EBE Chapter 133 Rose Cheese
Chapter 133 Rose Cheese
"Listen up to me, everyone!" Jiang Yu suddenly raised his voice and said to the vendors around him.
"Since we dare to set up a stall here, we must be fully confident. If you know what's good for you, stop talking nonsense and making trouble here." His voice was low and powerful, with a deterrent power that could not be ignored.
When the people who were mocking Jiang Yu heard what he said, they turned their heads to look at him. They saw that although Jiang Yu was young and handsome, his eyes revealed a sense of hostility and he looked like someone who was not easy to mess with.
The noisy crowd suddenly quieted down. Everyone started to murmur in their hearts, and the words they wanted to say were involuntarily held back. They all lowered their heads and pretended to be busy tinkering with the work in their hands.
Jiang Yu glanced at the crowd and nodded slightly in satisfaction when he saw that everyone had calmed down.
Soon, Cheng Yuntao had prepared the tableware and food needed for the day's stall. She estimated that the show would begin in half an hour. The audience would gradually enter the theater, and her business would naturally increase.
The repertoire for each day's performance at the theater would be posted the day before, making it easier for interested theatergoers to buy tickets. It also made it easier for Cheng Yuntao to know the repertoire in advance so that she could better prepare the ingredients needed for her stall.
Shops selling dairy products are common in the streets and alleys of the market. One type has a thick, creamy texture that, after solidifying, becomes as smooth and mellow as cream. This is what the ancients called "che." Skilled artisans even add unique embellishments, delicately adorning it with ingredients like melon seeds, creating what is known as "eight-treasure cheese."
If you put the cheese on the fire and heat it slowly over low heat to make it melt, it will soon turn into a soup-like liquid, pure white in color, as crystal clear as glutinous candy. If you stir it gently, the tumbling appearance will look like melting snow in spring. This is what everyone calls "milk tea".
Milk is roasted over a fire, the heat determined by the craftsman's experience. Once the milk is cooked through, it's rolled into sheets while still hot. The varying textures and colors of the outer crust give rise to intriguing names like "crispy skin" and "fire skin." If carefully filled with hawthorns, walnuts, and a variety of carefully selected dried fruits, the ends are skillfully double-rolled to form firm, plump strips, and finally cut into one-inch-long pieces, the highly sought-after "milk roll" is created. A bite reveals the crispness of dried fruits combined with the richness of milk.
Other production methods are equally fascinating. Some use specially made molds to carefully shape the milk just after it solidifies into regular chess-piece-sized blocks, which are then sold as cakes. Others grind the solidified milk into a powder, use it as flour, and then wrap it with carefully prepared fillings to create "饽饽" (stuffed buns) that resemble buns but have their own unique flavor. In fact, these various products, regardless of their form or name, ultimately fall under the ancient and broad category of "su che".
Cheng Yuntao's special delicacy today is steamed rose sugar pastry. Rose sauce is made from fully bloomed and fragrant rose petals and sugar. After washing and drying, they are mixed with sugar in the correct proportions and then kneaded by hand to thoroughly blend the petals and sugar. During this process, the petals gradually release their juices, and the sugar slowly melts, eventually forming a thick sauce.
On the first day of opening the stall, she needed to leave a good impression on the customers. The taste of the food was important, but the appearance and presentation were also factors that could not be ignored. Many foods tasted delicious, but their appearance was too simple and not suitable for making these "artsy" snacks.
The rose jam is extremely sweet, with bright color and fragrant smell. It is excellent in both appearance and flavor. When poured on the snow-white cheese, it makes people salivate at the sight.
At that moment, a group of people suddenly rushed out of the theater. The leader was named Qi Zhonghu. His face was gloomy, his thick eyebrows were tightly knitted together, and his eyes revealed a fierceness. He was very unhappy when he heard his men report that someone was setting up a stall in the open space in front of the theater.
After all these years, who didn't know Qi Zhonghu's name? Who didn't know Qi Zhonghu's methods? He thought the other party was just itching to get away with it, so he wanted to give him some slack.
After leaving the theater, Qi Zhonghu immediately saw the exquisite stall in front, and immediately strode towards where Cheng Yuntao and Jiang Yu were.
Seeing this, the vendors around stopped what they were doing and started whispering to each other.
Some shook their heads, their faces full of worry, and sighed: "The little girl is really going to be in trouble. Qi Zhonghu is not someone you can mess with."
Another person curled his lips and said gloatingly, "I told her not to set up stalls here, but she didn't listen. Now she's in trouble."
Others frowned and murmured quietly, "Qi Zhonghu has always been domineering and overbearing. Anyone who crosses his path will suffer. I'm afraid these two young fools are going to be bullied miserably."
Qi Zhonghu came up to Cheng Yuntao and Jiang Yu, his hands on his hips, his eyes fixed on them, looking them up and down. Then, he unconsciously touched his bumpy face, looked down at his short, stocky figure, then at Jiang Yu's tall and straight figure, and felt a pang of jealousy in his heart.
He gritted his teeth and roared viciously, "Don't think I'll show mercy just because you're good-looking! You have three seconds to get out of here, or I'll be rude!"
Jiang Yu hated being yelled at the most. He glanced at Qi Zhonghu with displeasure, which only intensified his anger. Cheng Yuntao, however, remained calm and stepped forward to explain, "We've already informed the higher-ups that we can set up a stall here."
Qi Zhonghu was stunned at first, then he threw his head back and laughed, saying disdainfully, "Just you? A little girl who has to make money by setting up a stall at the night market? Do you know who my boss is? Do you think you can get to know such a big shot just because you want to?"
"Since you have no foresight and can't seize the opportunity I left for you, don't blame me for being rude!" After saying that, Qi Zhonghu opened his eyes wide and shouted, then swung his fist towards Jiang Yu's face.
Jiang Yu reacted quickly, tilting his head slightly, and the fist whizzed past his cheek. While Qi Zhonghu's attack missed, Jiang Yu turned his body to the side and kicked Qi Zhonghu in the waist. Qi Zhonghu groaned and staggered back a few steps.
Seeing this, the people around exclaimed in surprise.
Qi Zhonghu steadied himself and charged forward again, his arms outstretched, attempting to embrace Jiang Yu. Jiang Yu was agile and quickly stepped back, dodging Qi Zhonghu's attack. Then, he lunged forward and punched Qi Zhonghu in the stomach. Qi Zhonghu had no time to dodge and was bent over by the blow.