CHAPTER 265: CHAPTER 265: HOW DID THIS PLACE BECOME A HOTSPOT TOURIST ATTRACTION!

Wenzhou Train Station.

A few drivers were soliciting passengers in front of the train station.

One driver shouted, "To Boss Jiang’s stall location, 40 yuan per person! First come, first served, or he’ll pack up soon!"

Hearing his cry, several people indeed went to inquire.

A seven-seater minivan filled up quickly, and then, satisfied, the driver took the passengers toward Jiang Feng’s stall.

In recent days, ride-hailing and taxi drivers had been kept incredibly busy, all heading to the mountain to eat at the food stalls. No one really knew what magic Jiang Feng’s stall possessed.

The once sparsely populated wind power station suddenly became bustling. Moreover, many people discovered the beauty of the wind power station because of this, considering it a great spot for social media check-ins. As more people checked in, the wind power station gradually started to become popular.

Seeing this, the cultural department of the district and county immediately realized something. This isn’t right! We need to develop this! A tourist attraction could bring in quite a bit of revenue!

So, not long after Jiang Feng’s stall showed signs of becoming popular, the government initiated the construction of a park in the area and even added advertising banners. There was a lot of open space around the wind turbines, and with no original residents, it was the perfect place to create man-made landscapes, which could facilitate visits from tourists.

In addition to the government taking action, other small vendors also started setting up stalls in the wind power station area, not far from Jiang Feng’s. This scenario was nothing new to Jiang Feng. Wherever he went, many people would come to set up their stalls; Jiang Feng was used to it.

At this moment, Jiang Feng was still preparing snacks for customers. Today marked his sixth day running the stall. Jiang Feng had purposefully publicized his stall hours to prevent people from making a wasted trip. A visibly lively scene surrounded him. Some people came not just for the snacks, but also to enjoy the scenery and take photos. Taking pictures amidst a ring of metal wind turbines was very photogenic and felt quite nice.

Nobody would have imagined that the ordinary Pingyang Wind Power Station would become so popular, especially since similar wind turbines could be seen all over the wilds of China. Of course, the Pingyang Wind Power Station itself was already a niche attraction with quite pleasant scenery. Many people drove there every day. In the past few days, Jiang Feng had relied on these visitors to complete his task of running the food truck. Now, Jiang Feng had simply brought immense foot traffic to this scenic spot, causing the wind power station’s popularity to explode.

With a larger crowd today, Jiang Feng had prepared more food. Moreover, he decided to make all four of his specialty snacks: sticky rice, lean meatballs, pork offal noodles, and lantern cakes. The sticky rice was pre-prepared, requiring no additional cooking or stewing, so Zhuangfei was in charge of serving it. The lean meatballs and pork offal noodles were freshly cooked by Jiang Feng before being handed to customers. For this reason, Jiang Feng had prepared a lot of ingredients, wanting more people to have a taste.

Wang He came over again today. The food made by Jiang Feng was his greatest craving. When he reached the front of the queue, Wang He found himself in a dilemma, hesitant about what to eat. Eventually, he chose the pork offal noodles and lantern cakes.

"Right away," Jiang Feng replied, beginning to work busily.

Many people around him aimed their phone cameras at the food truck, filming the entire process of Jiang Feng making the snacks. The process was the same; his methods were no different from other stalls. It was merely about how he handled the ingredients and controlled the heat.

Jiang Feng first scooped out a bowl of pork offal noodles, with large intestines and coagulated pork blood atop the rice noodles, then ladled over a spoonful of broth—aromatic and delicious.

Next, Jiang Feng began to prepare the lantern cakes. Making lantern cakes required frying them in a wok of oil. A basin next to him was already filled with oil. Jiang Feng flicked the switch, and the oil temperature quickly rose. He then took out a large ladle, let it preheat in the oil, and then drizzled a layer of batter into it. The batter immediately coated the ladle, forming a thin pancake. After that, Jiang Feng added shredded radish to the batter, then a spoonful of beaten egg, and finally, pieces of pork belly marinated in sugar, vinegar, and cooking wine. He then poured another layer of batter on top, completely encasing the shredded radish, egg, and pork belly. Finally, he submerged the entire ladle in the hot oil.

SIZZLE SIZZLE SIZZLE.

Instantly, countless tiny bubbles began to form around the batter in the ladle. The surface of the batter gradually turned golden brown until it naturally detached from the ladle. It was then deep-fried on high heat for about ten more minutes until the surface was golden brown and crispy. A lantern cake was ready.

This kind of lantern cake, filled with meat, egg, and shredded radish, had a crispy outer layer, reminiscent of fried bread, while the batter inside remained hot and soft. The pork belly, marinated with Jiang Feng’s special recipe, was exceptionally aromatic. The egg was also fresh and tender. Making a lantern cake wasn’t difficult; for Jiang Feng, this simple yet unique cooking method was particularly enjoyable. All the preparation was done in the ladle. Finally, simply immersing the ladle in the hot oil cooked the lantern cake. This snack was very popular locally and could be considered a representative delicacy of Wenzhou.

