Chapter 30: While Others Starved, Ye Da Lived in Luxury

Ye Da brushed aside the soil covering the heart of the agave.

A rush of fragrance, reminiscent of roasted sweet potatoes mingled with the scent of burning wood, rose to his nose!

The surface of the agave heart had charred black from long hours over high heat. But when Ye Da gently pried apart the dry, cracked skin with his spatula, he revealed the pale green flesh beneath and scooped out a small piece to taste.

It had a flavor somewhat akin to bitter melon, yet the texture was soft and powdery, as if eating mashed potatoes. Its color resembled the stalk of a broccoli.

"Not great," he quickly concluded.

Compared to his bamboo rice and stir-fried snake meat, this agave heart was hardly delicious.

He sprinkled some salt and black pepper over it, and found it tasted much like stir-fried, tender bitter melon.

Though mediocre in taste, it was excellent for cleansing the palate. The slight bitterness swiftly washed away any lingering greasiness in his mouth.

Good with rice, but not something one could eat much of.

That was Ye Da's verdict.

After the meal, the snake meat and bamboo rice were gone, but the agave heart remained nearly untouched—he’d eaten only a small portion from the center, less than a tenth.

Finishing his meal, Ye Da cracked open a can of cola.

With one gulp, he let out a satisfied burp.

At that moment…

He finally felt alive again!

Especially after a meal, a mouthful of cola, and as that rich caramel-flavored gas rose from his stomach and burst forth in a belch, satisfaction filled him.

All he lacked now was a companion to share stories with. He wondered how Da Li was doing.

[Ding!]

Just as Ye Da was lazily patting his stomach, sprawled out comfortably, a string of notifications chimed from his private chat channel.

To prevent harassment, Ye Da had enabled a setting to only receive notifications from approved friends. Only those he’d added would trigger alerts!

He tapped open the light screen.

An Guojun: "Boss, is my bamboo rice ready yet?"

Ye Da: "Damn! I forgot! It's ready—I already ate a portion, it's amazing!"

An Guojun: "Amazing like duck neck! Boo-hoo, you owe me toast!"

Ye Da: "???"

An Guojun: "Your bamboo rice was so late, I got too hungry and finished all my toast! Now I have nothing for breakfast tomorrow, boo-hoo."

Ye Da: "Uh... well, then eat half the bamboo rice now and save the rest for tomorrow. How about that?"

An Guojun: "I simply can't do that!"

Ye Da: "..."

An Guojun: "Anyway, it’s all your fault, boss. You have to take responsibility!"

Ye Da had no desire to keep talking and flung a virtual poop emoji his way.

An Guojun: "I don't care, it's your responsibility. If you don't make it up to me, I'll harass you all night!"

Ye Da: "Fine, I'll give you the largest portion of bamboo rice, satisfied? One is as good as two. Now stop talking!"

An Guojun sent an emoji.

Ye Da opened it—a zipped-up mouth.

This guy was a real joker.

A grown man pretending to be a coy courtesan—disgusting!

Still, it was indeed Ye Da's fault, so he gave him the largest bamboo rice he had!

After all, bamboo segments vary in length and thickness. The closer to the base, the thicker; the upper segments are slimmer.

Ye Da had made twenty bamboo rice portions in one go. The remaining nineteen were to be sold individually. Rather than sell the largest piece to a stranger, he might as well give it to this clown—as a gesture of friendship.

An Guojun: "Received the bamboo rice—so thick and big, I love it!"

Ye Da: "Shut up or I'll block you!"

An Guojun: "So the boss likes it black, what a surprise, ha ha..."

You have been blocked.

An Guojun: "!!! How could you be so heartless!"

Ye Da enabled friend verification. You are not yet his friend. Please send a friend request. After verification, you will be able to chat.

An Guojun: "I've actually been blocked! So cruel!"

Ye Da enabled friend verification...

[Trading Channel]

Ye Da: "Fragrant, steaming bamboo rice, freshly available in limited quantities! Ingredients: rice, bounce mushrooms, bear meat—purely natural, no additives."

His message instantly set off a frenzy.

"What! Boss, you must be the one who opened three treasure chests, right? How else could you have so much food to sell!"

"I have one unit of timber! Haven’t you found even one unit this whole afternoon? I’m off to buy some now!"

"Ha, someone’s fallen for it again! Think it’s a unit of inferior timber? Too naive! He'll be back crying soon enough!"

"Boss, I want a meal too—can you sell it a bit cheaper? Please, I really can’t afford it at this price!"

"Damn, it's actually one unit of quality timber. I’m such an idiot!"

"Too expensive, I really can’t afford it!"

The chatter about bamboo rice flooded the trading channel.

But...

[Bamboo Rice: 15 portions remaining, 3 sold.]

Perhaps he’d priced it too high...

After half an hour, only three portions had sold.

If left any longer, the bamboo rice would go cold.

To sell more, Ye Da decided to learn from the seasoned profiteers—bundle deals!

Ye Da: "As a token of gratitude for everyone’s support, I’m offering a special deal! Every purchase of bear meat and bounce mushroom bamboo rice comes with a complimentary cup of cola!"

"Cola!!!"

"What on earth! Boss, are you running a restaurant? You even have cola!"

"I can’t take it anymore! I was saving these hundred units of inferior timber to upgrade my treehouse, but I’m desperate for a proper meal and a cola! I’m buying, I’ll just work harder tomorrow!"

"Boss, this is so unfair! I paid so much for bamboo rice earlier and now you’re saying the new buyers get cola too?!!"

"This boss is loaded with supplies, feels like he’ll be the rookie king of our zone!"

"Not necessarily. I hear there’s another hotshot in our zone who crossed over with several bodyguards! He’s got a whole team, while no matter how amazing our boss is, he’s alone. Rookie king seems unlikely, but a spot in the top ten is possible."

"Nonsense! Everyone who crossed over was scattered. How could anyone cooperate as a team?"

...