Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 591 590 Team Building
One should keep his word. Since Tang Zhitong had promised Xiao Wang to quit smoking, he just put the cigarette away and didn't smoke it.

Quitting smoking feels terrible.

The physical dependence on nicotine is not the main factor; the psychological addiction is the root of the discomfort.

Whether I am busy or idle, I always feel like something is missing between my index finger and middle finger.

Some guys often choose to use snacks such as candy and melon seeds to divert the discomfort caused by quitting smoking when they quit smoking, so the side effect of quitting smoking for many people is often weight gain.

In addition, quitting smoking often causes bad temper. Tang Zhitong reminds himself that he should pay special attention to this and control his emotions.

There is no emotion that cannot be resolved with one shot. If one shot doesn’t work, then just give it another shot…

After leaving the pork head in Chunshu Hutong, Tang Zhitong rode his bicycle to the Post and Telecommunications University.

When we arrived at Gongdelin, snowflakes were falling from the gloomy sky.

Tang Zhitong stopped at the south gate of the Post and Telecommunications College and pushed the cart to Teacher Zhou's building. When he entered the corridor, he pulled out more than ten pounds of cornmeal from the space.

It has been almost a month since I last delivered cornmeal to Teacher Zhou. I hope that Teacher Zhou’s stomach problems have not recurred during this period.

Teacher Zhou is just like Fang Yuan, neither of them has anything to do with him, so it's easy for him to make up an excuse to send him gifts.

Looking at the food in Tang Zhitong's hand, Teacher Zhou felt heavy in his heart. He was short of food, but he really couldn't take it for free.

"Well, teacher, I won't give it to you for free this time. You can charge me for it. 40 cents per pound will help me make back my investment." Seeing this, Tang Zhitong took a step back.

"Can it be bought for 40 cents?" Teacher Zhou was not an ignorant young man. He had some knowledge of the current price of food outside.

"It's not easy to buy. It takes some effort to go to other places, so I can't afford too much." Tang Zhitong lied half-truthfully.

"Don't lie to me." Teacher Zhou was skeptical.

"No, I never lie." Tang Zhitong lied with his eyes open.

In the end, Teacher Zhou gave Tang Zhitong five dollars.

There is not much difference between four dollars and five dollars for Teacher Zhou, and there is not much difference for Tang Zhitong either. The main purpose of collecting money is to put Teacher Zhou at ease.

Tang Zhitong was grateful to Teacher Zhou. One of his wishes was to repay him to the best of his ability. The other was to ask Teacher Zhou to continue to turn a blind eye to him in the future, after all, he was away from home most of the time.

Based on Tang Zhitong’s previous experience of studying at university, there are many benefits to having a good relationship with your counselor.

Not only will they be taken care of when it comes to performance appraisals, but there will also be other unspoken considerations such as actively working towards the organization, accumulating credits, getting 60 points to pass the exam, not skipping classes without asking for leave, etc.

"Mr. Zhou, you have a good student. We now have more food than before." After Tang Zhitong left, Mr. Zhou's wife happily put away the cornmeal.

"What?! Why didn't you say that just now? Isn't this allowing me to take advantage of the students?" Teacher Zhou complained in displeasure.

"You are just a nerd. Don't you see that they are taking care of you? If you insist on paying according to the market price, they will definitely not accept it. Besides, he said he bought it in another place, maybe it is cheaper in other places?" Teacher Zhou's wife argued.

"That won't do. As a teacher, how can you do this? Give me another five dollars and I'll give him the money." Teacher Zhou didn't want to quarrel with his lover, but he also didn't want to take advantage of Tang Zhitong. He put on his shoes, put on his cotton jacket, and was ready to chase after him.

"I have no money. Since you are so noble, you don't need to pay the difference. Just return the cornmeal!
After deducting the money for sending money back home and for family expenses, you only have five dollars left from your salary this month.

You have stomach problems, so your family should eat first.

The child needs to grow and cannot starve. I deserve to starve.

Marry a man and you will have clothes to wear and food to eat, but I am fine, marrying a man and I can’t even have a full meal to eat.”

Teacher Zhou's wife was a strong-willed person. Upon seeing this, she squatted in front of Teacher Zhou with the flour bag. As she spoke, tears welled up in her eyes and then fell.

Although she kept complaining, Mr. Zhou's wife did not say anything harsh like divorce.

The divorce rate these days is very low, only a few in ten thousand, and even this includes voluntary divorces and "forced divorces."

Divorce is a very shameful thing nowadays, even if it is done in the name of love. Well, the most common excuses are "no longer in love" or "relationship breakdown". People dare not say that it is for the pursuit of "true love" or "freedom". After all, those who can divorce are people with dignity, and having an affair also requires dignity.

After hearing his lover's complaints, Teacher Zhou sighed and just sat at the door for a long time without saying anything...

