Chapter 37 Cool



Ning Tang finally remembered that the two-day weekend system had not yet been implemented in those days, and the workers had to work six days a week.

It was not until 1994 that the 'big and small weekends' were implemented. One year after the 'big and small weekends' were implemented, that is, on May 1, 1995, the two-day weekend system was officially implemented.

It's only been 1977. If Ning Tang really joins the Women's Committee, she will have to work six days a week for 52 weeks a year for 18 years before she can enjoy the so-called big and small weekends.

And these seemingly "wonderful" weekends are nothing more than one more day of rest than every two weeks.

As for the two-day weekend afterwards, there is actually not much difference between it and the long and short weekends.

With this calculation, the seven yuan salary given by the Women's Committee is very insignificant. Ning Tang feels that her labor is far beyond this value.

In those days, one dollar was equivalent to about 300 yuan, so seven dollars was about 2,100 yuan in later generations.

Two thousand and one is enough to buy her to work six days a week, or to take care of the children part-time and do housework before going to work. Ning Tang thinks that she would only do this job if her head was caught in the door.

Seeing Ning Tang's strong resistance, Shen Lie stopped persuading her. After all, his salary was more than enough to support the family, and he also felt that the Women's Committee was not a good place to go.

In the afternoon, Ningtang and Mrs. Luo went to the grain and oil station on the island to buy rice. On their way back, they passed by the office building where the Women's Committee was located. There was a crowd of people gathered downstairs, making it impossible to get out.

Mrs. Luo didn't know about the recruitment notice issued by the Women's Committee yet. She was very puzzled, "Why are so many people gathered here?"

People all like to watch the excitement, so she pulled Ning Tang's arm and squeezed into the crowd.

While squeezing, Ning Tang saw Zeng Xinlan's figure with sharp eyes. She waved and called out, "Xinlan."

Zeng Xinlan turned around and waved to Ning Tang, motioning them to come over.

Ning Tang and Luo Saozi finally squeezed in, and heard Zeng Xinlan say with a smile on her face, "The Women's Committee has put out a recruitment notice for two clerks. Sign up now. There will be a written test in half a month, and an interview in another week. Those who pass both rounds can successfully join the Women's Committee as clerks."

Mrs. Luo also smiled and said, "Then Xinlan, you must give it a try. You will definitely pass it."

Zeng Xinlan smiled shyly, with worry on her face, "But I heard that a lot of people signed up this time, I'm afraid..."

"What are you afraid of?" Ning Tang said, "It won't hurt to give it a try."

Zeng Xinlan said, "By the way, Xiao Ning, do you want to join?" Her eyes lit up and she held Ning Tang's hands. "If you join with me, I won't be nervous."

Mrs. Luo also helped to drum up support, "Xiaoning, you should sign up as well."

Ning Tang blinked, "Sister-in-law, it's not that I don't want to participate. I also want to contribute to our military family hospital, but you know, our three children are still young. The oldest is only eight years old, and the youngest is four years old. They are so small, how can I feel at ease going to work?"

Mrs. Luo had forgotten all about this.

Nowadays, work is the most important thing to people. Many women work while taking care of their children.

Even during the breastfeeding period, I still have to bring my baby to work, and when I need to feed, I have to go to the cubicle or draw a curtain.

Ning Tang does not judge this method, but if she could choose, she would definitely not choose this path.

Deep down, she still loves herself a thousand times more than her work.

It is absolutely impossible to expect her to be like Ding Ronghua and regard work as more important than anything else.

Mrs. Luo still wanted to persuade Ningtang, but when she thought about the fact that the Shen family's situation was different, Shen Lie was busy with work, and Ningtang was new here and had to take care of three children by herself.

She swallowed her words of persuasion and changed her tone, "That's right, the children are important. When they grow up and go to school, and can take care of themselves, it won't be too late for you to join the Women's Committee."

Ning Tang thought that Qi Dahu was in the same grade as Dawa.

What would Dahu do if Zeng Xinlan got admitted to the Women's Committee?

She thought so and asked.

Zeng Xinlan didn't take it to heart. "It's okay. Dahu is already in the first grade. He usually goes to school and comes back at noon and in the evening. I can just rush home after work or during lunch break to cook for him."

Mrs. Luo frowned and said, "That's so tiring. You can ask Captain Qi to help you. The child is not your own."

