Chapter 45 Chapter 45 Jinjiang exclusive, plagiarism will be investigated (catch...
"Little sister, eat more."
Looking at her cousin who was older than herself, Mother Zhang picked up some meat for her with heartache.
"Thank you, sister-in-law."
My cousin's eyes became wet when she looked at the large chunks of pork belly in the bowl.
Usually, the few pieces of meat in the house belonged to the children, and she and her husband were reluctant to eat them. The couple suffered together, just to save more money, so that their children would not be able to participate in the marriage and betrothal gifts in the future!
It was the first time someone put meat in her bowl, and she was deeply touched.
"Thank you, there's no need to say thank you. I'll have to trouble you to accompany me in the future."
When Zhang's mother knew that her cousin was coming to her house to accompany her, she was so happy. Although she had to pay her son a salary every month, she didn't say that her son was wasting money.
When her son specially finds someone to accompany him, she will be happy instead of disappointed. Her monthly pocket money is higher than her cousin's salary, so she really doesn't think there is anything wrong with giving her salary.
The son said that in addition to accompanying her, he would also help her with cleaning and even plant the small vegetable garden at home.
"Sister-in-law, let me tell you, if you can't finish this vegetable, you can make kimchi or dried vegetables. It's best to stew bones in winter."
When Aunt Zhang came the next day, she saw that the cowpeas in the field were ripe, so she quickly picked them up with a basket. She picked out the ones without wormholes, washed them, blanched them with water, and planned to dry them to make dried cowpeas, and then store them for stewing bacon in winter.
If there are any extra ones, you can wash them, dry them and put them in a kimchi jar. They can be eaten after half a month. They are very good whether used in porridge or fried with noodles.
"Okay, I was wondering what to do if we can't finish it! Luckily you came, otherwise it would be wasted."
Aunt Zhang didn't tell her cousin that the leftover food at home was given away to relatives. Instead, she praised her a lot.
Actually, my cousin's family had sent gifts in previous years, but her home was a little far away, so the number of times they sent gifts was less. She probably didn't think about it, so she kindly made the suggestion.
"Not only cowpeas, but also eggplants can be made into dried vegetables for winter consumption, and they are perfect for stewing bacon and sausages."
Aunt Zhang is good at taking care of household chores. She and Mother Zhang make dried vegetables from the leftover vegetables in the vegetable garden.
Mother Zhang thought that there were few vegetables in the north, so she could send some to her relatives in the capital so that they could eat various dried vegetables in the winter.
"mom?"
Zhang Mengzhi came back at noon and looked at the large and small winnowing baskets in the yard, on which various blanched vegetables were drying. It seemed that the two sisters-in-law had worked hard this morning!
"Mengzhi, your aunt is really hardworking. She made all the leftover vegetables into dried dishes."
Mother Zhang said before her son spoke.
"Aunt is amazing."
Zhang Mengzhi praised, and indeed said nothing else.
Relatives who had received vegetables from the Zhang family in previous years were puzzled. Could it be that the Zhang family did not grow any vegetables this year?
Although they didn't receive any vegetables, no one complained. They thought that the Zhang family grew fewer vegetables today, so there were no extra vegetables for them!
Anyone who can get the Zhang family to send food must have good character. The next time they met, they were still very friendly. It was not until they received the dried vegetables that they realized that the Zhang family made the leftover vegetables into dried vegetables.
"Auntie, let me tell you, this cousin who came here is really amazing. She can cook a lot of dried vegetables!"
When Zhang's mother talked to Zhou Guilan on the phone, she kept praising her cousin.
"Really? It's a pity that I can't go back, otherwise I would definitely want to know what this dried vegetable you mentioned tastes like."
Zhou Guilan's words made Aunt Zhang, who was standing nearby, feel a little more shy. She had never been praised as often as she has been recently!
"Don't worry, Mengzhi said she would send it to you later. She will send it to you when the dried vegetables are dried and the weather is cooler."
Mother Zhang waved her hand and immediately spoke proudly.
