The Northern Stories of Chef Lao Tan

Chapter 2 Mahjong
There are many small mahjong clubs in Santaizi, most of which are located in old buildings with one kitchen and one bathroom.

There are very few original residents in the old buildings, and most of them bought new buildings and rented out the old ones.The rent is cheap, ranging from [-] to [-] a month.Most of the people who rent this old house are migrant workers, or idle people who are divorced, have no house, and have no job.

The other part is for home decoration, and I rent here temporarily.There are also sons who get married, and the parents use the building as a new house for their sons and rent a house here. There are not a few of them. Parents give up everything for their children, and they feel sorry for the parents of the world.

There are generally three kinds of people who go to the mahjong club to play mahjong.

One is old men and old ladies who have nothing to do at home after retirement, take their pensions, and play a little mahjong to pass the time when they have nothing to do.

It's also very interesting to watch these old men and women playing mahjong. Children, old and young, sometimes get red-faced because of winning or losing a few cents.But after the quarrel today, it will be fine tomorrow, and I am still sitting at a table playing mahjong.

The second type of people is the main force of the mahjong club, aged between 35 and 50 years old, most of them are divorced single men and women, half of them are employed and half of them are not.

Those who have a job report to the mahjong club as soon as possible after work every day, and play until midnight. Winning or losing is not important, the important thing is to find a good friend.

The unemployed are pure idlers, who have no money and don't want to find a job, and spend all day in the mahjong club.If you lose all your ideas, you can borrow them from the boss of the mahjong club, and return them when you win.If you really have no money, you can borrow it from your friends. If you can borrow money, you can continue to play, and if you have no money, you can borrow it again.

The owner of the mahjong club turns a blind eye to such people, knowing that they have no money, so he doesn't kick them out.

These people have one thing in common. They are single, laid-off, not ready to find a job before retirement age, and dissociated in society.Full of complaints about life, full of resentment towards society, thinking that everyone is sorry for themselves, bragging about how capable they are, but in fact they are nothing.

The third type of people are mahjong lovers. They don’t stay in the mahjong club all day long, but they have their own jobs. Generally, they go to the mahjong club on Saturdays and Sundays to enjoy themselves. They don’t care about winning or losing, they just like it.

When Lao Tan entered the mahjong club, there were four people sitting in the room, two men and two women.

The men are Lao Hei and Brother Liu.

Brother Liu is in his fifties, with a dark face and a burly figure.I used to be a physical education teacher, but my eyes were ruined by drinking alcohol, and I got macular degeneration in the fundus, and I retired early.Always come to play mahjong when you have nothing to do, which is the loyal principle of Lao Hei's family.Old Tan sat at the same table with Brother Liu last time. Brother Liu was a generous and kind person, and he had a temper with Lao Tan. The two of them invited each other out for a drink that day, chatted speculatively, and became friends.

I was very happy to see Brother Liu here in Old Tan, and thought I would go out for a drink with Brother Liu after the game, or else I would be alone at noon.

The age of the two women is about 40 years old, one is a housewife, the other is beautiful, and the charm is still there.

Seeing Lao Tan coming, Lao Hei said with a smile: "Lingzi and Yanzi are here, just as brother Liu has just arrived, three are missing and one is missing, I am thinking about who to turn to, I checked the phone book and saw my brother's phone number."

Lao Tan smiled and greeted Brother Liu.

Lao Hei introduced the two women to Lao Tan.The housewife dressed up as Xiaoling lived in a rented room in the compound, and was the cleaner of Gome Electric.The handsome one is Yanzi, a frequent visitor to the mahjong club.

With enough hands, the four of them started playing cards.

Brother Liu has poor eyesight and needs to sit in a place with sufficient light. Give him the seat by the window. Lao Tan sits opposite him, and Yanzi and Xiaoling sit on opposite sides.

It stands to reason that Brother Liu's eyes shouldn't be playing mahjong, he can't see clearly, he always treats six as nine, thirty thousand as twenty, and sometimes he has to be reminded to get it back if he makes a mistake.

But because of his popularity, everyone treats him as a big brother, and no one cares about it.

Brother Liu is the most popular in the mahjong club. He is very decent, outspoken, forthright, loves to make friends, and loves to hang out with others regardless of whether he is a man or a woman.Two hobbies in my life, drinking and playing mahjong.I used to play when I was young, but my daughter-in-law didn’t take care of it. Now I don’t care, but there is a rule that must be followed, go home before dark--the eyes are not good, and I am afraid that I will be hit by a car when crossing the road at night.

Brother Liu asked Lao Tan while playing cards: "Brother Tan, have you been looking for a job these two days?"

Old Tan said, "I found it."

"It should be easy to find a job in your restaurant," said Brother Liu.

"good."

When Lao Tan entered the door just now, Yanzi thought he was a gangster, with a bald head, a bandit face, and a fierce face, which looked quite creepy.Hearing chatter turned out to be a chef, so he asked, "Are you a chef?"

Lao Tan nodded with a smile and said, "Well, chef."

"The chef earns more than three thousand a month, doesn't he?" Yanzi asked.

