readsfreenovel Chapter 207 "He Yuzhu" 11
Chapter 207 "He Yuzhu" 11
At Wang Yan's house, her uncles and aunts were waiting in the main room, while her aunts and uncles were busy in the kitchen. Since the adults in Yan's family weren't home, what would a young man like Wang Dahe know? Only the elders could handle things.
As the group entered the courtyard, everyone came out to greet them. He Daqing quickly greeted them, stopped his bicycle, took out a cigarette and started offering it to others. Wang Yan took the rainwater off the bicycle and followed behind.
The group of people exchanged pleasantries as they went into the house. Once inside, He Daqing chatted with several of his uncles, while Wang Yan carried meat and rice to the kitchen, with Yu Shui following behind her.
As soon as I entered the kitchen, Aunt Wang Yan asked, "What did you bring?" "Aunt, it's meat and rice brought from the Qing Dynasty. Let's make white rice for lunch!"
Her second aunt said, "Why are you eating white rice? Have you only been enjoying a few good days? Two cups of rice aren't even enough to fill your mouth?"
Her second aunt was the one who suggested that He Daqing help relatives find jobs; she was just a chatterbox, but not malicious. Her eldest aunt nudged her with her elbow: "Look at your mouth!" Then she said to Wang Yan...
“Your second aunt is right. White rice is so precious. How much white rice would be enough to eat?” She looked at the rainwater and said, “I’ll mix in a little sorghum and make a few cornbread buns.”
Wang Yan naturally knew her second aunt's temperament: "Okay, aunt, here's two jin of meat, you can cook it for lunch too."
Seeing that her second aunt was about to nag again, her eldest aunt quickly replied, "Alright, put it here. You take Xiaoyushui to sit in the main room. We'll take care of things in the kitchen! No brides who are returning home should stay in the kitchen."
"Okay, then I'll bring Yushui inside to sit for a while."
After Wang Yan left, her second aunt couldn't help but ask, "Sister-in-law, how well do you think the He family is doing? In just two days, they've made sure Yanzi has plain rice and stewed meat on her plate?"
"He Daqing is a chef, and a famous one at that. How could his family's food be bad? Haven't you seen how healthy his two children are?"
"That's true, tsk tsk, not to mention the top of that pillar, even the rainwater is white and plump. Ah, Yanzi is really enjoying herself now!" Aunt Wang Yan muttered softly.
Her eldest aunt ignored her second aunt: "You can nag at home, but don't go around nagging when you're out."
Second Aunt rolled her eyes: "I'm not stupid! I was just chatting with you two, when have you ever seen me tell outsiders about family matters!"
That's true. Although her sister-in-law is quick-witted and not very cunning, she doesn't talk much about her own family outside. She mostly inquires about other families.
Aunt Wang Yan was busy laughing on the sidelines, watching the two sisters-in-law bicker. She was a quiet person, but the sisters-in-law had always had a good relationship. When her third sister-in-law was alive, she and her third sister-in-law would watch and have fun when her eldest and second sisters-in-law argued. Ah, people these days! But judging from Yanzi's complexion today, she must be doing well in the He family. If her third brother and sister-in-law knew this in the afterlife, they could rest in peace.
They also mentioned that they were going to visit Wang Yan's parents' graves and tell them what was going on. Yu Shui, being a timid and fearless person, stayed in the kitchen at home.
Aunt Wang Yan teased Yushui, "Yushui, are you happy that your mother Wang Yan is coming to your house?"
"I'm so happy! My mom, Wang Yan, can braid my hair and sew clothes for me. My dad and brother can't do any of that." Yu Shui sat by the stove, resting her chin on her little hand and nodding her head.
"Then do you know what to call me?" Second Aunt asked again. "Second Grandma~" she said softly, but very clearly! "Hahaha! That's right, Rainwater is so clever!" Second Aunt laughed heartily at the way she called her!
