Liu jumped off the oxcart with a smile and said to the crowd:
"Don't rush, we've made a lot of new and different dishes today, so everyone can try them out."
Jiang Yuwei busily directed everyone to set up their stall. While Aunt Zhou and Ning Qiu were starting the fire, Jiang Yuwei also hung up her counter and menu.
"I'm sorry to have kept you all waiting. Please go and see what you want to eat first. Then come to my stall to line up, pay, and get a number. Then go to the corresponding stall to exchange your food."
Jiang Yuwei then said to Aunt Zhou and the others:
“You are responsible for introducing the items at your own stalls. Uncle Cai will be in charge of serving the dishes. Ningwu, you come over here and help me explain and maintain order.”
Even though the people in the capital were well-traveled and knowledgeable, they had never seen anything like this before. They had to queue up, pay money first, and get some kind of token to exchange for food. Everyone was eager to try it but dared not go alone.
After setting up her counter, Jiang Yuwei noticed the doubts in everyone's minds, so she whispered to Ning Wu:
"In a moment, slowly follow the steps I taught you before and demonstrate them to these guests."
Ning Wu nodded, and Jiang Yuwei handed him some loose silver coins, then said to the onlookers:
"You may not have seen a stall like this before. Now, let's have this young man demonstrate it for you. Please watch carefully."
Ning Wu first walked up to Aunt Zhou's spicy hot pot stall and asked:
What are you selling here?
Seeing this, Aunt Zhou didn't hesitate and shouted loudly:
"This is called Mala Tang, it's so delicious! My broth is made from meat and bones simmered for a long time, it's incredibly spicy and flavorful, I guarantee you'll want a second bowl after you finish one. Here, have a bowl, sir, it's twenty coins a bowl, and you can fill it up with whatever you like!"
Ning Wu exclaimed in surprise:
"Since it's so cheap, everything I put in my bowl is mine, right?"
Aunt Zhou smiled and nodded, handing Ning Wu a bamboo bowl. Ning Wu took the bowl and began to fill it with food. The onlookers stared wide-eyed as the food piled higher and higher in Ning Wu's bowl, while Aunt Zhou continued to smile.
Soon, Ningwu handed the bowl to Aunt Zhou.
"Cook it for me."
Aunt Zhou smiled and said,
"Okay, give me the tag."
Ningwu then took out a red bamboo plaque from his pocket and handed it to Aunt Zhou. Aunt Zhou took the plaque and began to cook spicy hot pot for Ningwu.
"Mom, this spicy hot pot smells so good, I want to eat it too."
"I can't believe they can cook so much together! I want a bowl."
Ning Wu demonstrated to each stall again, having them explain their products to everyone. The crowd, unable to resist the aroma, rushed to line up in front of Jiang Yuwei's counter.
Seeing this, Ning Wu also rushed to the counter to maintain order.
"Everyone, hurry up and line up! Line up!"
Soon, the people who arrived later also realized they had to queue. As for how to buy the food, Jiang Yuwei was busy collecting money and keeping accounts. Her account book was quite simple.
It involves writing down what each stall sells, marking each item sold, and then counting the total number of items sold each day to calculate how much money was earned.
"This tastes somewhat familiar."
Ning Zixuan, who had just come out of his own grain shop, smelled the scent in the air and murmured to himself.
Then, as he turned around, he saw a large crowd gathered outside the market, and Ning Zixuan's heart skipped a beat.
He strode forward, pushed through the crowd, and saw Jiang Yuwei sitting behind a table, her head bowed, intently taking notes.
Ning Zixuan was stunned for a few seconds. Looking at Jiang Yuwei's smiling face, he felt a tightness in his heart. Didn't he tell her to come to the Jingwang Mansion to find him when she got to the capital?
Ning Zixuan approached and stood outside the crowd, staring intently at Jiang Yuwei, muttering to himself:
Why don't you come to find me? Would you rather set up a stall here than come to me?
After saying that, Ning Zixuan couldn't help but give a wry smile.
He then strode up to Jiang Yuwei and said coldly:
When did you arrive in the capital?
When Jiang Yuwei looked up and saw Ning Zixuan, she immediately smiled happily:
"Ning Zixuan, what are you doing here? Oh, go wait over there first. Can't you see I'm busy? I'll talk to you later."
As she spoke, Jiang Yuwei waved her hand, signaling Ning Zixuan to move aside.
Ning Zixuan frowned and obediently stood behind Jiang Yuwei, just quietly watching her.
Jiang Yuwei quickly distributed all the signs she had prepared. She had calculated the exact number of signs beforehand and brought them out. Once the signs were sold out, it meant that the food at the stall was also gone.
So Jiang Yuwei stood up and said to everyone:
"We've sold out of snacks for today. We'll be back tomorrow, so come back if you want anything!"
"Ugh, I've been queuing for so long for nothing!"
"I really want to eat it!"
"Waaah, Mom, I want to eat!"
Seeing this, Jiang Yuwei quickly put the account book and silver into her spatial storage when no one was looking. She then tidied up the items on the counter and went to Aunt Zhou's stall. Seeing that they had almost sold out, she said to them:
"If there's any left, you can sell them individually; you don't need to get a tag."
Everyone nodded in agreement, and Jiang Yuwei then walked to Ning Zixuan's side and said:
What are you doing here?
Ning Zixuan said calmly:
"Just passing by."
Jiang Yuwei responded with an "Oh".
After a moment of silence, Ning Zixuan finally couldn't help but ask:
"When did you arrive in the capital? Didn't I tell you to come to Prince Jing's residence to find me after you got there?"
Jiang Yuwei glared at him like he was an idiot and said:
“Now that you are a noble prince, how can we commoners possibly see you? It’s not like I haven’t tried to visit your residence before, but your servants stopped me at the door, saying I was a poor relative trying to freeload, and that I couldn’t even see you even if I gave them money.”
Ning Zixuan frowned upon hearing this and said:
"These lackeys need to be taught a lesson!"
Jiang Yuwei pondered for a moment and said:
“Didn’t I tell Xu Qianqian to tell you that we are living in Fish and Bird Lane now? I waited for several days but you didn’t come looking for us. I thought that after you came to the capital, you didn’t want to associate with us poor people anymore, so I didn’t go to Prince Jing’s Mansion to look for you.”
Upon hearing this, Ning Zixuan clenched his fists and stared at Jiang Yuwei, saying:
"Xu Qianqian didn't tell me about this. I had no idea you had arrived in the capital. I was even thinking of sending someone to Ninghe Town to inquire about you. I never expected to meet you here today."
Jiang Yuwei smiled knowingly upon hearing this.
"Haha, I see. I should have known that Xu Qianqian wouldn't help me pass on the message to you."
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