The night was hazy, with cooking smoke curling outside the house. The chilly wind seeped through the half-open window, carrying whiffs of food aroma. Shen Zhian’s nose twitched slightly. Having eaten Shen Zhihe’s Fried Meatballs earlier today – crispy outside and tender inside, utterly captivating – he found no interest in the scents from outside now.
Shen Zhihe, her mind fixed on the bucket of tofu brain, reheated the leftover rice porridge from noon and fried some more meatballs. After they finished eating, she hurried to the stove where the wooden bucket was placed. Lifting the lid, she saw the tofu brain had set quite well. Now everything was ready except for the seasoning sauce. She felt somewhat troubled. Since childhood, the tofu brain she’d eaten always had a spoonful of Sesame Oil, two spoons of Light Soy Sauce, a handful of pickled Diced Radish, a small bunch of Dried Shrimp, and finally a few specks of green scallions as garnish – a sight that whetted one’s appetite.
But now, while she had soy sauce and scallions, she lacked Sesame Oil, Diced Radish, and Dried Shrimp. Truly, even the cleverest housewife can’t cook a meal without ingredients. Never did she expect that after all her preparations, she’d be stumped by mere seasoning. Refusing to accept defeat, Shen Zhihe suddenly recalled she had bought some Wood Ear at the market today. Its crisp texture could substitute for Diced Radish, but she simply couldn’t find replacements for the flavor-enhancing Sesame Oil and Dried Shrimp.
Come to think of it, she seemed to have seen a stall selling Chili at the market today – an unexpected delight. Shen Zhihe’s expression shifted between frowning and easing, piquing Shen Zhian’s curiosity immensely.
He climbed onto a stool, his cool little hand touching Shen Zhihe’s forehead, snapping her out of her thoughts. Turning to Shen Zhian, she saw him pointing at the dark mass of Wood Ear. “Sister, what’s this black stuff?”
“This is called Wood Ear. Haven’t you seen it before, Zhian?” Shen Zhihe lifted her brother into her arms. Though small, he was warm like a little heating stove. Yet she felt surprised – searching through the original host’s memories today, she found no recollection of Wood Ear, as if they’d never encountered it before. But she’d seen it at the market today. Perhaps if she visited the market again in a few days, she might discover more.
Since she couldn’t find substitutes for Sesame Oil and Dried Shrimp, she decided to try making two bowls tomorrow using lard and shredded Wood Ear to test the flavor. If it tasted good, she could start setting up her stall first thing in the morning. If the flavor was odd, she’d need to ponder further.
After preparing the seasonings needed for the next morning, Shen Zhihe took a charred wooden stick and recorded the cost of ingredients on yellowed paper.
Having handled everything, she looked up to see Shen Zhian sitting obediently nearby, chin in hands, watching her movements. He looked utterly adorable. Unable to resist, she reached out and pinched his cheek.
“Sister?” Shen Zhian widened his round eyes, gazing at Shen Zhihe in confusion.
Seeing this, she couldn’t help but chuckle softly. Releasing his cheek, she patted his head and said with a smile, “It’s late. We need to get up early tomorrow to go to the market. Go rest now.”
The town in the early morning was enveloped in silence, with a few snowflakes drifting in the air once again. Suddenly, a rooster’s crow broke the tranquility, and within moments, a chorus of crowing echoed from outside. Shen Zhihe struggled to open her eyes, initially wanting to sleep a little longer, but her mind was preoccupied with her tofu brain. She wrestled herself up, grabbed her Jia’ao from the bedside, draped it over her shoulders, and swung her legs out of bed.
The commotion woke Shen Zhian, who had been sleeping on the inner side of the bed. He groggily opened his eyes and murmured, “Elder sister.Shen Zhihe chuckled at her younger brother’s drowsy, sticky voice. She patted him gently, coaxing him back to sleep, then picked up the oil lamp from the table and headed toward the kitchen.
She lifted the lid covering the wooden bucket and held the oil lamp close to peer inside. The tofu brain had solidified perfectly—a great success. Setting the lamp down, she moved the bucket off the small stove that had been keeping it warm beneath. After all, the Northern Border winters were bitterly cold, and passersby would surely appreciate a bowl of steaming hot tofu brain.
