This set meal might have been called a new thing, but at the end of the day, it was just vegetable congee and fried flatbreads—nothing particularly innovative or rare. Yet everyone was buying into it. Ladle after ladle of congee was scooped into bowls by Su Chi, and before long, only a few bowls remained.
Su Chi was all smiles inside, thinking that with such a reasonable price, of course many people would buy.
He turned around to wash vegetables and peel taro, planning to make another half pot of congee to save for the late morning and noon customers. But before he could start, he was called back to the front to fetch buns for another customer.
Su Chi had just collected the copper coins from the previous customer when he heard a clear, slightly youthful voice before even looking up.
“Husband Su, nine each of the saucy meat buns, eggplant buns, red bean buns, and five-spice tea eggs.”
It was Guizhi, standing in front of the steamers. She kept glancing at the signboard at the shop entrance, clearly interested in everything on the menu.
The menu on the wooden signboard was written by Xie Yushu, stroke by stroke—neat and orderly. It listed all the food items and their prices, making it easy for literate customers to see at a glance.
For those who couldn’t read, it didn’t matter—they could just ask.
“Guizhi?” When Su Chi saw her, his voice lifted slightly, clearly surprised to see her at his shop.
Only then did he notice that Guizhi wasn’t alone—a woman slightly older than her stood beside her, looking like she had some strength.
Guizhi was out buying breakfast for everyone at the pharmacy. After she and Sun Wuyou had taken over the pharmacy, they’d heard people say there was a Su’s Bun Shop on the street, and every flavor of bun was incredibly fragrant—the wontons and five-spice eggs were delicious too.
They knew right away it must be the Su family’s young man. Xie Yushu had mentioned before that her husband had opened a shop. So Guizhi had woken up early and volunteered to buy breakfast for everyone, all for the sake of this food.
The Sun family steward who’d been managing the pharmacy before they returned had gone back. Now it was just her and her mistress running the place, along with another physician they’d hired, plus six apprentices—nine people working in the shop total.
Guizhi was a little anxious: “Hurry and wrap them up for me, husband. My mistress and everyone at the shop are waiting to eat.”
Su Chi smiled and packed everything for her: “Alright.”
After he wrapped everything, he handed it to Guizhi. She split half of it with the woman beside her—it was a bit much to carry alone.
The next customer ordered a bowl of wontons. Su Chi skillfully counted out ten from the platter, dropped them into the pot, and fished them out with a strainer at just the right time.
Guizhi hadn’t left yet. She watched the plump fresh pork wontons rolling in the pot, each one adorable. The broth was made from pork bone stock, milky white, giving off a rich, savory aroma. But what really did it was Su Chi adding a spoonful of that dark scallion oil and chili oil to the bowl—the fragrance of the broth shot up instantly.
Guizhi was still a child—how could she resist such temptation? Her eyes were fixed on the wontons in Su Chi’s hands as she secretly swallowed.
Su Chi caught this from the corner of his eye and suppressed a smile. He lifted the white cloth covering the bamboo tray of fried flatbreads and recommended them: “We have new fried flatbreads today—they’re very fragrant. Would you like some too?”
Guizhi nodded like a pecking chicken: “Yes, yes! Nine flatbreads too.”
She counted out the copper coins and handed them to Su Chi, took the wrapped flatbreads, and hurried away with her companion.
The buns in the oil paper wrappers were all hot and steaming, soft and fluffy to the touch. Everyone got the same amount of food. The six apprentices looked at each other, momentarily in disbelief.
They gathered at the medicine counter to eat, whispering among themselves.
Apprentice A held her bun, a little choked up: “Head Sun is really good to us—not only did she not chase us away, she took us in and provides our breakfast and lunch. This meat is so fragrant.”
Apprentice B nodded vigorously in agreement: “Before, working under Doctor Li, she never cared whether we lived or died. We brought our own dry flatbreads and drank water with them. The pay wasn’t good either. Doctor Sun is truly kind-hearted—she even raised our wages. She has no temper at all—such a well-bred person.”
Everyone nodded, their hearts full of gratitude.
One of them peeled a five-spice egg, and the braised aroma instantly reached everyone’s noses.
“So fragrant, really fragrant. I’ve heard the food at Su’s Bun Shop is delicious, and now thanks to Head Sun, we get to try it. After eating this, I’ll have energy to work.”
Guizhi placed Physician Xu’s portion on her desk, then took the rest of the food and squeezed in with Sun Wuyou to eat.
Sun Wuyou was still groggy, barely able to keep her eyes open, but she had a sharp nose and could smell something delicious.
Guizhi peeled a five-spice egg for her: “Miss, Husband Su’s shop also has incredibly fragrant and delicious wontons, plus a new vegetable congee. I only didn’t stay to eat alone because I wanted to keep you company.”
When Guizhi popped the egg into Sun Wuyou’s mouth, Sun Wuyou’s eyes brightened a little. She sat up straighter, took the egg from Guizhi’s hand, and ate it herself.
“We’ll go eat there tomorrow morning too.”
Guizhi was delighted: “Great, great!”
The two of them ate and laughed together in Sun Wuyou’s consultation room.
