Chapter 14 The Gratitude Durian​​

"The heat control is key; it must be simmered on low heat..."

Qin Qing watched the short video content. As it was about to jump to the next step, she quickly pressed pause, picked up the nearby pot lid, and covered the pot of braised pork belly.

Thanks to her portable space, she had braised five jin of pork belly all at once. This way, whenever she wanted braised pork later, she could just take it out from the space.

"Qingqing, are you in?"

"Cooking," Qin Qing called back, emerging from the kitchen to see her visitor. "Need to buy something?"

"Yeah, but not from your shop," Wei Xiaoshuang smiled as she entered. "Does your friend still have durians? I want to buy one."

"You want to eat one? I'll get you a piece," Qin Qing offered, thinking of the dozens of durians in her portable space and the daily "offerings" left at her shop entrance. The number would only grow; she alone couldn't eat them all quickly.

"No, no, I want a whole one. I'll pay," Wei Xiaoshuang insisted, waving her phone. "That video I made earlier got a bit of traction. I want to strike while the iron is hot and make another one. Plus, that durian you gave me was genuinely delicious. I'm craving it. Durians aren't cheap; I can't just keep freeloading off you."

"Buying a durian just for a video? Will you even break even?" Qin Qing raised an eyebrow.

"The craving is the main point!" Wei Xiaoshuang laughed. "Do you have one? If not, I'll pick one online."

"Got it. I have one now. But durians smell strong; I don't keep them downstairs in the supermarket. Wait a sec, I'll go upstairs to get it. Can you watch the stove for me?" Qin Qing turned to head upstairs. The braised pork needed to simmer for a while; it didn't need constant watching. But leaving a stove unattended wasn't ideal, so having someone nearby was reassuring.

Soon, she brought down a large durian, one of the heavier ones she had, weighing about eight jin.

"Whoa, this big?" Wei Xiaoshuang reached out to take it, her phone still in hand. "I'll transfer you the money. Durian prices now are..."

"Just give me one hundred fifty. My friend gave it to me; I didn't pay for it. Durians are cheap this year," Qin Qing said, gesturing upstairs. "I have more up there. My friend sent a few more recently; I can't finish them all alone."

"Then I won't stand on ceremony," Wei Xiaoshuang said, promptly transferring one hundred fifty yuan. "I'll take this durian. If you get more, let me know, save a couple for me."

"This one's not enough?" Qin Qing glanced at the durian in Wei Xiaoshuang's arms.

"Far from it!" Wei Xiaoshuang hugged the durian and raised a fist. "My dream is durian freedom! Haha, anyway, I'm off. Gonna ride this wave and do a livestream while the heat's high. Maybe I can even gain some fans."

"Go, go, strike while the iron is hot," Qin Qing laughed, giving Wei Xiaoshuang a thumbs-up gesture.

After seeing her off, Qin Qing turned her attention back to the braising pork. While it simmered, she re-watched the braised pork video a few times, confirming the steps were correct, then waited confidently for the dish to finish.

A while later, she saw Wei Xiaoshuang's livestream pop up and clicked in to watch. The audience wasn't huge initially, but perhaps because the durian in the previous video had looked so good, the livestream viewership soon reached over a hundred.

Seizing the moment, Wei Xiaoshuang began opening the durian. Comments scrolled rapidly beneath the livestream video, showing the audience's high anticipation for this durian.

"Who gets it? I don't even like durian, but I LOVE watching durian-opening videos. I've watched dozens this week alone!"

"Watching durian-opening videos +1"

"Skillfully stumbled upon a live durian-opening session!"

"Hahaha, same! Don't eat durian, but obsessed with durian blind boxes."

"I'm different. I love watching AND eating. Seeing others get a 'gratitude durian' feels like I struck gold! Host's durian looks like a good one!"

Wei Xiaoshuang's hands appeared in the video, using tools to open the durian. As soon as the tool went in, the seams visibly widened. Even through the video, the durian skin looked remarkably thin. Moments later, large, plump segments of fruit flesh were revealed, packed tightly together with almost no gaps.

"Holy crap holy crap holy crap! That's some serious gratitude!"

"Damn—thin skin, thick flesh! Is this the legendary 'gratitude durian'?"

"This segment is huge! So satisfying! The color is perfect too—not underripe, not overripe, just right. Looks delicious."

"The segment beside it is huge too! Host, where did you buy this gratitude durian? The gratitude is immense!"

"So envious QVQ"

"Watching this makes me want durian too."

Qin Qing looked at the durian flesh in the video, then took a piece from her portable space for comparison. There was some color difference in the video; the piece in her hand looked even better. Actually, the durians near Sunset Woods were all of excellent quality. She suspected it had something to do with the "white stones" required by the Dimensional Supermarket. As an "energy source," if the energy was too high, ordinary animals couldn't withstand it, which explained the absence of animals in the central area of Sunset Woods.

But on the periphery of Sunset Woods, there must still be some level of white stone energy that ordinary animals could tolerate. This energy also caused the plants and fruit trees growing there to be exceptionally lush.

Qin Qing took a bite of her durian, reopened the braised pork video, and continued focusing on the pot in front of her.

...

"How much?"

"Six hundred sixty-six," Wei Xiaoshuang held up two fingers, looking at Qin Qing excitedly. "And just for one durian! So, is this deal on?"

