Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 858 857 Overcoming Fear
Xiao Wang knew her husband had come over on business, and seeing that Jingmin had already been beaten, she waved to him.

Tang Zhitong had previously reported the incubator and incubator issues to Director Ye, and also mentioned the celebration banquet and the quota for staying in Beijing.

"Well done. When do you plan to celebrate?" Director Ye nodded in satisfaction and asked.

"Next Sunday, is that alright?" Tang Zhitong considered it for a moment. The academy is closed on Sundays, so there would be plenty of time, which would also give Director Ye ample time to work.

"Okay. You can go directly to Xiaomiao about the celebration. You don't need to worry about the jobs; I'll contact them tomorrow. We don't have much time left for coordination." Director Ye calculated the time; there was plenty of time to allocate resources, but the job situation needed to be addressed quickly. Most universities should have already started contacting and arranging job placements for their graduates.

"I'm just about to hand over the project funds with Sister Xiaoqin. Thank you, Mom." Tang Zhitong was extremely grateful. He had boasted about it himself, but in the end, he had to rely on Director Ye to make it happen. Although it was all for official business, sometimes official business isn't so easy to handle.

"We're all family, no need for thanks." Director Ye smiled and then began to inquire about the grand occasion of the Cultural and Educational Conference.

"It was very educational and inspiring, and everyone was very motivated..." Tang Zhitong briefly told Ye Zhijuan about the contents of the meeting over the past ten days, but did not mention the meals.

It was a national-level conference, so the scale was considerable. After listening, Ye Zhijuan couldn't help but offer Tang Zhitong some encouragement.

"Yes, I will definitely work harder in my studies and work in the future. Mom, how are the sales of that thermos cup?" After Tang Zhitong nodded in agreement, she began to inquire about the sales situation of the thermos cup.

"It's not very good." More than half a year had passed, and this was the first time her son-in-law had inquired about the thermos cup, so Ye Zhijuan didn't hide it from him.

The factory still has some complaints about the thermos cups. They put a lot of effort into producing them, but the sales channels are not smooth. If it weren't for the fact that other products have earned a lot of foreign exchange, Ye Zhijuan would probably feel the pressure quite a bit.

"Oh." Tang Zhitong scratched his head, realizing that he had been somewhat presumptuous back then. He didn't want to take the wrong path, nor did he want to waste the hard-earned money of working people to pay for his lessons. He decided to take this opportunity to make amends.

"Why are you suddenly asking this?"

"At this meeting, I noticed that none of the delegates had water cups..." Tang Zhitong subtly mentioned what he had seen at the meeting. His purpose was simple: if the products couldn't be sold abroad, they would be brought back and sold domestically, since they couldn't be recycled.

“That’s a good idea. Some comrades have mentioned this idea before.” Ye Zhijuan nodded. Some comrades had suggested adding a filter and selling it to overseas Chinese who like to brew tea.

"Hehe, there are quite a few capable people, then I'm relieved." Tang Zhitong knew that Ye Zhijuan had previously suggested to her colleagues in the foreign trade department that they sell insulated cups as containers for cold drinks.

This idea isn't wrong, but freezers aren't widely available in the West right now either. If they could collaborate with a beverage company to create a co-branded product and offer a promotion where customers could drink as many chilled beverages as they wanted with their thermos cup, it would probably boost sales.

However, the difficulty here is extraordinary. First of all, there is no reason for them to choose a Chinese company, and secondly, the pressure resistance of the thermos cup does not meet the standards.

"What other insights did the meeting give you?" Seeing her son-in-law's expression, Ye Zhijuan knew he had other ideas, so she didn't just focus on the thermos.

"Somewhat..." Tang Zhitong then brought up the idea of ​​children's literacy books and exercises.

“Literacy books can also be used as learning materials for literacy education, which is suitable for all ages.” The Women’s Federation has a wide range of responsibilities and has the right to intervene in anything related to women and children. The literacy campaign has been going on for several years and is now entering a critical stage. Ye Zhijuan’s first thought was to focus on this.

"Mom's judgment was spot on; we really can learn together." Tang Zhitong laughed, as if it were true.

“Both of these are related to teachers and printing plants. I’ll study them carefully later and see how to connect them.” After Ye Zhijuan was promoted, her horizons broadened, and she realized the difficulty of accomplishing something. It requires that all parties involved have something to see.

"Hehe, then I'll wait and see. I was even thinking of using this for early childhood education after the baby is born." Currently, national income is limited, and investment in infants and young children is mainly focused on food and clothing, with a lack of attention to culture and entertainment.

Tang Zhitong felt that this part could be explored further, but there was no rush. He would wait until his child was born, when his paternal love would erupt, and he would have a legitimate reason to educate the next generation in every way.

