Chapter 23 Opening
"I've been waiting in line for a long time, why are they not selling the mung bean cake when it's my turn?"
"It's not that we don't sell it anymore, it's that we're out of stock. You can either come back in the afternoon or buy other cakes."
"What do you mean it's gone? Who are you trying to trick? There were clearly two boxes left. I saw them with my own eyes. You took them in."
"Why are you arguing? I said we don't have any, so we don't have any. Do you want to buy the other cakes? If not, don't block the way and delay the people behind you from buying."
At the front of the line came the sound of an argument between a customer and a waiter.
"That's right, don't block the way if you're not buying."
"After the mung bean cakes are sold out, why don't you just buy something else? Why are you still arguing here for so long?"
The customers in the queue at the back were successfully provoked into anger by the waiter, and they all condemned the customer in front who asked for mung bean cake.
The customer was young and thin-skinned after all. He couldn't stand the condemning looks from everyone, so he stomped his feet and left the line.
Tong Huaqiong took a look and saw that it was a young man.
"What the hell? This is really a big store bullying customers. They clearly have two boxes of mung bean cakes left, why don't you sell them to me?"
After leaving the team, the young man was indignant and spat at Sushiyuan.
What made him even more upset was that the waiter obviously didn't take him seriously.
His mother has had a poor appetite these past two days and wants to eat mung bean cake.
He rushed to queue up early in the morning, but when it was his turn, the mung bean cakes were out of stock.
He heard it clearly. Just now, another waiter said that Mr. Hong sent someone to order mung bean cakes, and the remaining two boxes were left for Mr. Hong.
Those two boxes of mung bean cakes were quickly taken off the shelves.
Naturally he was angry because he had waited in line for so long.
Didn't Sushiyuan say that every customer is treated fairly? Does everyone have to queue up?
How about Mr. Hong, just tell him.
It’s not that we can’t accept Sushiyuan’s flattery of Mr. Hong. As long as you make reservations in advance, he will not object. But you can’t wait until the person in line gets to say that you don’t want to sell it. What’s the difference between that and cutting in line?
What’s even more infuriating is the attitude of the waiter. It seems like he thinks he owns Sushiyuan just because he’s working for it.
"If you have the guts, you can learn to spend money like Mr. Hong. Not to mention the mung bean cakes, all the cakes in the store will be left to you."
The waiter looked at the young man with disdain.
The young man's face flushed with anger.
“Mung bean cake, sweet mung bean cake, mung bean cake with solid ingredients.”
Tong Huaqiong took the opportunity to start singing.
Sure enough, the young man was attracted by the sound of mung bean cake.
Looking at that small stall, it is quite clean, but I don’t know if it tastes good. My mother loves the mung bean cake from Sushiyuan.
The young man originally wanted to go to Tong Huaqiong's stall, but after thinking it over he decided not to.
"Come on, young man, try my mung bean cake. I guarantee that after you eat one piece, you will want a second piece." Tong Huaqiong made an attack on the young man enthusiastically.
This is what Tong Huaqiong learned based on her own experience in her previous life. If you keep shouting, most people will feel that it is none of their business, but if you shout at a certain person, that person will feel that he or she is involved.
"Yes, there are tastings. Try it first to see if it tastes good before you buy."
Gu Taohua was more radical than Tong Huaqiong. She walked up to the young man, put her hand around his arm, and pulled him to her stall.
The young man couldn't withstand Gu Taohua's strength and could only follow her.
Tong Huaqiong took the opportunity to use a clean small branch to pick up a piece of mung bean cake and pushed it towards the young man's mouth. The young man subconsciously opened his mouth and the mung bean cake fell into his mouth.
"How is it?" Tong Huaqiong smiled.
It is fragrant but not pungent, sweet but not greasy, and the mung bean paste is more delicate than that of Sushiyuan.
In addition, the dish already had some resentment towards Sushiyuan, so the original taste was five points better than Sushiyuan, but the young man raised it to ten points better than Sushiyuan.
"It's delicious, better than Sushiyuan's." The young man exclaimed.
Although he wanted to take revenge on Sushiyuan, he had to admit that the taste really captured his heart.
