"You eat dinner at the store first. I’ll have Tiantian replace you for a bit. Do you want Yueyue to bring you a coat? It’s windy at the street corner. Don’t catch a cold."
Lin Xu looked at his cousin still wearing a V-neck sweater and jacket, with ankle-length jeans, feeling that won cared about their looks over warmth much more than n.
"No need, I just bought a neck warr. It’s being delivered by local express and should arrive soon. Don’t forget my sour fish soup."
"I won’t."
"Hurry back to the store then. Don’t delay my job. If my unscrupulous boss sees , he might deduct my bonus."
Lin Xu: "..."
Chen Yuanyuan, do I sense an undertone in your words?
"Hey, Boss Lin, why is the new employee speaking so sarcastically?"
A regular custor greeted Lin Xu with a smile.
Lin Xu said:
"This is my cousin, here to experience life."
"Wow, hello cousin. No wonder she dares to challenge the capitalist head-on."
Other custors also greeted warmly.
Seeing everyone getting all enthusiastic, Lin Xu quickly left. However, he didn’t go to the store; he went to Grandpa Yu’s supermarket instead.
To make sour fish soup, it’s not enough to just have tomatoes. You also need a divine artifact to enhance the sourness and umami—lemons.
For these kinds of sour soup dishes, adding a few slices of lemon can have unexpected effects, but don’t overdo it; three to five slices are enough. Otherwise, the sourness would be overwhelming.
"Do you have lemons, Grandpa Yu?"
"We do. Xiao Li, get two lemons for Boss Lin... Is two enough? Do you want a few more?"
Lin Xu said:
"If you’re not charging, then I won’t take them."
"Oh, co on, I need a favor from you. These two lemons are your reward."
What kind of small favor only needs two lemons as a reward?
Lin Xu curiously asked:
"What is it you need help with, then?"
"Xiao Lin, my grilled sausages on volcanic stones just don’t taste good. Can you help find out why? I’ve changed the stones twice and tried several brands of sausages, but they never taste as good as others’.
Grilled sausages on stones?
Lin Xu looked at the electric grill outside the supermarket checkout area, covered with shiny black volcanic stones.
On the stones lay short, thick pepper sausages and at sausages. Appearance-wise, they looked quite nice. The sausages were grilled to a slight char, making them look appetizing.
He picked up a sausage with tongs, skewered it with a bamboo stick, and took a bite:
"This tastes alright. What do you think is the difference compared to others’?"
The casing outside was charred and crispy, giving off a strong aroma. The inside was hot, almost burning his mouth, and with one bite, the chilly wind from the street corner disappeared imdiately.
"Other people’s sausages sll aromatic even as you pass by. Mine doesn’t; you have to taste it to know."
A scent?
Then it’s not really about the sausages; it should be about the stones.
Lin Xu asked:
"Did they mix so spice into the stones? What does the aroma sll like to you? Like braised at or sothing?"
If it’s braised at, just sprinkle a little five-spice powder.
"No, it’s not a braised scent. It’s sweet and fragrant..."
"Then it’s caral... Sprinkle so granulated sugar on the stones, and the aroma will slowly co out."
The mont he heard "sweet and fragrant," Lin Xu figured it out. He often made caralized chestnuts for Shen Baobao, so he knew the caral scent all too well.
"Is it that simple?"
Excited, Grandpa Yu grabbed a small packet of granulated sugar from the spice section and removed all the grilled sausages with tongs, then sprinkled the sugar over the stones, stirring as he sprinkled.
While he was busy, the lemons also arrived.
"Xiao Lin, what do you need lemons for?"
"My cousin wants sour fish soup. I’m planning to make so for her to taste."
"Oh? You can use lemons for sour fish soup?"
"Yes, almost all sour soups can benefit from adding a few slices of lemon to enhance the freshness. You can try it at ho, and while I won’t say it has miraculous effects, at least the soup’s sour aroma will beco more intense."
As they were talking, the fisherman Lao Suntou walked into the store with his fishing bag:
"Old Yu, give a pack of cigarettes."
Grandpa Yu looked at his attire and jokingly asked:
"It’s already afternoon, and you’re still feeding the fish? You’re really diligent."
Lao Suntou ignored his teasing and urged:
"Hurry up, hurry up. The weather’s getting cold, and the fish won’t be biting. Won’t be able to fish for long... Oh, Xiao Lin, I caught two snakehead fish yesterday, both around four pounds. Our family’s sick of fish, and my wife can’t stand the sll. Want them? If you do, I’ll let you have them."
"Yes!"
I was just considering which fish to reward Sister Yuanyuan with.
Since there are wild snakeheads, naturally I’ll use them.
"I’ll bring them over for you."
"How much, Grandad Sun?"
"No need to pay. I don’t lack those things... If you can, just trade it for a roast chicken."
"Sure."
Before long, Lao Suntou brought over two lively snakeheads. Lin Xu took them and curiously asked:
"Isn’t catching such big fish tricky?"
"It sure is, kept at it all night."
Back at the store, Lin Xu went to the braised food section and packed a roast chicken for Lao Suntou, threw in so marinated chicken livers and such. Lao Suntou was delighted as he took them and left.
Lin Xu put the fish in the aquarium and only then noticed Dundun was missing from the service counter. Shu Yun was lying there, bored, looking at her phone.
"Where’s Dundun?"
"The boss lady took him ho to shoot videos, saying she’s going to dominate short video platforms with Dundun... She just posted a new video, announcing her entry into the short video industry."
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