“Juan-jie, you switching to food?” A coworker stepped up, asking Dong Xiaojuan while eyeing the flatbreads, swallowing hard.
“Where!” Dong Xiaojuan beckoned busily. “My relative’s Thousand-Layer Fresh Meat Pancakes, thought we’d try a stall. Master Yang, try one? Thin crust, thick meat, super fragrant! Our Old Fan and Xiaoshan can’t get enough.”
“How much?” Four or five miners followed the scent, eagerly asking about the new item.
They’d never smelled flatbreads this good; throats bobbed as they reached for money. Only three mao or so.
“Five mao each.” Dong Xiaojuan didn’t know why Feng Man priced them so; based on locals, as a newbie, she suggested four mao—cheaper to draw crowds.
The sesame flatbread sold for five mao each wasn’t too expensive, considering there were fresh meat pancakes available five hundred meters away for three mao apiece. They tasted decent enough, but the meat was so scant—just a thin layer—and often carried a fishy smell, making them feel far from fresh. They offered only a vague meaty taste, nowhere near Feng Man’s skill. On this point, Dong Xiaojuan had plenty of authority to speak.
Among the miners, Master Wu, who was on good terms with Fan Zhenghua, paused as he reached for his money. This sesame flatbread was pretty pricey: “Zhenghua’s wife, your prices are something else… The ones over there are only three mao each, and you’re asking five mao?”
Master Li, Master Wang, and Master Yang nodded in agreement, with Master Yang speaking bluntly: “How can you charge that much! Is it made of gold?”
“Masters.” A soft voice came from behind them, and soon a young woman appeared.
Feng Man smiled faintly: “We have clear prices marked. Good ingredients, great taste—it’ll definitely make you feel it’s worth the price.”
Selling a meat pancake for five mao each was bold talk. A few fellow workers gathered around Master Yang, all shouting that it was too expensive.
As more onlookers crowded in, Feng Man curved her lips slightly, stars twinkling in her eyes with a sly glint. Her gaze finally settled on Master Yang, whom she had glimpsed briefly the night before: “Master Yang, how about this? You eat first. If you think it’s not worth the price after trying it, I won’t charge you a single fen. If you think it is, then you pay.”
This was fresh—free food!
Master Yang had never seen such a sales tactic and couldn’t help but feel surprised. The other miners regretted it inwardly. Never mind the details—eat first. Too bad such good fortune hadn’t fallen to them.
More and more workers came out for meals and snacks, drawn by the commotion. Even customers from the noodle stalls carried their bowls over to watch the excitement.
Feng Man directly broke open a Thousand-Layer Fresh Meat Pancake. The golden crust had been baked to crispy perfection, shedding flakes, while the golden, oily five-flower pork filling inside—fat and lean interspersed—was soaked in sauce. A burst of fragrance wafted out, spreading everywhere. Many noses twitched, and eyes lit up.
Fragrant—it was truly fragrant!
The aroma made Master Yang swallow twice. He said gravely: “Fine! I’m a straightforward man. If it’s really good, I won’t take advantage of you!”
Right away, Feng Man handed him the broken-open pancake.
No one had ever heard of a business offering free tastes at opening. Everyone stared fixedly at Master Yang, waiting for his verdict.
Master Yang was forty-four this year and had worked in the mine for over a decade. He was known throughout the Mine District for his straightforward, serious nature—he said what he thought without mincing words. As he bit into the meaty aroma, there came a crisp “crunch.” The golden thousand-layer crust shattered in his mouth, quickly filling every corner.
The fresh meat inside had been perfectly cooked by the crust’s heat—fragrant and tender, not overdone or underdone. The juicy filling satisfied the craving completely, while bits of green onion released a faint fresh scent amid the chewing, blending perfectly between his teeth.
Master Yang ate faster and faster. He savored the first bite carefully, then devoured the rest in big mouthfuls, not even sparing the last crumbs. He finished it clean.
The others watched curiously and asked: “Master Yang, how is it?”
Master Yang’s mouth kept working as he chewed and swallowed busily. He waved a hand without speaking.
Seeing this gesture, the crowd assumed it wasn’t great and began chuckling gleefully: “And you dare charge five mao each!”
“Yeah, come buy mine instead!” The sesame flatbread vendor had come over too and was thrilled, seizing the chance to drum up business. “Mine are only three mao each!”
But just as everyone chattered on, Master Yang suddenly pulled money from his pocket and handed over a one-yuan bill: “This pancake is worth it! Give me another one—I didn’t get enough just now!”
Feng Man smilingly took the money. Seeing the crowd’s stunned reactions, she knew the “advertisement” had worked!
Under questioning from the other workers, Master Yang praised it several times: “Never tasted a sesame flatbread this fragrant and satisfying! That meat… ah, no more talk—I’m eating first.”
He took the second packaged pancake from Feng Man and ignored further questions, biting in with crisp crunches like a starving wolf.
The crowd was dumbfounded. Seeing Master Yang like this, their curiosity and hunger surged. The pancakes were pricey, sure, but that only heightened the suspense. Many miners pulled out money: “One for me!”
Dong Xiaojuan watched wide-eyed from the side as Feng Man sold out her expensive pancakes in just ten minutes!
That was fifteen pancakes— a full seven yuan and fifty fen!
Feng Man tallied her earnings and, facing those who wanted seconds or new arrivals eager to try, shook her head with a smile: “Sorry, it’s the first day, and I made only a few. They’re all sold out.”
He Chunsheng and a few fellow workers came over asking to buy pancakes. Over the past few days, he had always made detours to Dong Xiaojuan’s stall for snacks and soda, just to catch a glimpse of Feng Man helping watch the stall.
He hadn’t expected the beauty to not only be pretty but also have such great skills. From what those masters had just said, the pancakes were delicious.
