Chapter 174 Leave the Food Truck Here, If I’m Still Hungry I’ll Just Gnaw on It!
Lu Xiyao climbed onto the sofa and stretched out her chubby little hand to scrape off a bit of pastry crumb from the corner of Shen Muyan’s mouth, then popped it into her own mouth. She couldn’t get the last bite, so all she could do was lick the crumbs.
“Mama, you’re a grown-up. How can a grown-up fight with a kid over food~!”
The little one spoke in a soft, sweet voice, ready to scold Shen Muyan in the name of justice. Lu Qin always let her have the good stuff and saved the tastiest bites for her. Of course, she would save good food for Lu Qin too.
But Shen Muyan? She never let her off easy. And sure, she was always the most mischievous when around Shen Muyan. Shen Muyan had a “Yeah I stole your bite, what are you gonna do about it?” look on her face. The little one couldn’t argue.
Still, the more she thought about it, the more wronged she felt. It didn’t feel right unless she cried a little—she owed it to herself. So with a pitiful pout, she quietly curled up into Lu Qin’s arms and started brewing tears. Our little cutie was about to cry.
“Yao Yao,” Lu Qin called softly.
Just hearing his voice was like emotional fuel—she really wanted to cry now. But no matter how much she tried to work herself up, the tears wouldn’t come. Instead, she puffed out a big snot bubble.
“HAHAHAHAHA~!”
Shen Muyan couldn’t hold back her laughter. Lu Qin chuckled too and grabbed a tissue to wipe her nose.
“Waaahhhh~!”
And that did it—the little one finally burst into tears. She was this sad, and yet they still laughed?!
In the end, a popsicle calmed her down. With tears still on her face, she giggled again, snuggling into Lu Qin while watching Detective Conan.
________
At 5 PM, Beijing time, Lu Qin received a WeChat message from Xiaomi reporting on the day’s street vending. After they left in the morning, she rode a three-wheeled cart to the South City farmers market to set up the stall.
They were selling pickled chicken feet, pickled vegetables, crystal jelly cake, mung bean slush, and osmanthus oolong milk tea. Lu Qin had prepared a full day’s worth before leaving. But he underestimated the customers’ appetite.
By 3 PM, everything was sold out except some pickles. The farmers market was usually the turf of old grannies and grandpas, but once the Lu Ji snack cart showed up, it threw everything off balance.
A bunch of loyal customers rushed over after seeing the update in their group chat. There were other small stalls nearby selling homegrown vegetables, pancakes, cold noodles, and sticky rice. When they saw the fancy snack cart, people were curious.
At first, the elders weren’t impressed. They didn’t like new things. For breakfast, they only trusted their usual soybean milk and fried dough shop. For groceries, only their favorite butcher or veggie vendor would do. But soon, a line formed in front of Lu Ji’s food cart.
There were young couples and grandparents with kids.
They were grumbling while lining up.
Why?
Because Lu Qin wasn’t there. There were no staple foods. All they could buy were pickles and pickled chicken feet. Sure, they tasted amazing…
But the regulars who relied on the Lu Ji food stall for all three meals? They couldn’t live off pickled chicken feet alone!
“Come on, man! Milk tea and pickled feet don’t fill you up! Can’t Lu Boss prep some rice or noodles ahead of time?”
“Let’s just get more pickles! His pickles are the real deal. We never used to eat porridge at home—now three pickles per bowl, and we’re scarfing it down!”
“Lu Boss isn’t here! Damn! Good thing there’s crystal jelly cake, or I’d die of sadness!”
“Where’s the fried noodles? No shrimp dumplings either?! Only pickles and chicken feet? Lu Boss better show up tomorrow, or someone’s gonna die! I’m serious!”
Despite the grumbling, people still bought what they could—because the pickles really were that good with porridge. Some curious shoppers finally stopped and wandered over.
“What are they selling? Pickles? Mung bean slush? What’s this crystal jelly cake?”
“Can we try it?”
