The girl's clear voice rang out in the crowd, and soon attracted the attention of several people.
Old Sun, who was unloading goods at the dock, and his fellow workers had just reached the food street when they heard Meng Zhao's hawking voice.
"Boxed lunch? Old Wang, have you ever had one?"
"Never heard of this place. What is this boxed lunch? It's probably newly opened. Shall we go check it out?"
"Let's go see what this lunchbox is all about."
The two followed the sound to Meng Zhao's stall. As soon as they stopped, they were attracted by the delicious food in front of them. They usually only saw such dishes in shops, but they did not expect to see them at the dock.
"Boss, what kind of boxed meals do you sell for?"
"Two vegetarian dishes and one meat dish plus rice for eight coins, two meat dishes and one vegetarian dish plus rice for eleven coins. Buy now and get free mung bean soup. Brother, what would you like to eat?" The two men were completely captivated by the delicious food and only then noticed the two women in front of the stall.
Although their clothes were both made of linen, they looked clean and tidy. They wore sleeves, revealing a section of their wrists, which showed that they had been carefully washed without any stains. Their hair was also wrapped up, making them look particularly efficient.
Since the two women were setting up their stall, they felt a little embarrassed to look at them for too long, so they casually asked, "What kinds of dishes do you have? I've never seen many of them before."
Meng Zhao quickly introduced that this was their first customer, "This is braised pork, our family's secret recipe, why don't you try this?"
"Okay, this braised pork is fine." Old Sun had been eyeing the glistening pieces of meat for a while.
"Can you handle spicy food? This spicy chicken is really good with rice. If you can handle spicy food, you can try it."
"I can eat, I can eat, give me another one of these spicy diced chicken."
"If you're looking for a vegetarian dish, why don't you try this hot and sour shredded potato? It's crisp and refreshing, and it's one of my specialties."
"Okay, let's do it your way." Old Sun was very happy to see Meng Zhao serving the dishes, because he always filled the plate to the brim with rice and three dishes. The plate was already quite large, but it was completely full after being filled with rice and three dishes.
Unlike some stalls where the bowls are big at the top but small at the bottom, making them look like a big bowl but actually have very little filling.
After serving the rice, Meng Zhao asked Old Sun if he wanted some braised pork sauce poured over it, and Old Sun readily agreed.
Seeing Old Sun take the plate and squat down to eat heartily, Old Wang quickly ordered one for himself, but replaced the spicy chicken with minced meat and tofu.
The two squatted down next to Meng Zhao's stall and began to eat heartily, bite by bite, not even having time to speak. Seeing how much they enjoyed their meal, a bystander couldn't help but ask:
"Is it really that delicious?"
"Cough, cough, delicious! It's fragrant and spicy, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. I've lived for decades and have never eaten such delicious chicken." Old Sun finally managed to swallow the spicy chicken in his mouth before he had time to reply.
"This braised pork melts in your mouth the moment it touches your lips, filling your mouth with the aroma of meat. It's more delicious than all the meat I've eaten during Chinese New Year combined," Old Wang quickly replied, while stuffing something into his mouth as he spoke.
The two of them ate so heartily that they became like a living advertisement, attracting many customers to Meng Zhao.
Gu served the food and collected the money, Meng Zhao served the vegetables, and the two children helped by hawking the soup.
Before long, the stall became lively. Even Meng Zhao was a little surprised. He didn't expect the business to be so good. In no time, he had sold almost ten portions.
At this moment, two men dressed in shorts and trousers disembarked from a cargo ship docked at the pier. They were dark-skinned, muscular, and clearly seasoned sailors.
"Old Li, what would you like to eat today?"
"I don't know, I'll just eat whatever I see. It's better than eating flatbread on the boat."
The two walked onto the street and saw several people gathered around Meng Zhao's stall, which seemed quite lively, so they went over to take a look.
I noticed that the stall had a wide variety of dishes, all steaming hot, so I decided to give them a try.
I ordered two boxed meals, a little bit of everything, and then, along with the others, found a clean rock nearby to eat.
As soon as they put it in their mouths, the two of them were surprised. They traveled around with merchant ships all day long. The work on the ship was tiring and dangerous, but they earned more than those who carried cargo at the dock. So they had been to many places and eaten a lot of delicious food.
But no matter how good the shops I've been to before, none of them taste as good as this simple little stall. Even the most ordinary stir-fried eggplant has a unique flavor.
The rich, savory sauce paired with the tender eggplant is soft and delicious. Upon closer tasting, you can almost taste the savory, salty, and sweet flavors in this dish.
They enjoyed the meal so much that, thinking of their fellow passengers on the ship who were eating flatbread, the two felt they couldn't eat alone and went to find Meng Zhao.
"Boss, can we pack a few portions to take on the ship? We'll bring the plates back to you after we finish eating."
Meng Zhao looked at the two men; they were both quite decent-looking, and there was no cunning or deceitful expression on their faces. Although it's always good to be wary of others, Meng Zhao decided to trust them. He took the money, packed four boxed meals, and handed them to them.
The two men, each carrying a tray, hurried toward the boat. The aroma of food along the way drew the attention of several people who turned to look at what they were carrying.
The two returned before it was time to close up shop, handing over their trays. Meng Zhao asked warmly, "How was the meal, gentlemen? Is there anything you think needs improvement?"
The two shook their heads together and said, "No, we brothers have traveled all over the country and eaten a lot of good food, but we've never had such cheap and delicious food before."
"I'm glad you two are satisfied. These are all family recipes passed down through generations. We set up this stall to earn a little money for our family. If you like them, please come and support us more often. The dishes change every day." Seeing that the two were satisfied, Meng Zhao quickly tried to attract repeat customers. Six servings at a time is quite a lot.
"Sigh, we're only staying for a few hours. Once the goods are loaded, we have to leave. Who knows when we'll be back?" The two men exchanged a glance, pounding their chests in frustration, wishing they could stay another day to try other dishes.
Meng Zhao continued enthusiastically, "I will continue to set up my stall here, so you two brothers will always have the opportunity to try other dishes."
Today, Meng Zhao made nearly 20 servings of each dish, a total of six dishes. Each boxed meal contains three dishes, so they can only sell less than 40 boxed meals in total.
It hasn't even been an hour yet, and the rice is already sold out. There's only a little bit of vegetables left, so it's not suitable to sell anymore. They set up their stall in a hurry today and haven't had time to eat yet, so they'll just have to take care of what's left.
Meng Zhao said to a customer still standing in front of the stall, "I'm sorry, brother. Today is the first day of our business, and we didn't prepare enough vegetables. We've already sold out. We'll be open as usual tomorrow. If you want to eat, you can come back tomorrow."
Hearing Meng Zhao say this, the man was immediately disappointed. He had heard from his coworkers that this boxed lunch was delicious, but he still missed it despite rushing. He would have to come back tomorrow.
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