why they suggested she interview for a position at the barbecue restaurant.
In the end, Aunt Mo Yun couldn’t resist their urging and agreed, preparing to go to the hotpot restaurant with the Mao sisters the next day.
Meanwhile, at the other end of the base, Mao Yaozu and his family gnashed their teeth in frustration upon hearing this news. Mao Yaozu’s injuries had ultimately cost a fortune in anti-inflammatory drugs, almost depleting half of their savings.
While one’s own failure is disheartening, the success of an opponent is ultimately even more painful.
Mao Yaozu and his family exemplified this sentiment to the fullest. Every day, they cursed Mao Qianqian and Mao Jing in their dilapidated and dirty house, praying that they would be killed by mutated beasts or zombies or fired from the hotpot restaurant.
To the uninformed, one might think the two they were cursing were some kind of heinous criminals, but everyone knew they were their own flesh and blood.
Even a tiger does not eat its own cubs, but there are still people like the Mao parents. The survivors realized that those who could even harm their own biological daughters were not to be trusted.
Thus, without the Mao family’s knowledge, the people around them gradually distanced themselves and isolated them. Even their so-called “big shot” had heard about it. This “big shot” was a loyal customer of the hotpot restaurant and dared not offend Boss Jiang or her employees. Eventually, he directly kicked Father Mao out of the team, but that was a story for later.
*
In the evening, Jiang Ci noticed that the seeds that had just sprouted in the morning had grown a bit more.
She squatted in front of the vegetable patch, looking at the lush scene before her, feeling a sense of satisfaction. She finally began to understand why humans so cherished and valued a bountiful harvest.
Song Jinchuan was patiently watering the vegetables in the field. Because he was working, he only wore a tight muscle tank and overalls for work. Even in the dim light, his broad shoulders and narrow waist were obvious, showing off his well-built physique.
Jiang Ci’s gaze gradually shifted from the vegetable patch to Song Jinchuan, following him as he slowly moved around.
She suddenly understood what her colleague had once said about how looking at handsome men could truly prolong one’s life. After all, if you’re constantly in a good mood, why wouldn’t you live longer?
Jiang Ci thought she had concealed her ogling quite well under the cover of night, unaware that the sensory abilities of those with abilities were far beyond that of ordinary people. So, after watering the plants, Jiang Ci noticed that even Song Jinchuan’s ears were red. She asked in confusion, “Is it really that hot?”
Song Jinchuan gave her a complicated look, then nodded, “A little.”
“Then thanks for your hard work, you should go wash up and rest soon,” Jiang Ci said with genuine sincerity.
Watching Song Jinchuan turn and leave, Jiang Ci also returned to her room. As soon as she entered, she sensed something was off.
Hui Hui, who usually stayed in her nest, was now outside of it. Since Hui Hui was facing away, Jiang Ci couldn’t see what she was doing.
“Why are you out here? Is the nest too stuffy?” Jiang Ci asked as she moved closer to where Hui Hui was.
As soon as she finished speaking, Jiang Ci froze in place, because now, there was a small tortoise slowly moving in front of Hui Hui.
“It… it’s born? No, no, it’s hatched out of its shell?” Jiang Ci was so excited she was almost incoherent.
Hui Hui looked up at her, then down at the little tortoise. Jiang Ci could strangely sense a bit of joy and maternal softness in Hui Hui’s small, beady eyes.
Jiang Ci guessed it was because the two of them had bonded together, so she could truly feel Hui Hui’s emotions.
The birth of new life also made Jiang Ci very happy. She crouched down beside the little tortoise, examining it closely. The tortoise was still more than half the size larger than that of a normal tortoise Jiang Ci had seen before, with a dark green shell and skin. It wasn’t moving very smoothly yet, turning its head to look around.
“You’re so cute,” Jiang Ci poked the little tortoise’s shell. Perhaps because she had witnessed the entire hatching process, she now saw the little tortoise through a filter of parental affection.
The little tortoise seemed to be pleased by the compliment, nuzzling Jiang Ci’s hand with its head.
“What’s its name?” Jiang Ci turned to look at Hui Hui beside her, then laughed at her own question.