Zeng Xinlan pursed her lips and said, "Old Qi is someone who only needs others to take care of him, not him. Sometimes when he gets home from get off work, he has to ask Dahu to pour him a glass of water or get him a towel."

"Let's not talk about this." She was full of longing for the work of the Women's Committee, her eyes shining, "It would be great if I could join the Women's Committee, I could get this much salary a month!" She pointed to the number seven with her fingers.

Seven yuan is not a lot, but not a little either. However, for the Qi family, it is a considerable income. If Zeng Xinlan can really get this job, the quality of life of the Qi family will definitely reach a new high.

Ning Tang asked Zeng Xinlan to talk to Mrs. Luo first, and she left for a while to find Ding Ronghua.

After all, Ding Ronghua particularly wanted her to join the Women's Committee. She failed to live up to her expectations, so she had to apologize to her in person.

When Ning Tang found Ding Ronghua, she was sorting out the collected registration forms on the table in front of the office building.

There were quite a lot of people who came to sign up this time, which was beyond Ding Ronghua's expectations.

She saw Ning Tang coming straight towards her and thought that Ning Tang was also here to register. Before Ning Tang could say anything, she put the registration form and pen into Ning Tang's hand with a warm smile, "Xiao Ning, you are here to register, right? Come on, I've saved the registration form for you, just fill in the information."

Ning Tang explained to Ding Ronghua exactly what he had just said to Mrs. Luo.

After listening to this, Ding Ronghua expressed regret, but still said, "Then Xiaoning, you must come and sign up next year or the year after."

The Women's Committee is not short of people, but of talents, especially talents like Ningtang. Ding Ronghua is trying her best to get her into the Women's Committee.

Ning Tang wiped his sweat and laughed, "I will definitely do it next time, I will definitely do it next time."

After finally escaping from Ding Ronghua, Ning Tang saw an unexpected person.

She raised her eyebrows and looked at Ning Xue who was walking straight towards her. Her meaning was very obvious: is there something wrong?

Ning Tang hasn't seen Ning Xue for a long time.

Ning Xue gets up at six o'clock every morning to go to the vegetable market to buy the freshest vegetables. It's almost a one-stop journey: home - vegetable market.

On weekdays, I just stay at home and watch the twins study. I basically never go out or go to school.

Ning Tang was surprised to see Ning Xue here today. He looked up at the sky. Yes, the sun rises from the east.

Following Ning Xue was Li Yun. The two walked up to Ning Tang. Ning Xue looked sullen and asked, "Are you here to register at the Women's Committee as well?"

She just saw the head of the Women's Committee holding Ning Tang's hand, and the two seemed to be on good terms. This made Ning Xue, who also wanted to be a member of the Women's Committee, feel a sense of crisis.

She was very scared, after all, she had never won anything from her cousin since she was a child.

After the minor unpleasantness with the twins last time, Ning Xue also thought some things through.

After all, she is not the twins' biological mother. If she wants to build a deeper relationship with them and make them listen to her, in addition to caring for them on a daily basis, it is also necessary to use sufficient material means.

She had already spent a lot of her savings on buying things for the twins, and Su Junyan didn't even say that he would give her control of his salary. Now, Ning Xue is almost spending more than she earns.

So when she heard the news that the Women's Committee was recruiting, she came here without stopping.

After all, a salary of seven yuan a month is still very tempting.

With these seven yuan, she could buy delicious snacks and fun toys for Su Guangzong and Su Yaozu, so that the twins would listen to her more and treat her as their own mother.

Ning Tang listened to Ning Xue's question but didn't respond.

She is not a criminal and she doesn't owe Ning Xue anything, so why should she answer when she asks?

Seeing that Ning Tang didn't say anything, Ning Xue thought she felt guilty.

After all, Ning Tang has been a very cunning person since he was a child.

Ning Xue recalled that when their grandmother was still alive, Ning Tang only needed to act coquettishly and cutely to get her grandmother's smile and delicious candies. However, she herself was obedient and actively helped with the housework, but did not get any favor from her grandmother.

The Women's Committee was also recruiting this time. Maybe Ning Tang was also up to something, using the back door and bribing the person in charge of recruitment.

Thinking of this, Ning Xue became even more indignant, and her words became even more ruthless, "You are just a junior high school student, and your cultural level is not high. Joining the Women's Committee will only cause trouble for others. I advise you not to apply, because you won't pass anyway."

