Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 859 858 Open the door, bring warmth

While Tang Zhitong and his brother-in-law were fishing, Wu Aijun and Ma Wei were strolling in Beihai Park.

Wu Aijun made ample preparations for this date. He not only brought water, but also washed and brought some peaches that others had given to his family. He also asked someone to reserve a table at Fangshan Restaurant in advance.

Fangshan Restaurant was established relatively recently and was not among the top established restaurants. Its reputation in Beijing was not as great as Quanjude, Bianyifang, or Fengzeyuan, but its culinary skills were unparalleled.

In 1924, Feng Yuxiang expelled Puyi from the Forbidden City, and the last generation of imperial chefs lost their jobs.

No matter what kind of chef you are, you still need to eat.

Without jobs, and without the opportunity to become freelancers by making short videos, exploring restaurants, or selling products, these chefs got together and discussed it: why not just do it themselves!

So they partnered up and opened a Fangshan Tea House at the North Gate of Beihai Park, mainly serving Qing Dynasty palace pastries, snacks, and local specialties, such as braised chicken, stir-fried chicken breast, small steamed buns, mung bean cakes, mung bean rolls, lotus leaf pancakes, and the like.

In 1955, Fangshan Tea House was changed from a private to a state-owned enterprise, and the following year it was renamed "Fangshan Restaurant".

In 1959, Fangshan Restaurant moved from the north bank of Beihai Park to Yilantang and Daoningzhai on Qiong Island, which are several buildings on the northern part of the small island in Beihai Park.

Early in the morning, Wu Aijun was very nervous while waiting for Ma Wei at the entrance of Beihai Park, fearing that Ma Wei would not show up for their appointment.

Fortunately, Ma Wei eventually arrived.

It's natural to be a little nervous the first time doing it in front of a large audience. At first, the two of them were a bit reserved, since no matter how many letters they wrote, they still didn't have to meet face-to-face.

Considering Ma Wei's leg injury, Wu Aijun didn't just wander around aimlessly. Instead, he found a stone bench near the dock and invited Ma Wei to sit down and chat.

Under the shade of trees, on stone benches, with weeping willows swaying in the breeze overhead, and the rippling blue waters of Beihai Lake before my eyes, several small boats drift on the lake, and the occasional laughter of children can be heard from the boats.

Is this what it means to live a peaceful and tranquil life?
"Have a peach." As soon as they sat down, Wu Aijun took a peach out of his bag and handed it to Ma Wei.

"Thank you, you can have it." Ma Wei likes to eat fruit, but she declined when she saw there was only one.

"I don't like it, you eat it, there's more after you finish it." Wu Aijun stuffed the peach into Ma Wei's hand without saying a word, as if afraid she wouldn't believe him, and opened his handbag to show her.

"Then... I can eat them." Holding the peaches in her hand, Ma Wei felt a sweet warmth in her heart. Wu Aijun not only brought her peaches, but also several.

"Eat up, eat up." Wu Aijun saw Ma Wei open her cherry lips and grin foolishly.

Being watched as you eat a peach is always a little awkward.

Ma Wei looked straight ahead and started looking for topics, specifically asking about Wu Aijun's mischievous antics back then.

Wu Aijun said that Ma Wei smiled, and when Ma Wei smiled, Wu Aijun became even more enthusiastic, and that's how he started talking.

The two chatted and chatted, and the peaches were all eaten, but they didn't move from their spot.

With dinnertime approaching, Ma Wei subtly suggested going home.

Wu Aijun then said that he had already arranged lunch and invited Ma Wei to take a boat to Fangshan Restaurant for a meal.

Under Wu Aijun's ardent gaze, Ma Wei nodded slightly, not wanting to refuse his kindness. As for her parents' instructions to come home for dinner before she left...

After the meal, Ma Wei was not only very satisfied with the food at Fangshan Restaurant, but her impression of Wu Aijun also improved significantly.

During the meal, Wu Aijun didn't just focus on eating himself; he always put the first bite of each dish on Ma Wei's plate.

What did Fu Caiyun say again? Ma Wei felt that nothing was absolute...

After the meal, Ma Wei suggested taking a walk, and the two of them strolled leisurely along the stone path from south to north.

"If only we... cough cough, this kindergarten is good, it would be great if my child could go to school here in the future." After a morning of conversation, Wu Aijun was a little carried away, and almost said "our child" when passing by Xiancantan.

As clever as Ma Wei was, she naturally understood. Under the guise of smoothing her hair, she lowered her head and turned her face to the side, afraid that Wu Aijun would see her blushing face.

As for Wu Aijun's question about their child attending kindergarten there, she didn't respond. This kindergarten doesn't accept applications from the public, but given the couple's situation, it's possible that their child might attend school there in the future.

If Tang Zhitong were there, she'd definitely say something about Wu Aijun's womanizing skills. It seems they've not only decided on the child's name, but even where he'll go to school?
The official name is Xiancantan (先蚕坛), but the local people generally call it Cantan (蚕坛).

This area was where the imperial concubines of the Qing Dynasty worshipped the Silkworm Goddess, and it was also one of the nine altars and eight temples in the city of Beijing. Later, part of it was converted into a kindergarten.

