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13.08% Douluo: Rebirth of Yuhao, they all have ulterior motives. / Chapter 13: Chapter 13: The Taste of First Love

Bab 13: Chapter 13: The Taste of First Love

"The fish itself isn't anything special."

Huo Yuhao skillfully flipped the grilled fish and explained with a smile, "What's special is the technique of grilling. As for the taste, I guarantee it's worth the price."

Humans are strange creatures. Even though they know something is unreasonably expensive, they still hold onto a mindset of, 'I have to see what's so special about this that it's sold at such a high price,' and end up trying it.

Only after realizing that it's no different from something cheaper do they understand they've been fooled.

They say, 'learn a lesson from experience,' but the next time something similar happens, they'll make the same mistake again.

As a middle-aged man who had been through the rough and tumble of society, the vendor thought he wouldn't fall for such tricks anymore.

But… but it smelled so good.

Watching the sizzling oil as the fish skin turned golden and curled slightly under the heat, revealing the tender, juicy white flesh inside, the vendor swallowed hard.

For a moment, he felt as if the scene before him changed. The grilled fish in front of him wasn't just grilled fish—it was the girl he had silently adored for so long. The one who had disappeared from his life before he even had a chance to confess.

Wasn't the motion of flipping the fish just like the graceful dance of that girl?

Wasn't the golden fish skin like the hem of her long skirt?

And the tender white flesh, wasn't it like the glimpse of her fair skin, unintentionally revealed as the breeze lifted her skirt?

That… that was the unfulfilled love of his youth!

Even the aroma of the grilled fish had transformed in his mind into the scent of that girl.

The books say that first love is always restrained and innocent, never resulting in a happy ending. But now, after all these years, it felt like he could finally grasp it!

As if understanding some profound truth of the universe, the vendor hesitated no more. He gritted his teeth, took out a silver coin, and handed it to Huo Yuhao.

"I want to see just what's so special about your grilled fish that it costs so much."

"Thank you for your patronage."

Huo Yuhao's expression turned odd. He reached out to take the coin but then hesitated and pulled his hand back slightly, unsure of whether to accept it. After a long moment of hesitation, he finally took the silver coin from the vendor, though he couldn't help but feel like he had just absorbed some sort of lustful sin from this man.

What the hell is this guy thinking!?

I'm just selling grilled fish, aren't I?

Suppressing the shivers running down his spine, he stiffly continued flipping the fish. As if casually, he asked, "Do you want it spicy?"

The vendor closed his eyes for a moment, recalling something, his voice now hoarse and magnetic.

"Just a little."

Though his memory was fuzzy, the girl he once loved seemed to have had a bit of a spicy personality too.

"...Alright, be careful, it's hot."

Huo Yuhao sprinkled on the final touch of chili powder and handed the first grilled fish of the day to the vendor. He smiled, discreetly wiped his hands, and then, feeling it wasn't enough, wiped them again.

Golden oil dripped from the fish skin, carrying a tempting aroma. It really did look as if it had been dusted with gold powder. Everyone subconsciously swallowed, their eyes glued to the vendor, waiting for his reaction.

As soon as the fish was in his hands, the vendor couldn't wait to take a bite.

Crunch—

The crispy fish skin crackled under his teeth. The hot fish flesh danced on his tongue, and with each bite, the spices exploded in his mouth, stimulating his taste buds.

"Ahhh!"

Like a dragon's breath, the man opened his mouth and exhaled a wave of hot air. Even though he was flailing his arms and contorting his face from the heat, clenching his fists, he refused to spit out the grilled fish.

This… this was the taste of first love!

No matter how hard it was, no matter the challenges, this time he wouldn't let go!

Seeing the vendor's expression as if he were being electrocuted, a passerby couldn't help but glance at their companion.

"Is it good or not?"

"I don't know. It smells great, but from his reaction, it doesn't seem like normal grilled fish…"

"Is he crazy or something?"

The vendor didn't pay any attention to the comments around him. He slowly raised his trembling fist and held up three fingers.

"I… I want three more!"

Huo Yuhao couldn't help but twitch his eyelid, but he smiled politely and said, "Due to limited supply, each customer is only allowed to buy two. I hope you understand."

"Then give me one more!"

After receiving payment again, Huo Yuhao handed over another grilled fish. Watching the vendor happily devour it, others finally couldn't resist the tempting aroma and decided to give it a try.

"I'll take one too."

"Yeah, give me one. Let's see what all the fuss is about."

Just then, a clear, pleasant voice sounded from outside the crowd.

"It smells so good! Please make way."

