Chapter 644: New Year's Day Work
Zhou Yimin felt like he had just fallen asleep. He looked at his watch and found that it was already four o'clock in the morning, so he got up quickly.
The sky outside the window was pitch black, with only a few stars hanging in the sky, like broken diamonds scattered on blue velvet.
He quietly put on his clothes, washed up, grabbed the steamed bun on the table and put it in his pocket, then pushed the door open and walked out.
The tractor was parked quietly at the gate of the yard, and there were still traces of yesterday's New Year's goods in the truck bed.
Zhou Yimin opened the car door and got in. He inserted the key into the lock and turned it with a "click". The engine started to roar, which was particularly loud in the quiet early morning.
He leaned out and looked back, making sure no one was woken up before he shifted gears and stepped on the accelerator. The tractor slowly drove out of the alley and headed towards Zhoujiazhuang outside the city.
The road was very empty in the early morning, with only the occasional passing bicycle. The cyclist was wrapped in a thick cotton jacket and hurried forward with his neck hunched.
The tractor's lights cut a path in the darkness, and the wheels rolled over the stones on the road, making a "crunching" sound.
Zhou Yimin held the steering wheel, holding a steamed bun in his mouth, chewing it from time to time. The cold wind came in through the gap in the car window, making his cheeks numb, but also making him more awake.
The scenery on the road gradually changed from buildings to bungalows, and then fields slowly appeared.
The village in the distance was still asleep, with only a few chimneys emitting faint blue smoke, probably from people getting up early to cook.
When the tractor passed the small bridge, you could hear the gurgling sound of water under the bridge and the croaking of frogs, which sounded particularly crisp in this early morning.
An hour or so later, the outline of Zhoujiazhuang came into view. The old locust tree at the entrance of the village stood there quietly like a sentry.
When they arrived at the village entrance soon, Zhou Yimin saw that the security team members were working so hard, so he gave each of them a cigarette.
Everyone hurriedly thanked him: "Thank you, Uncle Sixteen, Yimin!"
Zhou Yimin was in a hurry, so he nodded and drove the tractor into the village. He soon arrived at a place where tractors were parked.
After turning off the engine, Zhou Yimin immediately ran towards home. The dog in the yard immediately started barking.
He pushed open the half-open courtyard door. His grandparents had been woken up and came out of the house leaning on crutches. There was still some fluff on the brim of his grandmother's cotton hat.
"Why are you back so early? It's not even daybreak yet." Grandma asked with squinted eyes, her voice hoarse from just waking up, but her concern could not be hidden.
"I came back to ride the motorcycle. I have to go to work today." Zhou Yimin replied with a smile, walked quickly to the bottom of the shed, and untied the chain on the motorcycle.
"I won't go into the house. I have to hurry to the factory after changing the car."
Grandpa coughed twice and stuffed a hot boiled egg into his hand: "The porridge is warming on the stove. Have some before you go. It will fill your stomach."
"No, sir, I have steamed buns in my pocket." Zhou Yimin put the egg into the inner pocket of his cotton-padded jacket, patted his pocket, and started the motorcycle. The "thump thump thump" sound was much lighter than that of a tractor.
He waved to his grandparents and said, "I'm leaving!"
"Drive slowly! Don't drive too fast!" Grandma shouted, holding onto the door frame, worry filling her wrinkles.
Although I was heartbroken, I knew I had to go to work, so I had to go back inside.
Zhou Yimin rode his motorcycle out of the village and headed towards the city.
It was already dawn. In the fields by the roadside, early-rising farmers began to work, and thick smoke was emitting from the factory chimneys in the distance.
The motorcycle was much faster than the tractor, and the wind blew in my face, carrying the smell of soil from the fields.
He twisted the accelerator, the motorcycle accelerated forward, and the trees on the side of the road quickly retreated.
When passing by the town, the breakfast stall had already been set up and the aroma of fried dough sticks wafted over. Zhou Yimin sniffed and thought to himself that he would try it after get off work.
He looked at the watch on his wrist. It was still early, so he should be able to arrive at the factory on time.
As we got closer to the steel plant, there were more and more pedestrians on the road, most of them were workers in work clothes, riding bicycles to the factory.
Zhou Yimin slowed down and followed the crowd. As he watched the familiar factory gate getting closer and closer, he felt much more at ease.
When he arrived at the factory gate, he parked his motorcycle in the shed, locked it, dusted himself off, and walked quickly towards the workshop.
