After Waking Up I Inherited the Earth [Interstellar] – CH79

Chapter 79

Golden heads of grain bent low, and the heavy rice panicles drooped under their own weight.

Even though the weather was bitterly cold, harvest day arrived without warning.

Xie Xingchen shouted, “Prosperity! Hurry and bring the harvester over!”

They had to reap the rice before it rained—because after harvesting, the grain still needed to be dried, and after drying it still had to be hulled.

It wasn’t that Xie Xingchen was stingy. Energy stones had gone up in price.

The increase wasn’t huge, but it still hurt.

The rice seed supply was limited and there hadn’t been time to breed more, so he hadn’t planted much here—only about one-sixth of an acre.

Such a tiny plot… bringing in any harvester at all felt like overkill.

But it saved time and effort, and there was no way he was doing it by hand.

In a little over twenty minutes, the entire rice plot was harvested.

Why did it still take that long even with a machine?

Because this “small harvester” was actually a combined 2-in-1 unit. While harvesting, it stored the rice inside its body, then switched into threshing mode—separating grain from stalk automatically.

But since it was compact, it couldn’t process the whole field in one pass. It had to make several rounds.

Even so, the speed was still terrifying.

The threshed rice needed to be dried, but the current weather couldn’t provide the warmth required for sun-drying.

In the end, Xie Xingchen paused his flower-tea drying operation for one day and gave up the simulated drying room—also known as the drying kiln—to “dry” the rice instead.

The kiln ran hot; usually, one day was enough to complete the drying step.

Once drying was done, all he had to do was pour the grain into the hulling machine—and he’d get bright white rice.

Just imagining soft, fragrant steamed rice made Xie Xingchen drool as he stared at the golden grain.

Steamed white rice… since coming here, he hadn’t tasted the flavor he remembered.

Gulp.

That was Xie Xingchen swallowing.

Standing there in a daze, he suddenly remembered a dish.

And then he moved.

Since rice was so close to being ready, why not make some air-dried sausage and cured pork too—and then make a cured-meat clay pot rice later?

The delivery robots dutifully brought Xie Xingchen a huge package.

Two big baskets of premium “oink-beast” meat—his main ingredients for what he was about to do.

Yes, he planned to make the sausage and cured pork today.

Because this weather, this wind direction, and this wind strength were absolutely perfect for Cantonese-style air-dried sausage and cured pork.

Why?

Because this style doesn’t require smoking—only air-drying.

If the weather was right, you hung the prepared sausage and cured pork in a ventilated open area, and after 10–15 days of air-drying, it was ready. If the weather wasn’t suitable, it took longer.

He carefully checked every piece of meat. Seeing the seller hadn’t cut corners despite the large order, Xie Xingchen nodded in satisfaction.

And when he saw the huge bundle of cleaned casings the seller had thrown in as a free bonus, that satisfaction hit its peak.

He moved all the meat to the sink and handed it to Get-Rich to wash.

After washing, Xie Xingchen split the meat into two portions.

One half he sliced into proper strips to make cured pork; the other half—more irregular—he diced into small cubes for sausage.

The cured pork Xie Xingchen remembered was always long and narrow, about the width of half a palm and roughly 30 centimeters long.

To be honest, he didn’t know why that shape was standard, but nearly all the cured pork he’d ever seen looked like that, so he wasn’t going to overthink it.

If it had been passed down for so many years, it was probably the optimal shape.

Once he finished slicing, one basin was piled high with cured-pork strips.

The other basin still held large chunks of meat that hadn’t been processed yet.

And this was when he needed the best knife skills available—Prosperity.

Xie Xingchen called without hesitation, “Prosperity—come here!”

Prosperity, who’d been next door counting energy stones, responded and came into the big kitchen.

He glanced at Get-Rich, who looked like he had nothing to do, then looked at the owner, who was also standing there doing nothing.

After a moment, Prosperity asked, puzzled, “Boss, what is it?”

Prosperity was a self-aware robot. He knew his cooking skill was only average, so when there were enough hands, he usually avoided the kitchen to spare everyone the embarrassment.

