Traditional Sour Plum Drink

Because Bai Yinuo's parents used to run a milk tea shop, a cup sealing machine was still kept in the shop. When Bai Yinuo tested it, she found it was still in good condition. Since Suanmeitang was inconvenient to carry around, she poured it into plastic cups and sealed them. This would make it convenient for customers to take away directly. Zhao Xiaomin and Zhou Yuan both wanted to order a portion.

The two returned to their school office. With summer here, Zhou Yuan often heard Zhao Xiaomin complain that there was nowhere in Haishi that sold delicious and convenient Suanmeitang. Since Zhou Yuan had never had it before, she didn't care much, only looking at Zhao Xiaomin with amusement: "You're exaggerating. No matter how delicious it is, can it really beat milk tea?"

In Zhou Yuan's eyes, this kind of Suanmeitang was like Douzhi—the capital's specialty—which only locals liked, while outsiders found it hard to appreciate. If it weren't for her tight budget, she would have definitely bought a large iced milk tea to go with her rice today.

Zhou Yuan took a straw, poked through the sealing film, and took a sip without much expectation. However, in the next second, her eyes gradually widened. Her mind, which had never had any memory of the taste of Suanmeitang, began to sway under the impact of this sweet and fresh flavor. In the end, all the chaotic emotions in her mind turned into an exclamation: It's really delicious!

Although the sun had set in Haishi in August, the temperature had not dropped at all. After a trip outside, both of their backs were drenched in sweat, their moods were irritable, and their faces were flushed from the sweltering heat. The ice-cold Suanmeitang made people feel comfortable. The sweet and refreshing taste was so wonderful that Zhou Yuan held a mouthful in her mouth, reluctant to swallow it. The indescribable sweet and sour taste seeped deep into her organs, and the lingering coldness made her feel refreshed, calming her mood.

Swallowing a mouthful, she felt the irritability in her heart quickly soothed by this cold, sweet, and sour drink. She couldn't help but recall the book *Jin Ping Mei* she had studied. On a hot summer day, Ximen Qing felt the weather was unbearably hot in the garden, so he ordered someone to make honey-sweetened plum water and put ice in it. Ximen Qing took a sip, and the coldness penetrated his bones, his heart, and his teeth, as if honey was poured into his heart. At that time, she thought it was because ancient people had never eaten good food, so they regarded plum water as a rare treasure. As it turned out, she was the one who didn't understand the world, feeling both sweet and distressed because she had discovered it too late.

As soon as Zhao Xiaomin sat at her desk, she immediately poked open her cup of Suanmeitang with a straw. She took a sip, and the pleasant, rich, sweet taste immediately rushed into her mouth. This sweet, cool, and refreshing feeling jolted her spirit. She exclaimed happily, "So refreshing! This is the exact taste!"

Her favorite drink used to be the old-fashioned Suanmeitang, which was completely handmade and sold out on the same day. One year, on the hottest summer day, her father had given it to her to drink. She drank three bowls in a row until she almost threw up. That was the brightest, most deeply engraved flavor in her mind. And this cup of drink almost perfectly matched the flavor in her memory. Because the main ingredients were smoked plums and dark plum paste, when drinking homemade Suanmeitang, the aftertaste usually had a bit of bitter astringency. But this was not a big problem; some people even liked this astringency. However, in the eyes of Zhao Xiaomin, who had a sweet tooth, the cup in front of her had a very gentle astringency, and the flavor was clearly a level higher.