"Just one durian? Why spend so much?" Qin Qing asked, surprised. "For that price, you could buy two or three elsewhere, right?"

"But the durians others open aren't as good as yours!" Wei Xiaoshuang insisted earnestly. "Can you do it? If yes, I'll tell her. If not, I'll tell her no too." She paused, thinking. "The durians you have are gifts from your friend. If it's not possible..."

"Let me ask. But I can't guarantee one as big as the one you took," Qin Qing caught herself from nodding instinctively. Seeing Wei Xiaoshuang's anxious look, she smiled. "I'll let you know after I confirm with my friend. I'll send them a big red packet later. This money, might as well earn it."

"Then I'll wait for your good news!" Wei Xiaoshuang stood up, smiling. "She said size isn't crucial; the key is that it's a 'gratitude durian.' It's the era of short videos; traffic is king. You get it."

Qin Qing gave an "OK" sign and winked. "Understood."

After Wei Xiaoshuang left, Qin Qing waited about half an hour before giving her the answer.

Qin Qing: My friend agreed, and said the more the merrier.

Wei Xiaoshuang: Great! I'm coming over now!

Qin Qing picked out a six-jin durian for the other party. Although not as large as Wei Xiaoshuang's previous one, six jin was still substantial. Additionally, she gave Wei Xiaoshuang a small three-jin durian as a "commission."

Wei Xiaoshuang contacted the blogger who had reached out. After sending photos confirming the weight, a message came back almost instantly: "OMG OMG OMG looks amazing!" The six hundred sixty-six yuan was transferred promptly.

"Made a bit today; my treat, coke?" Qin Qing said generously after receiving the money.

"Big bottle! More cost-effective!" Wei Xiaoshuang replied immediately.

"Big bottle it is!" Qin Qing pulled a large bottle from the shelf, grabbed two disposable paper cups, and they sat facing each other, drinking coke and chatting.

...

​​[Gratitude Durian · Livestream]​​

"What if it's not a gratitude durian?"

"Bold claim?"

"Here for the potential trainwreck. Host won't flop again, will she?"

"Listen up, this time it's impossible to flop. If it's not a gratitude durian, I'll stream myself drinking water upside down!" The host's voice came from off-camera, instantly drawing a wave of comments.

"Waiting for the upside-down water drinking."

"Waiting for the host's flop."

"Entertainment seeker here, heard the commotion."

...

Qin Qing watched the livestream for a while. Unsurprisingly, it revealed another "gratitude durian." The durian in this livestream was smaller than the one in Wei Xiaoshuang's, but the host was great at hyping the audience, easily building anticipation for the opening. By the time she actually opened it, tens of thousands were watching live. Comments refreshed rapidly, everyone marveling at the plumpness of the flesh. No wonder they were willing to pay six hundred sixty-six yuan for one durian.

After the livestream, she went to the Dimensional Supermarket. The supermarket needed one hundred white stones to level up from two to three. The current inventory wasn't enough yet; she could only wait.

As for Yùniáng and the others, with the options of instant noodles and sweet potatoes for exchange, their daily diet was sufficient, and life was relatively stable.

Qin Qing had just stepped out of the Dimensional Supermarket, intending to check the nearby orchards to confirm her theory about the white stone energy. She had just taken out her electric scooter when she ran into a few people approaching. They were carrying a large burlap sack.

"Divine One."

"Going to exchange for food?" Qin Qing asked, sitting on her scooter.

"Yes, we're trading this durian for sweet potatoes," one of them replied, studying Qin Qing's expression. "Divine One... are we exchanging too much?"

"It's fine, exchange as much as you like," Qin Qing shook her head. "For filling your stomachs, sweet potatoes are definitely more suitable. Oh, something else: eating too many sweet potatoes can cause stomach discomfort sometimes. You shouldn't have them for every meal. You've exchanged quite a few durians and white stones recently; you could trade for more instant noodles."

"Thank you for the reminder, Divine One. We've already decided that once Wang Wu and the others bring people back, we'll trade our dried wild vegetables for staple grains in nearby towns," one explained, then hesitated slightly. "Sweet potatoes can also be traded, but..."

"Sure, the sweet potatoes are yours; you bought them with your goods. Eat them or trade them as you wish. If possible, trade for some meat too. Both adults and children need meat for good health," Qin Qing advised, concerned. After the apocalypse hit, livestock farming suffered greatly, but TV and radio broadcasts constantly reported meat subsidies, urging everyone to maintain daily meat intake. The belief that meat was essential for health was ingrained in her.

"The sauce packets in the instant noodles have oil. We're eating better now than before," the group exchanged glances. "Is meat absolutely necessary?"

"Well... the sauce packets are okay too," Qin Qing conceded, realizing she had momentarily forgotten the harsh realities of this era, which were worse even than the post-apocalyptic future she knew. "Once you're more settled later, buy some chickens, ducks, or pigs. Once the sweet potatoes are grown, the vines can be used to feed pigs; they make excellent fodder."

Talk of pig farming immediately excited the group. They started discussing pig-raising methods with Qin Qing, momentarily forgetting her "divine" status. Qin Qing found herself inundated with pig farming questions and techniques. By the end, she felt an urgent need for a pig-raising manual, like Scientific Pig Farming: From Novice to Expert or Postpartum Care for Sows.