DLRC – Chapter 38 Mom Asked Me Why I Was Kneeling While Eating

Zhang Shuya was just as surprised. If the all-knowing Shule didn’t know, then she definitely had no clue either. She turned to her mother and asked, “Mom, did our new neighbor make all these? That’s amazing!”

Song Xia glanced at the busy Yu Wei and nodded. “Yes, she did. Isn’t it impressive?”

Jiang Aihua chimed in with a smile, “Yu Wei really has a knack for this. One person managing to create so many new types of treats—tsk, tsk!”

“So impressive, I feel completely outdone.” Chen Caiqian kept clicking her tongue, practically salivating from the smell.

Seeing how excited her two daughters were, Song Xia laughed and called them over. “Shule, you and your sister go take a look. If you see anything you like, pick it out and take it to Auntie Yu Wei to weigh.”

“Yay!” The two girls were overjoyed, holding hands as they squeezed into the crowd to carefully pick out their favorites.

Jiang Aihua got up and wandered around the shop, and after two laps with the others, they all ended up praising Yu Wei again.

Who wouldn’t say that Yu Wei was an incredible mom? All these sweets made by one person—it must have taken at least a day or two! And not just one or two items, but a large variety and quantity. Even the egg cakes, which were the only ones the ladies recognized, filled up an entire basket.

Tsk tsk.

What they didn’t know was that it was only possible because Yu Wei had access to high-powered kitchen equipment. Without it, there’s no way she could have made all this alone.

As the three women strolled and chatted, more and more customers started coming in. Seeing Yu Wei swamped at the counter, Song Xia thought for a moment and then went up to her.

“Yu Wei, do you need help?”

“Sister Yu Wei, I’ll help too!” Chen Caiqian followed closely behind, looking at her eagerly, clearly itching to pitch in.

“Ah, Sister Song, Caiqian…” Yu Wei had initially wanted to say she could manage alone, but looking around at the bustling scene—she realized she had underestimated opening day.

So she didn’t refuse. She asked Song Xia to help weigh the cakes and had Chen Caiqian keep an eye on the store in case anyone tried to sneak something. Then Yu Wei slipped into the kitchen to whip up another batch of the nearly-sold-out egg cakes. When she came out, Song Xia had already sold quite a few.

“Hey, Yu Wei, come tally up the money. I’ve written down all the weights and prices in this notebook.”

“Got it.”

Yu Wei called out the amounts one by one, and after the customers finished paying, she finally breathed a sigh of relief. But just as one wave cleared, another came in.

Song Xia skillfully handled the weighing while Yu Wei did the math. Then Yu Wei went around the cabinets, taking notes in her small notebook of which items were nearly sold out.

Chen Caiqian was still helping at the register and even followed Yu Wei into the kitchen to carry out a small basket of fresh egg cakes.

Who would’ve thought those egg cakes would be even more popular than expected? The moment they came out of the oven, Chen Caiqian had barely announced, “Fresh egg cakes, just baked!” when the entire crowd swarmed over.

“I’ll take two jin of egg cakes!”

“Me too, two jin!”

“I want three jin!”

“Give me four jin!”

Yu Wei and Chen Caiqian were overwhelmed. The basket hadn’t even settled on the table before it was emptied in a flash.

Yu Wei: “???”

Are egg cakes really that delicious?

She wasn’t the only one baffled. Many customers who had just finished shopping earlier were still hanging out near the entrance, happily munching and admiring the shop sign with satisfied expressions.

New customers, curious about the crowd, asked around. They were told that the sweets inside were amazing—especially the egg cakes, which were better than the ones sold at the department store, and most importantly—fresh!

Once they learned the prices, a flood of people rushed in hoping to buy egg cakes. But they were all sold out.

So, those who couldn’t get any began wandering the store aimlessly. Before they could pick out anything else, they heard Yu Wei announce a new batch of egg cakes—how could they resist? Even people who hadn’t planned on buying them joined in the frenzy.