They can grow vegetables in winter in their hometown, so there is no shortage of vegetables in Sichuan Province in winter. But it is different in the north, there are really not many vegetables to eat. In winter, they eat the same few things, potatoes, cabbage and radish. Cabbage and radish are the most eaten, and occasionally a little onion is added. In short, the more durable the vegetables are, the more they are bought in the north.
After all, they’re cheap and durable, aren’t they?
It just makes people feel uncomfortable. No matter how delicious the food is, it will be boring if you eat it every day! Therefore, these dried vegetables are very popular in Zhang Deshuang's family.
This is a later story, let’s get back to the topic for now.
"My niece, how are Mengzhi and Xiaoyu doing recently? Xiaoyu is in high school now, right? You have to take better care of her. I think those kids in high school have a hard time every day."
Zhou Guilan was afraid that Zhang's mother would only focus on her son and forget about her daughter, so she reminded her.
"Okay Auntie, I will. I ask her to bring some food to school every day and eat when she is hungry."
Mother Zhang did not tell her son that he went to the school to find the teacher for this decision.
Because the school has rules that we are not allowed to eat during class breaks.
Zhang Mengyu was growing up, and she consumed a lot of energy studying every day, so she naturally got hungry faster. A child can't go to school hungry, right? So Zhang Mengzhi argued hard and finally got her sister a time to eat during the break.
Just to maintain the school's management, she had to eat in the cafeteria.
Zhang Mengyu had no objection to this. When she was hungry, she would go to the cafeteria to eat during breaks.
Because of Zhang Mengyu, other children in the school who brought food also went to the cafeteria to eat during breaks.
The principal and teachers had no objections when they saw this. After all, there were children here who were so hungry that they were gnawing on the tables. If they didn't let the children eat, it would be a shame.
Parents are also happy because their children no longer come home hungry like before, and sometimes they even get so hungry that their stomachs hurt.
As long as the children do not eat in the classroom or public places, they will not be criticized by the teachers if they eat in the cafeteria as required.
Zhang Mengyu and his friends are very happy that they have a place where they can eat food without worries.
Another point is to avoid the discomfort of some children who are unable to bring food. As long as they don't go to the cafeteria to make trouble for themselves, they will pretend that no one is stealing food during the meal.
It is inappropriate to say that they cheated, but only by thinking this way will they feel better.
Zhang Mengzhi had no good solution for this problem. He did not have the financial resources to provide snacks to all students in the city.
Even in later generations, not all schools have the ability to provide snacks for students, and students have to bring them from home.
As Zhang Mengzhi's store business is getting better and better, the second branch of Guocheng has started operating.
Yes, Zhang Mengzhi opened a branch in another district.
Most of the apprentices he taught can run a store on their own. The new store is still called a fast food restaurant. The store is not small and can serve many customers every day.
After paying for the costs, Zhang Mengzhi could make more than a thousand yuan in net profit a month, so he would have enough money to build a new restaurant before the New Year.
To be honest, these few thousand dollars are definitely not enough to build a new restaurant completely. But don't forget that building a new restaurant also takes time.
You can make money while building the restaurant. When the restaurant is almost finished, new funds can be immediately provided without delaying the construction.
So before the New Year, Zhang Mengzhi found craftsmen and started laying the foundation.
He planned to build a three-story restaurant. The first floor would be the lobby, which would not require private rooms. The second floor could be used to host various banquets, and the third floor would be various large and small private rooms.
The restaurant occupies a large area. The place he bought at that time was very large, with a construction area of nearly 1,000 square meters. When he had more funds later, he bought the surrounding land and built a leisure area and parking lot.
Especially the parking lot, which seems unnecessary to build now. After 20 or 30 years, the business of restaurants without parking lots will definitely be greatly affected.
He is now looking ahead and making plans for the restaurant early. Some things can be left unbuilt for the time being, but there must be a plan.
Therefore, in Zhang Mengzhi's plan, parking lots are essential, including restaurants in provincial capitals and mountain cities.
The reason why people are willing to spend more money to buy the stores they like is because they not only have good geographical locations but also cover a large area.
While everyone was still thinking about how to make money, he had already considered what would happen decades later.
