Today, Qiao Man made chicken xiaolongbao (small steamed buns) with soft, fluffy skins. The surfaces were smooth with few pleats, looking like plump, white little mantou.
To create rich layers of flavor, one couldn’t simply use minced chicken breast. It required steamed ham bits, blanched winter bamboo shoot dice, lard, and rich stock… The proportions had to be perfectly balanced so that the ingredients didn’t overpower the fresh fragrance of the chicken, nor let any gamey poultry scent come through.
The ham was the high-quality variety Qiao Man had tasted at the birthday banquet. She had asked Cheng Xiangdong to pull some strings and order it through his friend. As for the winter bamboo shoots, she had to ask a stall owner at the wet market to specially stock them for her.
These two ingredients were rare in Jiang City, and since “rarity makes a thing precious,” Qiao Man’s price was not low.
She prepared a large amount of filling today specifically to notify her regulars: she wouldn’t be setting up her stall tomorrow—she had to attend An’an’s parent-teacher meeting.
An’an was a transfer student, and Qiao Man had missed the orientation meeting. She couldn’t be late for this pre-final exam meeting. Besides, Wang Yuwei was right about one thing: she needed to dress up a bit so as not to embarrass An’an.
It was Sunday, and as noon approached, the crowd was much larger than usual, especially with young people on their day off.
Whenever Qiao Man saw a familiar face, she mentioned she wouldn’t be there tomorrow. Those who knew her quickly bought extra buns to reheat the next day.
Although she had WeChat and a group for ordering buns—originally set up by Huang Ling—Xiong Mei and Qi Dongmei had since taken over that side of the business, and Qiao Man hadn’t touched it.
She couldn’t help it; the communication software in this world was far more complex than in her own, and phones had a mountain of settings. In her world, “optical brains” achieved tasks through mental intent, but the apps here seemed to “reproduce” on their own.
Last time, she had downloaded one app, only to find seven or eight flashy icons suddenly appearing, causing her phone to freeze. It eventually alerted the local police, who came to her door to ask if she was being scammed and ended up giving her a long lecture on anti-fraud awareness.
Since then, Qiao Man didn’t dare mess with her phone. Busy with her stall, she had no time to manage a group herself and relied on the most primitive method to spread the word.
Near noon, another girl arrived, wrapped up tightly in a long black down jacket, wearing oversized black-rimmed glasses and a mask. She stood before the food truck and looked up. “Boss, two orders of chicken buns, in two separate bags, please. Cough, cough.”
Her voice was nasal, and she turned away to cough twice after speaking.
Qiao Man’s hand paused as she reached for the buns. She pulled out a third bag and filled it with an order of sour radish and fresh meat buns.
Since she first made the sour radish buns, everyone found them delicious and appetizing, though a bit too spicy. Qiao Man realized Jiang City locals didn’t have a high spice tolerance, so she had switched to non-spicy sour radishes.
When the girl took the three bags, she asked confusedly, “Boss, is there a mistake…?”
“No mistake. You have a cold and probably don’t have much of an appetite. These sour radish buns are on the house for you to try.” Qiao Man smiled. The white steam swirling around her made her look like a celestial being—or she would have, if she weren’t wearing a bulky winter coat.
“By the way, I’m attending my kid’s parent-teacher meeting tomorrow, so I won’t be here.” Qiao Man paused and laughed. “Look at me, I’m getting muddled. You work and don’t come home at noon anyway.”
The girl froze. “Boss, you remember me?!”
“I do. ‘007.’ Your voice is very distinctive, and you have a mole near your eye,” Qiao Man said as if it were the most natural thing. “I haven’t properly thanked you yet. Without you, we wouldn’t have gotten those two big orders.”
“Oh my god! Sorry, I’m too excited… Boss, you really remember me!”
The girl was Huang Ling. She felt half-cured of her illness instantly; even the annoyance of having to reply to her boss’s messages during her break was forgotten. “It’s nothing, really. I didn’t do much. Your food is just good and the ingredients are real. People aren’t stupid. The boss of Qiwei Tech isn’t running a charity; there’s a reason he orders breakfast from you instead of those chains. Besides, every time Auntie Qi sees me, she stuffs extra food in my bag—either buns or tea eggs, hehe.”