As the voice fell, a delicate-looking girl squeezed her way through the crowd. She appeared to be around the same age as Huo Yuhao, with long black hair tied into a ponytail, and her bright phoenix eyes were gleaming as she stared at the grilled fish.

"Excuse me, how much for the grilled fish?"

Smelling the aroma, the girl's little nose twitched as she asked about the price. However, when she looked up at Huo Yuhao, the rest of her words got stuck in her throat.

She hadn't expected the person selling the grilled fish to be so young.

Huo Yuhao also froze for a moment when he saw the girl, but quickly looked away, continuing to flip the fish as he softly answered, "Ten copper coins per fish, with a limit of two per customer."

The girl was taken aback. "Why is there a limit?"

Without stopping, Huo Yuhao motioned to the crowd behind her with his chin. "I only sell fifty fish a day, and many have already been reserved. If you want some, you'd better decide quickly."

Hearing this, the girl glanced at the expectant crowd and nodded.

"Then… I'll take two."

"Little brother, your grilled fish is amazing! I've never seen you here before. Will you be selling again tomorrow?"

"I just arrived in Heaven Dou City with my mother two days ago."

Huo Yuhao replied as he cleaned up his stall. "Grilled fish is a family recipe. I'm just trying to make a bit of extra money. I'll be here every day around noon."

The fish had sold out faster than he expected. Even without using his spiritual detection, his strong mental power allowed him to grill several fish at once. In just over an hour, he had sold all fifty fish and made five gold soul coins, more than enough to call it a day.

"Are you familiar with this street?"

"Of course!"

Puffing out her chest proudly, the girl smiled. "I come here all the time. I know exactly what's good, but now your grilled fish is number one on my list."

Then, as if remembering something, she added, "Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Tang Ya. What's your name, little brother?"

"I'm Huo Yuhao."

After packing up his grill and putting it in his storage ring, Huo Yuhao patted his hands and looked at Tang Ya.

"Tang Ya, do you know where the largest pharmacy in Heaven Dou City is?"

(End of Chapter)


Bab 14: Chapter 14: I'll Cover You

"Pharmacy?"

Tang Ya pondered for a moment. "If you want to buy medicine, you can go to the best medical hall in Heaven Dou City. They have the most extensive selection of medicines. I happen to be free later, so I can take you there."

"Then thank you, Sister Xiao Ya."

Hearing the way he addressed her, Tang Ya immediately smiled and patted Huo Yuhao on the shoulder.

"Just because you called me 'Sister Xiao Ya,' from now on, I'll cover you in the snack street! Let's go, I'll take you to the medical hall."

Under the complex gazes of the surrounding vendors, Huo Yuhao followed Tang Ya as they left the snack street together. After seeing that Tang Ya truly only sold fifty grilled fish a day, the vendors all wore expressions of relief.

With such popularity on the first day, they could only imagine what would come next. If Tang Ya supplied unlimited amounts of grilled fish, they feared they would starve to death.

Moreover, Tang Ya had been personally brought in by Huang Yu, the one in charge of the street, from the very beginning. This cut off any thoughts the vendors had of causing trouble for Huo Yuhao. Everyone was just trying to make a living, and if they had real power, they wouldn't be setting up stalls here.

However, their dissatisfaction quickly dissipated upon learning that the grilled fish was limited in quantity. Those who had tasted Huo Yuhao's grilled fish knew that it would undoubtedly be in high demand, and the people drawn to the fish would naturally become customers of the snack street.

"Sister Xiao Ya, besides the medical hall, there's another place I need to visit. Do you know where I can buy rare metals?"

Looking at Tang Ya, Huo Yuhao suddenly had an idea. He could collaborate with the Tang Sect for his soul devices!

He could buy small amounts of rare metals on his own, but if he needed to buy in large quantities, it wasn't just about whether people would sell to him — there would definitely be some who would get suspicious.

Although the Tang Sect had declined, it was still a sect that specialized in selling hidden weapons. They had some connections when it came to rare metals, and Huo Yuhao wouldn't need to worry about them harboring ill intentions due to his talent, unlike other forces.

Selling soul devices under the Tang Sect's name would also make him less conspicuous.

Even though many of the Tang Sect's connections had distanced themselves due to the sect's decline, it was because the Tang Sect no longer held value. But if there was profit to be made, those connections wouldn't refuse to sell rare metals to the Tang Sect under normal business circumstances.

After all, a sale was a sale, and there was some old friendship to consider. Only a fool would turn down money.

