Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 449 Chapter 448 Reminiscence of the Past

After returning from the jade factory, Tang Zhitong lit the stove and fried two pots of pine nuts.

While frying pine nuts, Tang Zhitong was still thinking, if he could use this trick to invite his family to watch a movie when he needed some time alone in the future?

It seems to be very useful, but I have to have a good relationship with Ms. Chen from the union so that she can give me the movie tickets as a bonus.

November 1959, 11, the 17th day of the tenth lunar month, Tuesday, sunny.

After breakfast in the morning, the couple each took two lunch boxes of tofu and went to work.

Xiao Wang brought it to Chunshu Hutong, while Tang Zhitong brought it to the school dinner.

In addition, Tang Zhitong also stuffed some pickles in it. Since the Chinese toon pickles have little moisture, he just wrapped them roughly with newspaper.

This time, it was Tang Zhitong who took the two younger sisters to school again, while Xiao Wang changed his route and headed north along Wangfujing Street, first going to Chunshu Hutong to drop off the tofu.

Tang Zhitong had a cheat, so when he arrived at the Post and Telecommunications College, it was almost time for class. He didn't go back to the dormitory to put the square box, but threw the space and went directly to the classroom.

At noon, before the get out of class was about to end, Tang Zhitong whispered to Lu Jian, "Head of the dormitory, can you lend me your lunch box?"

"What? I need to go get food for lunch." Lu Jian was a little unhappy. They had agreed to get food together for lunch. If he gave the lunch box to Tang Zhitong, wouldn't he be able to get food?

"My own lunch box is filled with tofu, and there's no dipping sauce. I'll go to the store to buy some soy sauce and mix it up. I'll lend you my lunch box." Tang Zhitong didn't allow any explanation. He grabbed Lu Jian's lunch box, hunched over, and sneaked out the back door.

Dipping sauce was just an excuse. Lu Jian paid the lion's share of the bill at the last dinner, and Tang Zhitong had no intention of letting Lu Jian pay again this time.

There are many students in the Post and Telecommunications College, and they come from all over the world. They have different tastes and diverse needs, so the common items in the canteen are quite complete, including soy sauce, vinegar, salt, wine, etc.

Take Lu Jian and Dou Yongchang for example, they are from Shanxi Province and are known as the two "jealous men" in Dormitory 219.

No matter whether it was a dish or a soup, they would pour two tablespoons of vinegar on it. Even when eating steamed bread dry, they could accept no pickles but not no vinegar.

While drinking it, people complain that the vinegar from Sijiucheng is not authentic and the taste is not real. Who can they complain to?

Tang Zhitong brought Lu Jian's lunch box to the store, of course not to buy soy sauce.

The quality of the soy sauce here is not as good as the one I stocked up before. Using the soy sauce from the convenience store would ruin the good tofu.

Tang Zhitong was planning to buy some wine.

In 1952, only four national famous liquors were selected at the first National Wine Evaluation Conference, namely: Fenjiu, Moutai, Luzhou Qujiu and Xifeng Liquor.

It was not until the Second National Wine Evaluation Conference in 1963 that the "Eight Famous Wines", commonly known as the "Old Eight Famous Wines", were selected. After that, they were commercialized.

At present, the prices of Fenzi and Maozi are in the first tier, close to three yuan per bottle, which is unaffordable.

The old people in Sijiucheng usually drink Erguotou when visiting relatives, but the new people in Sijiucheng who are better off mostly choose Xifeng or Site. They cost two yuan a bottle and are labeled as one of the "Four Famous Liquors". Not only are they more affordable, the bottles are also exquisite and presentable.

Tang Zhitong had less than four dollars left, the last bit of his fortune.

He couldn't afford two bottles of Xifeng, nor could he afford three bottles of Erguotou, so he gritted his teeth and bought one bottle of Xifeng and one bottle of Erguotou.

I have been here for more than a year, but I have never tasted the Xifeng of this year. However, Tang Zhitong's pockets are completely empty now, which are cleaner than his fair little face that has charmed Xiao Wang to death.

When Tang Zhitong returned to the dormitory, the dipping water had already been mixed and was placed in Lu Jian's lunch box.

The other students had not returned yet, so Tang Zhitong took out the things from the space one by one and placed them on the table.

Tofu is the main dish, which weighs about three or four pounds. The rest are pickles, such as Chinese toon, dried toad strips, and Jerusalem artichokes.

"Oh, Teacher Tang, this is too rich." After the other students returned to the dormitory, they saw the two bottles of wine and tofu on the table and couldn't help but sigh.

