I Got Famous Making Cooking Livestreams In Space

Translator: Sy

Editor: KayKay

Chapter 1: The Beginning of the Transmigration

Lin Ning went through the hospital’s discharge procedures in its spacious and bright hall. 

“Hi, here’s my Interstellar ID.” Lin Ning handed a card over to the robot on duty. “I’d like to be discharged.”

“Hello, Mister Lin Ning. Congratulations on your full recovery. I will send a list of precautions you should take note of after being discharged to your personal account, so please make sure to check your inbox. If you have any queries, or feel any discomfort, feel free to contact us anytime…” The robot typed furiously on the keyboard as it answered. As expected of a robot in the future— even their voices were perfect imitations of humans. 

Lin Ning nodded, and after paying his fees left the place with a newly-bought medical box in hand.

There were a lot of young patients in this hospital, and young people loved gossip the best: the hottest word of mouth was that Ward Six was occupied by some D-list celebrity a while ago. But this wasn’t the twenty-first century— even though it’s been a while since Lin Ning transmigrated, he hadn’t been bothered by a single busybody. This era’s laws were great when it came to protecting one’s privacy and likeness rights; next to nobody dared to snoop about their idol’s private life.

You see, Lin Ning was said D-list celebrity: hospitalized for attempted suicide. 

But it was unavoidable that there’d be people secretly watching him, pointing, whispering in groups. Nosey ones weren’t there everyday— what was ironic was the omnipresence of onlookers. 

“Hey, hey, have you guys ever seen that super popular idol trainee challenge reality show? Isn’t that Li Ning? The guy who got into the top ten?!!”

“Oh, my god. It really is him! I can’t believe he’s shameless enough to appear in public. I used to be crazy about that show— my number one god Jiang Feng made his debut there and carried his group! That show’s godly: every single trainee who participated is really famous now, ‘cept for that disgusting Lin Ning!”

“Right, right. I thought he wouldn’t dare take a step out of his house after the incident. Looks like he’s got quite a backbone…”

“Huh? But Lin Ning seems pretty well-mannered, and he looks good, too…”

“Huh. You don’t keep up with these things, so you wouldn’t know. I’ll give you the keywords, so go look up all the filthy things Lin Ning’s done!”

Lin Ning vaguely heard the discussing voices, stopped in his tracks, and continued on in large strides. His stomach was growling. The hospital’s diet plan really tested his taste buds, and it was first priority that he returned home to whip something up.

At that moment, a small emergency airship whizzed past him and landed steadily by the hospital’s main entrance. Doctors swarmed out the airship, and soon after the hospital’s director and chiefs came rushing out the entrance— everybody on site seemed highly experienced. Then flew in yet another emergency airship. Something urgent was going on. Bystanders cried out in alarm.

What kind of big shot do they need to have over there to cause such a huge scene?

Lin Ning rubbed his deflated tummy and left without so much as looking back. It wasn’t like that big shot had anything to do with him, anyway.

  *

The auto-lights flicked on the moment he got home and the home robot already had a bath drawn for him. Lin Ning took a quick shower, taking care to keep his wrists covered, then changed into pajamas. He laid on the bed, thinking about how unreal his situation still felt.

To put it simply, he transmigrated into the future. This body shared the same name as he did, but had the identity of a fallen idol. He clearly had the looks and the skills when he first made his debut after the reality programme— no doubt a star of tomorrow. But the dirt on him was everywhere: a scandal with the director, painfully cringey acting skills, a singing voice that sounded as if his throat had been stepped on. He was met with a lot of online criticism, and after his contract was terminated, his debts became ungodly. There was nowhere left to go, so he slit his wrists. Then Lin Ning ended up here.

Tch. Isn’t that a little too intense? Lin Ning thought.

He was, originally, a perfectly good civilian of the twenty-first century. As the son of a state banquet chef, even though he had zero self-discipline, he did pick up lots of good culinary skills. The original plan was for him to walk the path of the gourmet— a bright, beautiful future. But then he died recording some food documentary, and when he woke up, he was in this future world.

Wow, life sure is unpredictable

[Ding dong, the Delicacy Promotion System at your service! Hello, Lin Ning. Is now a good time to chat?] A cheerful electronic tune popped up in Lin Ning’s head.

