Shopkeeper He savored the astonishing taste he had just experienced, nodding his head, "It’s suitable. Not to mention the cost of the cake, the scarcity of the cream and its unique, sweet fragrance alone are worth these Silver pieces."
Nanny Jin clapped her hands together, "That’s good to hear. When Ye Zi set this price, my old man and I were worried that the patrons might find it too steep and refuse to buy. If Shopkeeper He also thinks it’s good, then it’s nearly a sure thing, and I can finally let go of the worry that’s hung over me all morning."
Shopkeeper He nodded, saying, "Nanny Jin can rest assured. With such rich and delectable pastries, once the patrons have a taste, they won’t be able to resist indulging in a full serving. You should start preparing now, for if in a little while all the patrons order this dessert, it will be too late to bake more."
It was then that Nanny Jin remembered she had not finished speaking.
She quickly added, "Shopkeeper He, I haven’t finished what I was saying. Cream is hard to come by, and we can only get so much, so today there is only this much available. If you want more, you’ll have to wait until tomorrow, and even then, there won’t be much—only enough for two or three cakes of this size, definitely no more."
"..." Shopkeeper He looked at the fragrant and tempting cake, oozing with the rich scent of cow’s milk, then back at Nanny Jin, finding himself in a difficult position. This isn’t fair, is it, to get one’s hopes up ?
Without any more of the actual product to supply, just giving people a taste of the flavor, isn’t that just deliberately whetting their appetite? If it were some ordinary food, it might not matter, but this is top-notch delicacy we’re talking about. To just offer a taste and then nothing? Isn’t that the end of it?
Nanny Jin, you must be joking with this, are you trying to kill me?
Seeing the troubled look on Shopkeeper He’s face that he couldn’t quite express, Nanny Jin chuckled awkwardly, "We really have no choice. Ye Zi said the cream used to make the cake is very delicate and spoils easily, so it really can’t be kept for long. If it weren’t so, we would have saved it for a couple of days before introducing the dessert."
"Well," with no other choice, Shopkeeper He remarked to himself, "Then let it be. To have the privilege of tasting such a delicious dessert first, the patrons should consider themselves lucky."
"Thank you for your understanding, Shopkeeper He," Nanny Jin said, glancing at Ershun who was bustling in and out. Then she added, "Since the cream used in this new cake is rare, we only have enough for this one cake today, nothing more. Could you allow me to cut off a corner and keep it in my small shop?"
With Nanny Jin’s words, Shopkeeper He became even more certain of the rarity of the cream she spoke of. Otherwise, in keeping with Nanny Jin’s usual practice, even if the food were exceedingly precious, she would not fuss over a small piece once it had been delivered.
Indeed, the oil from cow’s milk...forget it, only someone as intelligent and quick-witted as Lady Qi could concoct such rare things. Even if he racked his brain, it would still be in vain.
As Shopkeeper He reasoned this, he hastened to say, "Please, Nanny Jin, do as you wish, do as you wish. Just by being near your small food shop, Great Crane House has already benefited greatly. This cake, unlike other goods, looks extraordinary and must have cost a substantial amount. That you offer it for free to serve as Great Crane House’s signature dish is our good fortune; I couldn’t dare ask you for a larger share."
"Mutual benefit, you are too kind, Shopkeeper He," Nanny Jin said politely.
Nanny Jin sliced off a quarter of the cake, which was missing a small corner, wrapped up the larger three-quarters, and handed it over for Shopkeeper He to take away.
After seeing off Shopkeeper He, Nanny Jin went to the hall and called Qi Ershun over to tell him, "Ershun, a message came from the village saying that your mother needs you; they want you to go home. I’ll have your brother Ercheng hire a cart for you, and you can head back with the young man who brought the message."
Qi Ershun had already heard the verbal message from the messenger and was worrying and wondering what could have happened at home to require him urgently to return.
Qi Ercheng, being older, saw that Nanny Jin was not overly anxious, indicating it probably wasn’t anything serious. As for sending Ershun back in such a hurry, perhaps it was Ershun’s mother, who didn’t get along with the grandfather’s family, causing trouble again?
Nanny Jin packed up the quarter of the cream cake and handed it to Qi Ershun, "This is our shop’s freshly-baked cream cake, it tastes excellent; take it back and try it. When there is a chance, Nanny Jin will bring you fresher delicacies."
Qi Ershun was already deeply concerned about his family’s situation, but upon hearing Nanny Jin’s words, he was overcome by a different feeling. From Nanny Jin’s tone, it was as though he might never come to the small food shop again.
He hesitated before asking, "Nanny Jin, do you know what’s happened at my home? If it isn’t urgent, let’s finish our work and close the shop, then we can go back together afterwards."