Chapter 2

“Uncle Li, we’d like to go to the county town.” At the village entrance, Gu Xiangrong spoke to a man sleeping under a large tree while handing him the eggs he held.

This was calculated by Gu Xinxin – the fare to the county town was four copper coins per person, eight for two people. With one copper coin equivalent to two eggs, this exactly matched the number of eggs they had left.

Uncle Li glanced at them, somewhat dissatisfied: “They’re all cooked?”

They still felt warm to the touch. Unless freshly laid, eggs wouldn’t be warm like this.

Gu Xiangrong felt embarrassed, unsure how to respond, and turned to look at Gu Xinxin.

Gu Xinxin twitched her lips and smiled: “I’ve been quite ill, thinking of going to the county town for treatment…”

She changed the subject. Fortunately, Uncle Li didn’t intend to press further, only asking: “Do you have money for medical treatment?”

Without waiting for Gu Xinxin’s reply, he waved his hand: “Never mind, never mind. I’ll just take you there. Are you coming back today?”

Gu Xinxin shook her head. Uncle Li pointed to the wooden cart nearby. Gu Xiangrong helped Gu Xinxin over. Since it was just the two siblings, they could lie down or sit as they pleased – there was plenty of space anyway. Uncle Li pulled over the grazing ox, cracked his whip in the air, and the wooden cart began moving forward.

When they reached the county town gate, Uncle Li didn’t enter – he needed to wait at the gate for anyone returning to the village. Even just one passenger was better than returning with an empty cart.

“Go ask around which is the largest pastry shop in town.” Gu Xinxin couldn’t walk far. Her prolonged illness hadn’t fully recovered, and the few eggs she had eaten earlier had probably been digested by now.

She came to the county town with one purpose – to make money.

Today, she absolutely had to get this matter settled first. With money, the remaining path would be easier, and life would improve for both her and Gu Xiangrong. Otherwise, staying at home with just one bowl of thin porridge per day, plus occasional beatings and scoldings from their stepmother – she couldn’t endure such a life even one more day.

Gu Xiangrong hesitated: “Sister, do you want to eat pastries? We have no money… How about this, I’ll go ask where there’s work available. I can work for a day or two…”

He paused, then continued: “I’ve heard before that there’s cargo carrying work in the county town. I’ll go ask…”

Gu Xinxin waved her hand: “Not for eating. Just do as I say and go ask around. No more questions.”

Gu Xiangrong didn’t move. If he went to inquire, would he leave his older sister alone here?

Gu Xinxin poked him: “Hurry up. I have a way to make money. Whether we can live well in the future depends on today. I’ll wait to sit over there on the ground. Go quickly and return soon.”

Gu Xiangrong didn’t quite believe her, but couldn’t argue further, so he nodded: “Alright, I’ll go. You wait right here, don’t wander off.”

Being young and quick on his feet, he set off immediately. Though he looked back after the first few steps, he soon disappeared.

Gu Xinxin didn’t wait in place either. She slowly walked along the streets on both sides. Coincidentally, the main street from the city gate had many stalls set up.

There were stalls selling snacks, tea, umbrellas, and wooden hairpins.

She only looked at the food stalls – wontons, steamed dumplings, fried dough sticks, braised noodles, fried rice, fried pancakes, Roujiamo – all were available. So, making money through food service would be quite difficult.

Moreover, her cooking skills were… just average. If possible, she could find someone with better skills in the future. Even if they weren’t running a business, it would be nice just to enjoy good food themselves.

Not daring to wander too far, she circled back after a short walk.

Gu Xiangrong had also returned: “I found out—the largest pastry shop in the county town is the Su family’s, called Su’s Pastry Shop.”

Gu Xinxin nodded: “Take me there.”

Although Gu Xiangrong didn’t know what she intended to do, they had come this far—they had to go.

The siblings entered the shop, and the clerk greeted them politely: “What would you like to buy?”

Gu Xinxin didn’t answer. Instead, she held onto Gu Xiangrong’s arm and walked back and forth in front of the counter, carefully examining the goods—all the classic pastries were there: mung bean cakes, red bean cakes, chestnut cakes, and so on.

Gu Xinxin looked at the clerk and said, “I’d like to speak to your shopkeeper.”

The clerk remained silent, so Gu Xinxin repeated, “I have a business proposal to discuss with your shopkeeper. I’m afraid you won’t be able to make the decision.”

The clerk smiled and said, “Are you planning to buy a large quantity of pastries? Is there a big event at home? Could you tell me how many pounds you need?”

Gu Xinxin waved her hand dismissively. “Not to buy—to sell. I have a secret recipe for pastries that appeal to everyone, young and old. If your shop isn’t interested, I’ll take it elsewhere. If you want this secret recipe, it could become an exclusive business for you.”

The clerk hesitated, mainly because the siblings were dressed in shabby clothes. Although their garments didn’t have many patches, they looked pale and thin, clearly malnourished.

Yet, the girl spoke with such confidence that she didn’t seem like someone from an ordinary poor family, who would usually shrink back timidly in public.

“Even if your shopkeeper isn’t interested, he won’t lose anything. Business is all about negotiation, isn’t it?” Gu Xinxin asked. The clerk nodded and said, “Alright, please wait a moment.”

