Chapter 52: Taking the Guests to the Mountain Bamboo Forest to Pick Bamboo Shoots
"These mulberries have a great texture," someone praised as they ate.
"They really are good. So sweet."
Only after everyone had eaten their fill did they gradually stop.
Everyone’s lips were more or less stained dark.
This was because mulberries contain large amounts of anthocyanins and other pigments.
These pigments are completely harmless to the body, but they can stain your lips and the inside of your mouth.
Mulberries are delicious and even have some health benefits. The only "side effect" is that they’ll stain your lips dark.
Wei Ping’s two children had eaten their fill, and then told Wei Ping they wanted to go look for long-horned beetles.
The two little ones hadn’t forgotten that the last time they left, Li You told them that next time, they could go catch long-horned beetles, rhinoceros beetles, stag beetles, bamboo grubs, and other such insects.
Wei Ping said, "Then go ahead and look on these mulberry trees. There’s a type of long-horned beetle that lives on them called a Silkworm Beetle. It’s the same kind Uncle Li You gave you last time."
"Okay!" Both children were very excited and began searching carefully through the mulberry trees.
Liu Xu and the others smiled when they saw this.
Childhood was always a wonderful time.
Just then, Li You finished what he was doing and came over as well.
"The boss is here. Boss, these mulberries of yours have a great texture," the crowd chimed in.
Li You smiled. "They’re all wild. But the texture is indeed pretty good."
Wei Ping’s two children said, "Uncle Li You, we’re looking for long-horned beetles."
Li You said, "Great! You’ll have to look carefully. Long-horned beetles are often hard to find."
"Okay!" the two children said in unison.
After a moment, the older one, Wei Yu, spoke up again. "Uncle, where do we go to find the rhinoceros beetles, stag beetles, and bamboo grubs you told us about?"
Li You said, "You generally have to go into the woods to find rhinoceros beetles and stag beetles. They’re around now, but it’s not their peak activity season yet. As for bamboo grubs, you find those in bamboo forests, and this is the perfect time, when they’re most active."
Hearing this, both children said excitedly, "Then can we go look for bamboo grubs in the bamboo forest?"
Li You replied, "You’ll have to ask your mom and dad, and your grandparents. You have to listen to them."
Both children looked toward Wei Ping, then at their mother, grandfather, and grandmother.
Wei Ping smiled. "Boss, do you know if there’s a bamboo forest nearby? I can take them to have a look. They don’t get to come out and play like this often, so I want them to have fun."
Li You said, "There’s one on the mountain out back. I’ll probably be heading there later myself. A guest wants to experience snapping bamboo shoots, so I’m taking her. Master Wei, why don’t we all go together in a bit? What do you think?"
Wei Ping’s eyes lit up. "Great! Having you with us would be for the best, Boss."
When the two children heard that Li You would also be going, they cheered out loud.
They really wanted Li You to go with them too.
And when Liu Xu and the others heard the words "snapping bamboo shoots," their eyes all lit up as well.
They were very interested in that, too.
Liu Xu asked, "Boss, can we tag along? We won’t be snapping any bamboo shoots. We just want to have a look."
Li You nodded. "Sure, of course you can."
Liu Xu and the others were delighted, and they all said they would tag along later.
Just then, Ye Shengge returned.
She had gone to explore the gorge earlier.
Seeing her, Li You excused himself from Liu Xu, Wei Ping, and the others.
Back at the front of the shop, Ye Shengge remarked, "It’s so lively today. Your business is getting better and better, Boss."
Li You smiled. "It’s much better than when I first started. What would you like for lunch?"
Ye Shengge replied, "Cabbage in Consommé and a small bowl of beef noodle soup."
Li You nodded. "I’ll go make that for you now."
"Thanks, Boss."
The two of them walked into the shop.
Jiang Caidong and Liang Heng had already finished eating.
Jiang Caidong was scanning the QR code to pay. Seeing Li You return, he said, "Boss Li, the payment has been sent."
Li You nodded. "Got it. Thanks, Boss Jiang."
Jiang Caidong smiled. "You’re too kind, Boss Li. Your menu is getting more and more varied. I’m afraid we’re going to become regulars here."
Li You let out a laugh. "In that case, you’re more than welcome!"
After exchanging a few more words, Li You went into the kitchen and started preparing the Cabbage in Consommé and small bowl of beef noodle soup that Ye Shengge had ordered.
Jiang Caidong and Liang Heng then walked out the shop door. Seeing Wei Ping, Liu Xu, and the others in the orchard, they also walked over.
They weren’t in a hurry to leave today.
Inside the shop, Li You quickly prepared a serving of Cabbage in Consommé and a small bowl of beef noodle soup.
Ye Shengge started to eat.
Li You then also made himself a bowl of beef noodle soup for lunch.
A little while later, Ye Shengge also finished eating.
She scanned the code to pay: 579 yuan.
The day’s revenue increased by another 579 yuan, reaching a total of 6,500 yuan.
’Only 1,500 yuan to go to complete the main quest of breaking 8,000 yuan in a single day.’
It was now 1:00 PM.
’I’ll wait a little longer. Around 2:00 PM, it’ll be about time to head up to the bamboo forest.’
’Hopefully, a few more customers will show up in the meantime.’
Unfortunately, by the time 2:00 PM arrived, no new customers had come.
He waited a little longer, but still no customers came.
’Oh well.’
’Time to head to the bamboo forest on the mountain.’
He announced his decision to the group.
Ye Shengge’s eyes lit up, filled with anticipation and a hint of excitement.
Wei Ping’s two children cheered and jumped for joy. They could finally go look for bamboo grubs!
Liu Xu and the others were also brimming with enthusiasm.
Even Jiang Caidong and Liang Heng wore expressions of great interest.
While chatting with Wei Ping, Liu Xu, and the others earlier, they had learned that Li You was planning to take everyone to the bamboo forest on the mountain to snap bamboo shoots and search for bamboo grubs. They had shown great interest and said they wanted to tag along.
Having lived in the city for so long, they rarely got the chance to be close to nature.
Now that they had such an opportunity, they were naturally very interested in going along.
Li You grabbed a few large bags, closed up the shop, and set off with the whole bustling group.
There was a bamboo grove not far behind the shop.
But this grove was too small, covering only two or three square meters.
Li You was taking everyone to the large bamboo forest.
The group chatted and laughed along the way, admiring the green trees and grass, listening to the birdsong, and smelling the fragrant flowers. Everyone felt more at ease than they had in a long, long time.
Everyone was in incredibly high spirits.
Coming out for a walk like this had definitely been the right decision.
Half an hour later, they arrived at a vast bamboo forest.
The forest covered more than sixteen acres; it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call it a sea of bamboo.
It consisted mainly of Moso bamboo, but there were other varieties as well, like bitter bamboo, spotted bamboo, and hard-headed yellow bamboo.
Inside the forest, bamboo shoots of all different heights were scattered everywhere.
Ye Shengge grew quite excited at the sight of the endless bamboo forest and the shoots that carpeted the ground.
’Today, I can finally snap my own bamboo shoots!’
Xiao Yue, Zhang Rui’Er, Ning Wan, and the other young women were just as excited.
It was so exciting just looking at all the bamboo shoots.
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