My Terrible Life in Those Years

I took a nap, packed my clothes, read the newspaper, and waited until it got dark before going downstairs.

I didn't spend money on dinner. I thought, why should I pay for my own meals when I work at a barbecue stand?

Wouldn't it be a waste to work in a place with so much food?

Am I the kind of person who has resources right in front of me but doesn't use them? Obviously not.

Along the way, the landlady thoroughly investigated my family situation, including what my parents did, whether they had any assets, and how many siblings I had. If she hadn't been taking me to work, I would have almost thought she was checking household registrations for the village's joint defense team.

"Hey landlady, you've thoroughly investigated my family situation, are you planning to introduce me to a girl?"

I joked with my landlady.

"What? This young man is so handsome, and he doesn't even have a girlfriend?"

The landlady asked me this question, which she had overlooked, in a strange way.

I burst out laughing: "It's not that I don't have any, it's just that I feel I can't even support myself right now, so I let all my girlfriends go!"

The landlady laughed and said, "Young man, you have a good attitude, you'll have a bright future! Don't worry about finding a girlfriend."

That meaningful smile sent a chill down my spine. What did it mean? Are you a fortune teller?

Did you know that I have a whole yard full of peach trees?

Kangning Barbecue Stall doesn't have a big storefront, but it's located right in front of the main road's green belt. And this road is only under construction and not yet open to the public. Goodness, this entire open-air area is occupied by his stall's tables and chairs.

The tables are small, foldable square tables that can seat four people. There are at least a dozen tables set up, with plenty of space left over. If all of them were set up, there would be at least thirty tables.

The stools were small plastic stools, stacked high in front of the store.

When my landlady and I arrived, there were already five or six tables of people eating barbecue, drinking beer, smoking, and chatting.

A long barbecue grill was set up at the entrance of the store, and a middle-aged man with a face blackened by charcoal smoke was busy working with his hands.

While squinting at the order that another young man had just passed up to her, she took out ingredients from the basket behind her that had been neatly categorized and arranged various materials, placed them on the rack, and then sprinkled various seasonings on the ingredients with her other hand.

His technique is very skillful; he's obviously a seasoned street vendor!

The landlady led me into the store, and I saw a small counter inside. Behind the counter sat a young man, whose height I couldn't tell, who was using a calculator to check the order slips and money.

"Kangning, I've brought you the night shift helper."

The landlady clearly knew him well; she simply pulled him in front of her and then went about her business, taking a glass from the table and pouring herself some water.

He then raised his head and looked at the face. Why did it look so familiar to the landlady?

"Oh, Auntie's here? Have you eaten yet? Would you like Old Ye to grill something for you?"

So he really is the landlady's nephew?

"I've already eaten. I don't really like the food here. Please arrange work for him; night shift, paid daily. I already mentioned it to you on the phone this afternoon."

The young owner of Corning looked me up and down, then beckoned over the young man who had just delivered the order.

"Little Luo, take this..."

Only then did he realize that he didn't know my name.

"What's your name?"

I always felt there was something in the way he looked at me, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.

My name is Jiang Ning.

I didn't say much. When you don't know the situation, it's best to observe more and talk less.

"Have Xiao Luo show you around. If you don't understand something, ask Lao Ye. The customers will be piling up soon, so you need to get up to speed quickly. Xiao Luo will be off work soon, so you'll take over from him."

He was very direct, without saying anything unnecessary.

Without hesitation, I went straight out to find another young man, Xiao Luo, to take over the work.

The plump landlady sat for a while, said goodbye to me, and then went back.

Xiao Luo and I are about the same age. When he heard the boss call out to him and saw me going to find him, he immediately stopped what he was doing, handed me the pen and the paper he was using to place an order.

"I'm leaving now, that's all." He was even more decisive than his boss, handing over the items and turning to leave immediately.

I was taken aback. Wasn't this supposed to be a guide on how to operate the system?

"Hey Luo, the boss said he wants you to train me and help me get familiar with the job. It's my first day here, and I've never done this kind of work before!"

This young Luo has a face full of pimples. He looks about my age, like he's still in puberty.

Unlike me, my adolescence passed very early.

"It's very easy, you don't need to bring anything, you'll know how to do it yourself."

Then he turned around and went back into the shop. I watched him take thirty yuan from the owner of Kangning and leave.

So he was also a day laborer?

But this guy doesn't seem to like me very much. Good heavens, this is our first time meeting!

I don't think I've ever offended him in any way!

At this time, a few guests had already taken their seats outside.

Without any training, I was quickly thrown into work mode.

Fortunately, it was just placing an order. I handed the order to Lao Ye, the barbecue vendor. Although there was no one to guide me, and things got a bit chaotic at the first couple of tables, I managed to avoid any mistakes.

When I had a spare moment, I handed the form to Lao Ye and asked him, "Uncle Ye, what's the deal with Xiao Luo from the middle shift? He seemed to be giving me the cold shoulder just now?"

"Get me a cigarette." Old Ye was too busy to free his hands to light one.

I took a cigarette from the Double Happiness cigarette box on the table next to him and put it in his mouth.

Old Ye used tongs to pick up a red-hot charcoal and light a cigarette, then took a deep drag into his lungs. Watching him made me very excited, like the feeling of eating a delicious feast.

"That kid was originally supposed to work the night shift, and he could take on other shifts during the day. But today, for some reason, Boss Kangning moved him to the afternoon shift, which means he doesn't have enough time for his other shifts. He doesn't dare to yell at the boss, but he's definitely upset about you taking his night shift!"

It suddenly dawned on me that I had taken over someone else's job.

The problem is, I didn't make this arrangement, so glaring at me won't do any good.

"Hey Jiang, what's your relationship with the boss? Xiao Luo's been working here for a while now. If it weren't for him taking care of you, he wouldn't have been moved to the afternoon shift!"

I laughed.

"The owner of Corning is my landlady's nephew!"

Old Ye was surprised. When did landlords become so kind as to help out-of-town tenants find jobs? And even recommend their own relatives?

I then laughed and said, "The landlady also has a daughter who's three years younger than me! She's taken a liking to me!"

Old Ye laughed so hard that he shook the ashes off his cigarette onto the chicken wings. He didn't care and just brushed oil onto the chicken wings, turning them over and over in the fire.

"I don't know if your landlady has a daughter, but it's true that the young boss has a beautiful younger sister."

"How long have you been renting her apartment?"

"Including today, this is the second day!"

Old Ye's smile faltered slightly: "Her daughter, really has her eye on you?"