Travel through famine years and awaken a post-apocalyptic survival system.

I went out for a walk and came back to find someone chatting with my mother in the yard.

Upon seeing him approach, the other person smiled and said, "So this is your son!"

Seeing this, the mother nodded proudly: "Yes! My son is now working as a security officer in the steel factory! Son, this is Aunt Sun, from the next courtyard."

"Oh, Aunt Sun, hello!"

Zhao Qingsong greeted them and said with a smile, "You guys are busy, I'll talk to Uncle Ma and the others."

Seeing this, the older woman waved her hand and said, "It's nothing, you all go about your business, I just came to check on things."

"Okay, sure!"

Zhao Qingsong agreed.

After they came in, they all sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and smoked.

They all stood up when they saw him come in.

Zhao Qingsong handed an old lunchbox and an oil paper package to the two of them.

"Uncle Ma, Uncle Liu, here are steamed buns, three for each of you. This lunchbox contains vegetables, you can eat them on the way."

Opening the lunchbox revealed pork and cabbage inside.

There were some steamed buns and leftover rice and dishes left, which were naturally for the family to eat.

When Accountant Ma saw the pork, his mouth split into a wide grin. He laughed and said, "Qingsong, you're really something! Then we won't stand on ceremony! We'll take this dish back with us so the kids can have a taste of meat. We can just eat steamed buns on the way."

Old Liu, standing nearby, nodded with a smile: "Yes, take it back for the kids. These white steamed buns are quite precious."

"Hey, it's the least I can do, thank you for coming all this way."

After Zhao Qingsong finished speaking, he looked outside and said, "Then I won't keep you any longer. Take care on your journey. I'll have my dad go back to find you tomorrow."

"Okay, then we'll be going!"

The two happily divided the steamed buns, each taking a bite and stuffing the rest into their cotton-padded jackets.

I'm starving after not eating for so long.

If I weren't so hungry, I would have taken all of these steamed buns back for the children to eat.

This is something you only eat during holidays and festivals!

The group went out of the room to get the livestock.

The father and mother escorted the group to the gate of the courtyard.

Zhao Qingsong handed each of them a pack of cigarettes and said with a smile, "Uncle Ma, take it easy on the road, don't rush, walk slowly."

"Okay, we'll be going now!"

The two greeted each other before seeing the person off.

Grandma Sun had already left long ago.

……

After everyone left, Zhao Qingsong turned to the two of them and said, "You must be hungry. Hurry up and eat. Dad, eat quickly. Before you get off work, I'll take you to get your work done. We also need to go to the police station to familiarize ourselves with the place. The coal station isn't far from here; you can walk there."

"Okay! Let's eat quickly."

The father smiled and agreed.

He closed the door and went back inside.

Mother had already heated the kang (a heated brick bed), and it was piled high with things. The family sat on the kang table to make do.

While eating, the mother asked with some concern, "Qingsong, your father has a ration limit. What are we going to do? Why don't I take Xuemei back first, and you can send money home from now on?"

Zhao Qingsong was also very hungry and quickly ate his food.

Hearing this, he looked up and said nonchalantly, "It's alright, you don't need to leave. Listen to me, I'll arrange everything clearly for you. If I can't find permanent employees, I'll find you temporary workers within the plan."

With jobs becoming more competitive, he might not be able to get a permanent position.

Then hire temporary workers.

Temporary workers are also divided into those within the planned workforce and those outside the planned workforce.

The biggest difference between temporary and permanent employees in the plan is the low wages; in the first year, they only get 12 yuan a month.

The situation is much worse for unplanned temporary workers. Only grain, vegetables, and oil are rationed, while other rations are not. These temporary workers are mostly for rural people. If you have an urban household registration, you don't have to worry about the rationing issue.

These temporary workers can be dismissed at any time.

Hearing this, the mother breathed a sigh of relief: "Okay, I understand."

"Well, even if you can't find a job, don't worry about going hungry. There are plenty of people in the steel mill who are eating extra food, so one more won't make a difference."

Eating unplanned food is fine in normal times and doesn't cost much more, but in years of famine, it can wipe out a family's entire savings.

The mother didn't know the reason, so she didn't say anything.

After a quick meal, I rode my bike with my father to the coal station and found Station Master Liu.

The other party didn't say anything and just completed his onboarding procedures.

After getting the paperwork, I quickly took my father straight to the police station.

In this neighborhood, household registration is done at the local police station. Only after completing the household registration can you go to the neighborhood office to obtain documents such as grain ration books, coal purchase permits, and non-staple food permits.

……

Street police station.

I ran into an old acquaintance as soon as I arrived.

Yang Qingwu.

"Commander Yang!"

The other person had just returned, turned around, and seeing it was Zhao Qingsong, smiled and said, "Zhao, what's up? Something happened at the factory?"

Zhao Qingsong smiled, changed into his peony-patterned sachet, and handed one to the other person.

He laughed and said, "No, my dad found a job, didn't he? So he's here to complete the household registration procedures."

Yang Qingwu suddenly realized, glanced at Zhao Jianguo beside him, and smiled: "This matter! Okay, let Xiao Song handle it for you, so you don't have to make another trip tomorrow. Have you brought all the paperwork?"

"I brought everything."

"Okay, I'll take you there."

Yang Qingwu took him to the place where he could register his household registration.

"Xiao Song, please help Officer Zhao with the household registration procedures. Bring them over for me to sign in a bit."

The clerk looked at Zhao Qingsong and smiled as he agreed, "Okay, Officer Zhao, I'll get it done for you today."

"Okay, thank you!"

He smiled and handed her a cigarette, saying, "You go ahead with your work. I'm going out for a smoke and to talk to Director Yang about something."

"Okay, go ahead!"

Seeing this, Zhao Qingsong said to his father, "Dad, wait here. Call me if you need anything."

"Okay, sure!"

The father agreed.

Zhao Qingsong then followed Yang Su out.

Seeing that the other person had finished their cigarette, he lit another one: "Chief Yang, how's the case with Wu Zhiqiang going? Have you found their contact?"

Yang Qingwu took the cigarette, lit it, and shook his head: "No, that person was very cautious. He might not be from your steel factory; he could be from the district, or he might not even be here. He only comes over when he's on a mission."

He paused for a moment and then said, "The higher-ups have closed this case for the first time. The remaining investigation needs to continue. As for whether we can catch them, we don't know yet. It's highly unlikely."

Zhao Qingsong nodded slightly.

He just chats around to build relationships.

Having more friends means having more options.

"The factory will definitely increase its investigation efforts, but the specifics will depend on how our section chief arranges it."

Yang Qingwu hummed in agreement and chuckled, "You've really done a great job this time. By the way, I heard you hunted down a big wild boar last time. If you can, could you get some for our police station too?"

His expression carried a hint of ingratiation.

Zhao Qingsong was stunned for a moment.

How did they find out?

Looking at his expression, Yang Qingwu smiled and said, "You may not know this, but during the War of Resistance Against Japan, Sun Guodong and I were in the same company. Later, I went to other companies, but we were still in the same unit. When I was demobilized, I was transferred to the police station."

"Oh, I see!"

I see, that explains it.

This reminded him of a saying: "Don't easily offend an old soldier; who knows what powerful figures he might have connections with?"

After the war ended, many soldiers were discharged and transferred to civilian jobs, and there were soldiers in various systems.

He then laughed and said, "Okay, I'll keep an eye out for you. If we're lucky, we'll see."

They didn't rule things out definitively.

"Okay, then you go ahead with your work. I have something to do, so I'll be going now!"

"Yes, you're busy!"

After exchanging pleasantries, Yang Qingwu left.