I have to say that his ideas are very good. He takes advantage of the current low prices for land and houses and buys them in a big way. No matter what he does in the future, he will not lose money.
Zhang Mengzhi also reminded the Zhang family that those who have extra money should go to the city to buy a house. It will not be a loss whether they live in it themselves or if it is demolished in the future.
Most people still listened to the advice. Those who had money bought a house in the city, those with less money bought a house in a remote area, and those with more money bought a house in a better location.
There is no way for those who have no money. Zhang Mengzhi can't buy houses for them himself. He doesn't have the ability to do so now. There are many people in the Zhang family in Guocheng. How can he buy houses for every household?
No, if Guocheng really becomes a real fruit city in the future, everyone will be able to buy a house even without him.
It's just a matter of time, there's no need for him to worry about it.
Thinking of this, Zhang Mengzhi was no longer anxious. When everyone's life got better in the future, he wouldn't have to say anything because everyone would move to the city and buy a house.
Apart from anything else, the educational conditions for children in the city are definitely better than in the countryside.
Speaking of education, Zhang Mengzhi thought of the shabby primary school in their hometown.
Next year, in addition to the restaurant, he will have to take out another sum of money to rebuild a school in his hometown, so that at least the children don't have to get wet in the rain when they go to school, and they don't have to study in a house that is drafty on all sides.
One only regrets not having enough money when he needs it. Zhang Mengzhi wishes he had eight hands so he could make more money and do more things.
In 1984, when Zhang Mengzhi was still renovating his restaurant, the crackdown began.
Those who committed crimes were given harsh sentences. Those who were not supposed to be put to death were sentenced directly to death. Those who were supposed to be in prison for a few years were sentenced to more than ten years, and some were even sentenced to life imprisonment!
After the severe crackdown, the whole social environment has improved a lot. There are fewer hooligans hanging around on the streets, and they no longer dare to do illegal things openly.
Although Zhang Mengzhi's store had never been charged protection fees, after all, the power of the Zhang family was still very large in their city. But there were many other victims, and the little money he made in a day was all used to pay protection fees.
Often these protection fees cannot protect street vendors and merchants, because they will not protect everyone at all. The so-called protection fees are just a nice name, but in fact they are a disguised way of taking money from everyone.
"The boss is here."
When the waiter at the new store No. 2 saw Zhang Mengzhi, he immediately shouted to the store manager.
"Master."
The store manager was Zhang Mengzhi's apprentice, and he walked out of the kitchen.
"How is it, can you manage it?"
Zhang Mengzhi looked at this apprentice who was a little older than Xia Donghai, but whose brain was not as quick as Xia Donghai's.
"It's OK, but the daily accounting gives me a headache."
Although the store manager said this, the smile on his face made Zhang Mengzhi understand that this was just his humble words.
"It's okay, don't be too tired, call me if you have anything."
Xindian is quite far from home, so I went to look for Zhang Mengzhi after the accident. But by the time he received the news and rushed over, the flowers were already cold.
That's why Zhang Mengzhi spent a lot of money to install telephones in the two new stores so that he can receive messages immediately by making a phone call.
"Understood, Master."
The store manager also knew that there were some things that were beyond the ability of a small store manager like him to resolve. For example, those people who came to collect protection fees upon seeing a new store open, after learning that their boss’s surname was Zhang, would immediately leave the new store without being driven away, and would never come again.
Even if they come occasionally, they come to their restaurant to eat, not to collect protection fees.
This shows how powerful the Zhang family is in Guocheng. Although they have not done anything harmful, because the Zhang family is large and united, they always face the outside world together, so people dare not bully them.
This is a way for the lower class people to protect themselves. In the past, they relied on their numbers and unity to prevent officials in feudal society from bullying them easily.
Otherwise, as a low-level staff member without any backing, it is easy to become the target of exploitation by officials and yamen runners.
The situation got better after the founding of the new country, but humans are social animals, and oppression can occur everywhere, it’s just that the severity of the situation varies.
In order to avoid being bullied, the Zhang family had to work hard on their own. Relying on the need for talent in the establishment of a new country, the Zhang family gradually entered various units and took up positions.