Perhaps they were from a family that had fallen into hard times? If so, it wouldn’t be unusual for them to have a secret recipe.

As the girl said, meetings to discuss the matter wouldn’t cost anything.

The shopkeeper, a plump middle-aged man, came out from the back and greeted Gu Xinxin with a smile. “The clerk mentioned you have a secret recipe to sell?”

“Yes, this secret recipe is absolutely unique in the world today. Not just in this county it’s one of a kind in the entire prefecture, even in the whole empire. As a businessperson, you know better than anyone what an exclusive product like this could mean, right?”

Gu Xinxin asked with a smile. The shopkeeper pondered for a moment and said, “How can I be sure it’s truly one of a kind?”
“You’re well-traveled and knowledgeable. Whether it is or not, you can see and taste it for yourself. However, I’ll need to borrow your kitchen to prepare a sample for you. If you’re satisfied, we can continue discussing the business. If not, we’ll drop the matter.”

Gu Xinxin explained. If not for the poor conditions at the Gu family home, she would have brought a sample to discuss the deal.

After all, showing up to pitch a product without a sample—what kind of nonsense was that?

But there was no other way. Given the limited resources, she had no choice but to brazenly push forward.

The shopkeeper frowned, and Gu Xinxin added, “How about this: if you’re not satisfied with what I make, I’ll compensate you for any losses in the kitchen.”

Gu Xiangrong was about to say something, but Gu Xinxin pinched his arm, and he kept quiet.

The shopkeeper thought for a moment and asked, “What do you need?”

“Six eggs, one Jin of flour, half a liang of white sugar,” Gu Xinxin said, pausing briefly. “And three Jin of dry firewood, we’ll need to use your oven.”

Any shop dealing in pastries would naturally have an oven. Ovens could be traced back to the Han Dynasty, and since this era had wontons and Roujiamo, it was likely ovens existed too.

Moreover, she had spotted flaky pastries at the counter earlier—eight out of ten flaky pastries were baked, as there was no other way to achieve that crisp texture.

The shopkeeper seemed to mentally calculate the cost of these ingredients before nodding and agreeing to let Gu Xinxin try in the back kitchen.

Since it involved a secret recipe, only the siblings entered the kitchen.

Once inside, Gu Xiangrong couldn’t hold back: “Sister, my dear sister, where did we get a secret recipe? You’re still not hungry from earlier and scheming to trick them out of some eggs, are you?”

Gu Xinxin kept a stern face: “Listen to me. Crack the eggs, separate the whites and yolks, use a spoon.”

Gu Xiangrong wanted to say more, but seeing his sister’s expression, he stamped his foot after a moment and went to fetch the eggs. There was no choice, they were already there. If his sister really couldn’t produce any secret recipe pastry, at worst… at worst he’d sell himself into servitude!

Staying with the Gu family meant going hungry anyway. Selling himself as a servant could at least earn his sister a few eggs to eat.

Resigned, Gu Xiangrong followed Gu Xinxin’s instructions, whisking egg whites and then egg yolks until his arms felt like they might fall off. But thinking that being a servant would involve similar labor, he comforted himself—consider it early adaptation.

However, when he poured the fermented soft dough into bowls and placed them in the oven, he unconsciously began to feel differently. His eyes sparkled as he looked at Gu Xinxin: “That’s it? Will it really work? Can we make pastries? It looks a bit like baking flatbread.”

Gu Xinxin ignored him.

The aroma of egg cake was overpowering, especially when freshly made—it seemed to fill the entire space.

Even the shopkeeper couldn’t resist standing at the doorway, sniffing: “Is it done? This smell is… quite fragrant.”

Gu Xinxin nodded: “Not only does it smell good, but it also tastes good too. Another quarter-hour left.”

From start to finish, it took nearly two hours—including fermentation and baking, roughly two hours per batch.

When the oven was opened, Gu Xiangrong, under Gu Xinxin’s direction, removed the egg cakes from the bowls one by one. The shopkeeper, ignoring the heat, immediately picked one up, first examining its exterior color, then breaking it open to check the internal texture.

Then came the tasting.

Color, aroma, and flavor all perfected—that was what made a good pastry capable of fetching a high price. Lacking any one aspect would limit its appeal to a niche market, unable to generate substantial profit.

With just one bite, the shopkeeper’s eyes lit up: “Especially for children and the elderly—easy to eat and delicious. Made only with eggs and flour? Oh, and white sugar.”

Only the white sugar would cost a bit more, but six eggs and one Jin of flour could yield over ten cakes.

The shopkeeper quickly calculated in his head: selling one egg cake for four copper coins would already be profitable, even doubling the profit.

“I’ll take this secret recipe,” the shopkeeper said immediately. “Name your price.”

“If you’re sincerely interested, I won’t beat around the bush. There are two options: one is I give you the recipe, and for every egg cake you sell, you pay me one copper coin. You’ll keep paying me for as long as you sell them. The other is I sell it to you outright, after which the recipe becomes yours entirely. Apart from making it for my own family to eat, I’ll never sell it to anyone else again.”

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