Chapter 18: The Fierce Big Man

白烨很容易被他妹妹的几句话所打动,所以第二天他去卖红烧肉时,也带了白安安一起去.

Coincidentally, Old Bai was planning to fix up the stove that morning, so Bai Ye brought not only his sister but also a childhood friend of his.

They were childhood friends and schoolmates from back in the day, though not from the same village.

Like Bai Ye, he had graduated from high school but didn't go to college—instead, he chose to start working.

This year, he had come back earlier than usual. Upon hearing that Bai Ye had returned, he had wanted to hang out with him. Instead, Bai Ye roped him into helping out.

They first drove to the neighboring village. Once outside a house, Bai Ye shouted, "Jiang Hao!"

Jiang Hao was tall and well-built—he had already been 1.8 meters tall by the time they graduated high school, and now he looked even more solid.

"Lao Bai, finally!" Jiang Hao called out.

There was space in the backseat, and Bai An'an was already sitting there obediently, having left room for Jiang Hao.

"Yo, An'an's here too."

"Hi, Haozi-ge!" she greeted sweetly.

The three of them chatted and laughed as they headed to today's market.

There were two markets happening that day—they picked the larger one.

Bai Ye was already familiar with the setup, and although Jiang Hao didn't know Bai Ye had started selling braised meat, he had years of experience in sales. He got the hang of it quickly and joined in, calling out to attract customers.

There were quite a few cooked food vendors at the market, but few had two young men calling out and serving customers like they did.

Plus, both guys were decent-looking, which made them quite popular among the uncles and aunties. And with Bai An'an helping out at the side, their stall quickly drew a crowd.

Of course, the real reason people gathered wasn't just the trio's appearance—it was the mouthwatering smell of the braised meat.

On the way to the market, Jiang Hao had already sniffed the air and asked what the delicious smell in the car was. At that time, the braised meat was still in a large pot, sealed tightly with the lid.

Now, set up on an open spot and slowly reheated, the aroma began to waft through the air, drawing in passersby.

Bai An'an set up the signboard from the day before. Meanwhile, Bai Ye carefully scooped out a small strip of braised meat from the warming pot and handed out samples to the curious aunties and uncles.

Just as everyone was reaching out to try it, someone suddenly pushed into the crowd and yelled, "There you are!"

The man was tall and burly, with a loud voice and a fierce expression. He pushed in eagerly, startling the crowd.

Some thought he was there to pick a fight. Others worried there was something wrong with the meat and that someone had come to confront them.

A few people, reacting quickly and maybe a bit dramatically, even tossed their meat samples away, afraid it was poisonous or something.

Jiang Hao instinctively stepped in front of Bai Ye and An'an. "Who are you? What do you want?"

"No, no—you've got it wrong. I'm here to buy meat!" The big guy was startled, then quickly explained, "I bought a jin of your braised meat yesterday at Liu's market, remember?"

Bai Ye thought for a second—yeah, there had been someone like that. He just hadn't recognized him right away.

"Oh man, you're here to buy? I thought you were gonna smash up our stall or something!" Jiang Hao said, annoyed.

The crowd relaxed once they realized it wasn't a conflict.

Those still holding meat samples resumed eating—and their eyes lit up immediately. One by one, they all started praising the taste.

Those who had thrown theirs away looked regretful, but too embarrassed to ask for more, they quietly drifted out of the crowd.

"My bad, my bad, I got too excited," the big guy said with a hearty laugh.

"I took the meat home yesterday and let my mom and wife try it—they couldn't stop raving about it! Even my twins, who usually need to be chased around the house at mealtime, devoured it on their own. They usually won't touch fatty meat, but yesterday they were picking out just the fat to eat!"

His story resonated with many in the crowd. Raising kids these days was tough—they'd eat a few bites and be done, barely putting on any weight. Feeding them often felt like a battle.

Now, after tasting the meat themselves and hearing the man's experience, they were convinced. The meat really was rich and flavorful but not greasy—just like the kind they used to eat when they were young.

"Haha, no problem," Bai Ye grinned. "How much would you like? We just got here—it's all fresh."

"Give me a big batch—20 jin!" the man declared. "Some for us, and some for my father-in-law."

Seeing that he wasn't short on cash, Bai Ye took the chance to upsell. "We also have braised pork knuckles, pig trotters, and ribs. The ribs are meaty and delicious."

The man glanced at the ribs Bai Ye held up—a thick slab with multiple bones—and nodded. "Alright, give me 10 jin of pork belly, 10 jin of ribs, pack them separately. And two trotters—my wife loves them."

The crowd shared knowing smiles—this guy clearly doted on his wife.

Ten jin of pork belly was 280 yuan, ten jin of ribs 350, and two trotters about 60—this one order was nearly 700 yuan.

Too bad the system hadn't given Bai Ye any new tasks today.

If only there were a mission like "hit 3,000 yuan in sales"—that would've been a sweet bonus.

The system was always random like that. You never knew when it would trigger. But one thing Bai Ye had learned: every mission was a challenge and required real effort.

Which was fine by him—it kept him motivated to work hard.

Sales continued to go strong, mostly thanks to the big guy's order and the positive reactions from those who tried samples. Before long, dozens of portions had been sold.

Some people bought whole pieces, others half a jin or a full one. Despite ribs being the most expensive at over 30 yuan a jin, they sold out the fastest.

"An'an, see if you can buy us something to eat," Bai Ye said. They had only grabbed a quick bite in the morning before picking up Jiang Hao, and now he was getting hungry after all the hustle.

"Okay!" An'an took the money and dashed off. Soon, she returned with a bag of large pastries, fried rice cakes, and three cups of hot soy milk.

The three of them dug in while the stall was quiet. But before they could finish, more customers arrived. Bai Ye quickly handed his soy milk and the bag to An'an and turned to greet the customers with a genuine smile.

Around noon, the crowd finally dispersed. The big pot beside them was nearly empty—just a few small pieces of meat left.

Bai Ye checked his phone: they had sold over 3,700 yuan worth of food that morning.

He couldn't stop grinning.

The pork had only cost him 2,500 yuan—he had made nearly 1,200 yuan profit in just one morning.

Bai Ye clapped Jiang Hao on the shoulder. "Come on, let's go to my place for lunch!"