Miao Chu

Chapter 233 Can’t
After picking up a rice noodle roll, Wang Geng had already made room for someone in the back. When he looked up, he made eye contact with a classmate who said, "I'll just have a taste," and was waiting for his family to bring him breakfast to share.

The other person was chewing.

The man had already turned around, holding a dried lotus leaf in one hand and a bamboo skewer in the other, looking like he was about to throw something away after taking a bite. He was swallowing the rice noodle roll in his mouth when, in that moment of chewing, swallowing, turning around, and making eye contact, he suddenly turned around again, and with lightning speed, the bamboo skewer in his hand reached out onto the table in two quick movements.

Wang Geng immediately realized something was wrong and hurriedly shouted, "Leave me some more!!!"

In his panic, he belatedly realized that his words were not very specific and made it unclear what he meant by "staying." So he called out and hurried forward, but when he squeezed in and saw what was going on, his heart sank.

—Everyone was not only eating with their mouths, but also holding some in their hands. As for the three opened lotus leaf packages, there was indeed only a pitiful rice noodle roll left!
Upon seeing him come up, someone pointed to the last one and said, "Don't panic, don't panic, we've saved one for you!"

Someone else said, "Knowing you don't like greasy food so early in the morning, I specially saved some stir-fried bean sprouts for you—I just ate one, and it was really refreshing!"

Wang Geng stared at the lone rice noodle roll and couldn't help but exclaim, "How come there's only one left!"

"Didn't you tell us to save one for us?"

"You said it yourself—one is enough!"

Wang Geng was stunned for a moment: "I didn't say that, did I? I... I just said it offhand, that 'one' didn't really mean 'one'!!"

"I've only ever heard of 'a few' being used figuratively, this is the first time I've heard of 'one' being used figuratively." A classmate next to him laughed at him, and after laughing, he didn't forget to ask with ill intent, "If you don't like that these are the leftovers, why don't I eat them for you?"

Wang Geng didn't dare wait a moment longer and quickly took the last rolled pancake from the table.

For a moment, everyone in the room wore a regretful expression.

The rice noodle rolls filled with stir-fried bean sprouts are sprinkled with fried garlic.

The garlic is chopped very finely, rinsed in water to remove the sticky garlic juice, drained, and then slowly fried in oil over low heat until thoroughly cooked and fragrant.

When frying, remove the minced garlic from the heat as soon as it changes color slightly. The garlic fried at this time will be fragrant but not burnt, and it will not have any garlic pungent taste. After eating it, you don't have to worry about having any garlic taste in your mouth, only garlic fragrance. It is crispy and crunchy. One bite can make you feel like you're flying with the aroma.

The sauce is also different from the previous one; it's less salty and has a sour aftertaste, but the sourness is acetic acid, not fruity. The aroma of fried garlic is very prominent in this sauce. When you bite into it, the bean sprouts inside are crisp and tender, full of bean sprout juice.

Song Miao stir-fried the bean sprouts lightly, almost immediately after putting them in the pan and turning them twice. They were taken out of the pan before they were fully cooked. Because it was hot, the large bowl containing the filling was covered with a lid, and the bean sprouts were just cooked by the residual heat.

So even though you waited all the way for the bean sprouts, when you eat them, the sprouts are still upright and the leaves are still vigorous. Each bite releases a clear and sweet sprout juice.

The fried garlic granules were made with vegetable oil, but this time the bean sprouts were stir-fried with lard, which was very moist and lightly coated the bean sprouts.

All of these either depend on the outside of the skin or are wrapped inside it; the skin is the key link connecting them.

The rice noodles have a very strong rice aroma, a smooth texture, are slightly chewy but not hard, and are just the right thickness.

If it's any thinner, the rice aroma won't be as wonderful, and the flavor won't be as harmonious. If it's any thicker, the rice noodle skin will be too overpowering, making it difficult for the sauce to penetrate and causing the taster to lose focus on the crispness of the bean sprouts, resulting in a sticky texture instead.

And right now, the rice noodle sheet is right there, allowing you to perfectly enjoy its rice aroma and smooth texture.

The rice noodle sheets and fillings were prepared before the stall opened, but because of the hot weather, both were still warm when brought back, and the food was neither too hot nor too cold, which was just right.

Wang Geng had no idea how much effort Song Miao had put into making the rice noodle rolls, which were just a simple breakfast. He only found Song's rice noodle rolls particularly delicious, which made him start to doubt himself.

—Are things made from rice really that delicious?

He ate until he wanted to sigh, then regretted it, his heart filled with a thousand conflicting emotions, and for a moment, only one person could be on his mind.

—Xiao Qi, I was wrong that day!

It's unpleasant to have your food stolen.

Why is he being so generous! He should have kept a few more, at least enough for himself to try one of each flavor!
Wang Geng felt stifled, and the others in the room were probably not feeling any better. After they finished eating, they couldn't help but sigh.

"Ugh!"

"It's still too little. We can't even share two. I should have known better than to share with you earlier. If we had each eaten half, we could have tried different flavors!"

"I'll buy it tomorrow. I'll go queue up tomorrow!"

"Can you get up?"

