Chapter 92

Neither Summer nor Logan took the young woman's money or coupons.

As they bickered, Logan finally smiled and said to the young man, "How about you try a bowl too?"

The young man, having reached his limit, glanced between Logan and the girl in front of him.

Feigning reluctance, he said, "Well… maybe I should try one, just to check the taste…"

He knew he wouldn't sleep a wink that night without trying it.

His reaction didn't surprise Summer or Logan. They exchanged a knowing glance and quietly began cooking.

***

Summer and Logan worked until the sun set and dusk enveloped the market.

With no lights to cook by and no way to eat in the dark, it was time to close up.

Though exhausted from the long day, they were in high spirits.

By the time they returned to the team headquarters, the sky was pitch black. After pushing the cart into the storage room, they stayed to count their earnings and balance the books.

The team headquarters was the only place in Willow Creek with electricity.

Under the dim light, Summer leaned close to Logan, silently watching him do the math.

Since Logan kept the books, it made sense for him to tally up their earnings.

When he finished, Summer asked, "How much did we make today?"

Logan looked at his ledger and said, "After subtracting costs and the team's share, we made $4.20. That's $2.10 each."

Summer's eyes widened. "That's a lot!"

She had hoped to sell ten bowls on their first day and would have been content with that.

Logan closed the ledger and looked at her, "For the first day, this is really good. Let's hope more people learn about our noodle stand, and business keeps getting better."

Summer nodded confidently, "It'll get better, one step at a time."

Feeling satisfied with the day's success, Logan put away the ledger, turned off the storage room light, and they locked up before heading back.

Having woken up early and worked all day, Summer quickly fell asleep once she lay down.

The next day, with no pressing tasks, neither Summer nor Logan got up early.

Summer, a deep sleeper, wasn't disturbed by the boys' alarm clocks but was eventually woken by the commotion from Grace and the other girls getting up.

She tried to sleep through it, but their noise was persistent, as if deliberately trying to wake her.

Unable to calm down, she spoke in a steady voice, "If you're really brave, you'd skip work and make noise all day. What's the point of just this morning?"

Grace and the other girls paused, surprised.

Grace scoffed, "Who said we're making noise on purpose? Don't think so highly of yourself. We're just getting ready, not everything's about you."

Summer kept her eyes closed, her tone calm and detached, "I'm not stupid. You're just jealous I have a job with holidays and can sleep in. Jealousy won't help you. Focus on your own lives. If you don't, soon you'll find no one cares about your complaints."

Grace snorted, "We're doing just fine. Out of twelve people in this dorm, ten don't like you. Worry about yourself."

Summer smirked and didn't respond.

The girls left for work, and the dormitory finally quieted down, allowing Summer to get some more sleep.

Before drifting off, she thought—she had to move out and get away from these people.

After waking up again, she washed, ate, and fed the chickens.

She and Logan had asked Amy to feed them the day before, and they hadn't gone hungry.

After finishing her chores, Summer and Logan went to the team headquarters to settle the previous day's accounts with Ben.

Seeing how much they made in one day, Ben exclaimed, "Impressive!"

Logan said proudly, "Summer's cooking is great, no surprise there."

Ben nodded, smiling, "Keep it up!"

Summer nodded enthusiastically, "We will!"

***

Since the market wasn't open every day, Summer and Logan didn't set up their stand daily. When not at the market, they worked with the production team to earn work points.

On market days, they pulled their cart to the market.

With their first experience, word spread about their noodle stand, and business improved each time.

After four or five outings, many people recognized the Willow Creek State-Run Noodle Stand, and Summer's noodles became a favorite for those wanting a treat.

Previously, people had gone to the state-run cafeteria for noodles. Now, they waited for market days to get a bowl of Summer's noodles.

As they kept busy, summer vacation flew by.

In early September, school resumed, and Summer and Logan returned to their teaching duties.

With the experience from the first term, this term was easier. They collected fees, got books from the county education bureau, and began classes smoothly.

Even after school started, they didn't plan to give up their stand. They hadn't yet saved enough for a house, and Sundays were free, so they continued.

The first Sunday after school started coincided with a big market, just before the Mid-Autumn Festival. The team gave everyone a day off to shop for the festival.

People saved all year to spend during the Mid-Autumn Festival and Chinese New Year. 

That morning, before the rooster crowed, many villagers were already up.

The excitement of the festival began with the market day.

After breakfast, families, with children in tow, headed to the market.

Summer and Logan also got up early. Preparing for a big market required more supplies.

While the villagers were already at the market, the others in the dormitory began to stir.

After washing and eating, they too prepared to go to the market.

They were buying food for the festival. With no meat coupons, they didn't need to buy meat; the village would slaughter pigs and distribute the meat based on family size. Like grain, it wasn't free but had to be paid for.

At the market, they would buy treats they usually couldn't afford. Mooncakes were a must for the Mid-Autumn Festival, and those with better conditions would buy osmanthus cakes and osmanthus wine.

By this time of year, many families had run out of fine grain. To have a decent meal for the festival, they brought coarse grain to the grain station to exchange for fine grain.

Henry's group also had no fine grain left. The little they received from the team was traded with locals for pickles, who didn't want coarse grain, so they gave up their fine grain.

Without fine grain and needing to celebrate, they, like the locals, brought coarse grain to the grain station to exchange.

After breakfast, Charlie grabbed a sack and went with Gabe to measure the grain.

Charlie scooped half a ladle of sorghum into the sack.

With so many people, they needed a lot of grain.

As he scooped the second half ladle, he paused, a frown creasing his face.

He dumped the grain into the sack and looked around.

Seeing his strange behavior, Gabe asked impatiently, "What's up with you? Keep scooping."

Charlie ignored him and continued looking around.

Gabe, now annoyed, said, "What's your problem? We're supposed to be going to the market."

Charlie finally said, "There's no point. We're out of grain. Did no one notice?"