"Hey, I have some soybeans left at home, so I made some tofu. Come and sit down and try it." There was no such good tofu on the market right now, and in order to avoid unnecessary trouble, Tang Zhitong simply ordered it himself.

Most of the food picked by other students was cabbage and radish, which was very simple.

Dishes with minced meat have quietly disappeared from school cafeterias. Even if they are available occasionally, there is not much and they are sold out very quickly. If you want to eat some meat, you have to rely on luck and leg speed, so some people run to the cafeteria as soon as the get out of class is over.

Although Tang Zhitong asked everyone to try it, after everyone sat down, no one picked up their chopsticks.

Tang Zhitong opened the wine first. He did not use chopsticks to pry it open like Lu Jian did, as that would be too uncomfortable. Instead, he held the bottle and raised the neck of the bottle slightly above the table. Then, he pressed the bottle cap with his other hand and slammed it down hard, using inertia to knock the bottle cap off with the edge of the table.

"Teacher Tang, this is a beautiful move, but the level is too high, isn't it? This is Xifeng."

"It's just one bottle, try it. Come on, bring your water cups over to me so we can share the wine." Tang Zhitong happily poured wine for everyone. One bottle weighed one pound, so each person only had a little more than one or two ounces.

"Teacher Tang, can you say a few words?" Lu Jian suggested after pouring the wine.

"Okay, then I have three wishes. The first is that our motherland will be prosperous, the second is that our people will live and work in peace and contentment, and the third is that we will all prosper in study, work, and life. Come, let's raise a toast to our friendship!" Tang Zhitong raised his glass and took a sip.

Tang Zhitong didn't know when and where the custom of giving a toast before a meal originated, but people who follow this custom pay special attention to it.

This sense of ritual made Tang Zhitong feel like the Western prayer before meals, where one should thank the gift of a meal.

Tang Zhitong is not used to this, but he is trying to get used to it. When a person cannot change some things, he has to try to integrate into them.

Everyone was extremely satisfied with the tofu, and said that they had not eaten such authentic tofu for nearly a year.

As they chatted, they talked about food again, just like talking about dishes, taking turns talking about the delicious food they had eaten before.

"This time last year, I came home from school without any dry food and was starving. I passed by a canteen in another commune and wanted to buy some steamed bread, but the lady there said it was free and I could eat as much as I wanted. That meal had big slices of meat, as thick as three fingers."

"I was thinking, is there such a good thing? I was afraid they would ask me for money, so I didn't dare to eat as much as I wanted. When I got home and asked around, I found out that it was like this everywhere. Now I regret it. I should have eaten as much as I wanted earlier."

Gu Mancang sipped the wine in small sips, his face slightly flushed, but much better than last time.

He excitedly talked about his past, and this time he had a better idea of ​​what was going on, so he didn’t compare it with the current situation.

"It's pretty much the same in my hometown. Before the Spring Festival last year, the team's canteen cooked all kinds of dishes, and every day was like Chinese New Year. I went home for two days and ate delicious food. I was thinking, with such good days ahead, why the hell should I still study?" Lu Shi said from the side.

"What happened next? Why did you go to school again?"

"Later, I was beaten by my father and went back to school obediently. At school, I even dreamed about the food in the team’s cafeteria." Lu Shi touched his head embarrassedly.

“Hahahaha…” The roommate laughed in a good-natured manner.

"Your story is nothing. In the summer of 56, I went to Wanxian, Sichuan to visit my comrades. There was a snack called pig liver noodles.

Oh, a bowl of noodles cost 8 cents, but there was more pig liver than noodles in the bowl. Can you guess how much a pig's internal organs cost there?" Lu Jian kept everyone in suspense.

"More than one dollar?" Tang Zhitong knew the price of pig offal, so he asked tentatively.

Last year, when Tang Zhitong was stockpiling pig offal at the construction site, the wholesale price was about 0.1 cent per pound.

The pigs raised now are all local black soil pigs, scientifically called Damin pig and Ermin pig. They are far smaller than Xia Yorkshire, Dabaitiao and other breeds. Those weighing more than 150 kilograms can be called fat pigs.

The head of the black soil pig is relatively large, weighing about 20 pounds, and the offal weighs more than pounds after cleaning.

The pig heads that Tang Zhitong selected at the beginning all had bloody necks, and a pair weighed up to 40 kilograms in total. These will be hard currency next year or the year after, and a pair can be exchanged for at least three small yellow croakers.

“Hehe, that’s not right. Guess again.” Lu Jian shook his head.

