Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 709 Chapter 708 I sighed a lot today

Tang Zhitong felt that he was not good enough to say anything, as he could force a chef to this extent. However, he still accepted Gao Lide's kindness and said, "Master Gao, what you said makes sense. I will pay attention to it later."

The corn brought back from the Northeast was enough to supplement the fixed amount and sustain the two families for some time. Tang Zhitong said he would pay attention to it, but he had no intention of doing anything.

To find food in the old city, one had to go to the black market or rural markets, and all of them were done by using one's money to snatch food from others.

This could be done at a very low cost when food was plentiful before, but it is no longer necessary at this critical juncture. Leaving one more bite in the market may save one more life.

After Tang Zhitong mixed the shepherd's purse, he took the enamel basin from the cafeteria and left, and would return it after it was distributed.

The amount of shepherd's purse was acceptable. In addition to Fang Yuan, Sister Chen and Ma Wei, Tang Zhitong also left some and went to the dormitory area on time to give it to Shu Qing.

Wan Xiangyang was on a business trip and was not back yet, so Shu Qing was the only one there.

Tang Zhitong was afraid that Wan Xiangyang would act impulsively after learning that Wan Xianghong was being harassed, so he tried to get information from Shu Qing in a roundabout way.

I felt relieved only after learning that Wan Xianghong always reports good news but not bad news.

Then let's wait a little longer. It won't be too late to tell Wan Xiangyang after the Iron and Steel Institute comes up with its proposal.

After having lunch, dealing with his reimbursement documents and taking the reimbursement money, Tang Zhitong slipped away again, this time heading straight for Qinzikeng.

Due to the labor today, Tang Zhitong was wearing rather shabby clothes. Although he could pass by the iron wheel handle when walking from the escort office to the Qinzikeng, Tang Zhitong did not go back. He planned to go there in such shabby clothes, low-key and inconspicuous.

As for the bicycle, in the eyes of those who understand, it is an imported one, but in the eyes of those who don't, it is just an old bicycle. How many people in Zhuzikeng can understand it? What's more, the license plate was removed by himself, so Tang Zhitong was relieved.

Although it was not long after dinner time, Zhang Laosan was not at home and the door was closed. Many tender buds had grown on the branches of the Chinese toon tree in the yard. If you pluck the buds at this time of year, they will be very fragrant whether you use them to fry eggs or mix them with tofu.

Tang Zhitong saw an old woman carrying a straw basket on her back at the intersection. She was leaning on a cane and walking with her bound feet, unsteadily.

The old woman's face was full of wrinkles, and she looked very old. Tang Zhitong couldn't help but think of his own grandmother, so he stopped his bicycle and went forward to help take down the straw basket: "Old lady, where are you going to send it? I'll help you get it."

"Thank you, thank you. I met a good person today. This is the fodder delivered to the team." The old woman was really tired, and seeing that Tang Zhitong was tall and strong, she did not refuse.

"Where is the team? Sit down here and take a rest. I'll take you there." Tang Zhitong carried the old woman with one hand and helped her to sit down on a stone by the roadside with the other hand.

"At the east end, the one with the flag in the yard." The old woman couldn't walk anymore, so she pointed in the direction to Tang Zhitong.

"Okay, I'll go over now." After saying that, Tang Zhitong put the straw basket on the back seat of his bicycle and prepared to push it over.

"Young man, who are you from? Why do you look unfamiliar?" The old woman tapped the ground with her cane, attracting Tang Zhitong's attention, and asked.

"I'm not from this commune. I came here today to look for someone." Tang Zhitong smiled and replied.

"Oh, who are you looking for?" The old woman forced a smile and continued to inquire.

"Zhang Laosan, do you know him?" Tang Zhitong pointed in the direction of Old Man Zhang's house.

"I know him. The third brother has gone to work. You can see him if you walk north along this road." The old woman wanted to lift her walking stick, but the end of the walking stick was only twenty or thirty centimeters off the ground before it fell back.

"Okay, thank you. I'll help you take the straw basket down and then go over to take a look." Tang Zhitong was very satisfied for doing a good deed and getting a letter in return.

"Young man, the team needs to count the chips for the fodder. You have to help me exchange some chips. These can be exchanged for two chips." The old woman stopped Tang Zhitong for her own purpose. Seeing that he didn't understand, she simply opened the window and spoke frankly.

Because she was hungry, the old woman had no strength to say a word, but it was still easier to talk than to carry a straw basket to the team.

"Okay, don't worry, I will definitely send it to you later." Tang Zhitong suddenly realized that he had never lived in a production team since he was a child. His food, clothing and daily necessities were all dug out by his parents with hoes. He didn't understand this.

"Great, you are a really good person. Alas, I am old and useless, and I am just a burden to future generations..." The old woman held the cane in her right hand and rested her chin on her right hand, while her left hand weakly beat her knee joints.

