Setting Up Stalls – Chapter 125

Lion’s Head Meatballs with Crab Roe

Sun Miao pressed the button to unlock the door and walked to the entryway. The moment she opened it, she was greeted by the Hip-hop and Yabi duo. Both girls were carrying things. Looking past them, Sun Miao could see Hip-hop Mei’s car parked on the road by the entrance.

Sun Miao subconsciously asked, “Do you want to park inside?”

“It’s fine. This road is so wide, parking here is no big deal. I always park on the roadside whenever I come here to find my friend.” That friend of hers was the rich second-generation kid with the itasha¹ they had run into when delivering a meal previously. Hearing this, Sun Miao thought for a moment. The lane here was indeed quite wide, so she didn’t press the issue.

After coming inside and changing into slippers, Hip-hop Mei looked around and commented, “This decor really has Su-jie’s signature style. The main theme is just one word: aloof.”

“You’ve never been here?” Sun Miao was a little surprised.

Hip-hop Mei nodded. “Yeah. Su-jie’s a super busy person. Nine times out of ten when I look for her, she’s not home, and the one time she is, she’ll just turn me away. This is my first time in her house since she moved out of her old place.”

Hearing her say that gave Sun Miao a small, secret thrill of pride. Hehe, so I really am special in Susu-jie’s heart.

Seeing her silly, lovestruck look, Yabi Mei fell silent. She handed over the gift box she was carrying. “Here’s some fruit we bought on the way.”

Seeing this, Hip-hop Mei quickly handed over her own purchase. Sun Miao took them with a word of thanks. Knowing it was fruit, she planned to cut it up into a fruit platter for everyone to share later. Once inside, Hip-hop Mei spotted the food warmer on the dining table, which was already filled with dishes.

She was practically bursting with anticipation. “Is the Lion’s Head Meatballs with Crab Roe ready? I won’t eat it, just let me take a peek.”

How could Sun Miao refuse such a pitiful request, especially since it was just a peek? She lifted the lid of the tureen. Since they were eating at home, she hadn’t prepared individual small bowls. The tureen was rather large, taking up a quarter of the food warmer all by itself.

The moment the lid was opened, the delicate, savory aroma of the Lion’s Head Meatballs with Crab Roe wafted out. Hip-hop Mei’s eyes were glued to the dish, staring intently. She looked like a lion that had been starved for a year, her eyes practically glowing green. Sensing trouble, Sun Miao quickly put the lid back on.

“Ah!” Startled, Hip-hop Mei let out a tragic cry. “Little Boss Sun, why are you so stingy? I was just looking, and you took it away!”

Yabi Mei sniped at her from the side, “You got your look, be happy with it. Any longer and your drool would’ve dripped in.”

“How could that happen?”

The two started bickering again. After a few exchanges, Hip-hop Mei turned to praise Sun Miao. “Little Boss Sun, you know what they say: clothes make the man, and a good plate makes the dish. Your food is always delicious, a feast for the senses, but with a proper plate to show off its ‘color,’ it looks so much better. It just makes you want to dive in immediately.”

Hip-hop Mei was telling the truth. The Lion’s Head Meatballs with Crab Roe, served in a proper dish, looked a cut above all the other food she had made before. Of course, the price was different, too. At 588 yuan per meatball, it had to look the part.

The porcelain-white tureen was painted with green leaves and white flowers. A pool of clear broth rested inside, so clear you could glimpse the cabbage lining the bottom. The Lion’s Head Meatballs with Crab Roe sat atop it, its crab roe topping breaking the surface of the water. Two or three specks of chopped scallion garnished the very top of each one. The presentation couldn’t be better.

Because this was for her own home, Sun Miao hadn’t gone all out with the plating. A more refined presentation would involve individual small bowls, perhaps with gold-inlaid rims, and cabbage leaves arranged on the side to create the poetic image of a lotus gracing clear water.

But regardless, the Lion’s Head Meatballs with Crab Roe was breathtakingly beautiful.

Yabi Mei nodded in agreement. “It does look a little better than what you sell at the stall.”

“Little Boss Sun, you’re in a bet with those people. What kind of containers are you preparing? At the very least, you should get some thick, blue-and-white porcelain² style bowls, right?”

At this, Sun Miao looked a little guilty. Her eyes darted away from the two of them, and her voice grew softer. “Just… the bowls I use for the Bubble Mini Wontons.”

“…” Both Hip-hop Mei and Yabi Mei fell silent. “Wait, for something that costs 588 a serving?”

“But disposable bowls are expensive, too! Those blue-and-white porcelain ones cost 5 yuan a set. For 20 servings, that’s 100 yuan. If I sell for 7 days, that’s 700 yuan!” Sun Miao argued forcefully. When it came to money, the guilt on her face was replaced by the sting of a true miser. She felt it was completely unnecessary to waste her budget on that. The bowls she bought were biodegradable, too!

Hip-hop Mei took a deep breath. “May as well die from being so cheap!”

Sun Miao’s stingy persona had truly never once collapsed.

In the end, the Hip-hop and Yabi duo distanced themselves from the dining table. They were genuinely afraid that a moment of weakness would cause them to pounce on the food. The three of them relocated to the living room, each finding a spot on the sofa.

Truthfully, they didn’t have much to talk about. Sun Miao didn’t share many common topics with them, and once food was off the table, the conversation became stilted. Given the circumstances, Yabi Mei was a little curious: how on earth did she and Su Ruixi hit it off? Then again, she thought, with Su Ruixi and Sun Miao getting together, she was the one who benefited.