“Old Liu, you’re buying too?”

“Yup, Aunt Ma said this place had some kind of egg cake special. I figured I’d grab a few for my son to try.”

“Hey, I also bought one of those ‘tart’ things. Super sweet. You get one?”

“Nope. What’s it called again?”

“Not sure. Go ask the shop lady.”

So, after confirming the name was “egg tart,” Old Liu hadn’t even left the store before he took a bite—then immediately gasped in surprise.

“Oh wow, what is this?” he mumbled around the bite, then stuffed the whole tart into his mouth, grabbed the tongs, and picked out five more from the glass case.

“Boss lady, pack these up!” he said, clearly itching to eat another but too polite to do so before paying.

Holding the plate, Old Liu rushed to the register like a man on a mission. “Too good!”

Everyone watching couldn’t help but laugh at how intense he looked. But his reaction stirred up curiosity. Even those who weren’t fond of sweets bought one just to see what the fuss was about.

They wanted to know what kind of magic food could make a grown man like Old Liu act like a giddy 200-pound fool.

And once they took a bite of the tart—BAM—everyone got it.

“Mom asked me why I was kneeling while eating…” Because this thing is just too damn delicious!”

(Of course, this only applied to people who liked egg cakes. Those who didn’t enjoy the flavor were baffled, silently thinking: “What is wrong with these people? This stuff is too sweet—it’s gross!”)

“Sister Song, aren’t you working today?”

It was finally lunchtime when they got a breather. Yu Wei sat down with Song Xia to rest. Jiang Aihua had gone home to cook for her husband, and Chen Caiqian had also gone back to have lunch with her boyfriend.

“Nope. I’m off today, same as my girls. Sunday’s our day off. Only my husband’s still working—he’s at the factory right now.”

As she spoke, she called her daughters over. The twins each held two small paper boxes filled with egg cakes, egg cakes, cookies, and a snow mochi.

“Mom! Can we eat these now?” They’d been holding onto them for a while, smelling the delicious aroma but unable to eat—absolute torture.

“Have a small one first. I’ll be making lunch soon. Don’t fill up on sweets or you won’t eat your meal later!”

“Okay!” Shule eagerly opened her box and sat with her sister to dig in, their little faces lighting up with joy.

Song Xia chatted with Yu Wei while the girls munched. When they finished a tart, she got up to leave.

“Time to head home. I’ll come back and help after lunch!”

Yu Wei was caught off guard by that and quickly grabbed two food bags, stuffing them full of cakes before handing them to Song Xia.

“Oh no, you’ve already helped me all morning. You guys should rest in the afternoon—don’t come back! It’s exhausting! Take these cakes home for Shuya and Shule.”

“No way! These cakes are worth money—I can’t take them!” Song Xia grabbed her daughters and quickly made for the door.

“Sister Song, if you act like this, how can I ask for your help again? Just take them. They’re not worth that much.”

“It’s nothing! I’m free on Sundays anyway. Helping a neighbor isn’t a big deal!”

“You really are too kind…” Yu Wei said, but she still insisted, “But seriously, take the cakes. Helping is one thing, but I can’t let you work a whole morning for nothing.”

Seeing Song Xia still refusing, Yu Wei handed the bags to Shule instead.

“Shule, help your mom carry these. Eat them slowly at home.”

Yu Wei’s eyes were a little itchy, her heart quietly grateful to have such a good neighbor. Truly,  “Distant relatives aren’t as good as close neighbors.”

“Wow! Thank you, Auntie Yu!”

Zhang Shule beamed as she hugged the big bag of goodies, not even caring if her mom would scold her. She gripped it tightly and refused to let go.

She’d been eyeing the treats in Yu Wei’s shop for ages. Just now, her mom only bought the cheaper ones for her and her sister—but these? These were the expensive ones from the fancy display case!