"Then what did you call them?" Second Aunt stopped working and just teased the raindrops. The two sisters-in-law couldn't bear to look at her. The younger generation in the family had always liked her the most since they were little, but they had become a little distant from her because of her mouth when they grew up. "Great-Grandma and Third-Grandma!"
Raindrops gave her a "Isn't that right?" look, and praised her. She made all three of her sisters-in-law laugh. This little girl is the most lovable at her age.
The Wang family cemetery was on the back hill. He Daqing and Wang Yan walked quickly, and when they returned, they could still hear laughter coming from the kitchen. Seeing that her family members were getting along well with Yu Shui, Wang Yan felt a little better.
At lunchtime, the men ate in two separate rooms, one in the main room and the other in the inner room. This was considered quite good, as in many places, decades later, women are no longer even allowed to sit at the table.
While He Daqing was drinking, he said to Uncle Wang and Wang Dahe, "I heard from Yanzi that Dahe is also planning to go on a blind date?"
“Yes, he’s reached the age now, isn’t he?” Uncle Wang said. Wang Dahe scratched his head sheepishly beside him. “How about we wait a little longer? I’ll see if I can arrange for Dahe to work at my factory. Besides, Dahe is too old to get a marriage certificate right now!”
"Daqing, do you think we can be sure of getting Dahe into the factory?" Uncle Wang asked. The others also looked at He Daqing. "It shouldn't be a big problem. I have some connections with the factory owner's family."
Lou Bancheng's first wife and son went to Hong Kong a few years ago, while his aunt, who is now his wife, is still in Beijing. She is a young lady from the Tan family, the same Tan family that makes Tan Family Cuisine. The steel rolling mill is still owned by Lou Bancheng, so arranging someone for him is just a matter of his word. That's why He Daqing didn't think there was a big problem.
“What can Dahe do at the factory? He’s never been to school, and he’s not very strong,” Uncle Wang said with some concern.
"It depends on what Dahe thinks. He can either work with me in the kitchen, but if he does, he'll have to learn how to cook in large batches, which will be troublesome later. Cooking in large batches requires a lot of strength."
"He can either become an apprentice in the workshop, and I'll find him a master craftsman to train him. He's not good at forging, so he can only do fitter work. When he gets to the city, he can learn to read with Zhu Zi. Fitters eventually need to be able to read blueprints, but being illiterate won't be a big problem for a beginner fitter."
At this time, there was no public-private partnership, nor was there a division of labor levels like later on. Workshop workers were divided into junior, intermediate, and senior workers. For example, Yi Zhonghai and Liu Haizhong in the compound were intermediate workers.
He Daqing said, then looked at Wang Dahe, "Brother-in-law, I think I'll go into the workshop." Wang Dahe quickly replied. He really wasn't interested in cooking. These past few days since his sister got married, he had cooked for himself, and he could only manage to cook it properly. To be honest, if he could, he would never want to step into the kitchen in his life.
Seeing that Wang Dahe had his own ideas, Uncle Wang didn't say anything else: "Then Daqing, we'll trouble you to take care of it. If Dahe also goes to the city, we'll feel more at ease knowing you're closer to each other."
"I'll ask Boss Lou when I get back to work. There shouldn't be any major problems. I'll come over again after my break when I get some news." He Daqing genuinely felt there was no problem. He wasn't asking anyone to come to the factory to eat for free. Given his relationship with Boss Lou, it was just a matter of mentioning it. If it didn't work out, he could just cook more Tan Family Cuisine for Boss Lou in the future!
With this matter keeping everyone in suspense, the drinking became even more lively. However, although He Daqing occasionally drank a little, he never drank too much at once, since he was a chef and needed to protect his sense of taste.
So, no one drank too much. After the meal, He Daqing was about to take Wang Yan back. It was several dozen miles away, which would take two hours by bicycle. Uncle Wang brought them some seasonal vegetables and caught an old hen. He Daqing declined a couple of times, but eventually accepted it. After all, Uncle Wang said it was for Wang Yan to nourish her body, and he could always bring more next time he came.