TTTQF Chapter 114

Diversifying the Business

Jiang Miao carries two food containers and arrives at the Children’s Hall. He stands at the entrance, raises his hand, and knocks on the door. Almost immediately, the door is pulled open from the inside.

"Brother Jiang, you’re here!" The person who opens the door greets him warmly, clearly pleased by Jiang Miao’s arrival. If he weren’t constantly glancing at the food containers, Jiang Miao might feel touched by his enthusiasm.

Jiang Miao hands over the food containers and says, "I won’t be coming in. Please trouble yourself, Master Bai, to distribute the food to the children inside. Oh, and yours and Master Tan’s are at the bottom layer."

Master Bai’s smile deepens upon hearing this. "Don’t worry, Brother Jiang, I’ll distribute it to the children right away. Master Tan has already given the children a break."

Jiang Miao smiles and replies, "Thank you for your help." He isn’t eager to go inside, knowing that if he does, Pei Mu will gaze at him pitifully, and it will definitely disrupt his studies.

After watching Jiang Miao leave, Master Bai closes the door with his foot and carries the food containers inside, his steps noticeably lighter than before.

As soon as he enters the classroom, the children immediately stop playing, run back to their seats, and sit upright, their eyes shining like soldiers about to be inspected.

Master Bai lifts the lids of the containers, revealing the contents to everyone. Between the slightly golden, crispy slices of steamed bun are fresh green cucumbers, golden fried eggs, and dark red smoked meat. A kid-friendly meat sauce has been spread inside. Even without tasting it yet, everyone can already imagine how delicious it will be.

In an instant, the sound of children swallowing fills the room. They don’t know how to hide their demy lordes—when they want something, they just stare at it, their eagerness written all over their faces.

Master Bai calls their names one by one to come up and receive their food. The buns are placed on oil paper, making them clean and easy to hold. Xiao Shitou and Pei Mu also go up to get theirs. Although they have eaten this many times before, both feel that only the ones made by Brother Miao taste the best.

Sitting next to them, Wang Changyu wolfs down his large steamed bun, holding it with both hands. He is the son of the woman who stopped Jiang Miao that day, wanting to buy rice cakes.

This guy sits next to Xiao Shitou and Pei Mu every day, watching them pull out various delicious foods and eat with relish, unable to resist his cravings. That afternoon, he returns home feeling listless. As soon as he enters the main room, he notices several pieces of white, delicate-looking treats on a plate, adorned with a few bright red spots. They look a lot like the food Jiang Lei and Pei Mu brought to eat that day.

"Mother!" he shouts, tossing his school bag aside and running to the kitchen. "Is that the same food Jiang Lei and Pei Mu were eating?" His little face flushes with excitement.

Madam Wang gives him an exasperated look. "Yes, yes, I asked Jiang Lei’s older brother for it today." For this greedy boy, she really embarrassed herself.

"Mother, you're the best!" Wang Changyu rushes over to give her a hug, then dashes back out without a second thought and grabs a piece of rice cake to eat. The sweet taste is exactly as he imagined, and Wang Changyu squints happily.

Children love to show off, and by the time Master Tan arrives that afternoon, Wang Changyu has already flaunted his treat to the whole class. When only Jiang Lei and Pei Mu have food to eat, the others are envious but don’t make a fuss. However, once another student also tastes it, the rest instantly feel indignant.

So that night, while Jiang Miao, Pei Mu and his friends happily eat crayfish, some of the other kids have bamboo shoots with stir-fried meat, and the sound of sad wails echoes one after another.

Though they might get scolded or even spanked, it doesn’t diminish the parents’ feelings of sympathy. Most of these kids are the sons of officials, pampered and spoiled from a young age. Even though the Imperial Academy is considered a relatively poor institution within the court, compared to common folk, these families still have some extra money to spare.

The next morning, a few women gather together and approach Jiang Miao, hoping to buy the daily meals he prepares for their children. As they speak at the academy’s entrance, other parents overhear and soon echo the same request. Although their children haven’t clamored for the food, they have expressed their admiration in conversation.

Jiang Miao initially thinks of giving the food to a few children for free—after all, how much could one child eat? But with so many parents asking, he can’t provide it all for free. Even if he wants to do a good deed, the target should not be these middle-class families.

After thinking it over, Jiang Miao names a price and proposes a monthly payment plan. If they agree, he will continue. These women might be frugal in other areas, but when it comes to their children, they don’t hesitate.

After receiving the payment, Jiang Miao delivers the prepared food to the Children's Hall the next day. To ensure the two teachers are on board, Jiang Miao launches a "food attack." As the saying goes, ‘It's hard to reject when you've eaten someone’s food.’ After a few treats, the teachers have no objections to distributing snacks to the children during breaks. A few days later, Master Bai even takes over the task voluntarily.

Jiang Miao has unintentionally started a new business here, and although he isn’t making much, he is still quite happy—his daily food expenses are basically offset.

Speaking of food expenses, ever since he discovers that the vegetables from the mountain are both fresher and cheaper, he stops ordering vegetables from the main dining hall, now only purchasing meat. This behavior naturally catches the attention of the aunts. Their own crops haven’t fully grown yet, so why isn’t Jiang Miao ordering vegetables anymore?

