Market

Early the next morning, Zhao Danshi and Li Ping got up. After checking on Dou Dou and washing up, they switched on the dim yellow light in the courtyard, put yesterday's picked long beans, eggplants, cucumbers, and the like into large wooden basins, then drew well water to wash them clean.

Hearing the commotion, the old man threw on a coat and got up. "You're starting preparations already?"

"Yeah. If we don't get moving, we might not make it in time later. Grandpa, go back to sleep for a while."

"I can't sleep. I'll get up and lend a hand." The old man came over. "Should I light the fire?"

"Sure. Boil some water first, and I'll move the steamer over."

They cut the eggplants in half and steamed them in the large steamer. They cut the long beans into sections, blanched them in boiling salted water, smashed the cucumbers, and set them aside in large basins.

Zhao Danshi and Li Ping bustled about. Once all the ingredients were ready, they chopped up the scallions and cilantro they had pulled yesterday, then brought out the crushed chili peppers. They would be making chili oil shortly.

For the cold dishes, Zhao Danshi planned to prepare a basic version first, then set aside chopped scallions, garlic oil, cilantro, chili oil, and the like. If customers wanted extras, he could mix some in on the spot.

He had originally planned to make less, but after thinking it over, he figured that if he made too little, they might sell out in no time, making the trip hardly worthwhile. Besides, making too little would not earn much, so he added several dozen more pounds.

Sixty pounds of cucumbers, thirty pounds of eggplants, twenty pounds of long beans, fifteen pounds of fried tofu puffs, twenty pounds of braised eggs, and twenty pounds of braised meat filled six large stainless-steel basins. Each basin had a lid, and they also used three clean small buckets for the cucumbers and eggplants.

Zhao Danshi had not wanted to make meat dishes, but the old man insisted that they make at least some. Meat dishes were far more popular than vegetables here, and people might buy them to eat together.

For convenience, they hired the tricycle driver's vehicle and headed to the market shortly after six. Other than those cold dishes, they brought no other vegetables.

Miao Yingzhuo generously lent them a table. Watching them set out basin after basin, he craned his neck and asked suspiciously, "What's all that in your basins? They're packed full."

"Cold dishes. Didn't I tell you I was coming here to sell cold dishes?"

Li Ping looked up and smiled. "How about it, Boss Miao? Want some?"

Miao Yingzhuo immediately said, "Sure, give me some."

"Just a moment." Zhao Danshi set out the price signs he had written beforehand. Cucumbers, long beans, and eggplants were all ten yuan per pound; eggs were one yuan fifty each; fried tofu puffs were fifteen yuan per pound; and braised meat was twenty-five yuan per pound.

Miao Yingzhuo clicked his tongue. "You two are really charging a lot. Ever since you came back, I feel like the prices across the whole market have gone up."

"Cut it out. I only sell a few things. How could I raise prices across the entire market? You don't even draft your lies before spouting them." Zhao Danshi gave him a disdainful look. "What do you want? I'll mix it for you."

"Start with some cold cucumber salad." The boss chuckled. "I'll get some eggplant and the rest later too."

"Alright. Do you want cilantro, scallions, and garlic oil?"

"All of it. And give me some chili oil too. Make it spicy."

Zhao Danshi quickly mixed up a serving, packed it in a disposable plastic bag, and handed it to him along with two pointed little bamboo sticks.

Miao Yingzhuo took it and eagerly picked up a piece of cucumber, popping it into his mouth. In an instant, the fragrance of cucumber, sauce, chili, vinegar, and more flooded his mouth. The saltiness was especially well balanced, bringing out the cucumber's fresh crispness without making it bland, while masking the raw green taste unique to cucumbers.

Zhao Danshi asked with a smile, "Well?"

Miao Yingzhuo gave him a thumbs-up. "Chef-level skills! Hey, give me some more. I'll take some back for my parents, wife, and kids. They haven't had breakfast yet."

Zhao Danshi packed him over two pounds of several kinds of cold dishes, along with eight eggs and nearly half a pound of braised meat.

Miao Yingzhuo wanted to pay, but Zhao Danshi pushed the money back. "Why are you paying for this? It's just a little food. We've troubled you plenty without paying you. If you feel bad about it, bring me a few packs of toothpicks and two sleeves of disposable teacups."

"What do you need those for?"

"For samples. Otherwise, with people coming and going, how will they know whether our cold dishes taste good?"

Zhao Danshi tidied everything up neatly. It was still early, and marketgoers had not arrived yet, though vegetable sellers were gradually carrying their produce into place.

Quite a few people saw Zhao Danshi's stall and joked, "Danshi, not selling vegetables today?"

"I am, but today I'm selling cold dishes. Trying something new."

"What kind of cold dishes?"

"Why not come over and try them?" Zhao Danshi smiled as he beckoned them over. "I've got samples here."

The moment they heard there were samples, quite a few people gathered around. Zhao Danshi was in no hurry. He put some cold dishes into disposable cups, stuck in toothpicks, and handed them out to the people around him.

"Oh, these cold dishes are really flavorful."

"Delicious. You've got skills. Your stall won't lose money."

"How much per pound?"

Zhao Danshi pointed at the price sign. "The regular cold dishes are ten yuan per pound. Braised eggs, braised meat, and the like cost more."

