5: Chapter 5 Accompany Me to Watch the Gentle Flow of Time

It had just turned midnight, and the other late-night food stalls were still bustling with business, but Yang Shiguang's crayfish stall was already preparing to close.

Don't ask, asking means there was no stock left; it was sold out.

The only ones left at the entire stall were those two college students still drinking.

"Sigh, it's delicious alright, but my living expenses are hurting. What am I going to do for the rest of these days? Good brother, I'm counting on you!"

The tall boy took a sip of high-class Budweiser and glanced at him.

"Then why didn't you take it easy? You ordered 4 jin."

"Th-th-that, let me ask you, how long has it been since we brothers came out for late-night snacks? Could I treat my good brother poorly!"

The chubby boy spoke righteously, but his eyes seemed to dart away.

The tall boy gave a fake laugh: "Heh, you'd better really not want to treat me poorly."

The tricycle had already left the busy downtown area and entered the riverside road heading home.

"Shiguang-ge, you're amazing! You earned over three thousand in just one night!"

An Miaomiao sat on the side of the tricycle, her ivory-white calves hanging in the air and swinging restlessly back and forth, her excitement and happiness evident on her face.

Yang Shiguang sat beside her, smoking a cigarette.

"Haha, that's all thanks to our Miaomiao being so cute, attracting so many customers."

Hearing this, An Miaomiao smiled, a faint blush appearing on her pink, tender cheeks.

"Not really, although Miaomiao admits she is a little bit cute, it's still Shiguang-ge's crayfish that tastes good, which is why we had today's results!"

Yang Shiguang didn't refute her and patted her head.

An Miaomiao tilted her head slightly, revealing a nervous expression, but just as she was about to lean onto Yang Shiguang's shoulder, she suddenly pulled back as if touching a spring.

Her small fists clenched tightly, and unwillingly, she secretly tilted her head over again, this time gently resting it on Yang Shiguang's shoulder.

An Miaomiao stared nervously at Yang Shiguang's face. Seeing he had no reaction and was still staring at the river surface, she slowly relaxed and put on a charming smile again.

The water rippled, and the bright moonlight sprinkled over the river surface and the camphor trees by the road, wrapping the highway and the green belt in a layer of silver.

The riverside road in the early morning was deserted, and very few vehicles passed by. The cicadas chirping by the road made the silent night seem even more tranquil.

"Hmm, hmm, hmm..."

Yang Shiguang gazed into the distance at the river, recalling the chaos of the last three years abroad in his previous life, and feeling this tranquility, he unconsciously began to hum a tune.

Before he had hummed for long, a long, melodious singing voice drifted from his left shoulder.

"Haven't properly felt..."

"The tenderness of kissing while awake..."

Yang Shiguang turned his head slightly; it turned out that little An Miaomiao had recognized the tune he was humming.

She was closing her eyes, wearing a sweet smile, and singing along.

Yang Shiguang smiled and began to sing as well.

"Sometimes, sometimes..."

"I will believe that everything has an end"

"Gathering and leaving both have their times..."

"Nothing will last forever..."

The river water rippled, the shrubs danced with the wind and camphor trees under the moonlight's gaze, and the cicadas kept the beat.

The singing echoed between the water and the sky.

The female voice was graceful.

The male voice was melodious.

"But I, sometimes..."

"Would rather choose to linger and not let go..."

"Wait until the scenery is fully seen..."

"Perhaps you will..."

"Accompany me to watch the long flow of water..."

The tricycle moved slowly along the riverside road. The two sat on one side of the tricycle, and An Miaomiao fell asleep while humming, leaning on Yang Shiguang's shoulder. Yang Shiguang gently brushed a strand of hair stuck to her cheek and continued to enjoy this tranquility.

Oh? You ask where You Ge is?

There, that one in front, sweating profusely and swearing while pedaling the tricycle.

Otherwise, how could this human-powered, single-cylinder broken tricycle move?

"You dog, f*ck!"

In the blink of an eye, a few days passed.

Business these past few days had been so hot it was hard to comprehend; they would open the stall at 9 PM and be forced to close before midnight.

After You Ge got his share of the money, he smiled like a morning glory, and the first thing he did was buy a pack of Heqishengcai cigarettes and run to the internet cafe to show off.

He was in high spirits at the internet cafe.

"Come, come, smoke mine, smoke mine!"

"No, no, I made a little money recently."

"Small cards? Isn't that easy? Boss You doesn't even look at that low-level stuff now; if I go, I go to Blue Sea and Blue Sky!"

Yang Shiguang watched his childhood friend, who looked so smug, and the corner of his eye twitched uncontrollably.

When one can no longer bear it, there is no need to bear it anymore; either do nothing, or go all the way.

Yang Shiguang ran to the internet cafe restroom and called You Ge's father.

"Hello? Uncle You, it's me, Yang Shiguang!"

"Mm, yes, A-You is here too, we are both at the internet cafe."

"But he just said he wants to take me to Blue Sea and Blue Sky."

"Where is that? I don't know what kind of place it is either."

"Ah? Oh, oh, okay, Uncle You, I'll help you hold him here."

