Yu Jin set the prices quite well. Customers could choose rice balls based on their needs, with the lowest priced at two wen for a vegetarian option and the highest at five wen with added meat.
These flexible prices provided customers with plenty of choices.
That evening, Yu Jin began soaking mixed grains and beans, cleaning the offal, and pre-cooking it in a marinade to prepare for the next day.
Yu Lao’er and Liu Shi also came to help. Tasks like cleaning the offal were taken over by Yu Lao’er, allowing the mother and daughters to do lighter work.
Since they were offering to help, Yu Jin naturally didn’t refuse. Worried that he might not clean it thoroughly, Yu Jin showed him how to clean it properly and explained which parts could be discarded. To ensure the offal was cleaned more thoroughly, she gritted her teeth and added a small half bowl of flour into the cleaning process.
This was, after all, something they intended to sell, so it couldn’t be done carelessly—it had to be cleaned meticulously.
Yu Lao’er was startled and hesitated before asking, “Jin Niang, isn’t this too wasteful?”
Offal was usually cleaned with ash from plants and trees. This was the first time he had heard of adding flour, which, after all, was food.
Although it wasn’t fine flour, for farmers, it still felt distressing to use.
“No, it’s not wasteful!” Yu Jin explained patiently, “To stew offal properly, it must be cleaned thoroughly. Using flour ensures a better clean and eliminates odors—this is what Aunt Zhou taught me.”
If it were just for the family, they could tolerate some odor, but customers certainly wouldn’t.
Yu Lao’er opened his mouth as if to say something but ultimately said nothing.
Yu Zhu and Yu Yin also joined to help.
With the whole family working together, the preparation was completed quickly, and Yu Jin began marinating the offal.
As the Mid-Autumn Festival approached, the weather was gradually cooling. From now on, they could stew the offal at night, reheat it the next morning, and bring it to the county for sale without having to wake up so early.
That morning, while it was still dark, the Yu family got up.
The earliest risers were Yu Lao’er and Liu Shi. They weren’t afraid of hardship or fatigue and wanted to help their daughters with more of the heavy work so they could take it easier.
The two placed the soaked mixed grains into the pot to cook, and once they were half-cooked, transferred them to steam.
Then they went to the vegetable patch in the backyard to pick fresh greens, washing them and selecting large leaves to layer neatly in a basket.
Next, Yu Jin and Yu Yin got up as well.
Yu Zhu was the last to wake up. She was still young and had recently been injured, so her sisters felt sorry for her. They quietly got out of bed, careful not to wake her, letting her sleep a little longer.
When Yu Zhu woke up, the steamed mixed grain rice was ready, and the stewed offal from the night before had been reheated.
Following her daughter’s instructions, Yu Lao’er poured the hot mixed grain rice into a clean bucket and covered it with a clean cloth.
They packed two buckets: one with the steamed mixed grain rice and the other with mashed beans and chopped stewed offal, which was stored in jars along with the marinade to keep the offal soaked in the sauce for better flavor.
The washed vegetable leaves, along with bowls, chopsticks, and spoons, were placed in a basket and covered with cloth as well.
When everything was ready, the sky began to lighten with the first hints of dawn.
Yu Jin and Yu Yin prepared to leave.
Yu Lao’er asked, “Jin Niang, can you carry everything? Should I take you to the riverside to catch a boat?”
Yu Li had mentioned that they should take a boat to the county and not be stingy about those few coins.
The main reason was that traveling by boat to the county was the fastest and safest way, allowing them to get there early to sell breakfast.
Yu Jin picked up the bucket containing the mixed grain rice. She had been working since childhood and was quite strong. Although it was heavy, she could still manage to carry it. However, her younger sister Yu Yin, being smaller in size and often sitting to do embroidery work, wasn’t as strong and struggled to lift it.
Yu Zhu said, “I can help Third Sister carry it together.”
Yu Yin and Yu Zhu joined forces to lift it, and after taking a few steps, they found it wasn’t too difficult.
Seeing this, Yu Jin had her two younger sisters carry the bucket containing the mashed beans and stewed offal together, while she carried one bucket in each hand along with the basket of bowls, chopsticks, and vegetable leaves.
The three sisters stepped into the faint light of dawn and made their way to the riverside dock.
Boatman Wang set out very early each day, usually pushing his boat toward the county before the sun even rose.
In these times, people got up early, never late. Many from the nearby villages rushed to the county at the crack of dawn to work. Boatmen like Wang, who made a living transporting passengers, had to start even earlier to ferry these early risers to the county.
Today, passing through Qingshi Village, Boatman Wang saw three people waiting at the riverside dock early in the morning. Upon getting closer, he was surprised to find it was the three girls from the second branch of the Yu family.
The three girls boarded the boat, carrying two tightly covered buckets and a basket.
