Chapter 652 The Second Food Festival
Cheng Wanwan was in a wonderful mood.
With donations from Yangzhou merchants, plus the revenue from the second investment promotion conference, there should be enough money to repair the canal.
She busied herself with the abacus, recording various data in the ledger. Just then, Granny Ma came in and reported, "My lady, the spices are ready. Would you like to try some?"
Cheng Wanwan put down her brush, immediately stood up, and walked towards the kitchen.
These stir-fried spices are her secret lobster seasoning. Once the lobster business is on track, she will be in charge of supplying the seasoning, so that she can keep the business under her control.
In addition, the crayfish had to be sent to the capital. Just writing a recipe might not be enough to perfectly recreate the taste of crayfish, so she also had to include a seasoning packet.
As soon as she entered the kitchen, she smelled a pungent odor. She coughed twice, picked up a spoon, tasted it, and her eyes lit up immediately: "This is the taste! It's even more perfect than I imagined. Quickly put it in a jar, seal it, and have someone send it to the capital as fast as possible."
If this seasoning is sealed and stored in a cool place, it can last for about half a month, after which it may spoil.
The seasonings are a minor issue; transporting the crayfish is the real problem.
The journey from Dahe Town to the capital normally takes eighteen or nineteen days, and even at a fast pace, it takes about ten days. If fresh crayfish were to travel for ten days, ninety-eight percent of them would probably die.
Fortunately, the weather is not as hot as it was in July, which eliminates one of the fatal factors.
She consulted some modern materials before deciding on the transportation method. For long distances, she would use water transport, placing crayfish and water in a 1:1 ratio in boxes or ship cabins, turning the crayfish over every three or four hours, and changing the water frequently to reduce mortality.
No matter how much prevention is taken, at least half of the crayfish will die on the way, so Cheng Wanwan has no choice but to stock up in large quantities.
This year, we raised 50 mu of crayfish, which sounds like a lot. In fact, the yield of intensively farmed crayfish is only 400 to 500 jin per mu. That means the total yield of 50 mu is only about 20,000 to 30,000 jin. The first food festival used up 6,000 to 7,000 jin, and the second festival is conservatively estimated to need at least 10,000 jin. If we leave another 5,000 to 6,000 jin for the successful bidders, then we will have about 4,000 to 5,000 jin left.
She had the remaining crayfish sent to the capital.
Of the four or five thousand catties, most of them died on the way, and by the time they reached the capital, only about a thousand catties remained, which should be enough to barely satisfy the high-ranking officials and nobles in the capital.
Besides crayfish, there were also potatoes and tomatoes, some of which were sent to the royal family to try.
After everything was prepared for the trip to the capital, the second phase of the Dahe Town Food Festival arrived.
The eighth day of the eighth lunar month was a cool and pleasant day, with a gentle breeze and mild sunshine.
Early in the morning, the entire town of Dahe was bustling with activity.
The road into the town was congested, so Zhao Da and a few others cleared the road. Zhao Tiezhu stood at the entrance, smiling broadly as he gave directions to people coming to Dahe Town.
Enter the market from the town entrance to the east, pass through the old market, and you will enter the new market. Go around the new market to reach the food festival square.
After the first food festival gained a reputation, the second food festival attracted even more people, especially local residents who brought their families to join in the fun.
It costs 20 coins per person, 10 coins for children under 10 years old, and free for children under 3 years old. Once inside, you can eat all kinds of food for free with your admission ticket. It is said that you can eat your way back the admission fee.
Having experienced the massive crowds last time, the local residents of Dahe Town have learned from their experience this time, and almost every household has set up a stall.
Because of the huge flow of people, it seems that no matter what is put out to sell, it will sell out instantly.
Mr. He and his party disembarked from their carriage at the entrance of Dahe Town, walked in, paid the head fee, and entered Dahe Town, where they saw people everywhere.
"With so many people, it's even more bustling than the morning market in Yangzhou."
“Our city of Yangzhou is bustling every day, but Dahe Town only attracts so many people during its food festival.”
"The fact that a place that has just been upgraded from a village to a town can attract so many people is enough to show that the people of Suigong are capable..."
The group talked as they moved toward the square with the flow of people.
Suddenly, the crowd became restless.
"Hurry up, the crayfish over there are ready! First come, first served!"
"I think I can smell something delicious. It smells amazing! I need to hurry over there, or I'll have to wait for the next batch."
"Hey, don't worry, don't worry, my shoes have been stepped on!"
"..."
Countless people pushed and shoved like madmen, and Old He couldn't possibly outrun them all, so he quickly moved to the side to make way.
"Mr. He, shall we go try these crayfish, or go to the investment promotion conference?" a young man asked, licking his lips. "The investment promotion conference starts in half an hour, perhaps..."
Another person immediately chimed in, "Since we're already here, we might as well eat!"
Two days ago, Sui Gongren treated them to crayfish, and each of them got two or three. They didn't get enough of the flavor. As soon as they smelled the aroma, their mouths were watering. The investment promotion conference had to be postponed.
Old He nodded: "Alright, let's go take a look."
But they were too late. When they arrived at the square, they heard Zhao Dashan shouting, "The first batch of crayfish is gone. The next batch will be ready in 15 minutes. Please be patient."
At the same time, other shouts and calls rang out in the square.
"Iced jelly, iced jelly, so delicious!"
"Lotus drink, lotus drink, eight coins a cup, no charge if it's not sweet."
"Free samples of spicy baby potatoes!"
"Free sugar-coated tomatoes, first come, first served!"
"Free preserved eggs, come and try them..."
Various shouts rose and fell, some offering free samples, others requiring payment; these foods were not available in Yangzhou.
Mr. He and his entourage ate their way through the journey, and each snack brought them a new and delightful experience.
Originally, they only wanted to do crayfish business, but after coming here, all sorts of ideas came to mind.
The time for the investment promotion conference was fast approaching, so Mr. He and his entourage had to give up the delicious food and head to the three-story shop where the conference was being held.
By this time, most of the merchants had arrived. From the second and third floors of the shops, one could see the bustling food street and the ever-flowing crowds.
"I heard that 50,000 people came in the first phase, and this time, it will probably exceed 100,000."
"If the canal is opened, there will be even more people at the food festival, and Dahe Town will definitely become the number one town in Huzhou."
"Your vision is too narrow. I think Dahe Town will become the number one town in Yunnan Province."
"Who knows, one day it might stand shoulder to shoulder with our Yangzhou City."
Old He stroked his beard and joined the conversation.
When the merchants chatted, they would inquire about each other's intentions for coming here, and they discovered that almost everyone had come for the crayfish.
Because Huzhou businessmen were not allowed to participate in this investment promotion conference, those present were mostly people who had traveled from afar, and everyone was determined to get what they wanted.
Mr. He looked rather solemn; it seemed that a tough battle was ahead at this investment promotion conference.
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