Chapter 29 - 28: The Stall Opens

Chapter 29: Chapter 28: The Stall Opens

The cafeteria’s ingredients were delivered fresh daily, and each stall received its share according to a quota.

The manager in charge of distributing ingredients held a list and called out numbers in order. Ning He’s Zero-level Stall was last. She received 15kg of flour, two types of rice totaling 30kg, 5kg of red beans, 2kg of oats, a packet of distiller’s yeast, oil, salt, and sugar, plus two packets of baking powder and yeast.

This wasn’t a large amount. Although Ning He was confident in her abilities, she knew it was best not to take too big a step at the beginning. If things went south and the food didn’t sell, not only would she lose money, but wasting ingredients beyond a certain amount also carried the risk of a demotion.

She had no lower level to be demoted to. If it really came to that, her only option would be to pack up and leave.

The three of them carried everything to the back of the stall.

Their location wasn’t great. It was in the very back with only a small window. Fortunately, the cooking equipment was all there; every piece of kitchen equipment Ning He had listed on her application form had been prepared.

An ultra-high-speed blender, a large rice steamer, a deep-mouthed fryer, a pressure cooker, a steel soup pot over half a meter deep, a large temperature-controlled proofer, and a sufficient number of pots, bowls, and pans.

All of this was provided by the cafeteria. They just had to pay a monthly usage fee and rent.

The three had already discussed and confirmed the production process and division of labor beforehand. Now, each was responsible for their respective steps, working busily but in an orderly fashion.

The rice wine and rice cakes required different varieties of rice, but both needed to be soaked. Ning He prepped the two types of rice, then started on the red beans for the bean paste. The traditional method of soaking the beans would take too long, so Ning He put them straight into the pressure cooker. Then, without stopping, she began to simmer the brown sugar syrup.

Meanwhile, Ah Huai washed the remaining 5kg of rice and put it in the steamer to cook. She then prepared the fryer, cleared the entire workstation, and arranged all the tools within easy reach.

Connie was in charge of the dough for the youtiao. The youtiao were the stall’s lowest-priced item and also the main draw to attract customers, so they needed to prepare a large quantity. Turning all 15kg of flour into dough was no small task.

Unlike the dough for steamed buns or baozi, youtiao dough shouldn’t be kneaded. Instead, it needed to be repeatedly folded and pressed into a single piece. Ning He demonstrated for Connie first. Since Connie worked with flour every day, she quickly grasped the key movements.

After Connie finished with the first 2.5kg of flour, Ning He and Ah Huai joined in. The three of them finished the job in half an hour, coated the dough with oil, wrapped it in plastic wrap, and left it to rise naturally.

Next, Ah Huai and Connie took out the steamed rice and began to make the cifan gao. Ning He, meanwhile, took out the first batch of pressure-cooked red beans to drain, then threw the second batch into the pot to continue cooking.

Once the cifan gao were shaped, they were set aside to await frying. Ning He handed off the task of stir-frying the bean paste to Ah Huai. She then took out some of the soaked rice, ground it into a fine slurry with the ultra-high-speed blender, added yeast and white sugar, and placed it in the proofer, set to 31 degrees, to ferment.

By the time both batches of bean paste were stir-fried, the first fermentation of the rice slurry was nearly complete. It had doubled in volume, and its surface was covered in a multitude of small bubbles.

Ning He transferred all the rice slurry into greased, deep iron pans. She added the remaining white sugar and a small amount of baking powder to compensate for the shortened fermentation time. Once the slurry had risen again, she put it in the rice steamer, cranked the power to maximum, then lowered it to medium-high. About half an hour later, it was done.

The three of them worked at a frantic pace to finish everything, and their clothes were soaked through with sweat. But there was no time to rest. In twenty minutes, it would be the students’ breakfast time, and they had to get the first batch of youtiao and cifan gao fried.

Just as Ning He placed a plate of free samples on the counter, the sound of synchronized footsteps echoed from outside the cafeteria.

They’re here.

The daily routine of the Mecha Academy students was fixed. After morning assembly, they had to go through physical training before they could have breakfast. By this time, they were absolutely ravenous, hungry enough to eat a horse.

At the instructor’s cry of "Dismissed!", a horde of young students with eyes practically glowing green stormed the cafeteria entrance. Ning He felt the ground beneath her feet tremble.

The three of them felt their hearts leap into their throats.

Even though their careful analysis suggested the food should sell, they couldn’t help but feel nervous.

Compared to the obviously abundant ingredients at other stalls, their offerings looked a bit plain and were unlikely to attract people at first glance.

