After finishing her shift, Song Yu went out to browse the shops with a colleague.
As they both felt a bit hungry, the colleague suggested, "Do you want to get some late-night snacks? Cold skin noodles? Stinky tofu? I think those roasted lamb skewers look pretty good too."
Usually, Song Yu was someone who would eat just about anything, but right now, she seemed completely uninterested. Her mind was filled with the Braised Pork Belly she’d had at noon.
The Braised Pork Belly mixed with rice… that thick, brownish-red sauce coating the grains until they were glistening with oil, followed by a bite of Sour and Spicy Shredded Potatoes—the mere memory made her mouth water.
Seeing her lack of reaction, the colleague asked, "What's wrong? You don't want any of those?"
Song Yu replied, "I want rice."
Her colleague was baffled. "Huh? Who eats a full meal for a late-night snack!"
Before Song Yu could explain, her nose suddenly caught a faint, lingering aroma in the air.
She immediately sniffed and looked around. "Do you smell that? It smells amazing."
The colleague smelled it too. "It seems to be coming from over there."
Song Yu perked up instantly. "Come on, let's go check it out."
The two of them squeezed through the crowd toward the scent and found a small queue ahead. The stall wasn't large; they were selling pan-fried potato pancakes. The shredded potatoes were sizzling in the pan, releasing a mouth-watering fragrance.
Song Yu ordered one with extra spice, while her colleague went for a non-spicy one.
Ye Daxian's shock of yellow hair was very recognizable. Song Yu realized this was the same person who had been selling Lunch Boxes in front of the factory at noon.
She took a bite of the shredded potato pancake. The edges of the crust were curled and crispy, and a single bite revealed the soft, tender shredded potatoes inside. It was delicious.
She and her colleague even swapped for a taste. The non-spicy one was also excellent; the natural salty-savory flavor of the potatoes was fragrant on its own.
Song Yu's face lit up with joy as she ate. "Boss, do you have any more? Give me another one!"
Ye Daxian was already cleaning the pan. "No more, all sold out." He had even scraped the last bits of potato from the edge of the basin; everything was gone.
Song Yu hurriedly asked, "Will you still be selling Lunch Boxes at the factory tomorrow at noon?"
Ye Congxi nodded. "Yes, we'll be there. It'll be one meat and one vegetable dish."
Fearing the Lunch Boxes would sell out as quickly as the potato pancakes, Song Yu pulled out her money. "Then I'll pre-order one now."
She then asked her colleague, "Do you want to pre-order too? Their Lunch Boxes are incredibly good. The Braised Pork Belly I had at noon was divine. You can't even imagine how delicious it was."
Trusting Song Yu, the colleague said, "Then I'll have one too."
When Ye Daxian took the five yuan, he froze for a couple of seconds.
In the past, people would go out of their way to avoid him. Now, someone actually trusted him enough to pay in advance.
Grandpa Liu also leaned in. "I'd like to order too, but can the Braised Pork Belly be swapped for something else?"
Ye Congxi asked, "Is the Braised Pork Belly not good?"
Grandpa Liu replied, "It's good. It's too good, in fact. But I have high cholesterol and can't eat too much fatty meat. If you could swap it for lean meat, it would be great. Maybe add a soup to the set; I wouldn't mind paying three yuan for that. That's how the restaurants do it."
Ye Congxi shook her head. "We only have one Honeycomb Briquette Stove. We can't manage all that."
Seeing she was open to the idea, Grandpa Liu said, "I have a spare stove at my place, something called a gas stove. Do you want it? If you do, just take it; I won't charge you. But for half a month… no, for a full month, you have to make lean meat dishes. Don't worry, I'll pay for the meals as usual. How about it?"
His daughter had bought that gas stove, saying it was more convenient than a briquette stove.
However, after checking, the old couple found that gas was more expensive than Honeycomb Briquettes. Moreover, having seen how restaurants used them, they thought the flame was too fierce and felt it was unsafe. In the end, they stuck with the Honeycomb Briquette.
The gas stove had just been sitting in their house, taking up space.