Xie Xingchen pointed at the washed meat and smiled. “Of course it’s something, my dear Prosperity. Come—help me cut this basin of meat into pieces the size of a fingernail.”

Prosperity froze for a second, then walked to the chopping board and started cutting without a word.

Chop-chop-chop-chop…

With the steady rhythm of his knife, the basin of meat shrank at an astonishing pace.

In its place appeared neat cubes—so uniform they looked measured with a ruler.

The skill was ridiculous.

Watching Prosperity work was honestly breathtaking.

In twenty minutes, Prosperity did what Xie Xingchen and Get-Rich combined couldn’t have done.

After finishing, Prosperity washed his hands and left—knowing he wasn’t much use here anymore.

“Boss, I’ll go back next door to keep counting supplies. Call me if you need me.”

Xie Xingchen didn’t even look up. “Okay! Thanks, Prosperity.”

Xie Xingchen took out sealed spices from the cabinet, mixed them, and ground them into powder.

They were from a “bonus spice pack” he’d bought from the system earlier. He’d used some, but there was plenty left—perfect for cured meat.

Why grind them into powder?

Because he didn’t want to bite into gritty spice bits when eating the sausage and cured pork. Powder was easiest.

After grinding, he found he’d made more than expected—an entire bowlful.

He looked at the two basins of meat and decided it wasn’t too much after all.

Probably just enough.

He also took out premium cooking wine that had come with the spices, opened three bottles, poured them into a small basin, and sprinkled in the spice powder. Then he stirred thoroughly.

Once the spiced cooking wine was ready, he poured it into the basins of diced and sliced meat, massaging and kneading so every piece absorbed the marinade.

After about half an hour, Xie Xingchen knocked on his lower back and said, “Alright. Now we let it marinate for two hours, and then we officially start stuffing the sausages.”

Get-Rich asked, “What about the cured pork?”

Xie Xingchen replied as if it were obvious, “Keep marinating, of course!”

If he timed it right, by the time the sausages were done, the cured pork would be fully marinated too—and then he could hang them all together to air-dry.

While waiting, Xie Xingchen deliberately went to the drying room.

Seeing the rice was still drying, he returned to the living room, ate lunch at a leisurely pace, and took a comfortable nap.

When he woke up, the timing was perfect.

Back in the kitchen, Xie Xingchen prodded the marinated meat cubes and found they were already well seasoned.

He took out the funnel, rolling pin, casings, small steel needles, and pre-cut lengths of straw rope, then dragged Get-Rich into action.

He tied one end of a casing into a firm knot, slipped the other end over the funnel, and split the work with Get-Rich:

Get-Rich used the rolling pin to push meat down through the funnel and into the casing, while Xie Xingchen carefully guided and redistributed the filling by hand so the casing didn’t bulge unevenly.

They worked like that until an entire casing was filled. Xie Xingchen tied off the end, then tied knots at even intervals to portion the sausage links into the sizes he wanted.

Stuffing sausages was actually pretty fun.

After filling more than thirty casings, Xie Xingchen was still not satisfied.

All the cubed meat had been turned into sausages and piled aside.

He spread them out, then took several small steel needles and began furiously poking holes across the surface, pressing lightly afterward to make sure trapped air escaped.

Poke-poke-poke-poke…

Xie Xingchen: Ah—so stress-relieving!

Once all the sausages were done, Xie Xingchen chose an open area outside the starship and set up racks.

After the racks were ready, he hung the cured pork—already marinated for hours and tied with rope—and then hung the sausages too.

When everything was up, he stood there and enjoyed the cold wind blowing past.

The wind was chilly, sure, but it was strong—and that was what mattered.

He placed energy stones nearby, then tossed a small protective shield over the area. He was confident the cured pork and sausage wouldn’t let him down.

The next day, Xie Xingchen collected the rice from the drying kiln.

Now that it was dried, it could be hulled.

He swept the grain into the hulling machine, and half an hour later, he had plump, snow-white rice.

The pure rice aroma was stronger than any rice he’d ever smelled—so strong it made him suddenly crave Cantonese rice noodle rolls.

