The booming era begins with the director of the Propaganda Department!

Chapter 322 Oil Tiger!!
Since the establishment of the Work-Study Society, because nothing was on the right track and there were so many complicated things to do, Zhang Shenfei had to be busy with all of them and rarely went home on weekends.

Time passes day by day, and soon, the real winter is coming.

After the school winter vacation, Zhang Shenfei finally had time to return to the courtyard.

As soon as I walked in,

He was stopped by Yan Bugui who was sweeping the yard.

Old Yan looked Zhang Shenfei up and down, and when he found that he really didn't bring back any food, he was a little disappointed and said:

"Da Fei, is it your winter vacation? Why didn't you bring back the leftovers?"

"Look at what you said, Uncle Yan, we have a fixed amount of food in school, how can we not finish it?

To be honest, I don't eat well at school, so I hope to go back to the courtyard and ask the neighbors for help to improve my life." Zhang Shenfei said, looking at him with the same eyes that Yan Bugui looked at him just now.

This frightened Old Yan, who immediately clenched his broom tightly and said, "Life is hard now, and the landlords don't have any surplus food! Dafei, don't think about taking advantage of your uncle Yan..."

"How can that be possible? I know your family conditions, Master Yan. Even if Haozi marries her, she will cry and leave..." After scaring Old Yan, Zhang Shenfei happily handed over a cigarette and started a conversation with him, "Are you still sweeping the yard?"

Yan Bugui doesn't have a hobby of smoking, after all, it costs money.

But when he saw that what Zhang Shenfei handed over was actually the Daqianmen, he couldn't help but take it.

A pack of Daqianmen cigarettes costs thirty cents, which means one cigarette costs one cent and a half.

It doesn’t matter whether you smoke it or not. Just take the cigarettes first and sell them to other teachers when you get to school tomorrow.

Even if there is a 20% discount, there is still 1.2 cents left, which is enough to buy half a pound of sweet potatoes and cook them into porridge for the whole family.

He carefully placed the cigarette in his pocket and patted it to make sure it was secure.

Then he answered Zhang Shenfei: "It's good enough that I can sweep the floor. When I was selected as Old Y, it was agreed that I would be responsible for cleaning the front yard, middle yard, and back yard of the entire courtyard.

I have to thank you for allowing me to spend these years in peace."

At that time in the courtyard, the bastard Liu Haizhong was determined to punish his old man by his name.

Thanks to Zhang Shenfei's help in mediating, he was able to protect himself.

There are a few teachers in their unit who are quite miserable. After being labeled as old y, they are often pulled out to set examples or even do something like that.

"Dafei, although this happened several years ago, Uncle Yan will always remember your kindness." Yan Bugui said sincerely.

"Hey, we've been neighbors for decades. We see each other every day. Why are you talking about this?" Zhang Shenfei waved his hand.

The reason he saved Old Yan had nothing to do with personal feelings. He just simply didn't want to see anyone being humiliated.

Although I have been abused a lot, I will save as many as I can...

"The past is the past, why bother talking about that." Zhang Shenfei said casually, "Uncle Yan, is there any new development in our courtyard now??? Please tell me about it."

"The courtyard is still the same. Sha Zhu and Xu Damao still quarrel with each other every day, and his second uncle still beats the second and third brothers to death. Everything is normal." Yan Bugui paused in the middle of his speech, "Ah, there are some differences. It's about food.

Since the grain purchase voucher appeared, our city has always bought grain on the 24th, is that correct? The grain supply in our grain store in Nanluoguxiang has also been very stable, is that correct?"

Zhang Shenfei nodded: "No problem, we are the capital, the food supply is of course more stable than other places."

Many people think that food rationing in this era means,
It seems that with the grain book one can buy a prescribed amount of grain at any grain store every month, but this is not actually the case.

In fact, food supply is not only quantitative but also point-based.

This means that with your grain purchase voucher, you can only buy grain at a fixed grain station.

If the grain supply at this grain station is insufficient, you can only wait until more grain is available before buying it, and you cannot go somewhere else to buy it.

Seeing Zhang Shenfei nod, Yan Bugui smacked his lips and said, "But guess what? In recent months, the grain stores may not be able to cool down on time on the 24th.

Just last month, I asked our eldest son to queue in front of the grain station for three consecutive days on the 24th, 25th and 26th before he could buy grain.

There are even rumors that... Anyway, they might starve." Speaking of this, Yan Bugui was in a serious mood.

There are six people in their family. If they can't buy food, the whole family will have to be tied up.

"Is it so difficult to buy food now?" Zhang Shenfei raised his eyebrows.

