Courtyard Houses: Starting with the principle of hard work paying off

Chapter 187 Culinary Skills at a Minor Perfection, The Tragedy of Yi Zhonghai (7k)

By the end of January, the public-private partnership in various industries in Beijing had reached its peak, and the comprehensive targets had been basically achieved.

In the blink of an eye, half a year has passed.

this day.

Li Hongbing, who was working normally in the kitchen of Fengzeyuan, received a long-awaited system notification that his cooking skills had been upgraded, as his cooking experience points continued to grow rapidly.

[Heaven rewards diligence! Congratulations, host, your culinary skill level has increased from lv5 to lv6, reaching a new level! Reward: 2,000 yuan in cash and a box of culinary manuals!]

at last.

It's been more than half a year since the last cooking skill upgrade, and I've already maxed out my 200,000 experience points in no time—that's incredibly fast.

It takes more than two years to upgrade my cooking skills from level 4 to level 5. It's true that cooking is the most efficient way to practice.

A cash reward of two thousand is obviously a huge sum of money in this day and age.

Although Li Hongbing is no longer short of money, he doesn't mind having too much.

What really caught Li Hongbing's attention, however, was that box full of culinary classics.

This time, the box wasn't a shipping container, but just an ordinary large wooden box. However, the important thing was the books inside.

Li Hongbing glanced at them briefly and found that many of them were ancient books and secret court documents from various dynasties.

To the average person, these books might just be recipes and other books, but to a chef, they are invaluable treasures.

With his culinary skills upgraded to level 6, Li Hongbing's current level is basically no weaker than his master Guo Youzhong, officially entering the top ranks of Fengzeyuan's kitchen and even the entire city of Beijing.

Without being immodest, Li Hongbing has now reached the pinnacle of Shandong cuisine.

For most people who have reached this level, if they want to continue to improve their culinary skills, the next step, besides continuing to accumulate experience, is to learn from others and start expanding their skills horizontally.

Li Hongbing has a system that doesn't restrict him, but the rewards from these classic texts are still very useful to him.

[Host: Li Hongbing]

【Age: 20】

Strength: 83, Agility: 80, Constitution: 85, Intelligence: 88 (Standard adult value is 60)

skill:
[Running: lv3 (1582/10000)]

[Cycling: lv4 (5716/50000)]

[Calligraphy: lv4 (25318/50000)]

【Eight Pieces of Brocade: Level 5 (5439/200000)】

[Cooking Skill: lv6 (3/1000000)]

……

Opening the system panel, Li Hongbing summarized and reviewed his growth and achievements over the past six months.

In terms of personal attributes, the numerical increase is not significant, but the actual improvement is substantial.

Having entered his eighties, Li Hongbing's physical condition is now clearly far beyond that of ordinary people.

In terms of skills, in addition to the cooking skill that was upgraded today, the Eight Pieces of Brocade was also successfully promoted to level 5 shortly after the New Year. Thanks to this, the constitution attribute has increased the most in the past six months.

Seeing that the experience points needed to upgrade his cooking skills from level 6 to level 7 had already skyrocketed to a million, Li Hongbing became somewhat indifferent.

Based on the current rate of improvement in culinary skills, it will take at least another three to four years. However, the booming business of Fengzeyuan is unlikely to last that long.

Meat coupons will be issued next year. When you eat out at restaurants, you will have to pay for the food and meat in addition to cash. The catering industry will definitely be affected, or even severely impacted.

The next three years will be particularly difficult, and not only will people across the country have to tighten their belts, but it will also be a harsh winter for all restaurants and eateries.

Fortunately, Li Hongbing wasn't worried about this issue. After all, his current cooking skills were more than enough, and with so much life ahead of him, reaching level 7, the pinnacle of culinary skill, was a certainty; it was just a matter of time.

……

night.

After getting off work, Li Hongbing went directly to the silk shop as usual, intending to pick up Chen Xueru and go home together.

"Sister Ping, I'll leave the rest to you. I'll head back now."

Seeing Li Hongbing arrive, Chen Xueru said goodbye to the shop assistants and then prepared to leave work.

At this time of day, there weren't many customers left in the store, but there were still a few.

Because of the current power supply and the fact that it is now part of the state-owned system, the closing time for business is generally not too late.

"How are you feeling today? Are you tired?"

As Chen Xueru walked over, Li Hongbing's gaze couldn't help but sweep over her slightly protruding belly, and he couldn't help but ask with concern.

Thanks to Li Hongbing's tireless efforts every night after their marriage, Chen Xueru became pregnant in the second month of their marriage, and is now more than five months pregnant.

