TATSD Chapter 66

Considering they were a group of strong men with hearty appetites, the meal was substantial. For lunch, Ji Wei served braised potatoes with meat, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, and mushroom tofu soup, all presented in large bowls.

Though there weren’t many different dishes, the portions were generous.

Whether they were laborers or the scholar Wen Xuan, everyone dug in hungrily.

If it weren’t for being at Ji Wei’s place, they wouldn’t have had such a hearty meal until the New Year, eating without reservation.

“Eat more so you won’t be hungry in the afternoon,” Ji Wei said, worried they might not have enough. He didn’t sit with them but instead filled his plate, heaping a big spoonful of braised potatoes and meat over steaming rice.

The grains of rice were plump and coated in rich meat sauce, glistening with a layer of oil, and mixed with chunks of potatoes and pork, making it look even more appetizing.

The potatoes were soft and melt-in-your-mouth tender, while the pork was a mix of fatty and lean, simmered to release a layer of grease that made it rich but not greasy, salty, and fragrant just right, leaving a lingering taste.

The hearty steamed rice, paired with the substantial dishes, left all five men’s bellies full as they leaned back on their stools, rubbing their stomachs in satisfaction.

Taking advantage of the moment, Ji Wei reiterated some important details. He paired Wen Xuan and Brother Tian together and sent the two men from Changliu Town ahead with several boxes of mooncakes.

Since their delivery locations were in town, Ji Wei let them take a small portion of the mooncakes to deliver first. Once they finished, they could return for more, avoiding the hassle of carrying too many and tiring themselves out.

With the three remaining, Wen Xuan would head to Daxi Town, while the other two would go to Baisha Town. Since Baisha Town was on the way to Daxi Town, Ji Wei borrowed an ox cart, waiting for Sister Lin to finish lunch before she sent her husband to set up the stall, allowing the three of them to load all the mooncake gift boxes onto the cart and set off together.

With fewer workers in the backyard, the space felt much more spacious.

These past few days had been busy with baking mooncakes, leaving Ji Wei little time to manage the shop. Now that all the mooncake orders were fulfilled, he finally began to organize the wooden racks that had been piled in the corner.

The rack, with four legs and three layers divided by smooth boards, stood nearly as tall as a person. Ji Wei had designed it and asked Carpenter Li to make it, and it had just been delivered the day before.

However, he hadn’t had the time to attend to it, so he left it stacked in the corner.

Ji Wei first wiped down the rack, laying a layer of clean floral fabric on it and tacking the fabric down with nails around the edges.

This rack was meant for placing pastries, so he couldn’t afford to be careless. For cleanliness, he also covered each layer with oiled paper.

“You two, bring out the finished snow skin mooncakes,” Ji Wei called toward the backyard. Soon, two people emerged, each carrying a large basin and lifting the curtain to walk out.

The basins were large and deep, filled to the brim with white snow-skinned mooncakes.

Ji Wei moved the mooncakes onto the rack, and together with the two workers, they carried the rack to the front of the shop facing the street.

After being closed for several days, the shop’s reopening didn’t attract much attention since it was in the corner.

Except from next door.

“Oh, you finally opened!” Zheng Yinghong ran out of her shop when she heard the commotion and, upon seeing the rack they were moving, couldn’t help but exclaim in surprise.

“What is this? Food?”

“The shopkeeper should try it; these are mooncakes,” Ji Wei said.

“Mooncakes? The kind people are talking about?”

Zheng Yinghong was a businesswoman and was quite sharp when it came to news about new products. Mooncakes had suddenly become popular among scholars, and many had been asking where they could be bought. Her shop was on North Street, and some customers had come asking her about them.

But she didn’t have any information.

As more people asked, her curiosity was piqued.

“It should be the kind you’re talking about. Why don’t you try it?” Ji Wei smiled and handed her a piece of mooncake.

“Well, I won’t hold back then.” Zheng Yinghong was straightforward and took the mooncake he offered, breaking it in half.

What she had was filled with red bean paste, the smooth bean paste glistening with a purplish hue, releasing a faint sweet aroma.

Zheng Yinghong took a bite, savoring the flavor.

The snow skin was soft and chewy, having rested in the well for half a day. It was springy and combined with the sweet and delicious red bean filling, it was quite refreshing compared to many greasy and heavy pastries.

“Is this skin made from glutinous rice?” Zheng Yinghong, who worked with dough, was more sensitive to food than the average person.

Given the bright white color and the soft, chewy texture, she couldn’t think of anything else but glutinous rice.

Ji Wei didn’t refute or confirm but smiled and asked her how it tasted.

“It’s delicious! No wonder so many people have been asking me about it.”

“Oh?”

Zheng Yinghong, feeling a little guilty for eating without permission and noticing Ji Wei’s interest in her response, shared that familiar acquaintances had been asking her about the mooncakes lately.

Hearing this, Ji Wei clapped his hands and laughed heartily.

“Well, now the shopkeeper knows where to buy mooncakes!”

“Just for the first mooncake I sold, I’ll help you promote it,” Zheng Yinghong said as a customer entered her shop, busy attending to them and saying no more.

“If you get hungry, come to my shop for a bowl of noodles. I have customers, so I’ll take my leave!”

Zheng Yinghong’s noodle shop was positioned more outward, unlike Ji Wei’s shop, which was partly hidden in the corner. Additionally, her warm hospitality often drew her out to chat with customers, so while her business wasn’t booming, it was doing fairly well.

In comparison to An Huai’s previous business, it was like night and day.

Ji Wei requested a wooden board from Carpenter Li and painted it white. During lunch, he had Wen Xuan draw mooncakes on the board and write the words “Ice Skin Mooncakes” in big letters.

