After waiting for more than a minute, the phone rang. Shen Qingli picked it up without saying a word.
"Is it clear?" Meng Xiao's deep and magnetic voice came from the noise of the phone.
"It's me, Brother Meng." Shen Qingli felt like crying when she heard his voice. She had been keeping herself busy all the time during this period just to distract herself, for fear of thinking of him and feeling uncomfortable.
"Qingqing, I received your letter and package. Could you please write more next time?
"Is there anyone bullying you when I'm not around? You still have to make so many things for me after work. Aren't you tired? Also, the meat sauce and dried meat are delicious. Thank you, Qingqing." Meng Xiao said softly, one sentence at a time.
Everyone in the communications room looked at him with a look of astonishment. Was this still the cold-blooded, tough Captain Meng?
"Okay, I'll write a few more words for you next time. No one can bully me. I'm not tired of making food for you. You're welcome." Shen Qingli answered each question obediently.
"As long as no one bullies me, Qingqing, let me tell you something. I gave a bottle of the meat sauce you sent me to my brothers. They all liked your cooking skills and praised your deliciousness. They wanted me to ask you if you would be willing to sell it to them.
I don't want you to be too tired, but I still need to ask for your opinion on this matter. What do you think?" His fingers tapped lightly on the table, and his voice rose slightly.
Shen Qingli didn't hesitate at all. The soldiers defended their country and trained very hard. The country was not rich at that time, and even the troops' meals were not very greasy. Her sauce was delicious and she was generous with the ingredients. As long as the soldiers liked it and were happy, that was enough.
It's a very fulfilling thing to make others like the food you cook. If possible, Shen Qingli doesn't want to charge money, but if he doesn't charge, these people will definitely not accept it.
And it would arouse suspicion. These days, everyone is short of money, and people with ulterior motives would wonder where she got so much money? How could she make meat sauce and give it to them for free without considering the cost?
I'm afraid that by then it will cause trouble for myself, Meng Xiao and my family.
"Of course you can, but Brother Meng, you know I'm not afraid to use too much stuff when cooking. That stuff uses a lot of oil, meat, and other ingredients, plus shipping costs, so the cost is not low. You are all soldiers defending our country, so a high price is not appropriate. I'm afraid that people will say that you're profiteering in the army." Shen Qingli roughly calculated in his mind that a jar of one-pound mushroom beef sauce would cost about four yuan, and the cost of pork chili sauce was about three yuan. Not counting the glass bottle, the shipping cost per pound would be another sixty cents.
"Don't worry about me. Just tell me the number and I'll ask them. If they're willing, they can take it. If they're not willing, they can leave it." Meng Xiao looked at the increasing number of people crowding outside the communication room. They were probably the people who had eaten chili sauce at noon and rushed over when they heard the noise.
"A bottle is one pound. The mushroom beef is seven yuan a bottle, and the pork and chili sauce is six yuan. I pay for the shipping. Brother Meng, let me tell you the truth, I only make two yuan a bottle."
"Okay, give me a few minutes, I'll call you after I say hello." He put down the phone only after Shen Qingli hung up.
As soon as he walked out of the door, someone asked him, "Meng Tuan, how's the question? Is your sister-in-law willing?"
"One pound per bottle. Beef is eight yuan, pork is seven yuan. The shipping fee and the glass bottle are your sister-in-law's. If you need it within three minutes, please ask Captain Cheng to register. If you think it's too expensive, you can leave. The less you ask, the less my partner will be tired." Meng Xiao felt sorry for her small body and simply added a dollar on his own initiative. After all, most of these people were single and didn't need to contribute to their family expenses, so there was nothing else to spend money on besides food.
"I'd better forget it, it's a bit expensive," said a soldier weakly.
Someone next to him immediately retorted: "How is it expensive? Stop talking nonsense! The oil is free? The chili is free? Or the meat is free? Or all the flavorful ingredients are free? Don't you know how much meat is in it and how delicious it is? The glass bottle with such thick material alone can't be bought for two yuan! The shipping is free? My sister-in-law's labor is free?
A bottle of one pound can last for a long time. What's so expensive about it? It's so cheap, I don't think my sister-in-law is making any money at all. Captain Cheng, please write it down for me. I want a bottle of both flavors."
The corner of Meng Xiao's mouth twitched slightly. This person had been pestering him since the cafeteria until now. However, what he said was very good. It was almost like his own, um... a substitute for him!
"You're right. I thought it was a bit expensive, but after hearing what Lao Zhang said, it's really cheap. Sister-in-law put a lot of meat in it! Captain Cheng, I remembered a bottle of pork."
“I want beef.”
“I want beef too.”
"I want one too"
"Captain Cheng, I want one too."
…
Meng Xiao looked at the time on his watch and called a stop as soon as three minutes were up.
"Time's up, Lao Cheng, take a look at the statistics."
"No, Captain Meng, we haven't registered yet!" Someone was anxious.
"That's all. Those who haven't registered will have to wait until next time." Meng Xiao said firmly.
"Why, Meng Tuan! Could you please give me another bottle?"
Meng Xiao glanced at him sideways: "Do you want to tire my partner to death?"
Soldier...
This really leaves one speechless.
"Okay, let's wait for next time. Our Meng Tuan feels sorry for his wife." Someone joked.
"Get out, get out, everyone!" Meng Xiao took the list from Captain Cheng and went to the communications room to call Shen Qingli back.
Cheng Dashan smiled secretly: Fortunately, I secretly wrote two bottles for myself while the leader was not paying attention, otherwise I would not be able to buy them just like them!
"Qingqing, beef is eight dollars a bottle, I want 18 bottles, and pork chili sauce is seven dollars a bottle, I want 25 bottles."
"Did you give me an extra dollar per bottle as a reward, Brother Meng?" Shen Qingli didn't expect that he would add an extra dollar.
"Yeah, I'm tired already. They wanted something else, but I didn't agree. Let them wait until next time. I'm afraid you'll be tired if they want too much at once."
Qingqing, if you wait a little longer, the marriage application should be ready in the next two days.
Qingqing, I miss you so much."
Meng Xiao's voice was so gentle that it was almost sickening!
Shen Qingli felt her face getting hot. This man, there was no one around! How could he be so good at flirting?
"I...I miss you too! I'm hanging up now."
After saying that, he hung up the phone, leaving Meng Xiao alone on the other end of the phone, grinning foolishly.
Rubbing his burning cheeks, he went out and saw the captain harnessing the ox cart. Shen Qingli asked in a good mood, "Uncle, are you going to town?"
"It's getting cold. Go to town and give the child two sets of thick clothes."
The team leader's son and daughter-in-law are workers in the factory. They live in the town and don't come back often.
"I have something, uncle, could you please send it for me? I'll pay for the travel expenses." Shen Qingli had finished translating the article, but hadn't sent it back yet.
"Oh! Why do you want travel expenses? No, no, just send me whatever you want." The captain waved his hands quickly.
Using the bag as cover, he pulled out a dollar, the original article, and the translated version from the space and handed them to the captain. "That's all. The address is on the paper. Thanks for the trouble, uncle. Please keep the remaining money from sending the package and buy a bottle of soda."
“Okay, then I won’t be polite with you, Shen Zhiqing, I’ll go first.”
Having said that, he drove away in the ox cart without waiting for Shen Qingli to reply.
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