Just past six o’clock.
Jiang Heng received a message from Lin Yirui.
He had made his selection.
As expected, the unlucky kid had to work overtime again and planned to buy directly on his phone. Jiang Heng simply took pictures of everything in her bike basket and let him choose.
Today, there were still the same five types, but she had added a portion of Mulberry Fruit.
[Lin Yirui: I checked, Mushroom can be dried at home. Boss, please pack me one jin of each, I’ll eat them slowly at home.]
[Jiang Heng: Okay.]
Jiang Heng replied and began bagging each type, adding Boletus for a total of five kinds of Mushroom, five bags. For each one, she took a photo after weighing it, making sure it was right around one jin.
She reopened the chat window, ready to send the photos, only to see that Lin Yirui had sent another message: [Is that Mulberry Fruit on the far left? Is it tasty?]
[Jiang Heng: Yes, it’s delicious, I guarantee you won’t regret it. Thirty yuan per jin, want some?]
She sent over the photos she had just taken as well.
A few seconds later, she got a reply:
[Lin Yirui: Yes! I’ll take one jin. Also, Boss, you’re amazing! Every portion is weighed so perfectly!]
[Jiang Heng: Just skilled hands.]
[Lin Yirui: Hahaha]
At his workstation, Lin Yirui couldn’t help but smile. In their previous two exchanges, the Boss hadn’t talked much and seemed a bit distant. He hadn’t expected to banter back and forth like this over the internet.
A weary coworker working overtime glanced over, suddenly perking up and scooting closer. “Something’s up? Heh heh~”
Lin Yirui suddenly remembered the Mushroom-selling Boss’s appearance. He hadn’t thought much of it before, but with his coworker’s comment, his face flushed. He quickly pushed him away. “Go, go, go, don’t talk nonsense.”
After shoving him away, Jiang Heng sent over the photo of the Mulberry Fruit on the scale—totaling 510 yuan.
Paying hurt a little.
He also felt a twinge of regret.
If he’d known, he would have bought less, so he could chat a few more times.
Heh heh~
Still, who wouldn’t be moved by a pretty lady?
Besides, he thought he wasn’t bad-looking himself, and his job was pretty good. In this small place, with his performance, his monthly income was over ten thousand yuan. If he could really develop something, it would be quite nice…
So he paid, and even made a point to compliment the vendor, saying the Mushroom were all delicious, the scales were honest, and the Mulberry Fruit was sure to be good too…
[Jiang Heng: Thank you, I’ll keep up the quality.]
Lin Yirui:
He calmed down.
Jiang Heng had no idea about the customer’s back-and-forth emotional rollercoaster. She accepted the compliments seriously and then turned her attention to serving other customers.
As six o’clock arrived, most office workers were getting off work, and the square grew more crowded.
The Mushroom were quite expensive, and most people who came here were just out to have fun, so they weren’t too interested in buying groceries.
But plenty of people passing by would pick up some fruit, and with Mulberry Fruit just starting to ripen, even the supermarkets might not have it yet.
So, every now and then, someone would stop to take a look and then decide to buy a little.
The Mushroom were mainly bought by regulars, new customers brought by regulars, and the occasional newcomer who just happened to want to try something fresh.
With one more item, Jiang Heng noticed that overall customer traffic was up by about a third.
Of course, it might also be because Song Ming next door had started recommending the Beef-Mushroom Sauce Sushi, sending over some customers.
In any case, the stock was going down much faster than Jiang Heng had expected, and a little after seven o’clock, she closed up for the day.
It was about ten minutes later than yesterday, but she had more goods, so it was normal.
Jiang Heng greeted Song Ming, then delivered Lin Yirui’s Mushroom and Mulberry Fruit to the Milk Tea Shop, and happily headed home.
The Milk Tea Shop wasn’t far from her stall, just diagonally across, about ten meters away.
At that moment, one of the shop’s employees had taken a two-hour leave, and it was shift change.
The Boss, Chen Ping, came over to cover the shift.
Watching the very attractive vendor leave, he looked at her back, then at the big pile of goods in the corner of the shop, unable to help letting his thoughts wander.
Mainly… he’d never heard that his buddy liked eating Mushroom?
And he knew how much those Mushroom cost—they were sold not far from here.