Tang Zhitong came out of the staff quarters, humming a little tune, and went to the post office at the gate of the Post and Telecommunications College first.

After dinner last night, Xiao Wang was so anxious that he had no time to write to Ma Sange and Gu Yong. He has to make up for it today and tell them to go to Wu Haiyang on the fifth day of the New Year and let them arrange their time.

The post office had stationery for sale. Tang Zhitong asked for two sets of envelopes, stamps, and two sheets of stationery, spending a total of 11 cents.

Then he took out a pen from his jacket pocket and wrote briefly that Wu Haiyang had a new son and that he would come over to visit him on the morning of the fifth day of the New Year.

After writing the letter and sending it out, Tang Zhitong first went to the logistics department to find Wei Zhizhen.

Last time, Lao Wei said he would call me if he had any news, but there has been no response. Today I have to go find him to confirm whether he has applied for mobile rations.

If the application was not approved, Tang Zhitong planned to make some noodles himself to provide snacks for his classmates. This was also one of the reasons why he went out early today.

"What a coincidence! The college just approved it today. I called you and a female comrade answered the phone. She said you had asked for leave today." As soon as they met, Wei Zhizhen told Tang Zhitong the good news.

"Hey, I didn't go to work today, thank you Teacher Wei. What procedures do I need to go through?" Tang Zhitong felt relieved as it saved him a lot of trouble.

"You go to get your meals in groups of classes, and the amount for each class is fixed. I'll write you a note, and you can pack your own meals today, but you won't be able to get them tomorrow." Wei Zhizhen instructed as he wrote.

"Okay, I will definitely explain it clearly to my classmates." Tang Zhitong responded immediately.

Wei Zhizhen wrote down the department and class on the note, signed his name, stamped it, and then handed it to Tang Zhitong.

They had already agreed to make dumplings today. Tang Zhitong guessed that his classmates were all eagerly waiting in the classroom, so he took the note and went straight to the classroom.

As expected, as soon as Tang Zhitong entered the door, his classmates looked at him with eyes longing for dumplings.

"Well, I have to tell you some bad news." Under the gaze of his classmates, Tang Zhitong walked up to the podium and brushed off the snow on his body.

"Could it be that the school didn't approve it?" A classmate whispered in the audience.

"The not-so-good news is that it's snowing today, and it's getting heavier. When you go to the cafeteria later, everyone should wear more clothes because there's no heating. Also be careful with your steps when you go there, and don't fall flat on your face." Tang Zhitong smiled and made a light-hearted joke.

"Oh, there are dumplings to eat!"

"Teacher Tang, you are so mean!"

After hearing what Tang Zhitong said, there was a cheer from below.

Young people are full of themselves. After a while of laughter and joy, Tang Zhitong raised his hands and pressed them down. When it was quiet, he said, "I have something to explain to everyone. The mobile rations approved by the college this time do not require ration coupons. They are collected by class. Let's pack them ourselves today, otherwise we won't have any tomorrow. Don't be greedy tomorrow."

"I'm craving for it today and can't wait until tomorrow." "Let's eat today and let the other classes be craving for it."

The students below were talking at the same time, showing that there was still some cohesion.

"There's still time. Please pack up and go back to the dormitory to put on more clothes and wash your hands. We'll meet at the entrance of the cable building in ten minutes." Tang Zhitong waved his hand and made arrangements.

The students who were wearing less went back to the dormitory, while some who were wearing more clothes stayed and chattered with Tang Zhitong about what fillings were in the dumplings.

"The school has arranged for us to make cabbage and tofu. I will show you how good I am at making the stuffing. I guarantee it will be so delicious that you will savor it." Tang Zhitong was surrounded by his classmates and stood in the middle, speaking shamelessly.

"Teacher Tang, can you cook?"

"But, I have a chef's certificate." Tang Zhitong chatted happily with his classmates.

"I can testify that the pickles that Teacher Tang prepares are also very delicious." Lu Shi interjected.

"Wow! Teacher Wang is so lucky~" Wang Jingwen went to climb the Great Wall with everyone. He took good care of the female classmates along the way. Everyone envied this fairy couple.

"I am also a lucky person. I have your support." Tang Zhitong raised his wrist, checked the time, waved the note in his hand, and said to the other class committee members: "You will take the students there later. I will go to the cafeteria to hand in the note first."

It is true that you hand in the note, but it is also true that you see if you can get more.

This morning, Gao Dashan's box of cigarettes was given away.

I couldn't ask for more tofu, but I was given a lot more cabbage.

After the students from Class 593 of the Cable Department arrived at the cafeteria, the male students carried cabbage and flour and went to the kitchen under the command of Tang Zhitong.

For college students these days, it is totally shameful to be told that they are ignorant of the five grains.

All of them are students from working-class and farming backgrounds, so they have no lack of practice in housework. The girls can all knead dough, and the boys can also chop stuffing without any problem.

