Mr. Jing and His Little Husband

Jing’s mother took out the soaked rice and glutinous rice, drained the water, and then mixed them together for grinding. During the grinding process, she added sugar and stirred in the cooked sheep milk until well blended. After a short period of rest, she cut it into long strips and steamed them in a pot. This is the simple milk-flavored liang gao.

Previously, they had steamed liang gao at home, but these ones with added sheep milk were noticeably different. They were much more delicious—cool and sticky, with a sweet, fragrant, and rich taste of milk. The rice and glutinous rice were not completely ground, retaining a slightly grainy texture.

They were incredibly tasty. Originally, I planned to have one piece and then continue with my work, but I couldn’t control myself. This pot of milk-flavored liang gao was quickly devoured by everyone.

The success of the milk-flavored liang gao injected a strong boost into the new offerings at the food stall.

Next, Jingyi was in charge of making tea eggs.

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Pic credit: Pinterest)

After finishing the milk-flavored liang gao, the two little ones roamed around the courtyard with their little bellies full. When they heard that their older brother was making tea eggs, something they hadn’t heard or seen before, they immediately came over to help.

Adhering to the principle of not wasting labor, Jingyi had Jing’an and Jing Shu wash the eggs clean. They used a brush to scrub the eggshells since they would be pickled with the shells intact, focusing on hygiene as the priority. Eggs in the countryside often have chicken manure and soil on them.

Since it was just a trial and everyone at home would taste them, they only prepared about ten eggs. It wouldn’t be enough if there were too few eggs, wasting the seasoning.

In no time, Jing’an brought the eggs that were scrubbed clean and shiny. The child workers received Jingyi’s approval and praise, squatting contentedly next to the stove, waiting for the distribution of the next task, not minding the heat.

In the courtyard, Jingyi added half a pot of cold water to the pot and put in the eggs. Boiling eggs must start with cold water; this way, the shells peel easily. Cover the pot and boil it on high heat for about the time it takes to brew a pot of tea, and they will be cooked.

Jingyi scooped the cooked eggs into a large bowl and instructed the two little helpers to tap the eggshells with a spoon, but not too hard—just enough to create cracks.

Once the eggshells have cracks, they will naturally absorb the flavor when cooked for a while longer.

Finally, it’s the most important seasoning time. Whether the tea eggs taste good or not depends on the skill at this stage. Jingyi continued to add water to the pot, not too much, just enough to cover the eggs, and then added the prepared salt, soy sauce, Sichuan peppercorns, and fennel seeds in the right proportions. Stir well. Cover the pot and bring it to a boil over high heat.

Ideally, the water should be a bit darker so that the eggs can be better colored, but the soy sauce in ancient times didn’t distinguish between light and dark soy sauce. They only had a coarse version made from fermented soybeans. They could only do their best.

After the pot boiled, Jingyi reduced the heat to low and simmered for about fifteen minutes. The savory aroma had already spread.

Jingyi lifted the lid of the pot. By now, the eggs had turned a light brown color, looking appetizing.

Not to mention the overpowering, rich aroma that made one’s mouth water, making you want to have three right away.

“Big brother, is this egg cooked? Can we eat it now? It smells so good!” The first ones to show their support were the two little food lovers. Nowadays, it didn’t matter who spoke first among the Rainbow group, the central idea was always the same: they wanted to eat.

“Yeah, Xiaoyi, this tea egg smells amazing. It also looks delicious,” Jing’s father said.

Jing’s parents quickly came over to see when they heard about the taste. They couldn’t resist the sight of the eggs with their colored shells and the black-red broth in the pot.

Under the pressure of four pairs of eyes, Jingyi struggled to say, “Well, we can eat them now if you want. But authentic tea eggs need to soak in this broth for three to four hours to fully absorb the flavors. The longer they soak, the better they taste. How about we have them tomorrow morning?”

After cautiously asking, Jingyi noticed that the four pairs of eyes dimmed. Quickly, he changed his statement, “Or maybe we can each try one to taste the saltiness?”

“Okay, okay!” “Yes, yes, let’s taste the saltiness!” “I’ll go get chopsticks!” With that, a figure dashed out and returned in a few steps, it was Jing’an.

As soon as he handed the chopsticks to his big brother, he eagerly waited for his own egg.

Jingyi wasted no time either. After reminding everyone to be careful with the hot eggs, he quickly picked one up and placed it in a nearby basin to cool.

In fact, they didn’t really let it cool. As soon as the tea egg touched the bottom of the basin, it was instantly taken away by four hands. Even though it was scalding hot, they managed to hold onto it without putting it back. Oh, Jing Shu put his back, tears welling up in his eyes. The little boy with delicate skin was afraid of getting burned.

Jingyi chuckled and felt a mix of amusement and tenderness. “It’s a bit hot, let me take a look. Don’t worry, it’s just a bit red. Go rinse it with cold water, and your big brother will help you peel it. Once it’s cooled down, you can eat it, okay?”

He patted Jing Shu’s head, picked up the egg, and started peeling it, giving a glance to Jing Shu, gesturing for him to quickly go and rinse it with cold water.

When Jing’s mother saw this, she smiled awkwardly. This was unexpected. For the sake of their appetite, they even neglected the children. She quickly said, “Xiaoyi, you eat yours. I’ll peel this one for Xiaoshu. I’m the one who peeled it for him.” It was a somewhat forced attempt to regain her dignity.

