Chapter 9
It's very cold in February, with a late spring chill.
Before sunrise, the small vendors gathered in front of Luzhai, their tattered jackets tucked in tighter and their felt hats pressed down, craned their heads to look in Ye Jia's direction. The wind, whether intentionally or otherwise, carried the alluring aroma of fried pancakes. Those who had left home in the dark this morning and had nothing to eat had their stomachs growling at the mere smell. Those who had brought home-made pancakes, while still tucking into their own, kept their eyes darting in that direction.
Ye Jia nudged Yu who was standing in front, "Mom, shout something."
It was Yu's first time setting up a stall, and her face flushed with embarrassment: "Shout, what are you shouting about?"
Ye Jia was helpless. Even at this poverty level, she couldn't afford to lose face. So she held a spatula in one hand and chopsticks in the other. Once a juicy, fragrant shredded radish pancake was done, she used her other hand to pick it out and place it in a bamboo basket. She tapped the spatula against the edge of the pan, making two clangs, and then she called out in a clear, hearty voice, "Fresh-from-the-pan shredded radish pancakes! Six coins each! Fragrant and delicious, only six coins!"
This shout, so early in the morning, was a welcome wake-up call, and even those who hadn't seen the commotion inside looked over. The thought of freshly baked pancakes made their mouths water. Yu Shi struggled internally for a long time, but Ye Jia, unashamed, just kept shouting.
I thought it wouldn't be that easy, but after just shouting two or three times, two bearded vendors actually came over to ask.
Ye Jia just said: "One is six coins, two are ten coins."
The two bearded vendors must have been ravenous, huddled there in the freezing cold, cold and hungry. Hearing this sounded generous, they immediately opened their mouths and asked for four. The shredded radish pancakes were about the size of a bowl, a large earthenware bowl. A girl with a modest appetite would be full on one, and a strong man would have enough for a day on three. When Yu heard they wanted four, she mentally calculated the twenty wen. She quickly abandoned her shame and quickly grabbed the small bowl containing the copper coins, wrapped it in oil paper, and handed it over.
After getting twenty copper coins, a strong man came to ask for two more, which cost another ten cents.
Yu hadn't expected this thing to sell so well so early in the morning. Once someone opened their mouth, more people came asking. Those carrying loads to the town seeking work were all strong laborers, capable of carrying 200 kilograms for dozens of miles without getting out of breath. Naturally, they had plenty to eat. They weren't buying just one, but two or three. In the short time since Luzhai opened, Ye Jia had already sold over twenty.
"Wow, it sells really well." Yu really didn't expect that in less than half an hour, there would be more than a hundred coins in her small bowl.
Ye Jia remained silent. The advantage of the large iron frying pan was that it could fry multiple pieces at once, allowing them to be quickly sold. The noise coming from their side would inevitably alert the guards at the gate near Luzhai. Ye Jia packed four and had Yu Shi deliver them to the two men. Although they were setting up a roadside stall outside the tile market, who knew if the two men were also in charge of this roadside stall? If they started a fight, they would be in trouble.
Yu Shi also understood this principle, and always arranged these favors before doing anything. She no longer felt embarrassed and went there with the hot pancakes.
The two people over there were indeed watching. They didn't say anything at the moment; it was the first time they'd encountered street vendors, and they hadn't reacted yet. When they did, they would definitely chase them away. After all, if everyone set up stalls outside the tile market, how could they collect fees? The tile market was originally established to attract business, so how could they break the rules like this?
When Yu brought over four shredded radish pancakes, the two men's faces immediately brightened.
When the food was brought over, the two pretended not to accept it at first. Only after Yu hesitantly said some nice things did they pretend to accept it. Finally, she told Yu to save a seat for them later.
As the saying goes, the mouth that eats is soft, and the hand that takes is short. If you eat the cake for two, you naturally have to give it some convenience.
Yu returned happily. In just a short while, Ye Jia had sold another ten or so pancakes. Most of these small vendors weren't poor; some, like those selling fish and meat, were quite generous with their pancakes. Besides, Ye Jia's pancakes were truly excellent. The crust was crispy and flaky, and the filling was fresh and fragrant. They were infinitely better than their homemade food. Some even liked the taste, finding it even more fragrant than meat.
The crowd, huddled together, heard it. Everyone watched the excitement and wanted to try something new. Not only did Yu Shi not expect it, but neither did Ye Jia. Of the hundred or so pancakes he'd made yesterday, half were already sold before the market opened.
After a moment's wait, a gong sounded from the other side. The Luzhai was opened, and the crowd slowly began to squeeze in. Ye Jia slowly packed up, and she and Yu Shi moved the wheelbarrow onto the stove. But the pot was still burning, so they couldn't be impatient, for fear of tipping over and getting burned. The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law pushed the cart carefully. Fortunately, Yu Shi had just delivered a few pancakes, and since they were walking slowly behind, the gatekeeper inside had already made a good spot for them.
Ye Jia saw the helpful man glance into the basket and immediately made two more for him.
The big man knew the pancakes cost six coins each, but he ate two and took two more. That meant he'd taken twenty coins from the vendors. That was more than the vendors paid for setting up shop. He didn't mind the hot pancakes, wrapping them in oil paper and shoving them into his arms. "Come back tomorrow? I'll save a good spot for you two."
Ye Jia smiled immediately and thanked him repeatedly: "Thank you for taking care of me, sir."
The man ate what he took away, and felt very comfortable after hearing Ye Jia's compliment from an adult. He left happily with the cake in his pocket.