"I guess I'll just have to grit my teeth and take the private exam anyway—I did so badly last time, my dad almost beat me to death when I got home, sigh!"

"Your mother isn't speaking up for you?"

"She's handing me the whip!"

Then someone else tried to provoke Wang Geng, saying, "Old Wang, why don't you like rice noodles and the like? Noodles are good, but the capital is a place where the north and south meet, and you're not an outsider. We scholars should embrace flavors from all over the country and not be limited—this rice noodle sheet is so delicious! I taste it, and it's just as good as shumai!"

"Exactly! I also think it's fine in winter and spring, but eating shumai in summer is too greasy. Even before that, I preferred the flavor of shepherd's purse, bamboo shoots, and dried tofu to the rest. But after bamboo shoots were no longer available, I stopped buying them!"

Immediately, someone laughed at him: "Do you think you can buy any? Wasn't it your servant who lined up earlier? At your usual wake-up time, that young lady would probably have closed up shop before you even got out of bed."

"Ever since Chief Minister Deng said we weren't allowed to bring servants as study companions and had to return them all, have you ever had any? — You want to be disgusted by our food!"

The student, whose identity had been exposed, blushed and exclaimed, "Oh well, if I can't get up, I can't get up! It's just a shumai, I'm not so ignorant as to not get up early for it!"

As he spoke, he lowered his head and carefully ate the last bite of rice noodle roll. After swallowing the food, he shook his head and said, "Street food like this, when made well, can be quite unique and delicious. Sigh, ever since Chief Minister Deng gave the order to have some food sent from home, everyone has to keep it a secret and even ask the elders. It's so annoying!"

Wang Geng was so annoyed by what he heard that he was about to explode. Holding the dried lotus leaf in his hand, he felt disheartened and wanted to speak, but he felt too weak and it was all meaningless.

—He doesn't really dislike rice noodles!
He clearly just didn't find anything that suited his taste!
It's absolutely delicious!! It's not the same kind of deliciousness as noodles at all!!!
It may not be the most amazing, but it's so delicious that you finish it all without even realizing it, and you even want to coat it with all the sauce! It's so delicious that you'll want to eat it again the next day!
Woohoo!

He hates it! !
***
Several students who had lost their servants to help buy breakfast and whose families couldn't send food in every meal were sighing and complaining. In the food alley, those who arrived late and couldn't buy anything were even more indignant.

Not only were rice noodle rolls unavailable, but it seemed that if I had only arrived a little late, even glutinous rice and steamed rice cakes were sold out, not to mention the drinks that were always scarce and almost never available.

Seeing that the food stalls were already being packed up, and sure enough, they couldn't find any food left, the group could only surround Song Miao, trying to express their anger, welcome her, build rapport, and complain that she had been gone for too long...

"Why go to Huazhou! Doesn't Huazhou have cooks and female cooks? Why does Miss Song have to travel all that way? It's such a hassle, leaving us old customers stranded in the capital! We think about you every day, but has you ever thought about us for even a day?!"

"Exactly! Exactly! As soon as the floodwaters recede, I'm out guarding the place before dawn every time. At first, I thought I just needed to rest for a couple of days, but then I heard that Miss Song went to Huazhou. Even a bolt from the blue couldn't have hurt or shaken me like that—my heart felt like it was being shattered!" "Shopkeeper Song, please don't go on any more long journeys. Many of us here can't handle it!"

Everyone spoke in turn, giving each other space to speak, taking turns to speak without interrupting each other.

The group of people were truly skilled at speaking and acting, praising Song Ji's food to an absurd degree. How could Song Miao not know how much of that was exaggeration and favoritism?

She had no choice but to suppress her laughter and thank and respond to each of the people opposite her.

After only a few words, someone in the crowd chimed in, "Madam, your thanks are just a formality. If you're sincere, why not do something concrete instead of just empty words? Tell me, what time will you set up your stall tomorrow? How many servings of rice noodle rolls will you have? Could you let us all have some and taste it?"

In no time, there were countless people who responded.

Just moments ago, everyone was praising Song Miao to the skies, practically worshipping her, but in the blink of an eye, they changed their demeanor to one of gathering a mob to rebel.

Song Miao wanted to laugh but dared not, and hurriedly said, "Gentlemen, it's not that I'm unwilling to make more, but we simply don't have enough manpower. We can only make this much. Besides, rice rolls are different from other rolls. The rice roll skins and fillings don't keep for long. Making more naturally takes more time. Right now it's hot, and the rice roll skins are prone to spoiling. At best, you won't like what you're eating and won't come back next time. Not only will you all suffer, but I will also lose money in the future. At worst, you might get an upset stomach. Wouldn't that be a pity?"

"How could it possibly change its flavor in just a short while?"

However, no one dared to say they weren't afraid of getting an upset stomach, and the crowd suddenly became much quieter.

After a while, someone said, "Make more, make a lot more! Now that we have this little brother Liu Dabing, and before that, there was his wife, right? With two more people, shouldn't we prepare more for ourselves? Rice rolls don't keep for long, but glutinous rice and steamed rice cakes are always good, aren't they?"

