Top Scholar

Chapter 41 Now things are getting better, aren't they?
Su Lang, Su Dan, and other young members of the Su family also got up early and came to Taiping Town to attend the temple fair.

They chatted and laughed and joked along the way, and by the time they arrived in town, the sun was already high in the sky.

No wonder the boys were so excited; the temple fair in Taiping Town was indeed very lively.

A "River God Temple" stands by the river in the town, enshrining... well, the world-famous Jiang Taigong. Strictly speaking, this falls into the category of a rural shrine, but in this remote place far from the emperor's reach, people are lucky to have anything to worship at all; who cares about such things?

The incense at the River God Temple is very strong. People come to pray for children, for peace, for wealth, for their mothers-in-law to get better soon... regardless of whether Jiang Taigong can help them or not.

As the temple became more popular, stalls started to appear outside the temple gates, gradually forming a temple fair. The grand temple fair in the first month of the lunar calendar was especially lively, with crowds packed tightly together along the more than one-mile-long bluestone road stretching from the temple gates all the way to the riverbank and the town entrance.

The child, wearing a tiger-head hat, was carried on his father's shoulder. He held a small windmill in one hand and pointed at the sugar figurine stall with the other, babbling that he wanted one.

The old man making sugar figurines moved his brass spoon across the iron plate, quickly pouring out a golden-yellow sugar fish. Bamboo trays were filled with sugar shrimp and crabs, firmly attracting the children's attention.

The owner of a bamboo weaving stall nearby skillfully wove bamboo dragonflies and grasshoppers, tying them to poles with thin thread. When the wind blew, their wings fluttered, attracting the children's attention.

There's also the "Fried Qin Hui" version, where two dough figures are pulled out and thrown into a pot of oil to fry. The children clap and cheer, "Fry it hard, fry it until it's golden brown, that's when it tastes good..."

"Bang! Bang! Bang!" The man selling "Three Cannons" wasn't to be outdone; he swung his arm and slammed the glutinous rice cake onto the copper cutting board, making a sound like cannons firing...

And those selling miracle pills, monkey trainers, opera singers... all of them could gather a lot of audiences and cheer, making the scene incredibly lively.

The boys were overwhelmed by the sights, wishing they had more eyes. Su Dan, ever the reliable one, suggested, "Let's reunite with Qiu-ge'er first."

"Where are we going to find him with so many people?" the crowd asked worriedly.

"Didn't they say he'd be in the most conspicuous place?" said the chubby Su Lang.

"Where is it most conspicuous?" Everyone looked around and saw a tall bamboo pole with a bucket standing a hundred paces ahead.

A light blue flag hung from the flagpole, with two large orange characters on it: 'Sweet Water!' It was particularly eye-catching at the temple fair!
Thanks to Zhu Yuanzhang's promotion of community schools, almost all the men in the Ming Dynasty could recognize these two characters. Even if they couldn't read, it didn't matter; there was a large orange windmill spinning at the top of the flagpole, which looked like a giant orange when it turned.

The 'big orange' even emitted a melodious whistle, drawing people to look up at it.

Throughout the temple fair, everyone was competing on the flat surface, but one shop stood out from the crowd with its fancy and elaborate decorations. The boys exclaimed in unison, "Could it be that one?"

"Let's go take a look!" Su Lang called out, leading the group to crawl towards the flagpole.

Upon closer inspection, Su Lu was indeed standing under the flagpole, setting up a stall with the proprietress of He Ji's shop.

Many people were also drawn to the stall by the big windmill, but unfortunately most of them were just there for the novelty.

At this point, their business hadn't even opened yet.

"What are you selling here?" the boys asked, pointing to the neatly arranged bamboo tubes as they approached the stall.

Su Lu pointed to the sign behind him and said, "Sweet water."

"What's the price?" Su Lang asked.

Su Lu then pointed to the two wooden signs on the left and right. The one on the left read "Kumquat Dew, five coins a pot" and the one on the right read "Sweet Dew, three coins a pot".

