Phi-Fic Chapter 53: Rented 4 stalls at the market
Chapter 53: Rented 4 stalls at the market
Kong Nishang only noticed the food cart at the entrance of the convenience store when she walked over. She had fallen asleep while lying down and hadn't seen Bai Mengran drive the food cart to the convenience store.
Bai Mengran glanced at the seats on the dining car. Besides the driver's cab, which could seat two people, there was also a row of seats inside the dining car, enough for three people.
“We’re going to set up a stall to sell instant noodles. If you don’t mind not being able to take good care of us, you can come with us.”
Bai Mengran was naturally willing to take the enthusiastic Kong Nishang along, so that she would have someone to accompany her on the journey.
"Of course I don't mind, Sister Bai. Take me with you, I'll help you with anything!"
"Okay, let's set off now and talk more along the way."
Bai Mengran gestured for the two of them to get in the car. Xiao Yi very consciously went to sit in the back, leaving the front seat for Kong Nishang.
A little embarrassed, Kong Nishang sat next to Bai Mengran in the passenger seat, and followed Bai Mengran's example by closing the car door, fastening her seatbelt, and sitting obediently.
"Let's go!" Bai Mengran released the brake and stepped on the gas, driving towards the exit.
The exit teleported them and their vehicle to the entrance of [Fairyland]. As soon as they stepped out, they saw Jiang Feng and Jiang Yu waiting for their guests.
Upon seeing Boss Bai suddenly appear in his car, both of them simultaneously showed expressions of surprise.
The boss is really something else; even his car is so unique, a luxury car I've never seen before.
"Jiang Feng, the public carriage might bring some new customers over in a while. You can stay here and help Jiang Yu. First, verify the customers' tickets, and then follow the instructions to have the customers scan their faces to bind their accounts before entering."
If anyone arrives by car, please leave the carriage in the open space to the side.
In short, the work outside the door is yours to do!
Bai Mengran poked her head out and gave the two a few instructions, then took out a stack of tickets that she had just printed from her bag and handed them to them.
"Here, take these tickets. Every new customer will receive a free ticket. We're leaving now. Remember to contact me via your wristwatch if anything comes up!"
"Okay, Mr. Bai, we've got it!"
Jiang Feng spoke, and Jiang Yu nodded seriously.
"Then see you... then..."
Bai Mengran's voice faded into the distance as the electric food cart sped away.
Kong Nishang, who was listening attentively to the lecture, was caught off guard by the sudden acceleration and was firmly held against the back of the chair, which made her heart pound wildly.
However, she quickly adapted to the speed and watched their car speed along the road with excitement. This was even more immersive than riding in a horse-drawn carriage before. Sitting in the driver's seat, Kong Nishang felt the joy of immersive driving.
Bai Mengran drove to the entrance of Huanxi Street Market. This time, she was setting up a stall to do business, so she had to go to the designated place and pay a stall fee, unlike last time when she was just giving away samples and not selling them, which didn't count as business.
The market on Huanxi Street is a dead end. The market entrance is located on the bustling Huanxi Street, and it becomes increasingly deserted towards the end of the street, just like when she was looking for a shop on Huanxi Street earlier.
Conversely, the closer to the market entrance, the higher the stall fee; the further in you go, the cheaper it becomes.
She learned this from Kong Nishang; her father was the magistrate of Yongle County, and Taoyuan Town, where they lived, was also under his jurisdiction.
Bai Mengran drove the food truck around the street, inquired about the location of the official in charge of managing the stalls, and then drove the food truck there.
She inquired about the stall fees at several locations from the officials. The most expensive stall cost ten coins, while the cheapest cost two coins. Bai Mengran thought that the price difference wasn't that big, since she could earn eight coins just by selling a bucket of instant noodles.
She weighed the size of the stall and decided to pay the rent for four stalls located near the street corner.
Each stall costs eight coins per day, with a discount for monthly payments. Except for those that have been bought outright or for which monthly rent has been paid, all other stalls are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis each day, based on the number of people who have paid.
Bai Mengran paid 32 coins and selected four stalls, which provided a distance of about eight meters. As long as she didn't block the road, she could do whatever she wanted on this spot.
She drove the food cart to the stall, braked to a stop, and skillfully reversed to complete a parallel parking maneuver.
The food cart was parked in the middle of the four stalls, with its storefront facing the direction customers would pass by.
When Bai Mengran got out of the driver's seat, she saw that the clever Xiao Yi had already completed the preliminary preparations ahead of time.
With the windows on both sides of the front of the food cart lowered, the entire interior area of the food cart is open and directly presented to the customers. The bright and eye-catching sign "Unforgettable Instant Noodle Stall in Wonderland" hanging from the roof can be seen from afar.
"Wow, Sister Bai, what an amazing stall! It's so beautiful inside!"
As Kong Nishang got off the car, she finally got a closer look at the interior of the food truck. On both sides were beautifully packaged cup noodles. Although she didn't know what they were, she thought they must be delicious.
"Alright, since you've praised me so much, Yiyi, then I'll treat you to your first bowl of instant noodles of the day!"
Bai Mengran acted immediately. She walked to the food preparation counter, picked up an apron, and put it on.
Her clothes were all custom-made for her by Tongbao, so she couldn't bear to get them dirty.
"Yiyi, see what flavor you want to eat, choose one of the five."
As Bai Mengran spoke to Kong Nishang, she turned on the hot water tap so that she could directly use hot water to make instant noodles later.
Kong Nishang was caught in a dilemma, unsure of which option to choose, so she closed her eyes and pointed randomly, "This one!"
When Bai Mengran saw the flavor she had blindly chosen, she exclaimed, "Wow, not bad!"
"What a lucky girl!"
The dish Kong Nishang pointed to was the most classic braised beef noodles.
Back when instant noodles first became popular, who wasn't tempted by that classic aroma?
Thinking back to my school days, if one person in the class made a bowl of braised beef noodles, the other students would definitely go to the convenience store to buy a bowl of the same flavor to satisfy their cravings.
Bai Mengran even felt that the greatest temptation of instant noodles was not in the act of eating them, but in the enticing aroma that wafted far and wide during the soaking or cooking process.
"Sister Bai, Sister Bai, are you saying that the flavor I chose is the best?"
Pulled back to reality by Kong Nishang's voice, she deliberately kept everyone in suspense, saying, "That's hard to say. You'll have to try it yourself to know, Yiyi."
As she spoke, Bai Mengran took a bucket of braised beef noodles from the pick-up area behind her, and deftly opened the lid to take out the seasoning packet and bamboo fork.
Add the soup base packet, sauce packet, and seasoning packet in that order, and then add the generous amount of seasoning packet, which is full of real dehydrated beef chunks and chopped vegetables.
Next, place the instant noodle cup under the water outlet of the hot water dispenser, select the instant noodle hot water setting, and the hot water will dispense automatically once the desired amount is reached.
Bai Mengran put the lid on the instant noodles and explained the process to her while preparing them.