He Chunsheng felt regretful, his youthful face flushing red like a green kid: “Comrade Feng, when will you sell again? I, cough, we’re all craving it.”
“Tomorrow at this time. I’ll make more then.”
He Chunsheng nodded vigorously: “Got it!”
It felt like a promise made, and sweetness bubbled in his heart.
The appetite-hooked crowd felt disappointed and regretful but noted that Feng Man would sell again tomorrow noon and planned to come early.
“Little Feng, why stop selling now?” Dong Xiaojuan was itching to help Feng Man drum up more business—there was still the afternoon left. “If you’re too busy, I’ll help knead dough and chop filling.”
Watching Feng Man leave money on the table, Dong Xiaojuan grew anxious.
Feng Man’s almond eyes sparkled with sly light: “On the first day, better not to satisfy them fully. Keep them hanging, and word of mouth will spread, making the whole Mine District hear about it.”
Feng Man wasn’t wrong. Word spread through the Mine District that there was a stall at the entrance selling Thousand-Layer Fresh Meat Pancakes—super tasty for five mao each.
At first, hearing they cost five mao but were supposedly amazing and fragrant, people wondered just how good they could be.
But who knew—they weren’t selling anymore today!
If the treats had been right there to eat immediately, maybe no one would obsess so much. But with eaters raving extravagantly and nothing to taste, the Thousand-Layer Fresh Meat Pancake became the hot topic that day. One told ten, ten told a hundred, and it quickly spread across the Mine District.
When news of the delicious and pricey Thousand-Layer Fresh Meat Pancakes at the Mine District entrance reached Cheng Lang’s ears, he was up on the mountain assisting with surveying.
Master Yang, Master Wu, and the others arrived for the shift change, mouths seemingly still savoring the lingering meat fragrance. They excitedly told their coworkers about pancakes a hundred times better than the cafeteria food or other stalls.
During survey breaks, the miners loved to chat idly. Hearing this, they dismissed it as exaggeration: “What pancake is so heavenly, like something the Queen Mother eats in heaven? Really?”
“Why not?” Master Wu had been curious enough after Master Yang ate two to buy one himself. One bite, and he knew the money was well spent. “That pancake really tasted amazing—the crust was truly crispy, the meat fragrant and tender, generous portions. Five mao each and worth every fen!”
“What? Five mao each?” The other workers thought Master Wu had gone mad. Why skip the three-mao meat pancakes for five-mao ones?
Master Wu pulled in Master Yang: “Old Yang, tell them—weren’t those pancakes super fragrant?”
Master Yang nodded, still savoring the memory: “Indeed fragrant! Way more than the others!”
Seeing the straightforward Master Yang endorse it, the crowd half-believed it, curiosity stirring. They casually agreed to check it out tomorrow.
Nearby miners chattered about food, while on the other side, Cheng Lang discussed survey results with Sun Weiguo.
Sun Weiguo pointed to the surveyed geological cross-section: “Over these four months, we’ve drilled and extracted core samples. The survey shows coal below, but the coal content fluctuates wildly. The bosses want hard data—we don’t dare judge lightly.”
Developing a mine could swallow hundreds of thousands in investment easily—no one took it lightly.
With recent changes in the survey team, especially the head boss above being removed, unease lingered.
“You studied under Master Chen for years—only you picked up his eagle eyes.” Sun Weiguo inwardly cursed Mine Chief You’s nephew You Jianyuan a hundred times. If not for him arbitrarily shifting posts on a pretext, none of this would have happened. “Help double-check it.”
Cheng Lang leaned in to examine the cross-section surveyed by the team—the anticline profile, surrounding rock alterations, dark and heavy colors. Sun Weiguo’s team had spent months drilling to deep subsurface soil. With the naked eye, he spotted color differences. He rubbed the soil heavily between fingers, noting its blackish-brown hue and loose texture—just as his master had described, the acidic kind.
The soil wasn’t literally acidic, of course—just so due to nearby coal deposits.
He let the soil fall and rubbed his fingers together before speaking: “This spot isn’t suitable for mining.”
The survey team’s daily work was scouting viable mining areas. After months of effort yielding this conclusion, Sun Weiguo pressed: “Why do you say that? The core data looks decent—coal content below shouldn’t be low.”
“Content’s decent, but quantity’s low.” Cheng Lang was concise. “Mining here would just waste manpower, resources, and money.”
After discussing, Sun Weiguo still hated to waste half a year’s work. As he asked more, snippets of resting miners planning tomorrow’s lunch drifted over.
“Already thinking of tomorrow’s lunch at this hour?” Sun Weiguo chuckled.
Master Wu called out enthusiastically: “Team Sun, Cheng Lang, try the new Thousand-Layer Fresh Meat Pancake stall at the entrance tomorrow—that taste is something else!”
Sun Weiguo heard them hype the pancake to the skies and grew curious: “Alright, we’ll check it tomorrow. Rest up now, eat, then back to work—probe more.”
Turning, they called to Cheng Lang, who hadn’t commented: “Tomorrow, come taste the pancakes with us?”
Cheng Lang neither confirmed nor denied, finished helping and prepared to leave: “No need, you go ahead.”
The other miners thought Cheng Lang truly ignored worldly matters, uncaring about tasty pancakes. They nagged: “Cheng Lang, you’re still single—why not check out the pancake seller? She’s super pretty.”
But he strode away without pause.
The crowd exchanged glances: “Cheng Lang’s really aloof. No fairy could catch his eye. Plenty of girls in the Mine District chased him before with no luck, and now this stunning pancake boss? He doesn’t even blink. Tsk…”
Today was originally Cheng Lang’s day off. After the noon delay up the mountain, he returned to the Mine District around three in the afternoon.