As night fell, the “Xingxing Hair Salon” on the same street was deserted.
Zhou Hao and Wang Lei, two apprentices, were staring at their phones playing games, the dyed yellow tufts of hair on their heads twitching as they moved.
Wang Lei’s character died first. Bored, he tapped on the “spectate” button.
“Hey, where did Brother Xing go?”
Zhou Hao had just picked up a sniper rifle and was aiming at an enemy hundreds of meters away. He didn’t look up.
“Probably went to get food.”
Wang Lei gave a dull “oh.” There were only the three of them in the shop. Both he and Zhou Hao were slackers who had dropped out after their first year of high school. At their age, their families didn’t feel safe letting them roam society, so they sent them to Zhou Xing—a man from the same village who owned a hair salon in the city—to serve as apprentices.
They earned a little over a thousand yuan a month in wages. Zhou Xing had set up a bunk bed in the back of the shop for them and provided room and board.
Zhou Hao and Wang Lei were basically satisfied with their current lives. The only downside was that among the three of them, they couldn’t scrape together a single person who knew how to cook.
Zhou Xing was out of the question; he had lived alone for years and mostly bought his meals. Although Zhou Hao and Wang Lei had cooked back in the countryside, their skills were limited to boiling noodles or making instant ramen. After putting up with it for a while, Zhou Xing had resigned himself to buying all three meals from outside.
Over time, the three of them had eaten their way through every shop on the street.
Once they had tried everything, Zhou Hao and Wang Lei preferred ordering takeout. Only Zhou Xing, looking weathered, would watch the two young men and then turn around to find home-style cooked meals on the street.
Wang Lei and Zhou Hao started another game, and both finally began to feel the gnawing hunger in their stomachs.
“Why isn’t Brother Xing back yet?”
Zhou Hao ruffled his hair. “Should I go out and buy something random? He’s probably chatting up some shopkeeper’s wife again.”
Just then, the wind chime hanging behind the door tinkled. Zhou Xing walked in enthusiastically, carrying three lunch boxes.
“You brats, I heard that.”
“I was out securing benefits for you guys.”
Zhou Xing set the takeout boxes on the table. “Look what your big brother bought for you.”
Zhou Hao took one look, and his forehead was practically covered in question marks.
“Brother, this is just rice with toppings.”
It didn’t look like anything special.
However, Wang Lei was sharp-eyed. “It’s claypot rice!”
The golden rice crust was resting at the bottom of the plastic container; if you didn’t look closely, you wouldn’t even notice it.
Zhou Hao grumbled, “I don’t really like rice…”
He had liked flour-based foods since he was a child. He always felt like rice never quite filled him up.
Zhou Xing chuckled. “Fine then. We’ll split your portion between the two of us.”
As he spoke, he handed his phone to Zhou Hao. “Order yourself some noodles.”
Zhou Hao hesitated but didn’t think much of it. He took the phone and started scrolling through the delivery app.
Zhou Xing was happy to have an extra half-portion.
“Lei, let’s dig in!”
As the lids of the disposable containers were peeled back, a powerful aroma burst out.
The scent instantly conquered the three people at the table. Looking closely, the pork ribs in the box glistened with oil, and the corn and green peas were vibrantly colored. It seemed the sauce had already been poured over it before delivery. The rice was stained with the dark color of the sauce, emitting a fragrance that was impossible to refuse.
Zhou Xing took a deep, intoxicated breath!
This was the scent!
Although it was different from what he had at noon, this aroma instantly hijacked all his senses!
Wang Lei had already snapped his chopsticks together in silence and begun to eat.
Forced by the aroma, Zhou Hao couldn’t even focus on the phone anymore. He leaned in tentatively, trying to find something to say. “Brother Xing, which shop made this? It smells way too good.”
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Wang Lei take a massive mouthful. Zhou Hao desperately wished he could go back one minute in time.
Why did I have to open my big mouth!
Why did I say I didn’t like rice!
Zhou Xing also hurriedly stuffed a large mouthful into his mouth, saying indistinctly, “The Wen family’s shop.”
“Impossible!” Zhou Hao denied it immediately. It wasn’t like he hadn’t eaten at the Wens’ place before; the food there was average at best. How could it be this fragrant?
But watching Zhou Xing and Wang Lei devouring their food with their heads down, Zhou Hao felt that everything on the delivery app had lost its appeal.
Just as he was hesitating whether to swallow his pride and just eat the rice, Wang Lei was already eyeing the last box of food. His hand reached toward the final remaining container.
“Brother Xing, I’ll take half first…”
“Wait, wait, wait! That portion is mine!”
“Didn’t you say you wanted noodles?”
“Who said that? I’m eating rice! I love rice!”
None of the three would back down. Suddenly, Zhou Hao snatched the rice and dashed toward the back room.
“I said I love rice!”
Mother Wen didn’t have a moment of rest the entire evening.
Takeout orders trickled in steadily, with one arriving every ten minutes or so. She was busy taking orders and handling the till in the shop while constantly communicating with her husband and daughter in the kitchen.
“One order of pork rib rice to go!”
“One pork rib rice, one side of pickled peppers!”
“One pork rib rice, no green onions!”
…
Father Wen went from being drenched in sweat at the start to being completely numb by the end.
They sold about twenty portions of claypot rice that evening, but the shop only had five small claypots and three burners.
When Father Wen bought the ribs in the afternoon, he had worried they wouldn’t sell. But as night fell, he forgot all about that; only mechanical movements remained. Brush oil on the bottom of the pot, put in the soaked rice, carefully control the heat to let the rice boil and simmer for three minutes, then add the marinated ribs. Place the corn and green peas around the edges, and drizzle oil along the rim of the pot…
Wen Fan, wearing thick gloves, demonstrated: “Like this. Make sure the heat reaches all four sides so the crust can be crispy.”
