Chapter 39 Chapter 39 Jinjiang exclusive, plagiarism will be investigated (catch...
"Humph, I can have it today too. I don't have to listen to you describe how delicious Meng Zhi's dishes are anymore."
Zhang Decheng was disdainful of his brother's boasting. This time he wanted to taste the delicious dishes his brother mentioned himself.
"Just wait and eat it. It's guaranteed to be so delicious that you'll swallow your tongue."
Zhang Deshuang was waiting to slap his brother in the face.
When Zhang's father came home from get off work, Zhang Mengyao and Xia Dayong also came home with their two children. A large group of people gathered around the table and marveled at the delicious food.
"It smells so good. My brother's cooking skills have gotten better."
Zhang Mengyao's mouth was watering as she saw her favorite shredded pork with fish flavor on the table.
As a sweet and sour dish, fish-flavored shredded pork is very popular among women. Zhang Mengyao and Zhang Mengyu, even Zhang's mother and Zhou Guilan love to eat it.
Wash and peel the carrots and cut into strips. Soak the black fungus in warm water and cut into strips. Cut the chili pepper into strips. Add a little salt to the shredded meat, add the appropriate amount of starch, and then add a small amount of sesame oil and stir the shredded meat.
Take out a bowl and pour in soy sauce, vinegar and sugar to make a sauce. Due to the limitation of the times, some seasonings are not available and the method can only be simplified.
Pour oil into a clean pot, heat it up, add chopped green onion, ginger and garlic and sauté until fragrant. Then pour in the shredded pork and stir-fry quickly until the pork turns white, then stir-fry the shredded carrots, shredded black fungus and shredded chili peppers, and finally add the sauce.
After the sauce has thickened over high heat, it is ready to be served.
Although it is a simplified version, Zhang Mengzhi is a good cook and the fish-flavored shredded pork she made is also very delicious.
Served with fragrant rice, except for Zhou Guilan who only ate one bowl, everyone else started with two bowls. Zhang Mengyu ate three bowls of rice before putting down his chopsticks.
Men are much simpler, they like all the dishes on the table with white wine. Of course, they like the strong-flavored meat dishes, such as pickled fish, boiled beef, twice-cooked pork and braised pork.
If time wasn't a bit tight, Zhang Mengzhi would have wanted to get some chickens and ducks. However, he had to kill the chickens and ducks himself, and since there wasn't enough time, he would have to wait until tomorrow.
"Tomorrow, De Shuang and I will be going back to the countryside, so we won't be having dinner at home."
When Zhang Decheng heard his cousin say that he would kill chickens and ducks tomorrow, he quickly spoke up to stop him.
"Are you going back tomorrow? Why don't you stay home and rest for two days?"
Father Zhang paused for a moment while pouring the wine. "Big brother, second brother, do you want me to ask for leave to accompany you back?"
"No, De Shuang and I only took half a month's leave. It will take ten days to come back, so we only have five days to deal with things back home."
Zhang Decheng shook his head: "As for you taking leave to accompany us back home, it is really necessary."
I didn't refuse Zhang's father's request to take leave to accompany them back to the countryside.
"Okay, I'll go ask the factory manager for leave this afternoon and go back with you guys tomorrow."
Father Zhang nodded, thinking that it would be better for him to take leave than for his son to not go to school.
"Sorry to bother you, Third Brother."
Zhang Deshuang picked up the wine and filled it up for him himself.
"Nothing is troublesome or not. We are all family members, as it should be."
Father Zhang waved his hand nonchalantly.
"By the way, you have to bring more gifts back. There are still a few ancestors in our hometown."
Father Zhang reminded the two brothers that those people were all octogenarians, and as the younger generations they had to visit them in person no matter what.
"good."
With Zhang's father's reminder, the two brothers decided to buy more gifts in the afternoon and bring them back to the countryside.
Especially for a precious tonic like malted milk, which is not only presentable but also suitable for the elderly, the two brothers bought all the stocks in the supply and marketing cooperative, and were delighted to receive some small gifts from the salesperson, such as a slightly damaged cup or a basin that was not well made.
With only a small amount of money, you can buy daily necessities that are actually no worse than perfect ones.
Those cups and basins that are said to be broken are actually because the enamel on them is not evenly applied, so they don’t look beautiful enough.
