Chapter 35 Lunch Boxes: Ants Climbing a Tree, Braised Pork, Eggplant with Minced Meat, Dried Tofu...

With the addition of wontons, the stall attracted many people. Lin Yao seized the opportunity to recommend crystal noodles, cooking a large bowl of hot and sour noodles. Whenever someone showed interest, she would place some on a palm leaf tray for the customer to try. In just one morning, the five large bundles of crystal noodles she brought were sold out.

As the day drew to a close, the crowds at the market gradually dispersed, and Lin Yao's stall saw far fewer customers. Over the course of the day, Liu Xu had witnessed firsthand the Lin family's booming business. No wonder that when the second branch of the Lin family was separated from the main branch, the widow and her children were destitute; yet, after only a short time in the food business, they had even bought a donkey cart, and their lives were visibly improving. He glanced at Lin Yao, who was heating up the food, then lowered his head to continue diligently washing the bowls and chopsticks.

Lin Yao took the pickled cowpeas off the donkey cart and instructed Wang Xiaoyu to put a jar of pickled cowpeas on each table. Previously, Lin Yao had made three large vats of pickled vegetables, initially intending only to wrap them in sweet potato wrappers to enhance the flavor. However, after hearing from Lin Cheng that there was a shop on the east side of town that had been selling pickled vegetables for ten years, charging two coins per serving, she figured that since pickled vegetables were so popular, her pickled vegetables might also be able to open up a market. Placing the pickled cowpeas on the tables and stalls for everyone to sample for free was a way to gauge public acceptance of the flavor.

Before long, the food was heated up, and the aromas of the dishes mingled together, making one's mouth water. Lin Yao let Wang Xiaoyu and Liu Xu choose their own dishes. Wang Xiaoyu, having already figured out Lin Yao's personality, picked out dishes she hadn't tried before, such as "ants climbing a tree" (a Sichuan dish) and stir-fried cabbage, plus her favorite braised pork. But Liu Xu, being on his first day at work, was afraid of eating too much and upsetting Lin Yao, so he only chose stir-fried cabbage. Seeing that he was at an age where he could eat a lot, with a full bowl of rice but only vegetables, Lin Yao scooped up a spoonful of braised pork and placed it in his bowl, saying, "Brother Xu, don't be shy, we'll be busy later, eat more."

"That's enough, that's enough." Liu Xu had intended to eat less, but Lin Yao piled several large pieces of braised pork into his bowl. This much meat was something their family only got to eat when his father hunted a wild boar in the mountains. Thinking of his father, Liu Xu's eyes welled up with tears, and he quickly lowered his head, focusing on his food, afraid that Lin Yao and Wang Xiaoyu would see his embarrassed state.

Lin Yao was so busy she barely had time to breathe and didn't notice Liu Xu's unusual behavior. Wang Xiaoyu, however, keenly sensed that Liu Xu's mood had suddenly dropped. Confused, she assumed Liu Xu was worried Lin Yao would mind if he ate too much, so she explained, "Brother Xu, Master is very generous. He won't mind if you eat too much, as long as we work hard." Liu Xu didn't dare look up, only vaguely replying, "Okay."

The three of them quickly finished their lunch and then began preparing to sell the boxed meals.

As noon approached, it was lunchtime for the workers in town, and many began to head out to find food. Seeing the streets bustling again, Lin Yao quickly called out at the top of her lungs, "Boxed lunches! Boxed lunches! Meat and vegetables included! Meat soup included!"

Xu Mu was a well-known carpenter in town. Today, he and his apprentice had just finished making three rosewood chairs for the Zeng family. The Zeng family was in a hurry, saying that one of their young wives had seen the rosewood chairs elsewhere, thought they were beautiful, and insisted on having one too. Since the Zeng family had three young wives, they decided to make sure each of them had one to avoid future disputes. Although time was tight, the Zeng family was generous, so Xu the carpenter accepted the job. He and his two apprentices worked through the night to finish the three rosewood chairs, and now their stomachs were growling with hunger.

