Tasting
The candy refracted a dazzling light in the sunlight.
Meng Songying recalled the day Taozi had just returned home.
The Song couple came again.
They were able to move freely through the sugar factory because Director Sun knew about Meng Songying's family affairs.
Factory Director Sun was also a former soldier and knew Meng Songying's adoptive parents, and had been taking care of him.
So I helped come up with a solution.
At that time, he had only recently become the factory director and didn't have many subordinates. He was closest to Wang Yongwang, who had also been a soldier.
I plan to secretly instruct him to just let people in quietly each time.
His wife, Li Yuanhong, who also knew the situation, vetoed the idea.
At that time, Director Sun was trying to win people over and was vying for power with Wu Dong. She came up with an idea: by leveraging the Song family's reputation as imperial physicians, she introduced Song's father, who had been practicing medicine for many years, to other leaders.
Of course, it wasn't mentioned that these were Meng Songying's biological parents; it was only said that they knew a famous doctor had been sent down to a farm in the county town.
Good doctors are always hard to find, no matter the circumstances.
In particular, these leaders suffered a lot when they were young, and now that they are older, they are living very well. No one values their health more than them.
Song's father was exceptionally wicked, but his character and medical skills were not related; he was a genius among geniuses.
He was quick-witted and shrewd, knowing exactly how to ingratiate himself with the leaders of the sugar factory—a carefully prescribed remedy.
Sure enough, after eating it, they all felt much healthier.
Li Yuanhong must have only told those who were already inclined to side with her family, but the Song couple's identities were sensitive.
In this particular matter, she was prepared from the very beginning to drag Wu Dong's faction down with her.
While she appeared to be on high alert, she also subtly revealed clues.
Wu Dong was young at the time and was planning to use his incriminating evidence against others, but how could the retired factory director behind him possibly agree to that?
Firstly, he was old and frail, and desperately needed a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner who knew how to maintain health, but even in ancient times, it was difficult to find someone with real skills.
What's more, coincidentally, after physical experiments with other leaders, Song's father turned out to be just such a person.
Secondly, several people have been treated by Song's father. If Wu Dong exposes this, these people will all be implicated, and they will not be without any backing.
With them punished, Wu Dong can no longer dream of becoming the factory director.
Thus, the Song couple unknowingly became the health care doctors for all the sugar factory leaders.
At first, Wu Dong would just take the medicine prescribed by the two men casually, and sometimes he would forget about it altogether.
In the past two years, wrinkles have started to appear on my face, and I have so many gray hairs that I can't pluck them all out. I also experience difficulty sleeping and frequent dreams at night.
The people in the factory office were writing larger and larger on their draft documents, knocking on the door was getting louder and louder, and they were putting more and more salt in their cooking at home.
Each and every incident was relevant to him personally; how could Wu Dong not sense it?
He also consulted other doctors, but unfortunately, none of them were as effective as Mr. Song.
The occasional thought of reporting the Song couple had long since vanished.
Meng Songying closed the candy box and put it in the drawer.
That day, for the first time, he took the initiative to find the two people, and after asking them, he only received the answer that they were there to help with the medical examination.
Mr. Song said sincerely, "The leaders are getting old and are always worried about their health. Doctors have the heart of parents, so I will come to see them more often to put their minds at ease."
A hint of mockery appeared between Meng Songying's brows, her face as if wrapped in ice.
Song's mother, who was standing to the side, began to sob softly: "Aying, I just want to see you more often. I miss you so much, really."
Mr. Song also let out a long sigh.
Meng Songying remained unmoved, only warning: "Don't call me Aying."
These two people have been looking like they have something to say about their suffering ever since they appeared before him.
Then, staring at Song's father, he gave him an ultimatum: "You are only allowed to come to the sugar factory once a year."
Before the two people in front of him could continue their act, he uttered a name: "Song Jisheng".
"Knock knock"
The door was pushed open, and a smiling face came into view.