The new cups and basins made Zhang Mengyu happiest.
"Xiao Yu, this new cup and basin are for you. Are you happy?"
Zhang Deshuang couldn't help teasing the little girl as he watched her happily holding the new cups and basins in her arms.
The daughter of the third brother is so interesting. No matter what happens, it shows on her face. It is very interesting.
"Happy, extremely happy. Thank you, uncle, and thank you, second dad."
Zhang Mengyu was more than happy; she was extremely happy.
Although she started using the pots and cups her parents used after she was eight years old, they were all old pots and cups, completely different from the new ones.
"Thank you, big brother, second brother."
Mother Zhang did not scold her daughter. She had originally planned to buy her a brand new one when she was older. But now that she had the one given by her cousin, she did not need to buy a new one.
"It didn't cost much, it was half buy, half give."
Zhang Decheng had witnessed the Zhang family's courtesy. He had heard countless thank yous since he entered the door.
Although it seemed strange, he would be even more unhappy if the Zhang family didn't show any reaction.
This is very good. Be close to those who should be close, and don't ignore those who should be thanked. This is the way relatives should get along with each other.
The next day, Zhang's father accompanied the two brothers back to the countryside, while Zhang's mother went to open the store.
The end of yesterday's one-day closure meant that more customers came today, and they bought all the spicy hot pot ingredients that Zhang's mother had prepared for the day in just one morning.
The same thing went for the fast food and braised meat at noon, all sold out in less than two hours.
The store closed earlier than usual. Mother Zhang and Zhou Guilan looked at each other, pushed the cart into the store, and closed the door.
"Business has been good since we opened the shop. Meng Zhihui stews two pots of stewed dishes every night. Adding up all the income, our net profit has exceeded a thousand in recent months."
Mother Zhang counted out a thousand yuan and put it in the aunt's hand.
"Auntie, take this money and don't tell De Shuang and the others."
"No, I can't take it."
Zhou Guilan didn't expect that Zhang's mother would give her money. She was stunned for a moment and then refused.
"Auntie, just take it! You've helped us a lot in the past six months. If you don't take it, our whole family will feel bad."
Mother Zhang did not accept the money that was pushed back, but instead advised.
"You can't go to the capital without money. Although we all believe that the eldest brother and the second brother will not treat you badly, you will live with your daughter-in-law after all. If you don't have money, you won't even have a red envelope to give to your grandchildren during the New Year or other festivals."
Mother Zhang’s words touched Zhou Guilan’s heart.
That's right. Although she has saved several hundred yuan from the salary given by the Zhang family in the past six months, this amount of money will not last for a few years.
"Don't keep it to yourself if you have difficulties in the future. If I didn't have so much cash on hand right now, I would have to prepare more for you. Meng Zhi said that the cost of living in the capital is higher than here, so a thousand yuan is a lot."
Mother Zhang's face was filled with guilt when she said this. Their family's situation is just better than that of an average dual-income family. Because they bought a shop, the cash they have is what they saved from running the shop over the past few months.
She didn't dare touch the remaining few hundred dollars, for fear that she would not have enough money when something happened at home.
"That's enough. You've done enough for me."
Zhou Guilan is not an old lady who knows nothing. She can read and write.
Moreover, she was well-educated by her father and knew how to do business. The one thousand yuan that Zhang Deshuang had left behind was long gone. Her medical expenses alone were more than one thousand yuan, and the extra money was paid by Zhang's family, who did not ask their sons for a penny.
Everything she ate and used was bought by the Zhang family, who didn't tell Zhang Deshuang and the others about it and helped her out of gritted teeth.
The reason why Zhou Guilan took the trouble to help the Zhang family was because she had a plan in mind.
In addition to taking medicine for her illness, she also needs to be nursed. She is really no worse than the daughters of wealthy families in the past. You should know that her medicine is not cheap at all, because many of the medicinal materials in the medicine are precious medicinal materials, and the price is much more expensive than ordinary medicinal materials.
I haven't missed a meal since last summer vacation. One thousand yuan may seem like a lot, but using it on medical treatment is like throwing a pebble into the water; not even a splash is made.
Now the Zhang family gave her another thousand yuan. How could Zhou Guilan have the nerve to accept it?
"Auntie, this is what Meng Zhi told me to do. If I don't do it well, he will definitely blame me."
