Little Miss Fortune: I Will Bring Prosperity to My Tang Family!-Chapter 70: A Special Dish!

Chapter 64

A Special Dish!

While waiting for the steamed crabs and giant shrimp to cook, the chubby girl entertained her uncles with singing and dancing. The men clapped along, enjoying the performance of the little angel swaying her belly to the music.

Clap, clap, clap!

"Little Xiaolin, you’re a great singer," Chang Sen said, standing up to applaud loudly after her performance.

Xiaolin smiled shyly, her eyes squinting in embarrassment. It was fun at first, but with her uncles staring at her with such admiration, she felt a bit self-conscious. When she grew older, she probably wouldn’t dare to dance like this. When you’re young, everything you do looks cute.

"Your crabs are ready, little Xiaolin. We need to crack open these hard shells, right?" Tian Yi, who had been watching the stove, eagerly lifted the pot lid to reveal the bright orange steamed crabs.

"Yes, Uncle. The yellow part under the shell can be mixed with rice, and the meat is underneath," Xiaolin explained, running over to examine the large crabs excitedly. In her previous life, she only had instant noodles, but now she had all these delicious things to eat!

"I’ll go get the rice. Don’t eat it all!" Guo Lu shouted, glaring at his friends before running off.

Xiaolin sat patiently as Uncle Tian Yi cracked open the crabs for her, instructing him on which parts were edible. She had never eaten sea crabs before, relying on what she remembered from seeing them on social media.

"I’ll go fetch Great-Grandma and Brother Hai," the chubby girl said, running off.

The little piglet ran with her belly jiggling until she reached the small hut where the Shi family was working, leaving her out of breath. The hut had to be built far from the main huts because this side had more mussels, the same area where the Fu family gathered them for drying.

"PANT, Great-Grandma," Xiaolin called out, hugging Zhang Ren’s back as she worked in the small hut, cleaning mussels.

"Oh, Xiaolin, what brings you here?" Zhang Ren recognized the chubby arms and the clear voice of her great-granddaughter.

"I came to catch giant shrimp, and I’m here to invite you, Grandpa, Brother Hai, and Xiao Han to eat something delicious," the chubby girl said, resting her round cheeks on Zhang Ren’s back while watching the large man and the two boys diligently cleaning mussels by the rocks.

"Is that so? Let’s go then. Old man, our great-granddaughter is inviting us to eat something delicious. Hurry up! Xiao Hai and Xiao Han, you too," Zhang Ren called out to her husband and the two brothers.

"Where’s Grandfather?" Xiaolin asked, looking around for Shi Luo, who was nowhere to be seen.

"Someone from the village came to tell him a friend was visiting. Never mind that, take me to see what we’ve got to eat," Zhang Ren said, washing her hands and then taking her chubby great-granddaughter by the hand, leading her to the two small huts nearby.

"Xiaolin, do you have something delicious?" Ling Hai ran up to ask his chubby little sister. Ling Han also looked at her with bright, eager eyes.

"Yes! Our uncles caught some crabs. They’re animals with hard shells, so the adults will have to crack them open for us," Xiaolin explained, observing her two siblings who had grown chubbier and healthier compared to before, when they were so thin they looked like big-headed skeletons.

The chubby girl nodded in satisfaction, happy to see their improved living conditions and sufficient food for their growth, unlike the past days of scarcity.

Knowing she played a part in making their lives better made Xiaolin smile.

"Hehe."

"What are you laughing about?" Zhang Ren asked, looking down at her happy great-granddaughter who was skipping along.

"I’m happy because we get to eat something delicious," Xiaolin replied, smiling brightly.

"You’re all here uncle, auntie. Come on in, please. Today we have shrimp, crabs, and squid. All delicious," Hui Song said, standing up to welcome the elders and preparing plates for the food.

"Is that a crab?" Ling Hai asked, eyeing the strange orange creature in the basket.

"Yes, it is. We didn’t catch many today because we wanted to show Xiaolin first. Tomorrow we’ll catch more so that Xiao Hai and Xiao Han can have some to take home too," Lei Shan said as he cracked the crab for the two siblings, worried they might hurt their hands if they tried to do it themselves.

"Thank you, Uncle Lei. Here, Xiao Han, eat this," Ling Hai said, thanking Lei Shan and handing the cracked crab to his younger brother.

"You eat some too, big brother," Ling Han said, placing the crab meat on his brother’s plate.

"This is for you, Xiaolin. I have already cracked it for you, and there’s a giant prawn too," Tian Yi said, handing the wooden tray to his niece. It contained a large prawn and two cracked crabs.

“Wow! I’m going to eat now!” the mischievous girl exclaimed, putting her hands together before starting to peel the crab meat, dipping it in sauce, and putting it in her mouth.