Perhaps due to her good mood, she spoke a long paragraph without coughing once.
Qiao Man didn’t linger on pleasantries. After thanking her, she said, “From now on, I’ll give you a discount whenever you come.”
Flattered, Huang Ling waved her hand in refusal. “By the way, Boss, it’s been so long, haven’t you set up a WeChat group?”
“Not yet. I don’t have time to manage it. I’ll think about it after I open a shop.”
“You’re going to open a shop! That’s wonderful!”
With a shop, people could go directly whenever they wanted without worrying about missing the stall. However, Huang Ling’s joy was short-lived as she remembered the layoff list a colleague had leaked to her, and her expression darkened.
After Huang Ling left, Sister Dong, who sold porridge, came over. Qiao Man laughed; it was certainly a busy day.
“Sister Dong, buying buns today?”
Last weekend, Sister Dong had said her goodbyes; she was officially “retiring.” The weather was too cold, and her cart didn’t have an enclosed cabin like Qiao Man’s. She could only huddle near the porridge vats for warmth. She used to bear it, but this year her joints began to ache from the cold. Her daughter also insisted she stop, so Sister Dong quit.
Qiao Man thought she was just here for buns, but Sister Dong looked mysterious. She asked Qiao Man to step down, saying she had something to tell her.
Qiao Man simply invited her inside the truck. “It’s cold outside, come in and talk.”
Sitting inside, Sister Dong felt a warmth in her heart. Her loyalty shifted further toward Qiao Man, and she immediately began cursing Zhou Fenglan for being unscrupulous.
Qiao Man blinked, only then remembering who Zhou Fenglan was—the woman who wanted to take over Sister Dong’s porridge business but insisted on setting Qiao Man up on a blind date. When Qiao Man refused the “partnership,” she had flown into a rage.
“She wanted to buy my cart, but only the cart—not the porridge equipment. She bargained, and when I refused her price, she didn’t even argue; she just agreed immediately. She seemed in quite a hurry.”
Sister Dong waited for a customer to leave before whispering, “I thought it was fishy, so I poked around. I found out her family recently sold all their fried skewer equipment and bought a second-hand food truck with a water tank and stove, along with a lot of steamer baskets. It’s obvious she’s going to sell buns and steal your business!”
Sister Dong grew angrier as she spoke, even more so than Qiao Man. “That couple has no shame! This snack street has existed for years, and everyone follows the unwritten rule: ‘don’t sell the same thing and steal business.’ They must have seen how well you’re doing and want to snatch it!”
Before Qiao Man could speak, Sister Dong stood up abruptly. “No, I have to go talk to the manager about this!”
This snack street had a manager, and long-term vendors had to pay a fee.
Qiao Man thought for a moment and stopped her. “You mean she only bought the cart and didn’t want the equipment?”
Sister Dong nodded. “I told her I’d sell her my leftover rice, cups, and plastic bags at a discount, but she didn’t want them once she heard the price. I wanted to ask you first, so I didn’t agree right away. The more I thought about it, the more wrong it felt. Now I know—she and her old man want to copy our old partnership. Their spot is right across from the school; even the middle and high schoolers pass by them. They’ll definitely steal your business!”
Sister Dong pushed Qiao Man’s hand away, wanting to get out. “This won’t do! You’re young and don’t understand how dirty these tactics can be! Your stall finally gained traction and regulars, and you’ve made a name for our street. People will definitely come looking for buns! If they make their truck look like yours and charge a yuan or two less, they’ll steal your customers even if it tastes bad. People like them… I just know they’ll use the cheapest ingredients. They’ll ruin the reputation of buns on this street, and then how will you sell yours?”
Qiao Man remained calm while Sister Dong panicked. Honest her whole life, Sister Dong’s only solution was to find the authorities.
As Sister Dong went for the door, Qiao Man stopped her again. She handed her a bag of chicken buns and smiled. “Sister Dong, do this: sell the cart to her.”