Shortly after, just a few minutes later, You Ge's father, You Changtian, rushed from his hardware store to the internet cafe.

You Ge saw his father suddenly appear in front of him.

A "?" appeared on his face.

Immediately after, he saw his old man pull out a Seven Wolves belt.

The "?" on his face also turned into "OAO".

After that, it was too beautiful to look at.

A week had passed since Yang Shiguang's trio of childhood friends started the stall.

Business was still very good tonight, but the three of them were somewhat troubled.

Because on Hejia Avenue, many other late-night food stalls had started selling crayfish as well.

Everyone had actually seen this thing; it was basically everywhere in ponds and by ditches.

It's just that people hadn't eaten it before, so no one made it at first.

Now that Yang Shiguang had made it popular, many people followed suit.

More importantly, they were selling it even cheaper.

"Shiguang-ge, what should we do?"

An Miaomiao drooped her little head, the light in her peach-blossom eyes dimmed a little.

You Ge was also jumping with anxiety on the side, saying to Yang Shiguang: "Shiguang, how about we lower the price too?"

Yang Shiguang shook his head, thinking while saying: "Lowering the price isn't impossible, but a pure price war is just courting death."

Speaking of this, he looked somewhat puzzled at the customers currently buying crayfish at their stall, patted An Miaomiao's little head, and smiled: "Don't worry, I'll go understand the situation first."

After saying that, Yang Shiguang stood up and walked straight toward a tall guy in a black trench coat by the side of the road.

"Wanna buy a disc?"

"Buy! I'll buy everything, including your trench coat, 500, how about that?"

The disc-selling brother was a bit surprised at first, but soon started dancing with joy.

Yang Shiguang was very decisive, buying all of the other man's discs and the trench coat, and even bought his sunglasses.

Yang Shiguang activated the disguise skills he had learned in Southeast Asia in his previous life.

Putting on the trench coat, wearing the hood and sunglasses, hunching his back, and drooping his head.

The 188cm tall, sunny, handsome boy instantly became inconspicuous, turning into a very common and slightly sleazy uncle selling discs.

Then he walked toward a late-night food stall that was also selling crayfish.

He bought a portion of shrimp and two beers, and sat down next to a customer who was eating shrimp.

The customer glanced at him and habitually said: "Not buying discs!"

Yang Shiguang's eye twitched, and he waved his hand: "I'm not here to sell discs today, buddy. Eating alone is boring, I'll treat you to a drink!"

After saying that, he opened the beer and handed it to the customer. The customer was very generous; after taking it and thanking him, he gulped it down.

The two drank and chatted for a few sentences, then Yang Shiguang (black trench coat version) asked very naturally: "Buddy, the shrimp here is much cheaper than the one that made it first, what do you think?"

The customer waved his hand upon hearing this: "Sigh, buddy, you asked the right person. I've tried all the shrimp sellers on this street, just go to the first one that made it. I can only say that cheap goods are no good."

Yang Shiguang took a sip of beer and asked suspiciously: "How so?"

The customer shook his head and said: "The shrimp from these places either has a fishy smell or a bitter taste. Anyway, it's definitely not as delicious as the one from that little handsome guy, little girl, or little fatty's place. If you don't believe me, try it."

Hearing this, Yang Shiguang ate a shrimp and suddenly realized.

The fishy smell naturally came from the shrimp itself, and the bitterness came from the spices.

Because Yang Shiguang had followed the trend and opened a late-night food stall in his previous life, his braising process was a successful case that had been accumulated over a long time.

The deep-frying process seems very troublesome and uses a lot of oil. But this is the most critical step to remove the fishy smell of the shrimp.

And the proportions of the braising spices are precise to the gram. Too many bay leaves will make it astringent, too much star anise and cinnamon will make it bitter, not removing the seeds from the black cardamom will also cause bitterness, and there is also Ding Xiang, a spice used in extremely small quantities but which is the finishing touch, which is also key.

This cannot be imitated simply; it requires long-term practice and accumulation.

In the current time, it is no exaggeration to say that Yang Shiguang's braising process is a unique secret recipe.

This is also why their place sells it expensively, but still has many customers.

Having obtained the answer, Yang Shiguang chatted with the customer for a few sentences and then left, using the excuse that he had something to do at home.

He walked towards his own stall while thinking.

Currently, they can still remain invincible by relying on the advantage of their taste.

But if they don't lower the price, they will eventually lose customers.

And lowering the price means reducing profits.

The only solution is to find a stable supply source.

Low-cost supply channels and unique flavors are the two core competitiveness of the catering industry.

This is also preparation for opening a shop later.

Unknowingly, he had returned to his stall.

After taking off the trench coat, he found a middle-aged man standing at the entrance of the stall, talking with You Ge and An Miaomiao.

"Why are you blocking him, Miaomiao? Isn't it better to close early and go back to rest?"

You Ge and An Miaomiao seemed to have a small dispute.

An Miaomiao didn't answer You Ge, her complexion was a bit bad, and she seemed very embarrassed.

It wasn't until she saw Yang Shiguang return that the light in her peach-blossom eyes flickered.