Setting Up Stalls – Chapter 288

I Want to Eat Zhe’ergen

Sun Miao’s little food stall was a huge hit. At first, customers were drawn in by how incredibly delicious her snacks were. But over time, they grew to love Little Boss Sun’s infectiously positive smile and her crisp, no-nonsense attitude.

Sun Miao was truly like a little sun, constantly radiating her own light. Her energy was so contagious that it spread through the entire line, and soon everyone was in high spirits. The overwhelmingly positive mood quickly chased away any occasional discordant voices.

Furthermore, Sun Miao had started making her Langya Potatoes¹ to order, a change that left many infrequent customers feeling pleasantly shocked and flattered.

By the time Sun Miao served her last customer and was on her way home, the topic had already exploded in her group chat.

【Wow, I’m seriously so touched. I don’t usually go to Little Boss Sun’s stall—I can count the number of times I’ve been on one hand. I can’t believe she still remembered me and knew my preferences. She made it exactly to my taste. My heart is so full. I could cry.】

【Me too, me too! I’m basically a new customer, I’ve only been a few times. I just mentioned my preferences once while chatting with her, and I can’t believe she actually remembered!】

【Honestly, even though everything Little Boss Sun makes is delicious, I think this kind of customized flavor is the absolute best! I hereby declare that the Wolf-tooth potato is my new favorite food!】

【Wuwuwu, another day of being warmed by Little Boss Sun. Even though I didn’t get a custom-made Wolf-tooth potato, just the thought that she would remember my taste makes my cold, dead body feel warm. I’m going to forgive the world for one second.】

Sun Miao didn’t see these messages, but Su Ruixi, who was already home, saw every single one. Sun Miao was indeed running later than usual today; after all, making a hundred servings to order was a completely different beast from the twenty servings that had sold out in a flash last time. Su Ruixi had gotten home while she was still on the road.

With nothing better to do, she clicked open her alternate account to check the group messages.

A smile unconsciously crept onto Su Ruixi’s face as she read people praising Sun Miao. Su Ruixi had a secretly smug side to her²; she loved seeing others compliment Sun Miao even more than she liked being complimented herself.

But as the praise piled up, someone—it was hard to tell who started it—changed the direction of the entire conversation.

【Hey? Speaking of which, Little Boss Sun makes everything delicious, and I’ll eat whatever she makes. Plus, it’s all made to order now. Could I ask her to make two flavors for me? A larger portion with my usual flavor, and a smaller one with a flavor I’ve never tried. For example—with a little Zhe’ergen³.】

【What did Zhe’ergen ever do to you! How could you say that!】

【That’s actually a great idea. I don’t usually eat spicy food. Could I ask Little Boss Sun to just put a tiny bit of chili powder on a few of my Langya Potatoes so I can try it? Like, a really, really tiny bit. I bet Little Boss Sun would totally get it!】

【Great idea, I’m trying that tomorrow!】

【Tomorrow is Saturday. Little Boss Sun is setting up her stall at 4:30 PM. It’s going to be an absolute warzone.】

【Heaven and Earth protect us⁴, please don’t let the student party find out the location this time. It’s my one day off tomorrow, I really don’t want to get stuck in an asura field⁵ of queuing!】

For a split second, Su Ruixi was genuinely angry seeing them plot ways to make things difficult for Sun Miao. Her fingers flew across the screen, ready to deliver a lecture from her alt account, but the topic in the group was already moving too fast. The idea of troubling Sun Miao had been left in the dust, and now everyone was discussing the terrifying student party.

Su Ruixi’s lips thinned as she deleted the text she’d typed.

The moment had passed. Bringing up old matters again⁶ would only show more people how to give Sun Miao a hard time, and she certainly didn’t want that.

In that instant, Su Ruixi was reminded of Hip-hop Mei and couldn’t help but think: If only I had her typing speed. If Hip-hop Mei were here, she could achieve ten sprays in one second⁷. Su Ruixi remembered that back in high school, Hip-hop Mei had even joined some kind of online word-plucking group⁸.

Su Ruixi was lost in thought when Sun Miao returned, and she promptly got up to greet her.

When Sun Miao walked into the house, she found… well, a little bit of food on the dining table. Su Ruixi explained, “I just defrosted it from the fridge. I tossed it in the microwave and the air fryer for a bit, that’s all I did.”

As if worried Sun Miao would think it tasted bad, Su Ruixi emphasized the last sentence. Sun Miao glanced over and saw that it was indeed food she had prepared and frozen in advance. When she had first moved in, Su Ruixi’s fridge was basically empty, containing only some fruit, mineral water, and milk. The Auntie would buy some vegetables, but always in small quantities that would be finished the next day.

But ever since Sun Miao moved in, Su Ruixi’s massive side-by-side refrigerator wasn’t enough. Sun Miao even had to bring in the chest freezer she’d gotten from the System just to make everything fit. It was packed with food, including items Sun Miao had vacuum-sealed to preserve them longer.

Even if Sun Miao were gone for several days, there was more than enough for Su Ruixi to eat.

She just never expected Su Ruixi to take the initiative and make herself something to eat before she got home. The discovery gave Sun Miao a strange, subtle feeling, like a parent thinking, my daughter at home has just grown up⁹.

