As evening approached, He Yu Shui also returned home, a candied hawthorn on a stick in her hand.
He Yu Shui was in a good mood today. She had gone out with Uncle Ma's family, watched a performance of acrobatics, and eaten candied hawthorn.
This was her second one.
Upon returning home, she saw her brother, Da Zhu, making dumplings.
The dumplings were almost done.
“Brother, are we having dumplings for dinner?” Yu Shui asked with a smile.
“Well, I just finished making them, and you're back,” Da Zhu smiled.
Seeing some leftover flour, Da Zhu decided to make dumplings. As for the filling, it was simply cabbage mixed with some oil residue.
Dumplings could serve as both a main course and a side dish for drinking, a win-win situation.
There's a saying, isn't there? "Dumplings and wine, the more you drink, the better it gets."
However, as the family didn't have much flour, Da Zhu didn't make many dumplings.
There weren't enough for him and his sister, so besides dumplings, Da Zhu steamed two steamed buns made with mixed flour.
In the Jia family, the food was not so good today. While Jia Zhang Shi could still eat a mixed flour steamed bun, Jia Dong Xu and Qin Huai Ru could only nibble on steamed cornbread.
And even Qin Huai Ru couldn't eat enough of the steamed cornbread.
In Jia Zhang Shi's words, the New Year was over, and they had to tighten their belts from now on.
To this, Qin Huai Ru secretly complained, saying that Jia Zhang Shi had no shortage of food while forcing them to tighten their belts.
Jia Zhang Shi not only ate a mixed flour steamed bun but was also full.
This old hag never let herself suffer when it came to her own belly.
Jia Dong Xu worked and earned money, Qin Huai Ru did all the housework, and Jia Zhang Shi had it easy. She just sewed some shoe soles, more for show than anything. As for taking care of the children, Qin Huai Ru did most of it.
Landlord wives from the past probably didn't have it as comfortable as Jia Zhang Shi.
Therefore, Jia Zhang Shi was fed and plump.
By the way, Jia Zhang Shi didn't use all the shoe soles she sewed for the family. Most of them were sold for money. This was a small amount of money, but she didn't contribute it to the household. It became Jia Zhang Shi's retirement fund.
That's right, even with a son and grandson, Jia Zhang Shi wanted to save for her retirement.
Sometimes, Jia Zhang Shi would even set rules for Qin Huai Ru.
If Qin Huai Ru had known Jia Zhang Shi's true nature, she might not have even married into the Jia family. But when she met Jia Dong Xu, she couldn't see through Jia Zhang Shi's true nature. She had put on a facade, pretending to be kind and gentle, making Qin Huai Ru think she was a good mother-in-law.
As for Jia Dong Xu, he had his flaws, of course.
For Qin Huai Ru, life was worse than she had imagined, but it was still passable.
Much better than being in the countryside.
“The He family is having dumplings again! They really don't know how to live. And that He Yu Shui…” Jia Zhang Shi mumbled, taking a bite of the mixed flour steamed bun.
Actually, Jia Zhang Shi was just greedy.
Seeing the He family eating dumplings, and He Yu Shui eating candied hawthorn, suddenly, the mixed flour steamed bun didn't seem so delicious anymore.
Observing carefully, Qin Huai Ru understood what her mother-in-law was thinking.
To tell the truth, Qin Huai Ru was also hungry.
The He siblings were eating dumplings, while she, Qin Huai Ru, could only eat steamed cornbread.
But what could she do about being hungry? Go to the He family and ask for some?
The children were hungry? What? Bang Geng wasn't allowed to eat dumplings? But Jia Zhang Shi was also a child! A child of several dozen months.
But neither Jia Zhang Shi nor Jia Dong Xu or Qin Huai Ru would be so shameless.
And would the He siblings, who didn't even have enough to eat, give some to the Jia family?
Besides, if they were going to give some to someone, they would give it to Grandma Lou and Yi Zhong Hai first!
The steamed cornbread was already bland, and now Jia Dong Xu had no appetite. Seeing his mother eat the mixed flour steamed bun without being satisfied, he simply threw the steamed cornbread on the table and also took a mixed flour steamed bun.
