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

Jin Yi Machinery Factory was some distance from Quanyechang. Chen Jianguo rode his old-fashioned bicycle, carrying his distinctive smell, through the flow of people leaving get off work.

Fortunately, it was still early, so the father and son chatted casually on the way.

"This afternoon, the factory manager called me into his office and praised our canteen for being well-run."

"oh."

"The factory manager also said that he would raise the food allowance for our factory workers next month."

"oh."

"Why don't you ask the factory manager if he praised you or not?"

There was an intersection right in front of them. Chen Jianguo braked and stopped the car, staring at Chen Wei with wide eyes.

Chen Wei looked at Chen Jianguo and shook his head sincerely.

Being praised won't make you any better off, so what's the point of asking?

"..."

His taciturn demeanor immediately shut Chen Jianguo up, leaving him speechless, and he couldn't help but glare at him fiercely.

Chen Wei, on the other hand, seemed indifferent, sitting on the back of the bicycle and silently gazing at the distant sunset.

After a moment of silence, Chen Jianguo finally couldn't hold back any longer.

Forget it, it's not like I just found out about my nephew's incredibly quiet and unresponsive nature.

He sighed, got back on his bicycle, and continued speaking.

"I told the factory manager that the canteen became so successful after you arrived. The factory manager has also heard of you, and it seems he values ​​you quite a bit."

Chen Wei pursed his lips, wondering what the point of this attention was.

We can't just make empty promises without providing any real benefits.

"The promotion I mentioned to Lao Ma before should be happening soon. It'll probably be within the next month or two at most!"

Chen Jianguo said something, and his voice gradually lowered.

Since it was still unsubstantiated, he couldn't make any definitive statements.

But Chen Jianguo knew in his heart that Chen Wei's promotion was probably about to happen.

Wang Defa retired due to illness. He was already getting on in years, and with this broken leg, it would probably take him a year or two to fully recover. As soon as he left, the position of head chef became vacant.

It's probably a bit too early for Chen Wei to take over as head chef now. After all, it's a state-owned enterprise, and seniority is still a serious factor.

Chen Wei was just an apprentice; there was no way he would get a chance.

But it's a well-known fact that Chen Wei is now in charge of cooking in the cafeteria. What Chen Jianguo needs to do now is to prevent a more capable chef from coming in and let Chen Wei stay in this position for a while longer.

He doesn't need much time, just one or two months, and he's confident he can get Chenwei into the head chef position.

"By the way, the salary increase I mentioned last time has been approved. Your salary next month will be thirty-five yuan."

Thirty-five yuan is the salary of a regular worker.

Chen Wei nodded slightly, but wasn't particularly moved.

After all, he lives and eats at the factory, so it doesn't cost him much money.

Therefore, he wasn't very enthusiastic about getting a raise from the start.

"oh."

Chen Wei gave a faint "oh," which nearly made Chen Jianguo, who was pedaling the bicycle in front, so angry that he almost passed out.

This topic is impossible to discuss!

But Chen Jianguo couldn't do anything about him. When they finally arrived at Quanyechang, Chen Jianguo, looking very unhappy, kicked Chen Wei out of the car.

"Go inside and take a look! You should have some decent clothes by now. Look how well Wang Defa dressed today, while you wear a tank top every day!"

"Uncle, I don't really need to buy any clothes. I already have my work uniform..."

Chen Wei scratched his head. It was so hot in the kitchen. He had to stand by the stove all day. If it weren't for the need to maintain appearances, he would have preferred not to wear a tank top at all!

"Stop talking nonsense! Come inside with me now!"

Chen Jianguo ignored Chen Wei's small protest and simply reached out and forcibly dragged her into the mall.

As evening approached, the lights in the Quanyechang shopping mall were already on.

As soon as you step through the thick wooden-framed glass door, you are greeted by bright lights.

The entire first floor consisted of U-shaped glass counters, with a dozen or so neatly dressed sales clerks standing inside, their faces bearing the arrogance unique to that era.

These days, being a sales clerk is a respectable job, with a government job and a decent position!

Without saying a word, Chen Jianguo pulled Chen Wei to the clothing counter and randomly pointed to a white shirt hanging on the wall.

"Hello comrade, let's take a look at the ready-made clothes and put them on him!"

The sales clerk was very friendly. She immediately turned around and took down the white shirt from the wall. She then looked Chen Wei up and down and couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

"Oh my, this young man is quite handsome. Is he your son? You have excellent taste. This style is a new arrival in our store, modeled after foreign shirts."

Chen Jianguo has a high salary and a good family background. Although he's not to the point of not needing to look at prices when he comes to this kind of shopping mall, he's not one of those stingy people either.

He casually held the white shirt up to Chen Wei's body and nodded with great satisfaction.

"This one's pretty good, Xiaowei, what do you think?"

"..."

Chen Wei looked at the old-fashioned shirt in front of him and couldn't bring himself to say "it's pretty good".

He pursed his lips and glanced back at the prices displayed on the counter.

A string of small red characters on the tag reads the price of this shirt: 12.57 yuan.

That's not cheap! It's worth half a month's salary for him!

"Uncle, this one..."

Just as Chen Wei was about to say that he didn't like it, a crisp voice suddenly came from behind them.

"Chef Chen?!"

Chen Wei was taken aback and immediately turned around.

At a glance, I spotted a young woman at the counter on the other side. She was wearing a light blue floral dress and black leather sandals, and her two braids hung down in front of her chest, swaying as she ran.

Is this the girl who eats a lot?

Her name is... Lin Xiaoyan!

After a moment of reflection, Chen Wei finally remembered Lin Xiaoyan's name.

Just then, Lin Xiaoyan arrived in front of Chen Wei like a little swallow.

She looked at him with excitement.

"What a coincidence! I ran into you at the library last time, and now I've run into you again at Quanyechang!"

"Forehead……"

These words left Chen Wei somewhat speechless.

Jinshi is a small city, and the library and Quanyechang are the places where the younger generation goes most often after work. Since both of their workplaces are quite close to this area, it's normal for them to bump into each other.

Just as I was thinking this, I heard Lin Xiaoyan chattering away again.

"I'm so sorry about what happened at noon today! We had planned to have lunch at your workplace, but my boss suddenly assigned me work today, so... he didn't approve my leave..."

The girl blushed as she spoke, glanced at Chen Jianguo beside her, and lowered her head shyly, not understanding why.

? ? ? ?

Chen Wei was speechless. Why did her words make it seem like there was something between him and her? He was a perfectly innocent man, and he had never had any private dealings with her!

Just as he turned his head to explain, he saw Chen Jianguo looking at him with a mysterious smile.

No! Uncle! You've misunderstood!