binnovel Chapter 337 Eat whatever is available; what you get to eat depends on fate.
Chapter 337 Eat whatever is available; what you get to eat depends on fate.
Sure enough, a few men hurriedly reached out with their chopsticks to cook the vegetables.
Then, their voices became somewhat muffled.
Seeing this, Lin Chang'er seized the opportunity to promote the product, saying, "To be honest, I mixed all the base ingredients for this pot myself. I originally planned to try it out at a restaurant in the near future."
"Isn't it just bad timing? Besides, winter is the best time to eat hot pot!"
"After a while, once everyone has settled down, I will definitely sell this base material."
The men's mouths were still full, but none of them wanted the conversation to fall silent.
"Although eating hot pot at a restaurant is definitely much more expensive, I will definitely try to save up and go try it to support Madam Lin."
"Yes! Absolutely! Not only should we go, but we should also bring the brothers from the city gate guards along."
The men were in high spirits, and one of them remarked, "If it were a hot pot restaurant, and not as fancy as a fancy eatery, would the price be a bit cheaper? Then we could go there more often!"
"If that's the case, why don't we just have Madam Lin buy the base ingredients? She can buy them herself, boil them at home, and cook whatever she wants to cook. Wouldn't that be cheaper?"
"That's true, but if everyone were like you, how would Madam Lin make money? She puts so much effort into the seasonings alone; those are unseen costs."
The men gradually fell silent.
Lin Chang'er understands consumer psychology quite well. Just like in later generations, hot pot was divided into affordable and high-end lines. People need food as their most important thing, and the brands that dominate the rankings at each stage will always be updated and replaced.
This gave her the idea of opening a short-line hot pot restaurant.
In fact, there were similar shops in later generations, selling oden in winter and cold drinks in summer.
In Ninghai, spring and autumn are almost no different from summer, and winter is only symbolically cold. Cold drinks still have great potential.
This plan can be put on the agenda.
At this moment, Wu Qingfeng laughed and said, "Since you all enjoy this kind of food, I'll treat you to a good meal on the way back, even if it's out of my own pocket!"
Bai Shaoan was the first to agree, "Okay, Sister Chang'er, don't try to save him any money later. I want to eat those big, clawed prawns that are as thick as an arm. The prawns must be live and halal. The oysters must be garlic-flavored, and the eel must be golden eel. Also, have Brother He go up the mountain to get some wild game, and make wine with deer antler. If that's not possible, tiger bone will do..."
Lin Chang'er chuckled softly, "Dream on! You think these things are just something you can open your mouth to get? The rule here is that you eat whatever is available, and what you get to eat depends on fate."
Bai Shaoan pursed his lips. "Sister Chang'er, you've become naughty. You keep calling me 'brother,' but when something happens, you're an unfilial son!"
"Ha ha ha ha……"
"Young Master, hahahaha..."
"Young Master Marquis is quite humorous!"
The men, chopsticks in hand, laughed so hard they almost fell over. Some, having just finished eating the hot pot, suddenly choked and nearly coughed up tears.
The other brothers helped pour water and rub her back, while Lin Chang'er quickly scooped a spoonful of white sugar from the cupboard and handed it to her, saying, "Suck on it, and you'll feel better soon!"
The man did as instructed, and soon his flushed face returned to normal.
Just thinking about how I had just eaten a big spoonful of sugar—that was sugar!
He thought to himself that Madam Lin was truly a magnanimous person. When Madam Lin came to the city again and it was his turn to be her guard, he would definitely have to do his job well.
After this little incident, another man shouted.
"Brothers, don't just focus on the pot, the cold dishes are delicious too. The tofu skin, wood ear mushrooms, and cucumbers are all very flavorful, sour and spicy with a hint of sweetness, which is very appetizing. The peanuts are fried just right, and the dried anchovies are so fragrant. If we had some wine, it would be heavenly!"
"Forget about alcohol, we're here on business."
"That's right, that's right. I was thinking, the cost of setting up a hot pot restaurant is too high, so we won't think too much about it. If Lin Niangzi could open a cold dish shop in the future, that would be great. We brothers could buy some every day and eat it with steamed buns, and on our days off, we could buy a couple of ounces of wine. We wouldn't even need to cook!"
"That's a great idea!"
Then the group of people stared longingly at Lin Chang'er.
