Except for Wang Dabao, all of them were wearing uniforms, and they were noticed by the waiter as soon as they entered.
These days, waiters and salespeople are incredibly arrogant, treating customers with complete disdain. If they're in a good mood, they'll serve the food you order; if they're in a bad mood, they'll tell you it's unavailable and you can take it or leave it.
The restaurant was not far from the police station, and the people there did not look like ordinary police officers. The waiters were very good at reading people's expressions and would certainly know how to serve them different dishes accordingly.
Two young female waitresses approached and stared at Wang Dabao for a while before asking Director Zhao a question.
"Comrades, what would you like to eat?"
Director Zhao and the others immediately looked at Wang Dabao, since the purpose of today's meal was to welcome him, and it would be strange if they ordered the food first.
Wang Dabao shook his head and smiled bitterly: "I joined the army at sixteen and just returned from military service. I've never had the chance to come here before. Zhao, you guys should order."
"Young man, you've just returned from military service? Which unit were you assigned to?"
Before Director Zhao and the others could speak, the older waitress, who was probably around thirty years old, spoke first, "Looks like you don't have a boyfriend yet, right?"
The waitress's question left Wang Dabao completely bewildered.
It was Director Zhao who came to his rescue, saying, "Comrade, let's order first. We can talk about my little brother's girlfriend after we eat."
Six dishes were ordered: sweet and sour pork, stir-fried shredded pork with vinegar, stir-fried double-section pork, braised beef, braised pork knuckle, plus a spinach and egg soup. They also ordered four kilograms of rice. Since they had to work in the afternoon, none of them drank alcohol.
When the dishes were served, Wang Dabao realized that what Director Zhao had said was true.
The aroma wafts from afar, the color is authentic, and it's clearly made by a master chef. One bite reveals a perfect balance of saltiness and savory flavor—truly exceptional.
During the meal, Wang Dabao could only watch as the others wolfed down their food.
Director Zhao was alright; while he was eating, he didn't forget to put a few slices of braised beef on Wang Dabao's plate.
By the time everyone put down their chopsticks, the dishes were almost all empty.
The bill came to 14.8 yuan.
The money was supposed to be paid by the two deputy directors, but Director Zhao and the instructor ended up sharing a significant portion as well. Seeing this, Wang Dabao pulled out a receipt from his pocket and paid the clerk three jin and two liang of meat coupons and two jin of fine grain coupons.
Wang Dabao did this for two reasons. First, he didn't want to owe anyone a favor, as there might be work-related friction in the future. Second, everyone has their own struggles; he's the only one who doesn't have a family to support, while others might have a family of five or six relying on his salary.
Seeing that the waitress was about to come over again, Wang Dabao quickly pulled Director Zhao and the others away from the state-run restaurant.
Wang Dabao went back to the police station to get a large cloth bag. Just as he was about to say goodbye to the group, he saw Chief Zhao push over a 28-inch bicycle. "Deputy Chief Wang, you can make do with this bicycle for now. I'll get you a motorcycle when I have the chance."
"Okay."
Upon seeing the old-fashioned bicycle, Wang Dabao smiled, thinking, "Don't complain about how worn it is, it's a free find."
After saying goodbye to the police officers, Wang Dabao rode his old bicycle back to the courtyard house, humming "My Sister is Riding a Boat."
When they arrived at the courtyard house, they ran into Xu Damao, who was also riding his bicycle back.
"Hey, you've even got a bicycle now?"
Xu Damao felt a pang of sadness when he saw Wang Dabao riding a bicycle, since it was a factory-issued bicycle and didn't belong to him.
"Borrowed from a friend."
Wang Dabao casually asked, "Are you off work?"
Xu Damao was a projectionist, working in the arts and propaganda department of the steel rolling mill, but he was also under the jurisdiction of the projection station. His working hours were relatively flexible compared to those of ordinary workers.
Moreover, he also needed to frequently go to the countryside to show movies, which was part of the work assigned by the film projection station.
Showing movies in the countryside was a good job. Although the villagers were often hungry in those days, the commune and production brigade were not poor, so Xu Damao could always make some extra money.
At the age of twenty-five, although he was the lowest-ranking projectionist, he still earned thirty-five yuan and fifty cents a month.
Aside from going to the countryside, the staff had relatively free time, plus the extra income from showing movies in the countryside each time, so they lived a fairly comfortable life in this compound.
Of course, compared to myself, I'm definitely not far behind.
He had only glanced at it briefly after getting off his bicycle, but when he looked at it again now, Wang Dabao was stunned.
Wow, Xu Damao looks quite dashing.
The white short-sleeved shirt was perfectly wrinkle-free, paired with navy blue trousers and polished leather shoes. His parted hair looked as if it had been licked by a dog, and you could even smell a faint fragrance if you got close.
Looking at the items on the bicycle, there were several mesh bags.
Chicken, pork, eggs, cucumber, tomatoes, and a fish and two bottles of wine hanging on the bicycle handlebars.
Inside the net bag were two packages of cooked food wrapped in brown paper, which looked like braised beef, pig's head meat, or fried peanuts.
This is incredible! In this day and age, walking down the street with these things is like flaunting a hot girl with your arms around her in later generations. These things would cost at least seven or eight hundred dollars.
Now it's a regulated economy; having money isn't enough, you also need tickets.
"Wow, are you celebrating the New Year? How much did it cost to buy all these nice things?"
Wang Dabao pushed his bicycle and entered the gate with Xu Damao.
"Hey, it's not much money. The important thing is that I'm happy. It makes me feel good to spend the money." Xu Damao raised his chin and started bragging to Wang Dabao. The main reason was that Wang Dabao's house renovation these past few days had made everyone in the compound extremely envious.
"Brother Da Bao, to tell you the truth, your brother Da Mao is going on a blind date today. Aunt Li from the Intermediate People's Court introduced him to a girl from a wealthy family. We should invite her to stay for a meal, right?"
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