It was 11:30 in the morning.
Lu Qin stir-fried some rice noodles for lunch, rested a bit afterward, then got to work.
In the afternoon, he planned to set up a stall on the bustling pedestrian street.
Lu Qin soaked over 30 pounds of mung beans in water, preparing to make all of it into mung bean drink.
Mung bean drink was quite profitable and sold quickly.
Customers who came to buy Stir-Fried Rice Noodles would almost always order the mung bean drink as well.
It was mid-May, and the temperature in Jiangcheng was gradually rising.
On a sunny afternoon, people could comfortably wear short sleeves on the street.
The pedestrian street was packed with tourists who, after tiring from walking, would definitely feel hot and thirsty, making cold drinks and ice pops bestsellers.
Lu Qin finished cooking the mung bean drink and put it in the fridge to chill.
From over 30 pounds of mung beans, he made nearly 500 cups of mung bean drink, each cup 330ml.
To keep the chilled mung bean drink cold, he used a large foam box lined with two layers of aluminum foil instead of a proper insulated box—this worked just fine.
Lu Qin packed the mung bean drink into the foam box and ld it onto his three-wheeled cart.
Then he soaked 60 pounds of rice noodles, chopped some side ingredients, organized the takeout boxes and other supplies, ld everything onto the cart, and set off.
He opened his phone and checked a stall location app.
[People's Square Pedestrian Street, 4.1 km away, foot traffic 1800, stall fee 20 yuan]
No navigation needed — everyone in Jiangcheng knew this place.
Lu Qin hopped on his bike and headed out.
…
People's Square Pedestrian Street was an old commercial district in Jiangcheng, about 800 meters long, known as a food street.
Out of over 120 shops, more than 80 were restaurants, and the rest were countless food stalls selling all kinds of snacks.
Temporary stalls like Lu Qin's definitely couldn't get spots in the busiest central area of the pedestrian street, where fixed stalls were expensive and rented yearly.
Lu Qin paid 20 yuan for a stall at a quieter side intersection on the south end of the street.
Two middle-aged women had stalls nearby, one selling starch sausages and the other selling fried potatoes.
Business wasn't great here—only two or three customers came by over half a day. The two ladies, bored out of their minds, turned off their stoves and chatted idly.
Lu Qin's arrival caught their attention.
"Young man, you're selling Stir-Fried Rice Noodles? Wrong time, maybe lunchtime would be better, but at this hour, nobody walks this way."
"Stir-Fried Rice Noodles don't sell well in this heat. Why don't you sell cold noodles?"
Maybe because Lu Qin was good-looking, the two women started chatting with him—anything to pass the time since business was slow.
"For now, I'm only selling Stir-Fried Rice Noodles. Are you two always here at this stall?"
Lu Qin laid out his seasoning bottles and smiled, chatting casually.
The spot was out of the way, so business was slow at first.
Lu Qin wasn't worried and patiently waited.
The two ladies, confident in their stall experience, offered advice.
"Kid, the busy area has tons of stalls selling grilled squid, fried skewers, and barbecue. You could learn from them — that's way better than selling Stir-Fried Rice Noodles."
"Selling Stir-Fried Rice Noodles doesn't make much money. I know a guy selling Stir-Fried Rice Noodles who barely sells 50 portions a day — just enough for some hard-earned cash, but exhausting."
"Yeah, and there are so many fried noodle stalls…"
After about twenty minutes, a few tourists, tired from walking, stopped to rest in the corner.
A couple holding a sun umbrella and carrying two milk teas came over.
The man tossed an empty milk tea cup in the trash and glanced at the three stalls.
The two middle-aged women quickly smiled and called out, "Handsome, pretty lady, want some starch sausages?"
"My fried potatoes are super tasty, want some?"
The couple barely glanced over, showing no interest. These two snacks were offered by at least eight or ten stalls on this food street.
There were five or six fried noodle stalls too.
"Do you have water?"
"Yes, yes," the starch sausage lady said, showing a box of Wahaha mineral water.
"Is it cold?" The man frowned. He and his girlfriend were hot and thirsty and only wanted ice-cold water. Drinking room-temperature water made them cough.
"Dear, you go buy some from the shop up ahead. I'm too tired to walk."
"I don't want to walk anymore either, we've been out for two hours."
At that moment, Lu Qin smiled and said, "Hey, I have chilled mung bean drink here. Want some?"
"Chilled mung bean drink? That sounds good — refreshing and cooling!"
The couple immediately came over to Lu Qin's stall.
Lu Qin opened the foam box and handed them two cups of mung bean drink.
"Not bad at all. Didn't expect a fried noodle stall to sell mung bean drink too. Boss, you know business."
The man hurriedly took the drink, "Wait, let me scan and pay first. Need to quench my thirst."
"Sure, straws are in front, help yourself."
The woman couldn't help but glance at Lu Qin again—he was quite handsome.
After the cold, sweet mung bean drink touched their lips, the young couple couldn't help but exclaim:
"Wow? This mung bean drink tastes so good!"
The man drank fast, finishing in just two sips.
"Boss, what kind of mung bean drink is this? The taste and texture are awesome! One more, please!"
"Mmm… I want another after finishing this one. This mung bean drink is a surprise, way better than milk tea!"
Lu Qin handed them two more cups.
The two ladies next door, puzzled, watched. One of them used to sell chilled mung bean drink but switched to starch sausage because business was bad.
They thought maybe the young couple's reaction was exaggerated.
"Boss, did you make this mung bean drink yourself? It makes me feel so refreshed!" The young woman's eyes sparkled.
The man nodded wildly: "Wow! Never had such a delicious mung bean drink! Boss, one more cup!"
Already on their third cup, the man had a big appetite and could show off a little.
Their excited reaction caught other tourists' attention.
"Is this mung bean drink really that good?"
"Super delicious!"
"Boss, give me a cup too!"
"Cold ones? Perfect, I want two!"
Four more customers came over and bought Lu Qin's mung bean drink.
No doubt about it.
It was so good it was flying off the shelves, and customers kept buying second cups.
"This mung bean drink is amazing! How can it taste so good?!"
"If I'd known, I wouldn't have drunk milk tea, would've saved my stomach for this mung bean drink!"
Several customers didn't want to leave, standing at Lu Qin's stall, drinking and praising.
Seeing more people crowding around the fried noodle stall, other passing tourists gathered.
"What's good here?"
"Chilled mung bean drink!"
"Tastes good?"
"They're already on their third cup, do you think it's good or not?"
"Boss, one cup please!"
…
In just over ten minutes, Lu Qin's stall was booming.
"Kid, I want a cup too!" The two ladies next door temporarily ignored their own stalls and bought mung bean drinks first.
"Boss, you're amazing! This mung bean drink could melt my stomach!"
"Boss, give me some Stir-Fried Rice Noodles to try too."
With mung bean drink this good, the Stir-Fried Rice Noodles probably weren't bad either.
Some customers thought so.
When Lu Qin put the rice noodles in the wok and the aroma floated out, customers swallowed their saliva.
"This fried noodle smells so good — looks delicious!"
"I want one too, with two eggs, ham, and meat."
"Handsome guy, one serving. How much?"
"Two servings, I haven't had lunch yet."
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