Siheyuan: Relieve stress and relieve worries

Chapter 1033 An Act of Gratitude
The factory canteen was very quiet in the early morning. Only two newly arrived apprentices were cleaning the canteen. The head chef and cooks had not yet started work.

The canteen manager did come, sitting in his office worrying about the factory's lunch. For almost a month now, the main dishes have been either cabbage or potatoes, and the factory workers are very unhappy about it.

Wang Zhan parked his car at the entrance and called out to the two apprentices in the canteen to come out and move things. The big guy glanced at Wang Zhan and said, "Hey, isn't this our little Wang Zhan? What are you doing here? What's in this basket?"

"Hey tall guy, hurry up, you're in for a treat at lunchtime. Quickly move these two baskets to the kitchen, I'll go talk to the cafeteria manager." Wang Zhan said as he unloaded the baskets.

The two apprentices curiously lifted the tarpaulin, and after seeing what was inside, they were both dumbfounded and speechless. The taller one shouted, "Pig, pig, pig!"

"It's pigs, and chickens and ducks too. Hurry up, don't leave them here, the workers will be coming to work soon." Wang Zhan was worried that the workers would gather around and watch. The tall guy thought that this was indeed possible, so he quickly called to another person and started carrying baskets to the kitchen.

Wang Zhan arrived at the canteen director's office next to the lobby, knocked lightly on the door, and heard a voice from inside saying, "Come in!"

Wang Zhan pushed open the door and entered. The cafeteria manager looked up, smiled, and said, "Oh, isn't this little Wang Zhan? What brings you here? Is this your first time here? Are you saying goodbye to me because you're going back tomorrow?"

Wang Zhan smiled, and the canteen director gestured for him to sit across from the desk. After sitting down, Wang Zhan said, "Director Fang, as you know, I'm going back to school tomorrow. The people in the factory have taken great care of me these past two months, and I'm very grateful. So, I've arranged for a pig and some chickens and ducks to treat everyone in the factory to a meal. The big guy has already moved the food to the kitchen."

Director Fang only heard half of what he was saying. When he heard Wang Zhan say that a pig, chicken, and duck had been sent to the kitchen, he jumped up from his chair and rushed out.

Wang Zhan looked helplessly at the open door and could only walk towards the kitchen. When he got there, he saw the two apprentices standing motionless next to the large basket, while Director Fang was stroking the pig in the basket.

Wang Zhan couldn't stand it any longer, so he coughed twice. Director Fang then seemed to wake up from a dream, stood up and said, "You two guard these things until the purchasing staff arrives at work."

Director Fang turned around and pulled Wang Zhan to his office. Wang Zhan thought to himself, "I've already delivered these things, what else do I need to do? Why is Director Fang pulling me here?"

Back in Director Fang's office, Director Fang warmly made Wang Zhan a cup of tea and then began to ask probing questions. Wang Zhan then realized that Director Fang wanted to know if he had any channels to get more meat, any kind of meat would do.

After thinking for a while, Wang Zhan said, "Director Fang, to be honest, I do have some connections, but the quantity of meat is uncertain. How about this, as long as I have some, I'll send it to you, and we'll settle the payment at market price. Is that alright with you?"

Upon hearing this, Director Fang was so happy he almost jumped for joy. He had wanted to offer a higher price, but the rules didn't allow it. Wang Zhan's initiative to settle at the market price was a great help to him. He quickly said, "That's fine, that's fine. By the way, our factory also has to pay for today's meat. We can't let you suffer a loss."

"No need, no need. This time I'm treating the factory workers to dinner, it's on me," Wang Zhan said.

Director Fang looked at Wang Zhan and said, "I can't explain it to you. Let me report to the leadership first." Wang Zhan sat for a while and then went back to the workshop to clean up. But he really underestimated the gossipy mouth of the canteen lady. Less than an hour into the workday, everyone in the factory knew that they would be having a pork stew for lunch today to improve their meals. Instantly, the mood of the people in the workshop changed. Most people were thinking about getting their food and going home. Only a few young people were preparing to have a big meal.

The factory's efficiency dropped throughout the morning, but the factory leaders didn't care. Everyone knew what the factory's meals had been like for the past two months. Breakfast and dinner had been canceled, leaving only lunch. The factory leaders were very supportive of improving the meals for everyone.

As soon as the lunch break bell rang, the workers, carrying their lunchboxes, surged into the canteen like a tide. The factory leaders were all out today, there to maintain order in the canteen. None of them went to eat first; they all helped out in the canteen.

The two head chefs in the cafeteria, Chef Niu and Chef Ma, performed exceptionally well today, bringing out all the stock from the warehouse: a stew of cabbage and pork with vermicelli, a stew of chicken and mushrooms, and a radish and old duck soup—three main dishes in total. That's all.

A notice was posted on the cafeteria bulletin board stating that each person could only order two dishes, and each dish had to be ordered in one serving.

Everyone knew that this was already a great deal, as meat was not available on the market. This was a discount offered by the factory. No one had ever mentioned where the meat came from. Wang Zhan understood that this was a scheme devised by the factory leaders to deliberately reduce the attention he received.

The lunch satisfied the factory workers and the factory leaders. Near the end of the workday, Master Qian walked to Wang Zhan's workstation, looked at him meaningfully, and said, "Xiao Zhan, thank you. As your master, I am very proud and happy to have a disciple like you. It's a pity you are in the technical field, otherwise, your master would be watching over you every day."

Wang Zhan looked at Master Qian and said, "A teacher for a day is a father for life. Master Qian, you will always be my teacher. Don't worry, I will be there whenever you need me."

Master Qian took Wang Zhan's hand and said, "You're my last disciple now. We agreed that you could visit each other's homes when you have free time. Come with me to Director Xie's place; he needs to see you."

Wang Zhan could sense Master Qian's reluctance to part, but there was nothing he could do. He could only comfort Master Qian, telling him to come and learn whenever he had a holiday. This made Master Qian feel a little better.

The two men went to Director Xie's office in the administration building. Director Xie asked them to sit down and then said, "Xiao Zhan, you really surprised me by giving me such a big surprise before you left. Director Fang was crying and begging me not to let you go. What can I say to you?"

"I just wanted to thank the people in the factory. Luckily, Director Fang kept things under control until the very beginning, otherwise I wouldn't be able to leave the factory today," Wang Zhan said belatedly.

"Understood? Good. This can't be done this way. This isn't thanking the workers; it's stirring up their emotions. The factory can't procure enough meat, yet you've managed to get so much of it. What are the factory's purchasing department and management supposed to do?" Director Fang said.

Wang Zhan humbly accepted the lesson, nodding repeatedly to admit his mistakes. At this moment, Director Xie took out an envelope, handed it to Wang Zhan, and said, "These meats are from the factory's purchase. You'll have to take a loss; we can't give them to you at the pigeon market or black market prices. Consider it your tuition fee."

Wang Zhan knew very well that he had to take the money; he had no choice but to.

(End of this chapter)