Chapter 10

There were only two days left until payday. The finance department had just withdrawn tens of thousands of yuan and hadn’t unpacked it yet, so there was readily available cash on hand. The Factory Director signed an agreement with Li Wanzhen, and the Finance Section Chief wrote a withdrawal slip, then had the Factory Director sign it and took Li Wanzhen to the finance office to collect the money.

Li Wanzhen stuffed three stacks of big denomination bills into her backpack, feeling a mixture of emotions. Although she knew that quitting now was the best choice, after working here for over twenty years, it was still hard to leave. As she walked out of the old office building and glanced toward the nearby workshop, Li Wanzhen hesitated for a moment but decided to go say goodbye to the colleagues she had worked with for over two decades.

Recently, the factory hadn’t received any major orders, so besides doing some odd jobs, most workers were idling. Since Li Wanzhen hadn’t shown up that morning, no one really noticed; everyone thought she had taken leave for something at home.

With the bag slung on her arm, Li Wanzhen walked into the workshop and looked around at her colleagues chatting in small groups. She went straight to the friends she was closest with and said, “Hey, I wanted to let you know—I’ve resigned. I just signed the agreement with the Factory Director and got the compensation.”

As soon as she said that, the chatting stopped abruptly. Those farther away who hadn’t heard clearly quickly asked around, and within a couple of minutes, the whole workshop knew that Li Wanzhen had quit. At that time, job security was still deeply ingrained in people’s minds. Even though some did small business or set up street stalls and earned decent money, in the eyes of the common folk, that was considered frivolous and unstable—what jobless drifters did. Most still believed that factory jobs were best, with stable income and no worries about putting food on the table.

Facing various reactions—some concerned, some schadenfreude—Li Wanzhen didn’t say much, only smiled lightly and said, “Well, the factory’s not doing well anyway. Might as well lighten their burden and do something else. This way, I can also take care of my family.”

“You always seemed so sensible—how’d you become silly like your husband Qian Guosheng?” said her closest friend, Meng Shumin, poking her forehead angrily. “Did Qian Guosheng make you quit? I’m going to have a word with him!”

Meng Shumin stormed off, but Li Wanzhen quickly grabbed her, saying, “Don’t go looking for him. This was my own decision. Sister Meng, you know I’m not the kind of person who acts rashly. If I chose to quit, I must have a plan.”

Meng Shumin looked closely at Li Wanzhen’s expression. Seeing her smiling calmly without a trace of sadness, she finally cooled down, patted her hand, and whispered, “I’ll come by your house later. We can talk more then.”

“Okay.” Li Wanzhen glanced at her watch. “Sister Meng, I’ve got to go—Jiafeng is home doing homework by himself. I need to hurry back.”

Several curious coworkers tried to pull her aside to chat more, but Li Wanzhen grabbed the bag with her 3,000 yuan compensation tightly, said quick goodbyes to the ones she was close to, and hurried off.

Because she was planning to go into business, Li Wanzhen didn’t deposit the money but locked it directly in a chest after getting home. When Qian Jianing rode her tricycle and pushed open the courtyard gate, she saw Li Wanzhen coming out to greet her and grinned: “Mom, did you finish all the resignation paperwork?”

“Mm, I’m free now.” Li Wanzhen poured a glass of boiled water for her, feeling distressed seeing her daughter’s sweat-soaked face. “You stay home and rest at noon. I’ll go out and sell.”

Qian Jianing shook her head and said, “Let me take you along for the first couple of days. Otherwise, the customers won’t recognize you.”

Li Wanzhen was puzzled. “It’s just selling food. Does it matter who’s doing it?”

But once she went out with Qian Jianing to set up the stall, she realized—it really did matter.

Qian Jianing always set up her stall near residential areas, usually bustling and high-traffic locations. To Li Wanzhen, people could go home for lunch—it was cheaper and healthier. Who’d want to spend money on takeout? If she hadn’t seen the box full of money Qian Jianing had saved, she wouldn’t have believed anyone could earn that much in a month.

When they arrived, there were already seven or eight tricycles selling food nearby. Li Wanzhen felt uncertain. “Uh-oh, we’re late. It’s all my fault for taking so long. What if we can’t sell anything today?”

Qian Jianing smiled. “It’s not late—just right!” She parked the tricycle on the roadside and propped up a custom-made sign reading “Qian Xiaomi Gourmet Stall.” Li Wanzhen helped set the table, and as she looked up, she was startled to see a crowd gathering.

“What are you selling today, Xiaomi? Cold dishes?” a woman at the front craned her neck, watching Qian Jianing take out a bowl of julienned cucumber and carrots, her face full of admiration. “Xiaomi, your cucumber shreds look amazing—makes my mouth water just looking at them!”

Li Wanzhen didn’t understand the praise. No matter how finely cucumber was cut, it was still cucumber—it’s not like it would taste like meat. She glanced at Qian Jianing, who greeted the crowd with a cheerful smile. Despite the flattery, her expression remained calm—as if she was used to it.

