The rich and spicy taste, along with the steaming heat, diffused throughout the market.
"Hey, what's that smell? It smells weird to me." asked a businessman from outside the province.
The person walking with him sniffed, then looked around and pointed at Li Ji Snack Shop. "It smells quite nice to me. Brother Wei said that Li Ji's fried noodles with soybean paste are actually quite good. Let's go and try it."
The two men belonged to the same caravan, but they had been assigned to other places to carry out missions and had never been to Rongcheng.
When they returned to the base camp, they enviously listened to their teammates bragging about how delicious Rongcheng's fried noodles were and how silky the iced milk tea was. Every bite made them feel refreshed from the inside out!
This time, as soon as the leader announced the mission to Rongcheng, the two of them grabbed it without hesitation. They wanted to see whether the food that those guys boasted about as good as the best in the world was really worthy of its name!
As the two approached the snack shop, the originally faint spicy aroma became stronger. They leaned over to look into the pot in the kitchen and saw a thick brown substance coming out of the pot.
The two of them couldn't help but murmur in their hearts, this sticky thing doesn't look very appetizing, how can it be delicious?
At this time, Li Yan, who was standing in front of the shop, hurriedly greeted them, "What would you like to eat, gentlemen? Please come in first."
Before they even entered the snack shop, one of them asked, "Do you have any noodles with soybean paste? And that thing, oh, right, iced tea?"
"We have noodles with soybean paste, but now that the weather is getting colder, we only have hot milk tea, no iced!"
"Okay then, give us one portion each of the two dishes!" After saying that, the two of them stepped into the snack shop one after another.
They arrived early, and there were no other customers in the shop at that moment. Li Jianmin used another pot to stir-fry the sauce. As the pot sizzled, the two of them instantly filled their noses with a rich aroma.
"It smells good." One person couldn't help but take a sip of the milk tea in the bowl.
Compared with milk tea with ice cubes, warm milk tea tastes better. The mellowness of milk and the fragrance of tea blend well together. The two couldn't help but drink sip after sip.
It is easy to make noodles with soybean paste. The noodles are ready-made. Just boil some water and add the freshly fried soybean paste. The rich sauce wraps around the chewy noodles. The two of them couldn’t help but widen their eyes after taking a bite. It was really delicious!
Then from time to time, there were slurping sounds as if he was eating with relish!
There are not many people here at this moment.
Li Jianmin picked up the bowl and poured a bowl of spicy soup for each of them. "Eat something first to fill your stomach. I'm afraid you'll be too busy to eat later."
When handing it to Xiaocao, Li Yan saw a faint blush on Xiaocao's face, and then she lowered her head shyly.
Seeing the affection in the elder brother's eyes and the shy look on Xiaocao's face, it seems that they both care about each other!
Li Jianmin stared at Xiaocao with a blunt gaze and asked, "Try this spicy soup. How does it taste? Do you like it?"
At first, Xiaocao's cheeks turned slightly red because of his fierce gaze. After hearing his question, she took a sip.
Suddenly, a spicy taste spread across the tip of her tongue. After the numbing sensation as if ants were gnawing on her food faded away, she took another sip as if possessed by some unknown force.
Xiaocao, who had never eaten spicy food, had a thin layer of sweat on her forehead, her cheeks flushed, and her little mouth exhaled a sweet breath, saying "It's spicy" in a hasty tone.
Seeing that she liked it, Li Jianming smiled and explained, "It's normal for you to find it spicy since it's your first time trying something spicy. Is this level of spiciness acceptable to you?"
Xiaocao nodded affirmatively.
This kind of food seems to have a kind of magic. You may not feel it when you take a bite, but after the burning sensation in your mouth subsides, you will be unable to resist trying a second bite!
Li Yan looked at the awkward and straightforward interaction between the two and couldn't help but curl up the corners of her mouth. She then lowered her head to drink the spicy soup to hide the smile on her face.
The three of them had just finished drinking the spicy soup in their bowls when people started coming into the shop one after another.
"What is this thick, sticky thing in the shop? How much is it?"
Li Jianmin immediately greeted, "This is our new dish today, called Hu La Tang, three cents a bowl."
When the man heard that it only cost three cents, he immediately ordered a bowl without hesitation!
All things are difficult at the beginning. Once the first person tries it, more and more people will follow suit.
Soon, the whole snack shop was filled with hissing sounds!
Siha, Siha...
Siha...Siha
"What's the name of this soup in the store? Give me another bowl, it tastes so good!" a customer called out.
Another customer chimed in, "Yeah, yeah, I had a stuffy nose, but after drinking this bowl of soup, I felt so refreshed, I even started sweating!"
"That's right, that's right. I've been traveling for many days and didn't have much of an appetite. But when I smelled the aroma of food on the street, I was completely captivated and walked over here. Now, after drinking a bowl, my appetite has been whetted. I asked the owner to give me another bowl!"
Li Jianmin quickly filled the two people's cups and said with a smile, "This is our new dish today, it's called Hu La Tang. Enjoy it, my dear guests!"
The two people who ordered noodles with soybean paste at the beginning couldn't help but feel tempted after hearing so many people cheering!
Since they had come all the way here, they didn’t mind spending a few cents, so they ordered two bowls.
Soon the hot spicy soup was served. At first glance, the dark brown stuff really did not make people feel appetizing.
After they tasted it, they couldn't help but want to have a second bite, and before they knew it, they had joined the 'Shaha' army.
I felt like my mouth was on fire, but I couldn't stop!
The numbing feeling on their taste buds was a pleasure they had never experienced before. They had made the right decision to come to Rongcheng this time!
Remembering what the shop owner had just said, that today's spicy hot soup was a new dish, that also meant that their companions had never tasted it before.
Thinking of this, the two decided to show off to their companions who didn't come with them when they returned!
It also makes them feel anxious and uncomfortable!
After a while, the whole pot of spicy soup was sold out!
A customer who heard the news came over, tiptoed to look at the empty pot, and asked with some disappointment, "Shopkeeper, do you have any more spicy soup?"
Li Yan apologized, "Sir, you've arrived at an unfortunate time. The spicy soup has just sold out. If you're willing to wait, please wait a quarter of an hour. The kitchen is already preparing it!"
The man originally looked a little disappointed, but after hearing what Li Yan said, he immediately said that he could wait!
Those who had tasted Hu La Tang would brag about it to their old friends or neighbors on their way home. As a result, snack shops welcomed and sent off waves of customers!
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