Chapter 64 Promotion Sister, can you give me another spoonful?
"I want two bowls of vegetarian noodles in clear soup." Lin Shu said.
When the waiter heard that she only ordered the cheapest plain noodles, he didn't let his smile fade. He took note of it, said "wait a moment", and went to greet other customers.
Lin Shu praised silently. Just based on the service attitude of the waiters in this shop, it was destined that this noodle soup shop would be doing good business.
The man sitting off to the side at the same table was well-dressed and looked like a local. He glanced at the two of them, his gaze fixed on Zhou Ye for a long moment before suddenly reminding them, "The noodles at Li's Noodle Soup are delicious, but the portion is small. With just one bowl of plain noodles in clear soup, you probably won't be full. I have to eat two bowls, and you're so strong, wouldn't you need three?"
The young woman sitting next to him immediately nudged him with her elbow. "Stop talking so much! Eat your meal! After you're done, let's go to the market. I need a new set of dishes."
The man immediately stopped talking and buried his head in eating his noodles.
Two bowls of noodles were placed before him: one with fatty pork shreds, the other with a clear broth. Halfway through the fatty pork noodles, he scooped the noodles from the clear broth into his bowl, stirred them, and continued eating.
Lin Shu took a look at the plain noodles in clear soup. It was actually a normal portion, but it was enough for someone like her. It was definitely not enough for a man who did heavy work, especially someone with a big appetite like Zhou Ye.
The noodles were served quickly. The waiter put two bowls of vegetarian noodles on a tray in front of the two men with swift movements. He said, "Enjoy your meal, sir," and left quickly.
The empty backpacks and bamboo baskets that the two of them brought were put aside. Before putting them aside, Lin Shu had already taken out the small bamboo tube, or bamboo jar, containing the chicken mushroom sauce. She opened the layers of cloth covering it, and the fragrant aroma of the chicken mushroom sauce immediately wafted out.
Lin Shu asked the waiter for a small spoon and a small plate. She scooped a full spoonful of sauce from the bamboo jar into the noodle bowl, and with a quick stir with her chopsticks, the watery plain noodles suddenly became oily and moist. After scooping a spoonful into Zhou Ye's bowl, she scooped several more spoonfuls into the small plate, then pushed the small plate filled with chicken mushroom sauce in front of Zhou Ye. "Aye, eat the noodles we brought with this sauce."
Zhou Ye nodded, mixed the noodles in the bowl and started eating.
The man next to him slowed down his eating and couldn't help but glance at the dish. He tried to hold it back, but in the end, he couldn't help it and asked curiously, "Little brother, what kind of sauce do you have? It smells so good!"
Lin Shu laughed when she heard this. "Brother, the fatty pork noodles you eat are made with meat. Isn't that more delicious than my sauce?"
"You must have put meat in this sauce, otherwise it wouldn't be so fragrant!"
Lin Shu smiled and didn't reply. She just asked, "Brother, would you like to scoop a spoonful and try it?"
When the man heard this, his eyes lit up immediately, "Then I won't be polite!"
But before he could make a move, the woman next to him slapped him on the arm and said to Lin Shu awkwardly, "How can this be so embarrassing?"
Lin Shu glanced at the plain noodles in clear soup she was eating and said with a smile, "Sister-in-law, this is the sauce my family makes according to an ancestral recipe. You and big brother can help me taste it and see if there are any improvements. If you think it tastes good, I'll make a few more jars. We'll sell some at the market at the end of the month just in time for the big market."
After hearing this, the woman smiled. "This sauce is actually made by my youngest sister? Then I'll help you taste it. Apart from other things, my husband has a strong taste, so we buy a lot of sauces at home. My husband and I have tried almost all the sauces from the shops in Jingxi Town."
Lin Shu was delighted to hear this. Without waiting for the young woman to help herself, she enthusiastically scooped a spoonful into her bowl and said, "Sister-in-law, try it quickly and give me some advice after you're done."
The young woman didn't rush to mix the sauce. She picked up a little with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth to chew, nodding as she chewed. "The diced sauce in this sauce is crispy and has a great taste. It has the aroma of chicken, but it's not chicken. I think there are Sichuan peppercorns in the sauce. The slight numbing taste is just right for me, but my husband likes it numbing a bit more."