"Well, you don't know what's going on in school. Just last month, the kid from Old Chen's family in our courtyard and the Dumb King from Black Sesame Alley had a fight over queue jumping. Old Chen's kid got slapped in the head by the other guy..."

In fact, in the early years,
When the city of Beijing was just about to start the unified purchase and sale of grain, the common people were keenly aware of something and began to store grain bit by bit like little ants.

But four or five years later,

Most of the stored food has been eaten.

I thought life would get better and better, but who would have thought there would be a food shortage again this year.

As the saying goes, food is the most important thing for the people. When there is no flour in the noodle jars and no rice in the rice buckets, the people become panicked and become agitated.

In the past two or three months, has there been any time when people bought food without fighting? Thinking of this, Yan Bugui shook his head helplessly.

Fortunately, they had a can of black beans saved under their bed, which they could use as an emergency measure if things really went wrong.

"Da Fei, it's almost time to buy food. Don't blame your uncle Yan for not reminding you. Go early.

Tonight, your Aunt Yan and I plan to queue up at the grain store all night. Before, your eldest brother helped your family buy grain.

We will set off at 12 o'clock in the evening. Do you want Master Yan to call you and we can go together? ? "

"Okay. Then Uncle Yan, please call me when you go there in the evening. We can keep each other company." Although Zhang Shenfei had the space in his hands and had no shortage of food, he still had to do what he had to do.

At the same time, he was thinking that it was time to find a way out for his family.

Otherwise, in a few months, everyone will have no food to eat. Because of the food fight, your Zhang family will still live the same as before, with no shortage of food every day, and even have delicious food and spicy drinks from time to time to improve the diet. Who can stand that?

It is said that a gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall, and the first bird to stick its head out gets shot. There is no need to take some risks.

After returning home and putting down the luggage roll, Zhang Shenfei strolled into the kitchen and saw the old lady rolling noodles, and couldn't help but come over.

"What are we having for dinner today, Grandma?"

"Dumplings on the bus, noodles when you get off. You finally get to go home for the winter vacation. I'll make you noodles with gravy today." The old lady said seriously while pushing a large piece of dough with a rolling pin.

Dumplings on the bus and noodles on the bus? ? Zhang Shenfei was immediately surprised.

Although there is indeed such an old saying, his classmates had to eat noodles after returning home.

but……

"No, I just took the bus back from Yenching University. Does it require such high standards to have dumplings on the bus and noodles when I get off?" Zhang Shenfei felt a little flattered.

The old lady rolled her eyes at him: "What's it to you? I enjoy it." Ah this...

Zhang Shenfei touched his nose awkwardly.

What else can I say? I am happy with it. Anyway, I love eating noodles, especially the hand-rolled noodles made by the old lady in their family. I never get tired of eating them.

While rolling the noodles, the old lady instructed Zhang Shenfei to bring back the sesame leaves that were drying under the eaves and soak them.

"Oh, old lady, you can still buy sesame leaves in this day and age? You have quite a wide network of contacts?" Zhang Shenfei took the sesame leaves and put them in a basin, then poured boiling water on them to soak them, and joked.

Grandma Zhang sprinkled corn flour on the rolled noodles to prevent them from sticking together, and then stacked them up layer by layer. She picked up a kitchen knife and started cutting the noodles while talking to Zhang Shenfei.

These sesame leaves were not bought. Zhang Fendou and Zhang Fenjin went to play in the suburbs and saw sesame leaves grown in the commune. The leaves looked good, so they stole them back.

"We had a meal of fresh sesame leaf noodles at that time, and I thought I couldn't let you go without a meal, so I blanched the remaining sesame leaves and dried them in the sun." The old lady worked efficiently, and she had finished cutting the noodles while she was talking.

She picked up the ends of the noodles, shook them off, put them neatly aside, and started rolling out the second ball of dough.

Today my grandson came home from school and the whole family had a meal together. There are thirteen people in total, so we have to roll a lot of noodles.

"Oh, they stole it? The third and fourth brothers did the same. How could they fleece socialism?" Zhang Shenfei took a head of garlic, peeled it and clicked his tongue, looking down on his two nephews.

Really, at such a young age, how can I be as good as him? ? ?

"What do you mean by fleecing socialism? This is called stealing socialist sesame leaves." The old lady said as she tiptoed out of the kitchen and plucked two corianders from the broken flowerpot under the eaves.

This thing is expensive, and the supply and marketing cooperatives don't always have it. So the old lady is used to growing two trees herself, so she can eat it whenever she wants, which is convenient and fresh.

But you have to be on your guard against the idiot from the Jia family in the middle courtyard. That guy is a sly idiot and can even steal coriander and eat it raw...

Zhang Shenfei saw the old lady picking coriander and yelled at her to get more.