Li Yun was of course standing on Ningxue's side and speaking for her. "There are only two vacancies for the Women's Committee staff positions, and they will definitely go to Xiaoxue and me. You, forget it."

Ning Tang blinked. She had never wanted to join the Women's Committee.

Seeing Ning Xue's serious expression, she felt like teasing her and said with a playful smile, "Then I wish you can start working as a member of the Women's Committee as soon as possible."

This is a thankless job, she wished Ning Xue and Li Yun could both start working so that she could start working and suffer the consequences sooner.

Ning Xue's face turned pale. What she hated most was Ning Tang's unserious look, which made her feel that her efforts were pitiful and ridiculous.

It was as if Ning Tang could get something she had always dreamed of just by waving her hands, or even sneering at it.

Ning Xue wanted to say a few more words, but she caught a glimpse of Mrs. Luo and Zeng Xinlan coming over. She whispered a warning to Ning Tang and left in a hurry.

Mrs. Luo came over and asked Ning Tang curiously, "What did your cousin say to you just now? I saw that she looked quite grumpy."

Zeng Xinlan said, "Not only does she stink, she also doesn't have eyes when she walks. She bumped into my shoulder and didn't even say sorry." As she spoke, she rubbed her hurt shoulder.

Ning Tang had nothing to hide, so he repeated everything Ning Xue and Li Yun said.

Mrs. Luo's eyes widened. "You said that Ning Xue thought you wanted to find Ronghua to get into the Women's Committee through the back door, and she said that you definitely couldn't get in, so you shouldn't waste your thoughts on it."

Ning Tang spread her hands and said, "These are her exact words."

Zeng Xinlan chuckled, "What do you mean you asked Sister Ding for help? It was Sister Ding who asked you to join the Women's Committee."

Didn’t you see how regretful Ding Ronghua was when she found out that Ning Tang didn’t want to join the Women’s Committee? It was like she had missed out on a golden treasure.

Ning Tang, "I don't plan to explain to her. Let her think that I'm competing with her for the position of Women's Committee member."

Let her fight with her imaginary enemy, Ning Tang just wants to make a move.

Mrs. Luo shook her head and sighed, "Don't tell me, your cousin is becoming more and more left-wing."

"She's always been like that." Ning Tang said, "When she fails to do what she wants to do, she puts the blame on me and says it's my fault. Just wait and see. If she fails to pass the exam to join the Women's Committee this time, she will definitely say that it was me who bribed Sister Ding and played dirty tricks to take away the spot that belonged to her."

It's not right to pay attention to her, and it's not right to ignore her.

Ning Tang didn't deal with her now, simply because Ning Xue didn't cause any substantial harm to her except for talking nonsense and doing some harmless little tricks, but she suffered a lot instead.

And it was also for the sake of Ning Weiguo and Sun Aiju. After all, Ning Weidang was Ning Weiguo's younger brother. She had to give face to the Buddha. She didn't want to make things difficult for the two old men.

One day, Ning Xue offended her, and she would let Ning Xue see what it meant to have a tiger's whiskers that were not easy to touch!

It was already evening when Ning Tang returned home, and Shen Lie had already prepared dinner.

There were stir-fried mixed dishes, stir-fried oysters with green onions and ginger, a large plate of blanched shrimps, and even a dish of wild bamboo shoots. The dishes were simple, but the aroma was overwhelming.

Ning Tang smelled the fragrance and her stomach started to rumble.

She washed her hands and sat down. She picked up a piece of wild bamboo shoots with chopsticks and put them in her mouth to chew. The faint taste of bamboo shoots filled her mouth, with a fresh flavor.

She couldn't help but praise, "Where did these bamboo shoots come from? They are delicious."

The eldest boy raised his hand to take credit, "I dug it up in the back hill."

The Back Mountain is a big mountain behind the Military Family Compound. People live by the mountain and by the sea. The Back Mountain is rich in resources. Those who live in poor conditions can often go to the mountain to pick mushrooms and wild vegetables to add flavor to their homes and save money on vegetables. Therefore, the Back Mountain is also called the Treasure Mountain by the people of Hailang Island.

Da Wa and his group of kids liked to go to the back mountain to play after school. They could pick a lot of sweet wild fruits there, such as raspberries and sea buckthorns.