Yesterday, when they said they might store things at his place, he’d checked out the stall and been shocked by the prices, too scared to even ask.
His Milk Tea Shop had only just opened and was still losing money. He couldn’t afford to spend like that.
Yet his buddy had just bought so much in one go—at least several hundred yuan, right?
FALL……
Just as he finished an order, Chen Ping washed his hands, walked to the corner, took out his phone, and sent a message:
[Chen Ping: Bro, is it the Red Matchmaker Star or the God of Wealth Star that’s shining on you?]
[Lin─Yirui: ?]
[Chen Ping: Isn’t it? Buying so much, you can’t possibly just think it’s tasty, right?]
[Lin Yirui: Is it possible that it really is just tasty?]
[Chen Ping: ???]
[Lin Yirui: Come over to my place tonight, I’ll show off my skills. Remember to bring a chicken. Little Chicken Stewed with Mushroom is really delicious.]
[Chen Ping: You’re using all that for stewing chicken?]
Does he really eat that much?
[Lin Yirui: Of course not. The rest I’ll dry, and when I have time off I’ll take it home for my mom to make Mushroom Sauce.]
[Chen Ping: … ]
[Lin Yirui: You’ll understand after you eat tonight. With these Mushroom, my cooking is on par with a kitchen god!]
[Chen Ping: You talk big! Now you’ve got me craving it. If it’s not tasty, just wait, I’ll definitely roast you on my Moments!]
[Lin Yirui: Hahaha, I’m serious. Ever since I tried the Boss’s Mushroom, I truly believe Mushroom’s natural umami is even better than pouring in a whole bottle of chicken bouillon. The quality is top-notch. Oh, and there’s Mulberry Fruit too—the Boss said it’s also really good, same quality as the Mushroom. You should try it, just save me a little.]
[Chen Ping: Sure, I’ll try it.]
He happened to have water here for washing. The Mushroom couldn’t be eaten raw, but the Mulberry Fruit could.
Thirty yuan per jin was not cheap—even the big supermarkets in this mall didn’t sell it that expensive.
Plus, it was from the same vendor, so if it tasted as good as Old Lin said, it shouldn’t be bad.
Still, Chen Ping didn’t believe the Mulberry Fruit could be so good that it was worth thirty yuan.
It was just the start of the mulberry season, and they were usually very sour. Besides, they’d grown up in a village, climbing trees to pick Mulberry Fruit as kids until their faces were stained purple.
He’d long been tired of them.
That’s why he’d instinctively thought Old Lin must be up to something.
Chen Ping found the bag of Mulberry Fruit, took it to the back kitchen, rinsed it a couple of times, then popped one into his mouth.
As he bit down, the juice burst open in his mouth, and his eyebrows lifted.
The moment his tongue tasted the juice, he felt a refreshing sweetness, quickly followed by a gentle tartness that balanced the sweetness of the fruit, not at all overwhelming.
He didn’t even feel the urge to frown.
The Mulberry Fruit was soft, bursting easily in the mouth, each one like a super-thin-skinned popping pearl.
The little seeds inside also popped as he chewed, but without the astringency he remembered—the overall texture was still great.
After finishing one, the unique, pleasant aroma of Mulberry Fruit lingered at his nose, and a faint sweetness remained in his mouth.
He didn’t have to spit out the skin or seeds; the texture was really pleasant. Unconsciously, Chen Ping popped another one in and savored it carefully, nodding in satisfaction. “It’s actually pretty good.”
Much better than he’d expected, and far better than he remembered. In fact, it even seemed a bit appetizing?
A resting employee asked curiously, “Is it that good?”
Chen Ping handed one over. “Here, try and see.”
The employee ate one—the flesh was soft, the juice plentiful, filling her mouth instantly.
The taste was even better than she’d expected, and she couldn’t help but exclaim in delight, “Wow! It really is good! I was sick of Mulberry Fruit before, but is this a new variety?”
Chen Ping nodded thoughtfully, eating two more. “Maybe? After all, it’s for sale! It ought to be special.” Then he grabbed a few more. “Really tasty, and even after eating a lot, my mouth doesn’t feel cloying. Not bad, not bad, maybe I’ll buy some tomorrow.”
