The next day, Ye Xiaohua arrived at school early, holding the snacks that Ye Qiu had given him. Gao Meili was her good friend from the village and one of the few girls like him who came from a rural background. Previously, she couldn’t attend school, and every evening after class, Gao Meili would teach her how to read. So, when he had something good, he immediately wanted to share it with her.
“Meili, here, I brought you some delicious snacks made by my uncle!”
“Wow, they look like noodles! I’ve never had snacks like this before!”
“You’re making it sound so mysterious; it’s just leftover noodles from home. Look at you getting all fancy!” Ye Chengtai, overhearing their conversation, turned around to look at Ye Xiaohua disdainfully. Under the influence of his parents, he had become the elder grandson of the Ye family, destined to carry on the family line. He believed that everything would rely on him in the future, while Xiaohua was just a useless girl.
He had also heard that his parents sold fried pancake rolls (Chinese crepes) at the school gate and were expected to make a lot of money. He came today to promote their stall.
“I have fried pancake rolls every morning!” Ye Chengtai boasted loudly in class.
Hearing his words, the classmates showed expressions of envy. “Chengtai, your mom and dad are so good to you, letting you eat fried pancake rolls every day!”
“My dad says that three cents each is too expensive and only lets me have it once a week. He’s so stingy!”
Everyone in class knew that a new snack stall had opened on the pedestrian street, selling delicious fried pancake rolls. If anyone in class hadn’t tried it, they’d surely feel outdated.
Ye Chengtai stood on his stool, raising his hands and calling out, “You don’t know, right? My dad sells fried pancake rolls outside, and he only charges two cents each! If you want to eat, you can go buy some!”
“Zhou Da, doesn’t your mom give you three cents every day to buy some for yourself? If you come to my place, you can save a cent for snacks!”
Hearing this, everyone expressed disbelief. They had all been there to eat and knew it was definitely three cents, not two.
“I went there a few days ago, and it was clearly three cents!”
Ye Chengtai’s eyes darted. “You were definitely cheated. My dad only charges two cents. He said, that since you are my classmates, he would give you a discount of one cent.”
“The fried pancake rolls were clearly invented by my uncle! How could your dad know how to make them? You’re lying!” Ye Xiaohua rebutted, knowing very well that their fried pancake roll was three cents each. Moreover, her uncle was a worker and wouldn’t set up a stall to sell things!
Gao Meili chimed in, “Exactly! Xiaohua’s uncle is amazing; he researches delicious food at home every day!”
“You’ve never even had fried pancake rolls yourself, so how could you make them? My dad learned from city folks, and Ye Qiu is just a fool. How could he possibly do it!”
“You’re the fool! My uncle is super smart!”
A group of them started to bicker in the classroom, but just as Ye Xia wished, everyone knew that there were two-cent fried pancake rolls on the street.
The previous day’s business had been affected, and Ye’s mother could hardly wait to make a comeback. Ye Xia looked forward to her impending wealth.
“Fried pancake roll for only two cents! Just two cents, cheap and delicious~”
Zhou Da usually went out to buy breakfast by himself. His family wasn’t short on money, so they had been eating fried pancake rolls lately. Remembering Ye Chengtai’s words, he unconsciously paused in front of Ye Xia’s stall.
“Are your fried pancake rolls two cents each?”
Zhou Caiyan, seeing the clothes Zhou Da wore, immediately recognized him as a child from a wealthy family and warmly greeted him, “Two cents each, no fraud here! You must be Chengtai’s classmate, right? Let me add extra pickles for you. Our pickles are bought from a state-run restaurant, and everyone says they taste good!”
Before Zhou Da could respond, Zhou Caiyan quickly handed him a wrapped fried pancake roll. Zhou Da silently took out two cents and handed them to Ye’s Second sister-in-law.
Children are easy to please; Ye’s Second sister-in-law stuffed the money into her pocket and exchanged glances with Ye’s mother across the street.
An invisible tension spread.
Under Zhou Caiyan’s triumphant gaze, Ye’s mother lifted the white cloth, revealing a neatly arranged stack of pancakes. Today, the Ye family’s little cart was different. It had a small pot the size of a plate and a large bucket on it, and a faint sweet-and-sour aroma wafted in the air.
Ye’s mother attempted to conquer everyone’s taste buds with a secret soup base and lifted the lid of the big pot.
“What smells so good?”
“Tomato-flavored noodles, the first in the whole town! Don’t miss out if you pass by!”
The rich smell of tomatoes overwhelmed the area, charging into the pedestrian street, making everyone’s appetite surge.
A familiar young woman brought her daughter over, drawn by the aroma, and approached without hesitation.
“Boss, you have new products again! Give me two portions!”
“Okay!”
Ye’s mother beamed with joy. Having just opened the pot, she got the first order. This was a good omen for business today.
Ye Oldest took out a square pancake and waited for the water in the small pot to boil before dropping the pancake in. Ye’s mother quickly grabbed a bowl with her trademark logo, added spices, and within two minutes, mixed the cooked noodles in the bowl, pouring the rich tomato sauce from the big pot on top. The bold tomato scent instantly spread.
Under everyone’s watchful eyes, Ye’s mother carried two bowls of noodles to the customers.
“Boss, we’ve never heard of this noodle before. Can you tell us about it?” The young woman was adventurous but had never seen such unique noodles.
“Oh, I need to tell you about this! Look at the soup; this is my family’s secret recipe, a concoction made from fifty or sixty tomatoes! Can it not be delicious? Plus, these noodles are quite complicated to make, and you won’t find anything like this in the provincial capital!”
“Even the supply and marketing cooperative said they wanted to buy stuff from our family to sell!”
The twisted noodles coiled together, full of elasticity.
The soup was tangy and sweet, appealing to both the elderly and the young.
It turned out to be tomato soup noodles!