A live stream that dramatically transformed a depressed schoolgirl shocked netizens across the count

The SUV's taillights flashed twice at the alley entrance before turning onto the main road, its engine sound carried away by the wind.

No one made a sound in the courtyard.

The firewood in the stove collapsed, causing the flames to shrink, and the sour soup changed from boiling to bubbling, rattling against the pot lid.

Su Niannian wiped the spatula on her apron twice, then strode across the threshold and rushed toward the stove.

"The soup's almost gone! Can someone bring me the fish?"

Bai Weiwei loosened the latch and shook her wrist.

The bamboo door bounced back to its original position. She held onto the bamboo pole that had been knocked askew and squatted down to check the copper latch at the bottom.

Ye Xingyu went over to help.

"Awei, is the door broken?"

Bai Weiwei stood up, brushed the mud off her knees, and raised her voice towards the stove.

"Nian! Don't add the fish yet! Add them after the water boils!"

Su Niannian called back.

"I know! You mind your own business!"

Gu Qingshang put the pearl-white helmet back on the stone table, got up and tucked the pen into his pocket.

She rolled up the sleeves of her silk dress, revealing a light-colored tan line on her wrist, and walked to the stove.

Does the soup base need to be replenished with water?

Su Niannian glanced at her sideways.

"You just rejected the engagement to a wealthy family, and now you're trying to stir up trouble?"

Gu Qingshang bent down and pulled out two split pine logs from the woodpile, then put them into the stove.

"No one is picky about status when it comes to starting a fire."

The flames climbed up the wood grain, and the firewood crackled as it burned.

Su Niannian pursed her lips and handed over the long-handled spoon.

Stir the bottom of the pot to prevent the soup from sticking.

Chen Lang leaned against the blue brick wall, picked up his wood-chopping axe, and put it into the tool shed with the blade facing inward.

The black tactical vest was still covered in sawdust, and his forehead was covered in sweat.

He pulled down a towel draped over the wall, wiped his face, and glanced across the yard.

Su Niannian was tending the stove, Gu Qingshang was stirring the soup base, Bai Weiwei was squatting by the bamboo fence repairing the door latch, and Ye Xingyu was carrying slices of fresh pickled bamboo shoots.

Shen Qingci stood in front of the stone table, with scallions and grouper that he had bought from the market that morning laid out before him.

The scallion roots were covered in mud, and the grouper was in a plastic bag with the opening tied in a knot.

She stood there for a while, then reached out to untie the bag and poured the fish into an enamel basin.

Chen Lang walked over.

"Did you remove the fish scales?"

Shen Qingci shook his head.

Chen Lang took the scaling knife off the wooden shelf, rinsed it twice, and handed it over.

"Scrape from the tail down to the head, being gentle, the skin is thin."

Shen Qingci took the knife, but her grip was stiff, and the blade was at an off-center angle as it touched the fish.

The first swipe didn't remove many scales, but water splashed all over the cuffs.

Chen Lang didn't interfere. He pulled over a wooden stool, sat down, and grabbed a handful of scallions, snapping off the roots.

"Scrape slowly, no one's rushing you."

Shen Qingci shifted the position of his grip on the knife, and with a second stroke, he pushed the knife up the fish's body, causing the scales to flip up and fall into the bottom of the enamel basin.

She lowered her head, her ears burning, and her hands moved more and more steadily.

The live stream chat was still scrolling.

[He Wenzhou's car just left like that?]

The four bodyguards were taken down by the woodcutter; the gas money was wasted.

Was that scene filmed live? I thought I'd stumbled onto an action movie set.

[What's Lang Ge doing? Picking onions? The war god who single-handedly took down four bodyguards is now picking onions here?]

The contrast is incredible; I haven't even processed it yet.

[Xiao Qingci is so serious about scraping fish! Yesterday she was haggling over two cents at the market, and today she's helping someone block a door. That's quite a leap!]

Bai Weiwei fixed the latch, dusted her hands off, walked to the stone table, and began arranging the flower cakes.

She stacked the dozen or so pancakes she made in the afternoon in a bamboo sieve, turning them over one by one to check the patterns, putting the crooked ones in one pile and the neat ones in another.

Su Niannian peeked out from the stove.

"Who wrapped that crooked stack?"

Bai Weiwei smiled as she looked at Shen Qingci.

The scaler in Shen Qingci's hand stopped in mid-air.

"This is my first time making one."

