Chapter 12 - 11: Spaghetti Bolognese

Chapter 12: Chapter 11: Spaghetti Bolognese

About forty or fifty people made up the first wave.

The Fourth Ring resident population was immense, so they were housed in separate zones within the shelter. The third-level restaurants were also broken up and assigned to these different zones.

According to Connie’s incomplete explanation, each zone only connected to one centralized dining area, so residents didn’t have many choices and could only buy from these stalls.

This was good news for the merchants.

Sure enough, the noodle stall soon welcomed its first wave of customers.

Apparently, the secret meat sauce noodles were quite famous. Several customers ordered a bowl, and one tall, burly man even splurged on an extra egg.

Ning He wielded her ladle under Connie’s commands of "one scoop" and "half a scoop," playing her part as the head cook.

Even though the plain ground pork was one original coin cheaper, all the customers chose the saucy version. A hint of worry flickered in Connie’s eyes.

Customers arrived one after another, and business was about the same for every stall. Even the old man selling braised pig liver had made several sales; he clearly had regulars.

By the end of the night, the jar of secret meat sauce was nearly empty, but only half of the vegetarian topping had been sold.

Meanwhile, the restaurants from the Third Ring across from them were clearly doing much better business. Customers were endless; sometimes there weren’t enough tables and chairs, and people had to share.

There was simply no comparison in how busy they were.

Around ten o’clock, after seeing off the last customer, Connie announced they were closing up.

They sealed the leftover toppings and meat sauce in food containers, put them in the refrigerator, packed up the food cart, and after a simple cleanup, everyone moved to the nearby rest area and crawled into their sleeping bags.

Ning He did some quick math. ’At this rate, it’ll take three days to sell off all our stock. I wonder if we’ll have enough time?’

With a trace of worry, Ning He slept restlessly. When she woke up the next day, she found the sleeping bag was completely crushed under her, yet she hadn’t felt cold.

’Looks like the temperature inside the shelter is already rising.’

Ning He packed up her sleeping bag and went to wash her face.

Along the way, she saw that everyone’s expression was more solemn than yesterday’s. They must have all noticed the change in temperature.

’The heat has already seeped into the shelter in just one night. This is definitely not good news.’

Business was slower in the morning. Connie sold off yesterday’s leftovers at a fifty percent discount. At noon, customers who tried the plain ground pork topping seemed dissatisfied. The noodle stall’s sales dropped noticeably. Connie’s brow furrowed even more tightly, and her mood grew fouler; she had a fuse as short as a powder keg. Ning He had to tiptoe around her.

But what concerned Ning He more was the slow rise in temperature inside the shelter.

When she got up in the morning, she was still wearing a jacket, but by noon, she could already wear a short-sleeved shirt.

It was now four in the afternoon. The shelter was steamy with heat. Just a little work would make you sweat. The indoor temperature was already approaching thirty degrees Celsius.

’This is not good.’

’Fewer customers came to eat after the temperature rose at noon. Now that it’s this hot, people lose their appetites, not to mention you break a sweat after just a few steps. Who’d want to come out for food?’

The situation was just as Ning He expected.

Even fewer people came to eat in the evening. Even the number of customers at the Third Ring District stalls across from them had been cut in half.

Connie stared at the pot of meat sauce, which had barely been touched, her brows furrowed into a knot.

However, as they were closing up, an administrator announced more terrible news.

"We’ve just received orders. The higher-ups are requisitioning all refrigeration compressors. All coolers must be emptied by nine a.m. tomorrow. Anything left behind after the deadline will be confiscated."

As soon as the news broke, everyone present wore a grave expression.

Sales had been poor all day, and every stall still had at least half of their ingredients left. The temperature wasn’t likely to improve tomorrow, and without refrigeration, the food would probably spoil in a day.

However, no matter how worried they were, an order was an order, and they had to comply.

Seeing Connie’s face as black as thunder, Ning He knew her moment had come.

"Connie, we can’t use the refrigerators. What’s your plan?"

Ning He squeezed in next to Connie.

"What plan can I have? We’ll have to trust our luck," Connie glanced at her. Seeing her mysterious expression, she snapped, "What are you scheming now? Even if I agree to let you sell whatever it is, there’s no guarantee we’ll even have customers tomorrow."

"We won’t know unless we try. Your meat is good, and my vegetables are good. It would be a huge waste to let them spoil. I was thinking... that plain meat topping is just missing a sauce, right? I’ll make one. If you think it works, we can sell them together!"

This time, Connie didn’t refuse immediately, but she sneered, "You know how to make a sauce? Our family recipe has been passed down for generations. Don’t think you can just whip something up and have it compare."

Ning He rubbed her hands together. "We won’t know until I try, right? Let me give it a shot. If you don’t think it’s good enough, I’ll shut up and never mention it again."

Connie snorted, but she didn’t have any other options. She looked at Ah Huai.