“Is it high or low?”

"Look at the dorm head's expression, you'll know it's definitely too high. We have to guess lower. I guess 80 cents." The other roommates in the dormitory started speculating.

After hearing this, Lu Jian still shook his head.

"That's still not right? I guess fifty cents." "No need to keep you in suspense, one cent for a pair of pig offal." Lu Jian raised a finger and waved it, revealing the answer.

"So cheap?! How is that different from giving it away for free?"

"Hey, there are people who actually give it away for free. There are stalls selling pig heads everywhere on the street, and you can buy six or seven kilograms for one dollar.

My comrade cooked two sets for himself. I had a great time there, eating meat every day until I was full. That was the most meat I ever ate in my life.

Lu Jian raised his head slightly, squinted his eyes, and his gaze was blurred, full of yearning for past memories.

While drinking and eating, Tang Zhitong raised his hand to pay attention to the time. It was almost time for physical education, but his roommates were still immersed in their yearning for the delicious food they had eaten in the past.

Well, in order not to spoil the fun, Tang Zhitong stood up, went to the bathroom on the pretext of going to the gym, found the physical education committee member, stuffed him a pack of cigarettes, and the matter was over.

When we got back to the dormitory, someone suddenly remembered, "Oh, it's time for physical education class."

"It's okay. I've told the Sports Committee that we won't go to take roll call today. Let's continue drinking and chatting." Tang Zhitong sat down on the edge of the bed and picked up the wine glass.

"Oh, look at my brain, I completely forgot about it." Luo Zhiping slapped his forehead and picked up the wine glass to reflect: "I'll punish myself with a glass."

"You are not punishing yourself, are you drinking because you are greedy for wine?"

"Hahaha……"

There were only physical education classes in the afternoon, and without any other academic pressure, my roommates were more relaxed.

The two bottles of wine Tang Zhitong bought were not enough, so Lu Jian took out the two bottles that he hadn't finished last time.

"Teacher Tang, would you like one?" Dou Yongchang took out his tobacco, tore off a piece of homework paper, and motioned to Tang Zhitong to roll a cigarette.

"Is this Mohe tobacco?" Faced with Dou Yongchang's kindness, Tang Zhitong took the homework paper and found that the color of the tobacco was a little different from the usual ones when he pinched it.

"You have good eyesight. It's Mo Heyan. Try it." Dou Yongchang not only gave it to Tang Zhitong, but also tore off several more to give to other roommates.

Dou Yongchang is the one who consumes the fastest homework books in the dormitory. He tears up the ones the teacher has just corrected. Sometimes the teacher's speed of correcting homework cannot keep up with his speed of rolling cigarettes, so he will use newspapers to roll cigarettes.

"Then I'll try." Mo Heyan was famous for its strong smoke, so Tang Zhitong didn't dare to smoke too much.

The other students pinched a pinch of tobacco from their pipes and rolled the paper into small trumpet shapes. The more particular ones would twist the big end to prevent the tobacco from falling out.

One match can light three cigarettes. Since Lu Shi and Gu Mancang don't smoke, after using two matches, dormitory 219 started to light up.

Tang Zhitong smoked very carefully. Mo He's cigarette was very strong, so people with a small smoking habit could only take half a puff, otherwise they would easily choke.

"Hehe, Teacher Tang is an old hand. He didn't even choke." Dou Yongchang had been secretly watching Tang Zhitong. When the tobacco was first bought, most of the other roommates who tried it choked.

"Do you want to laugh at me? My uncle smokes this kind of cigarette. I've heard him say that this cigarette is strong and you can't smoke it too hard." Tang Zhitong made up an excuse for himself. In fact, not only Tang Wenbang, but most people in the countryside would grow some tobacco for themselves to roll and smoke, but the varieties were different.

"Teacher Tang, I heard that you are a chef. Can you recommend a dish for us? It must be a meat dish." Luo Zhiping took a piece of tofu, dipped it in water, and ate it in one gulp. He felt a little unsatisfied, so he suggested.

"Hey? Teacher Tang has this ability?"

"Say it quickly, say it quickly."

When the other roommates heard this, they became excited. They hadn't had a proper meat meal for a while and they all wanted to eat meat.

Tang Zhitong sighed in his heart. The Municipal Bureau really had no secrets, but he didn't show it on his face. He said, "Okay, then I'll tell you about a dish from my hometown, sweet and sour carp."

"There are certain requirements for the selection of carp for this dish. It is best to use carp from the Yellow River, weighing about 1.6 jin. If it is too small, there will be less meat, and if it is too big, it will be difficult to shape."