Hui Hui, however, was very serious, pointing her head towards Jiang Ci. After doing this three times, Jiang Ci pointed at herself, “Are you asking me to name it?”
Hui Hui nodded.
“But I’m not very good at naming things,” Jiang Ci admitted, still quite self-aware.
But Hui Hui stubbornly kept pointing at Jiang Ci. Left with no choice, Jiang Ci thought for a moment and said, “How about… Xiao Lulu1?”
Jiang Ci herself felt like she probably couldn’t change her habit of naming things based on their appearance, but Hui Hui actually seemed to think it was a good name, nodding repeatedly at Jiang Ci.
After playing with Xiao Lulu for a while, Hui Hui returned to her nest.
Jiang Ci peeked inside and saw that the other two eggs in the nest still hadn’t shown any signs of movement.
*
pls do not share this anywhere or u will always stub ur toe when u walk past a door frame !! this translation has been stolen from mioscorner.com, pls only read there i’m begging u :kneels:
Early the next morning, Jiang Ci showed the newly hatched Xiao Lulu to Song Jinchuan. Hui Hui trusted her greatly, so when Jiang Ci asked if she could take Xiao Lulu out for a walk, Hui Hui immediately agreed.
Looking at the little tortoise in front of him and knowing it had hatched from the egg of a level nine giant tortoise, Song Jinchuan still found it unbelievable.
He reached out to touch it, but the next second, Song Jinchuan’s expression changed as he quickly retreated a step back.
Before Jiang Ci could figure out what was happening, she saw an earthen spike emerge from the spot where Song Jinchuan had just been standing.
Jiang Ci was very familiar with such earthen spikes since Hui Hui’s earth attribute abilities looked just like this. She looked down at Xiao Lulu in her arms, her face filled with surprise, “So, it was you who did it?”
It was unclear whether Xiao Lulu understood her or not, but it still affectionately nuzzled its head against Jiang Ci.
“Sorry about that,” Jiang Ci apologized to Song Jinchuan while holding Xiao Lulu. “It still doesn’t know any better yet. I’ll have Hui Hui teach it more when we get back. Are you hurt?”
Song Jinchuan shook his head, “It’s fine. Its earth attribute abilities are still at a low level and can’t harm me.”
For a newly hatched tortoise to possess earth attribute abilities was truly a testament to it being the offspring of a high-level mutated beast.
After watching for a while, the two placed Xiao Lulu back into Hui Hui’s nest. Despite having just been born, Xiao Lulu didn’t seem weak at all and was even more active than its mother.
“Xiao Lulu doesn’t know how to control its skills yet and could easily hurt someone. You’ll need to teach it well, or else it’ll have to stay confined here and won’t be able to go anywhere,” Jiang Ci said to Hui Hui, who nodded and then glanced down at Xiao Lulu.
Jiang Ci didn’t pay attention to how the mother and child communicated. Instead, she and Song Jinchuan headed to the hotpot restaurant.
The day before, she had announced that both the barbecue restaurant and the hotpot restaurant needed to hire more staff. As a result, many survivors were already waiting outside early in the morning.
Perhaps learning from their previous experience, each of them had made sure to present themselves cleanly and neatly.
The hiring process was conducted jointly by Jiang Ci and Song Jinchuan. They first screened a portion of the survivors and then proceeded to select the best from that group.
Since they were all essentially going to be working in the food and beverage industry, every position was crucial, and the employees couldn’t be chosen carelessly.
Jiang Ci had learned some lessons from the last hiring round and ended up selecting several candidates.
One of them, an auntie named Mo Yun, left a good impression on Jiang Ci. She had a gentle demeanor, clear eyes, and an air of sincerity.
It wasn’t until the interview ended that Jiang Ci found out Mo Yun actually knew the Mao sisters and was even their neighbor.
However, neither Mo Yun nor the Mao sisters had mentioned this during the interview.
Jiang Ci appreciated such straightforwardness in the hiring process. Having been in the workplace for so many years, she hated nepotism the most.
the translator has nothing to add ◡̈
- ‘Little Green’ ↩︎