Bai Weiwei placed the crooked stack in the center of the plate.

"The appearance doesn't affect the taste; this is what we call a handmade limited edition."

Ye Xingyu walked over with a plate of pickled bamboo shoot slices and glanced at it.

"Which one did I wrap?"

Bai Weiwei pointed with her finger.

"Yours are all in the stack in the right place, and so are Qing Shang's. You two have such steady hands, like you're printing from a mold."

Su Niannian's voice drifted from the stove.

"So, Gu Qingshang and Ye Xingyu performed as expected, while Shen Qingci and Bai Weiwei dragged the team down?"

Bai Weiwei protested.

"I clearly wrapped it inside!"

Su Niannian retorted.

"Really? The third one from the left, the one with the crack on the side."

Bai Weiwei looked down and obediently moved the third pancake into the crooked stack.

After Chen Lang finished pinching off the scallion roots, he got up and took the scallion segments to the stove.

As I passed the stone table, my gaze swept over the plates.

"Which one in that crooked stack is the Qingci package?"

Shen Qingci looked up at him.

Chen Lang picked up the top one, which was shaped like a pancake and a bun, with three pleats on the edge, and took a bite.

"There's too much filling; the rose flavor is strong enough."

He chewed on his biscuit and mumbled a comment.

"It's better than your stir-fried green peppers and shredded pork."

Shen Qingci paused on the fish's belly with the scaler in her hand, her throat tightened, and she lowered her head to continue scaling, her neck and ears visibly turning red.

Twenty minutes later, the sour fish soup came to a boil again.

Su Niannian put the largest fish into the pot. The fish rolled around in the red sour soup, and the aroma of wood ginger and pickled bamboo shoots wafted up to the eaves.

The stone table in the courtyard was wiped clean, the overturned chair was straightened, and six sets of bowls and chopsticks were arranged.

Bai Weiwei placed a kerosene lamp in the center of the table, turning the wick to its brightest setting.

The sky grew completely dark.

The outline of Cangshan Mountain looms outside the courtyard wall, and the clouds on the mountaintop are edged with an orange-red by the sunlight.

A few bougainvillea petals fell onto the table, but Bai Weiwei didn't pick them up; she left them as decoration.

Su Niannian brought a large iron pot to the table, with white steam rising from the bottom.

"Dinner's ready!"

The group took their seats one by one.

Chen Lang sat at the table, facing the sour fish soup.

Shen Qingci sat to his right, a piece of fish belly that Bai Weiwei had just stuffed into his bowl.

Gu Qingshang sat opposite her, with the red soup she had been stirring for twenty minutes in front of her.

Ye Xingyu sat next to Gu Qingshang, while Su Niannian occupied the spot closest to the stove, making it convenient to add soup whenever needed.

Bai Weiwei sat to Chen Lang's left, holding a serving chopstick in her hand.

"Let's establish a rule."

Bai Weiwei tapped the edge of the table with the serving chopsticks.

"The first bite is for the person who contributed the most today."

All eyes turned to Chen Lang.

Chen Lang was using chopsticks to pick up the fish belly from the bowl.

"Don't look at me, I'm just chopping wood."

Su Niannian rolled her eyes.

"You took care of four professional bodyguards while chopping wood; your business scope as a woodcutter is quite extensive."

Chen Lang put the fish belly into his mouth.

How are wages settled for extra work done on short notice?

Gu Qingshang picked up the serving chopsticks and added a piece of fish head to his bowl.

"The biggest fish is already in your bowl; this is your overtime pay."

Chen Lang looked at the fish belly and fish head in the bowl, piled high.

"OK."

He didn't stand on ceremony.

Bai Weiwei placed a piece of pickled bamboo shoot on Shen Qingci's plate.

"Qingci, you've worked hard today too, digging up grass and catching fish, and most importantly..."

She lowered her voice, "The way you stood in front of Qing Shang was really cool."

Shen Qingci's chopsticks, holding pickled bamboo shoots, hung in mid-air.

"I didn't think that much about it."

She put the pickled bamboo shoots in her mouth and chewed them.

"She said she wasn't leaving, so I went to stand there."

The table was silent for a few seconds.

Ye Xingyu put down her chopsticks and picked up her teacup.

"A toast to the people at this table."

Nobody asked what the salute was for.

The six cups came together, and the aroma of Bai ethnic sweet tea mixed with the spiciness of sour soup spread along the halo of the lantern.

