Chapter 7 – Preparing for pre-brewing

Translator: ChuRen/ YuQiChen

Su Shaobai quickly found the small shop selling wooden barrels with Tang Xingchen¹Here, the author has forgotten that the younger brother is named Tang Xingchen and the elder sister is  named Tang Xinghe. So I’m just modifying it. If you check the raws the author used Tang Xinghe instead. The two-story building was modest, backed by a mountain, and the materials looked abundant. After ringing the doorbell, a teenage boy answered. Upon hearing Su Shaobai wanted to buy wooden barrels, he was quite surprised. Nowadays, people usually come to buy wooden products as crafts, and this was the first time he’d heard of someone wanting barrels.

“My grandpa is in the backyard. I’ll take you there,” the boy said, glancing at the flying camera filming nearby, thinking maybe it was yet another streamer making a survival show.

The three walked through a flower-lined passage toward the backyard.

Viewers in the livestream reacted to Su Shaobai’s words—some in anger, some puzzled.

[What a joke. Teaching someone to brew with wooden barrels should be a crime.]

[Exactly. Even if not poisoned, there’s the smell. Streamer, do you even know what you’re doing?]

[Low-grade liquor gets stored in M_E containers, mid-grade in glass, high-grade in ceramics. I’ve never heard of using wooden barrels.]

[Let’s call it quits. Just a clueless kid—wasted half an hour of my time.]

[Agreed. I’m out. Nothing to see besides the streamer.]

[I don’t think so. I’ve decided—I’m going to support this streamer and wait for the day he proves you all wrong.]

[I bet the stream will shut down within a week whether Hera’s fans get involved or not.]

[This streamer’s boring. No talking. I’m leaving.]

[I’m staying just to look at the streamer’s face.]

[Not bad-looking, but nowhere near my Hera’s level. Boring. I’m reporting this stream.]

Soon, the six thousand-plus viewers dropped by two-thirds. Tang Xingchen looked back anxiously at the still-open page showing the numbers.

“Ge, you have to talk! If you want to be a streamer, you have to speak. Everyone’s leaving.” Tang Xingchen tugged at Su Shaobai, signaling him to turn back.

Su Shaobai turned, noting this was true. He thought for a moment, then said, “Do you know why I want to buy wooden barrels?”

Viewers:

[Ahhh, finally speaking! And his voice sounds pretty nice.]

[That’s not important! Using wooden barrels for fermentation will cause trouble. Streamer, do you even understand?]

[Food safety issues can get you a death sentence. Don’t do something reckless just for views.]

Those who stayed in the livestream were either drawn by Su Shaobai’s face or still held some hope for him, their hearts now fully engaged as they listened.

“How could that be? Some wooden barrels do have toxins or a smell, but it depends on the barrel. I’m using oak barrels,” Su Shaobai explained. 

“Since ancient times, Huaxia has used wooden barrels for brewing. My family has done so since I was little. Oak barrels have a unique aroma, and the liquor fermented in them carries a delicate fragrance.”

The viewers, hearing Su Shaobai speak with such conviction, couldn’t help but feel a flicker of trust.

[Really?]

[Streamer, how old are you? Are you an adult? When did you learn brewing? Maybe you shouldn’t mess around. For safety, just use M_E materials!]

It wasn’t surprising that the audience was worried—there had been many cases of poisoning from wooden barrel-brewed wine in the empire. The empire’s laws were strict; anyone producing poisonous wine met a grim fate. Over time, no one dared to brew with wooden barrels anymore.

“I’m eighteen this year. I’ve been learning brewing from my grandpa since I was three years old. How could I not tell good barrels from bad?” Su Shaobai explained, noticing many people had left earlier. He needed to find a way to keep viewers. “If you have any questions about wine, ask me!”

The chat fell silent, stunned. Every brewer in the empire guarded their craft fiercely. This was the first time anyone openly invited questions like this.

[I’m still wary of wooden barrels, streamer. Don’t think you’re safe just because you’re underage.]

[I have a question—streamer, are you from a brewing family?]

[Young master, what kind of liquor are you planning to brew this time?]

[Streamer, why does the wine I brewed with a machine turn sour?]

[I heard that senior brewers still use wooden barrels, but they haven’t revealed this.]

[I heard that the upper classes control the source of wooden barrels.]

Upon hearing that brewing questions were welcome, the chat burst with inquiries—some testing, some sincere. But Su Shaobai had already reached the backyard and had to tell the audience he’d answer after he returned.