Just look—if it weren’t for Su Ruixi, she wouldn’t be able to eat Lion’s Head a day early. Plus, she’d already seen that there were a good ten meatballs in there. With only four of them, her brilliant mind calculated that she could very likely eat three.

Although their trip to Yuanfu Lou yesterday had made it impossible for them to go buy the Lion’s Head Meatballs with Crab Roe, it was limited to 20 servings and sold at a specific time. The two of them weren’t even sure they could have snagged one!

With nothing to say for the moment, they all bowed their heads—and started playing on their phones.

It was a scene perfectly befitting a modern gathering of young people. Seeing this, Sun Miao also picked up her phone and began scrolling through her group chat.

In the group, everyone was stunned by the price of the Lion’s Head Meatballs with Crab Roe. While Sun Miao’s food had always been on the pricey side, it had been small stuff, dishes in the tens of yuan, with the most expensive being thirty. Although pricier than other stalls, it was within an acceptable range for everyone. Now, the appearance of a 588 yuan Lion’s Head Meatballs with Crab Roe had plunged them all into silence.

【That’s… too expensive. I really can’t afford it. Little Boss Sun, isn’t this price a bit…?】

【It’s really expensive. Even in a restaurant, it’s only about 188 per serving. Didn’t Little Boss Sun’s message say it’s only one meatball per serving? Way too expensive, I’m out.】

【It is quite pricey. I really can’t afford it this time.】

588 yuan, even in a city famous for its high cost of living, was enough for an all-you-can-eat buffet with everything from land, sea, and air. To spend it on a single meatball seemed a bit absurd. However, the group still had many wealthy members. After all, she had sold Malatang right at the entrance of Cuiting Yayuan.

So, the old Malatang customers immediately stood up for her:

【588, isn’t that the same price as Yuanfu Lou? Although Yuanfu Lou’s portion is a bit bigger, the price is still fine.】

【I trust Little Boss Sun’s skill. At the entrance of Yuanfu Lou, right? I’ll charge right over.】

【Honestly, the stuff from Yuanfu Lou might not even be as good as Little Boss Sun’s. The presentation looks great. I’m going to buy one too.】

【Speaking of which, it’s been a while since I ate at Yuanfu Lou. I’ll just buy a Lion’s Head and bring it inside to eat with some other dishes I order there.】

Of course, some people also discovered something fishy:

【Wait, did Little Boss Sun have a falling out with Yuanfu Lou? Selling right at their doorstep?】

【Are you allowed to set up a stall at Yuanfu Lou’s entrance? Won’t she get her stall smashed for stealing business like that?】

【I heard from someone at Yuanfu Lou that four girls got into a conflict with the manager and head chef there yesterday. It couldn’t be Little Boss Sun, could it?】

The truly clever ones, at this very moment, were sending private messages to Sun Miao:

【Zhou Ling’s Mom: Little Boss Sun, can we only buy one at a time? Can you help buy one for me? You know, I have a big family, one serving is definitely not enough.】

【The itasha owner: Can I buy two servings? One isn’t enough to eat, wuwuwu.】

【Grandma Li: My sweet girl³ loves your food. My legs aren’t what they used to be, so I don’t know if I can squeeze past the young people. Little Sun, can this old grandma shamelessly ask you to save one for me?】

【The Lemon Tea Boss: I still have some savings. I beg to purchase.】

Sun Miao replied to all of them. For those asking her to save portions or wanting to buy more, the answer was no. The time Sun Miao set for her stall was too specific—from 11 AM to 2 PM. Many people definitely wouldn’t be able to make it in time. Only those with both money and leisure time would ask Sun Miao to help save them a portion.

However, there were relatively few rich people, and with three of them already excluded, Sun Miao was worried about whether she could sell out.

Her main concern was the first day. Once her business got going, she was sure they would sell out quickly.

After chatting for a while, Sun Miao excused herself to the Hip-hop and Yabi duo and went into the kitchen to continue cutting her fruit platter. Just as she was about done, she heard a sound from the garage and knew Su Ruixi was back. She carried the fruit platter out just in time to see Su Ruixi walking through the door.

A smile blossomed on Sun Miao’s face. Her eyes met Su Ruixi’s, and just as she was about to say something, Hip-hop Mei beat her to it. “Su-jie, you’re back? We’ve been sitting here for a while.”

“…” Yabi Mei lowered her head. Did anyone ask you to get between the little couple? What a third wheel!

Su Ruixi thought the same. Her expression returned to its usual cool composure as she gave a faint nod. “Mn.” After that, Sun Miao called out for everyone to wash their hands and come over.

Once they were all seated, the first target of attack was, without a doubt, the Lion’s Head Meatballs with Crab Roe. As the host, Su Ruixi made the first move. She served one to Sun Miao first, then to Yabi Mei, and finally, it was Hip-hop Mei’s turn. Hip-hop Mei didn’t care about any of that; her entire being was focused on the bowl of Lion’s Head Meatballs with Crab Roe.

The tableware in Su Ruixi’s home was all quite expensive, top-notch in both quality and appearance. The bowl was porcelain-white, with a single branch of green leaves and a white flower painted at the bottom. The Lion’s Head rested quietly within it, the clear broth allowing a perfect view of the pattern below. With a gentle movement of the spoon, the soup rippled, as if the painted leaves and flower had come to life, swaying gently.

The Lion’s Head itself was breathtakingly beautiful.

Hip-hop Mei rarely used that word to describe food, but at this moment, it was absolutely true.

The meatball was primarily white, with the surrounding meat fanning out like the mane of a lion from a classical painting. The golden crab roe on top was like the finishing touch on a masterpiece, utterly mouth-watering.

In a word: Hip-hop Mei couldn’t hold back any longer.

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