Wen Ranran pushed her cart with light, skipping steps—handing over the delivery work to Zhu Zi and the others had been a wise decision. This way, she had much more free time. She no longer had to rush around frantically and could spend more time experimenting with food.
Now that she had more money on hand, she could finally eat without worry!
Since she had delegated the work to others, Wen Ranran returned home before noon today after selling her jianbing.
Shen Shi was sitting in the courtyard embroidering when she heard movement at the gate. Looking up and recognizing her daughter, she quickly set down her work and hurried over to help, surprised: “Why are you back so early today? Didn’t you still have deliveries to make?”
“I handed them over to Dong Shu and the others. It costs ten wen per trip, and it gives me some breathing room.” Wen Ranran took a sip of water to moisten her throat, then picked up the fabric Shen Shi had just put down. Her eyes lit up—a cluster of narcissus danced gracefully across the pea-green cotton, with a dragonfly resting on one of the white blossoms, adding a touch of vivid liveliness.
She held the fabric in her hands, unable to put it down, utterly enchanted: “Ah! Mother, your embroidery is so beautiful!”
Seeing her daughter’s delight, Shen Shi happily tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, took the fabric back, and chattered cheerfully: “I’ve already cut this cloth—it’s for making you a pleated skirt. The orchid grass should be partly hidden in the pleats, so it peeks in and out as you move. That’s what makes it pretty.”
Wen Ranran leaned against Shen Shi’s shoulder, giggling: “I’ll leave it all to you, Mother!”
“The embroidery thread your third aunt and second sister bought is quite good too,” Shen Shi whispered in her ear. “I told your third aunt I’d pay her back for the thread once you returned, but she absolutely refused to take anything. Your third aunt really went all out!”
Wen Ranran burst out laughing at this: “Third Aunt isn’t the same as she used to be.”
“Indeed, she’s changed,” Shen Shi agreed with a smile. “In the past, no one could take advantage of her, not even a needle or a thread.”
As they chatted, Wen Yiliang and Wen Junliang walked over. Wen Yiliang helped Wen Ranran tidy up the cart, while Wen Junliang eagerly approached: “San Yatou, what delicious food are we having today?”
“It’s hot today, so we’re making liangpi.”
As she spoke, she retrieved the flour water she had prepared earlier and checked it. Seeing that it had settled sufficiently, she poured off the clear water on top, leaving only the white rice paste at the bottom.
Wen Ranran stoked the stove until the fire was strong. Once the water in the pot was boiling vigorously, she brought out the baking tray she had commissioned from the blacksmith a few days earlier as a makeshift solution. She brushed on a thin layer of oil, poured in the stirred rice paste, and tilted the tray in all directions until the paste spread evenly. Then, she dipped it into the boiling water for a few seconds, lifted it out, swirled the paste again, and repeated the process several times until the layer of paste on the tray was uniformly thin. Only then could she place it in the pot to steam.
Steaming the dough skins required patience—something she might lack in other areas, but she had plenty of it. Even her Master had praised her for it!
The dough skins were thin and cooked quickly. In no time, she had steamed one perfectly.
Wen Ranran lifted the lid off the pot. Through the hazy steam, she could see the translucent dough skin puffing up with large bubbles. She removed the tray and placed it in cool water to loosen the skin.
One elastic, thin, and translucent dough skin was ready. A faint, wheaty aroma wafted with the steam—the slightly sweet scent of wheat was simply delightful.
Wen Ranran steamed batch after batch, and soon, a stack of glistening, translucent dough skins piled up on the counter beside her.
Once all the dough skins were steamed, Wen Ranran began preparing the garlic water, spice water, vinegar water, and chili oil.
The garlic water was the simplest to prepare – just pound garlic into paste, add an appropriate amount of salt, and finally pour in clean water.
The vinegar water and spice water weren’t difficult either. For vinegar water, spices were boiled until fragrant before adding aromatic vinegar; for spice water, spices were stir-fried in oil until fragrant before adding water to simmer.
Wen Ranran worked with practiced ease. After preparing both vinegar water and spice water, she reheated the wok, stir-fried spices in oil, and added spring onion sections when the oil was slightly warm. As the oil temperature gradually rose, a sizzling sound emerged from the wok, and the rich aroma of spring onions slowly wafted out.
She ladled a scoop of hot oil and poured it over the prepared chili flakes. With a “sizzle,” foam formed in the white porcelain bowl, and the aroma of spiced oil mixed with chili and sesame instantly spread through the air.
Wen Ranran stirred the chili mixture evenly, adding the remaining oil in two batches after the temperature dropped slightly. Three pours – the first to enhance fragrance, the second to deepen color, and the third to blend flavors – this method could maximize the chili’s aroma to the fullest extent.
A bowl of bright red, fragrant chili oil made Wen Junliang’s stomach growl as he worked in the vegetable garden.
