Shen Lu really didn't get it. She was just running a small stall on the roadside to earn a little for living expenses, so why was every single day filled with trouble?
Staring at the men rolling up their sleeves, Shen Lu discreetly cranked her power to the maximum.
The fastest of them kicked her sign away and reached for the iron bucket holding her mint water.
Shen Lu bit her lip and jabbed right at him.
With a ZAP, the man's entire body stiffened violently. His eyes bulged as he fell straight back.
Shen Lu's heart hammered in her chest, and her breathing deepened considerably.
Accidentally killing someone through a door was completely different from seeing it happen by her own hand.
But she didn't let it show, putting on a stony face and doing her best to look ruthless.
"Try me again if you're not afraid to die."
The men were stunned. The young woman looked so delicate and soft; they thought she'd be an easy mark. Who knew she'd be so vicious?
"Quite the lively scene, huh?" Xue Can had arrived at some point. He stood with his arms crossed, his tone chilling. "Are you buying something? If not, scram."
Xue Can had a bit of a reputation in the Imperial City, especially in hooligan circles. After all, he used to be one of them before awakening his superpower and joining a Mercenary Corps.
"W-We're leaving right now." The men didn't dare talk back to Xue Can. They dragged their electrocuted buddy away and vanished in a hurry.
Xue Can took two steps closer and looked down at her. "Can you fill up my water bottle today?"
'I did help her out today,' he thought. 'That should earn me a little gratitude, right?'
Shen Lu was still a bit dazed. Hearing his question, the breath she'd been holding in her chest suddenly escaped. She took two steps back, bumping into her cart.
"I..." The young woman was a little unsettled. "Am I... going to be arrested?"
After all, she had just attacked someone on a public street.
Shen Lu didn't want to end up in jail over a common thug.
"Not if no one reports it."
"So should I make a run for it now?"
"If you need, I can help take care of it." Xue Can rarely took the initiative to offer his services like this. His gaze drifted subtly toward the bucket of mint water. "Just a small reward from Miss Shen will do."
"How much?"
"One bucket of mint water and 20 eggettes."
Shen Lu thought for a moment. "Deal."
Her trash-picking haul today had been pretty good anyway. She could afford Xue Can's fee and still have enough ingredients to complete her daily mission.
Xue Can nodded slightly and turned to leave.
About ten minutes later, he was back.
"It's done. I've handled it. Their little gang won't be coming around to cause trouble anymore."
"Thank you." Shen Lu tipped the eggettes from the machine into a plastic box. "You'll have to wait a bit for all 20 eggettes. The mint water is right there, you can fill it yourself, but I can't give you the bucket."
Every little bit saved counted. In a way, Shen Lu was quite frugal.
"Alright." Xue Can once again took out that silver-white water bottle. It didn't look big, but its capacity was enormous—it could hold two buckets of water, a product of high technology.
As he poured every last drop of mint water into his bottle, a flash of delight crossed Xue Can's indifferent eyes.
'If I drink this sparingly, I can have at least three good days.'
The 20 eggettes were finished batch by batch. Xue Can unhooked a palm-sized pouch from his belt, pressed something on it, and the pouch suddenly expanded. The 20 eggettes fit inside with ease.
Shen Lu was extremely curious and couldn't help but stare.
The technology here really was advanced. This kind of space-folding tech, for example, was very mature and convenient.
Xue Can put his things away and said after a moment of consideration, "I'm going to be on a mission for a few days. If any idiots come looking for trouble, you can go to the Zero Eight District and find my Mercenary Corps."
Although Xue Can figured a rich young lady just experiencing life probably wouldn't need it, it was always good to earn some goodwill.
He'd only been drinking her mint water for a few short days, but he was already hooked. If he weren't wary of some unknown expert hiding in the shadows, Xue Can would have seriously considered kidnapping Shen Lu and forcing her to make mint water and eggettes for him day and night.
"Okay." Shen Lu didn't refuse. Aside from the bit of unpleasantness when they first met, she and Xue Can had gotten along quite well.
She was a beautiful girl, all alone and without support. She definitely needed some backing.
Xue Can was a suitable candidate for now. Plus, there were no messy complications between them; it was simply one person paying and the other getting the job done. Shen Lu liked this kind of clear-cut relationship.
After taking his things, Xue Can left.
Shen Lu pretended to go back to her rented room but actually took some ingredients out of her temporary inventory to bring back to the stall.
Customers came intermittently, one or two at a time. Not many, but the flow was steady.
She had sold out of everything before four in the afternoon.
Shen Lu packed up and pushed her cart back home.
On the way, she couldn't help but reflect. 'Now that I think about it, it seems like whenever my business is slow, customers start showing up as soon as I wheel Fu Cheng out.'
She never would have imagined that the burden she'd been shouldering also happened to boost her financial luck.
Shen Lu figured it was probably due to the plot. Fu Cheng wasn't supposed to die here, so the heavens were showing him mercy, and she was likely just piggybacking on his good fortune.
After all, only if she had money could she afford the medicine to keep Fu Cheng alive.
Thinking about it that way, Shen Lu suddenly felt that she and Fu Cheng had a somewhat complementary relationship.
[DING! Mint Water 20/20 sold, Eggettes 10/10 sold. Mission complete. Reward: one Lottery Ticket.]
Shen Lu carefully moved him back onto the bed and checked his wounds.
'Good. I didn't aggravate his injuries this time.'
Shen Lu opened a folding medical case and took out several bottles of medicine.
She administered the medicine to Fu Cheng according to the prescribed dosage.
She should have given it to him sooner, but she had been too busy and exhausted the past two days to spare a thought for anything else.
While feeding him the medicine, Shen Lu used the Lottery Ticket.
[Congratulations, Host! You have drawn the prize from Blind Box #10: one BUBBLE BUBBLE Malatang Machine.]
[BUBBLE BUBBLE Malatang Machine: Just add fresh water and select your desired flavor to create a rich malatang soup base! Runs purely on solar power, allowing you to sell wherever you go. No location restrictions! Be the coolest little boss.]
Shen Lu gulped hard.
In her past life, she had loved eating things like malatang and hot pot. After several days of nothing but mint water and eggettes, she was dying for something with a bit of a kick. This malatang machine was exactly what she'd been hoping for.
Shen Lu took out the malatang machine. It wasn't large, about a meter square, with a pot that looked to be 50 centimeters deep. The inside was divided into six compartments by metal plates. The control panel was simple: a knob for adjusting the heat, an LCD screen displaying pictures of several soup bases, and next to it, a diagram of the six-compartment pot.
You just had to pour in fresh water, drag a soup base icon to the corresponding compartment, and the soup would come to a boil in two minutes.
Shen Lu was eager to try it. She still had some scrap metal from her scavenging today that she hadn't exchanged yet. She could cash some of it in now to buy a few ingredients.
One person couldn't eat that much, so Shen Lu just bought some beef balls, vermicelli, lettuce, and fried tofu puffs before stopping.