"Do you have anything cheaper and smaller? There are only two of us eating..."
The woman's voice was rather quiet, but Aiwen still heard her.
He uncovered a basket beside him, which held some somewhat larger loaves, though they were not all that big.
"This bread costs one pound. If two people are eating it, it should last four or five days..."
Aiwen quoted the price with practiced ease while showing the woman its size, then cut a small piece from a loaf beside him and handed it over.
The woman took it and carefully put it in her mouth. The bread tasted far better than she had imagined.
When she first happened to hear someone say that tastier bread was being sold here, she had worried that it would be too expensive.
But her husband had been working far too hard lately, even working several night shifts in recent days. She wanted to buy him something better to eat, but money was tight, so...
Now, looking at the suitably sized loaves in the basket, considering the price and the wheat aroma that had burst out the moment the cloth cover was lifted, she finally made up her mind.
"Then I'll take one!" She handed over a one-pound banknote.
Aiwen carefully put the money into the box beside the table, while Boer, who had come to help, picked up a loaf with a pair of homemade wooden tongs, took a sheet of greaseproof paper from the side, and wrapped it.
"Here you are. This bread doesn't need heating for long. Just warm it a little and it'll be ready to eat. It won't be too hard..."
After accepting the bread, the woman nodded to show she understood. She soon left with the wrapped loaf, a touch of delight on her face.
After that successful first sale, the rest of the sales went much more smoothly.
The neighbors who had come to look around saw how well sales were going, and the weight on their minds finally lifted.
It was rare for Mo Fei to come to them asking for a favor, and they had been nervous too. This was not just one person's business, but something involving several children.
Fortunately, the result was very good.
To show their support, they each bought one of the largest long loaves as well.
The price of two and a half pounds was not too much for them, and a loaf like that would last them a long time, so it was no loss.
But when Mrs. Field's turn came, Mo Fei turned down her request.
"Ma'am, you're getting on in years, and this bread is still somewhat hard. Eating it often wouldn't be good for your teeth..."
Then he took a package of steamed buns from the basket at the very edge.
"These are steamed buns I made. You can think of them as a softer kind of bread. These buns don't really need baking. Just steam them in a pot before eating, and that'll be enough... If that's really inconvenient, soaking them in hot soup will make them nice and fluffy too..."
The neighbors who had been about to leave saw Mo Fei treating her differently, but they were not upset.
After all, Mrs. Field held a rather special position in the area. She seemed to be the leader of the local women, and she was highly respected for her character and standing.
It was perfectly reasonable for Mo Fei to give Mrs. Field different bread.
Not to mention that when the orphanage was first established, she had been the one who came to help the most.
They were not jealous, merely curious about what the steamed buns Mo Fei had made tasted like.
Seeing everyone's curiosity, Mo Fei did not open Mrs. Field's package. Instead, he took another steamed bun from that basket.
Then he carefully tore it into pieces, put them on a plate, and passed it over.
"Lina, go get a few bowls from the house and pour out some hot soup, so our neighbors can try the steamed buns..."
"All right!"
Lina turned and went back inside, heading to the kitchen for small bowls.
This made the neighbors feel a little embarrassed.
"That's too much trouble. We just wanted to see what these steamed buns were! We'd never heard of them before, that's all!"
Uncle James was a little flustered, afraid that Mo Fei would think he was someone who liked taking advantage of others.
George was a little embarrassed too. "Yes, just like old James said, we're only curious!"
Only Vil-V raised an eyebrow. "Then I won't stand on ceremony. I'm going to try some!"
As she spoke, she reached straight for a torn piece of steamed bun and popped it into her mouth.
Actually, the flour and other ingredients used in steamed buns seemed very similar, but the one difference was that baking gave bread a crisper, more browned crust, while its airy interior lost moisture easily, making it dry and hard.
Compared with bread, however, steamed buns naturally contained moisture because they were steamed, and there was plenty of moisture inside them as well.
The advantage was obvious: they were much softer. But there was a drawback too: they spoiled easily and did not keep well.
So this was a food that could only be stored briefly before eating, not kept for very long.
After taking a bite, Vil-V also appreciated the wonders of these steamed buns.
Compared with bread, these steamed buns seemed better suited to people whose teeth were no longer very good.
An idea suddenly occurred to Vil-V, but she would wait to see how the steamed buns tasted with meat broth before deciding.
Seeing Vil-V take the lead, James and George each picked up a piece and began tasting it too.
They did not find anything particularly remarkable about it, only feeling that the steamed buns had a softer texture than bread.
But when Mrs. Field tried a piece, her eyes lit up.
To her, this texture was even more pleasant to eat than bread.
Just then, Lina came over with several small bowls.
The bowls held the meat broth she had made for lunch.
Mo Fei had said beforehand that they would celebrate today no matter how sales went, so they had bought meat, made a pot of meat broth, and steamed some buns for lunch.
"Thank you, little Lina!" After taking the meat broth, Vil-V even gave her little cheek a pinch.
The others made no such frivolous gestures, simply accepting the meat broth politely.
"My suggestion is to dip the steamed bun in a little broth. If you soak it, it'll quickly go soggy, and then it won't taste good!"
Hearing Mo Fei's suggestion, they did as he advised.
James and George were not particularly amazed. They simply thought it tasted good eaten this way, but that was all.
The two ladies were different, however. Only when Vil-V ate the steamed bun after dipping it in a little meat broth did she feel pleasantly surprised.
Unlike with steamed buns, many people were accustomed to tearing bread into little pieces and putting it into meat broth. This was done at her tavern too.
The problem was that it was hard to judge how long to soak hard bread. Too short, and the bread stayed hard; too long, and it became so sticky that it was unappetizing.
Some people minded this a great deal.
But with steamed buns, that was a minor issue. They could dip them and eat them whenever they liked, which was far more convenient.
There was another point... Something novel would have a better effect.
Mrs. Field was even more satisfied. Her fondness for this food was plain to see, and she even wanted to make it her staple food from now on.
Something that took no effort to chew yet could soak up broth and become full of flavor was truly hard for her not to love.
Seeing that the bread was selling very well and that the mysterious food from the East he had made was also well received, Mo Fei finally felt completely at ease.
It worked!