Setting Up Stalls – Chapter 162

I Say Zongzi

【Even if no one had mentioned it today, we would have paused the stall for the plum rain season. According to the system’s speculation, the plum rain season will arrive on the night of the 23rd. The Host will have just finished the next cycle of running the stall, and can then rest for twelve days until the plum rain season ends, and then continue with the stall. In addition to this, we have also made plans for the summer period, mainly running the stall at night to sell seasonal summer snacks. If the winter is too cold, we will also cancel the stall.】

The system, it really is a good system.

Looking at it this way, my luck is really good. This is a tongzi¹ that is so good it’s almost abnormal. The kind from other stories that will obliterate or give electrotherapy² to the host at a moment’s notice is the more standard type of system. Sun Miao sighed with emotion in her heart, then praised the system without reservation.

To a certain extent, her system’s personality and Su Ruixi’s had the wonder of different tunes achieving the same result³; both were quite tsundere.

Perhaps I just naturally attract tsundere types.

In a corner unknown to Sun Miao, the sky had collapsed for the regular customers⁴. When Sun Miao arrived on-site to set up her stall, the group of regular customers who had arrived early began to wail with a handful of snot and a handful of tears, “I don’t know if I’ll even be able to get in line tomorrow, this is terrifying! What do I do? I can’t compete with other people at all!”

“Wuwuwu, how could this happen? I only knew to worry about the student party, how did I never think that one day I’d encounter something like the tourist party!”

“Help, I woke up and the whole world is fighting me for Little Boss Sun!”

They were all talking at once about many different things, and Sun Miao looked completely unable to figure out what was going on. It was Yabi Mei who was calmer, seeing that Sun Miao had no idea what had happened. She first asked, “You didn’t check the group chat or browse the local Little Red Book⁵ last night, did you?”

“Haha, I just forgot…”

Everyone’s accusing gazes swept over Sun Miao, their eyes full of condemnation. This was especially true for Hip-hop Mei; she was shameless and yelled the loudest, “I knew it! You were lying to me last time when you said you’d check the group chat! You didn’t look at all! Last night, the messages in the group chat that @’d you added up to a full hundred, and you didn’t read a single one!”

Sun Miao felt a little guilty, but she couldn’t be blamed. Last night, Su Ruixi had pulled her close, telling her to “come on.” What could Sun Miao do? Of course, she could only lie in the hometown of tenderness⁶; how could she possibly pay attention to any group chat?

Just as she was about to change the subject, she was caught by Yabi Mei again. Yabi Mei directly took out her phone, tapped it a couple of times, and held it in front of her.

Sun Miao glanced at it and saw the food cart for “Miao Miao’s Mobile Food Bar” in the middle of the most eye-catching picture, and the title below it: 《I Won’t Allow People Visiting the Pedestrian Street to Miss This Zongzi!》

She looked again, and the number of comments and likes was ridiculously high.

“I’ll take a look later, let me set up the stall first. If I don’t start selling soon, the student party will be here any minute.” This sentence hit right where the group of regular customers wanted⁷. Although they were all very angry, they still obediently formed a line. One by one, they bought Sun Miao’s zongzi, and after buying, they still had to remind her, “Little Boss Sun, next time find a more hidden place to set up your stall. You absolutely can’t be this conspicuous!”

“I know, I know, you should get going!”

Only after sending this wave of customers off did Sun Miao have time to sit down. She opened the group chat, which was perpetually at 99+, and she was too lazy to scroll up. Luckily, Hip-hop Mei was persistent and had been continuously @’ing her to look at the post. After clicking the link that took her to Little Red Book, Sun Miao began to read the post.

The first thing she saw was the picture she had just glanced at. The first photo was of her little stall; the “Miao Miao’s Mobile Food Bar” sign was especially conspicuous, as were the people lined up in a long queue in front of the food cart. Swiping left to the second photo, it was a picture of the blogger and her friend holding their zongzi, with a line of text added on top: “Finally bought zongzi!”.

The third photo was of a zongzi that was half-eaten, showing a picture of the cross-section.

This blogger was quite good at taking photos. In any case, Sun Miao thought it looked delicious just by looking, especially the third picture, where the cross-section still showed half of the meat filling. The meat filling was personally made by Sun Miao, so it goes without saying that it looked glossy and glistening under the camera. The lean meat was perfectly integrated, and the very texture of the meat was enough to make one’s mouth water.

Coupled with the blogger’s words of utmost praise in the post, it made people unable to resist the urge to rush over and buy one to see if it was really as delicious as the blogger claimed.

The comments section was much the same, but there were still some who questioned: It’s just a zongzi, is it really that exaggerated?

Then, they were immediately hit with over 200 replies, some even replying with pictures. Sun Miao took a look and felt that this gang of people in the post’s comments who were giving recommendations⁸ seemed familiar. They were… a bit like the student party.

However, the blogger probably wasn’t a student. After all, the first sentence of the post was, “Came to have fun at the pedestrian street, planning to stay here for two days. As soon as I got to the entrance of the street, I saw people lining up. With a line this long, I at least had to see⁹ what on earth they were selling.” In other words, it was what the regular customers had just mentioned—the tourist party.

Many people in the comments section were asking: Where is it located? I’m also in the area recently, and I’m curious what kind of zongzi could be this delicious. I want to try it.

Unlike the previous two times she went viral, when the comments section would conceal things as if they were a deep secret, this time many people sold Sun Miao out until her bottom faced the sky¹⁰. Many netizens commented: Okay, I’ll go try it.

