What is a tiger with a strong start but a weak end?
The street canteen quietly stopped...
Zhou Jiao now feels that this is definitely the best news.
The canteen was in operation for two months and finally closed quietly at the end of October in the Gregorian calendar.
As the food in street canteens became worse and worse, many people started going to the canteens at their workplaces.
In the first half month, everyone could still hold on. At least for dinner, the street canteen was almost full of residents.
As the workload and ironmaking tasks increased, within a month, only some retired and unemployed residents were left to dine there.
Soon after, the county's textile factories, brick kilns, meat processing plants and other units began to recruit temporary workers. Finally, in the middle of the second month, some elderly and frail old ladies and old men, as well as women like Zhou Jiao with babies, were left to eat.
The earthen blast furnace no longer has the furnace workers and the loaders, those strong laborers.
Aunt Wang, with a lot of experience in seeking scriptures, had to announce that everyone would go home after eating their rations at the end of the month.
For a time, there were no pots, no knives, no firewood, no coal, no autumn vegetables in stock, and no living supplies for the winter. Everyone was extremely anxious.
Otherwise, why did Zhou Jiao always think that Aunt Wang was a good person?
She distributed the firewood, coal briquettes and autumn vegetables in the canteen equally among each household.
As for the donated iron pots and knives, there was nothing anyone could do. Thick black smoke still billowed over the county town, and you still wanted iron products? Anyone who dared to ask in person would definitely be targeted. They might not even get a cent from the cafeteria.
Fortunately, the dishes and chopsticks weren't all smashed up like in some places. Everyone in the cafeteria had gotten used to using lunch boxes, just like at work, so this was a blessing in disguise.
The vigorous activities that started in mid-August ended while everyone was at work.
The high efficiency of this community is both astonishing and speechless. However, no one can utter a single complaint: too many family members work full-time, all of them working in the workplace.
Lin Juhua also transferred to the textile factory to work with her two aunts, and soon after, Shitou and Mai Sui finally entered the textile factory's nursery.
Oh, the kitchen was able to disband, and Zhou Jiao felt that her second sister-in-law had the greatest contribution. It was only because Lin Juhua was the first temporary worker in the textile factory that the accident occurred.
For this reason, Zhou Jiao always felt guilty when facing Aunt Wang.
When Mr. and Mrs. Zhang went to visit their eldest son, they came back without a smile on their faces.
Zhou Jiao knew this was a recurrence of past events. She could only offer gentle persuasion and explain the situation to the elders. The rabbit's tail couldn't grow long over there either.
Zhang Dad and his wife might be skeptical about what others say, but they firmly believe what Zhang Guoqing and Zhou Jiao say. Haven't you seen that what the old son and young wife say always comes true?
Putting aside their worries and regaining their spirits, Mr. and Mrs. Zhang displayed their abilities as the heads of the family.
Father Zhang began to mobilize his sons to sneak out and chop firewood.
Zhang's mother instructed her two daughters-in-law to pickle vegetables and took out her hidden collection of dried eggplants, dried beans and dried vegetables.
Now the two old people will not feel it is a pity that the three courtyards in the village are empty.
An old person in the family is like a treasure.
Zhou Jiao felt that the two elders in her family had indeed made preparations in advance and given proper instructions.
Clear the chimney, hang the outer curtain...
Everything is in order inside and out. This is the valuable life experience of the two elders.
November soon arrived and the weather began to cool down in the morning and evening, leaving only a little heat at noon.
Even Zhou Jiao couldn't contain her anxiety anymore. She also started secretly going back to her hometown in the mountains with her son at noon, following Zhang Guoqing.
This weekend, she followed Zhang Guoqing up the mountain again and found hazelnuts, pine nuts, and chestnuts scattered across the ground. Without the rain, wood ear mushrooms and fungus were practically unavailable. Back at the cabin, the fish in the pond remained as plentiful as ever.
