The next day Mingyue got up early, carried the big backpack that she had brought to the city, and went to the vegetable market.
While others were buying vegetables for the day, she seemed to be here to purchase supplies. She bought large quantities and was good at speaking sweetly, so some stall owners would even take the initiative to give her a discount.
When the entire backpack was squeezed full of food, Mingyue was willing to leave the market.
When Mingyue returned to the rental house again, the tenants had just gotten up and started cooking. The whole tenement seemed to come alive in an instant, and the sound of family conversations began to be heard.
Mingyue was multitasking, she had to boil water and make sauce, process food, and also prepare multiple basins and put away special food bags. She was really busy.
But she has become accustomed to this kind of busyness, and she is able to handle this not-so-big kitchen with ease.
One after another, the cold dishes were served on plates, and the rich aroma once again hung in the air above the slum.
Now there is no need to guess, as all the residents in the compound know the source of the smell. It is the new female tenant who is cooking something delicious again.
Some people thought about Mingyue saying last night that she wanted to sell food, and they felt a little itchy in their hearts. They tried to hold it back, but finally couldn't help but came over.
Mingyue heard the knock on the door and was a little surprised.
Seeing that she would have to wait for some time for the chicken feet in the pot, she wiped her hands on her apron and went out to open the door.
The young man outside the door saw the bright moon and his wheat-colored face turned red. He coughed twice before saying, "Comrade, last night I heard you say you were going to sell vegetables today. Do you mean what you said?"
Mingyue immediately understood his intention and smiled: "Of course it counts, but I haven't prepared all the dishes yet..."
As soon as the door opened, the aroma in the room could no longer be concealed. The man couldn't help swallowing his saliva: "It doesn't matter if you don't prepare anything. Is there anything that's already prepared? I'll just buy some to try first."
The smell is so tempting. If he doesn't eat a few bites first to fill his stomach, he will probably be thinking about it all day.
Mingyue's smile grew even wider: "Of course, come in with me."
The two entered the house and Mingyue took them to the small kitchen.
At this time, some simpler cold dishes have been prepared. There are seven kinds of vegetarian dishes and four kinds of meat dishes. Now they are all placed on stainless steel plates and covered with sauces, which look very tempting.
The man looked at this and then that, wishing he could buy them all.
Mingyue handed over two bowls and said in a very good manner: "Use your chopsticks to pick up whatever you want. I told you last night that the meat dishes are 80 cents and the vegetables are 40 cents. They are sold by pound. Just pick up the food separately and we will weigh it and calculate the price after you are done."
The man nodded and took the bowl. He first picked up a few vegetarian dishes he liked, hesitated for a moment, and finally gritted his teeth and picked up a little bit of meat.
"I'm ready. Please weigh it for me." The man put the basin on the table and said to Mingyue.
Mingyue put down the things in her hands, took out a scale from her backpack, weighed the basin first, and then weighed the two basins for the man.
She smiled and said, "Except for the weight of the basin, the vegetarian dishes weigh one catty and three ounces, and the meat dishes weigh two ounces and three cents, so the total is seventy-five cents. I'll give you seventy cents!"
The man was somewhat happy, not because Mingyue gave him five cents less, but because he only chose some meat dishes. However, there was no look of contempt on Mingyue's face.
"Okay, if your dishes taste good, I will come to buy them often in the future." The man gave the money, picked up the dishes that Mingyue had packed in her pocket, and promised Mingyue with a smile.
Mingyue sent him to the door and said, "Then I will wait for you to come again."
Seeing how confident she was, the man couldn't wait to try the dish. He lived only a few steps away from Mingyue's residence. After returning to his own room, the man didn't even have time to change the bowl or pick up chopsticks. He opened the bag and pinched a piece of dried tofu skin with his hands and put it in his mouth.
As soon as the dried tofu skin entered his mouth, a fresh, fragrant and spicy taste exploded on his tongue. His eyes immediately lit up. After chewing it again, he actually tasted like meat in the tofu skin. It was truly delicious.
Then he couldn't wait to grab a piece of salted duck with his hands. The duck skin was tender, fat but not greasy, the duck meat was fragrant and delicious, and with the spicy sauce, it was simply an ultimate delicious enjoyment.
The man even forgot about the existence of chopsticks and bowl. He sat at the table and ate all the food in the bag with his hands.
After finishing eating everything, the man still felt unsatisfied and thought he had bought too little.
But thinking of the price of 70 cents, he gave up the idea of going to find Mingyue again.
With the men taking the lead, as the smell in Mingyue's house became stronger and stronger, and the aroma became more and more alluring, more and more residents looked in at Mingyue's door.
When Mingyue loaded all the food into the car and opened the door to set up the stall, many guests couldn't help but come over.
"How do you sell it?"
"We all live in the same courtyard, can it be cheaper? If it tastes good, we will buy it often in the future."
"Yes, yes, let's make friends. If it tastes good in the future, the people in our courtyard will buy it all for you, so you don't have to work so hard to sell it."
"right… "
As Mingyue's car was surrounded by residents, the sound of a buzzing conversation began to emerge.
Mingyue thought to herself, it’s a good thing that the food boxes have lids, otherwise what they’re selling would probably be mouth-watering dishes.
But it can’t be cheap, and her vegetable garden can’t accommodate everyone.
Mingyue said sincerely, "This is my cost price. Don't be fooled by the cheap vegetables outside. I have to rent a house, use honeycomb coal, and buy seasonings. It's expensive. And I get up early and work late to cook. I'm exhausted. I can't sell it any cheaper."
Everyone smelled the food and saw the beautiful colors of the dishes, so how could they have the heart to bargain
Immediately, an old lady came up and said, "Okay, girl, bring me a thing, and I'll weigh some to taste."
Mingyue handed over the bag: "All meat dishes are the same price, and all vegetarian dishes are the same price. You can pack them separately when you choose, and then weigh them when the time comes so that we can calculate the price."
When Mingyue opened the lid of the cold dish box, the color looked even better.
Another old man came over and said, "Girl, bring me a bag too. I'll weigh some to go with my wine."
With someone taking the lead, more and more residents gathered around and joined the ranks of buying groceries.
Not to mention, the purchasing power of the residents of the slum is still pretty good. Two-thirds of Mingyue's cart full of cold dishes had already been consumed before it even left the slum.
This is because everyone was buying for the first time and had some concerns, so no one bought too much.
(End of this chapter)