However, eating these wild fruits depends entirely on luck. Good luck is like the candies sold by the supply and marketing cooperatives, which are all sweet. Bad luck can make your teeth sour.

Ning Tang praised them generously, "You did a great job digging. Go dig some more tomorrow and let your dad make some fried bamboo shoots with ham."

Shen Lie was amused. "You only know how to order me around? Why don't you do it yourself?"

Ning Tang said as a matter of course, "Because of me? No way."

Shen Lie was speechless. He took out a box from the cabinet and gave it to her. "This is for you."

Ning Tang was surprised and asked, "What is this?"

"Why don't you open it and take a look and you'll know." Shen Lie said.

Ning Tang opened it and found a bunch of expensive skin care products inside, including clam oil, vanishing cream, pearl cream, etc., and even two bottles of the best-selling Shanghai Beauty brand perfume.

She couldn't let it go. "When did you buy it?"

This thing cannot be bought on the island. At least you have to go to a department store in a big city to buy it.

Shen Lie has been staying at home all this time and has not gone out to sea. Ning Tang really couldn't imagine when he found the time to buy these things.

Shen Lie was very proud when he said this. He raised his eyebrows and said, "I asked someone to buy these for me. Your original ones were almost used up. It happened that one of my comrades took a leave to visit his family in Shanghai, so I asked him to buy these things for me in a department store in Shanghai."

Ningtang brought very few skin care products to Hailang Island, just three boxes of clam oil. She not only used it herself, but also used it to wipe the faces of her eldest, second and third children.

After a winter, three boxes of clam oil, each half the size of a palm, were empty.

No one knew when Shen Lie noticed it, but he actually secretly asked someone to buy some new skin care products for her, giving her a surprise.

Ning Tang's face remained calm, but ripples appeared in her heart.

Shen Lie came over curiously and said, "Try it and see how it works."

These things are so expensive. That cold cream, which is said to whiten your skin, costs three yuan for a small bottle.

Three yuan is enough to buy four or five pounds of sugar, and I exchange it for this small jar of facial cleanser.

Shen Lie felt a little distressed, but when he thought that it was for Ning Tang to use, he inexplicably felt that three yuan was not expensive and was well worth it.

Although clam oil only cost seven cents a box, it was cheap and came in large quantities, but it required a ticket and was very popular. Later, Shen Lie had to pay a high price for the clam oil tickets on the black market to buy these few boxes, which made Shen Lie's comrades suffer a lot.

Ning Tang picked up a Shanghai Beauty brand perfume. The slender glass tube was wrapped with an exquisite sticker. On the sticker was a fashionable woman holding a pipa and with stylish curly hair, as if she had walked out of a movie poster.

She sprayed a little perfume on her wrist and motioned Shen Lie to come over and smell it, "Smell it, it smells like osmanthus."

This perfume is indeed an old brand, with a light scent of osmanthus, which is sweet but not greasy and smells very comfortable.

Shen Lie was a rough old man, how could he smell the scent of osmanthus? As soon as he walked over, he sneezed loudly, "Ha!"

Ning Tang dodged in disdain and motioned the three little ones to come over and smell it, "Your dad doesn't know how to appreciate it. Come and smell it. It smells like osmanthus. It's so fragrant."

The eldest and third children were not cold at all. The eldest wrinkled his nose and said, "What the hell is this? It smells so bad."

Ning Tang was amused, "Then what do you say smells good?"

The eldest boy thought about it and drooled, "Fried chicken legs smell good."

Ning Tang was amused. "Then you should work hard to develop a fried chicken drumstick-scented perfume."

Erniu sniffed it and her eyes lit up, "Stepmother, this smells so good, I like it."

Ning Tang said, "Or? We have good taste." She applied some on Erniu's wrist and collar, "I'll put some on you. This smell will last for two or three days."

Shen Lie smiled and said, "After applying it, our second daughter smells so good, just like she was soaking in osmanthus flowers."

Erniu had never been praised for her fragrance before, so she widened her eyes upon hearing this, and kept raising her hand to bring her wrist under her nose to smell, "Is it really that fragrant?"

"Xiang." Shen Lie said, "Our second girl is Princess Xiangxiang."

Ning Tang let them do what they wanted while she put away all the skin care products and placed them in the cupboard in the bedroom on the second floor.

When going downstairs, Ning Tang took a quick look and suddenly discovered that Shen Lie's hair seemed to have grown longer.

