Chapter 10: Surviving the pig food at home
After seeing Rutang complete his first business deal, Yu Yaoyang immediately adjusted his mindset.
He usually deals in grain and has a keen business sense. After realizing that the railway station is a huge market, he starts to cooperate with Rutang.
Put conchs in paper cups and give them to people around to try. This is how Rutang attracted business just now.
The onlookers were a little embarrassed at first and waved their hands to say no, but they could not resist Yu Yaoyang's trickery. He swept his eyes through the crowd and finally landed on an old lady who looked difficult to talk to.
"Auntie, from your accent you must be a local. You have a neat face and your cooking looks delicious. Please give me some comments."
The woman he called "Auntie" was a local old lady in her sixties. When she saw a lot of people gathered here, she came over to watch the fun.
When the old lady saw the fried conchs being sold, her face was full of disdain. She felt that this was just a scam and that such a thing could be sold?
When Yu Yaoyang handed over the sample, the old lady waved her hand to refuse. However, the young man was handsome and good at talking, so he praised the old lady.
The old lady was so dizzy with Yu Yaoyang's praise that she picked up one and put it in her mouth. After tasting it, her expression changed slightly.
"Is it delicious?" Rutang looked at the old lady expectantly. Although the old lady wanted to criticize, she had to admit that this was the most delicious conch she had ever eaten.
"It's cooked to perfect perfection. How did you season it?" asked the old lady.
The tea egg girl was stretching her neck outside the crowd to look, and when she heard the old lady ask this, her mouth almost turned behind her ears.
How can I tell others about my profitable business?
The old lady saw that other people's fried conchs were delicious, so she came to ask for the recipe with the intention of taking advantage. She has been eating conchs for most of her life, but she didn't know that they could be fried this way.
The locals' way of eating seafood can be described as simple and unpretentious.
There are only two ways to process all shellfish: steaming or boiling, and this rough and simple cooking method is collectively called "fresh".
There is nothing wrong with cooking crabs and shrimps in this way, but small seafood with shells would be better with some sauce. In the era of material scarcity, seasonings were considered as non-staple foods and were very precious.
No one would be willing to use such precious seasonings with cheap seafood that can be found everywhere, so even in a coastal city, this dish cooked by Rutang can stand the test and make people amazed after eating it.
When asked by the old lady if she wanted to learn from him, Rutang answered frankly, "It's not difficult to make this dish well. You can watch me while I fry the next pot. It's very simple. But if you want to make it delicious, it still depends on the quality of the chili sauce. It's hard to make the chili sauce sold outside taste like the one I make at home."
Since she dared to set up the stall, she was not afraid of others learning from her. It was impossible for anyone to cook the same dish as hers.
"This garlic chili sauce is a secret of my family. No one else can make it taste this way. I am not afraid to hide it from you. Our conchs are not valuable. What is valuable is this chili sauce. What we sell is our craftsmanship and hard-earned money."
The old lady was thick-skinned and stood by waiting to watch. At this time, the people around her had already tasted it and nodded.
There were not only outsiders here, but also many locals gathered here, all watching the fun.
After Yu Yaoyang distributed the products among others, a few people actually paid for them. Yu Yaoyang was responsible for collecting the money, while Rutang was responsible for attracting business.
Half of the freshly fried conchs were sold out quickly. Many people found the flavor unique after tasting it, so they bought two at a time. After all, two portions are 10 cents cheaper.
Rutang started to fry the second pot, and several local aunties stared at him intently, wanting to learn the skills from him.
However, the quick-witted Yu Yaoyang used this as a bargaining chip to attract customers. He pointed at the aunties watching and said to the others, "Our local aunties who are the best at cooking all said it was delicious, so it must be right."
Those middle-aged ladies were not angry about being used as a tool to attract customers. After all, what the young man said was absolutely right. They all claimed to be very good at cooking.
Rutang is pretty, always answers questions and has a good temper. Yu Yaoyang took over the job of shouting on the side. He was quick to collect money and could always joke with people. If someone asked for a drink of water, he would pour it for them without charging any money. The young couple left a good impression on everyone.
This is often how business works. After opening, subsequent sales will go smoothly. As more people come to buy, everyone is willing to gather here, wanting to see what is attracting so many people.
Rutang cooked the second pot and the first pot was sold out.
She can fry more than 3 kilograms in one pot, and one portion is about 2 taels. People have a herd mentality. When they see so many people gathering around to buy, and some people trying it for free, they will buy it if they think it tastes good.
The second pot sold out faster than the first. Before Rutang could even finish cooking the third pot, the second pot was sold out.
Yu Yaoyang began to organize the queue for shopping. Rutang reminded him while stirring the spoon not to let the line block the way.
Although there are few motor vehicles on the road at this time, blocking the road and hindering traffic is not a good thing.
Although it was early summer and the weather had not yet reached its hottest point, the midday sun was too scorching and Rutang, who was standing in front of the stove, was soon covered in sweat.
Now that there are more people queuing up, she doesn't need to perform the wok-flipping trick anymore. The continuous frying still makes her arms a little sore.
It is inevitable that a rich woman who is used to doing nothing but working on her own would feel a little uncomfortable when she suddenly returns to the early stages of starting a business and does physical labor.
But when she looked up and saw Yu Yaoyang soliciting customers, her heart brightened up again.
In the sunshine, the young man is full of vigor and vitality, just like this era. The man who has spent half of his life with her is now as young as her, and they are facing the tests given by the times together.
Thinking of this, Ru Tang was full of motivation. Coincidentally, Yu Yaoyang also looked over here. Ru Tang lowered her head and worked on her business, not looking at him. She felt that her image must not look good in the smoke and fire.
Little did he know that in Yu Yaoyang's eyes, she was simply sparkling, but he still felt distressed when he saw her little face burned red by the fire.
Yu Yaoyang walked to the stove and snatched the shovel from her hand.
"You go to the front and collect the money, and I'll do the cooking."
"Uh... can you cook?" Rutang asked in a voice that only the two of them could hear.
"I've been through pig food at home."
"!!!" Rutang tried to take the shovel back from his hand, but Yu Yaoyang pushed her forward.
Rutang didn't dare to continue pushing and shoving him, as she would be noticed and would delay business. She could only collect money and solicit customers while keeping an eye on the pot. When it was time to add seasonings, she would go over.
It takes about 10 minutes to stir-fry a pot of conchs. The large washing basin I brought weighs 40 kilograms. It looks like a lot, but in fact, more than ten pots can be used to finish it.
There was a long queue at Rutang’s small seafood stall, in contrast, no one was interested in the tea eggs next to it.
Rutang and Yu Yaoyang worked for more than an hour, and half of the conchs were gone, and then problems arose.
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