Xu Mu walked along the street, having already tried all the shops and food stalls along the way; nothing new came of it. As they approached the end of the street, Zhang Fan, unable to bear the hunger any longer, suggested, "Master, how about we go to Ziwei Restaurant?"

Carpenter Xu wasn't the type to mistreat his apprentices. After completing the job, he gave each of them three hundred coins. These two apprentices rarely received such a large sum of money and were eager to treat themselves to a good meal. Carpenter Xu knew his apprentices' thoughts and was thinking that Ziwei Restaurant would be nice. Just as he was about to nod, Zheng Dao spotted a small stall he'd never seen before. "Master, there's a new stall over there!"

Lin Yao saw three people walking towards her and enthusiastically introduced today's menu: "You can choose your own meat dishes from the boxed meals at the stall. The meat dishes include Ants Climbing a Tree, Eggplant with Minced Meat, and Braised Pork. The vegetable dish is Stir-fried Cabbage. One meat and one vegetable dish costs eight coins, two meat and one vegetable dish costs thirteen coins, and three meat and one vegetable dish costs twenty coins. A bowl of meat soup is also included!"

Xu Mu was quite interested in these unfamiliar dishes. "Your dish names sound interesting! Give me some 'Ants Climbing a Tree,' braised pork, and stir-fried cabbage!" Zhang Fan ordered the same dishes as Xu Mu, while Zheng Dao only ordered one meat dish and one vegetable dish, choosing braised pork. Zheng Dao was usually frugal, but having earned some money today, he wanted to treat himself, though he didn't dare to be as extravagant as Zhang Fan. Zhang Fan was an only child, with living parents, a seventy-year-old grandmother, and a five-year-old sister; he had to be careful with his money.

The lunchbox food had been prepared at home in advance. After the three of them ordered, Wang Xiaoyu and Liu Xu divided the work: one packed the food, and the other served the soup. Xu the carpenter had been so busy all morning that he hadn't even had a chance to drink water. Seeing the soup Liu Xu brought, he finally felt his throat dry. He took a big gulp, and the hot soup slid down his throat, instantly relaxing his tense muscles. He couldn't help but exclaim, "Young lady, this soup is pretty good!"

Lin Yao brought the prepared food to the table and said with a smile, "If the guests like it, they can have more! The pork bone soup at the stall is free to refill!"

Xu Mu and the other two, looking at the food on the table, immediately forgot about the pork bone soup. Soup and broth were nothing compared to rice and meat dishes. Especially Zhang Fan and Zheng Dao, two young men at the age where their appetites were enormous. Zheng Dao, staring at the glistening braised pork, swallowed hard, unable to remember the last time he'd eaten such a large piece of meat. As soon as his master picked up his chopsticks, he immediately grabbed a piece of braised pork and put it in his mouth. Unlike Zhang Fan, who wolfed it down, he chewed slowly, savoring the tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture of the pork. Zheng Dao tasted the salty-sweet flavor and felt this was the happiest day he could remember.

Xu Mu and Zhang Fan ordered "Ants Climbing a Tree" (ants climbing a tree) instead of Zheng Dao. They had eaten braised pork before, but neither of them had ever heard of "Ants Climbing a Tree," so their first bite was the latter. Xu Mu put the "Ants Climbing a Tree" in his mouth, chewed a few times, and exclaimed, "Hey! This stuff is amazing! It's so slippery, and that spicy flavor feels like ants crawling all over a tree in your mouth!" Zhang Fan also ate it with a look of delight, nodding and mumbling in agreement, "Exactly, exactly! Master, you really know how to choose!"

Xu Mu pretended to hit Zhang Fan, pointing at him with a mocking gesture, and said with a laugh, "You little rascal, your flattery is deafening." Zhang Fan chuckled, picked up a large piece of ants climbing a tree from his bowl and put it into Zheng Dao's bowl, "A-Dao, you should try some too, it tastes great!"

