In the early morning, when the sky was just beginning to light up, Wuda, as usual, took down the door plank of the pancake stall.
Actually, he had gotten up at "yinshi"—around 3 to 5 a.m.—and started the process of mixing, kneading, letting the dough rise, shaping the pancakes, heating the pot, and steaming…
By the time the first batch of pancakes was ready, the residents of East Apricot Fang were just heading out to work.
"Big guy, give me two pancakes!"
"Three pancakes for me, two with pickled vegetables, one with fried dough in it."
"I'll take five."
While responding, Wuda skillfully served the pancakes and collected money.
As one basket after another sold out, and with the rising of the sun, all the customers had passed by.
Wuda tidied up the chopping board briefly, then moved a bench to the storefront and sat down. He took out two leftover pancakes for breakfast and nibbled at them slowly.