“I’ll make two more dishes. I bought some vegetables.”

“Okay.”

The two vegetable dishes came together quickly, especially with Su Ruixi helping. She didn’t know how to do much, but she’d picked things up just by watching. Sun Miao had even taught her how to prepare vegetables, a task Su Ruixi was now getting quite handy with.

In no time at all, the two of them were sitting down to eat. At the table, Su Ruixi fidgeted for a long time before finally voicing the question on her mind. “Miaomiao… um… tomorrow, are you still making me Langya Potatoes?”

“I am.”

She had promised last night in bed—albeit under duress from Su Ruixi’s tickle attack—that she would make it up to her with three meals of Langya Potatoes. Sun Miao answered quickly, but seeing Su Ruixi’s hesitant expression and stumbling words, she knew something else was coming.

Sure enough, after another moment of struggle, Su Ruixi said, “Tomorrow, could you make mine with a different flavor? I want to try… um, one with Zhe’ergen.”

It wasn’t that she was actually interested in Zhe’ergen; she thought the stuff smelled bizarre. She disliked anything with strong flavors, making Zhe’ergen a minefield for her. But every time Sun Miao packed Zhe’ergen chili sauce for Shen Yiqiu, she would send it over jar by jar, and Su Ruixi couldn’t help but feel a little jealous.

Even if it was her own mother, she couldn’t just keep taking things from her daughter’s girlfriend’s house every day!

So, if I start eating Zhe’ergen, maybe I can save a little of the chili sauce for myself? After all, that was her own mom; she couldn’t just cut her off completely.

With that thought in mind, and fueled by the comments in the group chat, Su Ruixi finally spoke up.

Sun Miao nearly choked on the rice in her mouth. She swallowed hard and repeated in disbelief, “Susu-jie, are you saying you want to try it with Zhe’ergen?”

Su Ruixi nodded with extreme seriousness. “Yes, I want to try it.” A sliver of hope remained: maybe Zhe’ergen only smelled bad. Maybe it didn’t actually taste that terrible. And since she would only add Zhe’ergen, not chili, she wouldn’t have to deal with the spice making her eyes red.

Sun Miao started to say something to dissuade her, but seeing the intense curiosity burning in Su Ruixi’s eyes, she understood. No matter what she said, Su Ruixi was determined to try it. Even if she dodged it tomorrow, the topic would just be brought up again later.

The longer this Zhe’ergen idea sat in her mind, the more she would crave it.

Rather than listen to her whisper “I want to eat Zhe’ergen” in her ear every day, it was better to let Su Ruixi experience a short, sharp pain.

Sun Miao didn’t think for a second that Su Ruixi would like Zhe’ergen. Even someone like her, who wasn’t a picky eater, couldn’t handle it. How could Su Ruixi—a notoriously fussy eater who hated spice and strong flavors—possibly stomach it?

And Zhe’ergen without chili… what would that even taste like? she wondered.

Zhe’ergen itself had an incredibly potent flavor. Its other name, fish-smell grass¹⁰, wasn’t for nothing; it genuinely carried a fishy aroma. The chili served two purposes: one, to make the Zhe’ergen taste better, and two, to cover up that unpleasant smell, allowing people who normally couldn’t eat it to at least try a little.

But here was Su Ruixi, jumping straight to the hell-level difficulty¹¹.

Sun Miao began to pray silently for her.

The next day was Saturday. In the morning, Su Ruixi dragged Sun Miao to the wet market, determined to get her taste of Zhe’ergen by lunch. Sun Miao just sighed. Su Ruixi was really a case of knowingly there is a tiger on the mountain, yet insisting on going up the mountain¹².

After buying their ingredients and returning home, Sun Miao started preparing lunch. Then she pulled Su Ruixi over to help process the potatoes, with Sun Miao primarily responsible for peeling. When Su Ruixi saw this, she insisted she could help, grabbing a peeler and getting to work.

Sun Miao didn’t stop her. Su Ruixi’s peeling was terrible, but her speed was also terribly slow. By the time Sun Miao had peeled a whole basket, Su Ruixi had just finished her fifteenth potato.

Su Ruixi looked down. Her potatoes were oddly shaped, their surfaces pitted and uneven. They were no match for the smooth, oblong potatoes in Sun Miao’s basket. Su Ruixi was so frustrated. They were clearly using the exact same tools, so why was there such a massive difference in the final product?

Sun Miao wasn’t concerned with how Su Ruixi’s potatoes turned out, because they certainly weren’t going to be sold at her stall. Whatever Su Ruixi peeled, Su Ruixi would eat. If she couldn’t finish it this meal, she’d have it for the next.

Since Su Ruixi loved potatoes anyway, Sun Miao could just prepare them in different ways for her. This meal would be Langya Potatoes, the next would be mashed potatoes, the one after that would be beef brisket stew with potatoes, followed by stir-fried shredded potatoes and dry pot potato slices… In short, they would definitely get used.

Seeing it was almost time for lunch, Sun Miao first cut the potatoes into their wolf-tooth shape and started making Su Ruixi’s special portion.

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