"Oh!" Tang Zhitong felt very sad when seeing this, but he didn't know how to comfort her. He sighed, guided the direction with his left hand, held the bamboo basket with his right hand, and pushed it towards the yard where the old woman pointed.

At the moment when the old woman lamented that she was "useless", her image seemed to overlap with that of the old man who, when asked what to do if he was sick and hospitalized, answered "drink poison".

Farming does not allow you to buy a house. One thousand kilograms of corn sell for one thousand yuan. One acre of land produces 800 kilograms of the best grains, and three acres of land only sell for two thousand four.

If there is no 600 kilograms of fertilizer on three acres of land, it will be useless.

Live for a second, speak for a second.

There is really no way out. I really can't stand up. But there is a way out. Drink poison! There is no point in living until I am ninety.

……

I can read the books of sages, but I can't care about what's happening outside the window. I feel pity, I stand by and watch, I empathize, and I feel powerless. It really makes me feel desperate.

In order to make himself feel better, Tang Zhitong pushed his bicycle into the yard, handed a cigarette to the accountant who was collecting the grass, said a few nice words, and exchanged a basket of grass for three bamboo chips.

Tang Zhengtou pushed his bicycle and carried the empty bamboo basket back to the old woman. He gave her the basket and bamboo chips, then rode his bicycle north amid her thanks.

The production team in Zhuzikeng is not small and is divided into several groups.

Tang Zhitong didn't know which production team Zhang Laosan was in. He was wearing rather bulky clothes and couldn't tell from the back, so he could only ask.

With the cigarettes leading the way, Tang Zhitong found Zhang Laosan without much effort.

The team leader here called Old Man Zhang to the edge of the field and then stood aside to smoke, leaving the space for the two of them.

Zhang Laosan was very surprised and delighted by Tang Zhitong's arrival. He rubbed his chapped hands, as if he knew the purpose of Tang Zhitong's visit. "Now that you are here, I have kept the Chinese toon buds for you. I haven't even broken a single one."

"Uncle Zhang, you don't have to call me 'you' or 'you'. Why don't you just call me Xiao Wang?" Facing an old man who was older than his father, Tang Zhitong felt that it would be easy to be exposed if he was called like that in public, so he suggested.

"Little bastard? Isn't that inappropriate?" Old man Zhang was not very experienced and didn't think it was a name, but a nickname. He was stunned when he heard Tang Zhitong introduce himself like this. "It's not Little bastard, it's... Forget it, you can call me Little Zhang." Tang Zhitong didn't expect Old Man Zhang to have such a strange mind. He was about to explain, but he changed his last name when the words came to his mouth.

What if someone who sees me today asks me again in the future: You are Xiao Wang, right?

It sounds awkward too.

"Oh, that's your surname. I thought it was a nickname. Xiao Zhang is good. We are from the same family." When Old Man Zhang saw that Tang Zhitong had changed his surname, he finally understood and his face was full of apology.

"You can treat me as your distant relative, or your distant cousin. Anyway, the relationship is not that close. If the team asks you about today's matter, just say this." When Old Man Zhang came over, many people looked at him as if they were watching a peep show. They slowed down their work and secretly looked over here. Tang Zhitong guessed that someone would ask Old Man Zhang about it later.

"Okay! How about cousins? Distant relatives won't work because we have relatives on our team." Old man Zhang chose one of the two and picked the one he thought was more reasonable.

"Sure." Tang Zhitong had no objection to this. Cousins ​​also made sense. Although they had the same surname, as long as the relationship was extended by a few generations, it was also reasonable.

"That Chinese toon..." Old man Zhang brought up this topic again.

"I just went to your house and saw you through the courtyard wall. Uncle Zhang is very thoughtful. How about we meet after dark tonight at the place where we unloaded the stone mill last time? It would be convenient for you to take food home after dark." Tang Zhitong knew what old man Zhang was thinking. On the surface, he was talking about Chinese toon, but actually he was asking for food.

"That's great, that's great. Then, Xiao Zhang, how do you think we should change it?" Old man Zhang rubbed his hands and asked.

"Uncle Zhang, there are no sweet potatoes this year, so corn will do?" Tang Zhitong did not take out any more sweet potatoes. If the sweet potatoes from last year were stored until now, they would either rot or sprout, while his own were still fresh. This was obviously not justifiable.

"Okay, how much do you want for one pound?" Old man Zhang knew that he had no choice, he had to accept whatever people offered him. Corn was not bad, at least it could be stored.

"How about four pounds?" Tang Zhitong took out the remaining economical cigarette from his pocket, gave one to Old Man Zhang and lit it for him.

Last year, one pound of sweet potatoes could be exchanged for one pound of toon sprouts. When the sweet potatoes came in season, one pound of food coupons could be exchanged for five pounds of sweet potatoes. So, one pound of corn could be exchanged for five pounds of toon sprouts.

