Chapter 2: 【No Cilantro】

In the blink of an eye, the mobile food truck was neatly parked in front of the Chunhe Police Station. Lou Yuanzhou immediately began his preparations. Although he had anticipated that there would be space in front of the police station, it wasn’t until he actually arrived that he felt truly relieved.

He tilted his head and glanced into the distance. His stall was about forty to fifty meters away from the neighboring ones.

At that moment, Liu Bating, who came to this area every day to buy breakfast, happened to pass by. She was a psychiatrist at a nearby hospital. From afar, she spotted a bright red food truck. This was the first time she had seen a vendor daring to park their truck right in front of the police station. Usually, the vendors kept a considerable distance.

After all, people naturally held a sense of reverence for the police, though they would undoubtedly think of them in times of danger.

Liu Bating had once witnessed an incident elsewhere where a police officer went out to buy a jianbing guozi (a type of Chinese crepe). The vendor, perhaps overly nervous, mistook the officer for a city management officer and immediately pushed his cart away, shouting, “The city management is here!” as if warning other vendors.

Naturally, the police officer was furious and chased after him, yelling, “Who’s the city management officer?!” In the end, no one knew how it turned out.

Out of curiosity, Liu Bating approached the mobile food truck. She saw Lou Yuanzhou take out a red oil-based marker and write the words “Wonton” and “Baked Cake” on the whiteboard outside the truck’s window. To make the words clearly visible from a distance, he went over them several times, making them bright red.

Finally, as if he felt that writing on just one side of the whiteboard wasn’t eye-catching enough, he specifically wrote on the side facing the police station entrance.

Liu Bating couldn’t help but feel that the truck was parked perfectly. As soon as someone stepped out of the police station, the first thing they would see was this bright red truck, along with the words—clearly intentional.

After taking a few steps, the curious Liu Bating peeked through the window. On the cutting board inside the truck, a stainless steel tray was neatly lined with plump wontons. These were at least twice as big as the ones she had seen in other shops. A thin layer of flour was evenly sprinkled on the surface, and the thin wonton wrappers faintly revealed the filling inside—truly living up to the reputation of “thin wrapper, generous filling.”

She wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but Liu Bating felt as if she could faintly smell the aroma of the meat filling, just like the ones made at home. The subtle scent made her stomach growl uncontrollably.

“Boss, how much are your wontons?”

Liu Bating had tried every stall on this street. Whenever a new vendor arrived, she would always give their food a taste. Some were delicious, while others were inedible. In the end, the ones that stayed were usually the skilled “old masters.”

Looking at the young boss in front of her, Liu Bating didn’t feel particularly moved. She guessed that he might just be a young man who couldn’t find a job, and setting up a stall was probably a spur-of-the-moment decision. Although the food looked decent, she doubted he would last more than a month before giving up. Supporting him early on would at least help boost his morale.

“Today, we only have meat-filled wontons. Eight yuan for a bowl with twelve wontons. The Baked Cake is one yuan each—Hollow Baked Bun, crispy and delicious.”

The mobile food truck came with a built-in awning on its roof. Lou Yuanzhou unfolded the awning and then brought down a small table from the truck, setting up a few small stools. He hadn’t expected someone to inquire about the prices so quickly, so he hurriedly grabbed a high-temperature sterilized wet towel from the truck to wipe his hands.

“Eight yuan for twelve wontons?”

Liu Bating repeated the price, and Lou Yuanzhou nodded, confirming that she hadn’t misheard. After all, this was Haiqin City, one of the cities with the highest cost of living in Dragon Country. At other stalls, ten yuan for a bowl was considered a good deal, and those wontons were usually just “small wontons.”

“Don’t worry, the meat is fresh. If it doesn’t taste good, you can call the police to arrest me.”

Clearly sensing her hesitation, Lou Yuanzhou pointed to the police station behind him and laughed. Although Haiqin City had high living costs, the prices of rice, meat, and vegetables in the local markets were actually quite low, especially pork. He had done the math—selling wontons at this price wouldn’t result in a loss, though the profit margin wasn’t huge.

Besides, his main goal was to complete the system’s tasks. Offering good quality at a low price would help spread positive word of mouth. The ingredients and the truck were all provided by the system, so it was a guaranteed profit.

In short, he was essentially earning money from the system. As long as the books balanced, it was pure profit.

“Oh… then, I’ll take a bowl, and add a baked cake too.”

After hesitating for a moment, Liu Bating nodded and scanned the QR code pasted on the truck’s window with her phone. Lou Yuanzhou was pleased to hear the sound of the payment going through.

“The wontons will be ready quickly, but the baked cake will take some time—it’s freshly baked.”

“Why don’t you set up in a busier area? There aren’t many people around here.”

Liu Bating wanted to ask why he had chosen to set up in front of the police station, but she decided not to be so blunt.

“My shop is still in preparation, so I’m just practicing here temporarily. If you like what I make, feel free to visit when the shop officially opens!”

As he spoke, Lou Yuanzhou lifted the lid of the pot and picked up twelve wontons from the stainless steel tray, dropping them into the boiling water. He adjusted the heat, then took out some pre-made dough portions. Using a rolling pin, he quickly rolled them into long strips, brushed them with oil, and placed them into the truck’s oven to bake.

Of course, Lou Yuanzhou didn’t forget to keep an eye on the wontons. He occasionally lifted the lid to check on them, gently stirring with a large ladle.

“Do you want all these condiments? Are you taking it to go or eating here?”

Seeing that the wontons were almost ready, Lou Yuanzhou picked up a paper bowl specifically for food stalls and pointed to the row of condiment bowls on the cutting board beside him. They were fully stocked with various seasonings and toppings.

Liu Bating looked them over. Besides salt and MSG, there were common ingredients like pepper and dried shrimp, as well as seaweed and eggs to enhance the texture. She naturally wanted the scallion segments for added flavor. Finally, she glanced at the cilantro but decided against it.

“Everything except cilantro. I’ll eat here.”

She answered decisively—Liu Bating was a firm member of the “no cilantro” camp.

“Got it~”

Hearing her response, Lou Yuanzhou quickly added the various condiments to the bottom of the bowl. By now, the wontons had floated to the surface of the pot, and a fresh aroma mixed with steam wafted out, making the chilly air feel a bit warmer.

Liu Bating watched as Lou Yuanzhou first poured the broth into the bowl with a spoon, then scooped up the wontons and added them in. In that instant, it was like magic—the aroma was amplified several times over. The green and white segments of scallions floated in the bowl, swaying gently from time to time. The seaweed and egg shreds were perfectly scattered in every corner, filling the bowl to the brim. A bowl of wontons, complete in color, aroma, and taste, was now ready.

The wonton wrappers, already thin, became almost translucent after cooking, yet there wasn’t a single tear in sight. The meat filling inside was clearly visible, each piece plump and generous.

“Be careful, it’s hot.”

Lou Yuanzhou grabbed a small plastic spoon and placed it in the bowl, then carefully set the bowl full of wontons on the small counter, letting Liu Bating take it himself.

Liu Bating cautiously picked up the bowl and leaned in to inhale the aroma of the wontons. The cravings in his stomach could no longer be suppressed.