"Here you go."
Lin Chen took down the business license hanging on his food cart and handed it over, while lifting the lid off the pot to take out some marinated delicacies to cool.
But as soon as the lid was lifted, he keenly sensed something amiss.
This pot of marinade... why isn't there any steam coming out?
Even if the journey took an hour, with such a large pot and covered lid, it should be at least fifty degrees or more, with a certain humid warmth.
Yet now, there was none at all.
He touched the metal wall of the pot, and oh my, there was no warmth at all!
"Could it be...?"
Recalling the system prompt about the food cart undergoing magical changes during challenge tasks, he immediately picked up a ladle and dipped it into the pot, casually scooped out a spoonful, and used a toothpick to skewer a shiny chicken heart and popped it into his mouth.
As his teeth bit down, the savory juice burst from the chicken heart, rich with the aroma of the marinade and sauce flavor, and upon closer taste, there was a hint of butter fragrance.
The flavor of the marinade had completely seeped into the chicken heart, every fiber of muscle thoroughly permeated, as if it had been soaked in the marinade all night.
The two police officers briefly inspected his business license, found no issues, and handed it back through the window.
Looking up, they saw the young Asian owner hauling various meats out of the pot.
Chicken legs, wings, and many things they couldn't name, mixed with dense spices and dark red chili peppers, just the sight was mouth-watering.
As he moved, the aroma of the marinade in the air grew more potent, both officers took several sniffs, and their stomachs started protesting.
Lin Chen patiently sorted different parts of the meat into separate metal trays, his tongs as precise and quick as if fitted with a detector.
"Boss, what are you selling?"
One of the policemen took off his sunglasses and curiously leaned towards the window to get a closer look at the unfamiliar food, while another surveyed the surface of the food cart, seemingly searching for a menu.
On foreign streets, you often encounter pairs of police officers patrolling in their cars, usually hiding away waiting for unlucky souls to issue fines.
And then there are ones like these two, openly strolling down the street slacking off, which is quite common.
Foreign streets barely have any surveillance cameras; it's mostly up to shop owners to install them. Plus, foreigners are generally lazy, so getting paid to slack off is normal.
Lucas enthusiastically approached them and began to introduce the food.
"Hey, handsome officers, what we have here is Great Xia's cuisine called marinated food. It's a type of cold dish where various ingredients are boiled with sauces, spices, water, and alcohol, perfect with beer, and pairs well with movies and TV shows too."
"Today we're mainly selling various meats, like chicken wings, drumsticks, duck legs, and also pig ears, trotters, and some animal innards, like this chicken heart and duck intestines..."
The first few sounded decent, but the further he went, the stranger it got.
The two looked a bit weirded out but surprisingly seemed intrigued.
Lucas softly explained to Lin Chen, "Old pal, we might just get off to a great start!"
"Foreign cops are different from civilians, their training includes brutal trials. You've probably seen them in movies, right? Eating raw beef, grabbing bugs in the jungle, throwing bread in mud and stuff."
"While that's more for special forces training, these two are patrolmen, but they'd likely have a higher tolerance than ordinary citizens."
Just then, one officer pointed to the chicken legs and wings, "How much are these?"
"Chicken legs are 2 euros, a pair of wings also for 2 euros."
Lin Chen used pistol drumsticks, sold cheaply at supermarkets. Even roasted, a box of two wouldn't exceed 5 euros, typically slightly over 4 euros, selling for 2 euros each was a normal price.
As for the cost, it was even cheaper, sometimes you could find discounted boxes of five or six raw drumsticks for 1 euro.
"Then give us two chicken legs and two wings to try first."
It was just past four o'clock, prime time for afternoon tea in Romantic Country since dinner usually happened around 7, although some preferred eating earlier.
Lin Chen picked up two food boxes, serving each officer a pistol drumstick and wing.
He didn't charge them, hoping they might order more.
The massive drumstick, soaked in marinade, turned a reddish-brown, its glossy surface looked like it was glazed, with a hint of red oil, making it exceptionally tempting.
Getting closer, you could smell the unique numbing fragrance of Sichuan pepper.
Without much hesitation, since it's a drumstick, they grabbed it and took a hefty bite from the meatiest part.
"?!"
Contrary to the usual soft, dry roasted chicken leg from supermarkets, this cold-eaten chicken leg was tender yet slightly chewy.
Every fiber of muscle was filled with rich spicy flavors, especially the skin, savory, juicy, and incredibly spicy.
They had never tasted such salty food before, but surprisingly it wasn't uncomfortable, instead, the more they ate, the more they wanted.
After several bites, a faint sweetness emerged, filling their entire mouth.
As they chewed more, their tongues gradually began to tremble; the slight numbness widened their eyes.
"Oh my God, why does my tongue feel weird?"
"Same here, it feels like countless little people are dancing on it, this sensation is incredible!"
With bright eyes, they quickly finished the big drumsticks and eagerly grabbed the remaining wings from the bowl.
These two ingredients, if well-marinated, were hard to mess up.
Having eaten two pieces of marinated food, they were on a high, and wiping their mouths, leaned back over, now with obvious peak interest.
"Boss, any other recommendations?"
"Can you eat pig ear? We also have pig trotters, pig tails, and chicken hearts, all popular items among our sales."
He didn't recommend intestines right away, considering the need for transition, while Lin Chen also wanted to see the foreigners' reaction.
"I've had pig ear at restaurants, not bad. Pig trotters... aren't they the main ingredient of that famous dish from Hops Country next door? Let's try some of these too."
"That's a pig knuckle, this is a pig trotter, sort of like the difference between the arm and the hand, but both are delicious."
The first three were okay to suggest, but the chicken heart made the two uneasy.
They dared not order much, just one to taste.
"This thing looks almost identical to the heart images and models in hospitals!"
"Damn it, Howard, never in my life did I think I'd eat a heart!"
Seeing them hesitant, Lucas timely nudged closer to persuade, "It's really tasty, just like chewy chicken, and it'll burst with juice inside. I guarantee you'll get hooked!"