Mother Zhang held her hand and said.
"Did Mengzhi really say that? Did you lie to me?"
Like her sons, Zhou Guilan also trusted Zhang Mengzhi, a college student. Since her eldest nephew said so, she would accept it! However, she had to tell her sons about the Zhang family's kindness in private and ask them to take better care of the Zhang family.
"It was Mengzhi who ordered me to do this. Auntie, just accept it with peace of mind!"
What Zhang's mother didn't say was that her son was worried that Zhou Guilan wouldn't be able to live with her daughter-in-law in the capital. After all, everyone's lifestyles were definitely different. If Zhou Guilan didn't want to live with her daughter-in-law, she could move out if she had the money. In the future, they would send some money to Zhou Guilan every few months to make sure she lived happily in her old age.
Zhang Mengzhi treated Zhou Guilan so well and even planned to take care of her in her old age. Besides the fact that she was his elder, there was another reason which was closely related to her death in her previous life.
It is a fact that the Zhang family owes her a life.
Therefore, Zhang Mengzhi wanted her to live a good life and even planned to provide for her in her old age. This thousand yuan was just the first payment, and she would continue to send money to her in the future, so that Zhou Guilan could be a chic old lady even when she was old.
She doesn't have to live her life under the guise of her son and daughter-in-law; this is the security Zhang Mengzhi gave her.
In addition, Zhang Mengzhi also intends to secretly compensate the families who were implicated by them in the previous life. However, the Zhang family does not have the ability to do so for the time being, so they need to take it step by step.
When he makes money in the future, the first thing he will do is to build roads to make everyone's life better.
This place is suitable for growing fruit trees, especially orange trees and plum trees, and the fruits grown there taste very good.
Zhang Mengzhi plans to build their city into a real fruit city and make its name famous throughout China.
There are also General Zhang and his people. They were implicated by the Zhang family in their previous life, so Zhang Mengzhi wants to repay them in this life. The best way to repay them is to give Zhang Decheng and Zhang Deshuang political achievements. They will definitely serve in local areas in the future. When they serve as officials, Zhang Mengzhi will open a store there.
I believe that with his help, their political career will be smoother.
Apart from anything else, Zhang Decheng and Zhang Deshuang would never be greedy for money. With his cousin around, I believe no one would suspect that they were greedy for money.
Zhang Mengzhi didn't tell anyone about these things, including her parents.
He didn't want them to worry, so he just knew it. Besides, what he said now was just empty talk, without any substance, and people might think he was bragging.
So when he makes some achievements, people will believe him when he tells others about it.
After Zhang Decheng and his brothers returned from the countryside, they prepared to return to the capital.
Looking at their mother's two pockets that were specially used to hold clothes and daily necessities, the two brothers looked at the Zhang family with gratitude.
"Thank you, sister-in-law. If you hadn't helped prepare these, we wouldn't have thought of it!"
In addition to the clothes she was wearing, Zhou Guilan had clothes for all four seasons, all of which were bought by her mother Zhang.
Zhang's mother asked someone to make the thicker cotton-padded clothes and shoes than those in her hometown last winter. Because the winter in her hometown is not as cold as in the capital, the cotton-padded clothes are thinner than those in the north. Unless you prepare them specially, you can't wear such thick cotton-padded clothes in your hometown.
"Winter clothes like cotton-padded jackets can be mailed and don't need to be brought on board. Bring more food with you, otherwise there won't be much to eat on the train and you'll get hungry easily."
Mother Zhang took out a bag of winter clothes and planned to send them directly back to the capital.
"This is the pork head and pork belly that I braised. I have to eat them within the next two days. Otherwise, I'm afraid they will go bad if I keep them for too long."
Zhang Mengzhi came over with two lunch boxes filled with the braised meat he had cut.
"There are also biscuits. You can just soak them in hot water on the train and eat them."
Zhang Mengyu also contributed her snacks.
"It's better to eat oranges on the bus. There are also a few pounds of cherries. You can eat them on the bus, auntie."
Father Zhang handed oranges and peaches to Zhang Deshuang.
"Thank you, Third Brother."
Zhang Deshuang stared at the cherries with his eyes shining. The cherries in his hometown are delicious. He couldn't eat them in the capital before. They are not durable and cannot be transported over long distances. They can only be eaten locally.
