Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 549 Chapter 548
Men and women are different. When a woman puts her cold hand around a man's neck, the man generally remains silent, or he may take a deep breath and hiss.

When women encounter this situation, most of them will make sounds like "ah", "ah~", or "hmm~".

Xiao Wang's hands were restless on Tang Zhitong's back, scratching and rubbing, and occasionally turning his back: "Qingqing wrote me a reply."

"Oh? Is Wu Aijun going there too?" Tang Zhitong asked speculatively.

"Well, he's going too, so we don't have to make a special appointment. You can come with me then." Xiao Wang felt a little awkward. In fact, she and Wu Aijun were good friends before, but ever since she knew he had feelings for her, she felt uncomfortable and was unwilling to meet him alone.

"Okay. That's good." Tang Zhitong felt that this arrangement was quite suitable, at least better than the three of them meeting alone.

It’s hard to get together these days. There are no clubs or KTVs, and even to book a restaurant someone has to queue up in advance.

I definitely don't want to queue up in the middle of winter, so why are two men and one woman going to the park, the library, the cinema, or a play in the middle of winter?

Neither is appropriate. Instead, we just walk around as a group. If we get along well, we can chat for a while. If not, I will just be the servant who carries Xiao Wang's bag.

"What are you going to do with these tickets and money?" Although Xiao Wang was somewhat reluctant, he did not give the task of writing a letter to inform Wu Aijun to Tang Zhitong, intending to just do it perfunctorily for Aunt Lu's sake.

"I haven't thought about it yet. It doesn't seem appropriate to donate it. After all, it's someone else's stuff." Tang Zhitong was also troubled by this matter. Although there are not many charitable organizations these days, there are still some, such as the Red Cross.

"Why not send it back?" suggested Xiao Wang.

"There are many people in the manual editing team. If a reader sends letters not only to me but also to other people, and I am the only one sending them back, wouldn't that expose other comrades?" Tang Zhitong thought about this way of handling it. Sending money back is a small matter, but it always feels inappropriate.

"The one who can send money and tickets must have some financial resources at home, right? Maybe the other person is just expressing his gratitude, so why not just accept it?" Xiao Wang knows how to live in harmony with others. Since his family has some financial resources, if it means that the family has power, then if it is found out who has received the money and tickets, it may not have a good impact if it gets out.

"I'll ask other people when the meeting starts." Tang Zhitong didn't comment. The laws these days are not so sound. Although there is a saying that you can take it if you give it voluntarily, he still thinks it's better to go with the flow.

"Okay." After saying this, Xiao Wang was about to pull her hand out. She had warmed up now and had to help her husband open the letter.

"Scratch me, my back is itchy." After Xiao Wang pulled his hand away from Tang Zhitong's back, Tang Zhitong felt empty instead. In winter, he didn't take as many showers as in summer, so his skin was inevitably dry. Other parts of his body were okay, and he could scratch them by himself, but he couldn't reach his back, so he had to rely on external force.

"Stand up." Xiao Wang rolled up his sleeves. If he wanted to scratch his back, he had to put his arms in through the collar. Not only would the cotton-padded jacket squeeze Tang Zhitong's neck, but his arms would also become uncomfortable. So Xiao Wang chose to reach in from the hem of the cotton-padded jacket and reach upwards.

Pulling out the autumn shirt that was tucked into the belt, Xiao Wang was afraid of hurting Tang Zhitong by scratching with his fingernails, so he rubbed back and forth on Tang Zhitong's back with the tips of his fingernails.

"Using fingernails and fingers won't relieve the itch." Tang Zhitong scratched the cricket pupa twice. The more he scratched, the more itchy it became.

"Oh, it's a serious problem." Although Xiao Wang said this, he still bent his fingers and moved them up and down.

"Hey~ a little lower, a little more to the right, right here, right here, use a little force... it feels good~" Tang Zhitong directed Xiao Wang to move his hand to his itchy spot, and his eyes narrowed with comfort.

Although there is a tickler at home, how can it be as fragrant as the gentle and tender hands of classmate Wang?
The scratcher in our home was made and given to us by Zhang Bo using leftover materials when he customized furniture last year.

The history of ticklers in China is very long. They were called "scratching sticks" in the past and "Buqiuren" in the folk. They are made of various materials and shapes. Most ordinary people use bamboo ones. Bamboo is not only cheap but also very practical. It can be used to tickle people and can also be used as a teaching aid when children are itchy. It has a high cost-effectiveness.

Those who are slightly wealthier do not care about the cost-effectiveness. Most of them will choose precious woods such as sandalwood and huanghuali wood. Some also use copper, and some even use animal bones and ivory.