The conflicts with Tang San wouldn't extend to affecting the Tang Sect, which only shared a name connection. Plus, Huo Yuhao had interacted with Tang Ya in his previous life, so it was certainly better than dealing with a completely unfamiliar force.

However, since he wasn't yet familiar with Tang Ya, it would be better to wait before proposing such a partnership.

"Rare metals? Those are hard to come by, and the prices on the market are often outrageous."

Tang Ya's smile faded a bit at the mention of rare metals. After all, the Tang Sect's decline was closely related to changes in the rare metals policies of the three great empires.

As the empires placed increasing importance on soul devices, the value of rare metals skyrocketed, and their prices rose accordingly.

Production costs continually increased, and the Tang Sect's products could no longer sell. This cycle continued until the present day, and now the Tang Sect was at the point of no return. If they had made changes at the beginning, when soul devices first entered the public eye after the collision with the Sun Moon Continent, perhaps they wouldn't have ended up like this.

Unfortunately, the Tang Sect clung stubbornly to tradition, to the point of absurdity. For the sake of honoring their first sect master, Tang San, every leader over the past 10,000 years had been someone with the Blue Silver Grass martial soul. This was an unimaginably pathological tradition.

Even if the current generation wanted to make changes, it was too late. The Tang Sect no longer had the resources to even train a single soul engineer.

"I like collecting various kinds of rare metals. Since Heaven Dou City is a large city, I figured there would be types I haven't seen before. I just want to see what's available and maybe buy some to add to my collection."

Huo Yuhao explained softly. He wasn't lying — for a soul engineer, rare metals were like beautiful women waiting to be loved. No soul engineer could resist them.

"I see. I know a few shops that might sell rare metals. I'll take you there after we visit the medical hall."

"Thank you, Sister Xiao Ya. I'll treat you to grilled fish tomorrow."

"Really?"

Tang Ya's eyes lit up, and she grabbed Huo Yuhao's arm, quickening her pace. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go quickly."

After making two turns, they finally saw the best medical hall in Heaven Dou City, as Tang Ya had mentioned.

Huo Yuhao looked up and saw that the building exuded an ancient and imposing aura. People came and went from the entrance, yet there were no signs indicating it was a medical hall. First-time visitors would likely not even realize what it was.

Suddenly, Huo Yuhao stopped in his tracks and grabbed Tang Ya's arm.

"Wait."

"Huh? What's wrong?"

Tang Ya instinctively turned back, only to see Huo Yuhao frowning slightly, staring straight ahead.

At the entrance of the medical hall, a figure caught Huo Yuhao's attention. It was the same boy who had clashed with the blacksmith yesterday. The boy was carrying a large bundle of medicinal herbs. After leaving the hall, he quickly disappeared into the crowd.

"It's nothing, let's go."

Huo Yuhao shook his head and let go of Tang Ya's hand. He didn't want her to come into contact with this boy, who might be Tang San. If he wasn't, that would be fine. But if he was… things wouldn't end well.

Thinking back to what happened to those members of the God Realm Committee in his previous life, Huo Yuhao couldn't help but smile wryly.

The Tang Sect had been founded by Tang San himself. With his personality, how could he ever be willing to call anyone else "Sect Master"?

If that boy really was Tang San, then soon enough, those senior members of the Tang Sect would start dying one by one, and he would naturally take over as the sect master.

Luckily, the Tang Sect had fallen. For Tang San, it held no value now, and could even be considered a burden. If that boy was indeed Tang San, from what Huo Yuhao observed yesterday, the boy seemed barely able to take care of himself, let alone the Tang Sect.

"Why are you being so mysterious?"

Tang Ya mumbled, oblivious to the fact that she had just narrowly avoided a dangerous situation. She followed Huo Yuhao into the medical hall.

"Hello, are you here for treatment?"

As soon as they entered, a young man in a green robe approached them, politely inquiring.

"I need to buy some medicine."

Huo Yuhao immediately stated his purpose and listed the medicines he needed. Some were for Huo Yun'er to nourish her body, while others were to strengthen his own meridians and vital energy.

After rattling off a list of medicines, the young man, clearly an apprentice, appeared slightly embarrassed. He took out a notepad and nervously asked, "Um… could you slow down a bit?"

Just then, a middle-aged man approached and patted the young apprentice on the shoulder.

"That's enough. Let me take care of these two. You can go attend to other matters."

"Yes, sir."

The young apprentice breathed a sigh of relief, bowed, and left.

The middle-aged man then turned his attention to Huo Yuhao with a curious look and a slight smile.

"Who would have thought we'd have two customers buying such similar medicines today. Young man, have you studied medicine?"

(End of Chapter)


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