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The old man sat down and took a sip. Then, his eyes widened in amazement.
The rich and bold flavor of the spicy soup exploded on his taste buds, shooting straight to his head, making him feel like he was about to fly.
“What kind of flavor is this… My goodness, I’ve never tasted anything like it! It’s so special! Five copper coins, worth it! Totally worth it!”
He couldn’t wait to continue eating.
The crowd had already been lured by the aroma, and now, seeing the old man’s amazed expression, they couldn’t hold back any longer. They rushed forward:
“I want a bowl too!”
“Me too, add some chili peppers.”
“Give me some vinegar, I like it sour.”
Yan Fang was overjoyed. Such a scene was something she had never dared to dream of when she was young and running a stall.
Ye Huan’er put lotus leaves under the bowls, Yan Fang ladled the spicy soup, Ye Caiping added seasonings, and Ye Jin’er collected the money. They worked efficiently and smoothly.
Some customers initially thought it was a bit pricey, but after taking a sip, they felt it was worth every penny.
This bowl of spicy soup, although it didn’t seem to have any meat, was more fragrant than meat!
Every bite was delicious, and it just kept getting better!
“Boss, another bowl, a big one this time!” Some people were still craving more.
“Me too, me too.”
Ye Caiping’s stall was bustling with business. In less than half an hour, she had sold a whole bucket and was now opening the second one.
The the plump Auntie next door watched in disbelief, a wave of resentment building inside her.
Because she had originally thought that the customers at her breakfast stall would eat her food, but now, seeing the lively and novel scene at Ye Caiping’s stall, they had changed their minds and gone to try the spicy soup.
As noon approached, the spicy soup was almost gone, with only three or four bowls left. It had already cooled down, so Ye Caiping decided to stop selling it.
She ladled two bowls and brought them to the breakfast stall: “Brother, sister, you should try this too.”
The the plump Auntie, still fuming, said: “No, I won’t.”
“What are you doing!” The the plump Auntie’s husband glared at her, then turned to Ye Caiping with a smile: “Sorry, she didn’t mean it. Thank you!”
He took the bowl of spicy soup from Ye Caiping and placed it on the table. He then took two steamed buns and gave them to Ye Caiping as a gesture of thanks.
Ye Caiping accepted them: “Brother, I’ll buy eight meat buns from you.”
“Sure.”
Ye Caiping paid and smiled: “Don’t worry, your business will get better and better in a few days.”
The the plump Auntie’s husband took it as a polite remark, smiled, and said nothing more.
The the plump Auntie packed up her stall, grumbling and throwing things around. She had only sold less than half of her breakfast today.
Her husband whispered to her: “Alright, everyone has their own way of doing business.”
The the plump Auntie didn’t listen and continued to throw things around with a bang.
Ye Caiping, Yan Fang, and the others packed up their things. They divided the two steamed buns, giving each of them two, and ate them with the remaining spicy soup.
“Jin’er, Huan’er, you two watch the stall. Mother and I will go buy some things.”
At this time, Ye Bajin was taking the villagers back to their village, and it would take at least half an hour for him to return.
Ye Jin’er handed a large bag of copper coins to Ye Caiping: “Mother, take this.”
Ye Caiping weighed the heavy bag of copper coins. It was quite full.
Ye Caiping put on her backpack and left with Yan Fang.
Walking down the street, Yan Fang said, “What should we buy? Things like wood ear mushrooms?”
“We still have some at home. Pork and bones won’t be fresh if we buy them now. Judging by today’s customer traffic, tomorrow’s business will be even better. Let’s buy another large bucket and make more.”
Yan Fang was a little worried. They had only sold until noon today, and the last of the soup had gotten cold. Adding another bucket…
But she still trusted Ye Caiping’s judgment.
At that moment, Ye Caiping saw a stall selling chickens on the roadside that was packing up. There were about thirty chickens left unsold.
“Ye Caiping’s eyes lit up: “Mother, let’s buy some chicks to bring back home! Our livestock needs to be replenished.”
The chicken seller, a burly man with a beard, laughed: “Ma’am, young lady, buy some chicks!”
Yan Fang was hesitant, as she had no money.
Ye Caiping saw her predicament: “I sold the livestock, so I’ll buy them back.”
Yan Fang felt a surge of warmth, a mix of gratitude and relief: “Alright. How much are these chicks?”
“Five copper coins each.”
Yan Fang nodded, the price was reasonable: “Let’s buy ten, and you give us one for free!”
The bearded man, thinking the market was about to close and he’d have to feed them another day, said: “Ma’am, how about this, you buy eighteen, and I’ll give you two for free?”
Yan Fang beamed: “Alright, then we’ll take eighteen, plus two free, that’s twenty!”
Yan Fang happily squatted down, picking out the chicks.
Ye Caiping paid ninety copper coins, carried the chicks in a bamboo basket, and left.
Ye Caiping said: “After the New Year, we’ll get two piglets and raise them.”
Yan Fang laughed so hard her teeth were barely visible.
After buying the wooden buckets, Ye Caiping also purchased some dried lotus leaves and white flour before heading back.
Returning to their stall, she saw Ye Bajin had already arrived, carrying tables and chairs to load onto the ox cart.
“You’ve worked hard,” Ye Caiping said.
“Hehehe, not at all, not at all.”
With everything loaded onto the cart, the ox cart headed back to the village.
Ye Jin’er and Ye Huan’er sat at the back, swinging their feet and happily watching the scenery receding behind them.
“Bajin, did the village head go to the county today?” Ye Caiping asked.
“He did, he came back to the village with the villagers at noon.”
“You’ll be making another trip this afternoon, right? Then in the evening, buy 10 jin of lean pork, a pig head bone, and 3 large bone marrow bones from the butcher shop. I’ll pay you whatever the price is.”
“Alright.”
In this era, there were no refrigerators, so butchers would slaughter pigs twice a day to ensure the meat was fresh.
Once around 4 am for the morning market, and again around 3 pm for the evening market.
So the meat bought in the evening was still fresh.
…
A quarter of an hour later, they returned to the village.
Old Man Ye, Ye Daquan, and the others stared at the two empty barrels, completely dumbfounded.
“They all sold out?” Ye Daquan was the first to exclaim.
“Yes, yes.” Yan Fang laughed so hard her teeth were barely visible.
“My god, those things actually sold! It’s actually true…”
Ye Daquan felt like the whole world was unreal.
Because in his understanding, selling things was very difficult. When his mother made her porridge thick and fragrant, she only sold two bowls a day. When he wrapped his wontons with thin skins and large fillings, they went bad before anyone bought them.
Now, his little sister had brought two large barrels of things, and they had all sold out!
Seeing this, the whole family breathed a sigh of relief.
This way, Ye Caiping’s few taels of silver wouldn’t be lost, and she might even be able to save up some more dowry money.
Du Shi and Wei Shi, seeing the collapsed straw basket in Yan Fang’s hands filled with a bunch of chicks, were overjoyed and quickly ran off to clean the chicken coop.
Ye Peng, Jinhua, and Yinhua dashed out the door, saying they were going to find food for the chicks, catching bugs and grasshoppers.
Yan Fang watched her bustling family; although everyone was busy with their own tasks, each person’s face was filled with smiles and relaxation, and her lips couldn’t help but curl into a smile.
Life was truly becoming more and more hopeful.