“What?!” Salivating from the scent of the buns, Sister Dong thought she had misheard. “Xiao Qiao, this isn’t a joke. These days, ‘good wine’ does fear deep alleys. This isn’t about the ‘truth speaking for itself.’ It’s about… what do they call it? Right, fair competition! You can only play that game with people who have a conscience. That couple are total scoundrels!”
Qiao Man smiled. It seemed Sister Dong had been learning quite a bit lately.
Qiao Man was starting to feel a bit annoyed and considered being blunt, but she suddenly remembered something. She took a quiet breath, slowed her speech, and put on a warm smile. “It’s okay, Sister Dong. Sell it to them. Trust me, I have a plan. I won’t lose out. Didn’t you say you have the porridge equipment and rice left? Perfect—sell them to me.”
Her voice was soft and gentle yet firm, which calmed Sister Dong’s agitation.
Sister Dong sat back down, her anger largely dissipated. She eventually decided, “Fine, I’ll do as you say! When do you want the equipment? Let’s not be formal; it’s been used for years. Just give me 200 yuan for the delivery fee. I’ll clean it up and find someone to haul it over. I’ll give you the grains for free!”
“Alright, thank you so much!”
Qiao Man didn’t refuse; favors were hard to repay, and as Qiao Ya said, more friends meant more paths. She stuffed another bag of sour radish buns into Sister Dong’s hand.
Seeing Qiao Man’s cheerful and decisive smile, Sister Dong’s mood improved. For some reason, after this encounter, she felt even closer to Qiao Man. “Then I won’t be polite. If you ever need anything, just ask.”
Having finished the business, she sighed. “You know, I’ve worked my whole life. Suddenly being idle at home makes me feel more tired than working at the stall. My heart is tired. I’m in a bad mood every day; I want to scold my old man for the slightest mistake. I know my kids mean well wanting me to rest, but I just feel useless…”
“I actually do have something I need help with.” Qiao Man remembered that Xiong Mei was short-staffed. “I have a job available, if you’re interested. It’s in a workshop with heating—no wind or rain. You just finish the orders for the day and go home. No need to push a cart out to sell. Your colleagues would be Auntie Xiong and Auntie Qi.”
Sister Dong was an expert at making porridge. Customers were used to her flavor, and many had complained that the soy milk from the new partner wasn’t as mellow. Since the workshop needed people, it was better to give Sister Dong a new job. It was a win-win!
Sister Dong’s eyes lit up. “I heard you guys opened a shop. Can I really go?!”
At Qiao Man’s nod, she beamed. “I’ll go! I can start anytime! I’m bored to death at home!”
Her daughter only worried about her freezing outside. Now, with half the workload, a steady wage, and no risk of loss, the whole family would be happy!
As Sister Dong hopped off the truck happily, Qiao Man mused: Imitating Qiao Ya’s tone really works; it saves a lot of breath on explanations.
It seemed that in this world, roundabout methods were much more effective than force. She had to keep learning…
Qiao Man wondered if she should curb her temper and stop resorting to violence immediately. She had sensed Wang Yuwei’s subtle testing the other day. Even though she hadn’t broken any laws—and it was plausible for a chef to be strong—constantly doing the unexpected could invite trouble.
After all, this wasn’t the apocalypse. The system had given her a “legal education” before she arrived.
Just as Qiao Man made this resolution, a quarrel broke out nearby. She looked over to see Sister Dong and Zhou Fenglan.
Zhou Fenglan was grabbing Sister Dong’s arm, shouting frantically, “Dong Guiying! What are you doing here? If you won’t sell the cart to me, are you planning to sell it to that young wife?”
She couldn’t let the cart go to someone else. Sister Dong’s price was low; if they bought a new one, they’d have to pay for custom decals. Furthermore, she specifically wanted Sister Dong’s cart so she could make it look like Qiao Man’s to trick customers into thinking they were the same business.
“We’ve known each other for decades, and you won’t look out for an old friend! You’ve only known her a few days, and a few buns have turned your head? You’re not even a man!”
Sister Dong knew her well and knew that nothing good ever came out of her mouth. Afraid she’d start slandering Qiao Man’s reputation, she tried to drag her away.