Wen Ranran took several clean bowls, evenly arranging thinly sliced liangpi noodles in each, topped with shredded cucumber, cilantro, and scattered gluten pieces. She drizzled them with spice water, vinegar water, and garlic water, finally adding a spoonful of fragrant chili oil.
“Time to eat!”
She called out with a smile, and the entire family instantly appeared neatly in the courtyard.
Wen Ranran picked up one bowl of liangpi without chili oil, along with a dish of chili oil, and handed them to Sun Shi: “Third Aunt, could you please deliver this to Grandmother? She can add the chili oil according to her own preference.”
Sun Shi took it, praising her thoughtfulness with a smile.
The family gathered sitting in the shaded area of the courtyard. On the table, bowls of smooth, translucent liangpi noodles were coated in bright red chili oil, dotted with emerald green cucumber and cilantro – the colors alone were enough to whet one’s appetite.
Wen Junliang couldn’t wait to mix his portion, picking up a mouthful with his chopsticks. The noodles were smooth and chewy, the cucumber shreds crisp and refreshing, complemented by the rich spiciness of the chili oil and the tangy aroma of vinegar water – all these flavors blended together to create a remarkably refreshing taste.
He tried a piece of gluten, which had absorbed the broth thoroughly. With a gentle bite, savory, sour, and spicy juice overflowed from its tiny pores, filling his mouth with fragrant spiciness.
“This is delicious!” Wen Junliang ate with a satisfied expression. “Even in the imperial palace, I’ve never tasted anything this good!”
Sun Shi, enchanted by the spicy and smooth liangpi, nodded in agreement upon hearing Wen Junliang’s words: “Ranran, if you were to sell this liangpi on the streets, I guarantee you’d make a fortune!”
Wen Ruru, who usually ate slowly in small bites like a kitten, was today burying her head and eating in large mouthfuls without saying a word, completely focused on picking out gluten pieces: How could anything in the world be this delicious!
Wen Ranran chewed the springy liangpi, smiling happily as she savored the faint wheat aroma.
At last, she wouldn’t have to worry about food anymore. But… she sighed as she glanced back at their family’s adobe house: the road out of poverty was long and arduous!
Still, she must solve the housing problem before winter arrives!
When the full moon rose, all the colored lanterns on the street had lit up. Under the brilliant illumination, the street scenes and building views carried more charm than during daytime.
As Wen Ranran and her two companions pushed their cart onto the street, they immediately saw someone mysteriously approaching them. Bowing humbly with a full smile, the person asked: “Might you be the young lady of the Wen family?”
Wen Junliang vigilantly stepped in front of Wen Ranran, his eyes scrutinizing the man for a long moment. “Who are you?”
Sun Shi also protectively shielded Wen Ranran, her expression tense.
Seeing their defensive stance, the man quickly put on a smiling face to explain. “Please don’t misunderstand, both of you. I’m the manager of Chun Shi Xu, and I’ve come specifically to invite Wen Xiaoniangzi to our shop for some tea.”
Like A Cup of Spring, Chun Shi Xu was a renowned teahouse in the capital.
Wen Ranran narrowed her eyes slightly as she observed the humble and courteous manager before her. She surmised that he must have heard about how she had drawn many customers to Cheng’s Restaurant yesterday and, seeing an opportunity for profit, decided to invite her to his Chun Shi Xu to attract patrons.
She had originally planned to visit Chun Shi Xu today to look around, but since the manager had sought her out personally, it seemed a shame not to charge an appearance fee.
Money! The more, the better—who would ever find money troublesome? That would be downright impolite!
Having made up her mind, Wen Ranran was about to speak when another man approached, also politely asking, “Might you be Wen Xiaoniangzi?”
“I am,” she nodded.
Hearing her response, the man’s face lit up with a smile. “I’ve finally found you! I’m the manager of Xiang Lai Restaurant, here specially to invite you to our shop for a visit.”
Seeing someone brazenly trying to poach her, the manager of Chun Shi Xu immediately flared up. “Hey! I was here first. Shouldn’t you respect the order of arrival?”
The manager of Xiang Lai Restaurant scoffed. “Wen Xiaoniangzi hasn’t agreed to you yet. Let’s each rely on our own abilities!” He turned to Wen Ranran with a beaming smile. “If you’re willing to come, I’ll give you one tael of silver just for tea.”
The Chun Shi Xu manager chuckled lightly. “One tael of silver? That’s beggar’s change! I’ll offer five taels. As long as you’re willing to come, you can drink tea at our shop anytime you want, free of charge!”
Watching the scene unfold, Wen Ranran secretly curved her lips into a smile, her eyes sparkling: Fight, fight! The fiercer the fight, the more money I’ll get!
The commotion grew louder as several men hurried over, jostling to get in front of Wen Ranran, their voices overlapping:
“You’re Wen Xiaoniangzi, right? I’m the manager of Feng Ya Zhai…”
“Step aside! Wen Xiaoniangzi, just name your conditions if you come to my shop!”
“What’s all this pushing? I was clearly here first!”
In no time, the street descended into chaos, with everyone shoving and crowding each other.