“It’s alright, Mother. You eat yours. I don’t mind,” Jingyi smiled.

Once everyone finished eating their eggs, Jingyi didn’t need to ask about the taste. Their eyes kept glancing at the remaining ones in the pot.

Jingyi watched as someone picked up an egg and ate it slowly and methodically, then said, “Alright, that’s it for today. The rest of these need to be marinated for three to four hours or more. Those who can’t wait can take them out and taste them at night, and those who can wait can have them for breakfast tomorrow. It will still be delicious.”

Since there was no chance to eat another one, the two younger ones ran out to play with the children in the village. Jingyi couldn’t help but sigh, appreciating the benefits of having a big brother who had something to eat, and the drawbacks of having a big brother who didn’t. The big brother also wanted to chat and have heart-to-heart conversations with you two.

Jing’an and Jing Shu thought they didn’t have to do that every day.

In the courtyard, there were three adults left, ready to discuss the arrangements for the future.

Jingyi planned to launch the new products the day after tomorrow. He mentioned it to the regular customers at his stall these past two days, and it seemed that they were accepting of it, but the level of anticipation wasn’t high. Most likely, they needed to see the actual products to get excited.

Similarly, both the dine-in and takeaway options were prepared with packaging in mind.

Using bowls and plates for dine-in would be prone to breakage, and if they were accidentally broken, it would be troublesome to deal with compensation issues. So Jingyi shared his idea of using small wooden plates for dine-in and oil paper or bamboo leaves for takeaway.

Wooden plates were easily obtainable. Jing’s father said he would go to the carpenter’s shop later and buy around fifteen of them, which should be enough for replacement.

As for bamboo leaves, they were even more convenient. Jing’s mother mentioned that there was a large bamboo grove behind the public area behind Dongwan Village. If nearby villages needed them, they could go there to collect them, and the carpenter occasionally went there as well.

Tomorrow morning, after Jing’s father finished setting up the stall, she would take the two children to pick some bamboo leaves and bring them back.

Jingyi listened and recalled the distance between Dongwan Village and Xiwang Village. It wasn’t too far, and the route was not desolate, so he had no objections. If they needed a larger quantity in the future, they could think of other solutions. “Alright, then I appreciate the hard work from Mother and my two younger brothers.”

“You silly child, why do you talk about hard work within the family?” Although she didn’t admit it verbally, Jingyi’s acknowledgment of her efforts brought joy to Jing’s mother.

In rural areas, married women and men worked tirelessly every day, taking care of all the household and field chores. After taking care of the elderly and the young ones, they rarely received recognition or thanks from others.

After explaining everything clearly, they decided to officially launch the new products the day after tomorrow.

“Xiaoyi, how do you plan to set the price for this? That’s the most concerning question for me now.” Jing’s father asked, as it was a challenging task. He had also visited the pier before, and there were many types of snacks with a wide range of choices. He was afraid that if the price was set too high, nobody would buy them.

“I’ve thought about it roughly. Father and Mother, please take a look and see if it works. Tea eggs are easy to price. Regular raw eggs in town usually cost one wen each. If we buy them in the village, we can negotiate and get a discount of one or two wen for every ten eggs. But the price won’t be too low.”

As Jingyi spoke, he saw both his parents nodding in agreement, so he continued, “Therefore, I plan to set the price for tea eggs at two wen each. Similarly, we’ll offer a buy-five-get-one-free promotion.”

“Two wen each? Will anyone buy them? With two wen, you can buy two raw eggs and stir-fry them at home,” Jing’s mother expressed her concern, not fully understanding the purchasing power and consumption habits of the townspeople.

“There will definitely be people who buy them. People in town love to eat them. Haven’t you seen that sometimes our plum soup is almost sold out, and some people even try to buy it at a high price?” Jing’s father reassured Jing’s mother.

He accompanied his son to the stall every day and had gained some understanding of the people in town. Now that he heard about the pricing, he wasn’t worried like Jing’s mother.

“Yes, Father is right. And we also offer a buy-five-get-one-free promotion. There will certainly be people who appreciate this discount.”

Then they discussed the pricing for the liang gao. In Jingyi’s family, the final product would be about two inches square and one finger thick, divided into sheep milk liang gao and red date liang gao.

The liang gao with added sheep milk appeared denser and more substantial, while the red date liang gao looked transparent and crystal clear, with a layer of dark red date paste in the middle, making the liang gao more moist.

“I plan to sell the sheep milk liang gao for three wen each and the red date liang gao for two wen each. After calculating the costs, they are similar to the tea eggs. Currently, the sales volume is low, so the cost is higher. But once the sales increase, the cost per piece can be controlled to less than one wen.”

Of course, this calculation was based on considering all the raw materials as costs. In reality, many of the raw materials were either picked from the mountains or obtained through bartering with other families, so they didn’t cost any money. However, Jingyi wanted to be prepared and have a clear understanding of the expenses.

Regarding the pricing of the liang gao, Jing’s parents didn’t have much doubt. They knew well that what they made themselves was genuine, not deceiving anyone. They used high-quality glutinous rice as the main ingredient and added expensive items like sugar, sheep milk, and red dates as supplements.

Moreover, although the liang gao was small, sticky foods always filled the stomach.