This only made Zhou Fenglan angrier. Thinking Sister Dong had already sold the cart to Qiao Man, she surged with strength like a young bull, dragging Sister Dong toward Qiao Man’s food truck while howling, “There’s no justice! No justice! This little vixen hooked… mph!“
About three or four meters from the truck, a white lump was suddenly thrown into Zhou Fenglan’s wide-open mouth.
She instinctively bit down. Peh! Raw dough?!
The force was perfectly controlled—half stayed outside, half stuffed her mouth. If the throw had been any harder, she might have choked.
Wait, what?!
Zhou Fenglan’s screams were stuck in her throat. She stared blankly at Qiao Man in the truck.
Qiao Man was raising an eyebrow, spinning a rolling pin in one hand. The thick, solid wood rolling pin spun on her fingertip as easily as a student spins a pen. Did this young woman just throw that dough?
She looked around; no one else nearby was selling raw dough products… Besides, why would anyone else hit her?
Qiao Man gave a provocative tilt of her head, tapping the rolling pin against her other palm. It seemed if she screamed again, the next thing thrown wouldn’t be dough.
“…”
Qiao Man’s movement had been so fast that even Sister Dong behind Zhou Fenglan hadn’t reacted, let alone the others. By the time they did, they only saw Zhou Fenglan frozen in a bizarre pose, with a dusty piece of dough on the ground.
Sister Dong looked at Qiao Man. Inside the truck, Qiao Man was lamenting: What a waste of good dough to feed a dog; pity I didn’t have any pebbles.
Tsk, she couldn’t help herself. It seemed her sister’s way of “reforming the enemy” didn’t work every time; mad dogs simply don’t listen to reason.
Just as Qiao Man was about to step down and give Zhou Fenglan a proper warning, a familiar voice came from behind the woman.
“Sister Qiao! What kind of buns are you selling today?”
Shi Xiaozhao walked over in his thick winter coat, looking very cheerful. Since the day Qiao Man’s buns helped him overcome his fear during his first call as an officer, he visited the stall whenever he had time and had become a familiar face.
He even brought his fellow interns with him every day. These first-year police academy interns didn’t get a salary and had to pay for the canteen. The canteen food wasn’t bad, but it was uninspired—mass-produced “boiled” stir-fry. They’d rather spend a bit more here for buns and then order a bowl of beef noodles at a nearby shop.
They often sighed: if only Sister Qiao had a shop, they wouldn’t have to eat the beef noodles. The contrast between a heavenly bun and a mediocre bowl of noodles was painful.
Thus, Shi Xiaozhao and his friends became regulars.
Old Zhang also frequently came with his colleagues. Recently, he and Junior Li, an assistant officer, had been going around giving anti-fraud lectures. When mealtime came, they skipped the bureau canteen and came straight to Qiao Man’s stall.
At first, Junior Li had complained: “Old Comrade, you really don’t know the suffering of us assistant officers. Captain Yan finally got us a subsidy for the canteen, and you won’t let me go! No matter how bad the canteen is, it’s cleaner than eating out…”
Before she could finish, Old Zhang shoved a bun into her hand. “My treat, stop whining and just eat!”
Once Junior Li was on the “pirate ship,” she was enchanted by the fragrance and could never leave. She still intended to complain today, but the moment she reached the stall, she lost all control.
Old Zhang had been with the Jiang City Criminal Investigation Detachment for years, and all the vendors knew him. With criminal investigators and local police being regular customers, ill-intentioned people didn’t dare cause trouble easily.
They looked at Zhou Fenglan as if she were a fool: Why on earth would you provoke her?
Seeing the police, Zhou Fenglan suddenly felt guilty and stood up straight. She didn’t even know why she was guilty; she hadn’t actually done anything illegal!
Sister Dong looked at Qiao Man and, struck by a sudden inspiration, kicked the piece of dough away.
“What’s going on here?” Although Old Zhang usually slacked off at the office, he had won a third-class merit in his youth. He could tell at a glance: someone was looking for trouble!
That wouldn’t do; no one could interfere with his meal!
