In late spring, daybreak came increasingly early. As the eastern sky turned the color of fish belly white and the morning drums were halfway through, those heading to court, merchants, and people going about their business all gathered at the ward gate, waiting for the final drum to signal they could pass.

Near the ward gate, several food stalls were steaming with activity, serving these early risers.

Zhao Eight selling wontons, Qiu Da with his flatbread basket, and Lu Third Sister frying dough twists were familiar faces seen daily, but today there was a new face—a rather striking young woman. With apricot eyes, snow-white skin, and a tall figure, she would have been considered a beauty if she were a bit more voluptuous.

Before she sat a charcoal stove topped with a flat iron pan, beside which stood a small bamboo rack holding uniform white porcelain bowls containing various oil-based condiments and sauces.

The young woman brushed a layer of oil onto the pan and then poured a ladle of batter onto the iron surface. With a quick turn of a small scraper, the batter spread evenly, and she cracked an egg on top, instantly forming a pancake.

Flipping the pancake over, she spread sauce on it, sprinkled green onions and cilantro, added fried dough twists, cut it in half, and folded it together, completing the pancake.

Rather than using her hands, she used a small spatula to slide it into a prepared coarse bamboo paper bag. Paper was an expensive item—using it to wrap pancakes was truly luxurious.

Someone immediately stepped forward to ask the price—ten coins. Though not cheap, considering the quality, it wasn’t expensive either.

This person opened the bag and took a bite. Mmm—the pancake was fragrant and soft, different from the usual hard-fried pancakes, probably due to the egg. The fried dough twist inside was crispy, with savory, spicy sauce plus the fragrance of green onions and cilantro—delicious.

Seeing him enjoy it, others came to buy it as well. Even some nobles in carriages sent their servants over, and gradually a crowd gathered around the stall.

Assistant Prefect Lin Yan lifted the gauze curtain of his carriage window and caught a glimpse of the “commotion” nearby—foreign-style clothing and hair, willow eyebrows and apricot eyes, smiling lips… Wasn’t that the palace maid released a few days ago?

Like swallows that once flew before the halls of Wang and Xie nobles, now fluttering quite happily in these street alleys…

A servant in blue clothing came to the window and asked softly: “Young Master hasn’t had breakfast, shall I go buy some pastries?” Though it was just a formality—the young master never liked such common, strongly flavored street food.

“…Very well,” Lin Yan nodded, lowering the gauze curtain, “Buy several.”

Several… The blue-clothed servant paused, glanced at his master through the gauze window, and then looked back at the pancake-selling young woman, suddenly understanding. He handed the reins to his companion and jogged toward the food stall.

Inside the carriage, Lin Yan gently massaged his brow. He hadn’t been sleeping well these past few days, and his eyes were sore.

Today the Emperor would go to the Circular Mound to pray to Heaven for rain. Though the Imperial Guard was responsible for security during imperial outings, clearing and checking the route was the Capital Prefecture’s duty. The Imperial Guard Commander Qin Xiang, formerly the Emperor’s attendant, spoke very politely in his soft voice, “I’m just an ignorant servant, relying entirely on you all…” Thinking of this powerful eunuch made Lin Yan’s temples throb.

Lin Yan’s thoughts drifted to the capital’s security. Recently, prices in the capital hadn’t changed much, with rice rising about ten coins per dou. As long as the Grand Canal remained navigable and the Ever-Normal Granaries had sufficient stores, the capital’s residents shouldn’t face major food issues. However, the drought had made people uneasy, with rumors about “river beasts appearing” and “heaven’s eye closing”…

When the ward gates opened after the three thousand morning drum beats, the blue-clothed servant finally returned with several pancakes. “Young Master, please eat while they’re hot.”

“Share them among yourselves,” Lin Yan tapped the carriage wall, signaling to move forward.

The blue-clothed servant was stunned, looking at the swaying carriage curtain, then back at the still-busy young woman. Had he misunderstood?

After the early morning crowd had passed and the sun had risen, serving another wave of breakfast to late risers who didn’t go out, Shen Shaoguang packed up her stall like the other vendors.

Shen Shaoguang had positioned her pancakes as “mid-to-high-end” breakfast fare: This was an upscale neighborhood where residents generally had good purchasing power. With egg and sauce making the pancakes flavorful, people would accept paying a few extra coins compared to flatbread. The paper bags increased costs but were hygienic, preventing fastidious customers from finding it dirty or worrying about staining their hands, as sauce, green onions, and crumbs falling on sleeves and collars would be unseemly. They were also convenient—whether walking or riding, one could eat with one hand while standing or moving.

Today’s trial run proved this positioning was sensible.

Shen Shaoguang weighed the money bag, roughly calculating that after costs, she could earn eighty to ninety coins. That meant over two thousand coins monthly—a newly appointed Proofreader of Texts who had passed the highest imperial examinations only earned about ten thousand coins, so it was enough for a single woman’s expenses. However, using these two thousand coins to buy a house in Chang’an remained a distant dream—the comrade still needed to work harder.

Pulling her small cart back to her lodgings at the temple, Shen Shaoguang encountered the reception nun Jingci waiting at the door.

Jingci’s triangular eyes swept from Shen Shaoguang to the small stove and racks on the cart, asking with an insincere smile: “Miss Shen has been quite busy early this morning?”

Shen Shaoguang smiled with narrowed eyes: “Yes, went out to get some fresh air.”

Fresh air indeed—she was out doing merchant’s work! A mocking smile played on Jingci’s lips. To be fair, Jingci had no issue with merchants, especially the wealthy merchant families who came to burn incense—merchants were people too. But this tolerance didn’t extend to street vendors. Jingci felt Shen Shaoguang’s actions brought shame to the temple! Intolerable!

Shen Shaoguang pulled her cart past her, while Jingci turned and flew like a large moth to Jingqing.

“That Miss Shen is selling pancakes on the street, it’s truly improper. Sister, please report to the Abbess and have her expelled.”

Jingqing coughed lightly in embarrassment, “You’ve forgotten, she paid rent…”

“So what? We can return it.” As the receptionist handling money matters, Jingci truly didn’t care about Shen Shaoguang’s small rent payment.

“It’s not that simple,” Jingqing patiently advised, “If people learn we don’t keep our word, it might damage the temple’s reputation.”

Hearing Jingqing bring up “reputation,” Jingci finally came to her senses and pondered for a moment, “Fine then, let her stay for these three months.”

Jingqing recalled the scene from two days ago when Lay Buddhist Shen brought pancakes to the Abbess.

While eating the pancakes, the Abbess listened to Lay Buddhist Shen’s quote, “Wealth can be pursued; even as a whip-holder, I would do it.” How did the Abbess respond then? “Young lady truly practices the Master’s words, most admirable!”

Just think about it—selling pancakes on the street was practicing Confucius’s teachings! The Master truly had no principles when it came to good food. What three-month limit? At this rate, the Master might agree to let Miss Shen open a restaurant in the temple.

But these words couldn’t be shared with other disciples—had to save some face for the Master.

Jingci was still muttering: “How could a lady from a noble family do such work? Perhaps she’s not really from a noble family?”

If Shen Shaoguang were here, she would have certainly scoffed—forget noble ladies, even emperors had ended up making matchboxes! Consider the last emperor Puyi, for example?