Some people also questioned that 15 yuan for one was too expensive, but they were quickly scolded by those who had eaten them: 【Expensive, expensive, expensive, what’s so expensive? You haven’t even eaten it, on what grounds do you say it’s expensive?! For a zongzi this delicious, selling it to you for 15 is a bargain! Don’t you know the prices around here? Go take a look inside the pedestrian street, at the most expensive times, a single bottle of mineral water costs ten yuan!】

【Exactly, how is 15 for one expensive? Didn’t your teacher teach you that without investigation, you have no right to speak? This zongzi is absolutely worth more than its price. If you don’t want to eat it, then don’t buy it. Her stall has a limited quantity, so one less person like you is perfect for freeing up a spot for me!】

Watching the comments in the comment section that were crazily praising her zongzi, Sun Miao couldn’t help but reveal a smile, her mouth almost grinning to the back of her ears. Although it might sound a bit mian sao¹¹ to say so, she really enjoyed seeing others praise her. It’s only human nature, after all; it can’t be helped.

Sure enough, after a little while, there was a noticeable increase in people who looked like they were tourists. Carrying large backpacks, they arrived in groups of two and three at Sun Miao’s stall, mixing in with the student party. If yesterday was just a few tourists accidentally wandering into the queue, today they had come intentionally.

Some of the students, who like Sun Miao hadn’t checked the social media platform, were stunned. They even tried to explain to the newcomers, “We’re here to line up for zongzi, not some internet-famous product¹².” They hoped that after hearing this explanation, the group of people would leave. But after listening, their eyes lit up one by one, and their legs stood even more firmly rooted in the line.

“That’s right, we are here to line up for zongzi. It’s the Miao Miao’s Mobile Food Bar, right? I saw a recommendation online that said her zongzi are especially delicious and that I absolutely must not miss them!”

The students looked at each other in dismay and sucked in a breath of cold air.

They had originally thought that the student party was already very good at queuing and at flash-buying¹³, but now an even more formidable group had appeared. The line, a mix of students and tourists, was exceptionally spectacular. Even when Sun Miao shouted from the front, “There aren’t many zongzi left! Don’t queue up anymore, the people at the back won’t be able to buy any!” the people lining up behind her turned a blind eye, simply refusing to listen.

There was nothing to be done. By ten o’clock, Sun Miao was sold out. Not a single zongzi was left. When she announced this, the tourists recited a line that was completely identical to what other customers had said before: “Ah? Boss? You’re sold out already?! You prepared far too few! If you don’t prepare a few hundred, it’s not nearly enough!”

Sun Miao let out a “hehe.” The current her already had a heart of iron and stone¹⁴; no matter what these people said, she wouldn’t change. Besides, the quantity wasn’t set by her, but by the system. Once she sold out, she would leave. Sun Miao would absolutely not delay.

The next two days were the same as the 12th, a struggle between the tourists, the students, and some of the regular customers. Of course, for Sun Miao, this was actually a good thing, because it meant she could go home earlier. On the 13th, Sun Miao even specially saved some zongzi for Su Ruixi to take to her company to share with the employees she had a good relationship with, for example, the assistant she had met once before.

In Sun Miao’s words: “That Assistant-jiejie is quite dedicated. She answered your call and came without a second thought even though it wasn’t a workday. Even if she got overtime pay, you can tell she’s very conscientious about her work. This can be considered my thank-you gift to her. Susu-jie, remember to share some with everyone.”

Su Ruixi’s brows furrowed, but she still agreed.

Sun Miao is very good at being a person¹⁵, but Su Ruixi didn’t know how to bring it up. When she arrived at the office in the morning, she first put the zongzi and her own lunch into the small refrigerator. She waited until her assistant arrived, then somewhat awkwardly called her into the office.

A giant question mark appeared over the assistant’s head; she really couldn’t understand why the big boss was looking for her first thing in the morning on the first day back from the holiday. Then, she saw an unfamiliar expression on Su Ruixi’s face. Su Ruixi seemed to be—embarrassed? The assistant was a little surprised, but her excellent professionalism prevented her from letting any of it show on her face.

Su Ruixi hesitated for a moment before giving a light cough. “So, there are some zongzi in the refrigerator. Take them and share some with everyone.”

The assistant found this even stranger. Before the holiday, all the zongzi that were supposed to be given out had already been distributed. Why were there still more?

But having been Su Ruixi’s assistant for so many years, she quickly had a realization: these zongzi, perhaps they weren’t bought by Su Ruixi, but made by her girlfriend! The assistant immediately agreed, a smile appearing on her face. “Okay, thank you, President Su. I happened to have a small breakfast and am still a little hungry. I’ll heat one up and try it.”

Normally, Su Ruixi would have definitely frowned and said, “Don’t eat something so conspicuous during work hours. Just have some biscuits or bread.” She wouldn’t forbid employees from eating during work hours, but they couldn’t eat something so flagrantly obvious, could they?

But this time, Su Ruixi was different. She just nodded and let the assistant leave with the zongzi. More than an hour later, she even called the assistant back in again.

The assistant, completely bewildered, entered the office again. This time, Su Ruixi didn’t seem to hesitate much. Instead, she looked at the assistant with a very imposing gaze and asked, “How was it?”

“What?” This time, the assistant truly didn’t understand.

Su Ruixi’s imposing aura intensified, and her brows furrowed. “I say zongzi.”

Only then did it dawn on the assistant. She understood: If I don’t praise how delicious the zongzi are today, I’m not getting off work.

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