But as soon as the idea appeared, he realized miserably that he didn’t have the tools to make them.

Sure, Prosperity could build something on the spot, but by the time it was done, wouldn’t it be evening?

Xie Xingchen: Hmm.

…Still. If he’d already thought of it, then thinking less and doing more made sense!

So Prosperity—already busy—was informed that he had to temporarily drop his work to build a rice-noodle-roll steamer machine for the boss.

Prosperity: “…”

Resigned, Prosperity put down his current tasks and obediently went to the workshop.

Before starting, he spent a long time clarifying details with his boss, until he finally understood what Xie Xingchen actually wanted.

The machine itself was simple—so simple that Prosperity finished it in one hour.

And honestly, if he hadn’t needed to hand-craft the exterior shape, he could’ve cut that hour in half… and then in half again.

When Xie Xingchen received the pink, pretty machine, he was stunned.

But once he tested it, he immediately fell in love.

It was just too convenient.

He poured in the rice batter, swirled it evenly, added minced meat and a leaf of lettuce, slid it in—and ten seconds later, it was steamed.

He used a scraper to roll and cut it into strips, then poured on his secret sauce.

So fragrant. So good.

The taste didn’t lose to any famous old shop.

This rice was unreal.

It was the first time in his life Xie Xingchen had eaten rice noodle rolls that were this sweet, tender, and saturated with rich rice aroma.

“Delicious. Truly delicious! I really am a genius!” he bragged shamelessly while eating.

But even delicious food had limits. He’d made too much batter, and he couldn’t finish it even after stuffing himself.

In the end, he split the remaining batter, minced meat, and lettuce into three portions, turned them into rice noodle rolls, and delivered them to the old butler, Professor Ni, and the Ludwig brothers.

All three groups showered him with praise—and even asked to buy his rice.

But there wasn’t much left to sell. In the end, Xie Xingchen didn’t take money at all and just gifted it.

After all, it was his first harvest here—he might as well share the joy.

At first, Xie Xingchen had wanted cured-meat clay pot rice, but the cured meats were still air-drying… and he’d already changed obsessions.

Rice noodle rolls could get tiring if you ate too many, though. Once he got sick of them, he threw himself into developing other rice-based foods.

Right now, his favorite was a delicate, snow-soft rice cake.

He could eat it forever without getting tired of it.

And after multiple improvements, the rice cake now came not only in the original flavor, but also in several new flavors he’d created.

They all tasted different, but every single one was good.

Everyone who tried them said so.

And those positive reviews pulled Xie Xingchen even deeper into cooking and invention.

But that wasn’t entirely a good thing.

Because he put all his attention into food, he hadn’t checked on Earth Trading Company in a long time.

Ever since he edited the sales links for the wool products and decorated a specialty wool shop, he hadn’t logged into the star-network marketplace again.

So he had no idea that Earth Trading Company had become a favorite obsession for children and parents alike.

Since the creation of the Children’s Corner, Earth Trading Company had gradually become one of the biggest kid gathering spots in the entire marketplace.

There were kids, games, balloons, dogs, and delicious food… everything that fascinated children and relaxed parents.

So naturally, as time went on, more and more parents brought children who could log into the immersive marketplace to the Earth Trading Company themed street.

They’d casually drop their kids inside and go shopping and eating themselves—kids happy, parents relaxed. And if they came often, parents might even end up with children who became more motivated (training hard to stay logged in longer) and more cheerful (more playmates, more chatter at home).

But that wasn’t the main point.

The main point was—spending money here wasn’t expensive.

There wasn’t even a separate children’s shopping point. The amusement area at the Children’s Corner used parents’ shopping points, and there was a daily cap—once you hit it, kids could still play free games nearby, like hopscotch or beanbag toss, that didn’t cost points at all.

By that math, kids playing here was basically free.

At most, when they got tired, you bought them a little sample portion of food.

Compared to taking kids to a typical amusement park, it was unbelievably cheap.

Honestly, even people who weren’t regular Earth Trading Company customers became willing to spend here once they learned this.