There was a type of Ruyi before the Qing Dynasty, but after the Tartars entered the country, they became particularly fond of jade Ruyi, so Ruyi was no longer a scratching object and became a decoration.

The young couple read the letter all night long tonight and they almost got dark circles under their eyes.

Tang Zhitong felt that this job was more tiring than tilling the land...

On January 1, Saturday, the Post and Telecommunications College only had final exams scheduled in the morning. After lunch, Tang Zhitong went directly to the escort department.

I haven't been here for two days. I have to come and sign something.

Ma Wei is a very qualified clerk. She organizes the work of the Finance Department in an orderly manner. The moment she saw Tang Zhitong, she neatly took out all the bills that needed to be signed.

Tang Zhitong took a look and found no mistakes, so he signed.

"Xiao Qin didn't look for you again, right?" Tang Zhitong asked when handing the bill to Ma Wei.

Ma Wei entrusted the matter to Tang Zhitong. It was not considered an overstep for Tang Zhitong to ask one more question, and Tang Zhitong did not want such a good clerk to go wrong because of some matters between men and women.

"No. Thank you, Chief Tang, for your concern." Ma Wei shook her head and gave an affirmative reply.

"Then I feel relieved." Tang Zhitong smiled. He was an employee before, but now he has soldiers under him. He has to learn to protect them.

He chatted with Ma Wei about the recent work progress. Just when Tang Zhitong wanted to do something serious, the phone on the table rang.

"Xiao Tang? I'm Fang Yuan, please come over here." The call was from Fang Yuan. After hearing Tang Zhitong's voice, he gave the order directly.

"Okay, I have to go out again." Tang Zhitong put down the statistics work again, said something to Ma Wei, and went out with a small notebook.

In Fang Yuan's office, besides Fang Yuan, there was another comrade whom Tang Zhitong did not know.

"Chief Han, this is Comrade Tang Zhitong from our escort department." Fang Yuan took the initiative to introduce Tang Zhitong after he came in.

"Oh! Tang Toudi, you're really easy for us to find. Hello, I'm Han Haizhou, and I work in the Cultural Reform Commission." After hearing Fang Yuan's introduction, Han Haizhou did not stand up, but sat there and greeted him.

Tang Zhitong was a little confused. He said hello perfunctorily but looked at Fang Yuan.

Fang Yuan smiled at Tang Zhitong and nodded implicitly. Seeing Fang Yuan's expression, Tang Zhitong seemed to have taken a reassurance pill. Although he didn't know Han Haizhou's intention, it shouldn't be a bad thing.

"Chief Han, what's the matter?" Even though Tang Zhitong was confused, he guessed who was looking for him this time. The other party called him Tang Delivery, so it must be about his time as a deliveryman?

"Yes, Tang Toudi, take a look at this letter first. Is it written by you?" Han Haizhou did not say what his intentions were. He took out a letter and handed it to Tang Zhitong.

Tang Zhitong took the letter, opened it and glanced at it, and confirmed that it was written by him. The content also matched. It was written by an illiterate lady in the delivery area who asked him to read the letter for her and then help write a reply.

"I helped an old lady write this letter." Tang Zhitong did not hesitate. As a postman, he helped people write letters for their convenience. How could this be considered a mistake? As long as it was not a mistake, there was nothing wrong with admitting it.

"That makes sense. Here's what happened. This letter was sent to us by relevant comrades. After studying it, we all agree that some of the words you wrote in the letter are of reference value. We would like to ask you to give us valuable suggestions on our writing reform based on your own work." Han Haizhou stated his purpose without beating around the bush.

"Oh, this matter..." Tang Zhitong breathed a sigh of relief. He thought it was a big deal. It turned out that it was caused by his writing habits. There was no way. He had been educated in simplified Chinese since childhood and had been using it for more than 20 years. It had been engraved in his bones.

"Are there any difficulties?" Han Haizhou asked when he saw that Tang Zhitong did not agree immediately.

"Chief Han, um, this matter is not urgent, right? You see, I have my job to deal with, and I also have to go to the Post and Telecommunications College on weekdays, so I may not have much time." Tang Zhitong did not refuse directly.

"Don't worry, one or two months will be fine, or even two or three months. I found you through your Municipal Bureau. The Municipal Bureau is very supportive of our work, so you can rest assured." Han Haizhou heard Tang Zhitong's concerns and opened the skylight directly.

"Oh, that's fine." Tang Zhitong gave an affirmative response after seeing Fang Yuan nod again to confirm.

Tang Zhitong had heard a little about the Cultural Reform Commission. This unit was of a fairly high level, similar to the Health Promotion Commission.

A series of departments were set up around the reform of Chinese characters, such as the Chinese Pinyin Scheme Approval Committee and the Putonghua Promotion Working Committee, in which both Chen and Guo served.