"What do you think?"

Ah Huai, holding his wok spatula, glanced at Ning He and nodded.

"Let her try."

Joy surged in Ning He’s heart. Hearing this, Connie finally, and reluctantly, agreed.

"Fine. But if it doesn’t taste good, the cost of the wasted ingredients is on you."

"Okay, no problem!"

Ning He quickly rushed to the cooler and picked out ingredients for a sour soup base from her two baskets of vegetables, also grabbing a small, unripe onion and a carrot.

When Connie saw her grab tomatoes, she snorted.

"If you’re just planning to make some tomato mush, don’t waste your energy. We’re a third-level restaurant. If we sell that, we’ll be the laughingstock of our peers."

Seasonings like soy sauce were too expensive, so some small stalls had learned to boil vegetables into a paste, then add salt and sugar to make a type of sauce. For vegetables with their own strong flavors, like tomatoes and chili peppers, the resulting sauce was quite good and very popular.

"Don’t worry, I’m not making mush. We’re making noodles with meat sauce. Just be patient and wait for the taste test."

Ning He soothed the irritable boss lady, quickly took the ingredients to the water station to wash them, then returned, rolled up her sleeves, and got to work washing, cutting, and chopping.

Ah Huai cleared the entire workstation for her and stepped back. Connie, however, stared at her without blinking, looking ready to call a halt at any moment.

Ning He had no choice but to speed up. Tears streamed down her face as she cut the onions, but she had no time to wipe them away.

The rhythmic CHOP CHOP CHOP from her cutting board was particularly noticeable in the now-quiet dining area.

But the people nearby only glanced over before looking away.

Everyone was a bit disheartened at the moment, with no interest in anything else. After packing up their stalls, they each headed to the rest area.

SIZZLE—

Ning He ladled a spoonful of oil from the bottom of the ground pork into the wok. In the hot oil, she stir-fried the minced garlic, diced carrots, and diced onions until they released their juices. Next, she added the diced tomatoes and a scoop of the meat topping. A tangy aroma soon filled the air. Connie’s expression softened, her gaze on Ning He turning complicated.

Since it was a sauce, Ning He didn’t add much water. When all the ingredients had been mixed and cooked down, she added salt and tasted it.

’It’s still a bit bland without proper seasonings.’

Ning He cut a lemon, squeezed in a sixth of its juice, added a spoonful of white sugar, mixed it evenly, and tasted it again. It was about eighty percent of the way to a classic tomato meat sauce.

’Under everyone’s watchful eyes, I can’t risk redeeming pepper or anything from the system. This should be enough.’

"It’s ready."

Ning He poured the sauce into a porcelain bowl. Its bright red color was tempting.

Ah Huai had already boiled a handful of noodles and set them aside to cool.

"I’ll try it first."

Connie took a small bowl and picked up a mouthful of noodles with her chopsticks. Ning He ladled a spoonful of the tomato meat sauce over them. Connie mixed it a couple of times and put it in her mouth.

The noodles were hand-kneaded, the kind perfect for mixing with sauce, with a pleasant chewiness.

Connie chewed very slowly, her brow furrowed as if she was in some discomfort.

In a way, she really was uncomfortable.

She had never experienced such a rich combination of sour, sweet, and umami flavors. Her taste buds were under a fierce assault, sending shockwaves to her brain that pushed her to her sensory threshold.

The greasiness of the ground pork was completely masked, leaving only a fragrant, savory flavor that exploded in her mouth with luscious juices.

The diced onions and carrots were cooked until soft and slightly sweet, yet they retained a hint of a bite, adding another layer of texture.

Even after she swallowed, the insides of her cheeks were still filled with a sweet and sour aftertaste, laced with the faint, tangy fragrance of lemon.

’It’s lemon!’

She had only had lemonade once, many years ago at culinary school.

’I never knew it could be used in cooking.’

With that one bite, Connie felt her appetite surge. It was wide open now, and she wanted to eat more, much more, to be satisfied.

’The commercially available tomatoes are fast-ripening varieties with a very faint aroma. They can’t compare to this at all.’

’Even the restaurants across the way probably couldn’t create such a rich flavor, right?’

’Plus, it’s so appetizing. A bowl of these noodles would be absolutely perfect on a hot day.’

Seeing the changing expressions on Connie’s face, Ning He couldn’t help but feel nervous.

’Is it still too bland?’

"So? Can we sell it?"

Connie didn’t speak. She just lifted her chin toward Ah Huai.

"You try it."

Ah Huai nodded, mixed a spoonful of sauce into the remaining noodles, and swallowed a mouthful. He savored it for a moment.

His expression didn’t change much—he just paused for a second—but Connie understood.

"I get it. We’ll sell this."

Ning He was so happy she almost jumped for joy.

"Don’t get happy just yet. Let’s sort out the money first."