Not for anything fancy—just because spending here felt worth it, and the points you earned could be turned into fun for the kids. That was just too satisfying.

But the good times didn’t last.

One day, Boss Xie opened a specialty wool products shop.

On opening day, a ton of parents went completely insane.

Because it sold kids’ items—wool clothes, hats, scarves, gloves, bags, plush toys… everything you could think of.

And the colors and designs hit parents right in the heart.

When they learned the wool products contained no dark matter—and even had a faint trace of green energy substance—they went even crazier.

They might not have planned to buy anything, but how could they resist when it looked that good and that fashionable?

Parents with rowdy little “monkey kids” were one thing, but parents with little princesses couldn’t move their feet at all.

Even if they didn’t buy clothes, they had to buy their little princess a fluffy, pretty bag, right?

Just look how cute it was! And mint green—such a clean, fresh color for their darling!

Oh, what? The rainbow bag was even prettier?

Right… that one was too expensive.

Tiny crying figure in the mind chewing a handkerchief.

Parents stared at the price tags and felt like they wanted to cry too.

So this was it—the moment karma finally caught them.

Online comments flooded in:

[Midnight Songs in My Ear: Waaaaa… once again I feel the pain of being broke.]

[Milk-Tea Kitty: WHY! Why on earth! Aaaah why are there only kids’ sizes and no adult sizes—I want one too!]

[Did You See That Eagle?: Damn it! Those bags are so cute! Hey big brands, come look—this is what a truly good-looking bag is supposed to be! Please stop making weird ugly bags!]

[Fish Bubbles: Wallet emptied. I bought my sweet girl two bags and she’s so happy.]

Every day, different people posted—cheering, wailing, or flexing.

But the common thread was: they were all obsessed.

What kind of heavenly design was this?

It was so beautiful that even people who knew they couldn’t wear it still wanted to buy it just to collect.

As for warmth?

Nobody even cared.

Protective suits were everywhere these days.

What protective suit didn’t keep you warm?

Was “warmth” really going to impress anyone?

But reality didn’t match their assumptions.

After some time, many buyers noticed something strange.

Once they put the wool sweater on their kids… the kids refused to take it off.

At first, parents assumed it was simply because the sweaters were warm, soft, and pretty.

But one day, a slim mom couldn’t resist and tried on her eldest son’s oversized sweater—and only then did everyone understand why kids didn’t want to remove them.

The sweaters really were exactly as the product description said: soft, comfortable, and with excellent warmth.

Soft and comfortable was obvious—you could tell just by touching it. But the warmth was the key.

Parents always asked kids, “Are you cold?” “Are you warm enough?”

Kids often lacked precise language, so they’d just say “Not cold,” “So warm,” maybe adding “I like it,” “It’s cozy,” and that was it.

But the sweater’s warmth was gentle and just right.

Unlike protective suits that directly alter temperature to insulate, this sweater gave off a mild warmth after softly contacting the skin—and that warmth didn’t dry the skin out at all.

Combine that with the extremely soft feel of cashmere-like wool, and it felt amazing the moment you put it on.

No wonder kids wouldn’t take it off.

Honestly, even that slim mom almost wanted to confiscate her son’s sweater for herself.

Luckily, her not-yet-corrupted maternal love stopped her.

But after the story spread, the shop’s largest kids’ sizes suddenly sold like crazy.

Lots of slender men and women started buying the “kids’ cashmere tops” and wearing them as tight-fitting shirts.

And surprisingly, if you were slim enough, it actually looked great.

So now it wasn’t just kids fighting for stock—adults jumped in too.

The hellish difficulty of buying anything made people’s hearts shake.

It was impossible to get.

And just like that, some scalpers who were willing to resell goods made a tearful fortune.

“Feng Ya, you’re so lucky. You sold just two sweaters and made a clean ten thousand credits. If I’d known, I would’ve bought with you,” Li Shuang said, unable to hide her envy as she watched Feng Ya hand a package to the delivery robot.

The two of them were friends—childhood friends who grew up together.

Three months earlier, Li Shuang had discovered the explosively popular Earth Trading Company. She sensed an opportunity and started a “proxy buying” business.