Furthermore, the academy had a strict no-waste rule for cafeteria meals: whatever you ordered, and however much, you had to eat every last bite. As a result, students usually stuck to a few stalls and dishes they knew and liked, which made it even harder for a new stall like Ning He’s to draw customers.

Sure enough, after rushing into the cafeteria, the students made a beeline for their usual stalls.

But they weren’t left completely without customers.

For example, students whose meal funds were running low at the end of the month would naturally look for cheaper options. On the display screen of Ning He’s stall, the youtiao priced at one original coin each soon attracted an inquiry.

Juno stood before the Zero-level stall, a little intrigued.

"A new breakfast stall? Only one original coin? That’s so cheap. But what’s this youtiao? Is it any good?"

"You can try a sample first," Connie said, pointing to the sample plate on the counter.

"Okay, thanks."

Juno picked up a small piece of youtiao speared with a toothpick from the plate and popped it into her mouth.

’So crispy and crunchy!’

’It’s so fragrant, and there’s a slight chewiness to it.’

’Hmm, the more I chew, the more fragrant it gets!’

Her eyes lit up, and she quickly said to Connie, "I’ll take two."

"Okay. It tastes even better with soy milk," Connie said, placing the youtiao on Juno’s tray with a reminder.

"Alright, I’ll try that. What’s this white thing? Can I try it too?"

Juno pointed to the plate of cifan gao with brown sugar.

"Of course."

Juno picked out a small piece and tried it.

Ning He had been thoughtful when arranging the plate, making sure every piece of cifan gao was touched with brown sugar syrup.

First, a mellow sweetness touched the tip of Juno’s tongue, followed by the fragrance of rice. The texture—crispy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside—was like a massage for her teeth. The rich, soft carbohydrates traveled down her esophagus and into her stomach, soothing every restless pang of hunger and filling her with an indescribable sense of satisfaction.

Juno felt like sighing in contentment.

She had never had a breakfast like this before—hearty, delicious, and so cheap!

"This is so good!"

She turned and waved in a certain direction.

"Gabi, Allen, I found something new and delicious! Get over here!"

Juno’s voice drew the attention of those nearby. The inconspicuous Zero-level stall, originally tucked away in a corner, was suddenly noticed by many more people.

Besides Juno’s friends, some students who had been queuing at other stalls also came over.

In an instant, a crowd had formed in front of the stall.

At Ning He’s prompting, Connie immediately took the sample plate and began handing out pieces to everyone personally.

’She refused to believe that anyone could taste this breakfast and resist buying it.’

As it turned out, they were right.

Whether it was the youtiao, the cifan gao, or the rice cakes, the students’ reception was overwhelmingly positive. Not a single person who tried a sample wasn’t wide-eyed with surprise; some even wanted to buy one of everything to try.

This was where the benefit of their low prices became apparent.

A youtiao, a cifan gao, and a plain rice cake only cost 7 original coins in total—still cheaper than a single egg crepe roll.

And no matter how delicious the egg crepe rolls were, eating them every day got boring. Here, you could buy three different items to mix things up, and they were more filling to boot. The choice was obvious, wasn’t it?

Juno no longer felt like her wallet was tight and ordered one of everything. Everyone else ordered at least two items.

The prepared youtiao and cifan gao quickly sold out. Luckily, Connie and Ah Huai were both quick on their feet and replenished the stock promptly, not keeping the students waiting long.

The commotion at their stall caught the eye of other students nearby, who began to discuss it in low voices.

"It’s a Level 0 stall. They don’t even have a single vegetable leaf. How good can it be? Are those people stupid?"

"Exactly. This Zero-level stall has changed hands so many times, and they’ve never managed to make anything good. What new tricks could they possibly pull now?"

"They’re probably just looking for a change of pace. The stuff we eat every day isn’t that amazing anymore either."

"But you still have to be able to stomach it. What if it’s bad? Then you’d have to force it down. Why would you want to put yourself through that?"

"But I see... it doesn’t look like they think it’s bad, right?"

Everyone followed the speaker’s gaze and was so shocked their jaws dropped.

’My god, is it necessary to eat that fast?’

’Jeez, stuffing that much in one bite?’

’Hey man, are you swallowing that without even chewing?’

’What’s that thing they’re dipping in soy milk? Did he really go back just to get a refill?’

Watching the group at that table wolfing down their food, these students couldn’t help but swallow their own saliva.

"So... should we go try it too?"

...

Soon, another wave of customers arrived at Ning He’s window.