Her Cultivation Diary
Chapter 983 - 963. Fighting spirit and saliva

Chapter 983: 963. Fighting spirit and saliva

Song Tan thought about it for a moment, probably feeling that the knife hadn’t cut deep enough, and now she turned to Yu Yan:

"Reporter Yu, the fish soup you mentioned earlier during the meal... The ones from the rural pond, 40 each or per pound, most likely also came from my family."

Everyone: ...

Surprise, shock, disbelief... none of these words could fully capture the complexity of their emotions.

Yet at this moment, thinking again about radishes and cabbages being 20 bucks a pound, somehow it suddenly started to make sense...

Sense, my ass!

They’re just ordinary workers. Reporter Yu freelances as a host on the side, the cameraman does photoshoots in collaboration with local studios, and driver Brother Li... well, he moonlights as a Didi driver!

But these side hustles aren’t consistent, and averaged out, their monthly income was barely a few thousand to near ten thousand!

Yun City’s cost of living is notoriously high; even two people grabbing a casual meal costs at least 200 bucks. What can you do with that kind of money?

And 100 pounds of radishes would cost 2,000 bucks!

Dropping 4,000 bucks on two heaps of radishes and cabbages—who wouldn’t call that insanity?

"Alright then, I’ll buy 50 pounds of each," Reporter Yu said humbly.

On the side, assistant Brother Li and the cameraman widened their eyes and stared at her.

Yu Yan’s face flushed red as she finally said, "What do you guys know? I just had a baby and lost a lot of nutrients! I need to eat more to recover."

The assistant was briefly confused and instinctively wanted to say, "Sis, didn’t you already hold the baby’s one-month banquet back in March?"

But before the words escaped his lips, the cameraman also paused silently: "That radish... should we grab a hundred pounds too?"

Say what you will, but now that fruit costs dozens per pound, munching on radishes isn’t such a bad idea, right?

As for cabbages... they hadn’t tried those yet, so let’s leave that aside for now. Truth is, once they report back on expenses and find they’ve burned through thousands, there’s bound to be backlash!

Only Brother Li and the assistant hesitated—should they buy or not? They seriously struggled with dropping that much money.

The former needed to save for his son’s home renovation, while the latter was still on an intern salary of 2,000 per month, relying entirely on family support. At this point, it was truly a matter of wanting to but being absolutely unable!

Still, here they were, and after tasting the food—delicious, undeniably delicious—not buying felt like too big a loss... Who could understand this kind of mental conflict?

As they chatted, sipping tea, Yu Yan felt she couldn’t afford to delay anymore. She’d already spent so much money; now wasn’t the time to slack off but to focus on work and earn it back!

But just as she lifted her butt off the sofa, Wu Lan enthusiastically brought out two plates: one of flexible, spicy dried pumpkin slices, and one of rock-hard, unyielding dried sweet potato chunks.

"Oh, I wouldn’t dare trouble you..."

The group reluctantly accepted the plates, and Yu Yan’s newly kindled resolve sank along with her now-seated backside.

Wu Lan simply laughed heartily: "What’s the big deal? These pumpkin slices were dried in the summer—homegrown pumpkins, don’t be too picky!"

"And these sweet potato chunks, they’re delicious too! Except they’re a bit over-dried, so tough to bite—just take your time chewing..."

Song Tan glanced at her mom and recognized the pumpkin slices as Qiaoqiao’s handiwork—the dark red ones, over-spiced not just with chili but Sichuan peppercorns as well. The result? Intensely numbing and spicy!

It was certainly satisfying and tasty, but one bite in, and unless you were continuously stuffing your mouth with food, you couldn’t stop the drool from gushing forth uncontrollably. Adding to that, the sheer heat forced you to inhale deeply while gasping for air...

In short, eating these was nothing short of an embarrassing spectacle.

