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墨書 Inktalez
The morning at the breakfast stall was filled with steam, as people sat in front of the stalls enjoying hot noodles to welcome the new day.
I promised Lin Miaomiao that I would treat her to breakfast, and I wouldn't go back on my word. Although I was currently broke, a skilled person would never starve—after making breakfast for Pervert for over ten years, my skills in making buns and dumplings were top-notch!
"Hey, what are you planning to treat me to?" Lin Miaomiao asked with anticipation. "If it's something from the stall, I'm not eating it. I've had it for a year now; I'm tired of it. If there's no novelty, I won't accept it," she threatened.
This girl is really hard to please, but well, just watch!
"Uncle, can we negotiate? I didn't bring any money today, but I can help you make buns. After I finish, could you give me a few?" I said to the boss of the breakfast stall with a serious face.
"Hey, what's this? Just take it on credit; do you think I'm worried about you owing me a few buns?" The uncle was busy in the morning rush, his hands never stopping while he kept smiling and cheerfully replied to me. "If you want to eat, just take some. It doesn't matter if you don't have money now; you can pay me later."
The uncle is truly an honest man, but I felt I shouldn't take advantage of him. Besides, Lin Miaomiao needed something new.
"No worries, uncle; let me help you." I rolled up my sleeves, washed my hands, and grabbed a piece of dough. "I can't just eat for free."
"Hey, can you do it?" The uncle asked again. By then, the dough in my hands had already transformed into a standard bun with eighteen folds. "Wow, who would have thought? You're quite skilled! But buddy, if all my buns were made like yours, I wouldn't have enough time and definitely wouldn't make much money—your filling is enough for two of mine!"
Isn't that right? After getting used to making buns for Pervert in that rundown temple, I never considered the cost. My face flushed as I said, "Uncle, you can keep some for yourself!"
"Hehe, buddy, just keep them for yourself. How about this: if you help me make a steamer full of buns, I'll treat you to this breakfast." The uncle said readily.
"Thank you, uncle! But I have a friend who can't make buns," I said shyly.
"Hey, your friend is Lin Miaomiao, right? I'm more familiar with her than you are; I even live at her place!" The uncle continued working swiftly while chatting. "That girl is really nice; not only does she let me store my stuff for free in her utility room, but she also saved me hundreds on rent. You know how hard it is to find a place to rent with this little money?"
Wow! So the uncle is Lin Miaomiao's tenant; he must be related to that lady who peeked out yesterday (Lin Miaomiao has a good friend living on the same floor). No wonder he spoke so highly of her. I thought people could freely take credit in the city nowadays!
"Then I'll be polite and help you make two steamers!"
"Great! Hey, whose tofu pudding is this?" The uncle was very busy; it was clear that business was booming here.
I worked quickly and soon finished making two steamers of buns and even made two vegetarian ones for myself. The uncle placed the buns in the steamer while I continued helping him out. Before long, the buns were ready.
"Buddy, not bad! Are you training to be a chef?" The uncle finally found a moment to wipe his sweat with a towel and gave me a thumbs up in praise. "There are fewer hardworking folks like you these days."
"Ha ha, thank you, Uncle. I'm not a chef, just someone who has helped out at home, so I'm familiar with it. Isn't it common for children from poor families to take charge early?" I rubbed my hands together, planning to get rid of the dough stuck on them. "As long as you don't mind me eating a lot."
"Hahaha, at this age, how can a kid eat less? I remember when I was young, I could eat half a steamer full of buns." Uncle served me a bowl of tofu pudding. "Here, eat more. I love seeing young people who are willing to work and eat! It's much better than being lazy and picky."
Uncle is a straightforward boss who quickly served me and Lin Miaomiao a big bowl of tofu pudding (don't ask me if it's sweet or savory; I can't handle sweet tofu pudding, and I'm from the south) and brought out the first bun I made, which was particularly stuffed.
"Is this your way of treating me?" Lin Miaomiao said with a frown. "It seems like they only let you work because of my face."
"Don't worry about those details; at least every bun here was made by me," I said as I picked up a vegetarian bun and swallowed it in a few bites. I usually eat quite heartily.
"What's so special about it? Aren't they just buns?" Lin Miaomiao frowned. "I'm already tired of eating these."
Still, Lin Miaomiao gave me some credit and took a big bite of the bun with double filling. Juice flowed from the meat as she bit into it.
"Hey, this bun is different from what Uncle makes," Lin Miaomiao exclaimed in surprise. "The skin seems to have more chewiness than Uncle's, but there's too much meat in this one."
Sister always prefers less greasy food, while Pervert is different; even if the meat isn't particularly appealing, he enjoys it thoroughly.
"Of course! The things I, Yin Zheng'an, make are not like what ordinary people can do," I said proudly. The bun skin was processed by me; ever since Pervert taught me the softness of Tai Chi, I've applied that skill to my cooking—kneading dough! The dough kneaded with softness has no air pockets, so the texture is particularly good, just like fish tofu.
"Wow, Old Wang, your buns today are different from before." The steamed buns were also served at other tables; regular customers could tell immediately that these weren't Uncle's usual style.
"What happened? What happened?" Uncle thought something was wrong and hurried over to apologize.
"You want to taste? No way!" The regular customer quickly finished the bun. "Your buns today are way better!"
Uncle stood awkwardly in front of the regular customer and pointed at me. "These buns were made by this young man; they're not my handiwork. I thought he wouldn't suit your taste."
"I knew it! Old Wang, you should hurry up and learn a few tricks." The regular customer swallowed another bun. "If you had this skill, your business would multiply!"
"Old Uncle Wang, don't ask me; this is just my personal skill that I've practiced—you won't be able to learn it." I scratched my head and said shyly, "But I can give you a few filling recipes to try out. If you can improve them, consider it my way of repaying you for this meal."
I grabbed a piece of paper and wrote down several recipes for bun fillings. I have to thank Pervert for this; after he tried my cooking for the first time and got sick for three days, he finally gave me a recipe once he recovered. This recipe is also from that list.
"Hi, how much are a few buns? If you like them, come eat here with Uncle! There's nothing else, but the tofu pudding buns are plenty," Uncle Wang said as he took the note and patted his chest. "To be honest, I'm not a proper chef; my skills are just okay. Your recipe has really helped me out."
Lin Miaomiao, being a girl, finished the large bun with double filling while I was talking to Uncle and drank half a bowl of tofu pudding before feeling full. She sat quietly beside us, listening to our banter. Seeing this, I sped up my eating as well. Soon enough, I finished too.
"Uncle, we're leaving now," I said as I waved goodbye to Uncle Wang. It wasn't easy for him managing the breakfast stall alone; he hardly had time to chat with me.
"Hey, take care! Come by tomorrow to try the recipe you gave me and give me some feedback. I'll treat you to some buns," Uncle Wang said, lifting his head briefly to greet me. "Miao Miao, your boyfriend is pretty good!"
"He is not my boyfriend," Lin Miaomiao stomped her foot and blushed. "Uncle, don't say that; I'll raise your rent!"
"Alright, alright, I won't say anything more. Hehe, Uncle understands," Uncle Wang replied before returning to his work. Lin Miaomiao angrily stepped on my foot twice.
"It's all your fault!" she exclaimed.
"What does it have to do with me? I'm just multi-talented! I feel like I'm losing out here!"
"Shameless," Lin Miaomiao said.
I replied, "If I cared about face, I wouldn't be doing this job."
Lin Miaomiao:
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