The woodworking was done by an elderly craftsman. Su Shaobai couldn’t guess his age. After stating his requirements, the old man was slightly surprised.

Su Shaobai’s order was simple yet complex: two straight oak barrels, five sealable oak barrels that needed to be charred black inside by fire after completion, and a basin about the size of a foot-washing tub.

“Ge, what’s that basin for? Buying an M_E basin for foot-washing would be cheaper,” Tang Xingchen asked curiously.

“To stomp grapes!” Su Shaobai answered matter-of-factly.

Hearing the word, the livestream chat was dumbfounded: [Stomp? Stomp what?]

Su Shaobai said, “With feet, of course. You need to break the grape skins, and stomping with feet is best.”

Livestream chat: …

[Am I hallucinating?]

[Ugh, I feel sick. Stomping grapes with feet? Are you joking? That’s poisonous, right?]

[Athlete’s foot? Oh no, I’m at my limit just looking at the streamer’s face.]

[Hahaha, stomping grapes with feet, have you gone mad?]

The chat erupted in uproar, completely unable to tell if Su Shaobai was joking or serious. But it didn’t matter to them—they were sure of one thing: this streamer didn’t know brewing and was just playing around!

Suddenly, many left, leaving only about three hundred viewers.

[I still want to see how he stomps them.]

[Streamer, I just decided to follow you and make a fan club, why would you start with stomping grapes?]

[Streamer, seriously look at me—do you actually know how to brew?]

Su Shaobai, noticing the viewers had dropped from over six thousand to just a few hundred, still cared a little. Seeing this question in the chat, he nodded seriously: “I do.”

The earnest boy lifted his exceptionally handsome, youthful face, bright clear eyes gazing intently at the remaining viewers. Even those here just watching the spectacle were moved, almost wanting to believe him.

Livestream viewers: [Can you brew really, really good wine?]

Su Shaobai: “I can.”

This became the bond between Su Shaobai and his first group of fans. Later, when Su Shaobai rose to fame across galactic civilizations, those early fans, now his top managers, often thought the best thing they ever did was believe in this young man.

After detailing his requirements for the wooden barrels to the elderly craftsman, Su Shaobai asked for the cost. The final tally was 14,600 credit points.

Su Shaobai: …

Not even close to that amount.

The craftsman seemed to notice Su Shaobai’s predicament and offered that he could pay a deposit first and settle the rest when he had the money.

Su Shaobai was surprised: “You trust me? Why?”

The usually stern old man’s mouth curved slightly, as if smiling: “Because you ordered oak barrels for brewing.”

Su Shaobai blinked, not fully understanding, but the old man had already turned to leave. The young boy collected a 1,000-credit deposit from Su Shaobai, arranged when the barrels would be delivered, and then ushered him out the door.

With a puzzled heart, Su Shaobai returned to the Tang household. When he went upstairs to prepare the storage room, he found it was already tidied clean. Glancing back at the viewers still in the livestream and picturing the old craftsman, an inexplicable feeling welled up inside him—an unfamiliar sense of mission.

After ordering the barrels, Su Shaobai split the livestream screen in two: one for the stream, and one showing him shopping online for brewing equipment, narrating his choices as he ordered. The viewers were stunned—so professional! Somehow, excitement began to build.

Though the barrels hadn’t arrived yet, Su Shaobai promised to officially start his grape wine brewing livestream five days later.

The remaining viewers looked forward to it eagerly, while those who had left continued mocking his “grape stomping”, especially Hera’s fans, who, from their high pedestal, belittled Su Shaobai mercilessly. They claimed that if it weren’t for his occupation of the name “Brewing” in the livestream platform, he wouldn’t even be worth noticing.

Hera was very famous in the empire—not only for his brewing skills but also his family background—so his news always drew public attention. Hera’s fans’ harsh remarks against Su Shaobai quickly trended, along with the controversy over the “grape stomping”. Suddenly, countless people took notice of Su Shaobai’s debut five days later.

“Let’s see if the mule is a stallion when it’s pulled out to show.”

Yet at the same time, some worried that if he failed, this would be both his very first and last brewing showcase.

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  Here, the author has forgotten that the younger brother is named Tang Xingchen and the elder sister is  named Tang Xinghe. So I’m just modifying it. If you check the raws the author used Tang Xinghe instead ↩︎