Wu Lan herself seemed a tad embarrassed—rural folks hosting guests always aim to share their best, yet somehow she’d become stingier the more money she made... I mean, having reporters visit for interviews, what an honor!

But when she reached for the pumpkin slices, she’d hesitated for a long while before firmly selecting Qiaoqiao’s batch.

Now, she could only sheepishly push the plate forward: "Come on, eat! Don’t be shy, help yourselves!"

Truth be told, it had been just one or two hours since they’d finished breakfast. In the meantime, they’d simply filmed some material inside and outside the house, capturing scenic shots of the bamboo forest by the door...

No one had any real physical exertion, and their bellies still felt full.

But with the food placed right before them, not eating seemed impossible—eyes kept stealing glances at it, hearts thoroughly tempted. To resist would seem foolish...

Yu Yan had already mentally prepared to spend big today, so her confidence was stronger. She reached out and took a pumpkin slice first—the makeup on her face was impeccable, and though she hadn’t refreshed her lipstick since the meal, biting into sweet potato chunks would undoubtedly look too savage, too embarrassing...

Pumpkin slices were the ideal choice—spicy, her favorite!

But as soon as she took a bite, the chewy, flexible texture of the steamed, dried, and preserved pumpkin slices won her over instantly! Not to mention the pungent aroma and fiery spiciness teasing her taste buds...

In the dead of winter, within just three bites, the tip of her nose and forehead had turned bright red, glistening with beads of sweat!

"Huff-huff, so spicy!"

She said this while continuing to chew, prompting the nearby assistant, who wasn’t great with spicy food, to feel both fear and intrigue:

"Sis, is it really that spicy? Maybe you should stop and drink some water."

Yu Yan waved him off mid-chew: "Huff... You don’t get it... Huff... It’s exactly this spiciness that makes it so satisfying... You all try some—it’s seriously delicious! Spicy, numbing, so, so tasty!"

As she spoke, saliva began pooling, so she quickly took another bite.

Honestly, the sheer relish she showed while eating made it impossible not to crave some.

Wu Lan heaved a massive sigh of relief—thank goodness she enjoyed it! With renewed confidence, Wu Lan became even more enthusiastic: "Come on, eat, all of you... Young folks these days don’t like us serving, so just grab it yourself—no need to hold back!"

Oh my, such generosity! There was no refusing such warmth!

The rest of them, torn between embarrassment and curiosity, glanced at Yu Yan and followed suit, each grabbing a slice of pumpkin.

"Hiss..."

The assistant’s eyes instantly welled up with tears—so incredibly spicy, why was it this spicy?!?!

"Quick, quick!" Wu Lan hurriedly passed him tissues: "Spit it out if you can’t handle it, don’t hurt yourself with the spiciness!"

Otherwise, what a shame it’d be—such great chili and pumpkin, only to be despised? It was supremely spicy, that’s for sure!

However, the assistant, tears streaming, grabbed the tissue while sniffing and chewing frantically: "It’s so delicious, though..."

Then he wiped his tears away.

Wu Lan: ...

Song Tan couldn’t help but laugh as she handed over the sweet potato chunks: "If the spice is too much, don’t force yourself—try the sweet potato instead. It’s tasty too."

The assistant mumbled through clenched teeth: "Let me finish this little piece... Sniff..."

Meanwhile, Yu Yan had already polished off a large piece and, despite grimacing and grinning simultaneously, grabbed a sweet potato chunk: "So spicy, so spicy... It’s way too delicious, oh my god, I can’t stop! I’ll try some sweet potato to balance it out."

With that, she clenched the stiff dried sweet potato and bit hard!

It didn’t yield.

She shifted to the other side and tried again—still nothing.

Wu Lan quickly instructed her: "You need to nibble off a tiny bit first, then use your teeth to slowly grind—this stuff is meant to kill time. It’s tough to bite, really."

Yu Yan maintained her ferocious gnawing posture, but distracted by the lingering heat of the spice, she couldn’t stop drooling!