Back at home, Lin Shanyue recalled Liu Niang’s words—
“Have you been to the Imperial Academy? Outside its gates—just like East Market and Pingkang Ward—there’s a street full of snacks. You could set up a stall there. Your craftsmanship is excellent; you’ll definitely attract attention quickly. Then you can use the opportunity to get close to that Instructor Pei and find out more about him.”
Lin Shanyue felt Liu Niang’s idea was very reasonable.
With that, she immediately began preparing for setting up a stall.
She shared her plan with Chunlan, and Chunlan immediately said, “I’ll help you, madam!”
Lin Shanyue nodded, but then looked at little Bao. If she went to set up a stall, what would she do about him…
Chunlan seemed to see through her thoughts and said, “Madam, just bring little Bao along! I see our little Bao is very well-behaved. We can go by mule cart, and the stall can be set up beside it. I’ll take care of him.”
Lin Shanyue looked at her son and indeed couldn’t bear to leave him behind. After thinking for a moment, she said, “Alright, we’ll all go together.”
“Then I’ll make more tonight! Madam, besides pastries, is there anything else you want to sell?”
There was so much Lin Shanyue could make—steamed buns, mantou, scallion rolls… but would anyone actually buy them? And would she be able to handle so much work?
—“That Imperial Academy instructor has a sweet tooth.”
Thinking of Liu Niang’s words, Lin Shanyue decided to focus on pastries. After all, trying to do too many things at once would lead to poor results. If business really improved later, she could slowly expand.
“No need. We’ll mainly sell egg tarts, egg sponge cakes, and milk custard cakes. I’ll try making some mung bean cakes today too. If it works, we’ll have more variety tomorrow.”
Chunlan exclaimed, “Madam knows so many things. Just make your specialties—our business will surely thrive.”
Lin Shanyue smiled. As for whether business would actually thrive, she didn’t know—but having hope was already enough.
After returning to her room, she called out for Huo Yi. The mirror demon lord hadn’t gone out with her today and wasn’t around. He was probably busy, so she planned to tell him her decision later and first went to prepare pastries.
Meanwhile, Huo Yi was indeed extremely busy.
After receiving Lin Shanyue’s two pairs of jade pendants, he immediately contacted an appraisal expert overnight. After two days and nights without sleep, the expert finally confirmed their value—they were genuine, from the right era, and masterfully crafted. Completely authentic.
Instantly, the entire antiques world was stirred.
Huo family’s playboy son had two high-quality Tang dynasty jade pendants! This sparked immense curiosity. Antique enthusiasts nearly flooded the Huo family’s phone calls, and many even went to Huo San Shao’s antique shop to wait for him—but they found nothing.
Soon, they discovered the jade pendants were for a foreign Chinese collector. That made things even more exciting.
Many people offered three times the price to buy them, which made the foreign buyer anxious. He flew overnight to City A to meet Huo Yi personally.
“Hey, Huo, I heard about you and flew over right away. I heard this jade pendant is excellent—did you find it for me?”
Huo Yi smiled. “Of course, Mr. Du. This way, please.”
The transaction went smoothly. In the end, Mr. Du bought the pair of sheep-fat jade pendants for one million USD. The antiques world was somewhat disappointed, but since Huo family still had another pair, everyone’s attention shifted to them instead.
After sending Mr. Du off, Huo Yi immediately called his grandfather.
“Is he gone?”
“He’s gone, Grandpa. The money has arrived.”
Old Master Huo laughed heartily. “Good, good! Third son, I didn’t misjudge you—you really have talent!”
Huo Yi felt a bit guilty and glanced at the silver mirror. To be honest… this whole thing…
He quickly changed the subject and asked about the other pair of jade pendants. Old Master Huo said, “This is a good opportunity. You should seize it and use the media to promote your antique business. Whether you can truly establish yourself in this circle depends on this moment.”
Huo Yi felt a headache coming on. Looking at the jade pendants, he hadn’t expected things to develop like this—after all, he hadn’t really intended to seriously run an antique business at the start…
But since his grandfather had spoken, he could only agree for now.
After ending the call, he immediately went to the silver mirror.
“Little kid, where’s your mother?”
In the mirror, the little boy was still there. Every time little Bao saw the mirror, he found it fascinating. Hearing the voice, he crawled closer.
“Liang! Liang!”
Huo Yi widened his eyes. “You can talk now? Not bad. Where’s your mother?”
Little Bao: “Tart! Tart?!”
“Tart?” Huo Yi laughed. “You mean your mother went to make egg tarts?”
Little Bao giggled and nodded.
Huo Yi chuckled. “You kid, you’re pretty smart.”
Just as he finished praising him, Lin Shanyue entered.
Seeing Huo Yi, she was delighted. “Sir, I made braised pork ribs today. I think you should like it?”
“Hmm? Why do you think I like it?”
“I remember the first dish you ever ordered was braised pork.”
Huo Yi smiled. “Is that so? I’ve even forgotten that myself.”
Back then, he had only casually said a dish name to test something…
But still—
“I do like it. I’m not picky. Whatever you make is fine.”
Lin Shanyue smiled and brought the food over. “You really are my most loyal guest, sir.”
“Guest?” Huo Yi caught onto the key word again.
Lin Shanyue nodded, her eyes bright. “I was just about to tell you—I plan to set up a stall outside the Imperial Academy tomorrow.”
“???”
“A stall?”
Lin Shanyue nodded and explained everything she had discussed with Liu Niang. “Even though the chances aren’t great, I still want to try. I can’t rely on Sister Liu forever, and going there might also help expand my sales.”
Huo Yi understood. “Do as you think is best. You don’t need to report everything to me.”
Lin Shanyue smiled. “I’ve gotten used to asking your opinion now. What do you think?”
“Not bad. But setting up a stall will be hard work.”
“I’m not afraid of hardship. I’m not some noble young lady. As long as there’s a chance, I want to try.”
Huo Yi thought for a moment. “Then go do it.”
Lin Shanyue nodded happily. “Mm! With your support, I feel more confident too! Today I’m making mung bean cakes. With your help, everything I make seems to sell well.”
Huo Yi thought of the jade pendant’s sale price today and murmured softly, “Me too…”
But Lin Shanyue didn’t hear him. She turned and went back to work.
Dinner that night was braised pork ribs and home-style tofu—simple dishes, but Huo Yi ate with great satisfaction.
Later that night, the first batch of mung bean cakes came out of the mold.
They were much easier to make than egg tarts. Steamed mung beans were mashed into paste, then mixed with condensed milk, butter, and a little sugar. The mixture was pressed into molds, forming neat square blocks. The molds even had intricate floral patterns, which were now stamped onto the cakes.
Chunlan exclaimed, “Even the most skilled masters I’ve seen couldn’t make patterns this precise—the tool is amazing!”
Lin Shanyue clearly thought the same. She couldn’t help wondering—why had she never seen such tools in the market before?