Chapter 197 In gambling terms, this is a total win!

At the entrance of Sunshine Primary School, the line of customers waiting early in the morning was even longer than the day before. Yesterday, Lu Qin’s snack stall had gained a large following in the Lotus District. Many food lovers from Lotus District had even traveled to Annan District just to eat Lu Qin’s breakfast.

Some customers arrived an hour early, thinking they would beat the crowd, only to find that even more people had already gathered ahead of them.

The most extreme customer arrived at 5 AM, bringing along a small stool and a thermos, showing clear experience in the art of waiting. The local city inspectors were originally tasked with monitoring stalls, making sure they closed by 8:30 AM to avoid disrupting traffic and public order.

But now, no other stalls were operating in the area, and only Lu Qin remained. The inspectors only had to keep an eye on Lu Qin’s stall, which left them feeling somewhat idle. Sometimes, when the stall went past closing time, they didn’t force him to close down. They didn’t dare.

It wasn’t that Lu Qin wouldn’t close his stall, but the customers wouldn’t let him. They were all extremely passionate.

If anyone dared to ask Lu Qin to pack up, customers would take their small stools and swing them at your head.

They really would!

Even if blood were to spill, no one would stop eating Lu Qin’s food. In fact, some of the inspectors’ family members were even in line for the food.

Who would dare stop their own parents from having breakfast, risking the wrath of being labeled unfilial?

Of course, no one dared to. So, the inspectors’ work gradually shifted to maintaining order in Lu Qin’s line.

As long as the customers didn’t cause any major disturbances, everything would go smoothly. Sometimes, the inspectors even joined the line to buy food.

They were shocked to discover that a breakfast costing only a few dozen yuan tasted like the luxury food from a five-star hotel. It even surpassed the breakfast served at a five-star hotel in terms of taste. It was absolutely delicious!

Lu Qin’s food was nothing like the other street breakfast stalls. The taste completely overshadowed everything else. No wonder so many people were willing to queue up. Even if they had to stand in line for hours, they would still come!

“Wow! So many people are already in line so early? Lu Boss said 8 AM in the group chat!”

“The line’s like a twisted knot! But for that delicious taste, waking up early is totally worth it!”

“I’ve given up on breakfast for five years, but today I’m definitely breaking my fast!”

_____

The new lotus blossom pastries and layered oil cakes were only made in small batches of 100 each for the tasting. The lotus blossom pastries, two in a box, were priced at 50 yuan.

The layered oil cakes, four pieces in a box, were priced at 35 yuan. The ingredients for these two pastries weren’t expensive, but the skill, labor, and time cost were significant. However, for the customers, the price was still very reasonable.

The taste of Lu Qin’s pastries was even better than those offered by upscale hotels, where they cost hundreds of yuan per serving. So, customers didn’t hesitate to spend. If they were slow to act, they’d miss out, and it was a bargain for them.

The early birds who managed to buy the new lotus blossom pastries and layered oil cakes couldn’t hide their proud smiles. A sense of superiority was written all over their faces.

“I got it, and you didn’t! You’re a little loser!”

“The lotus blossom pastries are really beautiful! How do they taste?”

“The layered oil cakes look so good!”

“Damn! I missed the alarm and came late! My lotus blossom pastries and layered oil cakes! I want to taste them so badly!”

“Lu Boss’ snack stall is getting better and better, I’m giving it a thumbs up! I can eat something different every day from now on!”

_____

Before 9 AM, Lu Qin closed up the stall. Over thirty customers didn’t manage to get food, and they angrily grumbled. After waiting in line for so long and now being hungry, they could only go buy from the nearby Sunshine Bun Shop.

The bun shop owner, who had been struggling to get customers, greeted the customers with a smile, surprised that he was picking up leftovers from Lu Qin’s queue.

“Boss, I’ll have two pork buns and a cup of soy milk.”

“Hey, you also have green bean paste, then give me a cup of that, and three flower rolls!”

“One corn and a shao mai, hurry up, I’m starving!”

_____

The bun shop owner rushed around, but his face was full of smiles. However, after customers ate a couple of buns, they couldn’t help but frown.

“What kind of buns are these? The dough is not soft enough, and the filling is average. It’s bad!”

