Ironclad Group Chat: Red and Black Lists Engraved with Heroic Epics

[March 7th: Huh?!]

March 7th, visible through the light screen, was completely unprepared and accepted all comers: "Refuse...? Don't worry, I will never waste the medicine that Mr. Jiaoqiu worked so hard to make!"

Jiaoqiu smiled with satisfaction, then emphasized, "You must not tell your two masters about today's events. If Miss March 7th agrees, I will go and gather the medicinal herbs. Farewell."

"Okay, okay. Goodbye, Mr. Jiaoqiu."

[Yanqing: Don't tell us... This sounds worse than anything.]

The next day, at the same location, Jiaoqiu arrived as promised.

"Here it is, here it is, the [miracle drug] you requested, I've packed it in an insulated box and brought it to you."

March 7th asked impatiently, "What kind of medicine is in this box?"

Jiaoqiu smiled faintly: "I left in a hurry today, so I didn't make much... Here's some cold thousand-year-old ginseng salad, black jade tortoise jelly, and hand-shredded ice goddess snow lotus."

March 7th was initially full of enthusiasm, but after hearing the names of the dishes and medicines, her head spun: "Oh no, my food safety radar is going off like a whistle."

[Sai Fei'er: Medicine is food, and food is medicine... I wasn't lying.]

[Fireworks: Aren't these all cold dishes? Why bother packing them in an insulated container? Are you worried some hungry person on the street will smell them and rob you?]

[Star: Hmm... It sounds like a miraculous drug with amazing effects!]

[March 7th: How did you figure that out? What kind of cure is this?]

[Star: The name says it all. It's a special treatment for abdominal cramping pain, acid reflux, sallow complexion, emaciation, weakness in the limbs, dizziness, and blurred vision...]

[March 7th: That's just because I'm hungry!]

Xing was completely confused and actually asked, "What is 'cold-dressed thousand-year-old ginseng'?"

Jiao Qiu explained meticulously, "Take the ginseng out of the kimchi jar, slice it thinly, and then add vinegar, ginger, garlic, and chili oil sauce."

[March 7th: ...That smells delicious.]

[Sai Fei'er: Wait, where did you fish that out? A kimchi jar? Those radishes and cabbages must be overjoyed—you've fallen to this state too?]

March 7th seized on the blind spot: "Then how can it be called 'Thousand-Year Ginseng'?"

"This recipe..." Jiaoqiu changed her tune without batting an eye, saying leisurely, "I meant the medicinal formula has a history of over a thousand years. Doesn't the word 'thousand years' fit?"

[Star: That should be called "Thousand-Year-Old Ginseng Salad"!]

[Fireworks: It's not even an original dish? The ancestors of the Immortal Boat people tried something like this a thousand years ago?]

That wasn't all. Jiaoqiu picked up the plate of black jade tortoise jelly and began to explain, "Boil the 'Black Jade Rejuvenating Paste', filter it, add donkey-hide gelatin, and finally add chestnut powder and let it cool and solidify."

"The reason this dish has such a black, jade-like color is because I added extra brown sugar in case you couldn't stomach it."

March 7th glanced at it, then quickly looked away: "What about the Hand-Torn Iceberg Snow Lotus? Could it be the snow lotus that blooms only once every three thousand years, and eating it can turn white hair black and make one young again?"

Jiaoqiu shrugged: "It's not that surprising. This snow lotus is grown in a greenhouse and blooms once every thirty days."

[Star: Snow lotus, greenhouse... The people of the Immortal Ship are really going all out for food. They even came up with this idea.]

"Speaking of which... these medicinal herbs must be quite expensive, right?" March 7th asked, somewhat embarrassed.

Jiaoqiu didn't mind at all: "It's not expensive—it's just about the cost of my next meal at a restaurant. Come, come, Miss March, please don't be shy..."

[Sai Fei'er: What do you mean by "just right"? This is just eating out! And, please, have some meat! A kitten can't stand such a vegetarian diet. Don't you have anything like a thousand-year-old stewed bear paw or a ten-thousand-year-old phoenix roasted chicken wings?]

Looking at the table full of "delicious dishes," March 7th looked troubled: "Excuse my bluntness, but these dishes are a bit too innovative..."

"No—!" She shook her head vigorously, "No, no, no, absolutely not!"

[Feng Jin: So cute...]

[Star: Who dares to eat this? Anyone who does is a total sucker!]

[Scott: Hahaha, with these few lousy dishes, you can eat until you're stuffed like a pig and they can't do anything about it, right? This is it, let's go with this one!]

Jiaoqiu produced the promise she made before March 7th: "We agreed when we met last time that I would bring you the medicine you want, so you absolutely mustn't refuse..."

March 7th's uncooperative stomach: "Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle (the sound of hunger)—"

Caught between a rock and a hard place, March 7's rationality ultimately gave way.

She scratched a strand of hair on the side of her head, giving an awkward but polite smile: "Um... okay, I'll give it a try..."

[March 7th: Star... hurry up and say what you said before!]

[Star: How was I supposed to know you'd lose so quickly?]

Xing and March 7th nervously enjoyed a hearty meal, experiencing the true essence of the "Touching Faction".

"Delicious—!" March 7 was impressed by the medicine's effectiveness.

"Delicious—!" Xing's tongue and stomach were satiated by the taste of the dish.

March 7th exclaimed, "It's so delicious! Mr. Jiaoqiu is definitely a chef!"

"He's a physician!" Jiaoqiu said decisively. "A cook who doesn't want to be a physician can't be considered a good general's advisor... Why am I explaining all this to you?"

[Fireworks: You have so many part-time jobs, you're almost as many as Fireworks!]

[Star: I reasonably suspect that General Feixiao hired you to save on two salaries at once, right?]

[Feixiao: That's only a secondary reason. His skills have been wasted in this decadence, a tremendous waste.]

March 7th: "...So if I eat these, will my swordsmanship improve?"

Jiaoqiu smiled faintly and said, "Miss Sanyue, the ingredients I chose are rare and precious, but they are still ordinary items that can be bought anywhere. At most, they can strengthen the body and supplement nutrition... In other words, they will not help your swordsmanship much."

"This isn't what we agreed on!" Xing scolded the cook after finishing his meal, then said to March 7, "I have some items in my backpack that increase critical hit rate."

[Fireworks: Sigh... Studying medicine can't save March 7th.]

[March 7th: Hmm... Hmm? Critical hit? What's that? Did I find it in some trash can again? I wouldn't dare eat it.]

[Star: Don't worry about those important points. Pepper Hill, you really were using us to test medicine... or food, weren't you?]

[Jiaoqiu: What? Sharing food isn't just about trying it, it's about sharing!]

"Are there any medicinal herbs that are unavailable?" Xing made a slight change of approach and changed her thinking.

"You've hit the nail on the head." Jiaoqiu revealed a meaningful smile.

[Sai Fei: Why do I feel like he's actually saying—"Finally, you've fallen into my trap"?]

"However... I heard that the Luofu Immortal Ship has a prescription, but this prescription is not for humans, but for snakes in the deep mountains and dense forests."