Luo Yang walked over and asked, "Hi, are you selling things here?"
Song Shi'an hadn't expected to run into anyone here. This was his first time meeting another homeowner. Surely he wasn't about to get a complaint?
He hurriedly explained, "No, no, I'm taking these to sell at the night market over there. I'm not selling here."
Luo Yang looked him over. "Are you a homeowner here too?"
Song Shi'an nodded. "Yes, I just moved in."
A hundred thousand questions flashed through Luo Yang's mind.
Was selling snacks this lucrative now? Any one of these villas cost tens of millions. Was this a joke?
He worked for a living, toiling from dawn to dusk every day to pay his mortgage, while this guy sold braised food from a cart and lived in a detached villa. Had the world developed some kind of bug?
Song Shi'an checked the time. "I'd better go. Any later and I won't make it."
Luo Yang snapped out of it, remembered that enticing aroma, and hurriedly called him back. "Wait, I'd like to buy some too. All of us smelled that aroma coming from your house just now, and we'd like a taste."
Song Shi'an's eyes lit up. Well, would you look at that-he'd made a sale before even setting up his stall.
He opened up his cart, and the others gathered around, each choosing some food.
They took a little of everything, filling several boxes to the brim.
Song Shi'an packed everything up and handed it to the women. "If you like it, come back often."
Luo Yang took the bags. Before he could ask how to find him next time, Song Shi'an had already rushed off with his cart.
The group carried their braised food to a nearby bench and sat down. Luo Yang opened a box and tried a bite of duck neck first.
Then his expression changed. Seeing him suddenly fall silent, his friends opened their own boxes too.
The moment the duck wings entered their mouths, the skin was springy and the meat tender. The savory saltiness and mild heat of the braising liquid unfolded layer upon layer across their tongues, without a trace of gaminess.
The lotus root slices were crisp, crunching between their teeth, the rich braised flavor mingling with the lotus root's delicate sweetness.
Nobody spoke. All four bent their heads and dug in, the food in their boxes disappearing at an astonishing rate.
By the time Luo Yang came to his senses and wanted to buy a few more portions, the boxes were already empty.
He stood up and looked in the direction Song Shi'an had gone. There wasn't even a glimpse of him left.
When Song Shi'an pushed his cart into the night market, a long line had already formed in front of his spot.
He froze, then lowered his head to check the time. It was only just past seven, still ten minutes before the opening time he'd announced in the group chat. Where had all these people come from?
Zhu Tao, at the head of the line, waved at him, holding up a phone mount and clearly recording a video. "Boss! You're finally here! All these people came to support you!"
Someone farther back poked their head out and shouted, "I think I can smell it already. It smells amazing!"
Song Shi'an parked his cart and smiled as he laid everything out. "Thank you all for coming to support me. I've prepared braised food today-duck necks, wings, and gizzards, plus lotus root slices and kelp. Give something new a try. The flavor definitely won't disappoint."
Wenwen stood toward the front of the middle section of the line. From the moment Song Shi'an appeared pushing his cart, she hadn't taken her eyes off him.
She listened carefully to his voice. It was a little different from what she'd heard when he'd joined the livestream call. It had sounded clearer on the stream; in person, it was a little deeper, muffled by his mask.
But that way of enunciating, with a slight upward lilt at the end, all but confirmed he was the same person.
She really couldn't find a single flaw in Shi'an. He was a man who combined beauty and talent, could act, sang beautifully, and could even cook-and the food he made was the down-to-earth kind sold at night market stalls.
She was going to stan him for life.
The line slowly inched forward, and at long last, it was her turn.
She excitedly pointed at the food on the cart. "Two portions of clams with glass noodles, and any two boxes of braised food!"
Song Shi'an looked at the girl before him, whose face was so red she was practically steaming, a little puzzled.
Was his food really that good? Why was she so excited she was almost crying?
His hands never stopped. He deftly packed two portions of clams with glass noodles, then tucked several extra pieces of duck neck and duck gizzard into the braised food boxes, piling them into little mountains.
He handed over the bag and said quietly, "Eat more if you like it. I packed some extra for you."
Wenwen clapped a hand over her mouth just in time to keep herself from screaming.
She took the bag, her eyes reddening a little from holding it in, and nodded vigorously, not forgetting to step aside to make room for the next customer.
Once she'd moved aside, she pulled out her phone and took a photo of the heavy bag in her hand. First, she posted it to her Moments with the caption, "Who understands what it feels like to eat clams with glass noodles and braised food cooked by your idol himself!!!" Then she posted the exact same thing on Weibo.
Wenwen could never have imagined that the winds of fandom archaeology would one day blow her way. When fans dug up this Weibo post later, the comments were full of, "Girl, you got to eat his food so early."
Meanwhile, Song Shi'an was happily rushed off his feet, boxing up braised food, putting clams into pots, laying glass noodles underneath, pouring garlic sauce over them, covering them and bringing them to a boil, packing orders, and collecting payments. He kept refining the whole process until it ran more and more smoothly.
Less than an hour after he opened his stall, everything had sold out.
There simply wasn't time to cook the clams with glass noodles one portion at a time. As the people still waiting in line stared longingly at the empty ingredient bins, he simply portioned out the remaining seasonings in the right proportions so those who hadn't managed to buy any could take them home and cook for themselves.
"Add the clams once the water boils. Once the clams open, add the glass noodles, pour in this seasoning packet, and cook for two minutes. That's it."
"Boss, are you sure we can get the same flavor as yours cooking it ourselves?"
"Don't worry. The seasoning packets already have the right proportions. As long as you don't burn it, the taste won't be far off."
Song Shi'an spoke without letting his hands stop, payment notifications chiming beside his ears, one after another.
Beneath his mask, the corners of his mouth kept lifting no matter how he tried to suppress them. His eyes curved, happiness practically leaping out of them.
Zhu Tao captured all of this on video.
As soon as he got home that evening, he edited the footage. After the first episode went viral, plenty of people had been waiting eagerly for the second. When fans saw the diners' reactions in the video, the bullet comments started questioning reality again.
"Is this staged? This is way too over the top!"
"That girl up front looked like she was about to cry when she got her bag. Is it really that serious?"
Zhu Tao pinned a comment: "Not exaggerated in the slightest. All I can say is that the boss's skills are incredible. When have I, Old Zhu, ever put on an act? I've been reviewing food spots for years. Keeping it real is what I'm all about."
Plenty of people who had eaten there shared their own experiences in the comments.
"Exactly! The prices are fair, the flavor is unbeatable, and the boss has such a lovely way of talking."
"Last time, I got my change wrong, and he chased after me to give the money back. He ran faster than a delivery rider."
"Don't even get me started. His food made me want to marry him. I wonder if the boss has a girlfriend."
"You up there, I can hear that abacus of yours clacking from the other side of the Atlantic Ocean!"
"Do us overseas students deserve to die or something? Someone tell me what time it is here, making me come across this stuff now!"