"We will call you when we arrive in the capital. Don't worry if you have any problems. Call me and I will help you solve them. Don't worry about the Gu family's affairs. The Gu family in the capital is already in chaos, and soon they will not be able to stay in the capital anymore." He lowered his voice for the last sentence, and no one else heard it except Zhang Mengzhi.
"Well, I understand, don't worry, sir!"
Zhang Mengzhi didn't bother to be polite with him. The two families had long been confused about each other.
However, Zhang Mengzhi knew that he was only doing business by taking advantage of the Zhang family's influence to prevent others from doing something bad to him. In other places, he still did things in a law-abiding manner, paid all taxes he should have, and never left anyone with any handle.
Even if General Zhang and his family can no longer make it in the capital, they can still live a prosperous life by returning to their hometown without having to worry about their future.
After seeing Zhou Guilan and brothers Zhang Decheng off, the Zhang family returned to peace.
However, Mother Zhang could not run the shop alone, so she hired two middle-aged women with clean hands and feet to work.
Mother Zhang was familiar with them and knew that they were all honest and hardworking people, so she talked to her son and invited them to work in the store.
Not only did Zhang Mengzhi have no objection to hiring someone, but when Zhang's mother suggested hiring one person, he even took the initiative to suggest hiring two people so that his mother wouldn't have to work too hard.
Because it was a fast food restaurant, hygiene had to be maintained. Zhang Mengzhi also arranged physical examinations for them to make sure they did not have any diseases before deciding to hire the two.
They are used to doing housework at home, and they are good at cooking. Their knife skills are even better than Zhang's mother's.
So they were responsible for cutting vegetables and all Mother Zhang had to do was collect the money and entertain the guests.
Zhang Mengzhi is a chef, but as a chef he has to attend classes, so the fast food restaurant can only open at noon and is closed in the evening and morning.
Even so, the fast food restaurant made a lot of money. In the second half of the year, Zhang Mengzhi used the money to buy two shops next door.
One room is enough for now. If we want to expand it, we have to wait until Zhang Mengzhi graduates. Otherwise, he will not be able to handle cooking by himself now.
It’s not that Zhang Mengzhi hasn’t thought about hiring other chefs, but many of the current chefs come from state-owned restaurants. They want to work on their own and don’t want to work for Zhang Mengzhi.
Zhang Mengzhi didn't want to invite a few old men back, so the matter of expanding the store was put on hold for the time being.
This was put on hold until he graduated, and Zhang Mengzhi graduated from school three years ahead of schedule.
He completed the credits for his major ahead of time, and when he asked the school to graduate early, the principal was shocked. But this was a good thing, Zhang Mengzhi had the ability, and the principal did not stop him. After discussing with his teachers, he was assessed, and finally Zhang Mengzhi graduated from the school early with excellent results.
Zhang Mengzhi is considered a celebrity in their school. How could a celebrity who always ranks first in grades not attract attention!
Although today's college graduates are guaranteed jobs after graduation, Zhang Mengzhi is exempted from this step as he has his own career and does not need to go to school to be a teacher.
Although the principal felt sorry that the country had lost an excellent teacher, he was still aware of Zhang Mengzhi's opening of a store, and he would occasionally go there for a meal and buy some braised dishes to take home for his family.
Everyone knows that Zhang Mengzhi’s fast food restaurant makes a lot of money, but no one dares to take over his fast food restaurant.
Even the Gu family, who had their eyes on the fast food restaurant at the beginning, gave up after learning that his last name was Zhang.
The Gu family is not what it used to be. Although the Gu family in the capital is still holding on, family members know their own business. The power in the hands of Gu's father in this city has been squeezed to the limit. I believe that it won't be long before the remaining power is gone.
So even though the Gu family was jealous of the fast food restaurant's money, they did not dare to take action against it.
If it were in the previous life, the Gu family would have attacked the fast food restaurant without any regard for the consequences.
In the past two years, Zhang Mengzhi has clashed with the Gu family several times, but he always had someone do it in private, and it had nothing to do with him on the surface.
Two years was enough time for the Gu family to know that Wang Lingya and Zhang Mengzhi had been engaged, but at this time many things were no longer up to them.
The Gu family was already having a hard time moving forward in Guocheng, so how could they dare to cancel the engagement with the Wang family? They could only drag it on like this.