The morning breeze ruffled his hair, his face showing a hint of fatigue, yet also full of energy. A new day had begun, busy and fulfilling.
Zhou Yimin walked quickly into the office area of the steel plant. There were already sounds of footsteps in the corridor, mixed with the sound of kettles colliding from the water room.
He walked to the door of the office of the head of Purchasing Section 4 with familiarity. The door was ajar and opened with a gentle push.
As soon as he stepped through the door, a dusty smell hit him. Zhou Yimin frowned and looked around. A thin layer of dust covered the desk, and in the sunlight streaming in through the window, he could see countless dust particles dancing in the beam of light.
There were some unknown stains on the radiator in the corner, and there were even some cobwebs in the corner. Even the procurement process chart hanging on the wall was covered with dust at the edges, looking a bit old.
It's only been a few days since I last had a holiday, and there's already so much dust in the house. It seems like I won't be able to work normally today unless I clean it thoroughly.
It can only be said that the sandstorms in the old city were still a bit serious, but compared with later generations, where smog was common, it was much better.
Without thinking much about it, he turned around and found a bucket, filled it with water, took out two mops and a rag from the storage room, and went back to the office to get busy.
First, he moved the documents and abacus on the table to the side, picked up a rag dipped in water, and wiped it back and forth along the table. Gray water marks left traces on the table, and soon the original wood grain was revealed.
After wiping the table, I went to wipe the windowsill. The dust on the window frame was even thicker, and it became dirty immediately after the rag wiped it.
"Splash--" He put the mop into the bucket and rinsed it. A few drops of water splashed on his trouser legs, but he didn't bother to wipe them off.
He dragged the wet mop back and forth on the floor, and the originally gray cement floor gradually revealed a clean base color. However, fine beads of sweat had already seeped out of his forehead and slid down his cheeks.
Just then, footsteps were heard at the door and Zhou Dazhong poked his head in.
Seeing Zhou Yimin bending over to mop the floor, and the room filled with a mixed smell of moisture and dust, he said nothing, turned around and walked towards the storage room.
After a while, he came in with a rag in his hand, walked straight to the radiator, dipped it in water and started wiping it.
There was a lot of dust hidden in the gaps of the radiator. He picked it out with his fingers and wiped it repeatedly with a rag. Soon, the area was polished to a shine.
Zhou Yimin glanced at him, raised the corner of his mouth, and didn't say anything polite.
With one more person to help, the job would definitely go much faster. He moved aside to give Zhou Dazhong more room to mop the floor, while he picked up the rag and wiped the purchasing process chart on the wall.
One of them was wiping the high places while the other was mopping the ground. Occasionally, water droplets splashed on each other, but they just smiled at each other, showing a tacit understanding.
The water in the bucket quickly turned murky. Zhou Yimin picked up the bucket and walked out, "I'll go get another bucket of water."
"Hey, rinse my rag as well." Zhou Dazhong handed over the rag in his hand, which was stained with a lot of gray and black stains.
When Zhou Yimin came back with the clean water, Zhou Dazhong had already swept away the cobwebs in the corner.
The two continued to work, some mopping the floor, some wiping the cabinets. The smell of dust in the room was gradually diluted by the moisture, and the air became fresher.
The sunlight shone through the clean windows and fell on the shiny table, so bright that it was a little dazzling.
"Huh..." Zhou Yimin straightened up, patted his sore back, and looked at the brand new office, feeling much more relaxed.
"Almost, now we can start working."
Zhou Dazhong also put down the rag in his hand and wiped the sweat off his face: "That's right, it's a pleasure to see it clean."
The two looked at each other and laughed. The bell for work rang in the corridor, and a new day's work began in this fresh room.
Zhou Yimin picked up the enamel pot on the table, poured some hot water into it, and rinsed it. Then he looked at Zhou Dazhong who was tidying up the rag and asked, "Dazhong, what brings you here this time? You can't just come to help me clean up, right?"
Zhou Dazhong, who had folded the rag neatly, scratched his head when he heard this and smiled sheepishly, "Nothing serious. I just finished my work in my office and passed by here. I saw your office wasn't quite clean yet, so I figured a few more hands would help things go faster, so I came in to give you a hand."
After all, Zhou Yimin has helped me so much, I can only do this little bit of help.
"Now that you're done, I'm almost done here too. I still have things to do, so I'll go back first." Zhou Dazhong patted the dust off his hands, stood up and was about to walk out.