Now, as he moved it out and stood it up at the street corner, it caught attention, especially given Ji Wei’s growing reputation.

“Mooncakes! Ice Skin Mooncakes! The must-have reunion mooncakes for the Mid-Autumn Festival!”

“Four flavors to choose from: red bean, green bean, sesame, peanut, and salted egg yolk filling!”

“Buy ten, get one free! The first ten are free to taste!”

Even though Ji Wei appeared approachable, some people, having been bitten by a snake once, feared the rope for ten years; when he scanned the crowd, people instinctively backed away, not daring to come close.

Noticing a young man in a brocade robe and hat, looking like a refined gentleman, Ji Wei realized he must have some money. He stepped forward and pointed at the whiteboard, introducing it.

“Sir, I see you’re quite the handsome gentleman. Why not take a look?”

“Uh? You’re Ji Wei?” The young man paused, looking Ji Wei up and down before recognizing him as the one who had beaten Liu Qing in the street a few days ago. Since then, there have been discussions about his change of heart among many.

Most of the original crowd frequented the East and West Streets and rarely visited the North and South Streets. This young man hadn’t heard much about Ji Wei until he had gained some notoriety through Liu Qing.

“Indeed, that’s me.” Ji Wei wasn’t surprised the young man recognized him; he just didn’t expect it to be because of Liu Qing.

“I enjoyed watching you beat Liu Qing last time,” the young man said, glancing at the whiteboard and raising an eyebrow at the mention of mooncakes. “Mooncakes? Is that what’s written on the front page of the Mingjing Tai?”

“That’s right! Want to take a look?” Seeing his interest, Ji Wei seized the opportunity.

As a scholar, the young man had surely heard of the Mingjing Tai and was already eager to learn more about mooncakes. Upon hearing Ji Wei’s words, his curiosity was piqued, and he followed Ji Wei.

“Is this it?” The young man curiously walked around the wooden rack, clicking his tongue in wonder. “It looks almost exactly like the drawing. The patterns are printed on, right? Quite detailed.”

“These are made with custom molds and printed on,” Ji Wei explained.

“I remember there are four flavors. Which one do you think is best?”

“I recommend the lotus seed paste with salted egg yolk. It’s sweet with a hint of saltiness, offering a unique flavor.”

The young man was startled, unable to imagine such a contradictory taste. His expression shifted slightly. “Sweet and salty? No way! Let’s try something else.”

“Earlier, I mentioned the first ten are free to taste. Just try the lotus seed paste with salted egg yolk. Sir, please.” Ji Wei selected a lotus seed paste mooncake and offered it to the young man, who stepped back slightly, looking a bit apprehensive.

But as he retreated, Ji Wei moved a little closer to offer it.

“It’s free anyway, so why not give it a try? If you don’t like it, just toss it away,” Ji Wei encouraged.

The young man was persuaded by Ji Wei and finally stopped hesitating.

He took the snow-skin mooncake and, under Ji Wei’s encouraging gaze, closed his eyes and took a bite.

“Hmm!”

The delicate lotus seed paste and the soft salted egg yolk had no strange taste at all; instead, it was delicious enough to make the young man squint in delight.

“How is it?”

Though the young man didn’t speak, his expression already provided the answer.

Feeling slightly shy under Ji Wei’s teasing gaze, he brushed off the crumbs of egg yolk from his hand and eagerly asked, “What’s the price of these mooncakes?”

“Not expensive, five wen each, and today you can buy ten and get one free.”

“Five wen each isn’t expensive?”

“Of course.”

If he had mentioned a box costing fifteen taels, it would likely have scared people away.

“However, it’s worth that price,” the young man said thoughtfully. “The other flavors can’t be worse, right?”

“Absolutely.”

The young man gritted his teeth. “Then I’ll take five of each.”

After a pause, he changed his mind. “Make it ten for the salted egg yolk filling!”

“Sir, you’re quite generous!” Ji Wei replied sincerely.

“Well, it’s not that. My father just gave me my allowance, and I was out for a stroll. I didn’t expect to run into a shrewd merchant like you,” the young man said. If Ji Wei hadn’t blocked his path, he probably wouldn’t have noticed that someone was selling mooncakes by the roadside.

Even though the young man referred to Ji Wei as a shrewd merchant, there was no resentment in his tone, and Ji Wei didn’t mind.

A total of twenty-five wen for ice skin mooncakes was a surprisingly big order for Ji Wei. Plus, with the buy-ten-get-one-free deal, he sold a total of twenty-seven mooncakes, amounting to one hundred twenty-five wen.

After the young man paid, he hurriedly ran off, clutching a large oil-paper-wrapped bundle of mooncakes, saying he wanted to share them with friends and family.

With this successful start, Ji Wei’s confidence soared.

He called a few lively men from the usual crowd to help him attract customers on the street.

At first, the customers were mainly students.

They were already curious about mooncakes because of the Mingjing Tai, but had no idea where to find them. Hearing the calls of mooncake vendors on the street, they came over.

As more students bought mooncakes, many passersby noticed the growing line in front of the shop and joined in to see what was happening.

It was quite the scene, and with the tasting plates set up nearby, people started to try samples and then joined the queue to buy their own.

“Shopkeeper! Give me ten with egg yolk inside!”

“I want three of each!”

“I just want the sesame and peanut flavor.”

“I want one of each…”

Zheng Yinghong, having finished a busy spell, finally found the store quieter. When she came out to see what was happening, she was astounded.

In just one hour since opening, how had her once-empty shop turned into such a bustling scene?