Back to 1984: Hunting in the Mountains

Chapter 35: One-eared Iron Pot

Is it really that delicious?
When everyone saw the uncle like this, they became very curious and gathered around to taste it, and they found that it was really good!

After adding Yu Qiutang's seasoning, the little bit of bitterness left in the tofu disappears, leaving only a light fragrance.

“Surprisingly delicious.”

"It's really good, what is this made of?"

"It tastes a bit like jelly, but it's much more refreshing than jelly. I've never eaten anything with this flavor before. Forget it, I'll have two pieces too. When I close the stall, I'll let the kids have a taste~"

"I want a big one."

"I'll just have a small piece. It tastes good to me, but I don't know if the kids will like it. If they don't like it after buying it, it will be a waste."

"Look at what you said. The kids don't like to eat it. You can eat it yourself."

"What should I eat? I'm already an adult, what else should I eat..."

More and more people gathered around.

Yu Qiutang didn't expect the opening to be so sharp. He was still trying to warm up the audience at first, but thanks to Wang Ermaizi, he started with a climax.

He asked Xiaowei to take out the oil paper that had been prepared in advance and wrap the things according to everyone's needs.

There are no disposable plastic bags or paper bags in this era. Everyone buys things in paper bags.

Yu Qiutang’s use of oil paper is considered good, but some people use newspapers, and it’s okay to eat it anyway.

In an era when material needs were not yet fully met, people’s demands were quite low. As long as they could eat, they didn’t care about anything else.

Look at the people selling vegetables and fruits on the streets. They just pick up the food, wipe it casually with their hands and start eating. They don’t care how much dust is on it. As the saying goes, if it’s not clean, you won’t get sick if you eat it.

This is how people buy things, they are often influenced by the people around them.

For example, when you are walking on the street and want to find a restaurant to eat, the kind of restaurant that is very crowded and has a long queue, but there are more people queuing, and the restaurant becomes emptier and the more customers there are, the fewer people go in.

Everyone subconsciously thinks that if everyone is eating there and there are so many people, then the food must be good, at least there is a guarantee. And those restaurants with few customers must not be delicious, otherwise why don't people go in?

Therefore, many restaurants, and even those that sell other things, will find some agents to pretend to do business in order to attract real customers.

It's not that Yu Qiutang hadn't thought about finding someone to help him. If the business was really bad and it was a lukewarm start, he would consider asking some people to come over to warm up the place and create a certain atmosphere before regulating the business.

He was not worried about the taste of this thing. After this thing spread to this place in his previous life, it quickly became popular. There would always be long queues at the stalls selling the magic tofu during market days. If you went too late, you would not be able to eat it.

The main reason is that people here have a heavier taste, and the flavor of the fairy tofu is very pleasing to the taste buds. People here also like to eat cold dishes and like to use chili peppers, garlic and onions, which also provide a basis for mixing the sauce.

After this hectic operation, when the first wave of people came down, he found that one basin had been sold out and only two-thirds of the second basin was left.

After receiving a handful of dimes, he tied them into a stack with a rubber band but hadn't counted them yet.

The two children also helped a lot, and they were both very happy to be able to sell the things.

After finally getting some time to rest, Yu Qiutang was tidying up the basket. Only then did he realize that he had forgotten to take out the pickled yellow rats he brought in the morning and had not sold any.

Then he put the yellow rat directly on the chopping board.

Because the yellow mouse has been cleaned and pickled, it looks very ordinary, a bit like a small weasel, and there is nothing offensive about it.

People here eat yellow rat meat out of habit, just like eating bamboo rats and squirrels. "What's up, do you still have yellow rats to sell?" The uncle asked with a smile when he saw something new on the chopping board.

"I watered seven or eight of them in the field yesterday. We can't eat them all at home, so I thought I'd bring them here to have a look. If anyone wants them, I'll sell them at a low price."

"Let me have a look," the uncle came over and looked at them one by one, nodded and said, "Not bad, the size is good, but the yellow rat meat is too tender and tasteless. It will be fragrant only after the first litter is laid."

"Is the uncle still an old hand?" Yu Qiutang also thought so, but there is only a subtle difference between delicious and not delicious, and ordinary people may not be able to tell.

"Haha," the uncle laughed honestly, "I don't dare to say I'm an old hand, but I was in trouble at that time, so I ate all these things. After eating a lot, I know the taste."

Upon hearing this, Yu Qiutang picked up a yellow rat that was obviously larger in size and handed it to the uncle, "Uncle, take this back and eat it. This is the yellow rat after it gave birth."

"No, no, that won't do," the uncle hastily declined, "You're selling it for money, how can I take it for free? Hurry up and take it!"

"You can eat it. I made it in the field. It didn't cost me much. Besides, you helped me protect my nephew before, and you were the first to support my small business just now. You helped me a lot. This is nothing."

"No, no, I can't ask for it for nothing..."

"Here you go, take it!"

Yu Qiutang took the yellow rat and put it in the cabin of the uncle's cart. "A yellow rat is not a good thing, and you are so polite to me."

The uncle shook his head helplessly. Seeing that it was really impossible, he smiled and said, "How about this, I'll give you the money for whatever you sell it for."

"This is for you, no charge."

"That won't work!"

"I think it's okay... Hey, I'm done talking. I have to do business."

Yu Qiutang saw a middle-aged man with unshaven beard standing in front of the stall, looking at the green tofu with a complicated look in his eyes, as if he was missing something.

His clothes were very old, with the sleeves and chest worn out and the threads loosened. He was wearing two cloth shoes of different colors on his feet. They must have been a pair of worn-out shoes he had picked up from somewhere.

The most eye-catching thing was that he was carrying a pot on his back. It was a two-foot-eight-foot-long iron pot, but the ear on one side of the pot seemed to have been knocked off by something, and there was a gap along the ear.

He had been to the stall before, but left halfway through, only to come back when the session was almost over.

"Uncle, do you want to order some magical tofu?" Yu Qiutang asked with a smile. Everyone who came was a guest.

The uncle glanced at him, then fixed his gaze on the Shenxian Tofu, "Are you selling Guanyin Tofu?"

Judging from the accent, he should be from Sichuan or Chongqing.

Yu Qiutang could roughly guess what was going on. Compared with Rongcheng, some people in Sichuan and Chongqing prefer Shenxian Tofu, especially in the early years, it was very popular.

Maybe this uncle escaped from there.

Rongcheng is very close to Sichuan, and people from there often come over across the Qinling Mountains. It is rumored that at least half of the people in Rongcheng are from Sichuan.

"It's for sale. Do you want one?"

The uncle shook his head hurriedly, then smiled innocently, "I don't want it, I don't have any money, my pot is broken, I didn't sell it, I have no money to eat today."

(End of this chapter)