"Isn't it a bit expensive?" Chewing Essence Su said casually, "The tea sold in large bowls only costs one coin a bowl."

"Why don't you say the water in the river is free?" Su Lu deliberately retorted loudly, "They're just quenching their thirst, but for us it's a sweet treat. Three coins isn't expensive at all."

"Come on, have a taste." Madam He Cheng warmly served each of the boys a tube. Today, she was not wearing her usual plain white dress, but rather a simple cloth dress and a blue headscarf, which made her appear even more elegant and approachable.

The beautiful auntie treated them kindly, and which of the boys wasn't confused? They hurriedly accepted the gift with both hands, thanking her profusely, each one overjoyed.

Only the chubby Su Lang was focused on drinking. He examined the bamboo tube from top to bottom, squinting at the small hole, and asked, "How do you drink from this?"

"Use this." Su Lu handed him a straw.

Su Lang did as instructed, inserting the wheat straw into the small hole and taking a sip. A sweet and sour, cool and refreshing sensation instantly filled his mouth. At the end, there was a slight bubbly sensation... that was the effect of the sweet fermentation.

The chubby boy's eyes lit up immediately, and he exclaimed, "It tastes so good!"

He couldn't wait to take another sip, and exclaimed, "Wonderful! I've never tasted such delicious sweet water before!"

"Hehe, I'm glad you like it..." Su Lu felt a little embarrassed, thinking to himself that this acting was too exaggerated. Wasn't this person obviously a plant?
In his opinion, the drink was merely decent, nothing special, especially after being diluted with water, making it even more bland. It didn't deserve the chubby boy's praise.
"Really?" Su Dan, who was chewing on the wheat stalk, didn't believe it either. She took the stalk, inserted it into the tube, took a puff, and closed her eyes to savor it.

"How is it?" everyone asked hurriedly.

"No exaggeration, it really tastes great!" Su Dan gave a thumbs up.

"It's not easy to get a compliment from someone who chews wheat stalks!" The boys immediately became interested and started sucking on the stalks.

"Mmm, it's really delicious!"

"It's wonderful!" Without exception, everyone praised it highly.

Su Lu had no choice but to believe it now. Could it be that everyone's taste buds hadn't experienced so many flavors?
"What's so good about it?" he asked.

"It has an orange flavor and is sweet," Su Lang, as expected of the grandson of the head distillery's master, analyzed it logically. "And it tastes icy cold, leaving a slightly grainy feeling in your mouth after drinking it, which is addictive." "I'll try it." Su Lu also opened a bottle and savored it carefully. It was indeed better than before, mainly because it had a slight impact that enhanced the taste.

Su Lu was all too familiar with this feeling; it was just sparkling water! Of course, the amount of bubbles was far from enough; at most, it would just make your mouth feel a little rough…

Could it be that the sweet wine and orange juice reacted? Unfortunately, Su Lu's limited chemistry knowledge wasn't enough to provide a reasonable explanation, but in any case, it's a good thing!
“This cup of yours must have cost a lot of money, right?” Su Lang said loudly.

"Of course! Our 'Sweet Water Shop' has really gone all out this time to give back to the people and open up the market!" Su Lu nodded in understanding and said loudly, "The cost of one tube is nine coins, but we'll only sell it for three coins for the first four days! Only three coins!"

"Wouldn't we lose money if we didn't sell?" Chewing Spirit asked loudly.

"It's alright, our boss said we'll lose money to gain publicity, we need to build up our brand first!" Su Lu said loudly, "If you all enjoy the drink, please help spread the word!"

As he spoke, he lowered his voice and pleaded with his friends, "Alright, no need to praise it here. Everyone take a pot and go out for a drink! Praise it wherever there are children, and if you boost business, the boss lady will reward you handsomely!"

"Yes, thank you all for your help, young men." Madam He gave a graceful curtsy, and the boys immediately became energetic, patting their chests and saying, "Don't worry, we've got it covered!"