Shen Zhihe took out a ceramic bowl and scooped two spoonfuls of tofu brain with a copper ladle. Following her plan from the day before, she added two spoonfuls of soy sauce, then tossed in some rehydrated, cleaned, and blanched wood ear strips. Finally, she garnished it with a few chopped scallions. She took a spoonful and tasted it, pondering for a moment. It seemed a bit bland, so she reached for the salt jar nearby, pinched a few grains of salt, and sprinkled them in.
After stirring until the salt dissolved, she tried another spoonful. This time, the flavor was just right. Though not as delicious as the version from her previous life that included dried shrimp, it was still quite good—far superior to the Chuibing she had tasted a few days ago. Satisfied, Shen Zhihe covered the bowl.
She then steamed a large batch of sweet potatoes, planning to make some fried sweet potato balls to sell alongside the tofu brain. As she kneaded the dough, she suddenly remembered the pork she had bought a few days ago. At this time, it seemed people weren’t yet aware of castrating pigs, so the meat from the market often had a gamy smell. She decided that after selling the tofu brain today, she would buy some Chinese spices to see if she could remove the odor.
If she could solve the gamy smell issue, once she established a market in this town, she could make and sell Dongpo Pork. The thought of Dongpo Pork—rich in sauce, fatty yet not greasy, lean yet not dry, melting in the mouth—made Shen Zhihe swallow involuntarily.
Snapping back to reality, she quickened her pace. By the time a sliver of dawn appeared on the horizon, she had finished all the preparations. Admiring the golden, crispy sweet potato balls and the trembling, snow-white, gleaming tofu brain, she straightened up, stretched her stiff waist, and walked slowly to the bedroom to wake Shen Zhian, who was still fast asleep.
“Zhian, try this tofu brain for your elder sister,” Shen Zhihe said, placing a bowl in front of the sleepy-eyed boy.
The mild bean fragrance, mixed with the refreshing scent of wood ear, wafted into Shen Zhian’s nostrils, chasing away his drowsiness. He looked up at Shen Zhihe, somewhat hesitant.
“Elder sister has already eaten. Hurry up, Zhian. After you finish, we’ll go to the market to check things out.”
Hearing this, Shen Zhian grabbed a spoon, scooped a mouthful, and stuffed it in. The unique texture instantly won over his taste buds. With his mouth full of tofu brain, barely able to swallow, he jerked his head up to look at Shen Zhihe, eyes sparkling, and mumbled indistinctly, “Elder sister, it’s delishous.”
Then he quickly buried his head and shoveled spoonful after spoonful into his mouth.
By the time Shen Zhian finished eating, Shen Zhihe had already tightly wrapped the wooden bucket with an old cotton quilt and loaded it onto the pushcart. She also stuffed the wooden box containing the Fried Sweet Potato Balls into the quilt.
Seeing this, Shen Zhian swiftly cleaned up the bowls, trotted over to Shen Zhihe’s side, tugged at the hem of her clothes, and looked up at her with round, pitch-black eyes full of confusion.
“Let’s go, your big sister is taking you to the market.” Shen Zhihe pushed the cart with Shen Zhian in tow, heading toward the market under the morning sun after the snowfall.
After about half an hour, the siblings finally arrived at the market, but the better spots had long been taken. Shen Zhihe stood by the roadside, scanning the area, and eventually settled on a corner. She bent down and told Shen Zhian to hold onto the hem of her clothes, then pushed the cart toward the empty space in the corner.
After parking the cart, she took down the folding stool and placed it to the side, guiding Shen Zhian to sit there. She then opened the lid of the wooden bucket, scooped out a bowl of tofu brain, and topped it with sauce and chopped scallions. Before she could even start hawking, the granny selling Sa Zi (fried dough twists) nearby curiously approached.
“What kind of food is this, young lady? I’ve never seen it before in all my years,” the granny asked, her wrinkled face showing a hint of curiosity. The aroma was somewhat familiar, but she had never encountered such a dish.
“This is tofu brain—delicious and healthy, and only three coins a bowl,” Shen Zhihe replied, inwardly delighted. She had been worrying about how to promote her goods, and now, as if reading her mind, someone had handed her the perfect opportunity. She immediately raised her voice.
Passersby, who had likely never heard of such a thing, stopped curiously upon hearing her. Some even hurried over to Shen Zhihe’s stall. However, upon seeing the soft, wobbly appearance of the tofu brain, they were intrigued but hesitant to try it.
Seeing that a few were about to leave, Shen Zhihe grew anxious and promptly announced loudly, “To celebrate our grand opening today, the first ten customers can try it for free, and the first twenty will receive two Fried Sweet Potato Balls with each purchase of tofu brain!”
