If I ask you to set up a stall, why do you always run to deserted places?

Outside the Taishan Visitor Center, nine young people participating in a youth pastry exchange meeting were standing in a row next to a van.

Including the person in charge, Han Zhiyuan, and two other association staff members, there are a total of twelve people.

Everyone was there, but the expressions on their faces weren't very pleasant.

"Teacher Han." Fang Lei looked up at the endless line ahead, then glanced down at the group notification. "It says we'll meet at 9:00 AM, right?"

"Yes." Han Zhiyuan nodded.

"Then why did you tell us to be at the foot of the mountain by 7:30?"

"The notice said to arrive at Nantianmen at nine o'clock, not at the foot of Mount Tai at nine o'clock."

Fang Lei fell silent.

The exchange meeting was originally scheduled to be held at the hotel, which was just upstairs by elevator.

Now, not only do we have to take a car first, but we also have to take the scenic area bus, and after taking the bus, we have to squeeze onto the cable car. Even if everything goes smoothly, we still have to walk uphill after getting off the cable car.

This isn't a place to exchange ideas about pastry making!

Anyone who didn't know better would think these people were just looking for trouble!

"Luckily, I heard the notice and changed my shoes." A short-haired girl looked down at her sneakers. "I stood for more than ten hours yesterday while working on my piece, and then I came up here in high heels. Today, we don't need to talk; let's just talk about our illnesses."

The people around him all laughed.

Jiang Haoran was the only one who didn't say much. He watched the live stream replay until after 1 a.m. last night, and all he could see when he closed his eyes were those few constantly changing pancakes.

However, the video was too far away, and some things looked more and more real the more you looked at them, while other places seemed to be an illusion caused by the light.

He originally thought that once he got to the scene, he would be able to see it clearly.

But now, looking at the crowd outside the visitor center, he suddenly realized that it might be questionable whether they could even get close to that stall today.

Cars were being driven into the parking lot one after another, and the temporary lanes next to the entrance had been increased from two to four.

Many people, upon getting off the bus, didn't even look at the scenic area map; they immediately grabbed a staff member and started asking questions.

"Hello, where do I catch the bus to Nantianmen?"

"Is that pastry stall open yet?"

"Are there still numbers available if we go up now?"

"Can we get a number at the foot of the mountain first?"

The staff were overwhelmed by the questions and could only explain again and again that the stalls at the top of the mountain issue numbers independently, and the scenic area does not collect them on behalf of others or reserve them.

After listening for a while, Han Zhiyuan finally couldn't help but walk over and ask, "Master, why are there so many people today?"

"Didn't you watch yesterday's live stream?" the staff member asked in return.

"I've seen a little bit."

"That's not surprising." The staff member pointed behind the turnstiles. "Since the park opened at five o'clock this morning, nearly six thousand people have entered, which is more than three thousand more than the same time last week."

"It can't be said that everyone here is here to eat pancakes, but we just did a quick count, and out of ten people, at least seven or eight asked about that stall."

"How much?" Fang Lei wondered if he had misheard. "More than three thousand?"

This is just more than usual!

Mount Tai is not a shopping mall. Even if you take a car and a cable car, it will take half a day to get from the foot of the mountain to the South Heaven Gate.

Why would people buy tickets, take buses, and queue for cable cars just to eat a pastry that costs a dozen yuan? And why might they not even be able to buy it in the end?

"Didn't the authorities specifically issue a message yesterday telling tourists not to gather blindly?" the short-haired girl asked.

Upon hearing this, the staff member's expression became even more complicated. "They did distribute them, but people only remembered the words 'limited edition,' and they're all clamoring to grab them."

Everyone: "..."

So, the scenic area wrote such a long paragraph, but everyone only read two words?

But thinking about it carefully, it doesn't seem like there's anything wrong with it.

If there's no limit, you can go later; if there's a daily limit, wouldn't you have to get up even earlier?

Han Zhiyuan was initially worried that they had arrived too early, but now he wasn't worried at all. "Don't stand here, let's go up first."

The twelve people followed the crowd inside. When they arrived at the Zhongtianmen cable car station, the queue was even longer than at the foot of the mountain. They turned two corners but still couldn't see the end of the line.

Some people were carrying cameras, some were carrying insulated bags, and one man had six empty lunchboxes in his arms, clearly indicating that he had come prepared.

