Grilled Gluten

The security door slammed shut, and the click of the deadbolt echoed in the empty living room.

Chen Zhi stood in the entryway, listening intently for a moment.

The footsteps in the stairwell faded away until they completely disappeared.

The two VIPs of the house had finally left for work.

Chen Zhi turned around, his slippers scuffing a brisk rhythm against the floorboards as he made a beeline for the delivery box stuffed under his bed.

He ripped off the tape.

And pulled out a simple stainless steel barbecue grill.

He had ordered this on Taobao a few days ago when his mom wasn't looking, along with two bags of starch sausages and a pack of dried gluten. He had kept it hidden until now.

In the summer of 2014, street vendors were few and lacked variety.

Ever since his rebirth, he had been craving starch sausages and grilled gluten.

To satisfy his cravings, he had to do it himself.

Chen Zhi set up the grill on the balcony.

He lit a few pieces of charcoal. Orange-red sparks spread across the black surface, and the heat wave instantly distorted the air on the balcony.

He snagged his mom's spice box from the kitchen.

And added the sauce ingredients based on a recipe he had learned from TikTok in his previous life.

His chopsticks stirred rapidly in the bowl, creating a bright red sauce that gleamed with an appetizing luster.

This was the "Hextech" recipe that would garner millions of likes on social media in the future. It was essentially a MSG party, unreasonably fragrant.

Chen Zhi scored each starch sausage with a crisscross pattern.

Brushed on oil.

Put them on the grill.

Sizzle—

Fat dripped onto the glowing charcoal, instantly bursting into a cloud of white smoke.

The overpowering aroma of meat, mixed with the scent of caramelized fat, rampaged through the cramped balcony. Carried by the wind, it drifted brazenly toward the neighbor's house.

Chen Zhi held a palm-leaf fan, fanning the flames at a leisurely pace.

Under the heat of the charcoal, the gluten skewers gradually puffed up, their skins turning golden brown and crispy.

He brushed on the sauce.

The gleaming red secret sauce was slathered thickly over the sizzling, oily gluten.

At that moment, the aroma underwent a qualitative change.

Chen Zhi swallowed hard. Just as he was about to pick up a skewer for a taste test...

A dark head suddenly popped up through the gaps in the railing of the adjacent balcony.

Lin Wanwan, like a cat smelling fish, leaned half her body over the railing, her nose twitching non-stop.

She had been watching TV in her living room when an enchanting aroma, acting like a hook, dragged her right off the sofa.

The two balconies were extremely close.

Lin Wanwan immediately spotted Chen Zhi squatting on the ground, a handful of skewers in his grasp.

Chen Zhi's hands paused.

Their eyes met.

A smug caught you expression quickly surfaced on Lin Wanwan's pretty face.

Without saying a word, she pulled her head back, turned, and ran.

Chen Zhi sighed. He looked at the freshly grilled gluten in his hand, then at his closed front door.

Three seconds later.

Bang, bang, bang!

The security door was pounded so hard it shook the heavens.

Judging by the force, anyone who didn't know better would think a debt collector had come knocking.

Chen Zhi! Open the door!

The girl's crisp shout pierced through the door, carrying a tone of absolute self-righteousness.

Chen Zhi set down his gluten and slowly shuffled to the door.

The moment the door opened a crack...

A white figure slipped in like a loach.

Lin Wanwan was wearing her cozy bear pajamas, her feet dragging a pair of classic Adidas shell toes.

She sniffed hard. The rich barbecue smell made her throat bob involuntarily.

Aha, Chen Zhi!

Hands on her hips, Lin Wanwan blocked the entryway aggressively. I was wondering why it smelled so good. You're actually hoarding food behind my back! That's so uncool!

As she complained, she craned her neck to peek toward the balcony.

With that gluttonous look, she completely lacked the aloof elegance of the future national goddess she was destined to become.

Chen Zhi closed the door and rolled his eyes at her in annoyance.

You really have a dog's nose. I barely got the charcoal going and you already smelled it.

Cut the crap!

Lin Wanwan familiarly dug out her own designated slippers from the shoe cabinet, slipped them on, and swaggered toward the balcony. Finders keepers! If you don't give me some, I'm telling Auntie Zhang you're playing with fire in the house!

...

Out on the balcony, the charcoal fire was roaring.

A few skewers of starch sausages had already split open from the heat, emitting an enticing aroma amplified by the secret sauce.

Lin Wanwan didn't stand on ceremony. She pulled up a small folding stool, sat right across from the grill, rested her chin in her hands, and stared fixedly at the food on the rack.

Is it done? Is it done?

She urged, practically drooling.

Chen Zhi flipped the skewers in his hands and sprinkled on some cumin powder.

What's the rush? You can't eat hot food if you're too anxious.

He picked up a skewer of gluten that was grilled to a shiny, reddish-brown crisp and handed it over.

Lin Wanwan snatched it away. Ignoring the heat, she opened her mouth and took a huge bite.

Sss—so hot, so hot!

She hissed, drawing in cold air, mumbling incoherently, but refused to spit it out.

As her teeth pierced the crispy outer layer, the soft, chewy gluten inside instantly burst with the rich sauce it had soaked up.

Sweet, spicy, savory, and fragrant.

The four flavors exploded in her mouth, instantly conquering all her taste buds.

Lin Wanwan's eyes went wide.

This taste...

It was completely different from what the street carts sold at the school gates!

Unlike the simple salty and spicy flavors of cumin and chili powder found at roadside barbecue stands, this was replaced by an intensely impactful, rich aroma.