“Mmm!! YUM!” The chubby girl exclaimed, her eyes wide with delight as she chewed and quickly reached for another piece of crab meat.

“Yum,” Ling Han echoed, looking at Xiaolin in confusion. He tilted his head and blinked at her.

“It means it’s very tasty,” Xiaolin giggled before explaining.

“Then why don’t you just say tasty?”

“Because I like saying yum,” Xiaolin said, turning her attention away from the curious little boy.

“What’s this yellow stuff called, Xiaolin? It’s fragrant and creamy, really tasty,” Hui Song asked, scooping some rice into the crab shell, mixing it with a little sauce, and then eating it.

“It’s called crab roe, Grandpa. I would like some too, please,” the chubby girl wiggled excitedly.

Guo Lu, who adored his little niece, quickly scooped some rice into the crab shell with the roe, mixed it with sauce, and handed it to her, along with some cracked crab meat.

“Thank you, Uncle. Mmm, nom nom” the chubby girl said, her cheeks bulging as she chewed.

“If it’s this delicious, Xiaolin sure it will sell well,” Chang Sen said, not stopping as he mixed rice with the crab roe. The three new workers ate quietly, shoveling rice into their mouths without speaking.

“Then Uncle have to catch a lot for me okay? I will pay one tael per jin!” the generous girl declared, causing her uncles to cheer happily, though Hui Song’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Xiaolin, my little angel, here, let me crack some more crab for you,” Wu Zhong said, eagerly cracking more crab for his niece.

“Won’t that be too expensive, Xiaolin?” Hui Song asked.

“Exactly, one tael of silver is quite a lot, dear,” Zhang Ren said, worried that her great-granddaughter might waste money. She hadn’t seen how much money the Tang family’s restaurant made daily.

Xiaolin looked up at her concerned great-grandmother. She understood their worries but was confident in selling at a higher price, which is why she dared to offer her five uncles a higher payment.

"My restaurant is doing very well, Great-Grandmother. Don’t worry. Father and Uncle hardly get any rest," Xiaolin said, leaning on the old woman’s arm affectionately.

"The restaurant is indeed doing really well, Great-Grandmother. Every day, Tianrong picks up a lot of fresh goods from the sea. He’s even mentioned to us that he’s thinking about buying another cart and ox so he won’t have to make multiple trips," Tian Yi said, eating as he spoke.

"He hasn’t mentioned that to me," Hui Song said, frowning, though not overly concerned. He picked up another crab to crack.

"Is it really that successful? And does Tianrong also sell the mussels we dry every day at the restaurant?" Shi An asked with interest. If they needed another cart, it meant they were making good money.

"No, Great-Grandfather. The dried mussels and squid are ordered by merchants from other towns. And I also plan to open a shop to sell dried food too,"

"Open a shop? Isn’t that a bit extravagant, little one? Hui Song, you should be advising your descendants more," Shi An said, frowning deeply and forgetting about the crab he had cracked.

"Uncle, it’s their money. Besides, my little Xiaolin has a knack for making anything she touches sell well,"

Initially, he hadn’t been too supportive of the idea when his granddaughter mentioned it, but after helping her sell many times, he saw her talent and luck in business.

"Xiaolin won’t just sell squid and mussels, there will be other things too. But they’ll be introduced gradually," Xiaolin added.

"Alright, but take good care. Don’t trust people too easily. For your family’s shop, you need to oversee it yourself to be sure. Money matters don’t understand familial ties, you understand?" Zhang Ren advised, as she watched her great-granddaughter eating crabs and prawns non-stop.

"Yes, Great-Grandmother,"

Xiaolin enjoyed her delicious meal. She even asked to take two remaining crabs and one giant prawn home for her grandmother, mother, and Aunt Mi Hua.

Before leaving, she reminded her uncles that if they caught giant prawns, she would pay the same price as for crabs. The greedy men’s eyes lit up, as some prawns were so large they could weigh more than a jin. This meant they would earn a good sum for the prawns.

The next day, the little shopkeeper left the house with her grandfather, carrying a piece of paper with a drawing of a crab on one side and a giant prawn on the other. Her father and uncle had already left at dawn to transport fresh goods to the restaurant.

The previous day, Xiaolin had spent a long-time drawing crabs and prawns, going through several sheets of paper. Fortunately, paper wasn’t too expensive in this port town, where various qualities of paper were available. However, not being able to draw them well frustrated the chubby girl.

"Hmph."

"What’s the matter, little piggy?" Mi Hua asked her granddaughter, who had been struggling with paper and charcoal for a while. In front of her was a steamed crab and a giant grilled prawn.

"I want to draw crabs and prawns."

"Shall I draw them for you?"

