When the time was up, Xia Yongen lifted the lid of the steamer. The caramel-colored Malay cakes gradually revealed themselves through the steam, accompanied by an intense, enticing aroma.
“Wow, these look amazing!”
A small commotion arose among the people waiting in line, and some even took out their phones to photograph the steamer.
The grilled skewer guy had stopped grilling squid by then. He hurriedly craned his neck to see what was happening at the stall across from him.
Xia Yongen took down the top steamer and cut the Malay cake into four equal pieces with a knife. Each cut surface was riddled with air pockets of varying sizes.
Even from a distance, the cake looked incredibly fluffy, with a thin caramel-colored crust on the surface. It was enough to make anyone drool!
In less than ten minutes, the freshly steamed Malay cakes had all sold out again, yet the long line in front of the stall remained.
The grilled skewer guy handed the grilled squid to the customer in front of him and couldn’t help asking, “What does that Malay cake taste like?”
The customer was chewing the last bite of Malay cake in his mouth. “It’s soft, sweet, and fragrant. If there weren’t so many people, I’d go line up and buy another one right now.”
The grilled skewer guy swallowed hard and glanced at the stall across from him again, wishing he could immediately walk over and join the end of the line.
But wouldn’t it be too embarrassing to just walk over there in broad daylight?
Everyone would know he had gone to buy Malay cake. How was he supposed to show his face around here after that?
The grilled skewer guy took a deep breath, trying to hold it in to resist the rich aroma.
However, after a dozen seconds or so, he had no choice but to give up on this foolish method.
That mixture of toasted fragrance and sweetness went straight into his nose. The more he smelled it, the hungrier he became.
He stood behind his stall, watching longingly as other people walked away while holding their Malay cakes and taking bites along the way. It made him unbearably restless.
Yet his feet simply refused to move. He kept repeating to himself:
No. I can’t eat it. There’s nothing special about it. It’s just a cake…
And so, half an hour passed.
Xia Yongen began steaming another batch of Malay cakes. The grilled skewer guy could no longer stand the aroma.
Whatever! Let it be embarrassing! Today, I absolutely have to eat that Malay cake!
He put on a mask and hurried to the very end of the line. He kept his head lowered as he waited, trying to make himself as inconspicuous as possible.
Xia Yongen counted the remaining dough. She hadn’t expected that, in just one morning, more than sixty portions of Malay cake would have been sold.
The batch currently steaming was made from the very last of the dough. Once these twenty-four portions were sold, today’s supply of Malay cake would be completely gone.
“Those of you at the back, please don’t line up anymore. There isn’t much Malay cake left. Come back tomorrow.”
Despite Xia Yongen’s warning, not a single person left the line. If anything, it only grew longer.
The grilled skewer guy felt a sinking feeling when he heard this and silently began counting the people ahead of him.
Thank goodness, thank goodness. There are only eighteen people ahead of me. As long as they don’t buy too many portions at once, I’ll still get to eat some.
Once the Malay cakes were steamed, he kept his eyes fixed on the people ahead of him. Whenever someone bought an extra portion, he would secretly glare at them.
When there was only one person left before it was his turn to order, there were only two Malay cakes remaining in the steamer.
He stared desperately at the auntie at the very front of the line, praying in his heart:
Just buy one. Just one. Please!
Perhaps his glaring strategy had actually worked. The auntie in front really did buy only one, and the final Malay cake fell into the grilled skewer guy’s hands.
He smiled in complete satisfaction and quickly took the Malay cake from Xia Yongen.
Naturally, everyone behind him couldn’t help letting out cries of despair.
“Ah, how can they be gone already? Boss, can’t you make a few more?”
“Exactly! Boss, could you make another batch right now? It might take a while, but we don’t mind waiting here.”
“Boss, what time will you set up tomorrow? I’ll come over in the morning to line up.”
Listening to everyone’s complaints, the grilled skewer guy clutched the final portion of Malay cake and quickly ducked behind his own little grilled-skewer stall.
The Malay cake was still steaming hot. It felt incredibly soft to the touch, almost like a sponge. When he gently pressed down on the thin layer of skin on the surface, it immediately bounced back.
Before eating it, he first took a deep breath.
Yes, that’s the smell! This is so fragrant!