“3.5 yuan for mung bean slush? That baozi shop over there only charges 2 yuan!”
The folks who got up early to shop were frugal types. They’d compare prices and sizes, not buy impulsively. Xiaomi offered samples to the skeptical aunties and uncles. She’d prepared a tray of bite-sized pickle pieces with toothpicks.
“Please help yourselves,” she said.
With free samples on offer, they dove in.
“Wow! These are spicy and tangy! Delicious!”
“How did they make these so tasty? How much per box?”
“12 yuan per box! And it’s not even a big portion!”
“Can’t you make it cheaper?”
“Honestly, it’s worth it. I’ll take five boxes!”
“You can only buy two! It’s on the sign!”
New customers hesitated at first—trying to bargain, complaining about quantity, or griping about the purchase limit. Then they saw the regulars paying without a word, moving fast.
Watching stock fly off the shelves, the hesitant ones panicked. Some had only paused for a few minutes—next thing they knew, the crystal jelly cake was gone. They gasped and rushed to buy whatever was left. Everything tasted incredible.
Even the 3.5-yuan mung bean slush was way better than the 2-yuan version elsewhere. It was clear why it cost more. At 3:30 PM, Xiaomi reported everything had sold out. They stayed at the same spot all day.
Without Lu Qin there and with fewer hearty food options, some customers were left unfulfilled. So they joked.
“Leave the cart here, I’m still hungry—I’ll just eat the whole thing!”
To calm the crowd, Xiaomi handed out a big bag of mint candies.
“You think a few mint candies can make this right? If Lu Boss isn’t here tomorrow, I’m taking the tires off this cart and steaming them for dinner!”
One customer pocketed a handful of mints, cursed under their breath, and walked off with some pickled goodies.
______
Lu Qin chuckled as he read Xiaomi’s detailed update. They’d made about 25,000 yuan from the morning’s sales. Noticing someone watching him, he looked up—it was Shen Muyan.
“Who are you chatting with?”
“Xiaomi. She’s reporting from the stall. Everything was sold out. Customers were mad there was no main dish—said they’d eat the cart next.”
Shen Muyan laughed.
What a bunch of characters. Lu Qin opened the Penguin group chat—customers were spamming it with memes of skinny, starving people and animals.
____
Half an hour later, Ouyang Lin called and invited Lu Qin and the others to dinner. The dinner was at the restaurant on the 6th floor of Kaile Hotel. Ouyang Lin would bring his wife and daughter.
Tomorrow was Grandpa Ouyang’s birthday banquet, so technically Ouyang Lin had a ton to do. But he really wanted to eat Lu Qin’s cooking and let his family try it too. So he left everything to his assistants and brought the family along.
_______
The two families greeted each other and exchanged pleasantries.
Lu Xiyao sweetly greeted everyone.
“Hello Uncle Ouyang,” “Hello Auntie,” “Hello Sister.”
Ouyang Lin’s daughter was a year older than Lu Xiyao, so Xiyao called her sister. The girl was dressed like a little princess in a white dress, hugging a teddy bear. Maybe because she was shy, she didn’t really respond to greetings.
Ouyang Lin and his wife felt a little awkward. But Lu Qin and Shen Muyan didn’t mind. Soon after sitting down, Ouyang Lin’s daughter got bored and started whining to go home. Lu Xiyao took out her tablet and put on a cartoon—they watched together, and that finally calmed the ‘little princess’ down.
Ouyang Lin’s wife, Wu Rui, only spent a few minutes with Lu Xiyao before falling head over heels. Maybe it was because she was always exhausted from dealing with her own spoiled daughter—who she couldn’t bear to scold—that she felt like she was raising a tiny empress.
Now, comparing her daughter to Lu Qin and Shen Muyan’s?
Lu Xiyao was sweet, polite, and adorable in every way!
She was even a year younger than her own daughter, but still more sensible and likable. Wu Rui couldn’t help but hug her and shower her with affection and questions, eyes full of joy.
The result?
Her own ‘little princess’ got jealous—and burst into loud wails.