Which, in plain terms, meant snatching Earth Trading Company items on Shepherd Star and reselling them at high prices—classic scalping.

Li Shuang and Feng Ya were lower-class residents of Shepherd Star. In the past, their families earned only about 50,000 credits a year—just enough to survive.

Since starting proxy buying, life had improved a lot. When luck was good, a single deal could earn more than an entire year used to.

With that money, they could send their kids to better schools and buy more resources for training.

It wasn’t an exaggeration to say Earth Trading Company had changed their lives—and their children’s—by sheer force.

Feng Ya’s lips curled up uncontrollably. “Yeah, I made quite a bit. We were lucky to run into it.”

They’d come to let their kids play, and ended up discovering the new shop.

Because the items were expensive, many parents hesitated.

But Feng Ya, a poor woman with no money, made a snap decision and swiped her balance and card to buy two of the most expensive cashmere-like sweaters.

After holding them for just over a week, she’d already made 50,000 credits.

Feng Ya teased, “If you hadn’t bought plush toys, you would’ve made money too. Though honestly, plush toys aren’t bad either—prices aren’t high now, but if you hold them longer, someone will pay big later.”

Then Feng Ya leaned in mysteriously. “Do you know who bought my sweaters today?”

Li Shuang shook her head. “No. A regular customer?”

They were scalpers, but not the type who gouged wildly, so they’d built a group of repeat customers.

After all… they lived on Shepherd Star, where people snatched goods constantly. In a month, they could manage to grab stock two or three times.

Feng Ya shook her head. “You’ll never guess.”

Li Shuang’s curiosity spiked. She urged her friend to stop teasing and spill.

Feng Ya finally revealed it: “Someone from the Insectoid Civilization.”

Li Shuang gasped. “An Insectoid?”

Feng Ya nodded. “Yep—and the shipping address was a military district.”

Li Shuang was genuinely stunned.

She couldn’t help blurting, “Holy crap.”

Boss Xie was incredible.

His reputation had reached the Insectoid Civilization.

The two proxy buyers silently cheered for Xie Xingchen in their hearts, feeling like they were witnessing history.

Insectoid Fifth Military District

Several military courier robots were carefully checking incoming packages for contraband.

First scan. Second scan. Third scan.

If all three scans found nothing, the packages were placed in the mailroom, and the recipients would receive a notice to pick them up.

By military district rules, pickup required the recipient to come in person and sign. Unless there were special circumstances, no one else was allowed to collect on their behalf.

So that afternoon, people in the Fifth Military District got the rare sight of their district’s infamous cold-faced “war god,” Major General Kargel, coming to the mailroom in person.

“Pickup. Package.” Kargel’s icy voice made the noisy, joking soldiers around him instantly slow down.

They pretended to search seriously for packages, but their little eyes kept sneaking glances at Kargel.

The moment Major General Kargel took his package and left, the mailroom exploded.

“Damn—Major General Kargel actually came to pick up a package!”

“Isn’t this the first time he’s ever come here in all these years? My god—does he shop online?”

“What on earth could tempt such a cold-blooded major general?”

“…”

The mailroom buzzed with chatter.

And that meant the news spread through the entire Fifth Military District almost immediately.

When even a lieutenant general couldn’t resist curiosity and went to find Kargel, Kargel’s face went dark.

Clearly those soldiers weren’t being trained hard enough—otherwise they wouldn’t be so gossip-hungry.

Kargel frowned and said bluntly, “Lieutenant General Adolph, please don’t be so nosy.”

Adolph shrugged and smiled. “Come on, Kargel. I’m just curious.”

Kargel: “…”

Kargel stared at Adolph for a long moment, then finally surrendered.

He pulled out the package, opened it, and showed Adolph the cashmere-like wool sweater inside.

Adolph: “…”

Adolph: ?

Wait—just a sweater?

Kargel put the sweater away again and explained, “These two sweaters are new products from Earth Trading Company. Benji recommended them. I happened to need them, so I bought them to test the effect. If the quality is good, we can consider sending him an invitation next year’s trade day.”

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