"Brother, how long has it been since you last saw Mr. Wang?"
Zhang Guoqing was paying attention to his surroundings. Suddenly, he heard her question and turned to look at her. "Are you wondering why they didn't go up the mountain? There's supposedly iron ore in the mountains over there, and the village has built a lot of furnaces. I guess Mr. Wang and his son are being used as the main force right now, so they can't go up the mountain."
Zhou Jiao finally understood. A dozen or so veteran hunters from the nearby villages of Zhangjia Village were busy, and with Old Man Wang and his men, it was no wonder no one was going up the mountain. There were still plenty of pine nuts and fish.
"We'll be building a canteen right after the autumn harvest this year. Even the young men, women, and young wives from every village have been organized into a militia. Aside from the dried goods at the foot of the mountain, no one on the mountain has time to come up. But I think it'll be soon. I don't know about other villages, but the old captain will definitely organize people to go up the mountain before the snow starts."
After Zhang Guoqing finished speaking, he looked at the pond and then at Zhou Jiao.
Zhou Jiao pursed her lips and smiled, "Just follow your heart. Keep it for good deeds!"
"Good wife! Let's not catch too many, let's just catch a big fish for our son to see. What do you think, son?"
Ping'an nodded and pointed at the surface of the pond.
"My son is becoming increasingly taciturn. Son, what else do you want to catch in the mountains? Tell Daddy that besides your mom, you are the boss today, and you have the final say."
Ping An, like Zhou Jiao, frowned slightly, looked around, and shook his head.
This expression made Zhang Guoqing laugh out loud, and he patted the child on his chest, "You need to speak up. If you don't, Dad won't understand you."
"No meat. I want meat."
Zhang Guoqing shook his head at Zhou Jiao. Why did this kid like meat so much? His family didn't skimp on his food; it was the ultimate in special provisions.
Zhou Jiao smiled and said, "Okay, I'll take you to hunt meat later. But there are wolves, so you can't move."
Zhang Guoqing saw his son tense up when he heard the wolf, so he quickly patted him and said, "It's okay. Daddy is holding Ping An, don't be afraid. Grandma Wolf can't beat Daddy."
Ping An smiled and said, "Dad is awesome."
"Our Ping An is even more amazing. He can speak before he's even one year old. It's amazing. He's even more amazing than his dad."
Listening to the child's giggles, Zhang Guoqing patted his little head and asked Zhou Jiao, who was laughing beside him, "Jiaojiao, for Ping An's first birthday, do you plan to celebrate it according to the lunar calendar or the national calendar?"
"Let's go with the lunar calendar. Mom and Dad all remember the lunar calendar."
"Okay. We'll celebrate two birthdays a year from now on," Zhang Guoqing said, caressing his son's head with pity. His son had been wronged. If the timing wasn't so wrong, he would have definitely thrown a buffet. In his previous life, a genius like his son wouldn't have been afraid of others knowing about it, and would have kept it hidden.
Zhou Jiao observed his expression and advised, "As long as the child is safe, that's all that matters. Don't worry about the ceremony. The excitement is for others to see; we should just live our own lives. I told Mom and Dad not to come this time because I was worried those people from the capital would come and discover the child's precociousness. The first birthday is called the "Zhuazhou" celebration. Do you think it's necessary as long as we're safe? I think it's a good omen for him to eat longevity noodles."
Zhang Guoqing looked at her teasingly. This girl hadn't forgotten the longevity noodles she'd eaten that day, made by her aunt. On her birthday, she'd actually gone over to the village's oldest grandmother to make them herself. How superstitious!
"Who are you going to let cook the noodles this time?"
Zhou Jiao laughed heartily, "I won't tell you yet."
Her husband resented who made the noodles, and he always remembered it. She had personally made so many longevity noodles for Zhang Guoqing, and was afraid they wouldn't work. This year, she specially invited the old lady over to pray for his safety and longevity.
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