Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 453 452 Running
Because of the snow, it hasn't frozen yet, but it's hard to say at night.

In order to make the carrot tops look good, Tang Zhitong took the students who wanted to sell them to the practice farm.

It's also made clear that this thing isn't valuable, but it can help with bargaining.

There were quite a few students following behind me, at least my roommates from Class 219 were there.

What Tang Zhitong didn't expect was that some people had already been picking up the trash here, most of them were the teachers' family members.

Old men, adult women and children, all ages.

There are sacks, big baskets, small baskets, and all kinds of household items.

There are plenty of carrot tops, so there is no problem of snatching them.

Tang Zhitong used a sack he brought from Tong's villa and threw the ones that looked good into the sack.

Occasionally, you can hear the old lady instructing her daughter-in-law: Pick out the good ones, pick up more, and give some to this relative and some to that friend.

Tang Zhitong sighed. It wasn’t easy at all.

Tang Zhitong let his classmates carry the food into the dormitory bit by bit. He stopped after picking up half a sack. He couldn't eat any more and it would be a waste.

He carried his share of carrots from the dormitory and tied one to his bicycle.

Before leaving, Tang Zhitong rode his bicycle, detoured to the practice farmland of other classes, plucked some and threw them into the space.

After the weather freezes tomorrow, the taste of the tassels will be greatly reduced, and they will be even harder to preserve. It will be a shame if you can't pick them all up, as they will be life-saving next year.

Then, he rode towards the escort department.

There was heavy snow, obstructing vision and low visibility. On a road with no pedestrians, Tang Zhitong threw all the sacks into the space and walked forward lightly.

In recent days, Tang Zhitong has been going to the escort office after school.

The escort department has been upgraded and the biggest change is the original escort unit. Not only has it been upgraded to a department-level department, but it has also attracted a lot of fresh blood.

According to what Fang Yuan told Tang Zhitong privately, there was a big quarrel between Lao He from the military and the Municipal Bureau over the expansion of the Escort Department.

It's not because expansion is not allowed, but because of the problem of where to select additional personnel for expansion. Everyone wants to recruit more people from their own side.

It is true that the escorts are under dual leadership, but their salaries are paid uniformly by the municipal bureau.

The Municipal Bureau’s reasons are very sufficient. I pay the salary and I will recruit the staff. That’s reasonable, right?
Old He was also confident that since this was a military mail shipment, the escorts must have high military qualities, and only those who had retired from our team could take on this role.

Lao He also had his own reasons. He had said he would retire before, so he went home to farm. Land is personal, and the people have deep feelings for the land and they love the land.

However, since the implementation of collectivization in a short period of time last year, the land no longer belongs to individuals. Many people who have reached the age limit for various reasons are no longer willing to return to the countryside and want to stay in the city.

After some people's vigorous actions, they have learned about the situation in their hometown through letters. At this time, anyone with a little vision knows that it is safer to have a stable job in the city.

After much shouting, arguing, and table-banging, the two sides allocated the quota for additional personnel, with Lao He's side getting 20 places and the Municipal Bureau's side getting 10.

Fang Yuan did not push anyone in.

After learning about this, Tang Zhitong secretly felt lucky that he was not greedy. Otherwise, given the situation, how could he have gotten a spot?

When Tang Zhitong arrived at the escort office, he pulled out a few radishes and a handful of carrot tops and stuffed them into his bag, then went to look for Fang Yuan first.

"Brother Yuan, I want to tell you something." Before entering the door, Tang Zhitong brushed off the snowflakes on his body, took off his gloves, and used a cigarette to clear the way.

"What's the matter?"

"The department organized students to plant some carrots a while ago. Now they are harvested and distributed to everyone. It is inconvenient for many students to take the carrots home, so they thought of exchanging the carrots for some national food coupons. I was thinking about it and came here to ask if anyone in our unit wants to exchange." Tang Zhitong lit a cigarette for Fang Yuan and took out carrots and tassels from his bag to show Fang Yuan.

"This carrot is not bad. Do you want to change the tassels too?" Fang Yuan felt a little greedy when he saw the green vegetables. There are greenhouses in the suburbs of Beijing, but the output is not enough to be supplied to the market.

"The tassels don't need to be exchanged, and they don't need money. The college eats them all. I see many teachers' families picking them up for home. If we act quickly, we can get some when we exchange carrots."

"How do you change it?" Fang Yuan was tempted.

"I'm thinking of exchanging one pound of national food coupons for seven pounds of carrots, and asking my classmates to give me some extra carrots. Brother Yuan, do you think it's okay?"

"Okay, why not?" Fang Yuan slapped his thigh. Carrots are durable and the tassels are white. Besides, he believed in Tang Zhitong, so the tassels must be there.

"Brother Yuan, would you like to change some?" Tang Zhitong smiled.