Zhou Yimin looked at his impulsive appearance and shook his head helplessly, but said, "Okay, then you can go back and get busy. Thank you for today."
"What's there to thank me for? It's all my duty." Zhou Dazhong waved his hand and walked out of the office without looking back. The curtain at the door swayed slightly a few times because of him.
Zhou Yimin picked up the enamel pot and drank some hot water. Just as he was about to sit down and sort out the work he had to do today, before he could pick up the phone on the table, the office door was pushed open again with a "creak".
Zhou Yimin picked up the enamel pot and drank some hot water. Just as he was about to sit down and sort out the work he had to do today, before he could pick up the phone on the table, the office door was pushed open again with a "creak".
He looked up and saw Director Ding walking in. He was wearing a dark blue Mao suit that was ironed neatly, holding a black briefcase in his hand, and his face had a serious look.
"Director Ding." Zhou Yimin quickly stood up to greet him, thinking secretly in his heart.
Director Ding would never come to the department unless there was something important going on. But judging from the situation today, it must be something important.
He moved aside to offer his seat: "Is there something you want to talk to me about? Please take a seat."
Director Ding waved his hand, didn't sit down, and went straight to the point: "Yimin, I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you again this time."
He walked to the desk and tapped his fingers on it. "Can you help the factory get some pork?"
There was no way. Although Zhou Yimin had purchased a lot of chickens for the factory, the fat content of chicken was definitely not as good as that of pork.
Moreover, if you eat the same kind of meat for a long time, you will get tired of it, so the workers started to react.
As the head of the logistics department, Director Ding certainly couldn't ignore the workers' request. After much thought, he realized that only Zhou Yimin had the ability to do so.
So I came straight to you.
"Director Ding, you mean... the canteen wants to exchange some pork?" Zhou Yimin confirmed.
"That's right." Director Ding sighed, with helplessness in his tone.
"You know, the workers are tired of eating chicken every day. Old Wang from the steel workshop came to me a few days ago and said that if he continued to eat chicken, his old bones would hardly be able to swing the sledgehammer anymore."
He paused, then added, "It's not that the chicken you got is bad, it's just that the workers do hard work, and they need to be compensated."
Zhou Yimin nodded, understanding Director Ding’s difficulties.
The workers in the steel plant rely on their physical strength to make a living. If the food in the canteen is not up to standard, it will indeed affect their enthusiasm for work.
He remembered what he had said about pork at Zhao Jianguo's house yesterday, and he felt more confident: "Director Ding, how much do you want?"
"The more the better!" Director Ding's eyes lit up and his tone became anxious.
"We need at least 100 to 180 kilograms to keep the canteen running smoothly first, and we'll add more later depending on the situation. The price is easy to negotiate. As long as we can get fresh pork, the factory can afford this little money."
Zhou Yimin thought that one hundred or eighty kilograms was not a lot. Even if it was more, he could afford it himself, so he couldn't agree to it easily.
After all, supplies are very difficult to obtain now, otherwise we wouldn’t have to ask Zhou Yimin for help.
Zhou Yimin looked at Director Ding and said seriously, "Don't worry, Director Ding, I'll contact you about this matter later. I'll give you a final answer before I leave work today."
"That's great!" The solemnity on Director Ding's face finally disappeared, and he patted Zhou Yimin on the shoulder.
"Yimin, I'm leaving this matter to you. Whether the workers in the factory can eat hot pork depends entirely on you."
"You're so polite. This is what I should do." Zhou Yimin smiled.
Director Ding had other things to deal with and did not stay in Zhou Yimin's office any longer.
The sunlight in the office moved forward again and fell on the pot of green ivy that had just been wiped clean. The water droplets on the leaves sparkled brightly.
Zhou Yimin sat back in his chair, his fingers tapping the table unconsciously, feeling a little emotional.
It was the first day of work in the new year, and before I even had time to sit down, I was given this task.
He picked up the enamel pot and took another sip of hot water. The warm water flowing through his throat calmed his chaotic thoughts a little.
Speaking of which, the issue of pork supply is indeed a big problem.
There was a famine in the past few years, so we couldn’t even have pork, and we were lucky enough to have a full meal.
The workers in the factory have been tightening their belts for so long. Now that the disaster year is finally over, it is natural for everyone to want to eat some oily meat.
However, in Zhou Yimin's impression, the worst disaster year has passed, and it will definitely not be so difficult to obtain supplies in the future.
(End of this chapter)
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