txolops Chapter 186 The Panic-Stricken Team
Chapter 186 The Panic-Stricken Team
"Sizzle."
The oil temperature in the wide-mouthed iron pot rose rapidly.
The crisp popping sound of the wok completely kicked off Saturday's festivities.
The atmosphere in front of greenhouse number one instantly reached a climax.
"First one! Brother, sorry to keep you waiting, what would you like to order today?"
Wang Hai stood in front of the control panel, holding two packing boxes in his hand, and shouted to the boy at the front of the line.
The first one in line was the young man who couldn't buy minced meat rice yesterday and insisted on spending money to buy leftover hot pot base.
He's been waiting here since early this afternoon.
"Boss, it's finally my turn!"
The young man rubbed his hands excitedly, staring at the large insulated bucket, "Give me two servings of the secret-recipe minced meat rice!"
"Pour plenty of meat sauce; I must make up for yesterday's disappointment today!"
"Alright! Two servings of minced pork rice, 256 RMB (scan the code)!"
Wang Hai responded, turned around, opened the rice cooker, and scooped out two portions of white rice.
Immediately afterwards, he picked up a long-handled iron ladle, dipped it into the thermos, and with a flick of his wrist, poured a large spoonful of reddish-brown minced meat, along with its juices, onto the snow-white rice.
Add two blanched Shanghai bok choy.
"Two portions, all done! Handle carefully, it's hot!"
Wang Hai handed over the takeout bag.
As soon as the young man took the bag, Tangtang, who was sitting on a small stool next to him, immediately stood up.
The little girl took two clean spoons from the red plastic basket and handed them over on tiptoe.
"Brother, your spoon!"
Tangtang blinked her big eyes and recognized him at a glance. "You're here so early today! I'm finally going to eat the big meat dish Daddy made!"
"Thank you, squad leader!"
The young man grinned from ear to ear, took the spoon, and exclaimed, "Brother, you really sprinted like a 100-meter dash today!"
"Ding! WeChat payment received, 256 yuan!"
Accompanied by the crisp announcement from the payment loudspeaker, the young man, carrying his lunchbox, couldn't even wait to find a seat.
He walked directly to a flower bed next to the greenhouse, sat down, and lifted the cover.
Without any further ado, he picked up a spoon, mixed the rice and minced meat haphazardly, and shoveled it into his mouth.
They chewed very quickly, one bite after another.
In less than two minutes, the entire box of generously portioned minced meat rice was gone.
Seeing his ravenous eating posture, like a starving ghost reincarnated, the diners behind him swallowed hard, unable to contain themselves any longer.
"Next! What do you want?"
"Give me a bowl of minced meat rice and a bowl of fried rice with minced meat!"
I must try both today!
"Okay! Scan the QR code up ahead!"
The team began to advance at a rapid pace.
Wang Hai transformed into a ruthless food-serving machine, scooping rice, pouring meat, and bagging it with fluid, effortless movements.
Beside him, Lin Chen also didn't stop for a moment.
"Smack."
Lin Chen picked up a free-range egg, gently tapped it on the edge of the pan, and the freshly beaten egg liquid fell into the hot pan, instantly expanding.
He poured in the rice, and with a flick of his wrist, the iron pot felt as light as a feather in his hand.
Golden rice grains tumbled in mid-air.
Sprinkle with chopped green onions, toss in the pan, and serve.
The entire fried rice process took less than two minutes, quick and efficient.
"Ding! Alipay payment received, 128 yuan!"
"Ding! WeChat payment received: 227 yuan!"
"Ding! Alipay payment received, 384 yuan!"
The announcements from the payment loudspeakers blended seamlessly into one.
For those who set up stalls, the constant sound of payments arriving is like the most beautiful symphony.
"Next brother, grab your spoon!"
"Pretty lady, this is your spoon, be careful it's hot!"
Tangtang sat on a small stool, her little hands constantly passing spoons out of the basket.
