CH 72

Confirmation

The next morning, following the previous agreement, Dr. Li arrived at the snack shop. He wanted to see with his own eyes whether the dried white fungus was truly non-toxic after soaking.

Yu Qingze simply placed a small table in the lobby of the shop. In front of Dr. Li and the customers, he placed a dried white fungus in a basin of water. The wooden basin was placed on the table for everyone to see.

Due to yesterday’s incident with Wang’s white fungus soup, many people now knew about the white fungus. However, this information was also negative, as it made people aware that fresh white fungus is toxic and should not be consumed.

Except for those present at the time, the others hadn’t heard Yu Qingze’s statement that the dried white fungus was safe to eat after soaking.

Yesterday at noon, Yu Qingze had thought of conducting this experiment to have it witnessed firsthand by the renowned Dr. Li in the town. This would confirm the truth of what he had said, and only then could he gain people’s trust when introducing the white fungus soup.

Perhaps people wouldn’t fully believe it at first, but soon, when those who had eaten it had no issues, people would gradually accept this fact. By then, white fungus would become a precious ingredient that people, especially the locals, would enjoy.

“You need to use enough water and soak it for about one and a half to two hours. During this time, the water should be changed every thirty minutes to an hour. It will be ready for cooking in the afternoon, around noon,” Yu Qingze explained to Dr. Li and the observing customers.

After setting everything up, Yu Qingze left it on the table and invited Dr. Li to sit at another table. They chatted about various topics related to the white fungus while enjoying some dim sum.

Since the soaking process took some time, many customers finished eating and left, planning to come back around noon to see Yu Qingze prepare the white fungus soup.

Dr. Li stayed in the snack shop the whole time because he wanted to witness the entire process firsthand. After chatting with Yu Qingze, he sat with a medical book, occasionally glancing over at the small table.

Every thirty minutes or so, Yu Qingze would change the water. By the time the soaking time was sufficient, the white fungus had turned transparent, forming a large bloomed flower, occupying almost half of the wooden basin.

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

After noon had passed, Yu Qingze carried a stove into the hall and started making white fungus soup right there. He didn’t even move the white fungus away from people’s sight, and even the cleaning was done in front of everyone in the hall.

An hour later, the white fungus soup was ready. The gelatinous substance in the white fungus had been boiled out, and the thick soup contained red dates, goji berries, and white lotus seeds, emitting a sweet fragrance.

“Would anyone like to taste it?” After letting it cool down a bit, Yu Qingze scooped out a few bowls of white fungus soup and placed them on the table, asking.

The guests still had fresh memories of yesterday’s events, especially the red rashes on the faces and necks of those three brothers. They were still fearful, so naturally, they didn’t come forward to try it.

Dr. Li also harbored doubts and hesitated about whether to eat it.

At this moment, a person quietly approached and picked up a bowl of white fungus soup, starting to eat.

Everyone looked and realized it was Brother Le from the snack shop. Many customers knew him from the time when the shop was just a food stall. Seeing him boldly eating a bowl, they were somewhat impressed.

But what if this white fungus soup also had a problem? Wouldn’t he develop red rashes on his face? Wasn’t Brother Le afraid?

“I’ll also have a bowl. Boss Yu, is it alright?” Brother Chang also walked over and asked.

“Of course.” Yu Qingze nodded with a smile and turned to his assistants behind him, saying, “Anyone else who wants to taste it, come over.”

Suddenly, Brother Qing, Jiabao, and Xiaoshu also came over.

When Boss Yu makes food, they definitely want to taste it.

Just then, two more people walked into the shop.

“Oh, it’s lively here. We came at the right time.”

Upon seeing them, it turned out to be Old Master Cai and Cai Yunwei.

“Old Master, Second Young Master,” everyone greeted.

Old Master Cai nodded, looked at the white fungus soup on the table, and smiled, “I heard you were making white fungus soup today, so I specially came to have a look. Is there any left? Give us a bowl as well.”

“We have some.” Yu Qingze quickly took two bowls and handed them to Old Master Cai and Cai Yunwei.

They accepted the bowls, found a place to sit, and started drinking. It was a rare opportunity for them to taste the white fungus soup personally made by Boss Yu.