Ye Congxi's eyes lit up. A coal stove was never as easy to use as a gas stove; she had indeed been wanting to switch.
"Alright. How about I make Steamed Chicken with Mushrooms for you tomorrow? What about you two? Is chicken thigh meat okay?" Ye Congxi asked for Song Yu's opinion.
"Yes, that's fine. No problem at all, as long as there's meat," Song Yu replied after a moment of surprise.
She was a bit taken aback. She had assumed Ye Daxian was the cook, but looking at them now, it was actually this young girl?
Impressive.
With these skills, she would never have to worry about her future.
As she turned to leave, Song Yu felt a tiny bit of regret.
Today's Braised Pork Belly had been so fragrant. Steamed Chicken with Mushrooms sounded a bit lighter; would it be as good with rice?
After giving them his address, Grandpa Liu also left. "I'll go get it ready."
Ye Congxi saw Lin Qiujiao still staring at Song Yu and her colleague's retreating figures. "What is it, Mom?"
A look of nostalgia appeared on Lin Qiujiao's face. "I was like that when I was young too. After work, I loved going out for late-night snacks with my friends."
She put her arm around her daughter's shoulder. "The clothes they're wearing are so pretty. Once the debt is paid off, Mom will buy some for you too. One for you and one for me—we'll have matching mother-daughter outfits."
Ye Daxian leaned in. "What about me?"
Lin Qiujiao smiled. "Xiange, I'll buy you a pair of flip-flops. I saw someone wearing a really nice pair just now—bright red and very eye-catching. You'd look very stylish in them."
Ye Congxi was speechless.
Hearing that he would get something too, Ye Daxian was satisfied.
After dropping their things back home, they went to find Grandpa Liu.
Walking from the River Yong along a small path lined with Plantain Trees, the lively night market faded behind them until only the sound of a few frogs remained.
The tallest building here was only five stories high. It was welfare housing built by a factory unit back in the eighties; the soundproofing was good, and the buildings were spaced far apart.
Ye Congxi took a deep breath of the night breeze. "This feels so nice."
Seeing them from his doorway, Grandpa Liu waved vigorously.
"The box was chewed by rats, you can just carry it back as is," Zhang Apo said.
Initially, she hadn't been very happy when her husband said he was giving the gas stove away.
But after hearing that by giving it away, the girl would be willing to cook lighter meals for a month, Zhang Apo relented.
She had realized that the food smelled so good that if she didn't agree, the old man would definitely sneak out every day to eat Braised Pork Belly.
If his health suffered, no amount of money could fix it.
Zhang Apo pulled out two yuan and fifty cents. "Save a Lunch Box for me tomorrow as well."
If Grandpa Liu wasn't eating at home, there was no point in her cooking for one person. She might as well eat out too.
Taking the money, Ye Daxian's eyes crinkled with joy. "Apo, don't worry, I'll make sure yours is packed full."
Grandpa Liu immediately chimed in to emphasize, "It has to be fried by your daughter!" This was very important!
Ye Daxian said, "My cooking is good too. The people who bought the potato pancakes tonight all said they were fragrant."
Grandpa Liu thought to himself that they only said that because they hadn't tasted Ye Congxi's cooking. "You still need to practice. Let your daughter guide you."
Zhang Apo also spoke to Ye Daxian with earnest advice. "At your age, you should be more steady. Practice your skills, get the stall running well—isn't this better than wandering around aimlessly like you used to?"
Ye Congxi crouched down and looked at the gas stove through the tattered box. It wasn't just rat-bitten; there were also traces of cockroaches.
She silently stood up and let her father carry it back.
At home, one parent washed the dishes while the other wiped the gas stove clean.
Ye Congxi said, "Dad, tomorrow you need to go ask how much it costs to rent a gas cylinder."
Ye Daxian nodded, but then something felt off. "Wait, weren't we supposed to be saving money? Why are we spending it again?"
Ye Congxi explained, "We spend money to save better. Look at the person selling Fried rice noodles at noon; they used a gas stove. The flame is so strong! If we switch, we'll cook faster, which means we can make and sell more."
