Urged on by Grandpa Zhao, Jiang Hong hurriedly went downstairs to find the stall where he had bought the pancakes earlier. There were already several people in line, but when it was his turn, the soy milk was gone!
"I'm so sorry," Song Xia said apologetically. "It's my first day setting up a stall, and I didn't expect business to be so good. We've sold out of soy milk."
Not only was the soy milk sold out, but there were also only a few pancake doughs left. Jiang Hong decided to buy them all, since he himself wasn't full yet!
"Looks like you all have good taste, just like me. Sister, are you setting up your stall at this time tomorrow too?"
"Yes, you're welcome to come again tomorrow."
Jiang Hong thought he would definitely come again tomorrow. He had a habit of eating whatever he wanted until he got tired of it, then he would stop for a while and start eating it again. He thought he could keep eating this pancake for a long time.
"Sister, are you setting up your stall tonight?"
"We need to prepare the raw materials at night. If we set up a stall at night, we won't have time to prepare for the next morning, so for now we'll only set up in the morning."
Jiang Hong felt it was a bit of a pity. Such delicious pancakes would surely make a good business tonight, and this would mean missing out on a lot of money. However, since it wasn't his own business, he let it go.
"Sister, do you knead the dough and chop the filling for the pancakes yourself?"
"Yes! Many people can tell the difference between good and bad fillings just by tasting them. I don't even trust the butcher's meat. I always buy large pieces of meat and chop it myself and season it myself."
Jiang Hong still believed in this point. After all, he had witnessed how picky Grandpa Zhao was during the half month he worked as his caregiver. He couldn't stand anything that wasn't good enough in terms of ingredients and taste. It was rare to find such healthy food at a roadside stall.
Seeing that she sold out of everything she had prepared on her first day, many people cast envious glances at her. Even street vendors have to rely on their skills! And the food smelled really good. Maybe they'll try it sometime.
Jiang Hong took the cakes over. At this moment, Grandpa Zhao's daughter arrived. Grandpa Zhao did not eat the food in the hospital. Every morning, before going to work, Grandpa Zhao's daughter would personally prepare the food and bring it to him. At noon, she would order private dishes for him, and after getting off work in the evening, she would prepare the food and bring it to him again.
It has to be that the family is wealthy, and Mr. Zhao himself has a decent pension; otherwise, his children wouldn't be able to afford such a hassle, even with his caregiver by his side.
Grandpa Zhao never touches the nutritious and delicious porridge he usually eats, he just waits for the pancakes that Jiang Hong buys.
Then his daughter Zhao Jing complained: "Dad, you said you don't like the food outside, so I cook and bring it to you every day, and you end up eating such greasy pancakes first thing in the morning?"
"Take a bite first." Grandpa Zhao was too lazy to waste words. Seeing that Jiang Hong had bought several, he stuffed one into his daughter's mouth.
"Hmm?" Zhao Jing blinked; this pancake seemed a little different.
After asking Jiang Hong to deliver two to the patient in the next bed, Grandpa Zhao quickly took a bite himself: "This pancake is a bit oily on the outside, but the filling is very clean. It's not made with spoiled meat. And although it's oily, the crust is very crispy. It's better than any pancake I've ever eaten before."
As he ate, he asked with some regret, "Xiao Jiang, where's the soy milk?"
"The soy milk is sold out, but luckily I arrived in time. These pancakes are also the last few. But if you like them, Uncle Zhao, you can buy them again tomorrow. I asked the lady who makes the pancakes, and she said she'll come again tomorrow morning."
After listening, Grandpa Zhao smacked his lips and said, "You guys haven't tried that soy milk. It's incredibly fragrant and smooth. You can tell it's homemade just by tasting it. Paired with this meat pie, it's just the right amount to cut through the greasiness."
"Do street vendors now make their own soy milk?" Zhao Jing instinctively didn't believe it, but the quality of the pancake was so good that the soy milk might actually be homemade.
Grandpa Zhao snorted twice: "If you don't believe me, you'll know for sure when you drink it yourself tomorrow."
When it was time for the doctors and nurses to make their rounds, they also smelled the delicious aroma and were irresistibly drawn to it. Seeing their eagerness, Grandpa Zhao enthusiastically introduced it as a new stall that had recently opened next to the hospital.
Doctors and nurses saw it on their way to work in the morning and immediately recognized which store it was, thinking that they would definitely buy it when they came to work tomorrow.
So, without anyone noticing, in just one day, Song Xia's stall became famous in the hospital. In fact, it wasn't just the hospital; it also spread to some companies in the surrounding area. After all, how many people born in China don't yearn for delicious food?
The next day, Song Xia prepared twice as many ingredients as the day before, and even added tea eggs, but they still sold out. However, she plans to make only this many from now on; any more and she'll get tired.
Once she has saved up some money, she will see if she can rent a small shop nearby and hire a helper. Although this will increase her expenses for rent and helper, it will make her life much easier. She will also be able to sell more items and won't have to worry about rainy days or being chased away by the city management officers.
In just three days, Song Xia earned back all the costs of setting up her stall. Seeing how well her business was doing, the other stall owners either looked on with envy or jealousy.
Among them, Song Xia felt that the man selling fried noodles and fried rice was the most malicious. Indeed, since she came over, she probably took away a lot of his business. After all, if you buy a pancake for breakfast, why would you buy a serving of fried noodles?
But Song Xia was not afraid at all. She relied on her skills to run her business, and she did not belittle or slander others.
But when she woke up on the fourth morning, she found that the air in her cart had been deflated. Without a doubt, the man was the prime suspect, because he had followed her for a while after she closed her stall the day before.
So, Song Xia, who hadn't originally planned to do anything, started selling fried noodles and fried rice in the evenings. So what if it was a little hard work? She was determined to make sure this man couldn't sell anything in this area!
Many regular customers, seeing that she started setting up her stall in the evening, began to line up out of trust in her original intentions. In the end, they were surprised to find that her fried noodles and fried rice were just as delicious as the meat patties, but had a different flavor altogether.
Among them were Jiang Hong and Zhao Jing, the daughter of Grandpa Zhao, who were also in the queue. They genuinely hoped that Song Xia's stall could continue operating.
The next day, the man lowered the price of his fried noodles and fried rice by one yuan, seemingly trying to wage a price war with Song Xia. However, even though Song Xia didn't lower her price, most people still came to buy from her. Even her regular customers, seeing the long queues, started trying it out of curiosity. As a result, the man's business got worse and worse.
People these days aren't short of a yuan or two. The most important thing is that it tastes good, and you can tell as soon as you taste it that Song Xia uses better raw materials and the counter is cleaner. Why would you choose any other option?
Finally, the man was forced to leave a week later. After all, most of the people who set up stalls were trying to make a living, so how could they keep being stubborn?
But when Song Xia wanted to stop offering evening service, the customers objected. If Song Xia didn't serve, where would they get such delicious food? So she had no choice but to continue, but with limited sales each day.
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