At the word “free,” those who had been about to leave immediately turned on their heels and rushed back to Shen Zhihe’s stall, clamoring to claim the first spot.
“Don’t rush, everyone. I’m keeping track,” Shen Zhihe said with a smile, scanning the crowd. “The lady in the yellow Jia’ao (padded jacket) marks the tenth free tasting, and the gentleman in the black bamboo hat marks the twentieth.”
With that, she deftly picked up wooden bowls, prepared the ten free samples, and handed them out. The recipients were taken aback to see the bowls filled to the brim with tofu brain, feeling a twinge of embarrassment. They had assumed the free tasting was just a gimmick and expected only a tiny portion, never imagining the young lady would be so generous.
As they hesitated, a man in blue took a spoonful. The tofu brain was soft, smooth, and velvety, with the unique fragrance of lard blending with the fresh, mellow aroma of soybeans. The crisp, refreshing texture of the Wood Ear strips stimulated the appetite, and though it carried a savory hint of soy sauce, the aftertaste was endlessly satisfying.
The man’s eyes lit up instantly. As something of a food connoisseur, he had never tasted anything so exquisite in half a lifetime. Without regard for the astonished looks around him, he began devouring it in large mouthfuls.
Those few people stepped aside with their bowls, watching as Shen Zhihe served tofu brain to the next ten customers and wrapped two golden crispy Fried Sweet Potato Balls in oil paper for each of them.
The rest of the crowd gathered around, watching from a distance. Although three coins for a bowl wasn’t expensive, they had never seen such a thing before and were hesitant to try it. While everyone was still hesitating, one of the first ten customers had already finished his bowl. He walked up to Shen Zhihe’s stall with his bowl, took three coins from his pocket, and placed them on the cart.
Suddenly, he noticed the person next to him enjoying the Sweet Potato Meatballs and immediately asked, “Little lady, how much are those Sweet Potato Meatballs?”
Hearing this, Shen Zhihe looked up with a smile. “If you buy the Sweet Potato Meatballs alone, they’re two coins each, as they’re fried in lard. But I see you might want another bowl of tofu brain too. How about a special deal—one bowl of tofu brain and two Sweet Potato Meatballs for five coins?”
“Hahaha, excellent! Little lady, this tofu brain tastes truly wonderful. Will you be here tomorrow?” The man laughed heartily, took two more coins from his pocket, and placed them on the cart. He accepted the tofu brain and Fried Meatballs from Shen Zhihe and couldn’t resist immediately popping one meatball into his mouth. A rich, savory flavor burst in his mouth—just as the young lady had said, the Sweet Potato Meatballs were crispy on the outside from being fried in lard, yet incredibly soft and chewy inside. Paired with the tofu brain, the taste was unlike anything he had ever experienced.
“Of course, I’ll be here.”
After that man, the others who had sampled for free earlier gradually returned to buy a bowl of tofu brain with two Fried Meatballs, instantly feeling thoroughly satisfied.
The onlookers, seeing the number of meatballs in Shen Zhihe’s wooden box dwindling, could no longer hold back and surged forward. Before long, the tofu brain in her wooden bucket was completely sold out. Even Granny nearby sold quite a few Sa Zi and, beaming with joy, stuffed some into Shen Zhian’s arms.
Seeing this, Shen Zhihe didn’t hesitate either. After tidying up the wooden bucket, she magically produced a bowl of tofu brain from behind and handed it to Granny, saying with a smile, “Thank you, Granny, for keeping an eye on my things. My brother and I are going to the Ji Shi to buy ingredients for tomorrow.”
“Good, good, good!” Taking the tofu brain, Granny’s wrinkled face blossomed into a wide smile.
Shen Zhihe took her brother’s hand and headed toward the market. Suddenly, she remembered that although her stall was set up, she hadn’t yet taken care of the officials at the yamen. She immediately found a well-decorated pastry shop and bought a generous amount of exquisite cakes.
The moment she stepped out of the shop, Shen Zhihe felt a pang of regret—the expense was painful. However, when dealing with yamen officials, if the gifts were too shabby, no one would pay her any attention. She could only hope everything would go smoothly this time.
She randomly asked someone for directions and followed the described route to the yamen. To her dismay, the guard at the entrance accepted her pastries, but she didn’t even get to meet any of the yamen runners.