When eating sesame leaf noodles, you have to use minced garlic and coriander to stir-fry them. Without enough coriander, the flavor will not be enhanced and the taste will be a bit lackluster.

"Stop talking nonsense. I know you like coriander, so I'll put more in it for you." The old lady muttered.

Zhang Shenfei was a man with a keen eye. While the old lady was picking coriander, he had already peeled and chopped the garlic and was then mincing the ginger.

After the hand-rolled noodles are put into the pot,
A high fire was placed on the stove and the noodles began to puff up in the pot.

Sprinkle in the soaked sesame leaves. After the noodles are rolled again, grab a handful of corn flour and mix it into a paste with cold water.

Then pour it into the noodles, add salt, thirteen spices, and soy sauce to season, and wait for the noodles to boil again.
Use a small iron pot to support the coal stove.
Stir-fry the onion, ginger, garlic and dried chili until fragrant, then add them to the noodles. After boiling again, the fragrant sesame leaf noodles are ready.

Zhang Ximei, the ninth child of the Zhang family, sat on the steps with eager eyes, tacking her fingers as she watched her great-grandmother cook.

After the noodles were ready, the old lady walked aside and took an iron hook from the wall.

This hook has a special name called oil hook. It is made of steel bars and is used to hook oil. Almost every household of steel rolling mill workers has one.

The oil skimmer in Zhang Shenfei's house was made by his grandfather. When he was using it to smash the steel bar, his palms were cracked.

In addition to the oil hook, there is also a tool called an oil skimmer, which is made by punching a dent in the middle of a round iron sheet with a diameter similar to that of a small wine glass, and then welding a small iron bar on it. This thing can scoop more oil at a time.

The Zhang family did not start using it until 1953, when Zhang Shenfei became an official and their financial situation improved greatly.

The old lady used an oil hook to scoop out sesame oil from a small brown coarse porcelain jar, muttering to herself.

Dipped it in. Dripped it into the pot, muttering something.

Little Laojiu also followed suit.

Hook it again, and drip it into the pot again and mutter two.

"Two." Xiao Laojiu also said.

The old lady dropped the third drop of sesame oil into the pot and repeated the word "three".

"Three." Xiao Laojiu finished reading and then closed his mouth.

He knew that in Old Zhang's house, sesame oil would only be dripped three times at most.

Zhang Shenfei smiled and said, "Old lady, when I was little, my math education started with your "one, two, three".

Until now, the nine of them have started to learn from you. Can't you drop four drops of incense oil to make me look at you with new eyes???"

Grandma Zhang rolled her eyes at him again: "You can eat well and wear well, but if you don't plan well, you will be poor."

Ah, this??? Yan Bugui is possessed??? Zhang Shenfei was speechless.

Seeing that the old lady's meal was about to be ready, Zhang Shenfei went out to the neighborhood committee to pick up Tian Xiaozao and take her home.

Just as I reached the Chuihua Gate,
I saw a few aunts and grandmas in the yard chatting together, talking about how much oil their families had consumed this year.

Aunt Yan said that their family ate more than five kilograms a year. When Aunt Er saw that he was bragging, she also said that her family ate eight kilograms.

Upon hearing this, Jia Zhang immediately laughed and said that their family had eaten ten kilograms of food this year.

"It can't be helped. There are three of us in the family, and two and a half of us are workers."

Qin Huairu works in a processing factory, so she can only be considered half a worker.

"I am a member of the glorious working class. I am different from you housewives. If you don't eat enough oil, you will have no energy to work." When Jia Zhang said this, her face was full of ostentation.

Upon hearing this, an aunt from another family despised Jia Zhang's boasting for what she did, but she did not dare to confront her in public. She only complimented her by saying that their family was a real oil guzzler and could consume even more oil than the landlords before liberation.

Seeing that Aunt Yan looked a little uneasy, Jia Zhang deliberately said, "Speaking of which, after the liberation, it was already 1958, and in our courtyard, only your family still uses an oil hook when cooking, right?

You are from the city, after all, but why do you always act like country folk when doing things...tsk tsk tsk tsk."

Aunt Yan's face darkened: "My child's father said that from now on, we will all use oil skimmers when cooking."

hiss! !

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone in the courtyard gasped.

What the hell? Teacher Yan's family also uses oil skimmers to cook? This... is the sun rising from the west?

"Mr. Yan, don't brag." Jia Zhang was the first to question.

"Who are you looking down on? Would I lie to you?" Aunt Yan refused to give in.

"I also think that Aunt Yan is not lying." Zhang Shenfei had seen enough of the fun and also interrupted, "They use oil-skimming machines because of the situation. The arrow is on the string and has to be shot!!!"

What does that mean? The other ladies in the courtyard immediately became interested.

(End of this chapter)