"Hahaha, the purpose of opening a business is to make money, how could I possibly give it away for free!" Xu An laughed, glossing over the question. Even after the surrounding stall owners tried various methods to ask Xu An, until all the boxed meals were sold out and he packed up and left, Xu An didn't reveal a single detail.
Back at the shop, they worked until 2:30. After all the customers had left and the shop was cleaned up, Xu An and Zhang Dezhen carried the tightly wrapped chili peppers into the kitchen.
As soon as the two entered the kitchen, Xu An, as if by magic, produced two packs of tissues, two face masks, and two swimming goggles from nowhere. To Zhang Dezhen's astonishment, he quickly put on all the gear. Finally, he reminded Zhang Dezhen to stuff every single tissue into the mask. Judging by Xu An's posture, if there weren't limited space inside the mask, he would have practically stuffed a whole roll of tissues inside.
Just as Zhang Dezhen was fully armed, Xu An pulled out a pair of scissors and carefully cut through the layers of tape on the outer packaging, taking out three bags—one large and two small. One bag contained a pound of fresh chili peppers, another contained a pound of dried chili peppers, and the last one was a large bag full of chili powder.
Just as Zhang Dezhen thought Xu An was making a fuss over nothing, Xu An hissed open the large bag of chili flakes, releasing a strong aroma of capsaicin.
Hatchoo—Hatchoo—Hatchoo—
The continuous, incessant sizzling sounds echoed throughout the kitchen, and even though the two were wearing goggles, their eyes were red. Before their human endurance reached its limit, Xu An, following the chili shop owner's instructions, scooped out two spoonfuls of chili, quickly sealed the bag, and stuffed it back into the tightly sealed packaging.
The capsaicin in the air remained potent, and the two men's hissing continued, but the frequency gradually decreased. Initially, they averaged four or five hisses per minute; now it was only about one or two per minute.
Now, Zhang Dezhen finally understood Xu An's good intentions. But after he came to his senses, a question arose in his mind: Does anyone really eat this? Can people really eat it? Is the person who can eat this really human? But looking at Xu An's determined gaze, he ultimately couldn't bring himself to ask these questions.
If the boss says it's okay, then it's okay!
Then, Zhang Dezhen picked up a spatula and worked it up perfectly with the other spices, infusing them with its flavor.
After a two-hour wait, at 4:30 pm, the pot of braised dishes that Xu An called "hellish braised dishes" was finally ready. Its bright red color looked quite festive, and the taste of the chili peppers was like real flames, leaving nothing but desolation in its wake.
The two of them stared at the plate of braised food, but neither had the courage to take off their masks and try it. In the end, they just looked at each other, wide-eyed, for a long time.
I'm the boss, I have to lead by example. If I don't go to hell, who will?
Xu An silently recited these words in his mind, then closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and with lightning speed removed his mask, picked up the braised food, and put it in his mouth.
The moment his tongue touched this 'hellish braised food,' Xu An, just like those characters in cartoons, blushed from head to toe in half a second, probably no less red than a cooked shrimp.
The spiciness was like a raging fire, leaving nothing but desolation in its wake and robbing all senses of its presence. Xu An felt a fire rise from the tip of his tongue, which in an instant transformed into a raging inferno, following the trail of the braised food, burning all the way to his stomach, breaking through the confines of his stomach, and spreading throughout his entire body.
At this moment, Xu An could hear his own heartbeat with perfect clarity, thump-thump-thump, like a giant drum beating in his ears; at this moment, Xu An saw himself in his past life, playing on the rocks, completely unaware that the tide was rising; at this moment, it was as if a slideshow was playing before Xu An's eyes, and memories of both lives flashed by rapidly.
At the last moment, Xu An's hand touched a can of ice-cold beverage. At that moment, Xu An had no time to look for the pull tab, so he used brute force to squeeze the can and burst it. The icy beverage splashed all over his face and body, but some of it also entered his mouth.
The icy army was somewhat weaker than the fiery army, but its strength lay in its inexhaustible flow. Xu An didn't know how much he had drunk; he only knew that the scrolling lights in front of him disappeared, his senses returned, his eyes could open, his ears could hear again, and his heartbeat gradually subsided.
I survived! It's so good to be alive! Thank God I was spared!
Xu An struggled to turn his head and looked at Zhang Dezhen, who was carrying drinks and was covered in sweat. He stammered, "One-third... one-third of the amount!"
Zhang Dezhen hesitated, his lips moved a few times, and finally nodded firmly, then, with the spirit of a martyr going to his death, resumed cooking.
Xu An had already collapsed, so Zhang Dezhen had to take over the remaining attempts. However, due to the reduced portion size, although Zhang Dezhen's face turned red and he was sweating profusely, he was still within the normal range. In the end, the two of them set the amount of spicy spice in the 'Hellish Braised Dishes' at one-fifth of a spoonful, a level of spiciness that slightly exceeded the limits of human endurance but was still within the range that humans could bear.
While researching information about shuan shuan chili peppers, Xu An came across a news article about a man who ate seven of them in one go. Although he later explained that he didn't chew them at all and simply swallowed them, his blood pressure still spiked to 195/125. He even commented that the shuan shuan chili pepper was spicier than India's ghost pepper, which holds a Guinness World Record.
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