Lin Chang'er was somewhat amused and exasperated. She did indeed plan to sell pickled vegetables and preserved foods, but they would mainly consist of meat dishes and those that were easy to preserve, such as pickled radishes and bamboo shoots.
I hadn't really thought of these common vegetarian dishes.
There are many people from all walks of life in the county town, so there should be a market there.
Moreover, these things aren't difficult to make. If you're going to open a hot pot shop, you'll need to rent a storefront anyway, so you can just put up a shed at the entrance and sell cold dishes.
In the summer, you can come here to drink cold drinks and buy some cold dishes. In the winter, when you eat hot pot, you can also order some cold dishes.
It's not wasteful.
Although her base of operations will remain in Linshui Village, it is certain that her business will eventually expand to larger cities.
Lin Chang'er smiled and said, "I'll discuss it with my mother, my sisters-in-law, and my second sisters-in-law in a little while, and I'll definitely give everyone a definite answer later."
"Good!" The men clapped their hands spontaneously.
Someone said, "If this shop really opens, I'll definitely go there every day!"
Lin Chang'er laughed and said, "That won't do. No matter how delicious something is, you'll get tired of it quickly if you eat it every day!"
"With Lin Niangzi being so clever, she'll surely come up with new dishes once we get tired of them!"
"That's it!"
"Wow, what is this little meatball made of? I've never tasted anything like it anywhere else!"
"Yes, yes, I was just about to ask, what kind of new food is this?"
Wu Qingfeng was also curious, so he looked at Lin Chang'er along with everyone else.
Lin Chang'er explained generously: "These white ones are fish balls, shrimp balls, and chicken balls. They are made by grinding fish and shrimp meat into a paste, adding seasonings, and mixing in a certain proportion of flour to form small round balls."
"The other, darker-colored ones are pork meatballs, made the same way. And those colorful ones are vegetable meatballs. It's late tonight, otherwise we'd also have radish meatballs and lotus root meatballs. And those long ones are crab sticks..."
As the men listened to her introduction, they also sampled the food, giving her thumbs up and secretly thinking to themselves, "It's such a waste that Madam Lin isn't running a restaurant."
Lin Chang'er had no idea what they were thinking. Seeing that no one had touched the fish head noodles, she took the initiative to promote them, "This is chopped chili fish head noodles. Everyone must try it."
"You won't regret it if you get to eat it, and you'll regret it if you don't."
The man, who came from a military background, was naturally easygoing, and after exchanging a few words, they quickly became acquainted.
Upon hearing Lin Chang'er's words, everyone went to get noodles.
Only then did they realize, "Madam Lin, this noodle seems different from what we usually eat. Is there some secret to it?"
Lin Chang'er smiled and said, "These are wide noodles. When you eat them, you must dip them in the soup. I guarantee you'll want to eat them again and again."
"Mmm, delicious, really delicious!"
"Not only the noodles, but even the chili peppers are delicious!"
"Yes, yes, yes, if I used this chili to mix with rice, I could eat two bowls."
"Hahaha!"
Lin Chang'er said, "This is called chopped chili peppers, and it can indeed be used directly as a seasoning!"
The man said nothing, gave a thumbs up, and continued eating diligently!
By the time the banquet ended, it was already late at night. After washing the dishes, Sister-in-law Gu and Aunt Gu went back to their room.
Lin Chang'er finished up the last bit, with Wu Qingfeng accompanying her.
Lin Chang'er took out several jars of pickled vegetables from the cupboard (space), including small fish, green beans and small yellow croaker, pickled bamboo shoots, pickled radishes, and two jars of chopped peppers. She wrapped them in a large bundle and said, "I don't know how long you'll be gone. It's never as convenient as being at home when you're away from home."
"You don't have to worry about the pickles going bad; you can eat them with steamed buns. It's just that these jars and pots are a bit inconvenient, but it's better to have something in a pinch than nothing at all."
Wu Qingfeng nodded in agreement.
Lin Chang'er then thought of something else, "Brother Bai went with us, right? Let him take some with him tomorrow morning. Tell him he won't carry any, otherwise he won't get any. Look at him, he's been busy eating all evening, he hasn't said much!"
It's not that we're trying to bully him, but he must have had a tough time on his last trading trip. When you're traveling, it's normal to not eat or sleep well. Having your food close at hand makes it easier to sneak a snack when you're feeling peckish, right?