She wasn’t giving these up. Worst case, she’d have her mom come help Yu Wei a few more times. If just one morning of help could score her this much dessert, she was over the moon!

Song Xia gave her excited daughter a helpless glance but didn’t say more. After a bit more chatting at the door, they said goodbye.

“Alright, thanks for the treats! I’m off to cook. See you later!”

“Bye-bye!”

Watching the mother and daughters disappear around the corner, Yu Wei—worn out from the day—had no desire to cook. She took her son out to eat again.

She’d become a regular at the state-run restaurant in the north part of town. The staff already recognized her and greeted her warmly. Once she placed her order, the chef quickly began cooking.

After their meal, Yu Wei strolled the streets with her son, making a detour past the elementary school before finally heading back.

“Mom, today Brother Gai Gai bought an egg cake, Sister Hua Hua bought a really big cake, and Guo Guo bought…”

Yu Wei interrupted him, confused. “The really big cake that Sister Hua Hua bought—was that a mousse cake?”

What’s with ‘really big cake’? Yu Wei laughed to herself and explained, “What Sister Hua Hua bought is called a mousse cake. She got the yellow one, so it’s called a mango mousse cake. Got it?”

“Got it.”

Yu Hui had an incredible memory—he never forgot anything he saw or heard. Yu Wei was confident that if Ding Xiaohua came back next time, Yu Hui could proudly tell her the cake she bought was a mango mousse cake.

With her son chattering away nonstop beside her, Yu Wei felt her exhaustion slowly melt away. Looking down at his cheerful steps, she thought—this bright and lively little guy, he was the true light of her life.

Coming to the 1980s, he was the one thing she never regretted.

That afternoon, Song Xia brought her daughters back again to help. Chen Caiqian came too—she said she had the day off and wasn’t working, so she had time to help. Her lively personality brought in plenty of customers.

They spent the entire day in a whirlwind of activity. By 4 PM, Song Xia had to leave to cook dinner for her husband and took her girls with her. Chen Caiqian stayed in the kitchen with Yu Wei to help clean up and get ready to close.

They’d made good money today. Whether or not more people came in the afternoon, Yu Wei had already decided to close early and rest. Running a shop was serious physical labor.

Once they finished cleaning the baking tools, Yu Wei pulled two yuan out of her pocket and handed it to Chen Caiqian.

“Here. Thanks for your hard work today.”

It was normal to be busy on the first day. Thankfully, Caiqian came to help. A little thank-you money was only right.

Chen Caiqian blinked in surprise, then clapped a hand over her mouth. “Wow! Sister Yu Wei, you’re so generous!”

Yu Wei chuckled, wiping down the oven. “How old are you this year?”

Caiqian cheerfully tucked the cash into her pocket. “Me? I’m 24!”

“Then I should be calling you Sister,” Yu Wei smiled.

“Huh?”

Yu Wei explained, “I’m only 22. Almost 23.”

Her birthday was about a week away according to the household registration, so technically she wasn’t 23 yet.

“No way, Yu Wei… you’re that young?” Caiqian was stunned. “Wait, then you must’ve…”

She trailed off awkwardly, then whispered, “You must’ve had Yu Hui at 18 or 19?”

Yu Wei thought for a second and realized that was about right. She nodded calmly, “Yeah.”

She said it naturally, without a hint of embarrassment. Caiqian had been afraid Yu Wei might get mad at the question and was already regretting asking. But seeing her so unfazed, she breathed a sigh of relief.

She looked around the kitchen and asked, “So where did you learn all these baking skills? You’re amazing.”

And judging by today’s sales, they must have made a lot of money. Caiqian felt a little envious—having a skill like this meant you could earn a living anywhere.

Before Yu Wei could answer, her son Yu Hui suddenly ran in and tugged at her pant leg.

“Mom!”

“What is it?”

“Someone wants to buy cake!”

_{Egg Cakes}