In 1949, the kindergarten was renovated to address the concerns of people moving to the city.

Liang Sicheng was tasked with the renovation design. The Northeast provided timber, cement, and paint; East China provided daily equipment and supplies from Shanghai; and the Southwest provided clothing and fabrics. The railway delivered these supplies to Beijing free of charge from all over the country.

The faculty and staff are selected from the best, all of whom are graduates of Fu Jen Catholic University, Yenching University, and Tsinghua University, with one teacher responsible for about five children.

As luck would have it, this kindergarten shares the same name as the one known for its punitive attack on the Nanshan Nursing Home and its kicking of the Beihai Kindergarten.

With that, who would dare kick it? They probably wouldn't even be able to get through the door.

The two of them strolling around caused their parents on both sides a great deal of anxiety.

Ma Wei dressed up beautifully this morning, not only putting on makeup but also spraying on floral water, clearly indicating she was going out on a date.

It was already afternoon, and their daughter still hadn't returned. Ma's mother kept blaming Ma's father for being so careless, for not stopping the child. She said that things were so chaotic outside, and if anything happened to the child, she wouldn't want to live anymore...

Although Mr. Ma was anxious, he knew that being anxious would be useless.

As for serious injury or death, it shouldn't be that bad. What can you do in broad daylight? At most, the pig might pull your cabbage by the hand or nudge it a couple more times with its snout.

Being taken advantage of by a pig isn't the worst outcome; the worst outcome is someone who takes a fancy to your family background and uses your daughter as a stepping stone.

The Wu family is in a better situation, since Wu Aijun is a boy, so Lu Lan is not as worried.

Lu Lan herself works in the public security system, and she noticed early on that her son was acting strangely. A person who usually avoids peaches was not only washing peaches today, but washing several of them. Without a doubt, he must have secretly gone out to see a girl.

When asked, they remained silent, so asking them was pointless.

Lu Lan originally thought of searching through her son's room to see if she could find any clues, but her son is older now, and she was worried that he would get upset if he found out.

Seeing that Wu Aijun hadn't returned by the afternoon, Lu Lan became even more concerned. She wanted to know which girl had bewitched her son. If it was a capitalist's daughter, his future would be bleak. Even without looking for clues in her son's room, Lu Lan had other methods. She called the Municipal Public Security Bureau.

The security guard at the municipal bureau eventually couldn't keep his mouth shut and, when questioned by his superiors, gave a clear account of what had happened over the past few days.

The message quickly reached Lu Lan. After thanking her and hanging up the phone, Lu Lan was somewhat stunned.

The postal security office? Isn't that where Xiao Tang works? I told my son to get to know Xiao Tang better, could it be that Xiao Tang introduced my son to someone? But I haven't heard anything about it from Lao Ye.

There were elderly people who had previously used the post office. After thinking it over, Lu Lan felt that she wouldn't be able to sleep at night until she figured this out.

Lu Lan picked up the phone again, intending to ask Ye Zhijuan for some information, but the phone rang for a while and no one answered.

After hanging up the phone, Lu Lan knew that Ye Zhijuan hadn't gone to work. Since the two houses weren't far apart, she decided to just go over there...

When Lu Lan knocked on the door carrying a bag of early peaches, Tang Zhitong was in the kitchen teaching Jingying how to cook mandarin fish.

Mandarin fish can be steamed, braised, sweet and sour, or even made into stinky mandarin fish.

Fermented mandarin fish requires a long fermentation time, and besides, not everyone can accept the smell, so it's ruled out first.

Braised and sweet and sour dishes require deep-frying, which consumes a lot of oil, so that leaves only steaming, a dish suitable for all ages.

Steamed mandarin fish is easy to make. The internal organs and gills must be removed. As for the scales, they are troublesome to remove, so you can eat it without them.

Make a few diagonal cuts on both sides of the fish, marinate it with salt and scallion-ginger water for 10 minutes to remove the fishy smell, then place it flat on a plate, sprinkle with shredded scallions and ginger slices, add soy sauce and salt, and steam over high heat for about 10 minutes. Once the fish's eyes are wide open and bulging out, you can turn off the heat.

For a more elaborate touch, you can drizzle on some soy sauce, top with fresh chopped scallions, and then pour hot oil over it. However, given the current resources, this step can be omitted.

Although Wang Jingying had not received systematic training in cooking, she had some basic skills and could make steamed fish under Tang Zhitong's guidance.

Hearing the knock, Xiao Wang went to open the door and saw Lu Lan. He sweetly called out, "Aunt Lu."

"Wenwen is so handsome, the more I look at her, the more energetic she becomes. Did you come alone? Where's Xiao Tang?" After entering the room, Lu Lan put Tao on the ground, took Xiao Wang's hand and exchanged pleasantries. She was extremely satisfied with Wang Jingwen, but unfortunately the two children were not destined to be together.

"He's teaching Jingying how to cook in the kitchen. Aunt Lu, please come in and have a seat." While entertaining Lu Lan, Xiao Wang also asked Jingmin to go to the bedroom and invite Ye Zhijuan out.