Everyone looked on. How could Old Master Cai and the Second Young Master of the Cai family dare to drink this? Wasn’t it said that the elderly and those with weak constitutions were particularly susceptible to poisoning?

However, looking at their expressions while drinking, they seemed so delighted? And it seemed like they really enjoyed it?

Old Master Cai and the Second Young Master of the Cai family truly placed a lot of trust in Boss Yu.

Dr. Li, seeing that so many people had already drunk it and noticing that there was only a small amount left in the pot, quickly said, “Give me a bowl.”

Yu Qingze promptly scooped a bowl for him, and once it was served, the pot was empty.

Dr. Li took it, sat down, and scooped a spoonful into his mouth. It was smooth, slightly chewy, and deliciously sweet.

My wife should enjoy eating this. Dr. Li thought to himself.

Unconsciously, Dr. Li finished a bowl of white fungus soup, licked his lips, and felt a bit unsatisfied.

After discussing with Brother Le and Jiabao, Yu Qingze addressed the crowd, “Because the employees in the shop still have work to do, only Brother Le and the little brother Jiabao will go to the backyard to work under the sun. If you have nothing to do, you can wait and see the results. If there’s anything urgent, you can come back tomorrow to check if they have any adverse reactions.”

Saying that, Brother Le and Jiabao went to the backyard. They didn’t need to make snacks at this hour, so they went to the backyard, folded up the parasols, and started washing dishes and frying dumplings under the sun.

Yu Qingze temporarily took over the cashier’s work.

“Father, I’ll go too. I want to fry dumplings with Jiabao,” Cai Yunwei said to Old Master Cai.

Old Master Cai nodded and said, “Go ahead.”

Cai Yunwei happily went to help Jiabao fry dumplings. Being a young master who had never done such laborious work before, he seemed quite content.

An hour later, everyone saw that Brother Le and Jiabao had no redness or swelling on their faces, only sweat. Even Cai Yunwei had a normal sun-kissed flush on his face, but there were no adverse reactions on their skin exposed to the sun.

Dr. Li carefully examined the three of them, nodded, and confirmed that Boss Yu was indeed right. White fungus that had been soaked and dried properly and then consumed posed no harmful toxins to the human body.

The other people who witnessed it all couldn’t help but marvel. Just from a brief exposure to the sun, how could it make such a significant difference compared to the fresh ones?

Until closing time, none of the people who had consumed the white fungus soup showed any signs of redness or swelling. The customers who witnessed this sighed in relief as they left.

The next morning, some customers couldn’t let go and made a special trip to check on Brother Le and Jiabao. They coincidentally encountered the Cai brothers who came here for breakfast. Seeing that the three of them were perfectly fine, the customers felt reassured. It seemed that there was truly no problem with the white fungus soup.

In the morning of that day, Yu Qingze stood at the entrance of the shop, banging a gong to attract people’s attention. He then explained the experimental process from the previous day and invited Dr. Li to publicly announce the results of the experiment.

Dr. Li readily agreed and spoke up. He mentioned that while waiting for the results yesterday afternoon, he had a chat with Old Master Cai and learned that they had previously eaten the white fungus soup made by Boss Yu, and they were absolutely fine.

Once Dr. Li revealed the results, Yu Qingze immediately hung up a promotional sign, announcing the official launch of the white fungus soup the next day.

On the following day, Yu Qingze didn’t make a large quantity of white fungus soup. Even though Dr. Li had confirmed the safety of the dried ones, many people still wouldn’t easily come to try it. It needed to go through a process, and Yu Qingze wasn’t in a hurry.

Moreover, Yu Qingze had set a relatively high price for the white fungus soup, charging fifteen wen for a small bowl. Most households might not be willing to spend on it.

As expected, there weren’t many customers who came to eat that day. It was mainly the guests and their children who had previously dined at the Cai residence. When they heard that the snack shop was introducing white fungus soup, those who liked it came over to enjoy.

However, with their patronage, it served as its own promotion, and the effect was much better than if ordinary families’ families had come to eat.

The fact that the wives and children of wealthy families weren’t afraid to consume it indicated that it was definitely safe. Moreover, they loved drinking it, which meant it must be a fantastic product.

