Divorced, Raising a Child, and Running a Stall: The CEO Ex-Wife Chases Him Back — Section 5

Lu Xiyao saw the new contraption Lu Qin had driven over and cried out excitedly.

"Papa, this vehicle is so cool~!"

"Lu Xiyao, what kind of vehicle is your dad driving? It's so stylish~!"

"Wow~! It's an electric tricycle~! There's even a little house in the back that you can crawl into!"

"Dad, can you drive a tricycle like Lu Xiyao's dad's to pick me up next time? I don't want to ride in a car~!"

Jiangcheng's economy was well-developed, and nearly every household had a car. Branded luxury cars were everywhere.

Instead, Lu Qin's Three-Wheeler stood out from the crowd and instantly became the coolest ride outside Starlight Kindergarten.

Lu Xiyao was beside herself with joy. She climbed into the vehicle proudly, sat beside Lu Qin, raised her little fist high, and shouted loudly under the envious gazes of the other children:

"Papa, let's go~!"

Starlight Kindergarten had excellent education and a good school culture, without that kind of competitive comparison.

Lu Qin's food stall truck did not draw any contempt from the teachers or parents either. Everyone was simply surprised that Lu Xiyao's dad had started running a stall.

Good wine needed no deep alley; those who couldn't recognize quality thought fried noodles were worse than oden.

5:15 p.m.

Changlin Road University Town.

A brand-new food truck turned into the alley beside Hot Girl Hotpot.

By the time Lu Qin arrived after picking up his daughter, he had already lost any choice in the matter. The prime spots at the alley entrance had long been taken.

As it happened, the stall at the very entrance also sold fried noodles.

The greasy middle-aged man glanced at Lu Qin's new sign but did not take it seriously.

The barrier to entry for running a stall was low, so competition was fierce.

But he had been operating his stall for five years and had built up a solid reputation and customer base.

His Fried Rice Noodles were spicy, fragrant, and pleasantly chewy, making them a favorite among the young men and women in University Town.

Lu Qin drove his food truck over fifty meters away from the alley entrance. There were a few scattered stalls farther in, all belonging to people who had arrived too late to get good spots. They leisurely set up their stalls.

It seemed that failing to secure a good location would affect business.

Lu Qin did not care. Even with a poor location, he was not worried. Good wine needed no deep alley.

Lu Qin parked the food truck by the roadside, then gently patted the little girl's head.

"Yao Yao, we'll set up our stall here and sell fried noodles."

The little girl's eyes sparkled. All the way here, she had been filled with curiosity.

She had never visited the University Town Night Market before. Lu Qin had always taken her to big shopping malls in the past, and she was already tired of those. To her, this place was a whole new world.

All along the way, she had kept crying, "Wow~! Wow~!"

"Papa, Yao Yao will help."

The little girl was very sensible and helped arrange the takeaway boxes.

The uncles and aunties at the surrounding stalls saw this handsome young man with such an obedient and adorable little girl, and they could not help glancing over.

But they were not surprised to see young people like Lu Qin running a stall.

In the past two years, setting up stalls had become a trend among the younger generation. Many news headlines read things like, "Young man earns a thousand yuan a day from a stall, better than working for a company," or "Couple in XX City buys two apartments downtown by running a stall"...

But in reality, very few people could truly afford a home on stall income. The people in the news were exceptions.

Most people merely hovered at the edge of making ends meet.

Once Lu Qin had set up his stall, it was already 5:35.

By then, dusk was gradually falling, and more and more people were coming to University Town for dinner and shopping.

The stalls near the alley entrance had all made their first sales, with small clusters of customers gathering around them.

"Boss, one serving of Fried Rice Noodles, extra spicy."

"Boss, one multigrain pancake. Add tenderloin and a hot dog, no lettuce."

"Some fried skewers, please. Give me a basket, Boss. I want chicken wings, shrimp, chives, grasshoppers..."

Gradually, more and more diners arrived. There were young men and women, young married couples, and elderly people bringing their grandchildren.

But very few people made their way to the end of the alley to buy food.

The food sold by street stalls was seriously homogenized these days. It was either barbecue and fried skewers or cold noodles and rice noodles, and the flavors were not all that different. That was why a stall's location was crucial.