The employee was tempted by his eating, but was too shy to eat more and just decided to buy some tomorrow.
Until Chen Ping’s phone rang. He checked it:
[Lin─Yirui: ?]
[Lin Yirui: Why no reaction? Bro, say something, is it good or not?]
[Chen Ping: Pretty good.]
[Chen Ping: You’ve got good taste this time!]
[Lin Yirui: Hahaha, that’s right.]
[Lin Yirui: Oh, save the rest for me in the fridge, don’t eat it all!]
Chen Ping was about to reply when he suddenly noticed something was off. Looking in the basket, there were only three Mulberry Fruit left! Feeling guilty, he hurriedly put them back in the fridge: [Got it, got it.]
[Lin Yirui: ? Something’s fishy.]
After being friends for years, he could still sense something was wrong even through the internet!
Chen Ping:
Can he really sense it through the screen?
[Chen Ping: Actually, the Mulberry Fruit is just so-so, but my employee really liked it, so I let her have a bit more. Want me to buy you some more tomorrow? (heart)]
[Lin Yirui: (smile)]
[Lin Yirui: You dog, do you think I believe that?!!!]
[Chen Ping: If you don’t believe me, there’s nothing I can do (shrug)]
[Lin Yirui: Jerk!]
After eight o’clock, the two of them met at Lin Yirui’s place.
Seeing only three Mulberry Fruit left, Lin Yirui couldn’t help but laugh. He’d suspected something when there was no news about eating the Mulberry Fruit, but he never imagined there’d only be three left!
Oh well, they’d been friends for years.
He could always buy more tomorrow.
Thinking this, he tossed the remaining three Mulberry Fruit into his mouth.
Before his teeth even bit down, the Mulberry Fruit burst with juice just from the pressure.
After two hours in the fridge, the taste was even better—the cool, sweet-and-sour juice filled his mouth and quickly slid down his throat, the sweetness seeming to wash away the fatigue of his entire day.
It really was delicious!
The beautiful Boss hadn’t lied—there was a reason for the high price!
Lin Yirui finished the last ones in two bites, instinctively licking his lips, wanting more. He turned his head to see a certain someone looking innocently at him. “What’s up?”
Lin Yirui smiled: … “I just can’t stand the sight of you right now.”
He didn’t want to let him taste his heavenly Little Chicken Stewed with Mushroom anymore!
On the other side,
Jiang Heng had already returned to the village.
Tonight, the village dogs didn’t bark at all—maybe she’d come home too early? Or maybe they were used to it by now?
As usual, she plugged in her tricycle to charge. The buzzing of the electric bike broke the excessive silence at home.
Jiang Heng had set up the Pest Repelling Formation for her house and the vegetable patch in the back yard. At night, there wasn’t a single fly, mosquito, spider, or mouse, and there were no frogs croaking nearby either. Life was definitely better, just a bit too quiet.
Jiang Heng thought about asking her aunt tomorrow if anyone in the village had dogs she could take in. That way, it wouldn’t be so quiet when she came home.
She didn’t like noise, but she didn’t like it too quiet, either.
A bit of peace in the midst of bustle was just right.
She locked the courtyard gate, went inside, and headed straight to the bathroom to wash up.
Even though she had the Dust Removal Art, she still felt the need to rinse off with water every day to feel clean.
With the moisture still on her body, she lay on the bed, pulled up the thin blanket, and felt completely relaxed.
Feeling loose all over, she took out her phone and started calculating today’s earnings.
All 32 jin of Mulberry Fruit were sold for a total of 960 yuan.
Five jin of Boletus made 900 yuan. There were lots of Wuzhong Mushroom today, so she earned 1,265 yuan from those.
Pine Mushroom brought in 1,042 yuan. Chashu Mushroom, 237 yuan. Forest Mushroom, 644 yuan. And the discounted, lower-grade ones she sold to Song Ming earned 350 yuan.
Today’s total income was 5,398 yuan!
After doing the math, Jiang Heng took a deep breath.
So much money!
She knew she’d be earning more, but seeing the number still made her feel satisfied. Counting yesterday’s earnings, she now had over eight thousand.
She could buy a nice sofa!
Jiang Heng opened her shopping app and started picking out sofas!
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.