"That expensive?" Someone immediately hesitated. "Can't you make it cheaper?"

"My costs are right here. Look at my cucumbers and eggplants. Even selling them as vegetables, I charge three or four yuan per pound. At home, I have to wash, cut, and steam them. It takes time, effort, and labor. Ten yuan a pound isn't expensive, right?" Zhao Danshi grinned. "And with my skills, just taste it. Isn't it worth ten yuan?"

"No matter how good it tastes, it's still expensive."

Zhao Danshi shook his head with a smile. "Ten yuan. No bargaining."

Zhao Danshi had sold vegetables so many times, and he had never allowed customers to haggle. Everyone knew his temperament, so they stopped asking. Those who did not want to buy turned and left, while those who did stayed behind.

"Give me a pound of cucumber salad."

"Sure thing. You don't avoid any seasonings, right?" After confirming, Zhao Danshi put on gloves and began mixing with a smile. Li Ping stood beside him, collecting money and waiting to pack orders.

"Give me ten yuan's worth of cold dishes. A little of each kind, and add more chili oil."

"Alright, I'll have it mixed up right away."

"Danshi, save some for me. I'll come find you after I sell my vegetables."

"That might not work. If everyone asks me to save some, I won't remember. Uncle Ma, how about I mix and pack yours now, and you keep it at your own stall?"

"That works."

"Give me half a pound of cold dishes. I'll buy two steamed buns and eat them together."

"I want half a pound too."

As the market gradually grew more crowded, business at Zhao Danshi's stall became increasingly brisk. Those who arrived later even formed a long line.

"Are those cold dishes really that good?"

"They have samples over there. Go have a taste. If you ask me, his cold dishes are incredible. I used to work at a big hotel, and the cold dishes they served weren't half as good as what he mixes."

"You can tell whether it's good just by looking at the crowd. When have the women in our town ever suffered a loss? Look at how long that line is."

"Yeah, true. I'd better line up."

Zhao Danshi and Li Ping were both busy, one mixing dishes and the other taking money. Sweat was practically dripping from them.

In less than an hour, they had sold almost all their cold dishes. Even the braised eggs and braised meat, which they had expected to be less popular, had only a little left.

Zhao Danshi had no choice but to raise his voice and shout, "Folks at the back, no need to keep lining up. My cold dishes are almost sold out."

"Huh? You sold out that fast? Why didn't you make more to sell?"

"My apologies." Zhao Danshi mixed what he still had time to make while joking with them. "It's my first time, so I don't have experience. Next market day, I'll bring more."

To be honest, cold dishes at ten yuan per pound were not cheap in their town. He had not expected them to be so popular.

Another ten minutes or so passed, and all his food was sold out. Even the basins had been emptied. Customers took the little bit of sauce left at the bottoms, saying they wanted to bring it home and mix their own cold dishes with it.

Miao Yingzhuo had watched the whole process. Once they had sold out, he came over to help them pack up.

"Hey, capable people are just capable. Everything you make sells so well. Got any experience to share?"

"What experience could there be? My vegetables are good, I use plenty of ingredients, and my skills are good. If my business weren't good, that would be the unreasonable thing, right?"

"That's true." An auntie nearby chimed in after hearing them. "Who knows how your family grows vegetables, but they're just tastier than everyone else's. Danshi, did you really spend several thousand yuan buying your seeds from a university professor?"

Zhao Danshi smiled and explained, "Not several thousand yuan—that's exaggerating. But they weren't cheap either."

Seeing an opening, the auntie immediately pressed on. "Then how do you sell your seeds? Why not save some and sell them to us too?"

"Yeah, yeah." Others gathered around as well. "We won't sell vegetables. We'll just grow some for ourselves to eat."

"Right. Don't worry. If anyone grows your vegetables and competes with your business, we'll take it up with them!"

Zhao Danshi had not expected them to set their sights on his family's seeds. "My vegetables really aren't easy to save seeds from. Even if I gave you seeds, the vegetables you grew probably wouldn't turn out as well as mine. I'm still figuring things out under someone's guidance. Look at the two of us, young men, and we only farm a little over ten mu of land. We work at it from dawn to dark and still only grow this much produce. It wouldn't be worthwhile for you to grow them."

"It's fine. If they don't grow well, they don't grow well. We'll eat them ourselves." The aunties said enthusiastically, "We won't ask for the seeds for free. We'll buy them from you then. Ten or twenty yuan a packet, just name your price."

Zhao Danshi spread his hands. "It's not that I don't want to. I really can't. Look at the corn seeds we plant every year. Why don't we save our own seeds and buy new ones from companies every year instead? The seeds they gave me have all been treated. If you save seeds from them, they're not even as good as ordinary seeds. If you spend all that time and effort planting a crop and get nothing back, what then?"

"That's true. So there really isn't any way?"

"It's not that there's no way at all. Once I've grown them for a few more years, I'll see whether I can stabilize the seeds. If I manage that, I might be able to provide everyone with some."

Hearing him say that, everyone could only nod regretfully and stopped pressing him.

After Zhao Danshi packed everything up, he and Li Ping put away the cash and called Zhao Liwei, asking him to come pick them up.