136 If You Agree to Bet, You Must Accept to Lose
The candied haws seller had indeed been hawking candied haws for more than 20 years. His candied haws business actually did not earn much money. The cost of making a stick of candied haws was seven cents and he sold it for a copper coin. So the money he made was hard-earned.
There were not many people in Nanhe Town. He could only sell 40 to 50 sticks a day. Even if his business was very good, he could only make a fixed amount of candied hawthorns a day. He still had to allocate some time to do other chores. Otherwise, his family would really not be able to make ends meet.
The surrounding people were originally watching the commotion, but now that a sucker was willing to pay for them to have a taste, they naturally agreed readily.
Tang Third had made a total of 40 candied haws. The children of Old man Wang’s family did not know the current market, so they had brought a total of 50.
After distributing the candied haws to 40 people, the remaining 10 sticks were handed over to the Young Master. The Young Master’s servant held 10 candied haws in his hand and felt very complicated.
If Old Master knew that Young Master was spending so much money again, he might not blame Young Master, but as the servant, he would definitely suffer a beating.
Sigh, didn’t he just bring the Young Master out to find delicious food? How did he end up like this?
Almost everyone who lived in Nanhe Town had eaten Tang Third’s candied haws and knew the taste of his candied haws.
There was a thin layer of sugar outside. After licking it away, there would be a very sour hawthorn inside. They knew that behind the layer of sugar was a mouthful of sourness.
The adults did not like this taste, but the children did.
Now, for the sake of the selection, some people chose to eat Tang Third’s candied haws first. Soon, their faces were distorted by the sourness.
Then, they switched to eating the Wang family’s candied haws. They were originally prepared to encounter a sour taste, but the fruit was surprisingly sweet.
The layer of sugar on the outside was even thicker than Tang Third’s, but it did not feel too heavy. It was just the right amount to accept. When they chewed it in their mouth, it made a popping sound. One could clearly feel that the sugar was made of top-notch sugar. The sweetness was on a completely different level from Tang Third’s.
Only after tasting the sugar coating outside did some people who knew the industry say in their hearts, “No wonder they sell it for three copper coins a stick. At this level of sweetness, it probably costs at least two copper coins to make a stick. The price of this sweeter sugar and ordinary sugar is not only double, but sometimes, you can’t even buy it even if you have the money.”
However, for three copper coins, if the inside of this candied haws was just wild fruits, that was indeed too expensive.
But when these people tasted the wild fruits inside, their opinions completely changed.
The taste of the wild fruit was a little similar to the hawthorn. It was a little grainy and carried a very subtle sourness. However, it was actually very sweet tasting in the mouth. This sweetness was very different from the sweetness of the sugar coating on the outside. The sugar coating on the outside was pure sweet, but the wild fruit inside was the sweetness of a ripe fruit.
It was a little crispy and grainy. In addition, the seeds inside were edible. After taking a bite, the juice exploded in the mouth. It was so sweet that it made one feel happy.
It didn’t feel too excessive.
There were also some people who ate the Wang family’s candied haws first. After eating one, they wanted to eat a second one. There were only six on a stick, and they were still unsatisfied in the end.
They felt that eating such a stick of candied haws was even more comfortable than drinking a bowl of sugar water. Their originally tired body had some strength.
As everyone worked all year round and rarely ate their fill, their bodies had maintained a state of sugar deficit. However, when they felt very tired, they would feel refreshed after drinking a bowl of sugar water. This was actually because they had replenished their blood sugar level.
After eating a stick of candied hawthorns, although their mouths would feel dry, their body’s reaction was positive.
After eating this stick of candied hawthorns, they tasted Tang Third’s candied hawthorns. They felt that it was so sour that their teeth would fall out.
The sugar coating on Tang Third’s candied hawthorns was especially thin and crispy. It would even dissolve after two more licks. In the past, they would think that this thin sugar coat had a different flavor when eaten. However, after comparing it, they felt that it was cheap candied hawthorns.
Moreover, the hawthorns in the candied hawthorns were really sour. After eating the sugar coating, the hawthorns could not be eaten at all.
If it was the children, they might be able to swallow it.
While these people were eating the candied haws, Little Ah Yu even specially went to look at their expressions.
The little fellow was afraid that these adults would go back on their word, so she reminded them very seriously, “Don’t bully us because we’re new here. We’ll come often in the future. If it’s delicious, so be it. If it’s not delicious, so be it. Don’t spout nonsense!”
When everyone saw that little kid acting like an adult, they could not help but laugh.
Seeing that they were almost done eating, the Young Master smiled and narrowed his eyes. “How is it? Which one do you think is better?”
Everyone was a little hesitant, especially some of the residents who lived in Nanhe Town. They interacted with Tang Third frequently. If they said the truth, they would offend him.
Seeing these people’s hesitation, the Young Master revealed a faint smile. “Little Sister has already said just now that if it’s delicious, so be it. If it’s not delicious, so be it. As adults, you shouldn’t tell lies for the sake of keeping relationships.”
Actually, there was no need for them to say anything. The answer was already very obvious.
Tang Third’s face also flushed red. He knew that everyone was not saying the answer because they wanted to take care of his face, but from the looks of it, he did not have much face left.
“Tell me, which one of them tastes better? I don’t believe that their food can taste better than mine!”
In order to learn how to make candied haws, Tang Third even specially went to the county city to learn from a master. Only then did he learn how to make sweet candied haws while using the least amount of sugar. He even specially learned how to plant hawthorn trees.
Young Master simply took out a stick of candied hawthorn from the servant’s hand and handed it to Tang Third. “Why don’t you try it yourself?”
Tang Third also wanted to know the answer, so he took the stick of candied haws and took a bite without saying a word.
Crack!
The icing broke in his mouth.
Tang Third’s expression froze. He cursed in his heart. They dared to use so much sugar, and it was so sweet. No wonder everyone thought theirs were better.
Hmph, it was clearly because their skills were not good enough. They could not make the sugar coating thin and brittle. This was simply an unfair victory!
However, when he bit the wild fruit inside, his expression changed.
That’s not right. This type of wild fruit clearly doesn’t taste like this!
Back then, when he was learning to make candied hawthorns, Tang Third had also gone to inspect the other fruits. In the end, he realized that only the hawthorn was the most suitable for making this snack.
But why was it that this wild fruit could actually make such sweet but not overpowering candied haws?!
This was completely impossible!
How could such a fruit exist?
Tang Third looked at the children’s stall. The straw mats on the stall were filled with red wild fruits. All of them were especially big.
It was obvious that they were made of this kind of wild fruit.
The Young Master opened his fan again and looked at Tang Third calmly. “How is it? Do you think you’ve won or lost now?”
The muscles on Tang Third’s face trembled. He wanted to say that his candied haws were the best, but no matter how he said it, it seemed against his will.
...
“I lost.” Tang Third gritted his teeth. “I, Tang Third, am a man of my word. I admit defeat!”
With that, he lay on the ground and planned to crawl backward.
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