By the time they arrived at the county, the sun was fully up.
After the other passengers disembarked, Boatman Wang took the three Yu sisters to the dock area.
They planned to set up their stall near the dock, where there was a designated area for small vendors to sell breakfast. However, they needed to get a permit from the dock manager and pay a fee; otherwise, patrolling officers would drive them away and forbid them from doing business there.
After the boat docked, Yu Jin paid twelve wen for their fare.
Boatman Wang initially didn’t want to accept the money. After all, he had eaten one of their rice balls and, considering their familial connection, had decided to let them ride for free that day. But Yu Jin firmly declined the offer.
“We’ll be taking your boat to the county regularly, so we can’t take advantage of you,” Yu Jin said.
Boatman Wang had no choice but to accept the fare, remarking, “You sisters are all the same.”
He was referring to the time when Yu Li first went to the county. He hadn’t planned to charge her either, but she had insisted on paying.
In contrast, the eldest branch of the Yu family always took his boat for free without any qualms. While it was true that he had willingly let them ride for free, compared to the second branch’s daughters, it made the eldest branch seem shameless.
After disembarking, the three sisters went to the area near the dock specifically for selling breakfast. They saw many stalls selling all kinds of food.
Without taking much time to look around, they went to get a permit, paid the fee, and hurried to find a spot to set up their stall.
Once they placed their buckets down, the three sisters glanced at the surrounding breakfast stalls. They noticed that most had tables and chairs, along with small carts for transporting goods. The setups were quite complete.
In comparison, their stall consisted of just two buckets and a basket sitting on the ground, looking pitifully simple and shabby.
They realized they should have brought a simple table to place the buckets and basket on.
The three of them stood there awkwardly, not knowing how to start.
Nearby stall owners selling food couldn’t help but glance at them, but soon became busy attending to their own customers as the morning rush picked up.
The dock was bustling with people in the early morning. Many laborers who didn’t want to waste time cooking at home came here for breakfast. The area was lively and crowded.
When someone passed by their small stall and noticed the two wooden buckets covered with cloth, they asked what they were selling.
This was the first person to inquire, and the three sisters were so nervous they could barely speak.
Yu Jin clenched her fists tightly, her throat dry with anxiety, and forced herself to reply, “We’re selling mixed grain rice balls.”
Upon hearing it was mixed grain rice, the person lost interest.
Seeing the person about to leave, Yu Jin quickly added, “The rice balls come with vegetarian or meat options. The vegetarian ones start at two wen, served with marinade, and the meat ones are three wen, with marinated meat inside.”
Hearing there was marinated meat, the person immediately said, “Give me a three-wen meat one.”
For three wen, one could buy a meat bun, but meat buns weren’t very big, and the amount of meat inside was limited. One meat bun was definitely not filling.
Mixed grain rice, on the other hand, was cheap, and a rice ball would likely be more substantial than a meat bun.
Yu Jin deftly started making the rice ball.
Having practiced several times since the day before, she was skilled and quick. In no time, she prepared a meat rice ball.
The customer watched as she prepared the rice ball and saw there was indeed marinated meat inside. Although the meat was finely chopped and hard to identify, the moment the jar’s lid was lifted, the fragrance of the marinade wafted out, making it quite tempting.
When the rice ball was ready, wrapped in green vegetable leaves, the person decided to give it a try.
With one bite, he was delighted. The marinade was aromatic and made the coarse texture of the mixed grain rice hardly noticeable. The flavor of the meat filled his mouth, and the marinated meat inside was even more fragrant.
This man was a dock laborer. His clothes were worn and shabby, but being young and strong, he worked hard and ate a lot.
One rice ball wasn’t enough to fill him up, only half-satisfying his hunger.
He ordered another two-wen vegetarian rice ball. Though it didn’t have meat, the marinade was still flavorful. After finishing both rice balls, he was full enough to last most of the day.
This was more cost-effective than eating a bowl of shredded meat noodles, which cost five wen and wasn’t as filling.
With the first customer, others soon followed.
Business gradually picked up.
Perhaps it was because their stall looked so plain—just two buckets on the ground without even a table—that it caught the attention of passersby. Soon, more people came over to ask what they were selling.
—
After finishing her deliveries, Yu Li specifically came to the dock to check on how her younger sisters’ business was going.
It was their first day setting up a stall, and she was worried that someone might trouble them.
When Yu Li arrived, she saw that there were customers buying rice balls at her sisters’ stall. Each of the three sisters was busy with their tasks: Yu Jin and Yu Yin were making rice balls, while Yu Zhu was handling the money.