The chat in the live stream changed its rhythm.

Suddenly I don't want to ship any particular couple anymore; I just want to see this group of people eating around the table.

[A young lady who refused marriage, a top-scoring college entrance exam student who haggled over prices, a woodcutter who single-handedly became a bodyguard, a cook who could throw spatulas, a Bai ethnic girl who fixed a door latch, and a blogger who almost drowned. This table is full of stories.]

[The Cangshan Mountains are shrouded in night, and a lantern illuminates a table filled with the steaming aroma of cooking—this is perhaps the most beautiful scenery in Dali.]

Some people travel hoping to meet a group of people like this. During the day, everyone goes their own way, but at night they gather around a table, eat, bicker, and tell stories. With the lights on, they're not alone.

[That's the meaning of travel, isn't it? You may forget how many mountains and rivers you've seen, but you can remember for many years who you shared a meal with, or who you guarded a door for.]

Originally just people hurrying on their own journeys, they met and things got lively. When they set off again, their bags were filled with more stories to take with them.

This kerosene lantern at the foot of Cangshan Mountain is more valuable than the chandelier at a lavish banquet.

Su Niannian added a spoonful of soup to the pot, and the bottom of the pot simmered and bubbled.

She picked up a piece of tofu and suddenly looked up.

"By the way, Brother Lang."

Chen Lang responded.

"Um?"

Su Niannian pointed in Chen Lang's direction with her chopsticks.

"What were you practicing outside this morning?"

"Qingci said you're strong, Awei said you chop wood rhythmically, and Sister Qingshang analyzed your exertion habits."

"What kind of kung fu are you practicing that's causing all the girls in the yard to talk about it?"

Chen Lang chewed on a fish bone and spat out a thin thorn.

"Morning exercises are just a common military combat technique."

Su Niannian pressed for an answer.

"Can a morning workout really knock a provincial combat sports champion into the mud?"

Chen Lang took a sip of soup.

"He won the provincial title, I didn't, so I'm better at it than him."

Gu Qingshang put down his chopsticks and used a tissue to wipe the soup from the corner of his mouth.

"The System of System".

Su Niannian turned her head to look over.

"His use of joint control and leverage is characteristic of Russian military combat."

"The even intervals between the chopping sounds in the morning, and the consistent point of force application, indicate that he has extremely high precision in controlling his strength."

Everyone at the table was looking at her.

Gu Qingshang picked up his teacup to moisten his throat.

"I've checked the information."

Chen Lang raised an eyebrow. "Boss Gu also has expertise in military combat?"

Gu Qingshang spoke in a flat tone.

"I'm interested in anything that's efficient."

Su Niannian tapped the rim of the bowl with her chopsticks.

"So the conclusion is, we have a tough guy living in our yard?"

Bai Weiwei chimed in.

"He can fight, and he can cook too."

Ye Xingyu followed.

"He can cook and chop wood."

Shen Qingci suddenly spoke up.

"He can chop wood and ride a motorcycle to buy groceries."

There was a moment of silence on the table, followed by bursts of laughter from the other end of the stove.

Su Niannian laughed so hard she choked on her soup, Bai Weiwei slammed her hand on the table, and Ye Xingyu covered her mouth with the back of her hand.

Chen Lang turned his head to look at Shen Qingci.

Shen Qingci lowered her head to drink the soup, her chopsticks neatly placed on the rim of the bowl, but the corners of her mouth kept turning up.

Chen Lang didn't reply, but picked up the serving chopsticks and added another piece of fish to her bowl.

We ate dinner at 8:30, and it was completely dark by then.

The Cangshan Mountain was left as a black silhouette against the horizon, while the intermittent croaking of frogs came from the fields outside the courtyard wall.

The kerosene lamp cast a warm yellow light on the table, and several moths circled around the lampshade.

The soup in the pot was almost gone.

Su Niannian sighed as she scraped the bottom of the pot.

"Let's buy one less fish."

Bai Weiwei gestured towards Chen Lang with her lips.

"It's his fault for eating too much."

Chen Lang put down his chopsticks.

"I expended a lot of energy today."

Su Niannian asked, "Chopping wood or fighting?"

Chen Lang pushed the bowl to the middle.

"Everyone has dishes, who's going to do the dishes?"

Five people were staring at him at the same time.

Chen Lang stood up and put the bowls down.

"Alright, another job as a specially hired long-term worker."