The college allocated mobile rations based on the number of people in each class, half a pound per person. There were 593 people in Class 30, so the amount was pounds.

These students were at the age where they could eat a lot, and even if the other students on sponsored projects had left, if they really ate to their heart's content, this might not be enough, so Tang Zhitong secretly added another five kilograms of flour into the mix.

It’s the New Year, and as the living committee member, I’ll give everyone some money.

I guess every Chinese New Year in the future, they will remember the free dumplings they organized.

This is youth and also a shared memory. Years later, when a group of classmates who have become leaders talk about it, they will probably still be able to talk about it with relish.

See, sometimes it's that simple to build relationships.

Five pounds of noodles is not a lot, but it can bring a class together, so it's worth it.

With the enthusiastic participation of his classmates, Tang Zhitong did not get involved in either kneading the dough or chopping the stuffing.

It doesn’t matter if you can’t help. Tang Zhitong led several other students who didn’t get the work to fetch water, wash pots, and make fire.

The pot used in the cafeteria is a big iron pot with a diameter of 1.2 meters. It takes a lot of effort to boil a pot of water.

The boys are strong and can fetch water and chop the cabbage skillfully, and they can also squeeze out all the water.

When it was time to prepare the filling, everyone handed the initiative back to Tang Zhitong.

Class 593 chopped out two large pots of dumpling fillings, all of which were sticky.

"Mix the dough together and empty out three bowls. We'll split up and have four or five people guard one bowl, so we can wrap the dough faster." In order to make it easier to prepare the filling, Tang Zhitong made the assignments.

With delicious food in front of them, the students acted quickly. In a short while, they placed three empty bowls in front of Tang Zhitong and carefully divided the stuffing evenly into five portions.

"Look carefully and smell it. This is our family's secret." Tang Zhitong pretended to be mysterious and took out a paper bag from his pocket, which contained the five-spice powder he had mixed himself.

MSG is not popular and hard to buy these days, but five-spice powder is still available. Those who know the formula can go to the pharmacy to buy it themselves, or ask a chef to mix some for you.

The taste may not be as authentic as Wang Shouyi’s, but it’s better than nothing.

Wang Shouyi’s Thirteen Spices are available now, but the range is not wide.

Wang Shouyi's hometown is Zhumadian, Henan Province. In 59, his family was so poor that they could barely afford to eat, but people had to eat, so Wang Shouyi decided to make money from the thirteen spices. He and his sons opened a small workshop at home and started selling "thirteen spices seasoning" from door to door.

Tang Zhitong opened the five-spice powder and poured it all into the prepared soy sauce.

The soy sauce in the cafeteria is stored in large jars. Tang Zhitong was just making a fire, so he went over to find an enamel plate and scooped over a lot of soy sauce.

In addition to soy sauce, the canteen also provides salt and cooking oil.

There is no limit on salt, but there is not much cooking oil, only half a pound per class.

Tang Zhitong poured it all into the enamel basin, and on the way back he added oyster sauce, sea rice noodle rolls and cooking oil into it.

As for whether oyster sauce and sea rice noodle soup will cause allergies, it is not within Tang Zhitong's consideration.

In today's environment, it is more important to have enough food than to avoid allergies. What's more, everything that can be served on the table is edible after being carefully selected by our ancestors.

Tang Zhitong first used chopsticks to stir the ingredients to mix them thoroughly, and then divided them evenly into five stuffing bowls.

The rest was stirred by other students. While stirring, one of them swallowed his saliva and said: It smells so good.

“The female students are responsible for rolling the dough, while the male students are responsible for making the dumplings.

I have a request for the female students: the dumpling skins should be rolled a little bigger.

There are two requirements for male students: the fillings should be plenty and they should be pinched firmly, otherwise the dumplings will turn into noodle soup in a short while.

I will be responsible for distributing noodles to everyone." Tang Zhitong arranged on the side.

Relying on the hand feel he had developed from making sesame seed cakes when he was a child, Tang Zhitong waved his arms like fire wheels, kneading the dough into long strips with a crackling sound, and then with a "crackling" sound, the dough pieces of the same size were distributed to each girl.

It doesn’t matter whether you wrap it faster or slower, and it doesn’t matter if you put more or less filling. What’s important is that each dough piece is of similar size.

What is worrying is not the scarcity of food but the inequality of its distribution. Food is precious and we have to make such arrangements.

After the dough is rolled out, everyone starts working. Because they come from all over the world and have different habits since childhood, the dumplings they make are also different in shape. Some are crescent-shaped, some are covered with two hands, and some have a big belly.

Unlike later times, the styles are more formal now, with the priority given to being able to hold more and be firmly held.

This was the first time for everyone to cook since entering college, and they were all very enthusiastic. While making dumplings, many students were sharing with everyone how they celebrated the New Year at home. For a moment, the kitchen of the cafeteria was filled with a warm atmosphere.

(End of this chapter)