After staring at it for a while, Fang Lei couldn't help but ask, "Big brother, why are you bringing so many lunchboxes?"

"Pack the cakes."

"Didn't the boss provide packaging bags?"

"The bag won't keep the food warm." The older brother patted the lunchbox in his arms. "My wife and kids didn't make it up, I have to take it back to them."

"So how many are you planning to buy?"

"We'll buy as many as we can." The man thought for a moment, then glanced at them warily. "Are you here to buy pancakes too?"

"We're here to exchange ideas."

"What are we talking about?"

"Cooking skills".

The older brother clearly didn't believe it. "So what if you're going to become an apprentice? You're even exchanging cooking tips!"

Fang Lei: "......."

No, this is a blatant insult! What kind of status or position do they have that they need to become apprentices?

The line moved forward little by little, and by the time the twelve people were divided into two groups and boarded the cable car, it was already past 8:30.

As the cable car ascended higher and higher, the mountain path beneath our feet gradually came into view. Tourists on the steps formed a long, intermittent line; some were going up, while others were already carrying brown paper bags and heading down.

Even through the cable car window, you could see people eating as they walked.

"They've actually set up a stall!" the short-haired girl exclaimed.

"It started at seven!" Han Zhiyuan glanced at his phone. "They've already sent out the tenth round of numbers."

"How much is one round?"

"forty."

The cable car fell silent for a moment. How many hours had it been? Four hundred numbers had already been sent out?

"For a popular food stall, issuing numbers quickly doesn't mean the food will be served quickly," Fang Lei said, still unconvinced. "Buying one ticket with one number is completely different from buying five tickets with one number."

Jiang Haoran stood by the window, but his gaze remained fixed on the tourists walking back below.

Whether something tastes good or not can be faked in videos and expressions, but these people, even after walking so far away, still carefully protected the paper bag in their hands. After taking a bite, they immediately rolled the bag up again.

That guarded, thief-like demeanor couldn't have been something the boss had taught him beforehand, could it?

As soon as the cable car arrived at the station, they hadn't walked far when a faint aroma of pastry wafted over on the wind; the smell wasn't strong.

But for a group of people who deal with flour and oil all year round, it's clear enough.

Fang Lei's nose twitched, and his mouth, which had been talking non-stop just moments before, suddenly fell silent.

The short-haired girl glanced at him. "What's wrong?"

"This smell is a bit overpowering!"

"Tsk, I think you're just craving it."

"Nonsense!" Fang Lei immediately denied. "Do you think I'm that kind of person?!"

"Then why are you swallowing?"

"It's just that it's windy up in the mountains, and my throat is dry!"

The group continued walking forward, following the scent.

When they finally saw the platform near Nantianmen, they realized that seeing a lot of people in the live stream was completely different from seeing it in person.

Three isolation zones formed a giant "回" shape on the platform. Tourists who had received their numbers filled the adjacent rest area, while many others stood by the stone railing waiting.

Those who didn't get a number formed a long queue, which at least looked to be seven or eight hundred people.

At the far end of the crowd, a young man in a black coat stood behind the counter, head down, finishing a mutton pastry.

He didn't even raise his head once from beginning to end.

"Teacher Han."

Fang Lei stood outside the crowd for a while, then couldn't help but ask, "Where's Teacher Qin?"

"Let me ask." Han Zhiyuan took out his phone, and as soon as he dialed the number, someone in the nearby rest pavilion raised their hand.

Old Qin had arrived. He had changed into a very ordinary tracksuit today, and the young girl next to him was the same one from yesterday.

Nine young pastry chefs quickly went over.

"Teacher Qin."

"Hello, Teacher Qin."

Old Qin nodded, glanced at the time, and said, "Not bad, not late."

"Since you specifically reminded us, who would dare to be late?" Fang Lei said with a smile. "But aren't there a bit too many of them?"

"Is it a lot?"

"Isn't this enough?" Fang Lei pointed to the platform. "If we waited in line normally, we wouldn't get to eat until the afternoon."

"Then let's line up."

Fang Lei was taken aback. "We're queuing up too?"

"Otherwise what?"

Old Qin picked up his thermos and slowly took a sip. "Are you planning to have them close their business and make it for the nine of you first?"