Chapter 171 The slow bird must fly first
After wrapping the last glutinous rice ball, Jiang Haitang breathed a sigh of relief.
On the chopping board, the white, plump and round dumplings are arranged neatly, like a group of little soldiers waiting for inspection.
She carefully selected a portion, divided it into two, and put them in clean porcelain bowls. One portion was paired with a box of exquisite Beijing Eight Pieces and prepared to be sent to Zhang Shangwen, and the other portion was for Gu Yundi and his wife.
She carefully placed the remaining dumplings into a winnowing basket and covered it with a layer of wet cotton cloth to keep them fresh.
At this moment in the cafeteria, the winter afternoon sun slanted in through the windows, casting long shadows on the ground.
Master chef Zhang Shangwen had just finished his lunch work and was lying comfortably in the rocking chair.
Melodious opera music was playing on the radio. He gently shook his head to the rhythm, with a relaxed expression on his face.
Hearing footsteps, Zhang Shangwen opened his eyes and saw Jiang Haitang walking in with a basket. A kind smile instantly spread across his face: "Haitang, why are you here at this time?"
"I made some glutinous rice balls at noon and sent some to you as a greeting to you in your old age."
Jiang Haitang placed the big bowl of glutinous rice balls and Beijing eight snacks in the basket on the table with gentle movements, curved eyebrows and a tone full of intimacy.
Zhang Shangwen quickly waved his hands, his face full of heartache: "This thing takes a lot of materials and effort. It's not easy for you to make such a small amount. Just eat it yourself. Why bother thinking about me?"
"Uncle, I will always remember your kindness in my heart. This is my niece's filial piety to you and aunt."
Jiang Haitang's voice was sincere and honest, and her eyes were shining with bright light. For a moment, Zhang Shangwen found it difficult to connect the bright and enthusiastic girl in front of him with the Jiang Haitang who was dressed in tattered clothes back then.
Looking at the sensible girl in front of him, Zhang Shangwen felt relieved.
"Haitang, during this time when you went to the capital, the Li family has been in chaos. I'm afraid they might attack you, so you have to be careful."
Zhang Shangwen lowered his voice and spoke with some concern.
The girl from the Li family, although young, was not an easy person to deal with. Several times, he heard her mumbling about Jiang Haitang.
Jiang Haitang's heart suddenly skipped a beat. She knew that Zhang Shangwen would never say such a thing for no reason.
She didn't doubt the truthfulness of Zhang Shangwen's words at all. After all, the factory cafeteria was a place where information gathered. Many times, when people talked to each other, and connected them, many things became traceable.
She nodded solemnly, her tone firm: "Uncle, thank you, I will be careful."
Although we don’t know what exactly happened to the Li family, none of the Li family members are good people. In order to achieve their goals, they may do things that hurt others.
After coming out of the cafeteria, Jiang Haitang took the remaining dumplings to Gu Yundi and his wife's home.
After finishing all this, she hurried to the office.
As soon as he stepped into the laboratory, he was surrounded by Li Jingcheng and Duan Changhe.
The two of them held notebooks filled with questions, their eyes full of eagerness and desire for knowledge.
Jiang Haitang patiently answered them one by one. At the end, she smiled and teased, "Didn't you go home for the New Year? Why do you look like you haven't rested? You have so many questions accumulated."
"We both came back on the second day of the first lunar month. People say the early bird catches the worm. We are not smart, so we have to work harder." Li Jingcheng scratched his head and smiled naively.
Jiang Haitang looked at the two young men, his heart filled with emotion.
They are not stupid at all, they are obviously smart and hardworking.
They were workers, peasants and soldiers college students. Many of these college students didn't learn anything at all, but Li Jingcheng and Duan Changhe were obviously the kind of students who studied seriously.
Even now in the factory, they have been putting in a lot of effort.
In time, he will surely shine in the field of scientific research.
She said earnestly, "You don't have to be so hardworking. Rest when you need to rest, and spend time with your family when you need to spend time with them."
"We understand, Mr. Jiang, don't worry, we won't let ourselves get sick and delay the work progress!" Duan Changhe's eyes were firm and his voice was loud.
Jiang Haitang smiled helplessly. It’s okay. It’s a good thing for young people to be energetic.
People often say that if you don’t work hard when you are young, you will regret it when you are old.
It’s a good thing to work harder when you are young so that things will go more smoothly in the future.
At this moment, Jiang Haitang completely forgot that she was even younger than these two young men!
She invited him, "I made some glutinous rice balls. You two can come to my house, oh, Director Lu's house tonight and eat them together."
Li Jingcheng and Duan Changhe looked at each other, their eyes full of surprise and disbelief.
The two looked at each other and immediately agreed.
In the past, the only person who could be invited by Mr. Jiang was Kang Xiaoxia.
Now that they have been invited, it is like they have received some kind of special recognition, as if they have become a part of this warm collective.
Jiang Haitang had no idea that her invitation between colleagues would be interpreted in this way by the two of them.
However, even if she knew what they were thinking, she wouldn't mind.
She was very optimistic about the two young men.
She has a lower education than them, but earns a higher salary than them.