Tong Huaqiong smiled. She liked this vengeful character.
"How about one piece?" Tong Huaqiong said.
“Can you sell it retail?”
A feeling of surprise flashed through the young man's mind.
Cakes are not meant to be eaten as meals. Even if my mother wanted to eat mung bean cakes, she would only eat two at most at a time. The Sushiyuan weighed half a pound of cakes, and the taste became mushy by the end.
"Of course, one dollar and six cents." Tong Huaqiong said.
The young man hesitated and said, "It's a bit expensive."
"Young man, you tasted it just now. I can tell you know the quality of the product. It's expensive for a reason. The ingredients of my mung bean cake are solid." Tong Huaqiong said.
"Excuse me, who did you buy this mung bean cake for?"
"Give it to my mother."
Tong Huaqiong smiled.
She had long seen that the young man was not buying the cakes for himself. She guessed that he was either buying them for his mother or for his wife and children.
No matter who she buys it for, she has a marketing pitch waiting for her.
"Oh, no wonder, I can see that you are a filial person. I thought that a gentle person like you would not have conflicts with others. The reason why you quarreled so loudly in there just now must have a reason. It turns out that it was out of filial piety!"
"As the saying goes, filial piety is the most important virtue. Your mother is so envious of having a son like you. Just because of your filial piety, I can't bear to make money from you. How about this? I'll give you a discount. Buy two pieces and take them home for your mother to taste. If they are delicious, come back next time. I'll keep giving you the same price."
Who doesn’t like to hear nice words? Who doesn’t like to be praised?
The young man was so happy that he didn't know what to do under Tong Huaqiong's flattery.
Anyway, since Sushiyuan won’t sell the mung bean cake to him, he can’t let his mother suffer any injustice.
So he said to Tong Huaqiong as if he had met a soulmate: "Okay, give me four."
It's opened!
Tong Huaqiong held four mung bean cakes in a clean handkerchief and handed them to the young man.
Gu Taohua accepted the money.
The young man felt more at ease. Although it was a small stall, it was quite clean and he didn't even touch the pastries with his hands.
"You can also try mung bean cakes, which have a different flavor than mung bean cakes." Tong Huaqiong took the opportunity to promote it.
At Sushiyuan, you can buy half a pound of cakes at a time. Those who come to Sushiyuan to buy cakes should at least bring money for half a pound of cakes. She has only sold four mung bean cakes, and the young man in front of her still has a budget.
The young man tasted the mung bean cake.
Sure enough, the flavor is different from mung bean cake. The outer skin is crispy and the filling is delicate and sweet.
He even wanted to buy two pieces to eat.
"Give me four more mung bean cakes." said the young man.
"Okay, eight cents for one mung bean cake. I'm sorry, brother, I can't give you a discount on this mung bean cake, the cost is here. But I can give you an extra dry cake."
Tong Huaqiong pointed to the dry biscuits in the basket.
The young man thought it was expensive at first, but when he heard that it would come with a dry biscuit, and that the yellow biscuit was sprinkled with sesame seeds, which was extremely tempting, he happily accepted Tong Huaqiong's plan.
The young man took the mung bean cake and the dry biscuit, and couldn't help but stuffed the dry biscuit into his mouth.
The crispy and fragrant dry biscuits whetted his appetite.
The waiter who was arguing with the young man at the Sushiyuan across the street witnessed everything that happened across the street and said disdainfully, "Poor bastard, you dare to eat the mung bean cake from that stall."
The young man got really angry after hearing this and fought back, "I've never seen anyone open a shop and call customers poor. If you have the ability to only do business with Mr. Hong, why do you do business with everyone in the town? I think not all the customers who buy cakes from Sushiyuan are wealthy. Aren't you afraid of biting your tongue when you say this?"
"Everyone, let me tell you, Sushiyuan treats people differently. We spent money, but they still called us poor. Sushiyuan thinks that they are the only store in Yanguan Town, so they dare to act like this. I can't stand this attitude. You know what, the mung bean cakes and mung bean pancakes at this stall taste much better than those at Sushiyuan."
"They're offering free tastings, so go and try it."