After tasting the sauce with her bare mouth, the woman then mixed it into the noodles. The plain noodles immediately became fresh and fragrant after being mixed with the sauce. The woman praised it highly after eating, "The sauce is very fragrant. Just one spoonful of sauce mixed into the noodles makes the whole bowl of noodles fragrant! Little sister, the sauce is rich in oil and water. Just for this reason, the sauce cannot be sold at a low price."
The man on the side had also scooped a spoonful of sauce and mixed it into the noodles. Although his noodles were toppinged with fatty shredded pork, the taste was diluted after he mixed in the second bowl of vegetarian noodles. It was just right that this spoonful of fragrant sauce came with it. As soon as he took a bite, he found it was just as fresh and fragrant as his wife said.
"Young lady, you're just asking for a high price. I've eaten so many sauces, and yours is not only generous with the oil, but it's also particularly fresh and fragrant. If I'm not mistaken, these crunchy sauce cubes should be some kind of mushroom?"
Lin Shu immediately praised, "Brother, you have a good tongue! This is a kind of mushroom that is a specialty of our mountain. It is an extremely rare mountain delicacy, comparable to shiitake mushrooms!"
"Hiss, then you can't sell this sauce at a low price. This wild delicacy is not cheaper than meat."
"Brother, you are very knowledgeable. In your opinion, how much can I sell this bamboo jar of sauce for?
"My wife is right. This sauce is rich in oil and water. If you add chicken broth, I think you'll have to pay at least fifty cents."
Lin Shu was delighted, but worriedly asked, "The asking price is so high, is there really anyone who would buy it?"
The man patted his chest and said, "Trust me, there must be one! There are many wealthy families in our town."
As the two sides chatted for so long, the middle-aged man across the table who had also ordered a bowl of plain noodles suddenly asked with a smug look on his face, "Young lady, can you give me a spoonful to taste too?"
Lin Shu generously pushed the small dish of chicken mushroom sauce to the middle of the table and said to the other diners with a smile, "My dear uncles and sisters-in-law, there's no need to add this sauce to the noodles with toppings, as it will ruin the original taste. But if you're eating plain noodles without toppings, you can scoop a spoonful of sauce into the noodles. Next time I'll set up a small stall nearby. If you enjoy the food, you can come and buy some from me. This sauce can be used with any dish, whether it's rice, noodles, or cold dishes. Just add a spoonful and you won't need any other seasonings. You can also dip steamed buns, flatbreads, and rolls in this sauce..."
Being at the same table, she could see and hear clearly everything the people around her did and said. As early as when Lin Shu scooped up the sauce to eat, the diners at the same table could smell the aroma of the sauce. Moreover, the couple praised it after eating. The other diners also wanted to try it, but they didn't know each other, so how could they have the nerve to ask a young lady for food.
As a result, someone was really shameless and it benefited all the diners at the table.
As soon as the middle-aged man who spoke started, the others who were originally embarrassed followed suit and scooped a spoonful. Even if someone asked for noodles with toppings, they would shamelessly scoop a spoonful and put it in their mouths to eat it plain.
The chicken mushroom sauce in Xiaodie's mouth was quickly scooped out by everyone, and Lin Shu quickly added some more.
In the end, even people at the neighboring table came to join in the fun and ask for the sauce.
Lin Shu accepted everyone's offer and gave everyone a spoonful.
"My dear lady, this sauce smells so good and goes really well with the noodles!"
"I think the diced sauce here is delicious, it has a chicken aroma!"
"Little sister, can you give me another spoonful?"
"I want another spoonful too!"
When only half of the chicken mushrooms in the bamboo jar were left, Lin Shu smiled and declined, "There aren't many left. Our boss still wants to eat noodles with sauce."
Zhou Ye, who was eating noodles in silence, turned his head to look at the smiling Lin Shu when he heard this, but said nothing.
Seeing that he was only eating noodles and was almost done, Lin Shu urged him, "Take out the noodles and eat them. Soak them in the noodle soup until they are softened, or tear them into small pieces and throw them in with our chicken mushroom sauce."