Lu Qin had been set up for half an hour, yet not a single customer had come by.

The uncle selling Oden beside him was doing slightly better. Two groups of customers had come by earlier, but after that, it had grown quiet again.

Seeing that business was slow, the uncle started chatting with Lu Qin.

"Young man, new gear? First time setting up a stall?"

"Yeah, I'm new."

Lu Qin nodded politely in reply.

"It's fine. Everyone's like this the first time, with no experience. Next time, come earlier and grab a good spot. Once you get a good spot, business will come, right?"

"Is this your daughter? She's so well-behaved and pretty. My daughter's in fifth grade. Before I came out today, I was helping her with homework—some chicken-and-rabbit-in-the-same-cage problem. It gave both me and her mom a headache. Ridiculous, really. Look, that's why I got here late to set up my stall. Sigh..."

Lu Qin smiled and casually chatted with him for a few moments.

"Papa, Yao Yao is hungry."

Lu Xiyao rubbed her flat little tummy. She had not even eaten dinner yet.

"The little one's hungry? Here, try Uncle's Oden." The uncle fished out a fish ball and a piece of tempura fish cake on a skewer and handed them over. The child was so adorable that he could not resist feeding her for free.

"Thank you, Uncle, but I want to eat what Papa makes."

Lu Qin smiled and politely declined the uncle's kindness. "Thanks for your kindness, brother. The kid probably wants fried noodles."

The uncle did not mind. He put the food back and said with a smile:

"Little girl, you don't know good food. Fried noodles definitely aren't as tasty as Uncle's Oden."

Children loved food served on skewers, such as candied hawthorn, Oden, and Bobo Chicken. They generally did not care much for staple foods like fried noodles.

"My papa's cooking is super delicious."

Lu Xiyao clung to Lu Qin's arm. She would absolutely take her father's side.

The uncle smiled. He did not think fried noodles could taste all that good. Old Liu's Fried Rice Noodles at the alley entrance had been sold for five or six years, yet they were not particularly tasty either. They all tasted the same—too oily and greasy.

Lu Qin tied on his apron, lit the stove, and heated the wok.

With his Max-Level Fried Noodles skill, the moment he picked up the spatula, he seemed to enter a certain state. His entire demeanor changed subtly.

He drizzled cold oil into the hot wok.

With a sharp sizzle, the aroma of millet chili and minced garlic instantly burst forth.

He then cracked in eggs and broke them apart with the back of the spatula.

Next came the rice noodles.

Although Lu Qin was using a sixteen-inch iron wok, he could not fry more than three portions of rice noodles at once. Too much would affect the texture.

As he stir-fried over high heat, he added bean sprouts, Garlic Sprouts, ham, and other ingredients.

Fried noodles were simple to make. After stir-frying them over high heat for two minutes to bring out that wok aroma, they could be served.

Of course, if details such as heat control, stir-frying speed, and the amount of seasoning were not handled well enough, the flavor of the fried rice noodles would suffer.

Fried Rice Noodles looked simple, but the details determined success or failure.

As the fragrance drifted through the air, a plate of tender, delicious Fried Rice Noodles with rich layers of texture came out of the wok.

The uncle beside him swallowed. He somewhat regretted what he had said earlier. Those rice noodles really did look good—and they smelled even better.

He had not expected this young man to be so professional. Tsk, tsk, that rich savory sauce aroma definitely meant they tasted better than Old Liu's Fried Rice Noodles at the alley entrance.

Lu Xiyao could no longer wait. Smelling the aroma, she raised both little hands high.

"Papa, it smells so good~! Yao Yao is hungry~!"

Lu Qin divided the Fried Rice Noodles into two portions. Father and daughter each had a plate and immediately began eating.

"Wow~! It's so yummy~!"

Lu Xiyao's eyes were watery as she chewed the rice noodles in her little mouth and spoke unclearly.

"Eat slowly. Don't choke."

Though Lu Qin said that, his Fried Rice Noodles would not choke anyone. They were smooth, springy, and tender.

This had to do with the speed of stir-frying and tested one's fundamentals immensely. If the technique could not keep up, the noodles would easily burn, their texture would worsen, and they could become dry and hard to swallow.