Though Yu Zhu was young and hadn’t learned to count properly yet, she could still manage to collect payment. Since the rice balls were a small-scale business, most customers just bought one or two to try, paying two or three wen at a time, so it wasn’t too complicated.
Carrying her bamboo basket, Yu Li walked over.
Knowing that Yu Jin was going to set up a stall at the county today, Yu Li had taken on a delivery job near the dock. After completing the delivery, she didn’t rush back home and decided to check on her sisters. She also wanted to provide a sense of security in case anyone tried to bully them for being young girls.
When the three sisters saw her, they were delighted.
“Big Sister!”
Yu Li set down her bamboo basket and stood behind her sisters, watching them sell rice balls.
The man waiting for his rice ball in front of the stall noticed the sudden presence of another person standing behind the three girls. When he glanced up and met Yu Li’s gaze, his face immediately turned red, and he lowered his head.
After Yu Jin handed him the rice ball, the man, still blushing, said, “I… I’d like to buy a vegetarian one too.”
Yu Jin didn’t think much of it and quickly started preparing another vegetarian rice ball for him.
Once the two rice balls were ready, the man took them, his face still red, and left in a hurry.
As he walked farther away, he finally mustered the courage to glance back toward the stall. When he did, his face turned even redder.
After the customer left, Yu Li asked how the business was going.
“It’s alright. We’ve been here for about half an hour and have sold seven rice balls,” Yu Jin said cheerfully.
Since it was their first day, most people didn’t know what they were selling and hadn’t tried their rice balls yet. It was normal not to have many customers. Fortunately, they hadn’t prepared too much mixed grain rice today, as they wanted to test the waters and see how well the rice balls would sell in the county.
Yu Li, however, thought the number of customers was still quite low. Looking around at the other breakfast stalls, she noticed that most were run by small vendors like them, but those stalls had many customers, most of whom seemed to be regulars judging by how they chatted with the stall owners.
Just as she was about to say something, another customer came to buy a rice ball, and the three sisters quickly got busy again.
What surprised them was that more and more people started coming to buy rice balls—one, two, three… There were so many that a line began to form in front of their stall.
Normally, when a stall was crowded, people would choose another one to avoid wasting time. But now, despite the line, more people kept joining it.
Yu Jin found it puzzling at first. Why were so many people suddenly interested in their rice balls? When she glanced at the customers in line, she realized that most of them were young men. Their gazes often wandered toward a spot behind her and her sisters.
Yu Jin turned her head to look and immediately understood.
It was her big sister’s face that had attracted them.
Perhaps it was because they lived in the same village, and since Yu Li had started visiting them every day after Yu Zhu’s injury, the sisters saw her often and didn’t feel much of a change.
Occasionally, they would remark on how much prettier their big sister had become and joke that the tonics she had been taking really worked. But beyond that, no matter how Yu Li changed, she was still their big sister, and that fact would never change.
What they hadn’t expected was that her big sister’s improved appearance would bring about such consequences.
Appreciating beauty is human nature, and most people are superficial, drawn to good looks.
Now, just by standing there, Yu Li, with her refined appearance and unique aura, easily drew the attention of others without doing anything at all.
Sure enough, she had attracted quite a few male customers who used buying rice balls as an excuse to sneak glances at her.
Since it was their first day, they hadn’t prepared much, and the rice balls sold out quickly.
A few customers still waiting in line were visibly disappointed when they found out there were no more rice balls left. Some hesitated and asked, “Will you be back here tomorrow?”
“We’ll be back,” Yu Jin replied with a polite smile. “At this time tomorrow, we’ll set up here again.”
Hearing this, the two customers brightened up. They cast another reluctant glance behind the sisters before leaving, clearly unwilling to go.
Witnessing this scene, the nearby stall owners couldn’t help but feel envious of how well the sisters’ business was doing.
However, since the sisters were selling rice balls and didn’t have much mixed grain rice in their two buckets, it wasn’t enough to threaten anyone else’s business. As a result, the other vendors didn’t mind their success, even if the stall seemed unusually popular.
That said, the sisters were undeniably striking in appearance. Fortunately, the county magistrate’s brother-in-law, Steward Cui, had recently been beaten up and crippled. It was said he was now bedridden and wouldn’t be able to cause trouble anymore.
If he had seen these sisters, they would likely have been taken to his house and ruined.
The sisters had truly picked the perfect time to start their business.