·
Before heading home that evening, Su Chi calculated how much cooking oil he’d need daily for frying the flatbreads.
Today he’d used three catties of oil to fry about eighty flatbreads.
Cooking oil on the market was cheaper than soybean oil—soybean oil cost forty wen per catty, while cooking oil cost thirty wen per catty. Three catties of cooking oil cost ninety wen. Eighty flatbreads sold for one hundred and sixty wen. After subtracting the cost of flour and scallions, the profit margin was less than fifty percent.
That wouldn’t do. Even if it was thin margins with high volume, this wasn’t the way to do it.
Su Chi secured the door panels, locked up, and headed to the oil shop at the end of the street.
The oil shopkeeper was also an easy person to deal with. After Su Chi explained his purpose, the owner thought for a moment and quickly agreed to lower the price.
This customer didn’t use a huge amount daily, but if they bought every day, it was a steady long-term arrangement—a guaranteed monthly income. Either way, she’d still make a profit.
So the oil shopkeeper set the price at twenty-four wen per catty of cooking oil, on the condition that Su Chi bought at least three catties daily.
After they’d come to an agreement, Su Chi headed home.
The days were getting dark quickly. By the time Su Chi reached his courtyard gate, the sky was already frighteningly dark. Fortunately, they’d hung two lanterns on either side of the gate some time ago. Xie Yushu had already lit them, casting a warm glow over the entrance. Su Chi’s heart felt warm just looking at it.
As soon as he stepped over the threshold, something soft bumped into the back of his thigh.
“Ouch.”
The dark figure cried out—a childish voice. It was a child.
Su Chi turned around and saw it was Fang Kui.
Fang Kui was holding a vinegar jar: “Good evening, Husband Su.”
Su Chi crouched down to look at her: “Fang Kui? Why are you here so late?”
“The young lady said your house was out of vinegar. She gave me a wen to go buy some. I bought it—here you go.” Fang Kui handed the vinegar jar to Su Chi and added, “Aunt Hu’s vinegar is delicious—sour and fragrant. I’m not trying to cheat you. Try it and you’ll see. I’ll be going now.”
“Wait.” Su Chi called her back and placed a copper coin in her small palm.
Fang Kui shook her head and pushed the coin back like an adult: “The young lady already paid me.”
She’d originally wanted to run the errand for free, but Xie Yushu insisted on giving her two wen. Fang Kui had bargained it down to one wen, saying they’d already been so good to her family—it was already too much to take money, and she absolutely couldn’t take more.
Watching Fang Kui’s bouncing figure disappear into the darkness, Su Chi closed the courtyard gate.
The kitchen fire had already been lit for cooking—it was warm inside. Su Chi quickened his pace and carried the vinegar jar in.
“You’re back. Go wash your hands first—I’ll make this meal.”
Su Chi watched his wife bustling about in front of the stove, his heart as sweet as if it were soaked in honey: “Alright, I’ll go right away.” He placed the vinegar jar with the other seasonings.
Xie Yushu was particular about cleanliness. The first thing she always told Su Chi when he came home was to go wash his hands and brush the dust off his clothes. Su Chi had long since gotten used to it and even enjoyed it. Now, without her having to remind him, he’d do it willingly.
There was a small vat of water by the bathhouse entrance, with a shelf beside it. On the shelf was hand-cleansing paste, and below it, a basin specifically for the couple to wash their hands.
Su Chi scooped some cold water from the vat, added a bit of hot water from the clay pot to balance the temperature, and gave his hands a comfortable, thorough wash.
He returned to the kitchen. By now, the table already had three dishes: stir-fried bamboo shoots with cured meat, pan-fried tofu, and a bowl of sliced meat soup.
Xie Yushu embraced him and placed a kiss on his forehead: “Time to eat.”
The two sat across from each other. Xie Yushu ladled a bowl of sliced meat soup for Su Chi.
The sliced meat had been marinated in starch—so tender it almost burst with juice. The soup was sour, made with the vinegar Fang Kui had just brought back, and thickened with a starch slurry. The whole soup was rich and tangy; one small bowl would surely whet the appetite.
Su Chi held the small bowl and sipped, remarking: “This vinegar is so fragrant. Is this the one Fang Kui bought for you?”
“Yes.” Xie Yushu replied, also taking several sips. “It really is fragrant—more so than regular vinegar.”
Su Chi picked up a piece of tofu—golden-fried and coated in sauce—and placed it in her bowl: “She said it’s from Aunt Hu’s place. We don’t know her, but it sounds like she lives on Qingshui Lane.”
Xie Yushu said: “If it’s good, we should go take a look another day and buy some more. We could use it in the shop too.”
“The vinegar at home ran out yesterday or the day before. I knew you’d be back a bit late, and I was busy cooking and couldn’t step out to buy some. Then I spotted little Fang Kui lurking around the lane, so I had her run the errand for me.”
They hadn’t lived here as long as the long-time residents, and there were many things they didn’t know as well as Fang Kui did.
Fang Kui loved running errands for her. She’d initially wanted to do it for free, but after Xie Yushu “threatened” that she’d never let her run errands again, the little thing finally accepted payment.
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