The next day was sunny, with a light breeze. Jiang Feng got the braised meat ready and drove the food truck toward the vacation resort once again. Life at the stall was still leisurely. Due to the braised meat's popularity over the previous two days, more and more returning customers appeared. He had just arrived when he saw several people already waiting.
"The young guy is here!"
"He doesn't usually arrive until after eleven. I'll come later next time."
"I brought steamed buns especially today, just to eat his braised meat."
The customers chatted amongst themselves.
Some tourists, seeing the line, immediately became curious. A family of three approached, and the man, Sun Jianjun, asked one of the people waiting, "Excuse me, may I ask what this line is for?"
Hearing Sun Jianjun's question, the patron kindly replied, "We're waiting for a young man selling braised meat. His braised meat is both fresh and delicious; the flavor is truly extraordinary. I came over after eleven yesterday, and by the time I returned at two-thirty in the afternoon, his food truck was already packed up. I found out then that he had sold out completely. So today, I came early to wait, and others are doing the same."
Upon hearing this, Sun Jianjun was visibly surprised. "Selling braised meat?" Does a simple braised meat dish warrant such a long line and attract so many people? Braised meat shops are everywhere, in every street and alley. You can buy chicken feet and pork trotters whenever you want.
As they were talking, Jiang Feng drove his food truck, a small minibus, slowly over. "Everyone, please make way. Thank you," Jiang Feng said, rolling down his window.
"He's here! The boss is here!"
"Finally!"
The waiting customers immediately grew excited when they saw Jiang Feng arrive. They had been eagerly anticipating this moment, and now he was here!
The customers cleared a path. Jiang Feng parked in the designated spot, got out to hang up his sign, opened the serving window, and prepared to start selling. He lifted the lid of the still-simmering pot, and instantly, a savory aroma wafted through the air. Smelling this made the customers even happier. A line formed immediately, and everyone orderly bought their share of braised meat.
Sun Jianjun and his family watched from the side.
"So many people are lining up; let's buy some too," Sun Jianjun said to his wife, smelling the meaty aroma. "Let's take the chance now that the braised meat seller has just arrived and the line isn't too long yet."
"Okay, let's buy some," his wife replied. "But not too much. Who knows, they could all be shills. Many businesses hire shills nowadays just to attract customers like you who tend to follow the crowd."
Hearing his wife, Sun Jianjun retorted, "Some businesses do hire shills, but you have to use your own judgment. Look at the people ahead; they've all genuinely bought braised meat. Besides, this aroma doesn't lie. With such a fragrant spice smell, it's bound to taste great."
Sun Jianjun joined the line. At that time, about eight or nine people were queuing, and the braised meat sold quickly. It only took a few minutes for it to be his turn. He looked at the displayed braised meat, pondered for a moment, and then said, "Boss, give me half a pound of duck intestines and half a pound of duck frame."
Duck intestines were a new item Jiang Feng had added to the menu that day. They were very chewy, with a cleaner taste than fatty intestines. Once well-braised, they had a wonderfully satisfying chewiness.
"Sure, no problem." Jiang Feng immediately fished out the duck intestines, weighed them, and boxed them. After three days of selling braised meat, he had become much better at gauging weight; a single scoop would yield almost exactly the amount a customer requested. Then, Jiang Feng fished out the duck frame to weigh it. After boxing both items, he included three disposable gloves and handed them to Sun Jianjun. "Here are your duck frame and duck intestines."
"Thank you." Sun Jianjun paid and took the boxes. He immediately sat down on a nearby bench, where his family planned to devour all of Jiang Feng's braised meat right then and there.
"Look over there, the line has gotten even longer!" Sun Jianjun's wife remarked, looking toward Jiang Feng's stall.
Just then, another wave of customers arrived to line up at the stall. He was just selling braised meat, yet business was unexpectedly booming.
"It looks like it's really popular!" Sun Jianjun exclaimed. "It's normal for a vacation resort to have a specialty dish; it's just that we hadn't heard of this one before coming. Let's hurry up and taste it."
Sun Jianjun put on gloves, grabbed a handful of duck intestines, and started chewing. The duck intestines were crisp and chewy, somewhat like tripe. After a few bites, they made CRUNCH CRUNCH sounds. The intestines were thoroughly marinated, bursting with flavor—slightly spicy, but not enough to overpower the rich fragrance. "Delicious!" Sun Jianjun's eyes lit up as he quickly grabbed another handful and stuffed them into his mouth.
Eating braised meats is all about indulgence, Sun Jianjun thought. His wife and daughter had also started eating the duck intestines. At that moment, the family of three understood why so many people were lining up in front of Jiang Feng's stall.
"This braised meat is so good!" Sun Jianjun's daughter exclaimed.
"No wonder so many people are waiting in line," his wife marveled.
The three of them chattered as they ate, and in just a few bites, the box of duck intestines was empty. Next, they started on the duck frames. There weren't many; each person had two, and that box was soon empty as well.
"Let's buy some more; it's really tasty," Sun Jianjun's wife suggested, and his daughter chimed in, "Yes, buy extra! We can eat it tonight too."
They had come to the resort to have fun and relax, never expecting to encounter such delicious braised meat. Sun Jianjun took off his disposable gloves and wiped his mouth, still craving more. "Alright, I'll go buy some more," he said, then remarked, "The line has gotten longer. Now I understand why people wait. It would be really disappointing to arrive late and find all the braised meat sold out." As he spoke, Sun Jianjun hurried to the back of the line, ready to buy another round.
A curious scene unfolded on Snack Street. The other stalls and shops had few customers, just a handful here and there. In front of Jiang Feng's food truck, however, a line of more than a dozen people had already formed. This was despite the fact that the process of buying braised meat was very quick; if it took longer, there was no telling how long the line might become.
Jiang Feng noticed his business was getting better and better. He had only just arrived, but there had been a constant stream of customers. Many of them looked familiar; they were clearly regulars by now.
Just then, two men dressed in the uniforms of city management officers approached the stall. Upon seeing Jiang Feng, they eagerly walked over and called out, "Boss, we finally found you! Do you know how hard we've been looking for you?"
The surrounding customers were puzzled to hear the city management officers speak this way. What's going on? Are the city management officers really here? Does this stall owner have some kind of problem? they wondered.
Nearby vendors and shop owners, seeing this unfold, came out to watch the spectacle. They were practically gloating. Serves him right for having such good business! Look, he's in trouble now! The city management officers have come for him!
Jiang Feng remained quite calm. Seeing the two officers, he smiled and replied, "I've moved. I'm not setting up at Hongshan Park these days."
Hearing Jiang Feng's words, city management officers Zhao Nan and Qian Bing replied, "Alright, we'll join the line then. We want to buy some braised meat from you in a bit."
Seeing Jiang Feng chatting amicably with the city management officers, the customers breathed a collective sigh of relief. So they know each other, they thought.
The nearby vendors who overheard their conversation were slightly disappointed. They set aside their hopes for drama and returned to their own business.
A customer at the front of the line asked Jiang Feng, "Boss, did you use to sell braised meat at a stall in a different location?"
Jiang Feng replied with a smile, "No, I used to sell rice combo sets at a different spot."
The customer was speechless for a moment. "Rice combo sets? That's quite a leap, isn't it?"
"How was business then?" the customer asked again.
Thinking back to the sight of customers lining up at Hongshan Park, Jiang Feng chuckled and replied, "It was pretty good. I had some regular customers."