137: Chapter 137: Opening a barbecue stall on the mothership, that makes perfect sense, right?

Thirty thousand meters above the ground, above the stratosphere.

This place should have been a forbidden zone for life. Temperatures of fifty degrees below zero, thin oxygen, and gale-force winds strong enough to tear apart steel.

But at this moment, the wide and flat deck of the luan niao starship was as warm as spring.

A layer of light blue energy shield, like a giant bubble, enveloped the entire warship, isolating it from all the harsh conditions outside. Inside the shield, the air pressure was constant, and the breeze was gentle.

"Sizzle—" A crisp sound of oil popping broke the silence high above.

Immediately following that was a rich, overpowering, and distinctly human scent of cumin, which drifted through the deck's ventilation system and into the surrounding area.

Jiang Chen, wearing big shorts and flip-flops, was squatting without any regard for his image in front of a barbecue grill modified from a discarded warship armor plate.

He held a handful of lamb skewers skewered on red willow branches, turning them skillfully.

"Old Zhao, sprinkle the salt! Don't just stand there!"

Jiang Chen shouted without turning his head, "This lamb is a bit fatty, it needs to be grilled longer to render out the fat so it's fragrant."

Zhao Gang stood by, a dignified king of special forces, currently wearing an apron printed with a "MSG" advertisement around his waist, holding a seasoning jar, looking like he was questioning his life.

He looked at the interstellar warship under his feet, which represented the pinnacle of human technological crystallization.

Then he looked at the deep, heart-palpitating blue-black sky above his head, as well as the azure Earth beneath his feet with its clearly visible curvature.

Finally, his gaze fell on the barbecue grill that was still sizzling with oil.

"Boss..." Zhao Gang's hand shook, and he sprinkled too much salt, "We are at an altitude of thirty thousand meters, under the gaze of the whole world... doing a barbecue?"

"This... isn't it a bit too unserious?"

"Serious?" Jiang Chen scoffed, stuffing a grilled skewer into his mouth, hissing as it burned him: "Food is the paramount necessity of the people."

"Besides, didn't I just say? This ship is for civilian use."

"Since it's for civilian use, it's perfectly reasonable for me to have a picnic and eat a meal on the deck, right? This is perfectly logical, right?"

While chewing the meat, he waved at the live-streaming camera set up nearby: "Come, Pikachu, perform a special skill for the folks!"

"Light it up!"

Pikachu, who had been squatting next to the barbecue grill drooling, immediately perked up upon hearing the command.

"Pika!" Its short little arms akimbo, it puffed out its cheeks and suddenly shot a subtle yet precise bolt of electricity at the pile of slightly dim smokeless charcoal.

"Sizzle—Boom!" The blue-white electric arc instantly ignited the charcoal, flames leaping up half a meter high, the temperature controlled just right.

"Nice!" Jiang Chen patted its head and handed over a skewer of grilled gluten, "A reward for you."

In the live broadcast room, billions of viewers went completely crazy.

Originally, they thought Jiang Chen would show off some more terrifying weapons or make some declaration of conquering the world. The result? Just this? Is this 'A Bite of Space' or something?

[I'm kneeling... I'm truly kneeling. The background is Earth, the foreground is lamb skewers, this scene is so beautiful I dare not look!]

[Is this the relaxed vibe of the strong? The Eagle is still holding meetings to study how to defend, and God Jiang has already started studying how much cumin to sprinkle?]

[Pikachu lighting the fire? This is too extravagant! That's a mythical beast capable of electrocuting agents! Just for grilling gluten?]

[Am I the only one who thinks this is romantic? Eating barbecue in the place closest to the stars, what kind of heavenly life is this!]

Jiang Chen looked at the barrage, the corners of his mouth slightly raised. This was the effect he wanted.

The more casual and domestic it appeared, the more it could prove the "harmlessness" of this ship (even if it was faked), and at the same time, it could strike at the psychological defenses of those hostile forces.

Look, I'm already here eating barbecue, what the hell are you all nervous about?