If Jia Dong Xu ate a mixed flour steamed bun, Jia Zhang Shi would have one less.
And with one less mixed flour steamed bun, Jia Zhang Shi wouldn't be able to eat her fill.
Therefore, seeing Jia Dong Xu eating the steamed bun, Jia Zhang Shi's triangular eyes narrowed.
Ignoring Jia Zhang Shi's displeasure, Jia Dong Xu lowered his head and ate the steamed bun.
Qin Huai Ru hesitated for a moment, not daring to reach for a steamed bun.
There weren't many steamed buns, just enough for Jia Zhang Shi to eat her fill.
Jia Zhang Shi wouldn't scold her son, but she would treat her daughter-in-law differently.
In short, Qin Huai Ru and Jia Dong Xu had different positions in the family.
…
The steaming hot dumplings were out of the pot, and the He siblings began their dinner.
Da Zhu even poured himself a little bit of alcohol.
When He Da Qing was still alive, he wouldn't let Da Zhu drink alcohol. Da Zhu could only drink secretly. As soon as He Da Qing found out, Da Zhu wouldn't necessarily be beaten, but he would definitely get a beating.
With He Da Qing gone, no one was supervising Da Zhu, and he was finally free to do as he pleased.
He took a sip of the alcohol, then ate a dumpling. It was a shame there was no garlic, it would have been even more delicious.
He Yu Shui also picked up a dumpling, dipped it in a special sauce, and took a bite, finding it very delicious.
Da Zhu's special sauce was a closely guarded secret.
Most of the dumplings were eaten by He Yu Shui. She was full, but Da Zhu wasn't.
However, he had his fill of alcohol.
Taking a mixed flour steamed bun, Da Zhu started eating.
After finishing both mixed flour steamed buns, Da Zhu was finally full.
…
After a few days after the New Year, the steel mill reopened.
Zheng Da Ma continued to go to work with Zheng Ai Min.
In the canteen kitchen, she washed vegetables every day.
However, Zheng Da Ma had gotten to know some of the workers in the canteen.
Besides the canteen workers, some female workers in the factory had also become friends with Zheng Da Ma.
As for Zheng Da Ma's reputation, it was still not very good.
But with time, people would surely change their opinion of her.
It's worth mentioning that Zheng Da Ma no longer took leftovers home from the factory.
She appreciated Da Zhu's kindness.
Therefore, Da Zhu still took leftovers home every day.
To get more leftovers, he had to work hard when serving the workers.
Da Zhu was quite good at flipping the wok.
“Da Zhu, the factory manager wants you to quickly make some of your signature dishes,” the factory manager's secretary came to the canteen and told Da Zhu.
Obviously, the factory was having guests.
Since Da Zhu's cooking was the best in the factory, when the factory had guests, Da Zhu would naturally be asked to cook. And Da Zhu never disappointed.
If he were in a large restaurant, Da Zhu's cooking might not be the best.
But in a state banquet, Da Zhu's current cooking skills were nothing special.
That's right, Da Zhu's current cooking skills were still a long way from a state banquet.
But at the steel mill, Da Zhu's cooking was unmatched.
It must be known that the highest level of cook in the factory was only level six.
If Da Zhu wanted to become a level five cook, it would be impossible in the steel mill.
The unit limited the upper limit of the job level.
As for the fitter and blacksmith, it was different.
But the assessment for senior fitter or the like was not in the factory.
If a cook's level was high, he wouldn't be able to stay in the factory and would be transferred.
For example, if Da Zhu's level was high, even if he insisted on staying in the factory, he wouldn't be allowed.
“Got it!” Da Zhu responded.
The factory manager's secretary left. As for Da Zhu, he was already thinking about what dishes to make.
Some dishes needed to be simmered over low heat for a long time, which wouldn't be suitable.
And many dishes required expensive ingredients that the factory didn't have, so those were also out of the question.
After thinking for a while, Da Zhu decided what dishes to make based on the ingredients currently available in the factory.