Not only do new and old customers like it, but even the vendors and owners in the market across the street want to try it.

Wen Xiuyun has been selling fruit for so many years that she can't remember the last time she experienced a shortage of supply. She was overjoyed and kept asking Bailu to make more.

Bai Lu originally planned to fry 30 jin in the morning and 30 jin in the afternoon.

Originally, I was worried that sales wouldn't pick up quickly on the first day of sales, but I didn't expect Wen Xiuyun's trial run over the past two days to be so successful, so I don't have to worry anymore.

After agreeing on the terms, Wen Xiuyun happily went back to the stall to wait.

Stir-frying chestnuts is a skill; if it weren't for practicing military boxing every day these past few days, I would have been exhausted by the time I was done.

Xiao Wei ran over when he heard the sound of chestnuts being stir-fried.

I wanted to help Bailu, but... it seems that mixing sand and chestnuts together isn't as simple as stir-frying.

After just twenty minutes of constant stirring, his arms felt so tired they felt like they were about to fall off their bones and no longer belonged to him.

It's fine if you can stop occasionally, but the problem is that if you stop, the chestnuts and sand in the pot will turn into a mushy mess.

Seriously, it's impossible to stop!

"Go, Xiaowei!" Bai Lu tore open a bag of spicy strips and handed one to the little guy's mouth: "Quickly eat one of these amazing spicy strips and turn up the heat to keep cooking."

Xiao Wei felt that he was hungry, not because the spicy strips were too fragrant, nor because they were given to him by Bailu.

Although it was a little spicy, it was really delicious, just the fragrant taste he had imagined.

After eating, I did seem to have a bit more energy.

He turned the heat up to full blast and cooked ten pounds of roasted chestnuts in just over thirty minutes all by himself.

Bai Lu was so happy that she rewarded him with two packs of spicy strips.

I'll handle the remaining twenty pounds myself.

When Wen Xiuyun mentioned the fruit stand, her stall was surrounded by people waiting to buy roasted chestnuts.

People of all ages are buying them, including many junior high and high school students who take them back to school to eat.

Business was good for three days in a row.

Except for the first day when only 60 jin were sold, in the following days, 80 or 90 jin were sold every day.

On the fourth day, there weren't many chestnuts left. We roasted thirty catties in the morning, and there were probably forty catties left in the afternoon.

Not long after lunch, Bai Lu started cooking, whereas Xiao Cheng usually only cooked after he went to work.

Xiao Cheng witnessed the process of stir-frying it that morning.

I saw Bailu holding a spatula, constantly stirring chestnuts for several tens of minutes without stopping.

Then he took over.

Bai Lu looked bewildered, glancing at her empty hands and then at the man beside her who was constantly stir-frying chestnuts, as if the sweet steam from the pot was hitting her face.

"This isn't tiring, I can cook it. The doctor said that moderate exercise helps with childbirth."

"It's alright." Xiao Cheng continued stirring.

Her hands didn't stop for a second because of her explanation; she handled the frying and sugar syrup additions with ease.

His strength lies in applying what he has learned.

Bai Lu and Xiao Wei, who was tending the fire, were both stunned.

Goodness, after she and Xiao Wei cooked for several tens of minutes, their arms were so sore that they needed to eat spicy snacks to recharge.

The big shot didn't need to do anything; with his amazing arm strength, he could easily lift over 40 pounds. After cooking, he was still full of energy, without a single drop of sweat on his forehead.

Bai Lu wanted to be attentive and help wipe away sweat, but she didn't even have a chance.

After roasting the chestnuts, it was time to get to work.

When Xiao Cheng left, Bai Lu folded an old calendar paper into a large funnel and filled it with chestnuts.

"This is the last batch of chestnuts from our chestnut tree. Eat as much as you can, because there won't be any left after today. Although we can save them for tomorrow, they won't taste as good as freshly roasted ones. The chestnut tree in the backyard won't be bearing chestnuts for a long time, so we won't be able to get any even if we want to..."

Despite Bai Lu's words of regret, sorrow, and appreciation, Xiao Cheng's throat still felt a little itchy as he looked at the large funnel full of chestnuts roasted with maltose.

These past few days, Bai Lu has been leaving him chestnuts and maltose syrup every day; he's almost obsessed with them.

He was happy as the sacks of chestnuts shrank day by day, but now...

The girl had a bright, sunny smile on her face, a chestnut she had specially saved for him in her hand, and a gentle, soft voice.

Xiao Cheng ultimately took the chestnuts.

The group of grown men next door who were building a new house have been asking Xiao Cheng for roasted chestnuts every day ever since they ate the ones Bai Lu and Xiao Wei brought. Xiao Cheng refused to give them any and told them to buy them themselves, but they all said they couldn't find any.

Women's shopping skills are far superior to theirs; they can't buy a single item.

A bunch of grown men, not little girls, I don't know why they like sweets so much.

Then it'll be three yuan and fifty cents a piece.

Xiao Cheng weighed the chestnuts in his hand; they should fetch over a hundred yuan. He would sell half and keep the other half.

fine.

Just as the last basket of roasted chestnuts was delivered to Wen Xiuyun's fruit stall, Bailu heard shouts coming from across the street.

"Roasted chestnuts, fragrant and crunchy roasted chestnuts! Only three yuan a pound! Don't miss out, only three yuan a pound for roasted chestnuts!"

The voice was deep and powerful, resounding in all directions, rough yet refined. At a glance, it was indeed Li Shuixian.

Bai Lu pursed her lips: "They really shouted loudly."

Wen Xiuyun placed the chestnuts in the best spot, and when she heard the shouts from across the street, she couldn't help but feel a little worried: "Her chestnuts are cheaper than ours. Even if they taste a little worse, they can still steal a lot of our business."

"I just don't know how many chestnuts she has stored. We sell a seasonal, scarce product, and this is the last batch. We haven't found a new source yet, and the chestnut trees have only just started to bloom. The chestnuts won't be ripe until after the Mid-Autumn Festival. If she has a large stock of stored chestnuts, she might steal our top reputation."

Bai Lu looked at the large pot of chestnuts at Li Shuixian's stall, which were charred black and varied in color.

With a slight smile, she said calmly, "Don't worry, let her sell them. After we sell this batch of chestnuts, we can take a break and slowly look for a better source of goods."

Let Li Shuixian's situation serve as a watershed moment, a transition until new sources of supply are found and another rebound occurs.

She could be knocked off the cliff in a heartbeat.

Wen Xiuyun couldn't help but sigh: "There are chestnut trees all over the mountains in the countryside. During the Mid-Autumn Festival, chestnuts fall all over the ground. In the past, when there wasn't much to eat, many people would store chestnuts to eat slowly."

“Life has gotten better in recent years, and everyone is tired of eating seasonal chestnuts. They fall on the ground and nobody picks them up. Almost no one would waste time going up the mountain to pick them up, wash them, dry them, and store them. I asked around the whole village, and not a single household stored them.”

Bai Lu smiled and gave Wen Xiuyun a reassuring look: "Fifth Aunt, don't worry, we'll find it eventually."

Seeing that she looked so confident, Wen Xiuyun's worries lessened a bit, and she nodded with a smile.

Bai Lu is so smart, she must have a way.

She sold all the chestnuts and then just waited to receive her share of the profits.