"Folks, don't just watch and drool." Jiang Chen held up a skewer of grilled wings and waved it at the camera, with the magnificent sea of clouds in the background: "It's just that conditions are limited and ingredients are scarce."

"Next time there's a chance, I'll take everyone to the moon to eat hot pot. I heard that in the low-gravity environment there, the tripe is especially tender when shabu-shabued."

This humble-brag statement once again triggered a frenzy of barrages.

Just as Jiang Chen was eating happily, "Ding—" The elevator in the center of the deck suddenly made a soft sound. The silver-white alloy door slowly slid open.

Jiang Chen turned his head subconsciously, with half a piece of meat still in his mouth. Then. He froze. The piece of meat in his mouth fell onto the expensive alloy deck with a "plop".

Academician Chen Shuyin walked out. She was not wearing that monotonous white lab coat, nor was she wearing stiff professional attire.

Seemingly to match this "high-altitude dinner party," or perhaps for some little thought known only to herself, she had changed into a dark blue, starry-sky-themed evening gown.

The hem of the dress was very long, embedded with countless tiny crushed diamonds. Under the illumination of the deck lights, it shone brilliantly as she walked, as if she were wearing the entire Milky Way on her body.

Her long hair was coiled up high, revealing her slender and fair neck. The glasses that usually made her look a bit cold and hard were taken off, revealing a pair of bright eyes like autumn water.

She was barefoot, holding up the hem of her skirt, stepping on the cold metal floor. The high-altitude wind (although weakened by the shield, there was still a breeze) blew the corner of her skirt and messed up the stray hairs at her temples.

In that instant. She did not look like a scientific madman holding a screwdriver. She looked like a goddess who had just walked down from the Moon Palace, untainted by worldly affairs.

Beautiful. Breathtakingly beautiful, so beautiful that this warship, full of violent aesthetics, was eclipsed.

"Ol... Old Chen?" Jiang Chen swallowed a mouthful of saliva, feeling his heart skip a beat.

He had seen Academician Chen Shuyin in her white lab coat, seen her crazy after getting drunk, and seen her hysterical while defending him. But he had never seen her so... feminine.

Academician Chen Shuyin looked at the stunned Jiang Chen, a rare blush flying across her face. She pinched the hem of her skirt somewhat awkwardly, her eyes dodging:

"That... Dean Zhong said that this is a global live broadcast, representing the national image, and asked me to... dress more formally."

"Is it... a bit strange?" She looked down at her evening gown, which seemed out of place in front of the barbecue stall, feeling a bit annoyed, "I said I shouldn't wear this, I'll go change..."

"Don't!" Jiang Chen stood up abruptly, forgetting to even wipe the oil off his hands. He strode over until he stood in front of Academician Chen Shuyin, blocking her path as she wanted to retreat.

"Don't change." Jiang Chen looked into her eyes, his voice low but conveying an unquestionable seriousness: "Very beautiful." "Really." "More than this ship, more than this sky, even more than that Earth..." "It is more beautiful."

Academician Chen Shuyin was stunned. She raised her head, bumping into Jiang Chen's deep pupils, only feeling all the blood in her body rushing to her face.

Zhao Gang nearby turned around very tactfully, and even covered Pikachu's eyes—although that little rat was peeking through the gaps in his fingers.

In the live broadcast room, hundreds of millions of viewers exploded instantly, eating dog food unexpectedly.

Jiang Chen didn't care about all this. He reached out his hand, making an invitation gesture very gentlemanly, even though that hand still had a bit of cumin scent on it: "This beautiful lady." "I wonder if I have the honor to invite you..." "To have some skewers together at an altitude of thirty thousand meters?"

Academician Chen Shuyin looked at that hand, and then at Jiang Chen's face with a mischievous smile. She suddenly laughed. She laughed brightly and radiantly, as if ice and snow were melting.

She stretched out her fair hand and placed it on Jiang Chen's palm: "It is my honor." "However..." She glanced at the barbecue grill next to them: "I want super spicy."