Especially that sauce.

Sweet with a kick of spice, spicy with a lingering sweetness, and carrying an indescribable hint of garlic—it practically breathed a soul into this ordinary skewer of gluten.

Mmm! So good!

In just a few bites, Lin Wanwan devoured the entire gluten skewer. The corners of her mouth were stained with red sauce, making her look like a little calico cat that had successfully stolen a treat.

She tossed the bare bamboo skewer aside and reached for the starch sausages on the grill.

I want this too!

Helplessly, Chen Zhi handed her the freshly grilled sausage.

Eat slowly, nobody is fighting you for it.

These starch sausages were the real deal.

The exterior had been grilled into a hard crust that crunched when bitten, but the core was as soft and sticky as a rice cake.

Paired with Chen Zhi's special brushing sauce, it was an absolute killer combo.

Lin Wanwan didn't even lift her head as she ate. With her cheeks bulging, she mumbled, Chen Zhi, your cooking skills are amazing! This is ten thousand times better than the barbecue place behind the school!

She swallowed her food and stuck out the pink tip of her tongue to lick a sesame seed off her lip.

Seriously, I'm not lying.

Lin Wanwan looked at Chen Zhi with a serious expression, pointing at him with the half-eaten starch sausage still in her hand. If you set up a street stall, you'd definitely make a fortune! I'll be your cashier, and we'll split the profits fifty-fifty!

Chen Zhi was holding a brush, adding oil to the remaining gluten.

Sure.

He placed the cooked gluten on a plate, his tone lazy. If I ever go bankrupt one day, I'll push a cart and sell barbecue. Just don't think it's embarrassing to be seen with me then.

As if!

Lin Wanwan reached out and grabbed another skewer, eating until her mouth was slick with oil. As long as you can grill this for me every day, forget about setting up a stall, I'd even follow you if you were picking up trash!

Chen Zhi didn't reply.

He leaned against the balcony railing, holding a can of ice-cold cola.

The pull tab popped open.

Pssh—

White vapor spilled out.

He tilted his head back and took a big gulp. The freezing liquid slid down his esophagus into his stomach, washing away the greasiness and the stifling heat in his mouth.

Sunlight poured through the balcony's glass windows, illuminating Lin Wanwan's unguarded, food-loving face.

The fine peach fuzz on her skin was clearly visible in the light.

She ate with such intense focus and pure joy.

It was as if what she held in her hand was not a two-yuan starch sausage, but some rare delicacy.

It was a pure, inexpensive kind of happiness that, many years later, even after amassing untold wealth, Chen Zhi would find incredibly difficult to experience again.

In the adult world, happiness has a price tag.

But for Lin Wanwan right now, happiness only cost a slightly charred starch sausage.

Grow up slowly, Chen Zhi sighed to himself.

Want more?

Chen Zhi waved the empty skewer in his hand.

Yes!

Lin Wanwan swallowed what was in her mouth and raised a hand. Two more skewers! No, wait, three! And I want them insanely spicy!

Go easy on the spice, or you'll break out.

Chen Zhi grumbled, but his hands were honest, grabbing a pinch of chili powder and sprinkling it evenly over the sizzling, oil-dripping grilled gluten.

As the red powder landed on the golden crust, the hot oil instantly released a pungent, spicy aroma.

Cough, cough...

Lin Wanwan choked and coughed a couple of times, but she still stared eagerly at the grill.

Seeing her look so hopelessly greedy, the corners of Chen Zhi's mouth twitched into an imperceptible smile.

Just then.

The Nokia in his pocket suddenly vibrated.

Chen Zhi took out his phone.

The screen showed a text message from David.

[Boss, Sequoia is making a move. They are using their channels to look into the background of Goodnight Capital.]

Chen Zhi glanced at it and casually stuffed the phone back into his pocket.

Who texted you?

Lin Wanwan asked, her words muffled by a mouthful of gluten. It wasn't Li Sisi from the next class, was it? Let me tell you, the whole school knows she wrote you a love letter. Don't you dare make a mistake!

As she spoke, she looked Chen Zhi up and down with a scrutinizing gaze, as if she were inspecting a clueless teenage boy on the verge of going astray.

Chen Zhi stuffed the insanely spicy gluten into her hand.

Just eat your food.

It was a spam text. Asking if I want to buy a house.

Lin Wanwan gasped from the spice, but she still couldn't help gossiping: Really? Why don't I believe that? Your expression just now didn't look like you were reading a spam text.

Then what did it look like?

Like...

Lin Wanwan tilted her head in thought, seemingly searching for the right words. Like one of those big villains in TV dramas who hide behind the scenes and scheme against people!

Chen Zhi raised an eyebrow.

Her intuition was quite accurate.

He picked up the tongs, grabbed a glowing red piece of charcoal, and tossed it into the nearby water bucket.

Sizzle—

White smoke billowed up.

Watch fewer melodramas, it's rotting your brain.

Chen Zhi dusted the charcoal ash off his hands, his tone flat. Hurry up and eat, and go finish your homework when you're done. If your mom finds out you sneaked out to play without finishing your homework, see if she doesn't tan your hide.

At the mention of homework, Lin Wanwan's high spirits instantly collapsed.

With a bitter expression, she took a fierce bite of the gluten in her hand, as if that skewer was the root of all evil: summer homework.

Chen Zhi, you are such a killjoy!

Can we not mention homework? We can still be friends.

Chen Zhi ignored her, turning around to start cleaning up the mess.

The cicadas outside the balcony continued their noisy chirping.