Song Miao smiled and replied, "I'll go back and think about it some more."

She didn't dare to explain further, stating that she had intentionally restrained her presence in the back alley of the Imperial Academy, and that Cheng Erniang still delivered glutinous rice and steamed rice cakes to various places every day.

Although it's only been a few days since I came back, people have started ordering breakfast again in twos and threes. Even with the addition of Dabing and the other business outside, we're still a bit too busy to keep up.

Someone else said, "Then I'll order the rice noodle rolls for tomorrow first, and then pick them up later, is that okay?"

"Rice rolls are meant to be eaten fresh, but it's hard to order them in advance..." Song Miao said helplessly. "I'd like to order them in advance, but the filling has its own broth. If they're made too early and soaked for too long, the rice rolls will become soggy and they'll easily spoil..."

"So, is the limit of twelve per person still going to be implemented tomorrow? That's too many!"

Song Miao said, "This is really the first time I've sold rice noodle rolls. I'm just trying it out, so this is the only amount I've set so far. I'll change it tomorrow. Tomorrow, each person can only buy four rolls at a time..."

After her explanation, the other side finally quieted down and said nothing more. So the only sounds in the room were sighs and groans.

Seeing that it was getting late, the group said a few more words before taking their leave and going their separate ways.

Song Miao had just finished carrying the flatbread, greeted the two women at the stalls on either side, thanked them, and pushed her cart home.

When they arrived home, Cheng Erniang was still outside delivering breakfast.

Having already eaten breakfast before setting up the stall, Dabing had already started preparing things without needing any instructions—rubbing mung bean skins, washing and soaking pickled cowpeas, preparing crispy fried dough, and grinding rice flour, keeping herself busy non-stop.

With his help, Song Miao finally had a little free time. She took the money she had earned that day to her room, counted it, made a record, did a quick calculation, and compared it with the cost. She was immediately delighted.

The previous shumai had a generous amount of pork, so the ingredients were naturally expensive. Although the price wasn't cheap, the profit margin wasn't actually that high.

They've switched to rice noodle rolls now, and all the ingredients are seasonal. In particular, the cowpeas and bean sprouts inside are very cheap, and the amount of meat is also much less. Although the price isn't high, fortunately the overall cost is low, and the profit in the end is actually 60-70% higher than that of shumai.

If there's any downside, it's that it's a bit physically demanding. The time that could have been spent making the shumai earlier is all compressed into the short half-hour of setting up the stall. After finishing, my arms and shoulders are a little sore.

But seeing the extra copper coins in front of her, Song Miao suddenly felt that the soreness was nothing.

Today is the first time I've sold rice noodle rolls, and it's been too short to tell how well it goes. However, quite a few students have already bought some and tried them, and then came out specifically to praise how delicious the rice noodle rolls were.

Let's see how things go for the next couple of days. If nothing unexpected happens, the rice noodle rolls have established themselves in the food alley and can easily last for a season. We can just switch them out when it gets cold.

***
While Song Miao was doing the accounting here, the scene in the Imperial Academy's teaching building was quite different.

Before the bell rang, Master Cao Du and his group of seven or eight hurriedly entered Master Chen's room.

The crowd knocked and entered. Upon seeing Xiao You, they all asked her questions.

Where's Old Chen?

Is Old Man Chen here?

Xiao You quickly pointed behind him and said, "The master is inside."

So the group shouted incoherently as they rushed backward.

Upon entering, one sees Master Chen holding something in his hand, about the length of a palm, golden and slender cylindrical, with a plate on the table, eating directly from the plate.

When he saw everyone come in, he was so startled that he dropped what he was holding onto the plate. He quickly moved the plate aside, cleared his throat, and asked, "What's the rush so early in the morning?"

"Old Chen! Miss Song is back, she's setting up her stall today, did you know?"

"Since she's set up her stall today, should we send someone to ask her when she'll be able to set up her small dining table again and start serving meals?!"

"Hey! I've been waiting for this!"

Master Chen said, “Alright! I’ll have Xiao You run the errand for me—is it really necessary for so many of you to come all at once for such a small matter?”

“There’s another matter.” Cao Du stepped forward, speaking in a consultative tone. “Right now, we’ve changed our dinner schedule from going home to eating at home to having lunch at a small restaurant. There’s still one meal we haven’t decided on – in the morning. Didn’t we discuss this before, saying that once Miss Song comes back, we’ll talk to Chief Minister Deng and see if we can set up a stall for her in the kitchen, where she can make meat, vegetables, and steamed buns to sell every day? That way, we’ll have something to eat, and we won’t have to queue outside. She’ll also make a profit.”

Another teacher standing nearby said, "Old Chen, as long as you give the word, the Grand Master will never refuse—why don't you take the lead and guide us there?"

A group of people were waiting, seemingly confident of success, but Master Chen shook his head and said, "I won't go, you all go."

"Ah? Why?"

"Don't you want to eat Miss Song's meat buns and vegetable buns? Didn't you really like those dogwood and tofu buns from last time?"

Master Chen sighed and said, "I can't say it now, but you'll know in time—you go, it's not appropriate for me to go!"

(End of this chapter)