[Sure.] The System had already appeared when Lin Ning was in the hospital, and he’d chatted briefly with it then. [Right, you said something about me needing to earn Faith, didn’t you? They can be traded for different types of vegetables, right?]

[That’s right! The future is really unique, you know? Back when humans fled Earth, all flora and fauna went through mass extinction because they couldn’t adapt to outer space. There was nobody left to preserve our cultures, and by the time humans successfully built this beautiful home of ours, all they had left to eat were nutrient doses. As time passed, humans forgot about delicacies. Host, as long as you earn some Faith, you’ll be able to trade them in for corresponding goods and materials. Your plant powers will grow, too.]

[Powers?] Lin Ning asked curiously.

[In the future, humans experienced mutations upon exposure to radiation, and most evolved to have powers. Most people received animalistic abilities such as a dog-like sense of smell, a cat-like sense of nimbleness, or leopard-like limb strength. Some people even use their cute features to become idols. For example, lots of idols have cute cat ears or rabbit tails, but that’s not important.]

Lin Ning’s eyes began to brighten.

[What’s important is that very few people can completely possess an animal’s form— that’s an S-tier power. It’s said that the only S-tiers alive today are the Iron Blooded Marshal and the film superstar… but I’ve given you the best privilege: you’re the only one with plant-based healing abilities in this animal-powers world!]

[Me?] Lin Ning blinked, snorting. [Then shouldn’t my real body be a tree trunk or some magic fungus?]

[As long as you keep earning Faith, Host, you might be able to become a plant some day.]

[…Right. I’m hungry.] Lin Ning opened the system’s market, eyeing the welcome gift bag. [System, I’ve checked the kitchen and there isn’t even a cutting knife in there. Am I allowed to use the cooking utensils in this gift bag? The ingredients, too.]

[Of course! This is a part of the newcomers’ benefits!]

Lin Ning nodded and pulled out an array utensils from the Market. From the beginners’ ingredient list, he selected the ones required for boiled fish.

He had figured out what he wanted to do for a living while cooped up in the hospital. As a chef, there was no way he was going to give up on his craftsmanship, and so he’d decided that the fastest way for him to earn Faith was to livestream himself cooking. He believed, without a doubt, that in the face of his culture-rich chinese cuisine, those stale nutrient doses didn’t stand a chance.

Lin Ning opened the streaming app he’d already registered for and adjusted the little recording machine so that only his arms and hands were in the frame. Then, he began.

Shine Livestreams was a live streaming app that peaked in popularity a long time ago, and could no longer compete with the newer apps, although it still had a fair amount of old fans. Nowadays, streaming platforms did not lack in any category— they had everything, except for cooking streams.

What was odd was that “Food & Drink”, surprisingly, was still listed as a streaming category on Shine. Lin Ning checked it out before, but there wasn’t a single person who’d ever posted under it. Lin Ning was about to become the first ever interstellar Food and Drink Streamer.

Lin Ning went by the username “Lemon Kitchen” on the app. The title for this stream was “I Heard Kitties Love Boiled Fish.”

No matter what era you’re in, there’ll always be curious people. A benefit given to pioneering category streamers was that notices on their first stream would be sent out to all current stream chats. So, during this dinner time, a few bored users tapped into Lemon Kitchen’s livestream.

What’s boiled fish? 

Someone commented on the bullet screen.

[Promise]: Please. What era are we in? Can’t believe there are still people using the F&D category to scam others.

[So_broke]: Yeah, even if you’re a new streamer trying to get clout, at lease pull a stunt that makes sense.

[Idontwannaeatnutrientdoses]: Maybe the streamer doesn’t know about the guy who got his account reported and removed for using the F&D category to get views.

[Promise]: Hey, is that a wok? It looks professional.

[Fat_bunny]: I know! It’s a whole set of cooking utensils! I’ve seen them in books before! He must’ve put a lot of thought and care into this.

A pair of pale white hands appeared on screen. Long fingers with sharp tips, fingernails neatly trimmed. The pair of hands moved over to the sink. Wow did pretty hands look prettier when rinsed and wet. 

[Promise]: Uwaaaa why didn’t you just go and become a hand model?