After saying that, they each took a tube of 'Kumquat Honey Dew' and scattered in a flash.

They wandered around the market with bamboo tubes in their hands, taking a sip whenever they saw a child, and exclaiming exaggeratedly, "Wow, how can there be something so delicious in the world?!"

"It tastes so good!" The boy's performance was so exaggerated that it was obviously fake.

But the little kids riding on their fathers' shoulders were just like that! Their eyes were indeed drawn to the exaggerated voice, and they immediately saw the bamboo tube being held in their hands, and the wheat stalks stuck in the tube.

This unprecedented way of drinking immediately captivated the little ones, who began to sway and wriggle, saying in their childish voices, "Daddy, I want this too."

"Old man, I want to drink too."

When a father takes his child to a temple fair, he naturally tries his best to fulfill their requests, so he asked the boys, "Young man, where did you buy this?"

"Under that big flagpole, the words 'Sweet Water' are written," the boys pointed to the whirring windmill.

"The windmill!" The children had no eyes for anything else, and they urged their "mounts" straight to the sweet water stall under the flagpole.

~~
The dessert stall was still closed for business, which was rather awkward.

After watching the boys' energetic performance at the stall, many people were curious... Is the sweet water in this tube really that delicious?

But it's quite difficult to get these adults to spend three or five coins to try something new—three coins can buy a bowl of shabu-shabu!

Once you've tried something new, you won't be able to drink any more alcohol...

"Aren't we setting the price a bit too high?" Madam He Cheng asked Su Lu in a low voice, her patience wearing thin.

"No rush, let's wait and see." Although Su Lu was also very anxious, he still maintained a calm demeanor and said, "People may be reluctant to spend money on themselves, but they are willing to spend money on their children."

He paused for a moment and then added, "Besides, we only sell it for three coins in total. If we lose even one coin, we'll barely make any profit."

“That makes sense, then let’s wait a little longer.” The proprietress readily agreed.

Fortunately, they didn't have to wait long. The children finally arrived, pointing at the bamboo tube and shouting, "Here it is! Here it is!"

"I want I want!"

"Okay, okay." The father then asked the proprietress, "How much is a tube?"

"Three coins, five coins," the proprietress answered crisply.

"Come on, try the three-coin one!" The father hesitated for a moment, not about whether to buy it or not, but whether to buy the five-coin one.

"Alright!" Su Lu excitedly took the money. The proprietress then served him a tube and a pouch, smiling sweetly, "Please enjoy, sir."

"Drink up." The father, mimicking the boys, inserted a straw and held it above his head. The little boy craned his neck, eagerly taking a sip, instantly captivated by the sweet, sour, icy, and slightly stimulating sensation. In his childish voice, he exclaimed, "It's so delicious!"

The father immediately felt that the money hadn't been wasted, and his questions became much more polite: "Madam, can we take our drinks to go?"

"That's fine," the proprietress nodded. "Sir, you only need to pay a deposit of one coin."

"Okay." The father readily slapped down another coin.

Firstly, the bamboo tube is exquisitely crafted, and its cost is probably more than a penny; no one expected the shopkeeper to give it away for free. After all, you can't take your tableware with you when you eat at a restaurant.

Secondly, I can come back and see the beautiful proprietress one more time...

After the first father and son set an example, the other fathers had no choice but to buy some. So they all opened their wallets, bought a can of sweet drink, and left the sweet drink stall. The children rode on their backs, drinking as they went, making the most of their shopping trip.

And children themselves are the best advertisement, naturally attracting more children to buy 'sweet water'.

Soon, the sweet drink stall was packed with people, and business was booming!
P.S. Thank you everyone, it's almost the end of the month! Does anyone still have tickets?!

Also, I'm starting a thread for extras. We're currently looking for classmates or teachers from the main character's academy. Everyone is welcome to sign up!

(End of this chapter)