"Can you draw, Auntie?" Xiaolin asked, her eyes wide with curiosity. Mi Hua didn’t reply but gave her a sweet smile instead.

When Mi Hua finished the drawings, Xiaolin exclaimed with delight, holding the paper and gazing at it without wanting to put it down. Her constant admiration made Mi Hua laugh.

"Is it good enough?"

"It’s beautiful, Auntie!!"

With the beautiful drawings in hand, Xiaolin headed to the restaurant that morning. If she had drawn them herself, she would have wasted a large roll of paper. The chubby girl was excited, her round body wiggling with anticipation. She planned to sell the giant prawns and crabs as special dishes that not everyone could order!

Xiaolin waited in the back room until the restaurant opened. She then came to the front, where a group of customers was already waiting, ordering food without even glancing at the menu. They must have been regulars.

The little shopkeeper took her place at the cashier’s table, waiting for the right moment. As lunchtime approached, the crowd grew larger. Seeing the time was right, Xiaolin climbed onto a chair in front of the cashier’s table and pulled out the drawings.

Clap, clap, clap!

“Hello, everyone!” Xiaolin clapped to get everyone’s attention, speaking loudly and clearly. The customers turned to look at the chubby little girl curiously.

“I’m Xiaolin, the owner’s daughter. Today, I have special dishes to introduce. We have only two special dishes today, with ten servings each. The price will start at three taels of silver per dish, and you can bid for it,” she announced.

Xiaolin jumped down from the chair, holding the drawings, and walked around to show them to the customers. Many were intrigued by the special dishes and the higher price, while others commented that it was too expensive. The chubby girl smiled brightly at the varying opinions.

She climbed back onto the chair and clapped three times. Tianchen, who had been waiting, came out with a round wooden tray holding five large, beautifully orange crabs.

“What is that?”

“It looks strange. Is it edible?”

“I bet it’s delicious. This restaurant uses unfamiliar seafood, but everything is tasty.”

“Yes, I agree.”

“I must get this dish.”

Seeing the interest from the crowd, Xiaolin straightened up and spoke louder than usual.

"This is sea crab. We’ve removed the shell for you. The yellow part here is crab roe, which you can mix with rice, and this part is crab meat. I guarantee it’s firm, delicious, and worth every coin," Xiaolin explained, showing the crab shell and the plump meat to the customers.

“Can we start now, little miss? I can’t wait to get a taste of it,” a middle-aged man in a blue outfit said. Xiaolin smiled brightly and replied.

“Of course. Everyone, please start bidding. The starting price is three taels of silver.”

“I’ll bid four taels.”

“I’ll bid five!”

“I’ll bid six!”

“Isn’t that too expensive?” Some murmured from the crowd that had gathered around. Xiaolin, however, focused on those raising their hands to bid.

It’s all money!

“I’ll bid seven taels!” The middle-aged man in the blue outfit announced, quieting the murmurs. Xiaolin smiled widely and called out.

“Does anyone want to bid higher? If not, this crab dish will go to the handsome gentleman over there.”

The man, flustered by being called handsome in front of everyone, blushed but straightened up and sat tall.

Xiaolin looked around, and seeing no further bids, signaled Tianchen to bring the dish to the winning bidder.

“Congratulations, sir! For those who didn’t win, don’t be disappointed. There are still nine more crab dishes. Let’s continue!”

Xiaolin’s voice grew hoarse after a while, but seeing the pile of silver taels in front of her made her smile widely. Ten crab dishes, each with around five crabs, earned her fifty taels of silver. After deducting the cost of thirty taels for the fresh crabs, she still made a substantial profit.

But Xiaolin had another special dish she expected to be even more profitable: the giant prawns. After taking a short break to sip some water and have a snack, she climbed back onto the chair.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I have another special dish today. Like the crabs, this dish starts at three taels. However, there are fewer of these than crabs. But I guarantee they are even more delicious because I love eating them myself, hehe,” Xiaolin said, giggling and covering her mouth. Her cute demeanor made the customers laugh as well.

“Please welcome... the giant prawns!!” Xiaolin announced, gesturing behind her.

Liu Hao walked out with a round wooden tray holding a giant orange prawn, as large as an arm. The sight left everyone in awe, and they buzzed with excitement until Xiaolin had to ask her father to quiet the crowd, as they couldn’t hear her. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

“A giant prawn, little miss? How can it be so big?” One customer asked.

“It’s a different kind of prawn from the smaller ones you usually see at our restaurant. You get to eat these only occasionally because they’re rare and expensive,” Xiaolin explained.

“I’ll buy it for five taels!” The previous blue-clad bidder shouted.

“I’ll bid eight taels!”

“I’ll bid nine taels!”

Xiaolin stood there, her eyes narrowed in satisfaction, chuckling to herself.

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