"Don't worry, Dad. Just calculate how much we made today. We'll definitely be able to save three hundred."
Ye Daxian did the math. They had sold over forty yuan worth of potato pancakes tonight, plus eighty from noon and thirty from the morning…!
Ye Daxian felt capable again.
After washing the dishes and bathing, Lin Qiujiao and Ye Daxian competed to count the money.
Ye Congxi closed the lid of the box. "Time for bed. We have to wake up early tomorrow to buy groceries."
All three were exhausted from the long day and fell asleep as soon as their heads hit the pillows.
The next day.
Ye Congxi habitually woke up around five. she went to the living room to pour a glass of water.
Fearing she might wake her parents, she moved quietly.
After finishing the water, she sighed.
The house was cheap, but it didn't have enough rooms and it was too old. The plaster often fell off the walls; once, a piece had even hit her in the face.
She still had to find a way to rent a different place.
Returning to her room, Ye Congxi first reviewed her books. At seven o'clock, she followed her father to the vegetable market.
Mushrooms, chicken thighs, and ginger.
She also picked up some potatoes, millet peppers, and garlic.
Ye Daxian spotted an acquaintance. "Wait here for me. I'll go ask about the gas tank."
The acquaintance was a gas delivery man, the uncle of one of Ye Daxian's former subordinates.
Previously, when another group of thugs had tried to collect protection money from him, Ye Daxian had stepped in to help.
After a while, Ye Daxian returned.
"A tank of gas is twenty-five yuan." There was supposed to be a hundred-yuan deposit, but the man had waived it for them.
By the time they reached home, the gas cylinder had been delivered.
Seeing Ye Congxi was the one holding the money, the acquaintance smiled and said, "So the daughter manages the money in your house?"
Ye Daxian replied, "Of course. My daughter has the highest education in the family; she's a high school student."
The acquaintance helped install the pipes and the gas stove, tested the gas, and confirmed there were no issues. "Alright, just call me when you need a replacement."
Neither Ye Daxian nor Lin Qiujiao had ever used a gas stove before, and they studied it curiously.
Ye Congxi immediately assigned tasks. Ye Daxian was in charge of cutting the chicken thigh meat and the shredded potatoes, while Lin Qiujiao was responsible for washing the mushrooms, rinsing the rice, and cooking it.
Ye Congxi opened a workbook.
The problems were from the first year of high school. At first, she couldn't remember many of the knowledge points, but fortunately, as she flipped through the textbook while working, the feeling slowly came back to her.
Seeing that it was almost time, she went out and picked up a bowl, pointing to the floral pattern on it. "Mom, from now on, add this much oil when you cook the rice, up to this flower here. Use one spoonful of salt like this, and remember to stir it evenly."
Then she told her the amount of water. "Add water up to this scratch."
Lin Qiujiao nodded. She didn't understand the exact measurements, but she could remember the positions.
Ye Daxian had already finished cutting the chicken. Ye Congxi began to teach him how to marinate it.
"Ginger, salt, soy sauce…"
Ye Daxian pulled out a small notebook and scribbled away: how many pieces of ginger, how many spoons of salt… Toward the end, he was dazed. It was all a mess; he didn't know how to record it properly. "Xiaoxi, should we buy a scale? The kind that weighs in grams. Then we can just weigh exactly how many grams of salt and soy sauce a dish needs."
Ye Congxi said, "That's too rigid. Besides, the condition of the ingredients varies, so the seasoning has to vary too. It's okay, Dad. Just get familiar with the steps first. Eventually, I'll teach you how to judge the amounts yourself."
Steamed Chicken with Mushrooms was simple. Once the chicken was marinated, it was steamed together with sliced mushrooms. As long as the timing was controlled well, the resulting chicken would be tender and fragrant.
Heat billowed out as the pot lid was lifted. The savory scent of mushrooms mingled with the freshness of the chicken. A layer of light, soy-colored sauce had collected at the bottom, clear and glistening with droplets of oil. A handful of chopped green onions was scattered on top, making the dish look even more beautiful.
Lin Qiujiao was tempted just by looking at it. "This would definitely be delicious mixed with rice!"