"Exchange for three pounds... no, five pounds." Fang Yuan gritted his teeth. He no longer needed to eat the escort's ration and he still had some food coupons he had saved before. He was reluctant to give up any more.

"Okay. I'll bring it back tomorrow." Although they were familiar with each other, Tang Zhitong certainly couldn't let Fang Yuan go to the gate of Post and Telecommunications College alone, so he took the initiative to assume the responsibility.

"I don't have any tickets. I have to get them tomorrow." Fang Yuan looked at the time and the sky. Even if he went out now, he couldn't get a round trip ticket. He couldn't ask Tang Zhitong to help him with the food coupons. So he asked, "Do you want to ask someone else?"

"Hehe, Brother Yuan is really good at judging people."

"Then let's do this. There's no need to go and change them one by one. It will waste too much work time. You can count and see how many people want to change. Tell them to bring their tickets as soon as they get to work tomorrow. I will coordinate with the master from the transfer office to go over tomorrow." Fang Yuan thought for a while, tapped the table with his hand, and said.

"Oh~ That's great, thank you Brother Yuan." Tang Zhitong was overjoyed. With Fang Yuan's help, this matter not only solved the employees' difficulties, but also opened the door for convenience for himself.

After thanking Fang Yuan, Tang Zhitong happily went to the Escort Department, which was the original Escort Unit.

Zhang Jinbo, the original team leader of the Anton route, was promoted to deputy section chief this time and was in charge of the work of the escort section.

Zhang Jinbo has been very busy recently. Not only does he have to arrange shooting for new recruits, but he also has to familiarize himself with the upcoming postal code promotion assessment. He has met with Tang Zhitong several times recently to discuss how to quickly count and sort mail on train mail cars.

After hearing Tang Zhitong's request and seeing the actual carrots and tassels, Zhang Jinbo said without hesitation: "Oh, you are a timely help. I am worried about not having vegetables in winter. I can exchange 10 kilograms of food coupons. The escorts who were shooting will be back soon. I will notify them one by one and send you a message before leaving get off work."

Although Zhang Jinbo was promoted, his identity was still an escort. He had a legitimate reason to eat a high ration, but the intensity of his work was reduced suddenly, and he had more surplus food than others.

After thanking Zhang Jinbo, Tang Zhitong took the carrots and tassels and ran from department to department like a salesman who was paid on commission.

This is how it is in the workplace. For things like this you either tell a few good people or notify everyone. Otherwise you will inevitably be accused of being arrogant.

After walking around, Tang Zhitong was most surprised by the sorting department. The girls and wives were very fond of carrots. Although they did not have many food coupons nationwide, on average each person had more than one kilogram.

Those who did not have national food coupons whispered behind Tang Zhitong's back and secretly exchanged them with colleagues who had tickets, using local food coupons and giving them an extra half pound of carrots.

Tang Zhitong pretended not to hear. After all, it was a matter of mutual consent and there was no such thing as coercion.

Finally, when he returned to the Finance Department, Tang Zhitong did not forget Ma Wei. When he told Ma Wei about it, Ma Wei's expression was exactly the same as the girl in the sorting department. She immediately decided to exchange it for five kilograms of national food coupons and thanked Tang Zhitong.

"Wow, five kilograms of national food coupons is not a small amount. I can't starve for a few carrots." Tang Zhitong thought too much, fearing that Ma Wei would ask for more to save his face.

"Thank you for your concern, Section Chief Tang. I won't starve. I usually eat less dry food and all the hunger will come back by chewing on a carrot. Carrots are sweet and crispy. Not only can they satisfy your hunger, but you can also eat them as fruit." Ma Wei blushed as she explained to Tang Zhitong.

"Hey, no wonder. If you didn't tell me, I thought they were all eaten as dishes, but it turns out they are meant to be eaten raw." After Ma Wei finished speaking, Tang Zhitong laughed. Now he finally understood why the young girls and wives in the sorting department were so enthusiastic.

As for Ma Wei's blushing, Tang Zhitong didn't think much about it, thinking that she was just embarrassed to show her greed.

Greed and laziness are both the driving forces of human progress. Once they understand this, they probably won't feel embarrassed anymore.

After Zhang Jinbo told Tang Zhitong the statistics of the escort department, Tang Zhitong calculated that the entire escort section could produce 300 kilograms of national food coupons.

This is already a lot, and I estimate that Class 593 of the Wired Department can handle it.

The final result came out, and Tang Zhitong found Fang Yuan again and reported it to him.

"Okay, you won't come tomorrow, right? Go back and tell Xiao Ma to help register the names and the number of food coupons tomorrow morning. Also ask Zhang Jinbo to come over and I'll talk to him about the staffing arrangements." Fang Yuan gave the order immediately when he heard the weight, which was more than a ton if converted into carrots.

