After saying that, Zhao Youcai got up and rummaged through his cabinet, actually taking out more than a dozen pieces of clothing from the tailor shop and placing them on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).
The eldest daughter-in-law was originally going to wave her hand and refuse, after all, what daughter-in-law would have the nerve to ask her father-in-law for clothes? If word got out, she would be scolded and unable to hold her head up.
Unfortunately, Zhao Youcai gave so much, and more importantly, he said something like this—
"I need to keep the rest for myself. You can take these back and share them with your husband and your brothers-in-law."
If only three or four pieces were taken out, the eldest daughter-in-law might be reluctant. Now that there are so many clothes, three or four pieces are enough for each family.
The eldest daughter-in-law walked away with a big white vest in her arms, and soon laughter echoed from many houses.
It's not the coldest time yet, so most families just use the steam from the big pot when cooking to warm the kang (heated brick bed) in the house and raise the temperature a bit. Most of the straw and wood will be saved for the colder months of winter.
Only Zhao Youcai's family was wealthy; they not only had plenty of straw and broken wood, but they also collected two large cartloads of coal.
Knowing that the coal mine manager was sending help, the steel mill specially made several small furnaces and sent them over.
Whether you sit on it with a kettle, there will always be hot water to make tea.
You can heat up the food indoors, or you can hunt sparrows in the mountains with pebbles and roast them – those are all very convenient.
The only thing to be careful about is that the doors and windows in the house should not be sealed too tightly to avoid poor air circulation and potential poisoning.
It could be said that this amount of coal was enough for Zhao Youcai's entire family to live on, and there would even be some left over.
Under such conditions, there's no need to force yourself to endure hardship, or rely on sheer willpower to dispel the cold when you could easily keep warm.
While others were huddled in bed, reluctant to go out to avoid getting cold or chilly, Zhao Youcai's family was comfortably indoors, wearing tank tops and drinking cold tea. They couldn't be more comfortable.
The two younger ones were even sulking. They had finally managed to catch their grandfather again, but before they could even finish saying a few nice words, their mother ruthlessly dragged them out.
“You’re not three or four-year-old toddlers anymore. Your grandpa has a lot of things to do every day and he’s very tired. Only sensible children won’t bother grandpa for no reason, understand?”
The two younger children could only nod and pout, eventually returning to the house to continue reciting their lessons.
Zhao Youcai wasn't idle either. Looking at the stove in the house, he suddenly missed the taste of roasted sweet potatoes and roasted corn.
So Zhao Youcai took out two sweet potatoes and two ears of corn from his warehouse and started roasting them while humming a little tune.
Before long, the aroma of sweet potatoes and corn filled the air.
Zhao Youcai hurriedly found the tongs he used to throw away coal and used them to pick up the sweet potatoes and corn and let them cool. When he finally put them in his mouth, his eyes narrowed with happiness.
“That’s the taste, so good!”
Suddenly, Zhao Youcai wanted a plate of smashed cucumber and a small bottle of beer.
It was a pity there was no beer; Zhao Youcai felt a little empty inside.
These days, everyone drinks bulk liquor; the rich aroma of grains fills the air, it's better than anything else.
But he's not addicted to baijiu (Chinese liquor); he prefers to enjoy barbecue skewers and beer in a warm room.
It's a pity there's no barbecue or beer now.
Zhao Youcai's hand, which was peeling the sweet potato, suddenly stopped, and his eyes instantly lit up.
Oh right! How could he have forgotten?
He can make something out of nowhere and sell it!
If you're the first to make it, it will definitely taste the most authentic.
Even if someone develops a better taste in the future, the first flavor that you're used to will still be deeply ingrained in your mind.
In a few decades, the products we make will be considered time-honored brands.
When buying our own products, it won't just be about eating; it'll be about nostalgia!
It's worth noting that the same food can have prices that differ by more than double depending on its "background".
Zhao Youcai immediately turned his attention to the warehouse inventory, searching for ingredients that could be used for barbecue.
They even started growing special seasonings such as Sichuan pepper, star anise, cumin, and other spices.
Barbecue alone isn't enough; we also need to add mala tang (spicy hot pot), mala xiangguo (spicy stir-fry), and other similar dishes.
But there's no rush. We can just release new models one by one. It's important that everyone gets to try them eventually.
As for beer, Zhao Youcai is now having some worries.
He looked through all the unlocked shops in Happy Town, but there really weren't any related to beer.
Even the food stalls in [Happy Town] that have been unlocked only have grilled squid as the only thing they can sell because he hasn't upgraded them.
Kedah province has no sea, so squid is particularly expensive there.
In winter these days, even seaweed is considered a meat dish on the tables of people in Northeast China, and high-end items like squid are really hard to sell. Not to mention oysters and abalone.
However, just because our province can't afford such expensive raw materials doesn't mean that neighboring provinces with access to the sea can't either.
Now that we've already visited Heilongjiang Province, it wouldn't be right to favor one over the other, so a trip to Liaoning Province should be put on the agenda as well.
Zhao Youcai has always been a very proactive person. He had already decided that after seeing off the comrades from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the high-yield corn seed base, he would immediately pack his woven bag and set off.
Just as Zhao Youcai was about to fall asleep, he suddenly slapped his forehead.
"Oh no! It seems the documents they brought are still at their home in the county town; they haven't brought them back at all."
But looking at the sky outside, Zhao Youcai decided to go back and talk about it tomorrow morning.
It's so dark outside, it's not really appropriate to ride a bicycle recklessly towards the county.
Zhao Youcai and his family slept soundly, but it was tough on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs comrades who were still in the guesthouse.
The environment of the guesthouse in the small town was simply incomparable to that in Beijing. Even though they had stayed in the guesthouse for almost half a month, they still couldn't get used to it.
Especially when snow suddenly started falling in the middle of the night, the leader, who hadn't closed the windows properly, was woken up by the cold, his teeth chattering.
I used to think that since I was from Beijing, Beijing also had winters and snow.
Thinking they could withstand the increasingly cold weather in Northeast China, they realized they had seriously overestimated their abilities.
The next morning, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs staff staying at the guesthouse were sneezing incessantly, causing the guesthouse staff to unconsciously furrow their brows.
Sure enough, these young masters in Beijing are not resistant to hardship; their small bodies really can't handle it.
They hurriedly had someone find brown sugar and ginger, filled a thermos with them, and sent one to each person's room.
Zhao Youcai originally planned to leave as soon as it was light, but the sun was not high in the sky yet, and the breeze was still a bit chilly.
The people from the base didn't waste any time. They got what they wanted, had a friendly exchange with the Zhao family and the captain, exchanged contact information, and then boarded the train back home.
It wasn't until after 1 p.m., when the temperature was at its most comfortable, that Zhao Youcai rode away on his bicycle.
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