When they discovered this situation, both Li Hongbing and Chen Xueru were somewhat taken aback.

However, without contraception, this was almost an inevitable outcome, since both of them were in very good health, especially Li Hongbing.

Having lived two lives, Li Hongbing had never been a father before, so when he learned that he was about to have his own child, he felt excited and expectant, but also a little apprehensive.

Having gone through these past few months, Li Hongbing was clearly well-prepared, as was Chen Xueru.

Getting married and having children is a process that almost everyone goes through, especially in this day and age.

However, ten months of pregnancy is not an easy process. Even if Li Hongbing had not experienced or could not have gone through this process, he would still know this.

For Chen Xueru's first pregnancy and for her safety, Li Hongbing took it very seriously. He specifically consulted Chen's mother and Li Hongmei about things to pay attention to during pregnancy, and dared not be careless in the slightest.

Feeling Li Hongbing's concern, Chen Xueru smiled and said, "What's there to be tired about? I'm in a silk shop now, it's a leisurely job, I don't have to do anything, I just have to talk."

After participating in the public-private partnership, she was no longer the silk shop owner who worried about everything. The person in charge of the shop's operation was now the government-appointed manager.

As a private manager, Chen Xueru still has some rights to participate in business management, but ultimately she is no longer able to make decisions on her own as before.

Although Chen Xueru initially saw the situation clearly with Li Hongbing's help and took the initiative to apply to join the joint public-private enterprise, it would be impossible to say that she had no thoughts about it at all.

Now, six months have passed since the public-private partnership was established, and seeing the current situation, Chen Xueru has gradually accepted and let go of it.

No one can escape this outcome.

They had proactively applied to join the public-private partnership and secured more favorable policy conditions and valuations, which meant they had clearly profited compared to the merchants who joined later.

Leaving aside the others, this public-private partnership was actually not a bad thing for Chen Xueru and the silk shop.

Due to policy changes, cotton cloth and cotton products were included in the state's unified purchase and sales system long ago. However, silk and brocade, as high-end fabrics, were not included in this system, but were mainly exported to the international market, with the proportion remaining in the domestic market becoming smaller and smaller.

Even if the silk shop doesn't become a joint public-private enterprise, the supply of goods will still be a major problem, and it's estimated that the business will soon have to go out of business.

Next came the era of a fully planned economy.

For a long time to come, the conditions for the survival of the private economy will no longer exist.

Another reason that allowed Chen Xueru to let go was the arrival of the child in her womb.

Now, Chen Xueru's focus is clearly on her and Li Hongbing's child. If things were to continue as before, she would obviously have to worry about even more.

Right now, I'm just working at a silk shop, occasionally promoting and introducing fabrics to customers. The job is very easy and pleasant.

At this moment, nothing was more important to Chen Xueru than the child in her womb.

"Work is secondary. The main thing is that you're pregnant now. Even if you don't do anything, I'm afraid you'll get tired."

Li Hongbing knew that Chen Xueru's job was easy, but he wondered if it was because it was her first pregnancy, but Chen Xueru's pregnancy symptoms were more severe than others, so Li Hongbing was naturally more worried.

"You don't need to worry so much. I've been doing quite well lately. My morning sickness is long gone."

Even though Li Hongbing often had some unnecessary worries, Chen Xueru was not annoyed at all. On the contrary, she felt very warm because these worries came from Li Hongbing's concern for her.

Hearing Chen Xueru say this, Li Hongbing felt relieved.

Although Chen Xueru is currently pregnant, she is still a few months away from giving birth. Li Hongbing did not arbitrarily suggest that she stop working at the silk shop and stay at home to rest and prepare for childbirth.

Li Hongbing wasn't short of money, and neither was Chen Xueru. He let Chen Xueru go to work at the silk shop as usual, not for the salary, but mainly to give her something to do and something to relax, so she wouldn't be bored all day and start to feel uncomfortable and overthink.

Moreover, with Xu Huizhen here, Chen Xueru can chat with her whenever she has free time, so she won't be bored.

Pregnant women's emotions are often more volatile.

In this era, very few people pay attention to this kind of thing, so as someone who comes from a later generation, Li Hongbing naturally pays more attention to it.

"Hongbing, I heard that the higher-ups are going to start reforming salaries and re-evaluating grades. Have you heard about this? Our school has already received the notice, but the specific details haven't been announced yet."

When Li Hongbing and Chen Xueru returned from outside, Yan Bugui, who was discussing the matter with others in the courtyard, couldn't help but ask Li Hongbing.