"Okay!" As the get off work was about to end, Tang Zhitong immediately went back to make arrangements. Ma Wei readily agreed, so that she could get to know some colleagues in advance. After all, it was best to know everyone when paying salaries.

Tang Zhitong thoughtfully wrote a "Pay Grain Coupons" sign and posted it on the wall outside the Finance Department before riding his bike home.

The snow has become much lighter, and many children are having snowball fights on the street. Most of them are just playing around normally.

However, there were a few little boys who, relying on their tall and strong bodies, did not abide by the moral code of martial arts. They grabbed a snowball and caught the smaller children and stuffed it into their necks.

Some people who are not interested in snowball fights are particularly fond of the white snow on both sides of the street where no one has stepped on it.

Its spotless appearance makes people particularly want to destroy it, and it makes a crackling sound when you step on it, which makes your teeth ache.

Just like some people particularly like to fall in love with someone who has never been in a relationship before, because they feel a sense of accomplishment.

It's fine if they just feel a sense of accomplishment, they also publicized it everywhere, they even shot a video, they even uploaded it to the domestic market...

When Tang Zhitong returned home and was stacking carrots in the cellar, Xiao Wang and Feng Zhen came into the house.

"Where did the carrots come from?" Xiao Wang asked when he saw Fengzhi jumping and eating carrots in the yard.

"My brother brought it back." Fengzhi pointed to the cellar and immediately added, "My mother washed it and left it for my sister-in-law and my elder sister. It's in the house."

Xiao Wang gently brushed the snow off the sister-in-law's head, then squatted at the entrance of the cellar and looked down: "Have you harvested the carrots you planted?"

"Well, each person in our class was given 155 kilograms, and I brought them all back." Tang Zhitong stopped the shovel in his hand and looked up at Xiao Wang. It was dark, so he could only get a rough idea.

"Do you need help?"

"No need, you guys go into the house first, it will be over in a moment." Tang Zhitong said, and continued to pack the carrots.

When stacking carrots in the cellar, it is best to cover them with semi-wet sand, two layers of carrots and one layer of sand.

There was no sand at home, so Tang Zhitong used some soil reserved for filling the cellar roof. Fortunately, the snow that fell today had not melted yet, so the soil did not turn into mud.

The carrot tops are spread out on the rack and can be taken and eaten whenever you want. It should be no problem to eat them for three to five days.

After everything was packed up, Tang Zhitong took the sack and went upstairs. He threw the sack on the bicycle first, then clapped his hands and went into the house.

Classmate Xiao Wang and his two sisters-in-law were happily eating carrots, like three little rabbits.

Tonight's dish is carrot tops, stewed. No matter how it tastes, it is a green vegetable after all.

After dinner, Tang Zhitong cleaned the kimchi jar again. There was still a hint of smell, so he gave up the plan of making kimchi and decided to soak it again to get rid of the smell.

When returning to the room, Tang Zhitong found that the snow had started to fall again.

Tang Zhitong felt playful and pulled Xiao Wang to stand at the door of the compartment, waiting for the snowflakes to fall on them.

"What's wrong? Do you want to enjoy the snow? It's very cold." Student Xiao Wang looked at her husband, who was looking up at the sky. The sky was gloomy, and apart from the snowflakes in front of him, no moonlight or starlight could be seen.

"I suddenly remembered a poem that fits the occasion." Tang Zhitong lowered his head, turned to look at Xiao Wang, used his index finger to help her push a few strands of unruly black hair behind her ears, and said, "One day we'll be showered in the snow together, and grow old together in this life."

"Pooh! Even if we don't get wet in the snow, we will grow old together. Stop being crazy and come into the house." Although the poem was beautiful, Xiao Wang felt it was a bit unlucky and pulled Tang Zhitong into the house.

Tang Zhitong added a few pieces of firewood into the stove and told Xiao Wang what happened today.

"Carrots are not only edible, but can also lubricate the intestines. The girl is embarrassed to tell you." After hearing Ma Wei blushing, Xiao Wang covered his mouth and chuckled.

"Hey, you know a lot, but I didn't think about it for a while." Tang Zhitong was also happy. He had been here for so long and had never worried about food, let alone any troubles in this regard, so he didn't think about it.

"Sister Jiang told me everything in the office. She felt very uncomfortable when she had to defecate with such a bulging belly. Are there any carrots left in your class? I will ask Sister Jiang if she wants some later." Now that he knew the answer, Xiao Wang asked casually.

"Let's see what happens tomorrow and tell you when I come back." Tang Zhitong was not sure, so he didn't say anything.

"Okay. It's getting late, let's go to bed?"

"Yeah, yeah, sleep. Shall I teach you a game?"

"what game?"

"Pulling radishes..." I have already pulled radishes today, so I have to teach Xiao Wang that the authentic way to pull radishes is to use a rabbit.

"Bah! I knew you had no good intentions..."

(End of this chapter)