The Wang family had no choice but to vent their anger on Wang Lingya, as they couldn't afford to offend the Gu family. After being beaten by her father and brother, Wang Lingya had no choice but to go to her fiancé Gu Yan.
Although Gu Yan still has some feelings for her, it is not as strong as when they were in love at the beginning.
Especially after knowing that she and Zhang Mengzhi had been engaged, Gu Yan treated her even worse.
"What did I say at the beginning? I told you that woman was restless and asked you to separate from her, but you refused to listen to me. Now you are being dragged down by her. We didn't know why Zhang Deming and his men excluded the Gu family before, but it's too late now that we know."
Gu's mother hated Wang Lingya, the evil woman, and the Gu family was really ruined by her.
Because of the Zhang family's obstruction, Gu's father's work in Guocheng has been unable to be carried out. Every time he has a proposal, it will be rejected by the higher-ups. Over the years, he has not made any achievements at all. Not to mention promotion, it's good enough that he doesn't get demoted.
Unfortunately, his term of office has not yet expired, so he cannot be transferred to another place. Moreover, the Gu family in the capital cannot help him now, so Father Gu can only fight alone in Guocheng.
"The Zhang family has deep roots in this city, and the people in this city also have great faith in the Zhang family."
Father Gu frowned. He looked much older than in previous years because his work had not been going well in recent years.
The main thing is that the Zhang family not only did not help him, but also secretly obstructed him. This is what Father Gu was most worried about. If he had known that his son was dating a Zhang family member, he would have stopped them from breaking up. Unfortunately, he found out too late, and the Zhang family had already taken action against the Gu family.
If the Zhang family hadn't made some big moves in the past six months, they wouldn't know why they were being targeted by the Zhang family!
"Dad, I was wrong."
Gu Yan had long lost the arrogance he had when he first came to Guocheng. His experiences over the past two years had taught him that once the Gu family was destroyed, he, Young Master Gu, would be nothing.
Therefore, he has been much more obedient in school in the past six months and has also listened to the lectures seriously. Apart from anything else, if he has excellent grades after graduation, he can apply to the school to cancel the demerit, and then he can be assigned a job. If he has a good job, he will not be restricted to Guocheng.
"What's the use of knowing you're wrong now? It's too late."
Father Gu shook his head and walked towards the study.
"Ayan, please be more careful next time!"
Mother Gu didn't have the heart to blame her son anymore and could only say helplessly.
"Yes, Mom."
Gu Yan really regretted it, and looked at his bent back with red eyes.
Gu's mother used to be such a proud woman, but now she has to bend down and ask for help from people she used to despise.
"Hello, is Zhang Mengzhi here?"
On this day, the Zhang family members were all resting at home, and the shop was closed for a day to give the employees a day off.
"May I ask who you are?"
Zhang Mengzhi was standing in the yard, picking vegetables, when she saw Gu's mother standing outside the yard.
He shouldn't know Gu's mother openly, so he deliberately asked who she was.
"Hello, classmate Zhang, I am Gu Yan's mother."
Mother Gu looked at the young man in rough leather clothes picking vegetables in the vegetable garden with admiration, without any contempt on her face.
Compared with the attitude of Gu's mother that Zhang Mengzhi saw in his dream, they were completely different people.
In the dream, Mother Gu was so arrogant that when Zhang Mengzhi went to save her and spare the Zhang family, she even stepped on his hand and didn't treat him as a human being at all.
But now she had to come to the Zhang family to ask Zhang Mengzhi for help, because the cause of all this was this young man.
He was the only college student in the Zhang family and was highly valued by the Zhang family. Her son had snatched away his fiancée, even though the Gu family didn't know about it at the time, but the crime was committed by Gu Yan and the victim was Zhang Mengzhi.
Therefore, only if Zhang Mengzhi stood up and said that he would let the Gu family go, would the Zhang family give them a way to live.
There is no way they can make a success in Guocheng. As long as the Zhang family is willing to let them go, the Gu family can make a comeback somewhere else after leaving Guocheng.
"Gu Yan? Is that the Gu Yan I know?"
Zhang Mengzhi pretended to be in deep thought and looked at her with a questioning look.
"Yes, it's Gu Yan from your school."
Mother Gu answered somewhat embarrassedly.
Her son is very famous in school, but the reputation is not very good.
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