Because Li Hongbing worked at Fengzeyuan, he had easier access to information than they did. So whenever there were new policies or such, Yan Bugui would bring the information back to the courtyard house and immediately ask Li Hongbing for verification.

"Yes, I know. It's been reported in the newspapers, and our restaurant has also been notified that a new assessment and rating system will begin in a couple of days."

The newspapers had already reported on it, so Li Hongbing naturally didn't need to hide the fact that he knew about it beforehand. However, no matter what Yan Bugui asked him, he would only say what he could and pretend not to know what he couldn't.

The wage system reform over the past five or six years was also accompanied by the nationwide unification and implementation of the eight-grade worker system.

It was from this time onward that Grade 8 workers not only became technical benchmarks but also objects of social respect, and their social status began to rise significantly.

Upon hearing Li Hongbing's answer, Yan Bugui couldn't help but worry, "I wonder if this wage reform is good or bad..."

Upon hearing this, Li Hongbing said, "Uncle Yan, in my opinion, for most people, this wage reform will definitely bring more benefits than benefits."

"How to say?"

As Li Hongbing finished speaking, everyone in the courtyard looked over, and Yan Bugui couldn't help but say, "Hongbing, why don't you tell us about it!"

Opinions are divided on this wage system reform; some say it's good, others say it's bad, but there's no definitive conclusion yet.

When Li Hongbing said that the salary reform was good, everyone wanted to hear his opinion.

Whenever a new policy came out, Li Hongbing was always the one who understood it best. Even the senior staff members of the management office, such as Liu Haizhong, Yan Bugui, and Du Jianguo, who had come back from attending meetings at the street office, sometimes couldn't explain it as accurately or clearly as Li Hongbing.

"It's actually very simple. I think you should already know that this wage reform is being carried out in conjunction with the technical grade reform, or rather, the two are linked together, with technical grades directly tied to wages."

"The higher the skill level, the higher the salary you can earn. I think everyone knows that."

"Previously, there were also technical grade classifications, but the classifications were relatively simple, and the differences between grades were quite large. This time, the technical grade reform and update has obviously made more detailed classifications on the original basis."

"The revised technical skill levels have significantly smaller gaps between each level than before, which means it will be easier for us to get a raise in the future." "And I heard that there will be a technical assessment every six months, so there will be more opportunities for promotion and salary increases."

"I estimate that with this wage reform, many people will see their salaries increase again..."

"..."

This reform of the graded wage system is not only aimed at establishing a unified national standard for wages and technical grades, but also at incentivizing workers to improve their technical skills through wage differentials, thereby promoting the development of a skilled workforce and the nationwide industrialization.

However, this has little impact on Li Hongbing, because his current salary has basically reached its limit, and there is not much room for improvement even if it is increased.

Even if the ranks of senior cooks are further subdivided, with Li Hongbing's current skill level, he is more than capable of obtaining the highest-ranking cook position in the entire industry.

It's not just Li Hongbing; all the head chefs in Fengzeyuan's kitchen also have this skill.

At this moment.

Hearing Li Hongbing's analysis, especially the news that their salaries might increase, many people showed excited and happy smiles.

Seeing this, Li Hongbing had to remind everyone, "Uncle Yan, and everyone else, what I just said was just my personal analysis. The specific details will only be known after the salary reform details and technical level assessment are completed."

As for my suggestion that salaries might increase, that's just speculation. It mainly depends on everyone's technical skills and performance on the day of the assessment.

If you don't perform well, even if you have the skills for the corresponding level, you might only receive the next level's salary. Therefore, everyone should prepare well for the upcoming assessment and not be careless.

The prediction that wages will increase is not just something Li Hongbing made up; it is based on evidence.

If the original primary level is equivalent to the revised first to third levels, and the intermediate level corresponds to the fourth to sixth levels, then the seventh and eighth level workers belong to the previous senior level workers.

So those who were originally able to be assessed at the beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels now possess at least the corresponding minimum level.

For example, someone who is currently a junior worker has a minimum skill level of a first-level worker, and could also potentially reach the second or third level.

Being a junior worker for a long time does not mean that one's skills are at the same level as when one passed the junior worker assessment.

Unless you have just passed the assessment for the previous level and have been promoted and received a raise, or you have not made any progress in the past few years, it is very rare for you to remain unchanged.

After the technical levels are subdivided and reassessed, many people will receive wages that are no longer just the original entry-level wages, but higher wages for level two or three workers, or even one or two levels higher.