However, before he even had a chance to take a bite, a young man called out to him.
“Boss, I’ll buy a skewer of grilled squid. Can I trade it for the Malay cake you’re holding?”
The grilled skewer guy’s heart stirred.
A fifteen-yuan skewer of grilled squid in exchange for a two-yuan piece of Malay cake—he’d be making a huge profit!
But then he thought about it.
This was the Malay cake he’d been yearning for all morning. If he gave it to someone else, wouldn’t he have to wait until tomorrow to eat it?
When he shook his head, the young man tried again.
“Two skewers of grilled squid. How about it?”
The grilled skewer guy swallowed hard, but still shook his head.
“Three skewers! Please, big brother, just let me have it!”
After an agonizing struggle, the grilled skewer guy finally handed over the Malay cake in his hand.
He could only watch helplessly as the young man took a huge bite.
The young man immediately broke into a blissful smile.
The grilled skewer guy’s heart ached.
My Malay cake!
Even though he’d made a profit, why did he feel so miserable?
The next day, a little after nine o’clock, Xia Yongen arrived at the food plaza.
Since everything had sold out far too quickly yesterday, she had deliberately prepared more Malay cakes and white sugar cakes today. She had also come early to start steaming the Malay cakes in advance.
As soon as she reached the vicinity of her stall, she saw the grilled skewer guy pacing back and forth in front of his stall, looking rather furtive.
Her heart skipped a beat. Unsure what had happened, she hurried over.
Who would have thought that the first thing the grilled skewer guy said was, “Boss, I want six Malay cakes!”
Xia Yongen froze. “Then you’ll have to wait a while. They won’t be ready that quickly.”
While the Malay cakes were steaming, her phone rang. It was a message from Li Minyao on WeChat:
“Boss, please save two white sugar cakes, four portions of Malay cake, and one box of coconut milk layer cake for me!”
Fifteen minutes later, the first batch of Malay cakes was ready.
At that very moment, the grilled skewer guy couldn’t care about anything else. He immediately took a big bite.
The soft Malay cake was piping hot as soon as it entered his mouth. He couldn’t help sucking in a breath of cold air, trying to cool down his burning mouth. Although the cake itself was incredibly soft, there was still a slight chewiness when he bit into it, giving it a particularly unique texture.
He barely had to chew before he tasted the sweetness of brown sugar. After chewing a few more times, he could make out the fragrance of eggs, along with a rich, indescribable aroma of oil.
As he ate the steaming-hot Malay cake, he couldn’t help blurting out:
“Life is wonderful!”
The Malay cake was also incredibly smooth, with a slight moistness to it. Even after finishing an entire piece, it didn’t stick in his throat or leave his mouth feeling pasty.
In less than ten seconds, the grilled skewer guy had finished a whole portion of Malay cake.
If I’d known it was this delicious, I never would’ve given that one away yesterday!
As Xia Yongen busied herself, she chatted with the big brother and eventually learned that someone had traded grilled squid skewers for his Malay cake yesterday.
The grilled skewer guy slapped his thigh as he spoke, his face full of animated regret.
“When I got home last night, the more I thought about it, the more I regretted it! I spent the whole night thinking about the Malay cakes from your stall. That’s why I came over first thing this morning.”
Xia Yongen couldn’t help laughing. “Thank you for your support, Big Brother. How about we add each other on WeChat? If you want to eat them in the future, just let me know. I’ll save a piece for you.”
The grilled skewer guy’s eyes lit up. He immediately agreed three times in a row.
Seeing that Xia Yongen was about the same age as his younger sister, yet had already mastered such an excellent skill and was getting up early every day to set up a stall, he couldn’t help admiring her.
He immediately thumped his chest and said, “I’m treating you to grilled skewers for lunch today. Squid, prawns—pick whatever you want. And don’t you dare feel embarrassed about it.”
Xia Yongen hadn’t expected the Malay cake to have such tremendous power either. All she could do was thank him repeatedly. From now on, she would have to secretly slip a few extra pieces into his order.
An hour later, another long line had formed in front of the stall.
She silently cheered herself on.
Another day full of energy and hard work!
At that very moment, five kilometers away from the food plaza, inside Mingxin House, Yao Xiaotong’s family was sitting in a private room having morning tea.
