Chapter 435 - 370: Just How Many People Did He Take?

Chapter 435: Chapter 370: Just How Many People Did He Take?

Li You remembered a time he had gone into the mountains to look for wild fruit with Ye Shengge and Ling Xiaoru. They hadn’t gone far before discovering a huge patch of wild ground-melon vines on a slope.

He decided to take everyone there this time.

It should only be a ten-minute walk.

As they walked, a gentle breeze blew intermittently. The air carried the fragrance of wildflowers and the sweet scent of youth. Paired with the beautiful scenery in the distance, it was a refreshing and uplifting experience.

’Getting out for a walk was definitely the right decision.’

People go for outings in the spring, so why not in the summer too? As long as the weather was nice and the sun wasn’t out, just like today.

The group chatted and laughed along the way, all in high spirits.

After a while, Li You spotted the slope from last time and saw that it was covered in wild ground-melon vines.

’I remembered correctly.’

A patch of vines this large would be more than enough to satisfy the customers’ desires.

Li You pointed to the slope and said to the crowd, "Everyone, look over there. That’s the spot. It’s a huge patch of wild ground-melon vines. Go on and pick some for yourselves. Be careful!"

Following Li You’s pointed finger, the customers quickly spotted the patch of vines.

Many of them couldn’t help but let out a "Whoa~" of astonishment.

The patch of wild ground-melon vines was truly massive, covering the slope from top to bottom.

They could search to their hearts’ content.

"Thanks, Boss. We’re going to go look," they said. Many people, including the women like Xiao Yue and Zhang Rui’Er, immediately ran toward the slope.

Wei Ping’s family went too, bringing their two children along.

Jiang Caidong said to Liang Heng, "Master Liang, let’s go have a look as well."

Liang Heng nodded. "Let’s go."

The two of them headed over.

Of course, Li You went too. He also loved eating wild ground-melons. Since he was already here, he definitely had to find some for himself.

In the end, only Xie Wanxiang, Luo Yunlin, and a few other customers stayed behind.

Xie Wanxiang and Luo Yunlin had mostly come along for the lively atmosphere; they weren’t going to look for ground-melons.

The other customers who remained weren’t particularly interested. They were content to just watch the others from there.

Soon, those searching for wild ground-melons began to find them one by one.

Someone had thoughtfully brought a water bottle filled with water, which they now used to give the fruits a quick rinse before eating them.

The little fruits were sweet and fragrant. Everyone who was eating one couldn’t stop praising them.

This included some people who had never eaten a wild ground-melon before.

Today was their first time trying one, and they were completely hooked after the first bite.

To be more precise, they were hooked after finishing their very first one.

Someone said excitedly, "This is even tastier than I imagined, better than a lot of other fruits. I never thought such an unassuming little fruit from such an ordinary vine could be so delicious. I guess you can’t judge a fruit by its vine, huh?"

"Someone said earlier that it’s a shame if you never ate these as a kid. I didn’t think much of it then, but now, I completely agree. It really is a shame I never ate these when I was young. But at least I’ve finally gotten to try them. It’s a bit late, but it’s better than those who still haven’t had one, right?"

"That’s true. If you grew up somewhere that didn’t have these fruits, then it’s no big deal. But we have them here, and they’re all over the mountains. Not having eaten them as a kid really feels like a regret."

"..."

Many who had never eaten wild ground-melons before were now lamenting this fact.

Hearing this, the other customers felt a strange sense of satisfaction. They laughed heartily and said, "It’s fine, it’s fine. At least you’ve eaten them now. There are plenty of people older than you who’ve never tried one!"

"I guess that’s the only way to look at it now. Thank you, Mother Nature, for letting me taste such a delicious wild fruit today."

"You should also be glad you came here today. Otherwise, the day you finally tried this fruit might have been postponed indefinitely."

"Right, right! It’s a good thing the boss announced a new dish in the group chat last night. Otherwise, I might not have come today."

"Me too. Thanks, Boss!"

"Is the fruiting season for these long?"

"’On the sixth of the sixth month, the ground-melons ripen. By the middle of the seventh, they start to rot.’ They’ll begin to go bad around the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month. So no, the season isn’t very long."

"That’s such a shame."

"That’s why we have to eat our fill during this limited season. Otherwise, we’ll have to wait until next year."

"You’re right. Let’s find a bunch today and take them home to eat."

"Yeah!"

Many people had originally planned to just find a few to try on the spot.

But now, they had changed their minds. They wanted to find a lot more to take home and store in the fridge to enjoy slowly.

...

「Time slowly passed until it was 11:00 AM.」

Many people had gathered a decent haul.

Li You planned to head back to the restaurant. He needed to get ready for the lunch rush.

As for the customers, they could either go back with him or stay and continue searching, then head back on their own later.

It wasn’t far, so there was no risk of getting lost.

So, Li You announced to the customers that he was heading back to the restaurant first, and that they could keep looking and return on their own later.

Indeed, many customers weren’t satisfied yet and hadn’t found enough.