“Today I made cold mung bean noodles. Refreshing and great for summer. Fifty cents per portion, guaranteed delicious,” Qian Xiaomi announced as she brought out the cold noodles. Li Wanzhen was startled—fifty cents was too expensive! She quickly stepped in front of her daughter, nervously watching the surrounding customers, afraid they’d get angry and call her daughter greedy.

Perplexed, Qian Jianing tugged at her. “Mom, why are you blocking me? I need to sell the noodles.”

“Yeah lady, move aside. I need to get home soon. Xiaomi, give me one portion—with extra cucumber. I love the way you cut it,” the woman in front enthusiastically dropped fifty cents into the cash box. Watching Qian Xiaomi grab a big handful of cucumber and add it, she broke into a wide grin.

“I’ll add more sesame and crushed peanuts too—makes it more fragrant.” Qian Xiaomi scooped in two heaping spoonfuls. “Do you want garlic and chili oil?”

“Just a bit of both—I love spice!” The bright red chili oil looked so appetizing that the people in line behind craned their necks and involuntarily swallowed.

Li Wanzhen watched the growing line in front of their stall. Nearby vendors selling food looked on with envy. One or two even packed up and left on their tricycles, leaving Li Wanzhen stunned.

“Xiaomi, what are you planning to make tomorrow?” a man excitedly asked after paying. People asked this question every day. Usually, Qian Jianing would say, “I don’t know, I’ll decide after checking my recipes tomorrow.” Though unconventional, everyone got used to the answer.

To their surprise, this time she handed him the noodles and asked matter-of-factly, “What do *you* want to eat? I can make whatever tomorrow.”

The crowd went wild. Kids yelled, “French fries! Fried meatballs! Fried squid rings!” Men cheerfully shouted, “Sichuan pepper chicken, spicy rabbit heads, beef and tripe in chili sauce—perfect with a drink!” A few old ladies chimed in, “Steamed buns, big meat buns—my grandson loves those.” The nearby bun seller looked crushed. “I’ve got meat buns too, you know! What—are mine not meaty enough or what?”

While the customers argued, a neighboring chicken leg vendor chimed in: “Last time that stewed pork head you made was amazing—do that again tomorrow!” Li Wanzhen gave him a wary look—this one’s the competition, must be careful he doesn’t play dirty.

Hearing all the requests, Qian Jianing felt overwhelmed. “I can’t make all of that! How about this—I’m thinking of opening a small store. I’ll run it during school breaks and weekends. You can come order directly there.”

The crowd suddenly remembered—Qian Jianing was still a student. Worried that she might stop selling, they anxiously asked, “Are you in middle school or high school?”

With a bright smile, Qian Jianing replied, “I started school late. I’ll be a sophomore when classes start. I just tried some recipes during summer break—figured I’d experience life a bit.”

The chicken leg seller nearly cried. He had been perfecting his secret recipe for seven, eight years, and it still wasn’t as good as something she copied from a cookbook? Where’s the justice?

Choking back tears, he asked, “Which recipe book? Did you get a secret recipe passed down from a royal chef?”

As she handed another customer their noodles, Qian Jianing replied, “Nope—just some clearance books I bought for ten cents apiece from the bookstore entrance. If you want one, act fast. I told a lot of people about it. Last night I saw it had already gone up to twenty cents and only a few copies left.”

Panicked, the chicken leg seller packed up on the spot and pedaled off to buy recipe books. Just maybe, prosperity was right around the corner.

Meanwhile, the noodle customers didn’t care where he went. What mattered was—would Qian Jianing still be here selling once school started?

Wiping her sweat with her arm, Qian Jianing pointed to Li Wanzhen. “This is my mom. Once school starts, she’ll be handling the stall. Make sure you recognize her!”

Seeing Li Wanzhen looking dazed and unsure, some customers hesitated. “Xiaomi, are your mom’s dishes as tasty as yours? We’re only here for your flavor.”

Smiling, Qian Jianing reassured them, “Don’t worry—everything she sells, I’ll season at home myself. I guarantee it’ll still taste just right.”

Some were relieved, while others remained skeptical. Different hands made different food, even with the same seasoning. Attention shifted to her mention of the store.

“So when’s your shop opening? What will you sell?” someone asked.

“Stir-fry and braised dishes,” Qian Jianing said. “Planning to open it in front of our house. It won’t be big, so seating will be limited. Prices might be a bit higher than restaurants outside.”

Li Wanzhen started to tremble again. Her daughter was *way* too honest—saying out loud that her prices were high. Who would want to go then?

“Prices a bit high…” a middle-aged man hesitated. Just as Li Wanzhen began to despair, thinking no one would come, the man suddenly beamed. “That’s good! If it’s too cheap, folks from farther away won’t even get a seat. Xiaomi, let us know when your shop opens—I’ve been wanting to treat a few bosses and couldn’t find a good place. Our little city barely has any decent restaurants.”

An old man nodded along. “Expensive is fine. Your stall food isn’t cheap either, but I’m old—I just want to eat something good.” Another elderly man chimed in loud and clear: “Count me in for opening day! Hey, uh, can you even cook stir-fry?”

Li Wanzhen was speechless. You don’t even know if my daughter can stir-fry, yet you’re yelling about showing support? Grandpa, your optimism is something else!