"What a rare guest! What brings you here today?" Before Jingmin could even knock on the bedroom door, Ye Zhijuan heard the noise and came out from inside.

"I missed you, can't I come and see you?" Lu Lan didn't immediately reveal the purpose of her visit. The person in question was still in the kitchen, so asking would be pointless.

“Sure, why not? We can’t get you to come even if we invite you normally. Please sit down.” Ye Zhijuan smiled and pulled Lu Lan down to sit.

"Mom, Aunt Lu also brought peaches," Xiao Wang interjected at the opportune moment.

"Oh dear, Lao Lu, you're too kind. Wenwen, quickly make some tea for your Aunt Lu." Ye Zhijuan glanced at the net bag by the door; the peaches were very fresh, and the leaves were bright green.

"I felt embarrassed to come empty-handed, but a colleague gave me some, so I brought you a few to try," Lu Lan said casually.

"Alright, then I'll accept it. You've come at the right time. Little Tang caught several fish today, we'll have dinner here later." Ye Zhijuan returned the favor and tried to persuade Lu Lan to stay.

"Mom, I fished too." Jingmin stood aside, unhappy that his mother didn't mention him at all.

"Jingmin can fish now? That's amazing!" Lu Lan reached out and touched Jingmin's little face, praising him.

"I caught the biggest one!" Upon hearing this, Jingmin straightened his back, puffed out his chest, and his pride was evident.

"Jingmin is so great, he'll soon become the pillar of the family." Lu Lan adored this kind of child, so she hugged him and pinched his little cheek.

"Aunt Lu, have some tea." Little Wang brought over two cups of tea. There wasn't much tea at home, and Ye Zhijuan didn't drink it much on ordinary days; it was mostly used to entertain guests.

"Thank you. How's work going lately?" Lu Lan took the teacup and placed it on the table, warming up the atmosphere while waiting for Tang Zhitong to come out.

When Tang Zhitong and his sister-in-law came out of the kitchen after steaming the fish, they were having a lively chat in the living room.

"Hello, Aunt Lu. The kitchen fan is a bit loud; I didn't hear a thing outside," Tang Zhitong explained to Lu Lan.

"Hello to you too. I just heard from your mother about your recent performance, which is great. It must be hot in the kitchen, right? Look how hot you are. Sit down and rest." Lu Lan smiled and handed Tang Zhitong a palm-leaf fan.

"Thank you, Aunt Lu. It's just a small achievement, nothing to brag about," Tang Zhitong said modestly, accepting the palm-leaf fan with both hands.

"Old Ye, Tang is really good, so humble and composed. If Aijun could be half as good as Tang, I would be content." Lu Lan smiled and turned to Ye Zhijuan to continue praising Tang Zhitong.

“What’s wrong with Aijun? I think he’s great, they’re both good kids.” Although Ye Zhijuan now also felt that Tang Zhitong was more outstanding, she certainly couldn’t express it like that in front of Wu Aijun’s biological mother.

"Sigh, I'm almost driven crazy by that brat. Now that he's gone to the cadre academy, finding a partner needs to be put on the agenda, but no matter what I say, he just doesn't care." In front of the younger generation, Lu Lan felt it would be beneath her dignity to ask directly, so she could only probe indirectly.

“The child is grown up and has his own ideas. Just talk to him properly, and he will eventually understand.” Ye Zhijuan didn’t know about Wu Aijun and Ma Wei’s situation. Hearing her old friend talk about her son’s marriage, she could only offer advice.

“It’s no use talking to him. If it were, I wouldn’t have come here today.” Lu Lan shook her head and then looked at Tang Zhitong: “Little Tang, you young people have common ground. Auntie is asking you a favor. Find an opportunity to persuade Aijun. You should keep this in mind.”

Tang Zhitong was taken aback. Was this meant to be taken to heart by Wu Aijun, or by himself?

No matter who takes it to heart, how can you persuade them to stop?
I can persuade Wu Aijun, but I can't persuade Ma Wei!

Both sides have powerful backgrounds, so it's not good to get involved in either one, especially since an agreement has already been reached with Xiao Wang.

This is not something you can easily persuade someone to do.

Between two evils, choose the lesser; rather than die for your friend, Tang Zhitong made his decision in a flash and decisively implicated Wu Aijun.

“Auntie, Aijun should have a girl he likes. He asked me about a girl in our workplace the other day…” Then, in front of Lu Lan and Ye Zhijuan, Tang Zhitong introduced Ma Wei’s situation and pointed out her family background.

"You introduced him to her?" Lu Lan didn't show it on her face, but she was satisfied in her heart. He was a college student, his family was good, and being three years older wasn't unacceptable.

“No, this matter involves a case. Xiao Ma is the person involved. Ai Jun and Xiao Ma met once when he was investigating the case. At the end of last month, Ai Jun even went to the escort office to talk about the case’s closure…” Although Tang Zhitong knew some details about the case, he glossed over it in a few words because it involved classified information and he didn’t want his family to worry.

(End of this chapter)