Yao Dad handed the order sheet to Yao Xiaotong.
“By the way, didn’t you say you wanted that coconut milk layer cake? Should I order you a portion?”
Yao Xiaotong shook her head while playing on her phone.
“The one they sell here isn’t very good. I don’t want it.”
Grandma Yao spoke up.
“That can’t be right. The food at Mingxin House has always been quite good. Why don’t you give it a try?”
Yao Xiaotong thought about it and nodded.
There were so many people at this teahouse that they’d had to wait an entire hour just to get a seat. The dim sum had to be delicious, right?
Half an hour later, a server brought over a plate of coconut milk layer cake.
Yao Dad pushed the plate toward Yao Xiaotong.
“Go ahead and try it. Is this the flavor you were looking for?”
She quickly picked up a piece and put it into her bowl, then used a spoon to help push the coconut milk layer cake into her mouth.
Grandpa Yao asked, “Well? Is it good?”
Yao Xiaotong put down her spoon, which still held more than half a piece of coconut milk layer cake.
“Hmm… It’s okay, I guess.”
If she had never tasted the coconut milk layer cake made by the owner near her school, she would definitely have thought this one was delicious.
But after having tasted the best first, she felt that the coconut milk layer cake at Mingxin House lacked the natural fragrance of coconut milk. Overall, it tasted rather ordinary, without anything particularly impressive about it.
Yao Dad picked up a piece of coconut milk layer cake and ate it. After chewing a few times, he said, “It’s pretty good! Much better than the one they make at the teahouse next door.”
Yao Xiaotong took a sip of tea and brought up the little stall outside her school.
“You don’t know how delicious the food that owner makes is. This teahouse’s version is nowhere near as good.”
Hearing his daughter say that, Yao Dad didn’t take it to heart. How good could something sold at a roadside stall possibly be? Even if they hadn’t added anything strange to it, how could the flavor and texture possibly compare with the food served by a major teahouse?
It was probably just a child being attracted to something new. After eating it a few more times, she would probably get tired of it.
Thinking of this, he couldn’t help feeling that he should study some new dishes.
His wife had been assigned to work overseas, so he had been taking care of their daughter by himself these past few years. Although he changed up the dishes he made every day, children still got tired of eating the same things very easily.
Recently, he’d noticed that his daughter barely ate dinner when she came home in the evenings. Perhaps his cooking skills simply weren’t good enough!
Meanwhile, in an office on the top floor of Mingxin House, a portly man sat in the boss’s chair. His secretary stood before him and said, “Boss Sun, the intermediary said that Rongxing House isn’t for sale anymore.”
Sun Yuelong stopped shaking his crossed leg.
“Not for sale? What happened?”
“We don’t know the specific details, but there hasn’t been any activity over at Rongxing House either.”
Sun Yuelong snorted coldly. “Then we’ll just wait. I don’t believe Xia Yongen is going to keep Rongxing House.”
Originally, he had thought that after inheriting Fang Ping’s estate, Xia Yongen would simply leave and never look back. Then he would be able to buy Rongxing House and use it as a branch of Mingxin House.
Who would have thought that this Xia Yongen would refuse to play by the rules? He had no idea what was going through her head. Instead of quickly getting rid of this huge burden, she was actually holding on to it.
The secretary cautiously said, “What if… Xia Yongen wants to reopen Rongxing House?”
The fat on Sun Yuelong’s face twitched slightly.
“Then she’d truly be letting Fang Ping down!”
Fang Ping had supported her education for so many years, yet she’d studied herself stupid. Reopen Rongxing House? What a pipe dream!
No culinary skills, no good chefs, and no capital—yet she wanted to reopen Rongxing House? It was practically the biggest joke in the world.
If Xia Yongen really intended to reopen Rongxing House, then his plan to buy it could be realized even sooner. He might even be able to purchase it at an even lower price by then.
After all, the teahouse had gone bankrupt twice in a row. With such an unlucky reputation, who would want a run-down teahouse besides him, the apprentice of Old Master Fang?
After the secretary left, Sun Yuelong supported his large belly as he stood up and walked over to the window, looking down at the streets outside.
He wanted to see just what a young girl like Xia Yongen thought she was doing.
Author’s Note:
None.