Chapter 473: Chapter 473: There’s Always a Higher Mountain
"Phoenix Golding really went to town?" Armstrong Huxley wasn’t entirely sure. He didn’t like doing things he wasn’t certain of.
"Her bicycle is gone, and Ulysses Spann came home alone. She definitely went to town," Tang Xiaonan said with certainty.
She hadn’t been idle this whole time. At the very least, she had figured out Phoenix Golding’s routine. Whenever Ulysses Spann came home alone, she was almost certainly in town. Only Phoenix Golding herself knew what she was up to.
Armstrong Huxley nodded. He glanced from Jim Thorne’s dopey grin to Tang Xiaonan and couldn’t resist flicking Jim on the head. ’What a simpleton. Not even as sharp as our little cousin.’
Jim Thorne yelled, annoyed, "What was that for?!"
"Can’t I?"
Armstrong Huxley’s glare intensified. Jim Thorne pouted sullenly but didn’t dare say another word. He had never been able to beat his cousin in a fight, not since they were kids, and he still couldn’t. His cousin was louder, too. ’I’ll just endure it!’
Tang Xiaonan covered her mouth, trying to hide her laughter. ’There’s always someone stronger. Only our cousin can keep my third brother in check.’
The journey of about three miles didn’t take long, and soon the town came into view. Jim Thorne and the others picked up their pace. They passed a small stall where a woman was secretively selling fried rice cakes from a small cart. Snow-white rice cakes on bamboo skewers were frying in a wok, and the air was thick with the savory, oily aroma.
"Jim, I want some rice cakes!" Tang Xiaonan cried out.
Jim Thorne stopped in his tracks, pulled some money from his pocket, and called out to the woman, "Four skewers, please! And put plenty of sweet bean sauce on them!"
"Okay! Want some stinky tofu?" the woman asked, her hands moving deftly as she slathered the sauce on the rice cakes. She could tell Jim Thorne wasn’t short on cash, so she tried to upsell him. "My stinky tofu is delicious. Only ten cents a skewer. It’s a bargain."
"How much are the rice cakes?" Tang Xiaonan asked.
"Eight cents a skewer, or fifteen cents for two," the woman chuckled, her hands never stopping. "I’ve been selling these by the train station since before the Liberation. The flavor is top-notch. I make the sweet bean sauce and the stinky tofu myself. Anyone who’s tried them says they’re amazing."
Tang Xiaonan took a whiff of the aroma. It was truly tempting. The woman’s stall was spotless, too, and her movements were practiced. The food had to be good. She turned to Jim Thorne and said, "I want some stinky tofu."
"Give us four more skewers of stinky tofu, and use the rest for fried rice cakes!"
Jim Thorne grandly pulled out a one-yuan bill. Over the weekend, he’d gone with Goldie Thorne to sell fabric and made over ten yuan. Add that to the money from selling movie stills, and he was a tycoon with a massive fortune of more than forty yuan. Treating his cousin and sisters to a yuan’s worth of snacks was nothing to him.
"That’s too much."
Armstrong Huxley thought it was too extravagant. A whole yuan on snacks... If his mother found out, she’d definitely chew them out for being wasteful. Besides, snacks like these were just for tasting. You weren’t supposed to eat them until you were full.
"It’s not too much. Xiaonan likes them."
Jim Thorne didn’t think it was much at all. The whole reason he earned money was to buy his sister tasty treats. Otherwise, he’d be too lazy to go out selling things. Sleeping at home was much more pleasant.
"Armstrong, my brother Jim is loaded. He’s really something!"
Tang Xiaonan beamed, laying on the flattery. Jim Thorne immediately puffed out his chest and held his head high, practically wagging his tail. He was happier than he would have been eating the rice cakes himself.
Armstrong Huxley stopped trying to talk him out of it. Besides, he was getting hungry too. Kids have zero resistance to fried snacks on a stick, especially the fragrant, chewy, and delicious fried rice cakes. They were just too tempting. The woman had already finished frying nine skewers of the rice cakes, all of them coated in sweet bean sauce.
"Here’s an extra skewer of rice cake on the house. The stinky tofu will be right up."
The woman chuckled as well. She loved generous kids like them; they were just too adorable.
Tang Xiaonan only took one skewer of fried rice cake and one of stinky tofu, leaving the rest for Jim Thorne and the other two to split. The food was truly delicious. The outside was crisp, while the inside was fragrant, chewy, and tenderly sweet. The sweet bean sauce was the perfect blend of savory, umami, and light sweetness. It was absolutely delicious. All four of them ate with great relish.
"What are you all up to?" Adrian Hawthorne’s voice rang out unexpectedly.
Comments