"You've thought quite far ahead." Ye Zhijuan smiled, pointed at her son-in-law, then glanced at her daughter who was gazing at him with affection, and once again sighed with relief that she had agreed to the marriage...

Lunch was prepared by Tang Zhitong. With yesterday's experience, she made braised noodles with green beans with ease today.

"It tastes good, I haven't had it in years." Ye Zhijuan took a bite and nodded in satisfaction.

"Hey, come over and cook often if you like." Tang Zhitong had heard from Luo Qingquan that Wang's father didn't like noodles, so Ye Zhijuan changed her eating habits. Therefore, he didn't ask why Director Ye, who was from Henan Province, didn't eat noodles, for fear that she would be saddened by the past.

"I can make it, but I've been too busy with work these past few years, and it's too much trouble, so I've put it off. Eat up, it's best to eat it while it's hot," Ye Zhijuan said with a smile, deferring to the food.

"Wow, this tastes amazing! Brother-in-law, eating noodles without garlic is like missing half the flavor; garlic makes it even more delicious!" Jingmin, who had just finished crying, acted as if nothing had happened, enjoying his noodles and garlic with relish, even slipping into his Henan dialect. Seeing that Tang Zhitong didn't eat garlic, he strongly recommended it to her.

“Okay, I’ll try some too.” Tang Zhitong smiled and accepted. Luo Qingquan also had the habit of eating noodles with garlic, and he didn’t expect to see it on his brother-in-law today.

You won't know until you try it! Once you do, wow! Garlic really does go better with braised noodles; it tastes much better than with plain noodles.

"Mom, I want another bowl." Jingmin asked, still wanting more after finishing his bowl.

"Eat up, but don't overeat," Ye Zhijuan nodded and instructed.

"Here, let me serve you some." Tang Zhitong saw that Jingmin stood up as if he intended to go to the kitchen, and worried that he might break the bowl, so she reached out her hand.

"No need, I can manage myself." After saying that, Jingmin picked up the bowl and ran off.

Today's braised noodles with kidney beans were a great success. Jingmin ate three bowls. However, the Wang family's bowls are exquisite and smaller than the Tang family's coarse earthenware bowls, so three bowls were a bit too much, but still acceptable.

"Brother-in-law, when can we have braised noodles again?" After finishing his meal, Jingmin patted his belly contentedly, already looking forward to the next meal.

"We'll have to wait a few more days. In a few more days, we can pick another basket of green beans, and then I'll make it for you. The cowpeas will be ready to pick in about ten days; those make the braised noodles even more fragrant." Tang Zhitong replied cheerfully, but in his heart, he was planning to give both families some more lard. Braised noodles are delicious, but they use a lot of oil.

"Don't always worry about coming here. If the kids want something to eat, I'll cook for them." Ye Zhijuan knew her son-in-law had been very busy lately and didn't have much free time during the day. Plus, the young couple were always inseparable, so she was worried about Xiao Wang's safety and stopped him. "That's fine too. I'll bring the vegetables over when we can pick them." It's hot now, and Xiao Wang felt sorry for her husband who had been sweating profusely while cooking. Now that her mother had offered to take over, it was a good opportunity to hand over the cooking duties.

Perhaps because it came out so easily, Xiao Wang felt a little embarrassed after he finished speaking and instructed Jingying, "Yingying, you're all grown up now. You should learn to cook and prepare meals so that Mom can have a rest."

“Okay, then let my brother-in-law teach me.” Wang Jingying readily agreed. Although her mother’s noodles were alright, her cooking skills were just so-so. She was already a bit tired of them, so she didn’t dislike cooking. On the contrary, she was looking forward to it.

"No problem, I'll cook in front of you next time." Tang Zhitong readily agreed. Although he couldn't give his sister-in-law his own secret seasoning, he could let her add more oil and salt. With oil and flavor, it would taste great right now.

"Brother-in-law, shall we go fishing?" As long as someone cooks for him, Jingmin doesn't care much about who cooks. He cares more about whether Tang Zhitong can keep his promise from this morning.

"Okay, let's go." One cannot break one's word. Tang Zhitong quickly got up. The fishing trip had been delayed for more than half a month, and he had to fulfill his promise today since he had time.

For this fishing trip, Tang Zhitong once again chose a secluded corner, the kind with shade from trees.

It's getting hotter and hotter. If fishing causes his brother-in-law to get so tanned that he looks like a son-in-law from Liede, not to mention whether Director Ye would be happy or not, Tang Zhitong himself would feel awkward looking at him.

This time, the brothers didn't have to worry about bait, and Tang Zhitong didn't cheat again. He could easily catch earthworms by digging a few times in the humus by the lake.