"Okay, you are worthy of being a conscious comrade in the postal and telecommunications system. When you have sorted it out, you can send it directly to our unit, or you can deliver it over." Han Haizhou took out an envelope and handed it to Tang Zhitong.

"Okay." Tang Zhitong took the envelope and took a look. Wow, big units are different. The address and zip code of the Cultural Reform Commission are printed directly on the sender's address, and Damucang Hutong is clearly printed on the envelope.

Nowadays, there are conditions for printing special envelopes, but Tang Zhitong has not encountered many of them during the escort process.

"Okay, thank you Director Fang and Director Tang, I won't bother you any more." Han Haizhou had accomplished his mission, so he stood up and said goodbye.

After seeing Han Haizhou off, Fang Yuan pulled Tang Zhitong into his office again. This time there were no outsiders present, so the two of them hid inside and started smoking.

"Hey, if Director Hu hadn't called personally, I really wouldn't have wanted to pay attention to him. What's wrong with being an intellectual? He acts like he's worth a lot of money, calling you Tang Delivery all the time. What do they think of you?" Fang Yuan spoke up for Tang Zhitong.

"Hehe, intellectuals have pride." Tang Zhitong also couldn't stand this behavior, but the other party was not very old, and perhaps it was his first time to join such a high-level unit, so it was inevitable that he was a little arrogant.

Words have power, but only if they are unified.

It is said that one of Qin Shihuang's achievements was to unify the writing system. In fact, it was not completely unified. There are still many characters with the same pronunciation and meaning but different writing methods.

Starting from the Beiyang government, some people proposed simplifying the characters to facilitate the dissemination of knowledge, but the results were minimal.

After liberation, this work was put on the agenda. The people above attached great importance to it and issued instructions and instructions one after another, hoping that the simplification work could be completed as soon as possible to make it easier for the people to recognize words and complete literacy.

For example, in May 1955, after listening to a report, the leader surnamed Liu made three suggestions, one of which was: teachers should learn Mandarin within a certain period of time, and in the future, anyone who cannot speak Mandarin will not be allowed to be a teacher.

The impact was far-reaching. Although it was not thoroughly implemented at the time, decades later, every student who took the teaching qualification exam had to have a Mandarin proficiency test level of level 2 or above, otherwise they would not be able to get the teaching qualification certificate.

In addition to simplified characters and accents, there are also printing habits. On New Year's Day 1955, Guangming Daily was the first among major newspapers across the country to change the traditional right-to-right vertical layout to left-to-left horizontal layout.

By New Year's Day 1956, all national and local newspapers had switched to horizontal format, and 80% of all publications were horizontally formatted from left to right.

The two chatted for a while, mainly Fang Yuan praising Tang Zhitong for his versatility, and then the topic turned to this advanced list: "The list of advanced people has been submitted, and the Municipal Bureau has approved it. You and Ma Wei are on the list. Wait for the notice later. There will be a commendation meeting. You can go there together then."

"Okay, thank you Brother Yuan." Tang Zhitong didn't expect that he would have to attend a meeting again. Last year, it was just a simple meeting and it was nothing. As long as he was not allowed to go up and say a few words this time, it would be fine.

Now that the dust has settled, after returning to the office, Tang Zhitong told Ma Wei about the advancement of the industry, and naturally there was some politeness involved.

When Tang Zhitong passed by Xinhua Bookstore on his way home from get off work, he went in and bought a Xinhua Dictionary for one yuan, which is an authoritative tool that is indispensable for writing work.

Tang Zhitong originally wanted to buy a copy of the Ci Hai, but the bookstore didn't have it, perhaps because it hadn't been published yet.

The Xinhua Dictionary was just printed a while ago, and the paper is already very rough compared to previous books.

There is no way. We took too big a step and various sequelae have begun to gradually appear.

The paper used for books is relatively good, although rough, at least there is still supply. Things like toilet paper are difficult to buy on the market. The disinfected toilet paper that Xiao Wang is using now is all stockpiled by Tang Zhitong, and he secretly puts a few rolls of it in the closet every once in a while.

At the beginning, Xiao Wang asked if it was Tang Zhitong who bought it, but later he stopped asking.

Tang Zhitong flipped through it a few times and found that this edition of the Xinhua Dictionary already had Chinese pinyin, which was not much different from that of decades later.

If we have to say the difference, it is that after each Chinese character, in addition to the pinyin, there is also a phonetic notation.

Qieyin, also known as Fanqie, is a way of annotating the pronunciation of Chinese characters with a long history. Tang Zhitong from here learned this method when he was in primary school, and it was a bit difficult to learn.

(End of this chapter)