If it were an ordinary person, they would definitely not be able to accept it, and might even cause a lot of trouble.
But these two young people were very good people and never felt jealous. On the contrary, they worked harder.
When Jiang Haitang got home from get off work, she went straight into the kitchen.
There are four guests tonight, plus my family of three, so cooking is no small task.
She put on an apron and skillfully washed and cut vegetables. The sound of cutting vegetables rang out in the kitchen.
Just when I was busy, Kang Xiaoxia came in a hurry.
As soon as she walked in, she rolled up her sleeves and said casually, "Haitang, let me help!"
As she spoke, she washed her hands quickly and joined in the cooking.
The two of them worked in perfect harmony, one cooking and the other helping. Soon, the aroma of braised pork and potatoes filled the entire kitchen. The fresh fragrance of cabbage fried with vermicelli and the unique flavor of pickled cabbage fried with oil residue also wafted out.
The staple food is golden cornmeal pancakes, which are crispy and golden in color, and just looking at them makes people's appetite increase.
Jiang Haitang didn't make any soup separately, thinking of cooking glutinous rice balls later. In this cold weather, a bowl of hot and sweet glutinous rice balls is the best way to warm the stomach and heart.
The food had just been prepared and had not yet been served on the table when footsteps were heard in the yard.
Jiang Haitang lifted the door curtain and looked outside, only to see Lu Liangchen, Zhao Kai, Li Jingcheng and Duan Changhe walking in while chatting and laughing.
Unlike Zhao Kai's carefree attitude, Li Jingcheng and Duan Changhe seemed a little uneasy.
They stood in the yard, looking at the factory director's house with nervous eyes, not knowing where to put their hands and feet.
"Why did you arrive together?" Jiang Haitang asked with a smile.
"When Zhao Kai and I arrived, the two of them were standing at the door and came in together." Lu Liangchen explained with a gentle smile on his face.
He had a good impression of these two hardworking and ambitious young men. In his opinion, they were Jiang Haitang's right-hand men at work.
In the future, it may be possible to become an independent technician in the factory.
"Liangchen, please bring the rice over first. I'll come over after I cook the dumplings." After Jiang Haitang said this, she lowered the door curtain and returned to the stove.
The water in the pot was already bubbling happily. She gently placed the wrapped glutinous rice balls into the pot one by one, and then carefully stirred the water with a wooden spoon to prevent the rice balls from sticking.
The snow-white dumplings rolled up and down in the boiling water, as if they were dancing happily.
At this time, Xiao Taozi ran into the kitchen, staring at the glutinous rice balls in the pot with sparkling eyes: "Mom, is it time to eat the glutinous rice balls? I've been thinking about it all afternoon and my mouth is watering."
Jiang Haitang dotingly pinched Xiao Taozi's rosy cheeks and said with a smile: "Little greedy cat, go wash your hands first. After you wash your hands, you can eat the dumplings."
"Yeah, yeah!" Little Peach clapped her hands and ran away excitedly.
After Lu Liangchen settled Zhao Kai and the other three in the living room, he and Kang Xiaoxia served the dishes together.
The food was served. Xiao Taozi had already washed her hands and was standing aside, looking at her white and tender little hands carefully, as if checking whether they were washed clean.
"Dad, my hands are clean!" Little Taozi said proudly with her little face raised.
"Xiao Taozi is so great. Could you please help me put the stool aside?" Lu Liangchen squatted down and said gently.
"Sure!" Little Taozi immediately got busy. She counted her little fingers, muttered to herself, and carefully counted the number of people and calculated how many stools were needed. She looked very cute.
Li Jingcheng and Duan Changhe looked at each other, as if they didn't know the factory director at all.
Indeed, they had never seen such a Director Lu before.
The originally cold Director Lu now has to coax his children and serve meals when he returns home.
In the kitchen, Jiang Haitang took out a large bowl, scooped a full bowl of glutinous rice balls, and poured a spoonful of fragrant candied osmanthus on it.
This jar of candied osmanthus flowers was brought back from the train. No one knew who had slipped it to them secretly, but it was pickled very well, and the rich fragrance hit the nose as soon as the lid was opened.
"I'm sending this bowl to Director Liu's home. Xiaoxia, please help me scoop out the rest." Jiang Haitang carefully placed the large bowl into the basket.
"Mom, I want to take it to Grandma Kong and the others!" Little Taozi volunteered, and was even planning to grab the basket.
Jiang Haitang was uneasy about letting such a young child deliver the piping hot dumplings. She smiled and said, "How about Xiao Taozi, come with Mom?"
The mother and daughter held hands and soon arrived next door.
The meal next door was just ready. When they saw Jiang Haitang bringing a big bowl of dumplings, Director Liu and his family hurried to express their gratitude.
When Jiang Haitang returned home, Kang Xiaoxia had already scooped out all the dumplings and brought them to the living room.
In addition to the food she cooked, there were two more lunch boxes on the table.
One lunch box contained the fragrant stewed radish with large bones, and the other contained the tempting stir-fried minced meat with sour beans. In addition, there was a plate of soft multi-grain steamed buns.
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