Each claypot rice was made to order and took thirty minutes to finish.
Wen Fan occupied one burner with a large claypot that could produce three servings at once. Father Wen watched the two small burners, slowly producing single pots.
The claypot rice was slow to come out, and although the customers in the shop were anxious, not one of them left. Aside from the customers who had visited at noon, Yang Hong also arrived on time for her takeout.
Yang Hong had originally wanted to order four portions, but Mother Wen said they might not be able to manage that many, so Yang Hong had to settle for just one for herself.
“Sister, you really should get more utensils for your shop.”
Not only were there few burners in the kitchen, but there were also few claypots. Mother Wen had to welcome and see off customers while also finding time to wash the claypots that had just been cleared.
Mother Wen wiped away her sweat. “I’ll go buy them tomorrow.”
She hadn’t expected business to be this good tonight. After twenty-odd servings, Mother Wen’s back and legs were aching with fatigue by the end of the night, but she was happy while counting the money.
“Twenty-four portions sold, plus the hundred-something from lunch…”
Mother Wen’s hand gripped the calculator tightly.
“Six hundred and ten!”
Father Wen was also somewhat shocked. He had been so focused on the kitchen all evening that he hadn’t spared a thought for the numbers. He had no idea business had actually been this good.
Mother Wen’s throat was dry. Today alone had equaled three days’ worth of revenue from when business was slow.
The couple looked at each other, never imagining there would be a day when the shop was this busy.
However, Wen Fan massaged her arms. “Dad, Mom, claypot rice is a bit time-consuming. Let’s change it up tomorrow.”
Father Wen was momentarily stunned. He wasn’t particularly sharp when it came to business; his life creed was that hard work leads to wealth. Business was so good today, yet his daughter said they wouldn’t sell it tomorrow. He couldn’t wrap his head around it.
Mother Wen, however, was more receptive. “Actually, I wanted to say that too. It looks like we’re earning a lot, but the two of you are too exhausted.”
Claypot rice was different from other dishes; monitoring the fire alone was draining. It would be better to stew some beef or ribs; at least they wouldn’t have to stay in the heat of the kitchen the entire time.
Father Wen hesitated. “But what if the customers come back tomorrow wanting claypot rice…”
He was a people-pleaser by nature and felt bad if people came and he couldn’t provide what they wanted.
Wen Fan took a bottle of Coke from the fridge. “Dad, are you afraid business won’t be good?”
Father Wen was a bit embarrassed. He was thinking that although his claypot rice wasn’t as good as his daughter’s, he had learned about seventy to eighty percent of it. Since the kitchen work was hard, he could do it himself.
It was better than the previous state where the business was barely surviving.
Wen Fan took a sip of the icy drink and said noncommittally, “We can still do claypot rice, but from now on, it can’t be at this price.”
Making it in individual pots, thirty minutes at a time—they had to charge a reasonable price for it to be worth it.
Aside from that…
Wen Fan suddenly mentioned her trip to the library today out of the blue.
“There were so many kids there. The parents were ordering meals online and having them delivered to the library at noon…”
“I think our shop’s previous idea was actually quite good. Quick turnover, and we can prepare ahead of time.”
“I’ll prepare the side dishes tomorrow. Dad, you’ll only need to make the claypot rice.”
…
Mother Wen’s mind worked faster than Father Wen’s. She immediately caught the key point in her daughter’s words.
“You said many children at the library eat lunch there?”
Wen Fan nodded slightly.
Mother Wen was silent for a long while.
Father Wen was completely confused. “What kind of riddles are you two speaking?”
Wen Fan was too lazy to explain to her slow-witted father and just waited for her mother to speak.
A moment later, Mother Wen’s eyes gradually lit up, as if a thick fog had cleared before her. She had found the way forward.
“Old Wen, take our daughter to the market tomorrow and prepare more vegetables… You tidy up the shop. I’m going out for a bit!”
Mother Wen swept out like a gust of wind.
Father Wen asked his daughter blankly, “What did your mother go off to do?”
Wen Fan stretched. “I don’t know… I’m hungry.”
Father Wen immediately changed the subject. “Right, right. What do you want to eat?”
Wen Fan tilted her chin. “Tired. My arms hurt.”
Feeling distressed for her, Father Wen said, “Then Dad will make something easy for you to digest?”
Wen Fan said lazily, “Just cook some porridge. Use the claypot. And steam the leftover ribs.”
“How can you only eat that! There are still shrimp in the kitchen… Boiled, then?”
Wen Fan gave a soft “mm.”
For dinner, they had thick rice porridge served with steamed ribs and boiled shrimp. Wen Fan ate a small bowl and then stopped.
She had become accustomed to the life in the palace. If her past life as a servant had left one distinct mark on her, it was her dietary habits.
To be ready in case the masters had sudden requests at night, Wen Fan never dared to sleep soundly. She also made it a point not to eat much at night. With only a few small dishes per meal and years of irregular meal times, she had developed the habit of eating very little or nothing at all in the evening.
The two of them tidied up the shop and went home.
When Mother Wen returned home under the moonlight, it was already past midnight.
Father Wen stared agape as Mother Wen tossed a stack of business cards onto the nightstand.
On the simple white cards were these lines:
[Summer Lunch Program — Free delivery within three kilometers. Tomorrow’s menu sent in advance. Clean, hygienic, healthy, and delicious.]