Chapter 132: Stir-fried Soybeans
The lonely old woman only had the morning and evening chicken-feeding tasks, so they hadn’t visited her courtyard during their afternoon task search.
Unexpectedly, in the evening, besides the chicken-feeding, there was a new task: “Helping the lonely old woman collect eggs.” One person per team, thirty seconds in the chicken coop, one coin for every three eggs.
The old woman’s courtyard was one of the largest, filled with four chicken coops.
“Can we only collect from the coop we feed?” Ji Junxin asked.
The old woman paused. The show hadn’t specified. “Well… no. But you only have thirty seconds, and you have to start with your assigned coop.”
The crew mentally thanked her for clarifying the rules.
The coops contained chickens, haystacks, a shed, and nests. A few eggs were visible from outside.
Ji Junxin was eager, but Mi Hongdou, worried about the chickens and Ji Junxin’s bandaged fingers, volunteered.
She hadn’t expected much from her first attempt, but she collected twenty-two eggs.
Ji Junxin, holding the basket, was ecstatic. “Amazing! Seven coins and an extra egg! We can afford meat!”
Mi Hongdou dusted herself off. “It seems… there are more eggs than chickens…”
“Yes, I haven’t collected any since yesterday,” the old woman said, taking the basket.
Ji Junxin looked at the basket longingly. “Three eggs for one coin, and we have an extra…”
“What’s in your pouch?” the old woman asked, changing the subject.
“…” Ji Junxin touched her pouch, blushed slightly, and mumbled, “Roasted soybeans…” She glared at Mi Hongdou.
It was Mi Hongdou who had insisted on bringing them, worried about rats. So, Ji Junxin had put them in her pouch.
But the aroma while doing tasks had been tempting, and she had felt a little silly carrying them around.
She had to ask, and Mi Hongdou’s answer was: “To make you smell good,” implying, to tempt you.
Ji Junxin almost strangled her. But with the cameras rolling, she endured!
She had planned to leave the soybeans at home after collecting the vegetables, but the old woman noticed.
How embarrassing!
“Can I try some?” she asked casually, her gaze fixed on Ji Junxin’s pouch.
Ji Junxin couldn’t refuse. “They’re a bit hard…” she said, taking out the bag.
The soybeans were crispy, the old woman’s crunching suggesting strong teeth. After she took a handful, only a few remained.
And Ji Junxin had been saving those!
Mi Hongdou could feel the foodie’s heartache. The live stream comments, after worrying about their tasks, now sympathized with Ji Junxin. Poor foodie… And a comment, “Freedom is precious, Xiaomi is more precious, but for food, both can be sacrificed…” sparked a debate about which was more important to Ji Junxin.
The old woman, looking at the remaining soybeans, felt a twinge of guilt, sensing Ji Junxin’s sadness.
“Here,” she said, ignoring the crew’s signals, “you said you had an extra egg, take it.” She gave the egg to Mi Hongdou, looking at Ji Junxin’s bandaged fingers.
Although losing the soybeans was heartbreaking, Ji Junxin could still calculate.
Profit! Kindness is rewarded!
Their pouches were no longer empty.
They left the egg and vegetables at home and went to the next task: feeding pigs.
It seemed more difficult than feeding chickens, but it was simpler. The pig feed was already cooked. They just had to scoop it and pour it into the trough. The only unpleasant part… was the smell.
Mi Hongdou wouldn’t let Ji Junxin do it. Although not as strong as Jiang Lingling, she always protected Ji Junxin.
After listing reasons – “strain on your fingers,” “potential injury,” “dirty work,” “waste of time” – she stopped Ji Junxin.
The viewers praised Mi Hongdou’s thoughtfulness.
While Mi Hongdou fed the pigs, Ji Junxin quietly approached Uncle Niu, the pig farmer, and took out the bag of soybeans.
After Mi Hongdou finished and received two coins, Ji Junxin, holding the bag, lingered.
“What’s wrong?” Mi Hongdou, seeing the bag, assumed she was sad about the soybeans. “It’s okay, we’ll buy more later.”
Who’s sad?! Okay, I was, but I got an egg, I’m fine now!
“Why didn’t Uncle Niu eat any of our soybeans?” Ji Junxin asked, glancing at him. “If he had, he might have given us a pig.”
“…” Mi Hongdou laughed. “Are you kidding? A pig for soybeans? Hahaha…”
“What’s so funny?” Ji Junxin tugged at her sleeve. “Your soybeans are so delicious, if he tried them, he would at least give us some meat.”
“Stop… it… hahaha…”
“Hmph! He must not like soybeans. I’ll try again next time!” Ji Junxin, having received an egg, now saw a new path to riches. “I’ll get some meat from him!”
Mi Hongdou realized that Ji Junxin was serious.
The viewers were amused. Trading soybeans for a pig… she deserves that “Eating” skill. And our aloof goddess, so cute and relatable!
“You…” Mi Hongdou wiped her tears of laughter and pulled Ji Junxin’s arm. “Let’s go, not everyone will trade for my cooking.”
“Your cooking is the best! I wouldn’t trade it if we weren’t so short on ingredients!” Ji Junxin pouted.
Saying such sweet words so seriously… I want to kiss her… Mi Hongdou bit her lip, tonight’s bathroom rendezvous is necessary…
Ji Junxin’s pouting protest and heartfelt words made Mi Hongdou’s heart flutter, and the viewers savored the sweetness.
Mi Hongdou, blushing, pulled Ji Junxin’s arm. “Silly… let’s go…”
This helpless indulgence… you two…
Compared to Jiang Lingling, Mi Hongdou and Ji Junxin were more cautious with their tasks.
They were supposed to go to the sewing task, but at Ji Junxin’s insistence, they went to the jigsaw puzzle courtyard.
Ji Junxin, her fingers injured but her mind sharp, finally had a chance to shine.
Three out of five puzzles were food-related.
Ji Junxin completed four out of five, an eighty percent success rate, which Mi Hongdou considered excellent. But Ji Junxin was still fixated on the one she almost finished, sulking, even Mi Hongdou’s offer of steamed eggs only earning a weak smile.
When they reached the sewing task, Ji Junxin’s soybean strategy finally paid off.
Not by trading for clothes.
Not every paid actor was as… flexible with the rules as the old woman.
Miss Liu, the young woman in charge of the sewing task, couldn’t resist the roasted soybeans. She couldn’t give away clothes, but she could adjust the difficulty.
The sewing task was just about sewing buttons back on. It didn’t require strength or intelligence, but luck, since the number of missing buttons varied.
Thanks to Miss Liu, most of the ten garments they received were missing only one button.
Both Mi Hongdou and the viewers were impressed by Ji Junxin’s persistence. Effort is key!
“See? I told you, no one can resist your… cooking,” Ji Junxin said, proudly raising an eyebrow at Mi Hongdou as she picked up a needle and thread with her bandaged fingers.
That pause… my teeth! We’re donating! Donating! Donating! the viewers commented.
Pan Xiang, watching, felt exhausted. After Jiang Lingling’s strength-based dominance, were they now going to conquer the NPCs with food? They were supposed to be friends! The struggles of a showrunner…
And Dong Yuannan also didn’t understand… why were the top two missions “Have Mi Hongdou and Ji Junxin sleep together” and “Have Lu Changhuai and Yu Naihao sleep together”… It’s just sleeping, what’s so interesting?
The heart of a CP fan, he didn’t understand.
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