Chapter 5 Braised Dishes

"Selling braised food, it smells delicious! Brother, come and have a taste!" Seeing that a customer had come to his door, Song Yushu didn't even bother chatting with Wei's mother anymore and quickly cut out a small piece of pig's ear for the customer to try.

"Delicious! How can you make these pig ears so fragrant and crispy? How much are they?"

After tasting the pig's ear, the customer indeed became interested in braised food.

"Braised pig ears are 30 coins a pound, pig trotters are more expensive, 35 coins a pound, pig offal is 20 coins a pound, and braised eggs are 3 coins each."

"This is too expensive! Pork is only seven coins a pound!" The customer hesitated after hearing the price.

“Look at our braising liquid, it’s made with expensive spices, so the cost is quite high. Naturally, we can’t sell it too cheaply, or I’ll lose money!” Song Yushu showed no intention of lowering the price.

"Alright! Then give me some pig ears and some offal!"

"Alright! You're our first customer, here's a braised egg for you! Come back if you like it!" With fifty coins in hand, Song Yushu was delighted.

"Boss, if you give hard-boiled eggs to the customers in front of you, can you give them to the customers behind us?" another customer who had been hesitating for a long time asked.

"Our stall is newly opened today, and the first ten customers get a free braised egg! First come, first served!" Song Yushu quickly announced upon seeing this.

"Okay, give me some braised pork offal!"

"I'll have some pig's ears!"

People who initially thought the price was high couldn't help but squeeze in.

Fortunately, Song Yushu was quick and efficient. He could cut meat fast, thin, and evenly, which won him the favor of many customers.

"Alright, take care! If you like it, come again next time!"

"Your knife skills are even better than your father's and elder brother's. If you were a man, you would be a master butcher. Even your elder brother can't compare!" Mother Wei couldn't help but feel sorry for her.

"I'm putting it to good use now. I've never tried butchering a pig before, but I'll give it a try when I have the chance," Song Yushu said with a touch of pride. His knife skills, which he had practiced back then, hadn't gone to waste, and now they were finally coming in handy.

The mother and daughter sat there all morning, and the braised meat on their stall was almost sold out. Song Yushu planned to close up shop together with the Wei family's meat shop.

"Hey! Wait a minute! Young lady, do you still have any of this braised food?"

Song Yushu recognized this person as someone who had bought his food before, indicating that his braised food was likely to have repeat customers.

"There are only three pig's trotters and half a pound of pig's head meat left. How much do you want?"

"I'll take them all!" This repeat customer loves to drink and usually likes to buy some snacks to go with his drinks. He was surprised by the delicious braised food he bought today and couldn't wait until the next day. He ran over with a bag of coins.

"Alright, I'll cut it up for you." Song Yushu had originally intended to give this little bit of meat to the Wei family to add to their dish, but it seems that's not going to be possible now.

"Leave me a pig's trotter tomorrow!" The customer paid and was about to leave when he added this last sentence.

"Okay! I'll still be at this location tomorrow morning, remember to come and pick it up!" Song Yushu quickly agreed upon seeing the order.

"Now Mom and Dad can rest assured, Afang's business is really good," Wei Laoda said, happy for Song Yushu as he saw that she had sold out of braised meat.

"After this matter, regarding the money for the pork over the next three days, could you perhaps leave these cuts to me from now on, brother?"

“Why not? We’re going to sell them anyway, it doesn’t matter who we sell them to,” no one in the Wei family objected, since the parts that Song Yushu had ordered weren’t easy to sell.

"Okay, I'll go buy some ingredients for tomorrow first. Father and Mother, you can go back first!" After parting ways with the Wei family, Song Yushu began shopping in town.

Braised pork and eggs alone were too monotonous, so she decided to try her luck at a restaurant to see if she could get some chicken feet or wings.

There weren't many restaurants in town, so Song Yushu had to visit all three restaurants in town to find enough chicken feet and duck feet.

