Today, since it wasn't market day, it was immediately noticeable upon entering the town that there were fewer people than yesterday.
There were only a handful of people on the street who had finished buying groceries and were rushing home to make breakfast.
Chen Fang couldn't help but worry: "Yao girl, there are so few people on the street today, will our spicy snails... be okay?"
Chen Fang hesitated to say what came next, as she didn't want to discourage everyone.
She was also worried, because these were all things they had worked on day and night, bit by bit, especially Yao. She had put so much effort into making them, and she couldn't bear to see her niece's work go to waste.
Pei Yao knew Chen Fang's thoughts and worries, but she didn't dare to offer comfort casually.
After all, she herself wasn't sure, and she could sense that there were several times fewer people on the street today.
However, she had also planned ahead. If she couldn't sell the spicy snails at her stall today, she had other ways to sell them.
He figured it would be a bit of a hassle to carry the snails around to restaurants in town to sell them; he was quite confident in the taste of his spicy snails.
But that's a story for later. Right now, we need to go to the dock and sell the big head.
Pei Yichen was quite interested in setting up a stall to sell spicy snails later.
He was full of passion the whole way, a far cry from his usual reserved nature, and even comforted his mother.
"If I can't sell them, I can't sell them. I'll just eat them all myself."
Chen Fang fell silent: "..."
You brat, if you don't know how to comfort someone, then don't. Sometimes, comforting isn't necessary.
Soon the oxcart arrived at the dock, which was quite lively. Some fishmongers had already set up their stalls, but it was still far less bustling than yesterday.
Pei Yao got off the oxcart and walked in the direction she had been heading yesterday; she planned to go back to the same spot as yesterday.
She had promised those people yesterday that she would come again today, and she figured they would probably be waiting for them there.
As a result, from a distance, Pei Yao looked up and saw that the spot from yesterday was full of people, a group of people of all ages, men and women, chatting together.
Someone in the crowd questioned, "Why hasn't the lady who sells spicy snails arrived yet? Is she not coming today?"
"Yes, it's almost the end of the 11 o'clock hour (11:00 AM). Could it be that you were just trying to fool us when you promised to come yesterday?"
"That won't do. I promised my husband I'd bring back a lot today. What if he gets angry if I can't buy any?"
Li Si, the steward of Master Zhao's household, had a bitter face. Yesterday, he bought several servings of these spicy snails and brought them back to his master. The master kept praising how delicious they were, and even his attitude towards him was much better than usual. Not only that, but he also rewarded him with some silver.
Li Si was overjoyed.
"How could we not come? Who would turn down so much business?"
"Exactly, it's stupid not to make money when you can. Who would be so foolish as not to make money?"
“I saw my neighbor buy one yesterday, tried one, and it was delicious, so I came here specifically to buy one today.”
Everyone started talking at once.
Pei Yao and her group watched as those people chattered away, many of their words being crude and vulgar, but everyone found their voices as pleasant as singing.
Chen Fang and the others' previous gloomy mood vanished instantly, and they all became happy.
........
In a corner of the crowd stood a handsome young man in a blue robe, his hair tied up high with a jade hairpin, his brows revealing a faint scholarly air, and he gently fanned himself with a folding fan.
A chubby boy dressed as a pageboy was standing next to him, saying something to him.
He listened to the discussion around him, his mind seemingly wandering, only occasionally responding to the young page's words.
But the little book boy continued to share with great enthusiasm.
The pageboy, seeing that the stall hadn't appeared yet, said worriedly, "Young master, is the snail vendor really not coming?"
The boy also looked at the stall. He had taken the spicy snails home yesterday and tried them. They were really delicious. Even his mother, who usually didn't have a big appetite, ate more rice with the snails.
My mother also praised the snails, saying they tasted very good and were a rare delicacy.
He was thinking of bringing some more back for his mother to eat today.
Not far away, there were also a few young women and girls who kept glancing in this direction as they looked at the handsome young man in the corner.
Pei Yao recognized the man; it was Lin Shaoqing.
She rode in an oxcart, the not-so-wide road completely blocked by them.
When these people first saw these people, they were initially overjoyed but were also quite shocked, as it seemed that there were even more people today than yesterday.
Moreover, in addition to the familiar faces from yesterday, there were many new faces as well. Chen Fang was overjoyed. With so many people, she was sure that the spicy snails would sell out, and there might even be a situation like yesterday where there weren't enough to sell.
The stall was surrounded, so Pei Yao quickly got off the cart and stood in front of the oxcart, shouting for everyone to make way so they could get in and set up their stall.
Lin Shaoqing looked toward the girl's clear, childlike voice and, sure enough, saw the girl walking in front of the oxcart.
The girl was dressed in coarse linen clothes, her hair was tied up in a high ponytail, and her thin face had a bright smile on it, making her look very energetic.
The girl felt Lin Shaoqing's gaze, turned her head and nodded to him in greeting.
Pei Yao continued to lead the oxcart to the stall and arranged the items one by one.
The crowd gathered again, and Pei Yao, Chen Fang, Niu Qingshan, and the others quickly arranged the items.
Pei Yichen lit the charcoal fire on the barbecue grill.
After doing all this, Pei Yao had everyone line up in a row so that things wouldn't get chaotic and people wouldn't step on each other.
"Everyone line up in two rows, one by one." Pei Yao glanced at the crowd and thought to herself that three buckets of snails definitely wouldn't be enough to sell.
However, she didn't have many at home, and even if she went back to get them now, it would take some time, and she felt bad keeping her guests waiting too long. She was also afraid that there wouldn't be enough time.
Fortunately, she brought a lot of kudzu worms and sea urchins today, so she can introduce those two things more later.
The main reason was that it was their first time doing business, and they didn't expect these people to be so crazy as to actually come and wait for them.
She was prepared that she wouldn't be able to sell all three buckets.
When the people in the crowd saw that Pei Yao had only brought three buckets again, they felt a wave of dizziness. Why did this girl only bring three buckets again?
I hope I'll be lucky enough to buy some spicy snails today. Even if I can't get spicy snails, please at least let them give me some chicken wing worms. If all else fails, the black, spiky thing that the young man is holding will do...
Since we've already come all this way and waited, we can't just go home empty-handed.
That won't do!
Despite the complaints, everyone still lined up in an orderly fashion.
Even Lin Shaoqing obediently lined up.
Chen Fang and Niu Qingshan each happened to be facing a team.
"Boss lady, give me five bowls of spicy snails first, and ten chicken wing worms." Li Si, who was at the front of the line, shouted loudly to Chen Fang, as if afraid that she hadn't heard him.
Because of yesterday's experience, everyone was quite calm and composed when doing business, except for Pei Yichen, who was a little nervous.
"Okay, I'll wrap it up for you right away." Chen Fang quickly wrapped up the spicy snails for him, and the chicken wing worms over there were also ready soon.
If only the chicken wing worms had been processed at yesterday's pace, they wouldn't have been so fast.
However, having learned from yesterday's lesson, the first thing Pei Yao did this morning was to lightly roast the chicken wing insects beforehand, turning them into a semi-finished product.
This way, once it arrives at the stall, it can be heated up quickly and won't delay the progress.
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