Every customer who received their meal would instantly turn from anxiety to a smile upon hearing the little girl's soft, sweet voice.
Time passed by, second by second.
The peak of foot traffic on Saturday was around 5:30 pm.
The line in front of greenhouse number one did not get shorter; on the contrary, it got longer and longer.
Many passersby were drawn in by the irresistible aroma of meat and joined the queue without hesitation.
Security captain Zhang, along with three of his men, stood beside the line, sweating profusely, maintaining order.
"Line up! Don't block the main road!"
Brother Zhang shouted through a megaphone.
A newly arrived young security guard nearby looked at the diners holding their lunch boxes and their happy faces, and couldn't help but swallow hard and mutter to himself.
"Captain, these street vendors are selling them for over a hundred yuan a serving, and these people are lining up to buy them. Are they crazy?"
"You don't know anything!"
Brother Zhang put away the loudspeaker, glared at the young security guard, and said, "You've only been here a few days, you have no idea how amazing Boss Lin's cooking is."
I've had their fried rice and minced meat rice before, and just thinking about it makes my mouth water!
Brother Zhang rubbed his belly, looking at Lin Chen's busy back, his tone full of envy, "If I didn't have to be on duty right now, I would have been in line long ago!"
For 128 yuan, this taste is absolutely worth it!
In stark contrast to the bustling activity at tent number one, there were several upscale Western food stalls nearby.
Inside greenhouse number two.
The steak owner leaned against the hot plate, staring blankly at the long line next to him.
From 4:30 until now, for more than an hour, not a single customer has stopped at his stall.
Everyone who passed by was captivated by the aroma of meat emanating from greenhouse number one.
"It's over... I'm completely finished today..."
The steakhouse owner gave a wry smile, pulled up a chair, and sat down, completely resigned to his fate.
It was a little after 6 p.m.
As dusk began to fall, the landscape lights in the square gradually came on.
The temperature inside greenhouse number one remained scorching.
Lin Chen had just packed a plate of fried rice into a box when he turned around and wiped the sweat from his forehead with a towel.
"Wang Hai, how much minced meat is left?"
Lin Chen asked.
Wang Hai had just finished serving food to a customer.
Upon hearing the question, he quickly peeked into the large insulated container.
Upon seeing this, Wang Hai abruptly stopped.
Holy crap!
Wang Hai turned to Lin Chen and said, "Brother Chen, the fighting power of these people today is simply outrageous!"
We prepared a full seventy catties of pork!
It's only been less than two hours since the stall opened, and most of the meat sauce in this bucket has already been used up!
"We can only produce fifty more at most!"
Lin Chen's expression remained largely unchanged.
"normal."
Lin Chen said, "There are a lot of customers on Saturdays, and we also warmed up the group in advance at noon. Many people directly ordered two or three portions."
At this rate, it should be cleared out before 7:30.
"Then we still haven't prepared enough!"
Wang Hai rubbed his hands together, his face full of heartache.
"The limit is to serve these 70 pounds of food perfectly. Keep going."
Lin Chen turned the high-powered stove back on.
"Okay!"
Wang Hai straightened his back again, faced the dark mass of people outside, and shouted.
Everyone, please open your payment code in advance!
There are only fifty servings of minced pork rice left, first come, first served!
The moment the announcement "Fifty servings left" was made, the diners at the back of the line panicked. They craned their necks and pushed forward, afraid of wasting their time.
Just then, a rapid argument suddenly broke out in the middle of the line.
"Hey! Why are you cutting in line?!"
"Yeah, we've been waiting in line for almost half an hour, why did you just squeeze in front!"
Amidst a few disgruntled shouts, the crowd stirred, and the once orderly line instantly descended into chaos.
Hearing the noise, Wang Hai stopped what he was doing and looked over with a frown.
Lin Chen also turned off the fire in his hand and looked towards the middle of the group.