[UnquenchableFlames]: These hands. I’m down. I’m so down!

[Fat_bunny]: Just from his hands I can tell he’s hot. I’m so following him! 

[Roastmaster]: I’m speechless. The comments above are overreacting. I’m leaving. This is sensationalism. Just report him and leave.

Lin Ning glanced at the bullet screen, unconcerned. They were going to change their minds by the time he was done, anyway.

He brought out the ingredients placed in the corner and started to work. The frame moved along with his movements, never once travelling further from his arms. 

Grass carp, raw vegetables, Sichuan pepper, salt… all the ingredients and spices he needed were there. He placed them on-screen one by one, and the chat went dead silent.

Hold on, these things only exist in books! What’s going on?! Is there new technology that can replicate these ingredients? Viewers were switching to posting questions.

“We’ll be making boiled fish as our first dish today.” Lin Ning uttered his first sentence. His voice was a little husky, as if his larynx had been hurt before. But lots of young people naturally had alright voices, so even if his voice sounded rough, it still could attract the hearts of viewers.

Hey, this streamer looks like he’s got potential.

“I’ve already prepared the fish meat, so they’re already sliced. Now I’ll show you the flavouring process.”

He placed the sliced fish, already patted dry, into a glass bowl, followed by salt, egg whites, and starch. After rubbing the ingredients together to mix them, he added a dash of oil. Next, he stir-fried the vegetables and placed them into a separate serving bowl, then, filled a pot with boiling water and added in the fish slices, scooping them out seconds later.

After that, he began chopping onions, ginger, and garlic. The eye-stinging feeling from the onions came in a moment.

[Fat_bunny]: Oh my god, what kind of biochemical weapon is that!

[Meow5]: I’m choking like crazy. It smells like poison!

Lin Ning smirked as he read, the movement of his hands flowing faster. He’d been working on his cutting skills for over ten years— the dices would’ve come oue just as precise and shapely as they were now even if he worked with his eyes closed.

He poured oil into the wok and lit the stove. The oil was like liquid gold plating the wok’s surface. Lin Ning scraped the onion, ginger, and garlic into the pot with his knife, watching them splash as they fell in. The smell of fried spices wafted through the chat.

[Fat_bunny]: Oh my god! What’s that red thing? It looks super pretty, but also really scary!

[UnquenchableFlames]: Maybe it’s chili. I study paleoethnobotany, and that looks like the stuff I see in books.

[TheGirlPrayingForRain]: Guys, look! I think he’s done… Woaah, I’m drooling…

[UnquenchableFlames]: My parents are asking why I’m watching this on my knees. But I’m craving this so much!

The room and the chat were filled with the scent of the boiled fish. The vibrant, red chili complimented the white and tender fish meat. The strong smell of the spices was overwhelmingly amazing.

But the streamer had to click on the “Taste” button for viewers to be able to taste what was cooked through a virtual simulation. Lin Ning had no idea this feature was a thing. He opened the rice cooker and scooped some plump, glistening rice into his bowl. 

The number of views rocketed from two hundred to over a thousand. The amount of Rewards sent began to pick up.

[Have_you_eaten]: Please enable the Taste feature, mister streamer!

Lovely viewer [Have_you_eaten] gave you a Grenade.

Lovely viewer [ChubbyAngy] gave you ten Grenades.

Comments popped up on the bullet screen and flooded it, all of them pleading for the streamer to enable the “Taste” feature so that they could try the meal. 

……

“Woah, I’m hungry. That’s all for today, then. See you guys tomorrow.”

Lin Ning ended the stream.

!!!

The viewers went crazy. They’d been starving for half a day, and all they were given was a sniff, not a taste! That streamer was one hell of a demon!!!

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t/n: Boiled fish (or water-boiled fish) is a dish originating from the Sichuan province. Fish meat is cooked by placing the meat in boiling water for a few seconds. This method ensures that the meat is thoroughly cooked while the tenderness of the meat is maintained, which is something you can’t really get if you cook it through regular methods like steaming or stir-frying. Vegetables are placed at the bottom of the serving bowl, and the meat is placed on top, followed by seasonings and spices like garlic, chili, and onions. Hot oil, heated to a smoking point, is then poured over the meat and vegetables before being served.