Ye Jia was also new to this business, and while she was bold, she was still feeling her way forward. She'd first made a hundred or so to test the waters, hoping to make more tomorrow if sales were good. But their stall closed in less than half an hour. Everything was sold out, leaving Yu with nothing left. After all that work, she was starving. But even with the hunger, she felt happy.
Yu clutched the bowl of copper coins, her smile radiant with joy. Six hundred coins! At this rate, she could easily make back her initial investment in a few days. Now she felt a little regretful. If she had known the cakes were selling so well, she should have made more yesterday.
Today was a happy day, so they should have something delicious to celebrate. Mrs. Yu remained silent for a rare moment. Her daughter-in-law was a bit extravagant with her money, but she was capable. No matter how much she spent, it was never excessive. Ye Jia ignored her inner grumbling and told her to quickly pocket the money. She told her not to get picked on in the tile market. He took twenty coins and went to the nearby pork stall to buy a piece of meat.
The butcher had just eaten a few pancakes from Ye Jia's stall and found them delicious. After cutting the meat for Ye Jia, he asked her if she would cook it again tomorrow. Ye Jia smiled and said yes. As she turned to pay, she spotted a large bucket of pig offal beneath the pork stall.
These days, people eat more fatty pork. Life is hard, and everyone craves fat. The best meat from pigs and sheep is naturally the fattiest, and the sizzling, oily texture is enough to satisfy your craving. Offal like this isn't often eaten. Firstly, it's difficult to clean, and secondly, if not cooked properly, it can be quite smelly. It's not expensive to buy; Ye Jia can take a bucket away for ten cents.
During the spring plowing season, the tile market sells a wide variety of goods, including seeds and rice seedlings.
A small package cost just over ten wen, quite expensive. Thinking of the large open space in the Zhou family's backyard, Ye Jia bought a small package of white cabbage seeds, a package of intestinal cleansing grass seeds, and a package of radish seeds. After a long time of searching, Ye Jia finally realized that intestinal cleansing grass was what we know today as chives. In this area, it's also called grass stalactite and yang-raising grass, and there are so many names for it that she didn't recognize it.
The taste of leeks is really delicious. If leeks were available, leek egg pancakes might sell better than shredded radish pancakes.
Thinking about this, Yu's smile faded when she saw Ye Jia carrying such a bucket of dirty offal. But she was so happy at the moment that she held back and didn't say anything to Ye Jia. Ye Jia didn't bother to explain. After thinking about it, he went to the old man selling sheep and bought another half bucket of goat milk.
It was just after 9:00 PM when the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law returned to the village. The sun was rising, radiating the morning glow. Both of them were beaming with joy as they returned home.
Ye Jia and Yu Shi worked together to carry the stove and pot back to the kitchen, and Rui Jie'er rushed out from the east room on her short legs. The frying pan still reeked of oil. Ye Jia turned around and brought down the meat and goat's milk. He asked Yu Shi to carry the offal to the well while he went to the back kitchen to boil the goat's milk.
Nutritional supplementation is a long-term process, and it won’t be a problem if you don’t drink it once. Regardless of whether it tastes strong or not, the whole family must insist on drinking it.
She started cooking goat milk and brought out the corn porridge that she had cooked early in the morning.
Each of them drank a bowl to fill their stomachs. Lunch would be ready soon, and then they'd make a good meal to satisfy their cravings. In the countryside, one unconsciously relaxed. Even eating seemed freer than usual. Ye Jia, who never used to carry a bowl around, ran to the backyard with one. While sipping porridge, he stared at the field, thinking about finding a village man to help plow it.
Zhou Jingchen watched her walk and drink from a coarse earthenware bowl. Her gentle movements were completely at odds with her wandering demeanor. Seeing her brows furrowed, as if she were pondering a difficult problem, he couldn't help but twitch his lips and called out to her, "Jia Niang."
Ever since he called her by her name, he was now comfortable calling Ye Jia by her name: "Can you help me go out and sit down?"
Ye Jia took another sip of porridge from the bowl, staring at him for a moment. Then, she gulped down the entire bowl, lifted the curtain, went inside, grabbed the man's arm, and lifted it onto her shoulder, helping him out. Rui Jie'er followed with difficulty, dragging a stool with her. Seeing Ye Jia half-holding Third Uncle standing in the sunny corner, she grunted and dragged the stool over to him.
As soon as the person pressed the button, Zhou Jingchen looked up at her: "What are you looking at in the backyard?"
Ye Jia was a pure science student, and her only experience in growing vegetables was with cacti. Now came the problem. If she hired someone to till the soil, how would she grow these vegetables? She dreamed it would be easy, but ideals are just ideals, and reality is real.
"You..." Ye Jia frowned and looked him up and down, "Can you grow anything?"
Zhou Jingchen understood immediately. Ye Jia was planning to plant something in the backyard. The Prince Regent had tended plants in his previous life, and outsiders said he was cold-hearted and guilty of killing. He had also faced this kind of dilemma, but later regularly practiced Zen with the master of Baixiang Temple and spent some time tending orchids and peonies. In his spare time, tending to cultivate his mind, he eventually developed a taste for it and cultivated quite a few unique specimens.
So he nodded: "I know a little bit."
Ye Jia's eyes lit up, and she immediately held his hand on his knee.
Ye Jia understood him. For someone as reserved as Zhou Jingchen, even knowing a little bit meant understanding him very well. Then she reached into her arms and, to Zhou Jingchen's astonishment, pulled out three small packages and placed them in his hands. "Great! I'm counting on you to take care of all this!"
Zhou Jingchen, whose hand was still nestled in the girl's palm: "..."
Is this Ye family a little different from what I remember?
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