"Bleed the carp, remove the scales and internal organs, wash it and cut it with a deep slanted knife from the tail to the head. A sophisticated chef will cut seven or eight times at one time." Tang Zhitong spoke as he simulated cutting fish.

“Why are the two sides different?”

"Because this dish needs to be shaped. In ancient times, there is a story about a carp leaping over the Dragon Gate. The difference between the two sides is to create the appearance of a carp leaping over the Dragon Gate. After this dish is ready, both the head and tail will be raised, with the head higher than the tail, making it look like it is accumulating strength to leap over the Dragon Gate." Tang Zhitong gestured a "U" shape, but one side was high and the other side was low.

"Which side of the seven knives is facing upwards?"

"Yes. There is an idiom called 'up and down', which corresponds to the carp leaping over the dragon gate. 'Seven up' means good luck." Tang Zhitong nodded and explained.

"Oh my, there are so many details to a dish."

"Don't interrupt. Listen to Teacher Tang's explanation of how to do it. We'll try it ourselves during the Chinese New Year."

"After cutting the carp, coat it with batter. Mix starch and flour and beat until it is solid, preferably in a stringy state. Grab the fish tail and pour the batter over and over again to ensure that every piece of fish is coated with batter."

"The next step is frying. When frying for the first time, the oil temperature should not be too hot. Pinch the fish head and tail and fry them slowly in a U shape. This process takes about two to three minutes."

"After the fish is shaped, it can be re-fried in a hot oil pan. The fish belly should be facing upwards when frying. The fish back should be supported by a spoon to prevent the fish from touching the bottom of the pan. At the same time, the fish tail should be hooked with a spoon to keep the fish in a U shape."

"If the oil covers the fish, fry it for two or three minutes. When the fish turns golden brown, it is ready to be served. If there is less oil, you have to remove the fish and fry the belly first. After frying the fish, take it out and place it on a plate, then make sweet and sour sauce."

"Use a little fish frying oil, heat it up, then add onion, ginger, minced garlic, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, and water. After it thickens, thicken it with wet starch. When it becomes thick, drizzle some cooked oil to brighten it, then drizzle it on the fried carp, and the dish is ready." Tang Zhitong recalled the process of cooking fish and explained the general steps.

Green hats and the like are not popular now, so I won’t wear them.

"Teacher Tang, what does this dish taste like?"

"What does it taste like? Of course it's delicious.

When cutting the fish, you can hear the chopsticks struggling with the crispy outer layer, making a crackling sound.

When you take a bite, the first thing you taste is the sweet and sour sauce, which is sweet and sour, mellow but not greasy. Just thinking about it makes me drool."

"It's over, it's over, my mouth is watering."

"Haha, wipe it, and continue listening."

"Okay, let me continue. When you bite into it, the crispy outer layer seems to be about to burst, making a crunchy sound and is extremely crispy.

After chewing it a few more times, the aroma of the carp will come out, and the fish meat is very tender.

There is only one word to describe it: crispy on the outside and tender on the inside!

The last time I ate there, I even wiped the plate clean with the steamed buns."

Tang Zhitong had actually eaten this dish, and while recalling the taste of sweet and sour carp, he told his roommate about it.

This dish is really delicious, and Tang Zhitong agrees. However, because it is labor-intensive and time-consuming, most Shandong cuisine restaurants have stopped making it after decades, and only a few old restaurants still have chefs making it.

"Oh, you're making me hungry. I wish I could try it for Teacher Tang."

"Oh my, how much oil does it take to cook a pound and six ounces of fish? I can't afford it, I can't afford it."

"Hahaha, drink, drink."

As they reminisced, drank some wine, ate some tofu and pickled vegetables, and everyone was having a great time.

After eating and drinking, the roommates cleaned up their lunch boxes and lay down on their beds to rest contentedly.

Although there is no meat, it is already very good to be able to have such a full meal given the current environment.

Tang Zhitong didn't go to bed. He packed his things, chatted with his roommates for a while, and then went out. He had things to do. Tong Wang's golden leek was still waiting for him to harvest...

Tong Wang had already been waiting for Tang Zhitong in the house of the Bell and Drum Tower. At this moment, he was like an ant on an iron pot, pacing anxiously in the yard.

If he knew that Tang Zhitong despised him so much, and that he was spending the afternoon eating and drinking with his roommates, he would be furious and say: This kid deserves death! Entanglement! Entanglement! Entanglement!
(End of this chapter)