Curious, Boatman Wang greeted them and asked, “Are you heading to the county? What’s in these buckets?”
Yu Yin and Yu Zhu, feeling shy, sat quietly without answering.
Yu Jin responded crisply, “It’s mixed grain rice, some marinated food, and vegetable leaves. We’re taking them to the county to sell.”
Boatman Wang was startled. He hadn’t expected the three girls from the second branch of the Yu family to be heading to the county to sell things, and food at that.
In the dim morning light, he glanced at the three girls and asked how they planned to sell their goods.
Yu Jin explained, and Boatman Wang grew interested. Wanting to support their business, he said, “I haven’t had breakfast yet. Why don’t you sell me a two-wen vegetarian rice ball to try?”
It was true that he hadn’t eaten breakfast yet. For someone like him, who had to start working so early, it was too much trouble to make breakfast at home. Usually, he’d wait until he reached the county to eat.
It was only a matter of a few coins, and he could afford that.
Yu Jin smiled and said, “Uncle Wang, let me treat you. After you eat, you can tell me how it tastes.”
Since they might need to take Boatman Wang’s boat to the county regularly, it was better to establish a good relationship with him and ask him to get them there earlier each day.
So, she decided to offer Boatman Wang a free meal.
Before Boatman Wang could say anything, Yu Jin had already deftly taken out a bowl. She lined the bottom with two vegetable leaves, spread a layer of mixed grain rice, added a scoop of soft, mashed beans, and a spoonful of stewed offal. Then she topped it with another layer of mixed grain rice, pressed it down firmly, poured a ladle of marinade over it, and finally wrapped it in vegetable leaves.
This created a mixed grain rice ball wrapped in vegetable leaves.
“Uncle Wang, have a taste.” Yu Jin handed the rice ball over.
Boatman Wang wiped his hands and took the rice ball wrapped in green vegetable leaves. He took a bite.
Mixed grain rice was usually coarse and nowhere near as refined as white rice. However, the marinade added a fragrant flavor, and the coarseness of the rice wasn’t as noticeable.
After biting through the outer layer of mixed grain rice soaked in marinade and wrapped in green vegetable leaves, inside was soft, delicate bean paste and fragrant marinated meat. The combination of flavors made even the coarse mixed grain rice taste delicious.
Boatman Wang quickly finished the rice ball.
“How was it, Uncle Wang?” Yu Jin asked.
Yu Yin and Yu Zhu also looked at him expectantly. Although they thought the rice balls were delicious, they were worried that customers might not feel the same way.
Boatman Wang praised, “The texture of mixed grains is usually rough, but the bean paste is very soft, and the marinated meat and marinade are incredibly flavorful. Together, it makes the mixed grain rice quite tasty. This business can work.”
Being a villager, he understood that the main customers for these rice balls would be laborers. They were already accustomed to eating mixed grain rice and wouldn’t mind its rough texture. The key was that the rice balls were filling, had a hint of meat flavor, and were affordable.
Boatman Wang then asked, “What kind of meat is in the marinade?”
The marinated meat was so tender and finely chopped that he couldn’t tell what it was at first.
Yu Jin replied, “It’s offal.”
Boatman Wang was surprised and exclaimed, “Offal can be marinated to taste this good? How come there’s no strange odor?” He had eaten offal before and knew it often had a strong smell that was hard to remove. Many people considered offal unclean and avoided it unless they were very poor.
Yu Jin smiled faintly.
Boatman Wang mentally calculated: mixed grains weren’t expensive, and offal was even cheaper. The only costly part was the spices for the marinade, but a batch of marinade could be reused for several portions of offal. The overall cost wasn’t high.
After thinking it through, he concluded that while the profit margin wasn’t large, there was definitely money to be made.
He praised, “I didn’t expect you girls to come up with the idea of selling mixed grain rice balls. The Yu family really is impressive.”
The smile on Yu Jin’s face faded slightly.
She knew that Boatman Wang had always thought highly of her eldest uncle’s family, considering them scholars with bright futures. Every time her eldest uncle’s family took his boat, he didn’t charge them. Now, his words felt a bit like flattery.
However, apart from that, Boatman Wang had no significant ties to the eldest branch of the Yu family. He and Third Aunt Wang Shi were from the same clan, but he wasn’t related to the eldest uncle.
Yu Jin didn’t respond to his comment and instead said, “Uncle Wang, we’ll be going to the county early every morning to sell rice balls. We’d appreciate it if you could give us a ride.”
“No problem!” Boatman Wang replied with a smile.
The boat headed toward the county. Along the way, they passed several riverside docks where a few people were waiting to board the boat to the county.
Including the three Yu sisters, there were only five passengers on this trip.
Each passenger paid four wen for the fare, so Boatman Wang earned twenty wen for this trip. Yu Jin mentally calculated how much he could make in a day with several trips and felt a pang of envy.