Apart from not being able to read and pass the college entrance exam, the Zhang family still has a lot of talented people. In this society with a low literacy rate, the literacy rate of the Zhang family is over 80%, which makes it very convenient for them to find jobs in the city.
When Zhang's father came to the city, he was still young and not old enough to learn to read in the clan. Later, he learned to read because of the arrangement of the Zhang clan members who worked in the city. In that war-torn era, everyone was thinking about how to survive, but only the Zhang clan arranged for their children to learn to read while surviving.
The Zhang family is now fine except for being poor. As for being poor, what's wrong with them being a little poor when the whole country is poor?
We are not the only ones who are poor, we are all poor, right?
This is what the Zhang family, who are still feeling confident and unjust, thinks!
After inspecting his three fast food restaurants, he went to the new restaurant under construction to check on the progress.
There are many cypress trees here, so the restaurant built by Zhang Mengzhi is made of wood for decoration except for the main body and the floor which are made of bricks and cement.
The restaurant has an ancient flavor, but also has a touch of modern sophistication. The design alone is very attractive. When the restaurant is completed, Zhang Mengzhi dares to say that in the next 20 to 30 years, no restaurant's decoration will be more beautiful than his.
In the summer of 1984, the restaurant, which took a year to build, was finally completed. Just as Zhang Mengzhi said, there is no better-looking restaurant than this one.
The magnificent Chinese restaurant fully conforms to the aesthetic taste of the Chinese people.
In this era that advocates Western-style decoration, it is amazing to see exquisite restaurants carving out a path for traditional Chinese style.
It can be said that his restaurant has opened up the bloodline genes of the Chinese people, telling everyone that Western style is not necessarily beautiful, but Chinese style is indeed the deep-seated preference of the Chinese people.
Of course, in order to compete with foreign companies, Zhang Mengzhi opened a fast food restaurant similar to that of the West and improved their hamburgers to make them more in line with Chinese tastes.
The first store was opened in the provincial capital, and the second in the capital. For this, he even went to the bank to borrow money and owed the bank a lot of debt.
However, considering his daily cash flow, he can fully afford to repay these loans.
And his superiors also support him in doing so. After all, not everyone has the courage to go against Western companies in an environment that worships the West.
Except for one or two times when everyone went to the Western fast food restaurant out of curiosity in the beginning, everyone later went back to Zhang Mengzhi's fast food restaurant to eat.
Whether it is a Western fast food restaurant or a Chinese fast food restaurant, the taste of any one of them is better than those fast food restaurants called McDonald's Chicken.
More importantly, the prices are very affordable, unlike those Western fast food restaurants, which have very few items and are very expensive. Ordinary people would feel very distressed after eating a meal.
So unless you are one of those people who worship foreign things, no one can in good conscience praise those Western hamburgers as delicious.
Moreover, under the leadership of Zhang Mengzhi, many Chinese and Western fast food restaurants appeared, and everyone chose to open them next to Western fast food restaurants.
Except for a few unscrupulous merchants, most bosses held their breath and fought against Western companies to the end. Not to mention, relying on local operations, they really swept out two Western fast food chains that once opened stores all over China.
There was no profit to be made. No matter how much they coveted China's population, they had to leave this country that was losing them money in the early 1990s.
Even Zhang Mengzhi did not expect that he only took the lead in blocking Western fast food restaurants, but it brought unexpected results.
Of course, this is all later news, it’s only 1986 now!
In the blink of an eye, Zhang Mengzhi is already 26 years old.
Twenty-six-year-old Zhang Mengzhi owns more than a dozen Chinese fast food chain restaurants, five Chinese and Western fast food restaurants, and four high-end restaurants.
If all his stores were not located in cities with connections, he would have been targeted long ago.
In particular, there are four high-end restaurants, three in Shu Province and one in the capital.
Zhou Guilan helps her nephew and grandson with the accounts every day. This is her old trade. When she was still a child, her father taught her how to read the account books and run the shop.
"Mom, are you going out again?"
Seeing her mother-in-law dressed in bright clothes and about to go out with her handbag, Zhang Deshuang's wife stopped her.