He didn't think any further, he was stunned, staring blankly at the person in front of him.
It's Wang Shuitao. She's been running around outside lately, getting sunburned, and her once fair skin has turned wheat-colored again.
He looks very healthy and is always full of energy.
After not seeing her for many days, Meng Songying's voice softened again.
"You're back."
His fingers traced patterns on the drawer where the candy box was kept, as if complaining, or perhaps stating a fact: "Long time no see."
Wang Shuitao only opened the door a crack and squeezed herself inside.
"No way, it's only about a week."
He then said, "Let's go, we've found someone who can cook Henan cuisine. We'll have a tasting at noon, we're in for a treat!"
The food tasting took place in the late afternoon, when the cafeteria was almost empty.
The chairs were all flipped up and placed on the table to make it easier for the cafeteria staff to sweep and mop the floor.
Chef Zheng of the state-run restaurant has skills that everyone has tasted, so there's no need for him to taste the dishes again.
Only Jiang Manyun was to be put to the test.
The cafeteria had meat today, but the head chef wouldn't allow Jiang Man to exercise with the fatty cut, so he stingily gave him a piece of lean meat instead.
Jiang Manyun used what was available, slicing the meat extremely thinly, then using the back of a knife to break up the texture, coating it with a layer of starch paste, and then frying it.
The canteen isn't afraid of using too much oil; the leftovers can be reused.
Unfortunately, only rapeseed oil was available, and this type of oil has a rather strong flavor, so it's not very suitable.
Since it's in a sugar factory, there's definitely no shortage of sugar.
Jiang Manyun is preparing to make sweet and sour pork, which not only tastes good but also has a crispy texture.
After frying the meat, pour out the oil, leaving only a little. Then, throw in the shredded scallions and ginger, along with white sugar and white vinegar.
At this stage, the aroma has already begun to waft out.
Wang Shuitao sniffed outside. She wasn't hungry, but her mouth was lonely.
Once the sugar has melted and the sauce has thickened, add the sliced meat and stir-fry. Finally, sprinkle with shredded carrots for color.
We also added a dish called "Di San Xian" (Three Treasures of the Earth).
There was also a big stew, where I asked the chef for some pork cracklings to stew in, and the rest were all vegetables.
I fried another bowl of egg sauce.
It was just a food tasting, and it was in the middle of the afternoon, so we weren't expecting to get full from these dishes.
Seeing Jiang Manyun serve up four bowls of dishes with great skill, Li Yuanhong called for a stop.
Everyone's first bite was of the golden-yellow sweet and sour pork.
"Click"
As the outer layer was bitten open, a rich sweet and sour flavor filled the mouth.
The proportions are just right, sweet but not cloying, sour but not overpowering, with the two seasonings complementing each other perfectly.
The thin layer of meat inside was pounded apart, and under the protection of the starch paste, it was very tender, without any of the usual chewy texture of lean meat.
Wang Shuitao sampled the sweet and sour pork and the stir-fried potatoes, eggplant, and green peppers, becoming completely immersed in the world of food.
Meng Songying saw Factory Director Sun quickly scoop up several large pieces of sweet and sour pork and put them into Sister Li's bowl.
The chopsticks, which were also holding sweet and sour pork, could only be placed regretfully into their own bowl.
They can do this because they are a legally married couple.
After tasting all four dishes, Li Yuanhong put down her chopsticks for the time being.
He was having a pleasant conversation with Jiang Manyun at the moment, and it was estimated that he had already decided to hire her to cook hometown dishes for the chefs who brought beets from Heilongjiang Province.
The plate of sweet and sour pork was already empty, after all, the chef hadn't given much lean meat.
Wang Shuitao loves sweet dishes; she especially loves sweet and sour, sweet and salty, and sweet and spicy dishes.
After seeing the CD, I picked up some shredded scallions and carrots that had been coated with the sauce and ate them.
Under the table, a burning hot thigh suddenly pressed against me.
Wang Shuitao looked up at Meng Songying blankly.
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