"Thank you." Zheng Dao took the ants climbing a tree dish that Zhang Fan had picked up. Zhang Fan was a generous person and always remembered him when there was something good to eat; the two were like brothers. Zheng Dao picked up a piece with his chopsticks and savored it. But as soon as it entered his mouth, he was so spicy that he grimaced and quickly picked up the cooled soup on the table and drank a big mouthful. Seeing Zheng Dao's disheveled appearance, covered in sweat from the spiciness, Zhang Fan laughed gleefully.

Lin Yao's set meal only included two pieces of braised pork. No matter how slowly Zheng Dao ate, he finished them quickly. With the braised pork, he ate most of a bowl of rice, leaving only the rice to eat with the stir-fried cabbage. Although the stir-fried cabbage was a vegetarian dish, Lin Yao had used a lot of lard, making each piece glisten with an enticing sheen, the edges slightly charred. Zheng Dao mixed the rice and cabbage together and put it in his mouth. First, he felt the crispness of the cabbage, then the spicy aroma of the peppercorns spread across his tongue, a spiciness that made him increasingly addicted. Zheng Dao had never imagined that vegetarian dishes could be so delicious with rice.

Watching Zheng Dao, Xu Mu, and Zhang Fan enjoy their meal at the stall, Lin Yao felt much more at ease. It seemed her cooking was quite to the liking of the locals. She looked away and continued to shout, "Fresh and hot boxed lunches! Meat and vegetables included, and free broth!"

Passersby were gradually drawn to Lin Yao's hawking cries. The reason was simple: the free meat soup was irresistible. The stall quickly filled up. Seeing the growing crowd and having nearly finished eating, Xu Mu and his companions shoveled their last bites into their mouths and gave up their seats. Wang Xiaoyu collected their used bowls and chopsticks and handed them to Liu Xu to wash. Zheng Dao, however, didn't leave immediately. He hesitated for a moment, then walked up to Lin Yao. Lin Yao looked up and saw Zheng Dao, who should have left, standing before her stall. She asked, "Sir, what can I do for you?"

Zheng Dao rubbed the calluses on his hands and said somewhat embarrassedly, "I wonder if the stall owner could sell me a few pieces of braised pork separately? I ate your braised pork today, and it was so tender and delicious. I think my grandma and little sister would love it, so I'd like to buy a few pieces for them to try."

"Of course! Braised pork is two coins a piece, how many pieces would you like?" Lin Yao welcomes any customer who wants to spend money, no matter how much they want to buy.

Zheng Dao held up his hand and made a "six" sign. "Six yuan!" He had finally earned some money, so he couldn't just eat alone outside. He had to bring some back for his grandmother and younger sister to try.

"Alright, six pieces of braised pork for twelve coins in total." Lin Yao took out a palm leaf reed from her basket, wrapped the braised pork in it, and handed it to Zheng Dao. Zheng Dao took the wrapped pork, pulled out a tattered bag from his pocket, carefully counted out twelve copper coins, and handed them to Lin Yao. After paying, Zheng Dao ran to Xu Mu's side, "Master, I..."

Xu Mu knew that Zheng Dao was always responsible, and that he would think of his grandmother and younger sister when he ate something good. "Go on, while the meat is still hot, take it home for your grandma and younger sister to try. You can go home and rest today, and come back to work tomorrow." He then looked at Zhang Fan, who was staring longingly at the soup noodle stall across the street, and slapped him on the back, laughing and scolding, "You big glutton, haven't you had enough yet? If you're not full, go home and eat. You don't have to work today."

Zhang Fan chuckled, bowed, and said, "Thank you, Master!" He then turned and ran a few steps to catch up with Zheng Dao.

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Author's Note: Xu Zhiheng: I came because I smelled it.