As a result, the sales of the white fungus soup at the snack shop visibly increased day by day.

With the introduction of white fungus soup at the snack shop, Yu Qingze also raised the purchase price of white fungus in the village. As autumn approached, the quantity of white fungus was becoming scarce, and it would soon be depleted.

Fortunately, they had found another source.

On the third day after Wang’s incident, they saw a man wandering around Wang’s door with a backpack filled with fresh white fungus.

Yu Qingze speculated that the man with the basket who had previously delivered white fungus to Wang’s Noodle House was the same person. He went over to tell the man that Wang’s Noodle House had been ordered to cease operations because the white fungus soup he made was poisonous.

The man was named Tugen, and upon hearing the news, he became anxious. “Ah? They used it for cooking? Oh dear, when I asked them what they were using it for, they didn’t tell me. I always thought they knew that this thing shouldn’t be consumed, and I kept forgetting to tell them not to eat it. If I had known earlier, I wouldn’t have sold it to them.”

Upon hearing this, Yu Qingze said, “That’s not your concern. What are you going to do with the white fungus?”

Tugen replied, “What else can I do? Since trouble has already occurred, I’ll throw them away when I leave the city.”

Yu Qingze then suggested, “That would be such a waste. Why don’t you sell them to me?”

Surprised, Tugen asked, “Sell them to you? Are you planning to eat them too?”

Yu Qingze nodded and said, “Yes.”

Tugen shook his head and said, “That won’t work. It causes problems when eaten. If I don’t sell it to you and you use it for consumption, it would harm people. Their skin becomes red and swollen, and they itch like crazy.”

Yu Qingze smiled and said, “It’s alright, I know how to remove the toxins from them.”

“You know how?” Tugen asked.

“Yes, we conducted an experiment yesterday, and Dr. Li from the city confirmed it. Look, my shop has already introduced it today, and everyone who ate it is fine.”

Tugen looked at Yu Qingze’s shop and furrowed his brow. He asked, “Is it really safe?”

“It’s safe, trust me,” Yu Qingze assured him.

After considering for a moment, Tugen said, “Alright then.”

Subsequently, Yu Qingze purchased Tugen’s white fungus at the same price he had given Wang’s Noodle House and asked him to continue delivering in the future.

After about ten days, news spread that people who had eaten Yu’s white fungus soup had no adverse reactions. As a result, the sales of white fungus soup increased significantly. However, unlike other snacks that anyone could order, the sales of white fungus soup reached a certain point and then stabilized.

The successful launch of white fungus soup marked a milestone for the snack shop. Every three days, they introduced a new pastry, and the business continued to thrive. Although everyone was busy every day, they felt fulfilled.

Yu Qingze hired two more assistants and created a rotating schedule for everyone to have a day off after working six days. This arrangement prevented them from getting too exhausted.

The assistants were delighted. They knew that elsewhere, there wouldn’t be a job that allowed them to have four days off per month without pay deductions. With this arrangement, they became more dedicated to their work.

On October 28th, after closing the shop, Yu Qingze personally cooked a table full of delicious dishes and opened a bottle of osmanthus wine.

Brother Le and Jiabao looked at him in surprise.

Yu Qingze scratched his nose and somewhat embarrassedly said, “Um, today is my birthday.”

Brother Le and Jiabao stared at him wide-eyed.

Brother Le gestured with a bit of frustration: “Why didn’t you tell us earlier that it’s your birthday? We didn’t prepare anything, and it’s only the two of us celebrating with you. You should have told Grandpa, Xiao Hao, and everyone else earlier, so they could celebrate your birthday properly.”

Jiabao also said, “Brother Yu, I… I didn’t know. I didn’t prepare any gifts for you.”

Yu Qingze smiled and said, “It’s okay, no need for a special celebration. I’m already at this age, and there’s nothing much to celebrate. I wasn’t planning on celebrating it at all. But I thought about it and decided to let you know. Come, let’s not talk about it anymore, let’s eat.”

Brother Le looked at him pensively and gestured, “I didn’t prepare a gift for you.”

Yu Qingze approached him and whispered in Brother Le’s ear, a voice only the two of them could hear, “When Jiabao goes back, I’ll ask you for a gift.”

Brother Le: …