"Basically, that's all." Old Tan replied.

"Where have you been?" Swallow continued to ask.

"I'm out of town, so I just came back."

Yanzi didn't continue to ask, and began to concentrate on playing mahjong.

She is 44 this year and is an employee of Lingbei Supply and Marketing Cooperative. In [-], she was laid off after buying out her seniority. She planned to open a restaurant in partnership with others, but failed.Later, I sold cosmetics and made some money.Later, her husband had an affair and the two divorced.

After the divorce, I partnered with a man, but separated after two years, and I haven't found him since then.He is very popular in the mahjong club, and he is as popular as Brother Liu.

Four people fought for an hour, and Lao Tan lost 30 yuan.

During this period, three people came in one after another from the mahjong club, but one person was still short of the game. After waiting for a long time, no one came, and the three people seemed to be leaving.

Lao Tan told Brother Liu to stop beating and go out for a drink.So the two stood up and stopped playing, and gave it to the other two.

Seeing that he didn't lose money, Yanzi stopped playing, and gave up his position to the remaining one.So Brother Liu called her out of the mahjong club with Lao Tan.

The three of them came to the place where Old Tan and Brother Liu drank last time - Yingai Cold Noodle Shop.The boss warmly greeted them to sit down, recommending that the dog meat is hot out of the pan.

Brother Liu ordered a catty of dog meat and a dry tofu.Yanzi ordered an ink fountain, and the boss added a plate of peanuts for three people and three dishes, making up four dishes.

When the food and wine were served, the three of them chatted leisurely while drinking.

Swallow asked Brother Liu: "Brother Liu, is your sister-in-law at work?"

Brother Liu replied, "It's time to go to work."

"Sister-in-law also retired?"

"Leaving early, helping out in the supermarket owned by her classmate, working half a day, coming back at three in the afternoon."

"How much does sister-in-law pay now?" Yanzi asked.

"She pays less. The pension is [-], and her classmate gives [-], and all add up to [-]." Brother Liu said.

Swallow said: "My sister-in-law is really capable." Then said: "Brother Liu, you have four thousand a month, and my sister-in-law three thousand and four. You old couple can't spend money, so why don't you tell my sister-in-law to stop doing it? "

Brother Liu said: "If you don't listen to me, I won't let her do it. She can't be idle, she doesn't want to stay at home, and she doesn't get tired when her classmates are with her. Heart."

Old Tan thinks that brother Liu and his sister-in-law are from this city, they have a work unit, and they retire at home with more than [-] yuan a month. They have old insurance, medical insurance, and provident fund. They have a ready-made house and have no worries about food and clothing. There is also capital to enjoy.I can't do it myself, and a part-time worker is incomparable to others. I have nothing. If I don't work, I have no money to spend. I can only live on my laurels.

At this time, the gap between a part-time worker and the people in this city is revealed. People in this city have security after retirement, but there is no security for part-time workers. If you want to survive, you have to work non-stop. When do you feel that the money you earn is enough for retirement? Only then can we stop.

Old Tan Xin said that he was only 37, and he had to do it. He couldn't spend all day in the mahjong club like Brother Liu, and he didn't have the capital.Seven thousand a month in Binhai, and those who keep their homes in the provincial capital and keep their land. If you don’t become a chef and just cook, you can give six thousand.

As he was thinking about things, Yanzi's phone rang.

"Drinking with friends at Ying Ai's house, are you coming?" Yanzi asked
It seemed that the person on the other side of the phone wanted to come over, Yanzi said: "Come here, it's boring to be at home, your guy doesn't come home for lunch, come over and have a drink, I'll wait for you."

After finishing speaking, he hung up the phone and said to Brother Liu and Lao Tan, "I'm a girlfriend."

Brother Liu said with a smile: "Your friend, call her over, it's so lively."

Swallow said: "Come here in a while, my friend is good, we have known each other for eight years."

After finishing speaking, I felt that Lao Tan and Brother Liu were out drinking together, and I was a bit embarrassed to call my friends over, so I said, "I invite you for today's meal."

Brother Liu immediately said: "What are you talking about? How can I ask you to please and scold Brother Liu?"

Swallow smiled embarrassedly.

Old Tan said: "No one should argue with me, whoever fights with me will be impatient."

A red taxi was parked outside the store, and a 35- to six-year-old woman got out of the car. She was tall, beautiful, with exquisite makeup and high hair.A pair of beautiful big eyes are like autumn water, looking forward to shining brightly.

He was wearing a white down jacket, a pair of gray wool trousers on his lower body, and a pair of black half-heeled leather boots on his feet.

The proud figure is looming, and the ups and downs of the peaks and mountains give people a rich reverie.

The woman pushed open the store door, looked inside, saw the swallow waving to her, and walked over with a smile.

When the woman was about to walk to the table, Lao Tan, who was sitting with his back to the door, turned around.

The woman stopped involuntarily when she saw Lao Tan, opened her eyes in disbelief, and exclaimed: "You—"

　Gambling does not matter big or small, it is best not to touch it.People in the world lose nine out of ten bets, and their wives and children are sad for a lifetime.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)