However, after a moment of hesitation, they decided to go back with Li You for now.

They wanted to go back and eat lunch first—they still hadn’t forgotten about the Wensi Tofu.

Then, after lunch, they could all come back together and continue their search.

Li You thought that was a good plan. So, they would all head back to the restaurant for now.

And so, the large group set off for the restaurant, their procession still a grand sight.

...

At that moment, outside the restaurant.

Many customers from town had already arrived. Ling Xiaoru was also up and chatting with them.

"Miss Xiaoru, did you say the boss took a group of customers from the city into the mountains to find wild ground-melons?" the customers asked her.

Ling Xiaoru nodded. "They should be back any minute now."

Li You had sent Ling Xiaoru a message telling her he’d taken the customers to find wild ground-melons.

The customers all nodded. Someone said, "Wild ground-melons are definitely a novelty for city folk. I just didn’t expect Boss Jiang to go with them."

"Oh? Boss Jiang is here too? How do you know?"

"Boss Jiang was the one who bought the last soft-shelled turtle last night. He said he’d be coming to pick it up today."

"Oh, I see. Wild ground-melons taste pretty good, so maybe Boss Jiang likes them too. Besides, going with such a big group sounds like fun."

"True. I’ll go find a few to eat on my way home after lunch. Once the ground-melons are ripe, you have to eat them quickly. Otherwise, they’ll go bad before you know it."

"’By the middle of the seventh month, the ground-melons rot.’ It’s still early, there’s over a month left."

"..."

Just as they were talking, Li You’s group returned.

It was a dense, dark mass of people.

The customers in front of the shop were all dumbfounded.

"Holy crap! Just how many people did he take with him?"

"That’s not looking for wild ground-melons, that’s a full-on raid!"

"Are wild ground-melons really that appealing?"

"It must have been so lively with that many people. If I’d known, I would have come earlier to join in on the fun."

"..."

Amidst the customers’ chatter, Li You’s group drew closer. Those who knew each other exchanged greetings and pleasantries.

The scene suddenly became incredibly bustling.

Li You, however, went straight into the kitchen and got busy. Although the customers hadn’t ordered yet, many dishes could be prepared in advance.

They were sure to order them later anyway.

In fact, Li You had already prepped the ingredients for every dish, turning them into semi-finished components.

This would allow him to serve the food much faster.

Otherwise, if he had to cook everything from scratch, he would never be able to keep up.

Outside the restaurant.

A customer asked Jiang Caidong, "Boss Jiang, I hear you’re preparing to open a new branch. Is that true?"

Jiang Caidong nodded. "Indeed. The first branch is almost ready. It’ll be open for business in half a month at the most."

"Where is it opening?"

"Fengming County."

Fengming County?

The customers were a bit surprised.

Xingshui City has two districts and three counties.

The three counties are Changxi County, Fengming County, and Dongyuan County.

Everyone had assumed Jiang Caidong’s branch would still be in Changxi County. They hadn’t expected him to open one in the neighboring county of Fengming.

Regarding this, Jiang Caidong said, "Our goal is to open branches in other places. We’ll start with Fengming County, then Dongyuan County, and then the two districts of Xingshui. After that, if it’s still possible, we’ll expand to other cities and counties."

Hearing this, the customers’ eyes all lit up.

This was great news; they were absolutely in support of it.

This was because the two signature noodle dishes at Jiang Caidong’s Mian Wei Jia—Yangchun Noodles and Beef Noodles—were reminiscent of Li You’s versions, achieving about sixty to seventy percent of the flavor.

In a way, they were like a budget version of the noodles served here.

If Mian Wei Jia’s Yangchun Noodles and Beef Noodles could conquer the people of other cities and counties, it would be as if the noodles from here had conquered them.

This was something all the customers were very eager to see.

Li You had already made it clear that he would not be opening a branch anywhere else.

So, they could only indirectly place their hopes on Mian Wei Jia.

They wanted Mian Wei Jia to go out and show the people of other cities and counties what truly delicious Yangchun Noodles and Beef Noodles tasted like.

If there was anyone still stubborn enough to deny they’d been won over, well, they could just send them here.

After coming here, let’s see if they’d still be so stubborn!

The thought was incredibly exciting!

The more the customers thought about it, the more excited they became. They all turned to Jiang Caidong, saying, "Starting with Fengming County, we hope Boss Jiang’s Mian Wei Jia can one day be all over the country."

"Boss Jiang, show the people in those other places what truly delicious Yangchun Noodles and Beef Noodles are!"

"Boss Jiang, we all support you."

"..."

Jiang Caidong laughed heartily, overjoyed. "Thank you, thank you all so much for your support. Master Liang and I will do our best to open branches in as many cities and counties as possible."

"Great! We support you, Boss Jiang!"

"You can definitely do it! We support you, Boss Jiang!"

"Thank you! Thank you, everyone!"

Both Jiang Caidong and Liang Heng repeatedly expressed their gratitude to the crowd.

...