"Aren't you scared?" Tang Zhitong nudged Jingmin beside him and asked slyly as he watched the reddish-brown earthworm stretch and contract as it burrowed into the ground.

"No... I'm not afraid!" Jingmin's tense expression betrayed his insincerity. He said he wasn't afraid, but he kept staring without actually grabbing at the object.

"If you're not afraid, try catching one. Let me tell you, these fish love earthworms, especially those smelly, black earthworms. You'll get a bite with those earthworms, one every three to five minutes!" Tang Zhitong lured him in with unwavering confidence.

Tang Zhitong knew that Jingmin was afraid of these insects because someone had bullied him with them before. However, the current environment was primitive, and he would definitely have to face them again if he really went to the countryside in the future. Rather than letting it go unchecked, it was better to guide him to overcome his psychological fear.

Although Jingmin overcame the problem once before using longhorn beetles, the effect today is not very ideal.

"Really?" Jingmin looked at Tang Zhitong and asked seriously.

"More real than real gold!" Tang Zhitong said with absolute certainty, almost as if he were swearing an oath to the heavens.

"Okay!" Jingmin took a deep breath, muttering "a real man" to encourage himself, and then reached out and pulled the earthworm out of the soil.

"Jingmin is really amazing! He's sure to catch a big fish today!" Tang Zhitong seized the opportunity to praise his brother-in-law, boosting his confidence and sense of honor.

"Thank you for your kind words, I'm just hoping to catch a big fish." The slippery feel of the earthworm wasn't pleasant, so Jingmin joked with Tang Zhitong while reaching his hand to his side, trying hard not to look at the struggling little red worm.

"Come on, let's bait it." Just like you have to eat one bite at a time, you have to overcome your fear step by step. Tang Zhitong didn't let his brother-in-law tear the earthworm to pieces. Instead, he took it and used a small stone to chop the earthworm into several pieces.

With the bait on, Jingmin cast his line and gradually got into the zone, his eyes fixed on the float, no longer glancing at the earthworm on the ground.

Tang Zhitong also cast his line, mainly to keep him company, not because he wanted to fish himself!

Although the two were focused, the large fish in Shichahai Lake had been reduced to very few after being fished by many anglers in turn for a long time. The number of small fish fry had increased, though it was unclear whether they were reproduced in the lake or washed down from upstream during the recent rains.

Jingmin remained calm and composed. He cast his line three times, but still no fish took the bait. He didn't utter a sound.

Seeing that the earthworms were almost gone, Tang Zhitong resorted to cheating.

"Hey! It's biting! It's biting! Lift the rod!" Tang Zhitong was even more excited than Wang Jingmin as he watched the fish take the bait.

The fish was quite strong. Wang Jingmin used all his strength, his face turning red, and finally, with Tang Zhitong's help, he managed to pull the fish up.

"Brother-in-law, this fish is huge! What kind of fish is it? Can we eat it?" Wang Jingmin looked at the strangely shaped fish with some doubt.

"Mandarin fish. 'White egrets fly before Xisai Mountain, peach blossoms float on the flowing water, and mandarin fish are plump.' This is the kind of fish that's described. It's delicious, and I've made a fortune today." After the fish was pulled up, Tang Zhitong felt a little regretful.

Over the past two years, Tang Zhitong has been like a squirrel storing supplies for winter, taking every opportunity to plunder things into his space. The amount of stuff has increased, but he has never organized it.

A few days ago, while listening to the report during a meeting, Tang Zhitong tidied up the things in the space.

Mandarin fish are widely distributed, and Tang Zhitong couldn't tell whether the fish came from the Yangtze River or the Yalu River.

Although Tang Zhitong had never seen a mandarin fish in Shichahai, given its distribution range, it was quite reasonable for it to appear there. After all, he hadn't searched every inch of Shichahai; just because he hadn't seen it didn't mean it wasn't there. Perhaps there were some here?

"That's great! Come on, let's keep fishing!" Jingmin perked up immediately when he heard that this stuff was delicious and prepared to put more bait on the hook.

"The earthworms are gone, go dig up two more." Tang Zhitong took a stone and tapped the head of the lively mandarin fish, then put it in the broken bucket, immediately assigning a task to his brother-in-law.

Although mandarin fish may appear in Shichahai, to avoid unnecessary trouble, let it lie quietly at the bottom of the bucket. Once we get back, we can cook it as soon as possible and eat it safely.

"Okay!" Spurred on by the mandarin fish, Jingmin agreed without hesitation and ran towards the place where he had caught earthworms.

Watching Jingmin sticking his butt out and digging for earthworms, Tang Zhitong laughed. Overcoming fear didn't seem so difficult after all; as long as he could capture his brother-in-law's interest, that would be fine.

Good, it was worth the effort of this mandarin fish of unknown origin.

(End of this chapter)