“Boss, your green bean paste is sour and gooey!”

“Are these shao mais made by feet? The taste is terrible!”

“Bad! Not good!”

“Not good at all!”

____

The customers’ unanimous negative reviews left the bun shop owner stunned, and the smile on his face faded.

“How could this happen?”

The bun shop owner checked.

“What’s wrong with the buns and shao mai? The green bean paste is supposed to taste like this, there’s no sourness at all.”

He was puzzled—he’d been making the buns the same way for years, and his family always ate them without complaint.

“Forget it, forget it. This is just a low-level bun shop. Eat with your eyes closed and forget the taste!”

“I can’t eat this. I want Lu Boss’ fried rice noodles!”

“Compared to Lu Boss’ crystal shrimp dumplings, it’s like heaven and earth.”

The owner was frustrated to hear his buns being torn apart, his nose practically twitching with anger.

____

He’d at least paid for some training at New Oriental for his steaming skills. While it wasn’t anything special, they were decently tasty. But these customers were so picky!

Do they think they’re eating with the Emperor’s taste buds?!

Though he thought that to himself, the customers were still his bread and butter. They paid real money for those buns, so the owner could only swallow his frustration.

The bun shop owner wasn’t even trying to compete with Lu Qin’s snack stall. He was already picking up the customers that Lu Qin didn’t want—how could he compare?

In the afternoon, Lu Qin went back to the Lotus District Food Festival to set up his stall again. Yesterday, he was outside; today, he was right inside the venue, in a prime location, with the stall fee waived.

Very nice.

Lu Qin knew there would be a large crowd, so he prepared plenty of food for sale. As soon as the Lu Qin snack cart arrived, the other stall owners took notice. This was the big shot who, on his own, had managed to steal the whole food festival’s crowd the day before.

A food god bullying the newbie village!

But today was different. Lu Qin was now part of the food festival, and he had set up in the most prominent position. Soon enough, a huge wave of customers rushed in from the entrance.

“Has Lu Boss arrived?”

“Over there! Go get in line!”

“I want fried rice noodles!”

“Twice-cooked pork and mapo tofu, forever the best!”

_____

Not far away, Qin Hui looked at this scene, a satisfied smile on his face. Before, he didn’t realize Lu Qin’s snack stall was so popular. Now that it had joined the food festival, it was bound to bring in a massive amount of traffic.

As expected, customers flocked to Lu Qin’s stall, and a long line quickly formed. The official live stream for the food festival was restarted, and the host, Wu Yiyi, highlighted Lu Qin’s stall right at the start.

“Everyone, as you can see, Lu Qin’s stall is incredibly popular! It’s only been set up for a short time, and the line is already dozens of meters long!”

“I heard Lu Qin’s stall has been a hit at the University Town Night Market in Annan District, but I didn’t know! I’m sure the foodies in the live stream know about it, though!”

The comments section exploded. Stars, glow sticks, and other gifts flooded in!

“It’s our most handsome snack stall owner from Annan District—Lu Boss!”

“His food is so great! I want to be his wife, so I can eat his food every day! Just thinking about it makes me happy!”

“Just dreaming!”

“We’ve got new products today—lotus blossom pastries and layered oil cakes. I’m already on my way!”

_____

Wu Yiyi watched the live stream’s popularity rise and felt her confidence soar. She held her live streaming equipment, broadcasting while in line, eager to get her hands on all the snacks to do an eating broadcast.

Other stall owners, seeing the growing crowd, started preparing for a big sales push.

“Grilled skewers! Fresh lamb skewers! Buy one and get a free drink!”

“Small lobsters—75 yuan for three pounds! Get two bottles of beer for free!”

“Squid! Stinky tofu! Big sausages! Freshly fried!”

“Cold noodles! Ice jelly!”

_____

The shouting never stopped!

Ten minutes later, the stall owners were dumbfounded. They’d been yelling for so long, but not a single customer came their way—they all rushed toward Lu Qin’s stall!

It was as if there was only one stall in the whole venue—Lu Qin’s snack stall, and the rest were just decorations!

Lu Qin’s stall was really unbeatable!

In casino terms, this was a total win!