SFS Chapter 21 The Old Three-Wheeled Wheel and Seafood Congee
Chapter 21 The Old Three-Wheeled Wheel and Seafood Congee
The next day.
Zhao Mingzhe stared at an old tricycle that creaked and groaned as it drove into Ye Fan's courtyard.
This old tricycle has a story to tell. The paint on the frame is already peeling, and the chain always makes a unique sound when it turns.
This tricycle was Zhao Mingzhe's grandfather's old "partner".
The old man usually goes to sell the vegetables he grows almost every day, and this tricycle naturally becomes the best means of transportation for his grandfather to transport vegetables, accompanying him through wind and rain, carrying fresh vegetables from his own garden through the hustle and bustle of the morning market.
As his grandfather got older, he now only grows enough vegetables for his own family to eat, and no longer sells them at the market, so the tricycle is now idle.
It wasn't until these last two days, when he started selling handmade lemon tea and lemonade, that Zhao Mingzhe relaunched the product.
Zhao Mingzhe rushed into the kitchen carrying a bag of insulated bags, the ice cubes inside making a crisp sound as they collided.
"Old Ye, I went to several convenience stores before I could get this bag of ice."
As he spoke, he opened the refrigerator door and carefully stuffed the ice cubes into it.
"Plus the bag of lemon tea you put in your fridge yesterday, I reckon we won't have enough for all these cups of lemon tea today."
Ye Fan was brushing his teeth in front of the sink.
Hearing Zhao Mingzhe's loud voice, she turned to look at the kitchen: "You're up so early, have you had breakfast yet?"
No!
"Let me get the ice first. I prepared so many lemons yesterday afternoon, I'll have to work up my sleeves today."
"I'm exhausted. I did so many physics problems last night, and now I have to make so many lemon teas by hand. My body is numb."
As he spoke, he rubbed his aching wrist, looking pained.
Ye Fan gave him a thumbs-up.
"Let's have breakfast first!"
"My mom made seafood porridge this morning, with plenty of shrimp and scallops, your favorite. Hurry up and show off a few bowls so you can get to work later."
After saying that, he grinned and said, "You go eat first. The porridge is in the kitchen, you know that. I'll go boil some water first."
"Okay!"
For Zhao Mingzhe, Ye Fan's house was even more familiar than his own. From childhood to the present, it had been his favorite playground, and he knew almost every corner of it.
Even the aroma of food wafting from the kitchen has long been a familiar taste from his memory—after all, he probably can't even count how many times he's eaten here.
It's fair to say that everything here is very familiar to him.
The two of them when they were children.
During the Spring Festival, almost every child in the village had a Yellow River brand toy gun. If someone didn't have one, they would be embarrassed to go out and play. Ye Fan and Zhao Mingzhe were the most playful children. The two of them would take their toy guns and smash people's windows everywhere.
Zhao Mingzhe didn't dare go home for fear of being beaten by his parents, so he often stayed at Ye Fan's house and went back the next day when things calmed down.
We entered the living room.
I boiled a pot of water in the kettle.
We'll use this hot water to brew tea, which will be the base for our hand-whipped lemon tea.
Making lemonade is relatively simple; you just need lemons, water, and honey or syrup instead. However, making lemon tea by hand is more complicated because the lemons used in both are different varieties.
The lemons used in hand-whipped lemon tea are fragrant lemons (also known as all-season fragrant lemons). These lemons have a strong aroma, thick peels, and are rich in volatile aromatic oils. After being pounded, they release a distinct and refreshing lemon scent, which becomes even more prominent when blended with the tea. Therefore, this variety of lemon is always used for hand-whipped lemon tea.
The lemons used in lemonade are yellow lemons (regular lemons), which are suitable for making lemonade.
Making hand-whipped lemon tea is quite troublesome. You need to brew the tea leaves in advance, filter out the tea, let it cool, and then refrigerate it. You also need to make syrup, scrub the lemons with salt to remove the wax, slice them, remove the white core and seeds, and then put them in a cup and "whip" them. Then add the prepared tea and syrup in the correct proportions, tighten the lid, and shake vigorously.
"The water's boiling. After we finish eating, brew the tea first, then you go wash the lemons while I make the syrup," Ye Fan said as he returned to the restaurant, sitting down with a bowl of seafood porridge in his hand.
"Damn it."
"I hate washing lemons the most."
"It always feels like there's a greasy layer on it."
Zhao Mingzhe picked up a shrimp and complained as he ate.
"Why don't you go make the syrup, and I'll go wash the lemons?" Ye Fan said to him with a cheeky grin.
"No, I don't know how to make syrup. It'll all taste bitter. You can make it!" Zhao Mingzhe immediately objected after hearing Ye Fan's suggestion.
This was the first time Ye Fan had tasted his mother's seafood porridge since his rebirth. For the past few days, he had been eating it with Zhao Mingzhe for breakfast at school.
Today is the weekend.
My mom cooked seafood porridge—you know, normally they only cook seafood porridge once a week.
Ye Fan sighed. If he hadn't been reborn, he probably would have been lonely for the rest of his life.
As Ye Fan scooped up the thick porridge with the porcelain spoon, he stared at the rising steam in the bowl. His throat suddenly tightened. If he hadn't been reborn, then his father…
"Since I'm here, I might as well make the best of it. Heaven has given me a second chance at life, so I certainly won't let those regrets slip by again," Ye Fan silently thought to himself.
The sunlight outside the window was spilling over the green ivy on the balcony, creating dappled patterns of light on his hair.
This bowl of seafood porridge, carrying the scent of the sea breeze, has now become the first yardstick for measuring the years of rebirth—in the midst of everyday life, there are always some warmths worth cherishing for the rest of one's life.
Zhao Mingzhe was calculating how much money he could make today. "Old Ye! How long do you think it will take to sell all these cups we make today?"
Before Ye Fan could answer, he excitedly added, "I did the math, and if we sell everything, not counting labor costs, the profit will be close to 2!"
Ye Fan: "Two thousand? That's still a bit low!"
"???"
"Damn it!"
Zhao Mingzhe nearly jumped up. His eyes widened as he stared at Ye Fan like he was an alien: "Old Ye, do you even know what you're saying?"
"Two thousand a day! Two thousand! Not two hundred! You're someone who can barely afford two coins in your pocket normally, and you still think two thousand is too little?"
She rolled her eyes in annoyance.
In truth, Ye Fan knew that two thousand yuan a day was a huge sum of money. In his previous life, when he had just graduated, he worked himself to the bone for a month and only earned a little over two thousand yuan a month.
He didn't think it was too little at all; on the contrary, he thought it was a lot. The reason he said it was too little was that he still had too little money to offer for the upcoming World Cup.
Ye Fan was too lazy to explain to him. He didn't plan to tell his family about buying World Cup lottery tickets, including Zhao Mingzhe.
He wouldn't let Zhao Mingzhe play with these things; he was afraid that if he brought Zhao Mingzhe into this "domain," he wouldn't be able to get out.
He knew his best friend's personality too well; if he got involved with "drug balls," he might be trapped and unable to get out. Therefore, he dared not take the risk.
However, Ye Fan already had a plan in mind. He would never mistreat his best friend, whom he had grown up with. When the company grew bigger in the future, he would naturally have a better way to compensate him—but now was not the time.
"Alright, stop babbling. It's time to get back to work!"
"I'm exhausted today!"
Zhao Mingzhe grumbled, "No way, Lao Ye, you have to treat me to KFC today."
In 2014, KFC was still very prestigious, unlike in later years when all sorts of brands emerged, offering a wide variety of choices. Now, eating at KFC is considered a luxury.