In the 1970s, it started with contracting out communal dining.

"Um, Chun-ge... I was wrong just now. I'm not good with words, please don't take it to heart!"

Old Dong's face turned red with frustration, and he stammered for a long time before finally managing to utter those words.

Wu Xiaochun, however, didn't pay him any attention immediately. He just left him to the side and continued serving food to the people in line.

Old Dong knew he had been too sharp-tongued, and he deserved it.

Anyway, he's usually shameless, so this time, just for a bite to eat, he shamelessly went over again.

The voice was so obsequious it could drip water: "Brother Xiaochun, please forgive me! I'm so sorry! Um... could I have just one bite? Just one bite!"

"Hey! Didn't you just say you didn't care?" Wu Xiaochun raised his eyebrows, his words sarcastically.

Old Dong didn't dare to get angry at all; his old face was all smiles, his wrinkles spreading out like a flower.

"Wow, wow! How could I not love Chef Chen's cooking! Oh, Brother Chun, I'm begging you, just give me a bite! Just pretend I farted earlier, smell it and see if it stinks!"

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Everyone immediately burst into laughter.

Wu Xiaochun deliberately kept a straight face, but the anger in his heart had dissipated quite a bit.

He didn't really intend to make things difficult for Dong Laonian; after all, the kid was just a smart aleck.

"Fine, fine, if you want to eat, then get in line. If there's any left when it's your turn, you can have it."

"Huh? With such a long queue, will anyone still be left?" Upon hearing this, Old Dong's face fell.

But as soon as he said that, he immediately realized something was wrong.

Several workers in front of him glared at him menacingly.

"What are you doing! This food wasn't originally for you day shift workers, it's for us night shift workers, and you're trying to steal it?"

"No stealing, no stealing!"

This left Old Dong speechless, and he could only turn around and sheepishly join the end of the queue.

He stood on tiptoe, looking anxiously ahead, afraid that he wouldn't get any food if it was his turn.

I don't know if it was because there were fewer people on the night shift tonight or what, but when it was Dong Laonian's turn, there was still a thin layer left in the basin.

Seeing that Old Dong was approaching again with a grin, Wu Xiaochun tapped the basin under his hand with a large ladle.

"That's about it. One serving definitely won't be enough, probably only half a serving. Want more?"

"Yes, yes, yes! Half a portion is fine too!" Old Dong nodded his head like a chicken pecking at rice, his mouth practically drooling.

Half a cucumber lay at the bottom of the enamel basin. The cucumber strip was rather small and looked wilted, not as delicious as the ones in the lunchboxes of the others. The shredded radish was reduced to a small clump clump in the sauce, but Old Dong didn't mind.

He was already drooling over the aroma while he was in line, his heart was completely drawn in by the strong fragrance in the air, and he was almost completely captivated!

They didn't even care whether they could make enough for one!

Anyway, it's free.

"Thank you, Brother Xiaochun! Hehehe!" Before even serving the dishes, Old Dong began to say auspicious words.

Seeing his shameless attitude, Wu Xiaochun had no choice but to shake his head and put all the lucky roots into his bowl.

"Brother Xiaochun is so generous!" Old Dong chuckled, picked up his bowl, grabbed his chopsticks, and started eating.

The way they ate was as if they hadn't eaten in 800 years.

He first picked up a piece of shredded radish. The snow-white and translucent radish immediately tasted sweet and sour and fragrant as soon as it entered his mouth. The salty and fresh radish was mixed with a slightly sweet and sour aroma, which was refreshing and made people's appetites soar!

Most importantly, this dish has absolutely no astringent or bitter taste from the radish. The radish shreds have a slightly chewy and crisp texture, making it absolutely irresistible.

"Delicious!" Old Dong couldn't help but exclaim with delight.

He immediately grabbed his chopsticks, picked up the half-eaten cucumber from the plate next to him, and stuffed it into his mouth.

One bite of the cucumber in a straw raincoat is refreshingly crisp, with a perfect balance of sour and spicy. If the previous bite of the shredded radish was like sugar, then this bite of the cucumber in a straw raincoat is like a spicy chili pepper that hits right in the head.

Especially after being chilled, the cool sensation slides down the throat into the stomach, instantly dispelling the sweltering heat of the past few days and leaving one feeling refreshed.

Old Dong ate with great relish, and even took a bowl from the bucket next to him to scoop out some mung bean soup.

Wu Xiaochun glanced at him and couldn't help but think to himself, "This old guy is really too familiar with himself."

Not only did I get half a dish for free, but I also wanted a bowl of mung bean soup for free.

However, seeing that Dong Laonian was sweating profusely from the heat, Wu Xiaochun didn't say anything. He simply reached out and used a large ladle to scoop up a large spoonful of cooked mung beans from under the pot of mung bean soup and poured it into Dong Laonian's lunchbox.

"..." Old Dong was taken aback, and subconsciously said, "Thank you, Brother Xiaochun."

This statement is from the bottom of my heart.

Actually, we all suffer together every day. It's just a matter of saying one or two unpleasant words. Why do we have so much deep-seated hatred?

The cool and refreshing food immediately won over the taste buds of the men in the workshop.

Amidst the banter and jokes, almost everyone was praising Chen Wei's dedication, having long forgotten about the minor conflict from earlier.

The heavy sunset slowly descended, and the sweltering evening breeze, still carrying the oppressive heat of midsummer, blew through the houses and into the factory dormitory area.

Chen Wei walked back to his dormitory with his hands in his pockets. His hair, which he had just rinsed under the tap in the kitchen, was still dripping with water. A slight breeze brought him a cool feeling.

A bicycle suddenly braked and screeched to a stop next to Chen Wei.

Chen Jianguo, wearing a pair of black leather sandals, jumped out of the car and beamed with joy as soon as he saw Chen Wei.

"Good job, lad, you did a great job at lunch today!"

Chen Wei knew that Chen Jianguo was praising him for suppressing Wang Defa's arrogance at noon.

However, Chen Wei had long since put his little grudge with Wang Defa behind him—the other man had given him the treasured sword that had been with him for half his life, and now that the equipment was gone, he couldn't very well scold the person whose loot was looted.

"Uncle, I don't actually think Wang Defa is that bad," Chen Wei said in a low voice, scratching his head.

Chen Jianguo, sitting opposite him, clearly disagreed, glaring at him with a fierce look on his face.

"With your temper, you'll get what's coming to you sooner or later! They're bullying us, and you're still taking their side!"

It wasn't really bullying, after all, if it weren't for Wang Defa's competition, Chen Wei's reputation in the factory wouldn't have spread so widely and so quickly.

No one compared his cooking to Wang Defa's, and some of the older workers might even feel that they got a better deal.

However, Chen Wei didn't say these words aloud; he just lowered his head and continued to pretend to be mute.

Seeing his unambitious nephew fall silent again, Chen Jianguo couldn't help but shake his head.

Ultimately, Chen Wei made him look good today and also severely suppressed Wang Defa's arrogance, which is enough.

After much thought, Chen Jianguo still felt that young people should be praised more.

So he waved his hand and said, "Don't go back to the dorm. I just got paid. Let's go to the state-run store today. I'll take you shopping!"