Wang He took his bowl of pork offal noodles and a lantern cake, then found a place to sit down. A bowl of noodles paired with a lantern cake was the perfect combination. It provided the satiety of a main meal along with the spicy kick of the rice noodles. If he didn’t engage in any strenuous physical activity afterward, he wouldn’t feel hungry until evening.

Meanwhile, a few taxi drivers were waiting for fares not far away. The roadside was lined with many parked cars. Tourists were everywhere, taking photos. Moreover, even tourist buses were arriving, and more than twenty seniors wearing little yellow hats disembarked. The seniors looked at the beautiful natural scenery, grinning from ear to ear. They most enjoyed this kind of natural landscape. Furthermore, they had heard that the most delicious local snacks were available here.

"Follow me, everyone! Let’s go line up quickly!" the tour guide shouted through a megaphone. "If we line up early, we can eat earlier! According to our estimate, in another hour, there won’t be any snacks left!"

The taxi drivers watched this scene, looking at each other in disbelief. Wow, what kind of magic does this stall owner possess to draw over a tour group!

A couple who had driven themselves arrived at the site and panicked a little upon seeing the tour group. They parked their car and immediately ran towards Jiang Feng’s food truck. If we’re late, we really won’t get to eat, they thought. There are just too many people in that tour group!

The man ran faster; the woman’s stamina was average.

At this point, the woman said to him, "You run ahead and get in line! Don’t wait for me! If you get in line first, we’ll both get to eat! It’s all up to you!"

Hearing this, the man gave her a resolute, reassuring look and then quickened his pace.

I have to run, he thought. Ahead of me are all those seniors from the tour group. If I end up behind them, it’ll be almost impossible to get any food.

At the food truck, Jiang Feng and Sun Zhuangfei were both caught up in the bustle. They simply couldn’t stop. They filled one order right after another. No sooner had they handed out one portion than the next order arrived.

Although he had prepared a particularly large amount of ingredients for the day, Jiang Feng looked up and thought, It seems like the number of customers has multiplied. With this many people, I couldn’t serve them all even if I worked 24 hours a day. I’ll just have to cook until the ingredients run out, then I can rest.

Amidst this constant busyness, by a little past one o’clock in the afternoon, all the snacks at the food truck had finally sold out. Lean meatballs, pork offal noodles, sticky rice, and lantern cakes—nothing was left.

Jiang Feng let out a satisfied sigh of relief. Then, with a feeling of exhilaration, he shouted to the crowd, "Sorry, everyone, we’re all sold out! No need to queue anymore! There are other food stalls nearby, please try them!"

Many people captured this scene with their phone cameras.

Some who hadn’t managed to get any snacks still laughed, "Boss Jiang is clocking off! He looks so happy, haha!"

"Let him experience what ’savage consumption’ is!"

"He’s closing up already? Can’t he sell for a few more hours?"

Jiang Feng waved his hand. "Everything’s gone! Tomorrow is the last day, so please come back then. We’re closed for today!"

With that, Jiang Feng and Sun Zhuangfei started packing up the food truck, ready to leave.

At this moment, reporters from a TV station approached them.

"Boss Jiang, Boss Jiang, may we interview you?" one reporter asked hurriedly. "Just a few simple questions."

Being interviewed by reporters had become a commonplace occurrence for Jiang Feng. Whenever he caused some commotion, reporters would show up. In this era of online buzz, whoever generated it would be in the spotlight.

"Okay, ask away," Jiang Feng replied, opening the window from the driver’s seat of the food truck.

The reporter’s questions were the usual ones: "Why did you choose to set up your stall here?", "Where are you planning to go next?", and "What are your thoughts on so many people coming here?"

Jiang Feng responded appropriately, mentioning that he followed his mood and added that what mattered most was that everyone enjoyed the food.

Then, Jiang Feng drove off, departing as coolly and unattached as if flicking his sleeves, not taking a single cloud with him.

However, the impact Jiang Feng was creating grew larger and larger. Many city tourism bureaus were highly envious, seeing how Jiang Feng could make even a wind power station incredibly popular. Numerous cities wished they could immediately invite Jiang Feng to set up a stall in their location, specifically in their tourist spots. Many city tourism bureaus even posted public invitations on social media, under topics discussing the wind power station’s booming popularity, welcoming Jiang Feng—especially bureaus from cities heavily reliant on tourism.

Seeing these official accounts’ comments, netizens were greatly amused. They too responded in the comments. Some were fervently campaigning for their own cities, while others remarked that their cities had high living costs and shouldn’t rely solely on food to attract people.

Jiang Feng had now become a name known throughout the country, extending far beyond just one city.

This commotion is getting pretty big. It’s going to be harder to find places to set up my stall in the future, Jiang Feng mused.

The buzz at the wind power station lasted for another day, only diminishing somewhat after Jiang Feng left. However, the place had already been made famous by him. This wave of popularity had been firmly capitalized upon.