"Yes, what's up?"
Zhou Guilan looked back at her second daughter-in-law. After the fact that she and her eldest son's wife did not pay for her medical treatment was exposed, the relationship between the eldest and second sons and their wives has not been very good in recent years.
Zhou Guilan also advised them, but they felt sorry for their mother. Although they did not divorce their wives, they did not trust them in everything.
They were only given half of their salary, and the remaining half was kept by themselves. In addition to paying for their mother's medical expenses and pocket money, they also had to use some for themselves.
In fact, they knew that the family was short of money, but that was not a reason for them not to give money to their mother for medical treatment. They didn't even know that from the day they took their mother back to the capital, all the money she used was given by Zhang Mengzhi.
So after the truth was exposed, they were angry at their wives for not being reasonable. If the family didn't have enough money, wouldn't they know how to solve the problem if they told their husbands?
How can a daughter-in-law deduct her mother's medical expenses like this? So it's no wonder that the husbands are angry. Even if they are alone, they would be angry.
For this reason, they even called Zhang Mengzhi to thank him.
Zhang Mengzhi didn't care about it and comforted them instead. It was because he didn't care that the Zhang brothers felt even more uncomfortable and didn't forgive their wives.
This cold war lasted for several years until Zhang Mengzhi came to the capital this year.
"Mom, can you bring some meat when you come back? We are out of meat at home. Isn't Mengzhi coming to the capital? Deshuang and my brother are going to pick them up. We can't have no meat when guests come!"
At the end, Zhang Deshuang’s wife didn’t dare to look Zhou Guilan in the eye.
"I see."
Zhou Guilan did not hold it against her daughter-in-law for not preparing any meat even though she knew there were guests coming to the house.
It just so happened that she didn't plan to let Mengzhi live at home, but arranged another place for him to live. At the same time, she didn't let Zhang Mengzhi eat at home. Eating at a restaurant is not as fun as eating at home! And she didn't have to get angry.
Zhou Guilan rode her bicycle to a courtyard, parked her bicycle outside, locked it, opened the gate and walked in.
The Siheyuan is a standard small courtyard with two entrances. There are three main rooms and two side rooms in the front yard, plus the west wing used as guest rooms, the east wing used as a study, and the back room used as a kitchen and utility room, totaling nine rooms.
There are more rooms in the backyard, also with three main rooms and an ear room, and the east and west wing rooms together make a total of eight rooms.
There is a peach tree and a jujube tree and a well in the front yard, but the backyard is full of flowers, which are in full bloom now. When people walk in, their mood becomes better along with these beautiful flowers.
Zhou Guilan bought this courtyard house for Zhang Mengzhi using the profits from the restaurant, so that he would have a place to stay when he came to the capital.
Because the courtyard house is well preserved, its price is much higher than that of the dilapidated ones, even more than two-thirds more expensive.
An ordinary shabby courtyard house would cost two to three thousand, but this one cost ten thousand. The owner was in a hurry to leave China, so he preserved the courtyard house in such a good condition and of a large area, so the other party offered ten thousand.
It is a bit expensive, but this courtyard house does not need major renovations, and there are furniture inside, so people can move in and live there. Of course, for convenience, some places inside were renovated, such as installing heating, and converting the ear rooms next to the main house in the front and back yards into toilets and bathrooms.
These are all small projects and will be completed quickly. Zhou Guilan came today to see if there is anything else that needs to be added, and she must make sure that her nephew and grandson live comfortably.
This courtyard house was so well preserved that she immediately discussed with the original owner about buying it. One was sincere in selling, the other in buying, and both parties negotiated the price amicably, and the money was paid while the property title was changed.
In less than three days, the house was transferred to Zhang Mengzhi's name.
"Grandma."
When Zhang Mengzhi, Zhang Decheng and Zhang Deshuang walked in, they saw her coming out of the main room.
"Mengzhi, we're finally here, hurry up and sit down and have a rest, Grandma has boiled some water and is preparing to make tea!"
When Zhou Guilan saw her nephew, she immediately smiled.
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