When they ask him and find out the reason, it all makes sense. After some discussion, they too go down the mountain to buy vegetables. When they cook them at home and taste them, they find the flavor indeed superior to the ones delivered by the dining hall—it feels fresh and tender in their mouths.

The people at the dining hall find this odd and report it to Chef Hu. He furrows his brows—no wonder the money coming in has been less than usual these past few days. The price of meat hasn’t fluctuated much, but when it comes to vegetables, there is more room for profit. After some investigation, he finds out that Jiang Miao is behind it. Not only has he influenced others to stop ordering vegetables, but he has also opened up a large vegetable plot, which means it will be even harder to sell vegetables in the future. Chef Hu can’t help but hold a bit of a grudge against Jiang Miao.

Jiang Miao doesn't know that someone holds a grudge against him. At this moment, he is reviewing the ledger sent from the Jiang family shop. The ledger is delivered every ten days, along with the silver earned.

Jiang Miao notices that over the past five or six days, the shop’s sales have significantly increased, with revenue climbing sharply. He can’t help but marvel at the charm of crayfish.

Ever since he discovered crayfish, he took a basket of them to the Jiang family shop during his free time. Everyone at the shop was curious, not understanding why Jiang Miao had brought so many of these clawed creatures.

Once Jiang Miao demonstrated his cooking skills, they were all convinced. Only their boss can turn something seemingly useless into something so delicious.

Jiang Miao teaches Li Ping the secret recipe for cooking crayfish. After a few failed attempts, Li Ping finally manages to cook it decently. Though it isn’t quite as good as Jiang Miao’s, with more practice, Li Ping could very well match him.

This crayfish is not suitable for eating in the morning. At noon, everyone is in a rush to work and doesn’t have the time to enjoy a slow meal. After considering this, Jiang Miao decides that selling them in the evening would be best. In fact, Jiang Miao thinks the ideal time would be late-night snacks, but Liang Dynasty people don’t have the habit of eating at night. They are afraid of missing the curfew, so once night falls, people rarely go out.

After discussing with everyone, Jiang Miao decides to sell breakfast in the mornings, cold noodles at noon, and crayfish in the evenings. With the increased workload, the monthly wages naturally rise as well. Now, the shop’s staff earn two to three times what an ordinary restaurant worker would make. It is tiring, but they are happy!

While everyone is enjoying themselves, Jiang Miao notices something seems off between Jiang Yu and Li Ping. They are also happy. They occasionally exchange glances and blush, as if feeling shy.

Jiang Miao's confused gaze is so obvious that the two quickly restrain themselves, making Jiang Miao wonder if he has imagined it.

Meanwhile, the local residents notice that Jiang Family’s small shop has quietly opened in the evening as well, sparking their curiosity. Could it be that they are selling liangpi (cold noodles) at night now?

However, before they even reach the shop, they dismiss that idea. Liangpi is a cold dish, and its fragrance isn’t so overpowering. This smell is incredible, making their stomachs "grumble" with hunger nonstop.

"Manager Tang, what new surprise do you have for us this time?" a regular customer asks, chatting as they approach the counter.

Tang Lin smiles and says, "You've got a sharp nose! This is a new dish our head Manager taught us. We tried it a few days ago, and let me tell you, it tastes amazing."

The regular asks, "Has the wife of the heir came back?"

"Of course. Our head manager's skills are extraordinary. Without his guidance, could we possibly cook such delicious food?"

The regular snorts in amusement, "Everyone knows that the chef in your store is Chef Li now. Do you even know how to cook?"

Tang Lin isn’t bothered by the teasing and replies, “Look at what you're saying! Even if I didn’t cook it, I still did my part! You have no idea…” He puts on a bitter face, exaggerating the difficulty of his work to make it seem much harder than it really is. This way, it is easier for customers to accept the prices.

While they chat, the first order of garlic-flavored crayfish is served to a customer. The customer stares at the fragrant crayfish in silence for a moment. So, this is the famed garlic crayfish from the signboard! It smells amazing, but how is he supposed to eat it?

"Customer, just peel it with your hands. The shell is tough, and biting into it will likely break your teeth," Tang Lin advises.

The customer thinks about it for a moment and follows Tang Lin's suggestion. He picks up a crayfish, sucks the flavorful broth from it first, and his eyes light up immediately as the taste hits him. He quickly peels off the shell and pops the crayfish into his mouth. Instantly, a complex mix of flavors creates a bold, delicious taste—a feast for the taste buds that brings him an overwhelming sense of happiness.

Crayfish quickly becomes a sensation, bringing an end to the carefree lives of those little creatures once living freely in fields and ditches. Every day, people deliver baskets full of crayfish to the shop. Tang Lin pays for them, and Daniu, Jiang Yu, Li Ping, and Aunt Wen are responsible for cleaning them.

By evening, the line outside the Jiang Family's small shop is no shorter than at any other time of day. Ever since they introduced a take-out service, the number of buyers has increased significantly. Most people care about their appearance and feel it isn’t the most graceful sight to be peeling crayfish in the shop. But at home, it doesn’t matter. They can eat however they like, even using both hands if they want, without worrying about anyone calling them uncouth or lacking manners.

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