At 8 PM, Jiang Qiuqiu didnât open the live-streaming platform early as usual. Instead, she waited until the clock ticked past 8:05 before slowly opening her stream.
The moment the stream went live, tens of thousands of people flooded in.
#Why is Juju slower than usual today?#
#Wow, it wasnât exactly eight. This is the first time the streamerâs been late.#
She wasnât that late, though, so everyoneâs comments were just teasing. No oneâs tone was actually harsh.
Jiang Qiuqiuâs voice was soft as she apologized to her fans. "Something came up today, and I got a little sidetracked."
"Well then, welcome to my stream, everyone. Todayâs menu: rice noodle rolls."
She laid out a row of raw ingredients on the table.
"Yesterday, I saw the thread everyone built in the streaming community. A lot of fans guessed that rice noodle rolls are made from intestines and rice noodles. You guessed wrong, though."
"So today, join me as we uncover the secrets of rice noodle rolls."
First, she ground rice into flour with a food processorâa familiar step for most viewers.
Next came mixing the batter. She combined a large bowl of rice flour with just under half a bowl of wheat flour. After adding water, she used a pair of long bamboo chopsticks to stir them into a smooth slurry.
The dish had no aroma before it was steamed, and it looked quite plain. The viewers were filled with question marks.
But given that anyone who had doubted Jiang Qiuqiu in the past had always ended up eating their words, everyone patiently kept watching.
With the batter mixed, she took out a square metal tray and set out some minced meat, lettuce, and bird eggs to the side.
Her hands moved with incredible speed. She poured a ladleful of batter onto the square tray and gave it a gentle shake, spreading it into an even layer. "Making rice noodle rolls is actually pretty simple. When I upload the recording after the stream, Iâll post the ingredients and recipe for any fans who want to try making it themselves."
As Jiang Qiuqiu was adding the bird eggs, lettuce, and minced meat, someone in the comments suddenly asked if it would be okay to add slices of Bibi Beast Meat instead.
She pondered for a moment. "Rice noodle rolls are a very forgiving food. You can add almost any filling you like. However, the size and type of the fillings will affect the steaming time, so thatâs something youâll have to manage on your own."
As soon as they heard theyâd have to manage it themselves, the comments immediately filled with laments.
#EatEatEatNonstop: If I could manage it myself, I wouldnât be here desperately watching this stream, boo hoo hoo.#
#My brain tells me I can do it, but my hands just slapped me in the face!#
#I canât! Iâm no good at it! I donât know how! I canât get the timing right!#
The viewers were all being goofy, and Jiang Qiuqiu chuckled. "Alright, the water is boiling now. We can start steaming."
As Jiang Qiuqiu began steaming the rice noodle rolls, in Terryâs dorm room, the three Mixed Species musketeers sat at a table, watching the stream on three separate terminals.
Terry stared at the batter Jiang Qiuqiu placed in the steamer, a somewhat familiar aroma wafting from his device, as he listened to his two buddies chattering nonstop beside himâ
Changbei: "Why is she making this stuff? Thereâs barely any meat. It doesnât look like itâll be good at all!"
Changbei: "She should add a biiiiig slab of meat in there. That would give it more to chew on."
"..." Qiudao was speechless.
"If you add a huge slab of meat, the batter would probably turn to mush before the meat is even cooked," Qiudao said with a sigh of exasperation.
Changbei grunted, "Oh," then said, as if it were perfectly obvious, "So she shouldnât be making this! Just cooking a big piece of meat is always best!"
"What do you know," Terry spat. "These rice noodle rolls are delicious! Theyâre full of flavor. There isnât a lot of meat, but itâs exceptionally savory!"
"Theyâre translucent and glistening, and theyâre so smooth and tender when you eat them. Thereâs egg, minced meat, and even the lettuce has this fresh, crisp taste..." As he spoke, he suddenly started drooling a little.