There are no absolutes in this world.

Try not to make definitive statements about anything.

Otherwise, when the time comes, the small group of people whose wages haven't increased won't reflect on why they haven't improved, but instead come to blame him.

Li Hongbing's analysis and speculation quickly spread from the front yard to the middle and back yards, sparking another wave of discussion. Many people were already looking forward to the upcoming performance evaluation and salary increase.

some of.

The most excited and joyful people were none other than Jia Dongxu and his family from the Intermediate People's Court.

"This salary and technical grade reform is just the right time."

With peanuts from Qinhuai Rusu and braised pig's head meat specially bought from outside, Jia Dongxu sipped his wine and couldn't help but say with pride and excitement.

"Dongxu, you must seize this opportunity and try to pass the Level 3 worker exam, no... try to pass the Level 4 worker exam. The salary of a Level 4 worker might be double what you are now! Then our family's good days will come, and our whole family will enjoy the good life with you."

Jia Zhangshi, who was standing to the side, was also excited. She hadn't passed the assessment yet, and her salary hadn't increased, but she was already starting to paint a beautiful picture of the future.

They were so excited because, along with this wage and technical grade reform, Jia Dongxu, like other workers in the steel rolling mill, had the opportunity to be reassessed and re-graded.

Because of what happened back then, Jia Dongxu was punished by the factory with a five-year ban from participating in promotion assessments. Based on this timeframe, he still has at least a year left.

only.

Even though Jia Dongxu had been given the opportunity to participate in the advancement assessment before, he still couldn't pass the intermediate fitter exam given his abilities. This was still a heavy burden on their minds.

Now that the technical level system has been reformed, the original three-level system of junior, intermediate and senior levels has been abolished and a new level system will be adopted. When that happens, Jia Dongxu will also have to undergo a skill level assessment, which indirectly breaks the previous penalty of not being able to participate in the promotion assessment.

For them, this was clearly a stroke of good luck.

"Mom, the Level 4 fitter exam isn't easy to pass. I can only try my best. But I promise I'll definitely get a Level 3 fitter certificate this time, and then we'll live a life of luxury together."

Jia Dongxu was unsure of himself after Jia Zhangshi set such a high goal for herself, since he knew his own abilities.

Although it is not yet clear what the new technical grade system standards are and how they compare to the old ones, there have been many speculations and rumors circulating, so Jia Dongxu has some idea of ​​what they are.

According to Jia Zhangshi, he was leveling up at a rate of about one level per year.

In the entire courtyard, probably only Li Hongbing could have done something like this.

Even though he didn't get along with Li Hongbing, Jia Dongxu had to admit that deep down.

In fact, Jia Dongxu had already discussed his current strength with his master, Yi Zhonghai. Compared to before, he had made considerable progress, but he had not yet reached the intermediate level.

It might be quite difficult to pass the Level 4 fitter exam.

However, he was determined to get the third-level fitter job.

"A level three fitter is fine too, anyway, it will definitely be much higher than my current salary."

Jia Zhangshi didn't understand the professional aspects, but as long as she knew she could get a raise, that was enough for her.

Listening to the conversation between Jia Zhangshi and Jia Dongxu, Qin Huairu remained silent, but wiped away tears with a mixture of joy and emotion.

When Jia Dongxu married into the Jia family, he was paid the wages of a junior fitter. However, after only a few months, he was demoted by the factory for causing trouble. His family of several people only received an internship wage of eighteen yuan a month. Later, Jia Zhangshi was caught red-handed reselling grain, and Jia Dongxu was suspected of conspiring and failing to report it. His penalty of being demoted was postponed until last year when his wages were restored to normal.

In the past few years, if it weren't for the help of their mentor Yi Zhonghai, their family probably wouldn't have been able to make ends meet.

Now that she's finally about to see the light at the end of the tunnel and start living a good life, it's hard for Qin Huairu not to be excited.

however.

When Qin Huairu's actions were seen by her mother-in-law, Jia Zhangshi, she felt it was very unlucky and immediately scolded her, "Crying, crying, what are you crying for? Such a great thing, who are you looking at with such a long face? Do you not want our family to be happy?"

"Mom, I'm happy."

Qin Huairu quickly explained after being misunderstood by her mother-in-law.

"I've really seen something new. This person's reaction to happiness isn't laughter, but crying. It's really strange."

Faced with Qin Huairu's explanation, Jia Zhangshi remained calm and directly expressed her dissatisfaction with the Yin-Yang Dao.