The managers of the restaurants were also puzzled, but since these were usually unwanted scraps, it would be good if they could be sold, so they readily agreed to reserve some for her every day.

On the way back, Song Yushu carried a full basket on his back and didn't intend to make do. He paid a copper coin and took an oxcart back to the village.

Zhou Lao Er was working as a carpenter in the carpenter's shop when he looked up and saw Song Yushu walking past the shop without giving him a second glance. He was a little puzzled, since Wei Fang used to bring him meat from time to time to nourish his body, but now that she was in town, she didn't come to see him.

"What are you daydreaming about? The foreman said this batch of chairs is due tomorrow, so hurry up and finish them!" The carpenter next to him urged him when he saw him standing there in a daze.

On the second day, when Song Yushu set up her stall, many repeat customers came to her. The braised pig's head and trotters sold out in less than an hour, which really surprised the Wei family members standing nearby.

"Braised chicken feet and braised duck feet are both 25 coins per pound, everyone can try them!"

Upon seeing this, Song Yushu immediately cut up a few chicken feet and duck feet for the guests to try.

In no time, everyone, whether they were going to buy anything or not, crowded around. After all, it was free, and even getting a taste was a bonus.

"How can these chicken feet be so delicious? They're both sour and spicy. Nobody used to like this stuff!"

"Boss, give me a pound of chicken feet!"

"I'll take half a pound of chicken feet and a pound of pig's trotters!"

In no time, half of the braised food that had just been placed on the table was gone.

Song Yushu spent the whole morning cutting meat for the guests. If it weren't for Wei's mother helping with the packing, he really wouldn't have been able to keep up.

"Mother, how about I pay you some wages? Twenty coins a day. I can't let you work for nothing," Song Yushu said, taking advantage of her free time to count out forty coins for Wei's mother, who had helped her a lot these past two days.

"What are you saying! How can a family talk about wages? Take it back!" Mother Wei was angered by Song Yushu's act of stuffing copper coins into her hands.

"Mother, listen to me. From now on, I will have to set up a stall every day. I can't manage it all by myself. I always come to help me. There are also several young children at home, so it's inevitable that my sisters-in-law will have to work hard. With the money I earn, it would be good for you to give some coins to my nephews for snacks. Please accept it!"

Song Yushu simply didn't want Wei's mother to have conflicts with her sisters-in-law because of her, and paying her wages would save her some trouble.

When Wei's mother heard this, she was initially pleased, thinking that her daughter had become much more sensible and knew how to consider her mother's feelings. However, she was also worried that her daughter might have been wronged, which made her feel very conflicted.

The next day, with repeat customers, Song Yushu closed his stall much earlier than Wei's pork shop. He temporarily left his goods at the pork shop and then went to buy more.

Having just finished collecting chicken feet from the restaurant, he suddenly saw Zhou Chengyu, who should have been studying at school, strolling on the street with several people of similar age.

"Zhou Chengyu, shouldn't you be at school right now?"

Song Yushu was initially mindful of Zhou Chengyu's feelings, and his tone was relatively calm.

"Chengyu! I suddenly remembered I have something else to attend to, so I'll be going now!"

"Me too! Me too!"

In an instant, several people who had been leisurely strolling around the street suddenly ran away in a panic. Seeing their appearance, Song Yushu knew perfectly well that they had skipped school.

"What are you doing here?" Zhou Chengyu asked, still looking completely unconcerned.

"You skipped school and you dare to talk to me like that? Zhou Chengyu, have you wasted all those years of your education?"

Song Yushu was furious when he thought about how the original owner had pawned all her dowry jewelry to send him to school, only to get this result.

"What's wrong with me coming out for some fresh air? Even my dad doesn't care about me, so why should you?"

Although Zhou Chengyu's status in the Zhou family was not as high as Zhou Chengli's, she was still used to being pampered. She already disliked Song Yushu for being vulgar, so she was naturally resentful of being managed by her.