She blinked her eyes and said, "Captain Shen, how long has it been since you last cut your hair?"

Shen Lie touched his rough stubble and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Your hair has grown longer." Ning Tang said.

Shen Lie didn't cut his hair before the New Year, and he didn't cut his hair during the Chinese New Year according to the old custom. After the New Year, there were so many things to do that he forgot about cutting his hair again.

It seems that he hasn't cut his hair for more than a month, almost two months. It's normal for it to grow longer.

Shen Lie called Da Wa, "Go, help me get a mirror."

The eldest child puffed up his cheeks and said, "You only know how to order me around."

"You are the eldest in our family. If not you, who else should I call?" Shen Lie said, "Stop nagging. You will become an old man if you keep talking. Hurry up."

Big Baby made a face at Shen Lie, then ran upstairs and brought a small mirror to Shen Lie. Shen Lie looked in the mirror and said, "Hey, you've really grown."

His hair was not easy to grow long, and now it was so long that even he felt uncomfortable looking at it.

Shen Lie opened the cupboard and took out a pair of scissors, put the mirror on the table, half-knelt down, and tried to cut his hair by looking at the mirror.

But no matter how I cut it, it just doesn't feel effective.

As for cutting hair, you definitely can't do it by yourself. You can't even cut the back of your head, otherwise the barber shop wouldn't be making money from it.

Ning Tang couldn't bear to watch it any longer. "Give me the scissors, I'll help you cut it."

Shen Lie turned the scissors upside down, pointed the tip of the knife at himself, and handed the handle to Ning Tang, "Here you go."

Seeing that Ning Tang really took the scissors, Shen Lie panicked and muttered, "Can you cut?" He had never realized that Ning Tang had this skill.

How can someone who can't even cook well give you a good haircut?

Shen Lie said worriedly, "Don't cut it so rough that it looks like it was chewed by a dog. If that happens, I won't dare to go to the army."

Ning Tang pointed at his head with a pair of scissors, "Why worry? At most you can just wear a hat. Oh, you have a navy cap, right? Put it on."

Shen Lie was speechless. "No one wears a hat except me. Isn't this just trying to cover up the truth?"

He pulled the eldest child over and put him in front of him. "I think this kid's hair has grown too long. How about you practice on him first?"

The eldest child looked dazed, "Am I? Your biological child?"

Shen Lie, "Yes?, or no?, it depends on me?."

The eldest boy had a gloomy face. "When I am useful to you, I am your biological son. When I am useless to you, I am just your servant."

Shen Lie pushed the eldest boy forward and pointed at the boy, "Cut him off."

Ning Tang smiled and pulled the eldest child over. "Look, today I'll show you my stepmother's craftsmanship. I promise to give you a cool haircut so that you can charm all the female classmates at school."

Sanwa tilted his head and said, "What do you mean by cool?"

The word "Lafeng" seems to have first emerged in Shanghai, where it was the phonetic translation of a very trendy eyewear brand. Then it gradually spread, and by the 1980s, it was already widely used by young people in Taiwan.

"Launch." Ning Tang explained, "It means handsome, cool, and eye-catching."

Sanwa shook his head, still not understanding.

Shen Lie understood roughly what he heard, "It's someone who can be noticed at a glance in the crowd."

Big Boy's eyes lit up. He loved being the most handsome guy in the crowd!

From resisting at first, to pulling Ning Tang's elbow, she said in a low voice, "Stepmother, give me a haircut quickly, I want to be the coolest one."

Ning Tang was pulled all over the place by him, "Okay, okay, I'll cut it for you."

She asked Da Wa to sit on a stool and tore two pieces of old newspapers and put them around his neck as a haircut cape.

Big Boy had never been to a barber shop before, so he was very curious and would tear off old newspapers from time to time.

All the preliminary work was ready. Ning Tang put the scissors in a basin of water to wet them, and began to gesture to the eldest child, "Start cutting."

With a "crack", a small tuft of black hair fell to the ground.

Shen Lie said he didn't dare to look, but there was a gap between his index and middle fingers. He stared at Ning Tang cutting Da Wa's hair, and kept muttering, "Don't cut Da Wa's hair badly, or he will become autistic and afraid to go to school."

Ning Tang glanced at him and said, "You underestimated me, didn't you?"

Again? A "click".


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