Seeing Qin Huairu in an awkward situation, not daring to talk back to her mother-in-law, Jia Dongxu rarely spoke up for her, saying, "Mom, what are you doing? Huairu didn't do anything wrong, don't criticize her all the time."

Jia Dongxu is about to get a promotion and a raise, and he's become more assertive than before.

See this.

Jia Zhangshi remained silent.

In the past, if Jia Dongxu had defended Qin Huairu like this, Jia Zhangshi would have said a few more things, or even scolded him for forgetting his mother after getting a wife and for being unfilial.

……

the other side.

While Jia Dongxu was filled with anticipation and hope for the upcoming assessment, his mentor, Yi Zhonghai, was at home drinking alone in silence.

When news spread that his salary and technical grade were going to be changed, Jia Dongxu was very excited to know that he had the opportunity to participate in the assessment and change his "fate".

After get off work, Jia Dongxu went straight to buy wine and braised pig's head, intending to have a drink with his master, Yi Zhonghai, to celebrate properly. However, Yi Zhonghai declined, saying he wasn't feeling well.

One family is happy and the other is sad.

Yi Zhonghai, as the master, had a different feeling about the upcoming assessment than his disciple Jia Dongxu.

the reason is simple.

After Yi Zhonghai injured his hand, he went to a major hospital for treatment and even got a letter of introduction from the factory leaders to have the most advanced X-ray examination in China. However, after recovery, he was left with some sequelae.

It doesn't have a big impact on daily life, but it becomes less flexible and even unresponsive when lifting heavy objects or performing high-precision operations like those done by a fitter.

This was undoubtedly a fatal blow to Yi Zhonghai, who was already a senior fitter.

In his daily work, Yi Zhonghai's failure rate when operating the machine tools to assemble parts is often the highest among all the senior fitters in the workshop, while his yield rate is the lowest.

to this end.

The workshop director even had a special talk with him. Yi Zhonghai could only explain that it was due to his hand and that it needed some time to recover, but it would gradually get better.

The doctor told him the same thing back then, but only that it was a possibility, and more than two years have passed, yet there is still no sign of recovery.

Senior skilled workers are treasures in the factory, and since Yi Zhonghai said he could recover slowly and even gave him a generous gift, the workshop director didn't make things difficult for him and even took good care of him.

For the past two years, he has been intentionally assigned production tasks with lower operational difficulty, which has allowed him to retain his status as a senior fitter and stay in the business until now.

But now that wages and technical grades have been changed, everyone has to be re-evaluated and re-rated. Because of my hand injury, my skills are not as good as before. If I participate in the next assessment, I'm afraid I'll be exposed.

How could Yi Zhonghai be happy in the face of such a situation?

"damn it!"

Thinking about all this, Yi Zhonghai couldn't help but slam his fist on the table in anger.

Hearing the commotion outside, Wang Guihua, who had just been chased back into the inner room by Yi Zhonghai, rushed out and asked with concern, "Husband, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing. You should go back to your room and get some rest. I'll stay by myself for a while longer."

After persuading Wang Guihua to go back, Yi Zhonghai's complexion, which had just improved, turned ugly again.

Yi Zhonghai didn't tell anyone about the condition of his hands except for the workshop director, including his apprentice Jia Dongxu and his wife Wang Guihua, so they didn't know about it, and Yi Zhonghai didn't want them to know either.

Looking at his right hand, which seemed perfectly normal, Yi Zhonghai's face flashed with intense hatred.

All of this was caused by Sha Zhu, He Daqing, and his master Dong Congyou.

That night, someone ambushed him and brutally injured him, even damaging his vital right hand, which he relied on for survival, to the point of being in its current state. Yi Zhonghai initially did not know who did it. The police station also intervened in the investigation, but there were no results.

At first, Yi Zhonghai suspected that it was another senior fitter in the same workshop, but after He Daqing returned and crippled his manhood, Yi Zhonghai slowly pieced together all the events and gradually revealed the truth.

When he was ambushed, He Daqing was still in Baocheng, and Yi Zhonghai obviously realized that it was probably because his instigation of sowing discord between Sha Zhu and his master had been exposed, which brought about the other party's retaliation.

After all, when He Daqing later sought revenge, Dong Congyou also brought several of his disciples to help He Daqing and act as his accomplices.

Unfortunately, by the time Yi Zhonghai realized this, some time had passed, and besides having no evidence, he also lacked the resolve to fight them to the death.

Yi Zhonghai had always hoped that his right hand would recover, thinking that one day it would suddenly heal on its own, but now...

He hates it!
(End of this chapter)