But the current economic situation is not good, and one of your dishes may be a mountain for others.

Tang Zhitong didn't want to take things too far, and he knew that he would be at a disadvantage by doing so. But after all, he was an acquaintance of Old Man Zhang, and it was not only safe but also saved time. The premium was also a good deal for him.

Although Tang Zhitong didn't want to admit it, he finally softened his heart.

"Okay, okay." Old man Zhang agreed hurriedly, as if he was afraid that Tang Zhitong would go back on his word.

"Okay, I'll go back after you finish smoking this cigarette, and we'll see you in the evening." Everything was agreed upon, but Tang Zhitong did not leave immediately. He chatted for a while longer to appear closer. After all, they were already distant cousins.

"Yeah, okay." Old man Zhang nodded as he listened, took a puff of cigarette, and made some pretentious remarks. He acted so well that Tang Zhitong almost laughed.

After Old Man Zhang finished smoking his cigarette, Tang Zhitong stuffed the remaining half box of economy cigarettes into his hand, turned around and pushed his bicycle away.

"Go home and say hello to your parents." Just after taking two steps, Old Man Zhang shouted at Tang Zhitong from behind.

"Okay!" Tang Zhitong saw that Old Man Zhang was getting into the role quickly, so he responded with a smile, turned around, waved to him, got on his bike and left.

"Third brother, who is this?" The captain had been paying attention to this side. He saw Tang Zhitong giving a cigarette to Old Man Zhang. After seeing Tang Zhitong leave, he immediately came up to him and asked for a cigarette.

As for Tang Zhitong, the captain didn't take it seriously.

Tang Zhitong was wearing tattered clothes today, which were covered with a lot of mud. He looked like a farmer.

Based on this outfit, the captain did not think the bicycle belonged to Tang Zhitong and thought it was borrowed.

"The child of my third grandmother's fourth aunt's second cousin's family has to call me uncle." Old man Zhang was honest but not stupid. He pinched out two cigarettes, and the two of them lit one each, then gave the remaining cigarettes to the team leader without leaving a trace.

The team leader's position is not high, and can be said to be a sesame seed at the grassroots level, but he has the power to assign work. He has his own opinions on whether it is light or heavy, dirty or clean.

Tang Zhitong heard it because he hadn’t walked far. He almost stumbled and fell off the bike. It was agreed that they were cousins, but they turned out to be uncles?

I can only silently say in my heart: All for the toon buds, all for the toon buds, all for the toon buds…

"What do we want to see you for?" the captain asked, taking a puff of his cigarette.

"The family is dividing up. My fourth aunt's family doesn't have a boy, so they asked me to be a witness." Old man Zhang said, baring his yellow teeth.

Old man Zhang thought that this reason was reasonable. The relationship between uncle and nephew was not just talk. Now, the nephew had to have his uncle present and witness the division of the family property in order for it to be "legitimacy".

In fact, the uncle's position is indispensable not only in the division of family, but also in many other occasions. For example, when the mother passes away, the uncle has to sit at the table. He will first point out the inconsiderateness of the brother-in-law and the younger brother-in-law in the funeral. Only after they have corrected them, the funeral can continue.

No matter how Old Man Zhang framed him, Tang Zhitong went home, washed his hands, changed his clothes, and told Zhang Guifang that he would go out to get some toon sprouts in the evening. However, he did not say to exchange them, but to buy them.

"How much? I'll give it to you." Zhang Guifang was in charge of the family's food and drink. She believed that as long as it was food, it should be paid for with the money the children gave her, and her son should not be asked to pay for it himself.

"It's not much. There are not many toon sprouts today, so maybe only fifty cents." Tang Zhitong lied about the price.

"You'll be given one dollar. If it's more, I'll refund you. If it's less, I'll make up for it." Zhang Guifang took out the money from the drawer and stuffed it into Tang Zhitong's pocket.

"Okay! Thank you, Lord Buddha." Tang Zhitong took it, and after peeling it, he discussed with Zhang Guifang: "Mom, let's have noodles tomorrow morning? We can cut some Chinese toon sprouts then."

"Okay." Zhang Guifang said and laughed, "You're such a grown-up, but you're always so out of tune."

"As long as you are happy, my eccentricity is worth it." Tang Zhitong did not feel ashamed to dress up to entertain his parents. To please his own mother was not like to lick the boss's boots, so he had no psychological burden.

As I had an important event in the evening, I had dinner early today.

As the sun set, Tang Zhitong looked at the sky. After the last ray of afterglow disappeared on the horizon, he rode his bike out again.

When we were almost at the place where we traded the stone mill last time, a sack appeared on the back seat of the bicycle, and the sack was filled with corn kernels from the corn mill.

(End of this chapter)