Old Zhang walked over and asked Zhou Fenglan directly, “What’s the matter, Big Sister? Do you need to call the police? Junior Li, turn on your body cam. Xiao Shi, this area is under your station’s jurisdiction, right?”
Zhou Fenglan had never dealt with the police. She was all bark and no bite; her legs went weak at the sight of the uniform. “It’s nothing, nothing!” she stammered, dragging Sister Dong away.
Qiao Man had already assumed an innocent look the moment Shi Xiaozhao called her. She smiled and announced the menu: “Today we have chicken buns with ham and winter bamboo shoots, and sour radish with fresh meat.”
Shi Xiaozhao and his classmates reflexively salivated at the mention of sour radish. He remembered the large sour radish buns he’d had at home made by Grandma Xiong—they were so spicy he spent his entire patrol looking for a bathroom. They were delicious, but the “power” was too much; he couldn’t handle the heat!
Seeing his hesitation, Qiao Man laughed. “Today’s sour radish is just tangy and fragrant, not spicy.”
Shi Xiaozhao beamed immediately. “Then I’ll take two orders of sour radish!”
His classmates urged him to get one of each. “Don’t regret it later; we aren’t sharing ours!”
While the group bickered, Old Zhang squeezed past them, rubbing his hands. “Xiao Qiao, one of each for me.”
Qiao Man smiled sweetly. “Sure, Uncle Zhang. Are you and Comrade Li out on patrol again?”
Junior Li looked exhausted but stared expectantly at the buns. “Yes. Only Uncle Zhang is willing to do this work with us, but he has selfish motives.”
Qiao Man laughed and began packing.
Old Zhang looked at the ground and chatted casually. “Xiao Qiao, what happened just now? Was that woman looking for trouble?”
He looked older than Zhou Fenglan, yet he called her “Big Sister.” Zhou Fenglan would have been furious if she had heard.
Qiao Man replied “casually,” “It’s nothing. She just thought I was going to steal her business.”
Since he was police, Qiao Man didn’t hide it and gave a general summary. It was mostly a civil dispute or commercial competition—with no physical fight and no one calling the police, it didn’t matter.
Old Zhang sighed meaningfully, then asked, “You work so hard every day, Xiao Qiao. Your cooking is excellent—did you learn from a young age?”
“Yes. My parents ran a restaurant. My dad was a properly apprenticed chef; he made my sister and me practice the basics from childhood. To be good chefs, we used to run with sandbags strapped to our legs, even in the dead of winter.”
This was true, at least according to what Qiao Ya had told her.
Old Zhang nodded. He kicked a grey, round, pancake-like object under Qiao Man’s truck and smiled. “That’s right, you need a strong body to stand at a stove. Alright, we’re off. If you need anything, just say the word. Don’t be polite with us.”
Qiao Man paused. “Actually, I do have something to trouble you with. I’m launching new products in a few days—shengjian (pan-fried buns). The Shanghai-style pan-fried mantou, and maybe beef water-fried buns. I can’t decide which to start with. Why don’t you and Junior Li come early in a few days to help me decide?”
New products! And for free!
Old Zhang’s eyes lit up. Even Junior Li felt that life suddenly had something to look forward to!
“Sure, sure! We’ll wait for your notice!”
Whether it was Shanghai style or whatever, Qiao Man’s cooking wouldn’t be bad. If they didn’t like it, it was their own problem.
Qiao Man nodded and looked at Shi Xiaozhao and the others, who were peeking over. She smiled, “You guys too, come along.”
Seeing Shi Xiaozhao cheer, Qiao Man felt relieved.
Shi Xiaozhao and his friends would definitely buy buns here first before going to the noodle shop, which was right by the entrance to the alley near the primary school—very close to the Zhou couple’s stall. And she heard from An’an that Old Zhang and the others would be giving a presentation at the school in a few days.
They would be walking past the couple’s “knock-off” food truck with her real buns in hand.
Qiao Man specifically reminded Old Zhang: “Come early. The first batch fresh from the pan is the best.”
Watching the two groups walk away happily, Qiao Man smiled. A new product launch was indeed the perfect time to let more people taste them. She would make sure to promote them well.