Vomit

"Don't get too emotional! If you had not been standing there as bait, I would not have managed to catch the rat with my iron stick!" Lan Jiao said, sounding nonchalant.

Mi Lai knew that she was just trying to convince him to accept the nutritive solutions without any awkwardness.

She had not been trying to catch the rat, she was trying to save his life…

"Lan Jiao, why are you being so nice to me?" Mi Lai asked her seriously.

That was something he could not figure out.

Lan Jiao looked up and mulled over Mi Lai's question carefully.

Then, she said, "Probably because when I saw you for the first time, I assumed that you were not a vicious criminal."

This was true!

A young man in his teens, cute and innocent, did not seem to be someone who would commit a heinous crime.

He must have been framed, just like the original host of her body.

She probably felt sympathetic towards him. That was why Lan Jiao had offered Mi Lai a helping hand, by giving him a precious piece of bread.

But these offers were not given with purely altruistic intentions.

Lan Jiao had a hidden motive as well.

When she arrived in this strange world and was surrounded by the hostile environment, she was also forced to live with fierce exiles, highly cautious locals as well as the stern soldiers who monitored them.

So when she saw Mi Lai, this harmless little pet, she wanted to find a friend. That was why she offered help.

At least, she could find some gentleness and warmth living in this cold and harsh world.

Mi Lai, who was not aware of her true purpose, felt moved by Lan Jiao's words.

"Also… you look pretty." Lan Jiao said to Mi Lai with a smile.

He might appear filthy on the surface, yet Lan Jiao had fallen for the boy's beautiful pair of eyes.

It was worth the effort to offer a piece of moldy bread and get a pretty, cute 'pet' in return.

Mi Lai: "…"

…

District Nine on Planet Trash 101.

The news that someone was able to make delicious food out of the most commonly-seen rot-eating rats traveled fast in the community.

Within half a month's time, Lan Jiao's Rat Teppanyaki gained popularity in the entire district.

Those who had tasted the cutlets raised their thumbs and bragged about it whenever it was mentioned.

They said that the food made by that exiled criminal was simply delicious!

But the delicious and spicy Rat Teppanyaki's supply was limited.

Lan Jiao made it three times before regretfully informing everyone about the shortage of spices. She told them that she would not be able to make any more of it in the future.

That made many soldiers, who had not tasted it till now, feel terrible!

They should have learned to establish a good relationship with this exiled criminal early on, had they been smart enough!

They should have paid the down payment first, to ensure that they got a taste of this delicacy!

When the locals in District Nine heard about this news, they were both delighted and sad.

They were happy that they did not have to be tormented by the great smell anymore, but it also made them sad for the exact same reason.

Although the exchange happened only thrice, Lan Jiao had earned enough to remain excited and happy for a long period.

Her room was filled up with hundreds of bottles of low-level nutritive solutions. She had given Mi Lai several of them, as well.

These things were enough to free her and Mi Lai from thinking about food for quite some time.

But she had other things to pursue apart from having a full stomach.

These bottles of low-level nutritive solutions might be filling, yet the taste was horrible for a foodie like her.

These sticky fluids had a rough texture. The companies who made the nutritive solution didn't care about the quality, as long as it provided the requisite energy.

The things picked from the dump had a terrible taste and these bottles of low-level nutritive solutions were equally horrid. It was akin to consuming drugs. Hence, it was a torment for her tongue.

In every world, the poor were always larger in number than the rich. Nutritive solution was a cheap product, so in the Interstellar, it became a part of the daily necessary diet for everyone.

There were only two companies that made nutrient fluid in the whole Interstellar World, Rongguang and Jinhe.

Despite the terrible texture, they had enough demand across the world. They did not have to care about how the consumers felt about the products.

Although she was able to fill her stomach on Planet Trash, Lan Jiao still planned to improve her diet, bit by bit.

But that was the first step.

She came to Planet Trash because she had a murderer's tag upon her but she did not intend to spend the rest of her life here.

It was a terrible place and life was harsh. Even if she was not able to return to her old home, she still needed to find a comfortable place to live her life.

…

Border of District Nine on Planet Trash 101.

There was no trash here, but it was an endless, barren place.

Due to the scorching sun, most of the plants had withered.

But there were still some strong plants and animals trying to survive under such cruel conditions.

Apart from the rot-eating rats that thrived on trash and occupied Mountain Trash, there were other creatures, like insects, birds and low-level monsters.

All in all, there was a well established food chain on Planet Trash.

Lan Jiao parted the grass carefully, trying to find different kinds of insects patiently.

She had tried to catch all kinds of insects, the fleshy one, the long-legged hopping ones and many more. She had divided them into two bottles.

"Can these really be eaten?" Mi Lai helped Lan Jiao catch the insects by following her suit.

When he saw the ugly looking insects, he was so disgusted that he could not foresee eating them, no matter what.

"Of course, I am sure that you would eat many of them." Lan Jiao said casually as she continued to catch the insects.

Mi Lai felt like vomiting after listening to her. His weak stomach twitched, but failed to spew anything out.

He was not hungry because of the low-level nutritive solution bottles that Lan Jiao had given him. He was alright with this kind of life. Hence, he could not understand why Lan Jiao had to exert so much effort and find so many strange things to eat.

"Well, we are restricted by our environment, so we have to make do with what we have. When we get better material in the future, I can cook up a better treat for you!"