Zhou Ye grunted, took out the dough that had long become dry and hard from his arms, and gave one to Lin Shu first.
Lin Shu shook her head. "I'm full after eating a bowl of noodles. I'll give it all to you. You work a lot, so you have a big appetite."
A diner who had just had some chicken mushroom sauce saw this and immediately praised it, saying, "Little sister and her husband have such a good relationship!"
"Yes, my dear sister, you are beautiful, and your husband is tall, strong and sturdy, which is rare. You look like a perfect match!"
Lin Shu acted shy.
Zhou Ye buried his head in the bowl, pretending to drink the soup, but his ears were black and red as if they had been burned by fire.
Lin Shu glanced at his earlobe, which was particularly red this time, and smiled softly without saying a word.
This bowl of noodles was eaten quickly and people dispersed quickly.
The couple next to them said goodbye first.
"Little sister, if I meet you next time, I will ask you to buy a bamboo jar of sauce. My husband and I both love it!" said the woman.
Lin Shu thanked him quickly, and the others followed suit, whether they were pretending or sincere, appearing extremely enthusiastic.
After these people left, another group of people came. Lin Shu did not share her chicken mushroom sauce anymore. She glanced at the shop owner and saw that he was not looking at her. She couldn't help feeling disappointed.
However, this noodle soup shop is a long-established brand in the town and its business is pretty good, so there is really no need to bother with the sauce made by a country woman.
She still had to take it one step at a time. Many of the diners just now were locals in the town. If she met them again, she would try her best to turn them into her own customers.
Lin Shu finished her noodles and looked at Zhou Ye. Seeing that the soup in his bowl was almost absorbed by the noodles, she shouted to the busy waiter over there, "Brother, please give us some more noodle soup."
The waiter quickly brought over a pot of clear soup and poured it into Zhou Ye's bowl. He still had a smile on his face, just like before. But before leaving, he suddenly asked, "The shopkeeper asked me to ask if you would like to sell him some of the remaining sauce?"
Lin Shu was delighted in her heart, but she did not show it on her face. She just waved her hand and said, "How can this be? These are all leftovers, and there is only a layer of the bottom left. How can we sell them for money? If the shopkeeper wants to taste the sauce, just take it." As she said that, she handed the bamboo jar to the clerk.
The clerk glanced at the shopkeeper, took it with a smile, said thank you and left.
When the two finished eating and wanted to pay, the waiter did not accept the bill. "My boss said that we won't charge you for the noodles. The noodles with sauce are delicious. Next time you come to the market, I will sell you two bamboo pots of our boss's noodles."
Lin Shu happily agreed, "Okay, thank you for taking care of my business!"
What do you call this? This is called a new hope!
Although the shopkeeper did not talk to her about cooperation or business as soon as he arrived as she had imagined, the fact that he wanted to buy her chicken mushroom sauce showed that he actually had some ideas.
Lin Shu was not afraid that the shopkeeper would be dishonest and let the chef crack her secret recipe, because no one knew that the mushrooms in it were chicken mushrooms, and if other mushrooms were used, the taste would not be the same.
After leaving Li's noodle soup shop with Zhou Ye, Lin Shu grinned with joy.
"Aye, we're really lucky today! Your dried shiitake mushrooms are selling well, and my chicken mushroom sauce is also promoting well. What do you think we should do with the price? Although there are a lot of chicken mushrooms on the mountain, our chicken mushroom sauce requires a lot of oil to make, so the cost of the oil should be taken into account. What do you think about selling a small bamboo jar of chicken mushroom sauce like this for fifty cents, according to what the big brother said just now? How about a few less, forty-five cents a bamboo jar?"
Lin Shu said a lot but Zhou Ye didn't respond. She turned her head to look at him, but saw that he was distracted. Although his eyes were fixed on the road ahead, his gaze was wandering.
"A-Shu." Zhou Ye came back to his senses and suddenly frowned and said to her, "It's okay to say that when you're selling mushrooms, but you can't say that elsewhere. They'll take it seriously."
Lin Shu: ...
Lin Shu suddenly felt that someone like Zhou Ye deserved to be single for the rest of his life.
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