Chương 32: Old Zhou, You've Stood Up Today!

Zhou Yan rode his bicycle to town and bought three bags of rice candy from Zhang Jiwu's family. They cost 1. 2 yuan per jin (500g), each bag weighing one jin, wrapped in kraft paper and tied with string. Suji didn't have many convenient local specialties; even he found the tough, dry beef too hard to chew. Zhang Jiwu's rice candy was quite famous in Suji. Fresh lard was rendered into pork fat, then mixed with maltose and stir-fried to make an amber-colored sugar syrup.

Roasted peanuts and rice puffs were then added and stir-fried until the rice puffs were coated in the syrup. It was then removed from the pan, spread on a sesame-sprinkled board, and sprinkled with roasted white sesame seeds. It was then flattened and pressed with a large rolling pin, cut into small pieces, and the rice candy was ready. The aroma of the fried rice puffs wafted far and wide; the sugar-oil mixture was a favorite treat in those days.

Students passing by after school couldn't resist stopping to admire it. The shop owner let Zhou Yan try a piece; it was fragrant, sweet, crispy, and had a savory, meaty flavor—a unique taste. He also brought Zhou Momo and his two nephews 50 cents worth so they could try some too. When Zhou Yan returned to the shop, Zhou Momo and Fanwa were playing hopscotch. Zhou Lihui, acting as their referee, greeted him with a smile: "Uncle, you're back."

"Yeah, I bought you some rice candy. Take it and eat it with Momo and Fanwa." Zhou Yan handed him the loose rice candy. Zhou Momo and Fanwa had already come over, drawn by the aroma.

"Brother! Is it rice candy?" Zhou Momo stared at the rice candy in Zhou Lihui's hand, swallowing hard.

"I want some!"

"You two go wash your hands; you can eat it after that," Zhou Yan said with a smile, carrying the groceries to the kitchen. That evening, the college students alone ordered twenty-eight bowls of noodles and twenty bowls of braised beef. Zhou Yan estimated that some workers would come to join the fun that evening, so he bought enough meat to make a sauce and toppings for sixty people. It didn't matter if he didn't sell it all; there were many people today, so it could be used as food for dinner.

Washing vegetables and preparing the ingredients, time was quite tight. Just as Zhou Yan started chopping vegetables, he noticed Zhou Lihui at the kitchen door. He looked up and asked with a smile, "What's up, Huihui?"

"I want to watch my uncle cook," Zhou Lihui smiled somewhat shyly.

"Come in if you want to watch. What can you see standing at the kitchen door?" Zhou Yan greeted him with a smile, his cleaver never stopping. A piece of beef quickly turned into slices, then shreds, and finally minced meat. Zhou Lihui's eyes widened at the sight.

"Can you cook?" Zhou Yan put the minced meat into a plate for later use.

"I only know how to stir-fry vegetables and cook porridge."

"Then learn how to make braised pork ribs and double-pepper minced beef from your uncle today, and show off your skills to your parents next time," Zhou Yan said casually with a smile.

"Hmm." Zhou Lihui nodded, took two more steps forward, and looked even more intently....

"Director Su, I look forward to our cooperation yielding fruitful results."

"Pleasant cooperation." In the conference room, Lin Zhiqiang and Su Jun shook hands. After an afternoon of discussion, Jiaozhou Textile Factory and the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute's Department of Arts and Crafts reached a preliminary cooperation agreement to conduct school-enterprise cooperation and build a brand for Jiaozhou Textile Factory. However, the specific cooperation methods and details still need to be finalized later. Lin Zhiqiang was already very satisfied with this result.

Sichuan Fine Arts Institute is a top-tier art school in Sichuan and even nationwide. Being able to cooperate with the Department of Arts and Crafts of Sichuan Fine Arts Institute will greatly benefit the Jiaozhou Textile Factory's reputation. He had studied abroad and knew the importance of branding. Jiaozhou Textile Factory is currently thriving, with its foreign exchange earnings reaching new highs, but compared with advanced textile factories abroad, there is still a gap.

Exploring the path of brand building is very necessary.

"It's almost time to get off work. The students are waiting outside, so let's go eat." Lin Zhiqiang glanced at his watch and said with a smile.

"Okay, I am indeed a little hungry." Su Jun nodded.... Zhou Liangliang rode his bicycle to the entrance of the textile factory, parked it, took out a cigarette, and asked a few vendors about Zhou Erwa's restaurant.

"Zhou Yan's business is booming! Six cents a bowl of noodles, he sells at least a hundred bowls a day. How much do you think he makes? Wang Laowu got arrested, now he's the only one selling noodles." Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Yesterday he started selling something called 'Qiaojiao Beef,' which is like the soup pot from your Zhou Village, also six cents a bowl, and business is still good."

"How much? Who knows? Aren't you from the same village? Just ask him yourself, why are you being so sneaky?"

"Today a group of college students ate at his restaurant, twenty or thirty of them. They're rich and willing to spend money, he probably made several ten-yuan bills just from those students." After chatting with the vendors, Zhou Liangliang's hand holding the cigarette trembled. He stared blankly in the direction of Zhou Erwa's restaurant, subconsciously raising his hand to take a puff, only to be burned and quickly flick the cigarette butt away.

"Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey..." Zhou Liangliang spat a few times, the cigarette butt burning him. Then he saw a group of stylish, handsome young men walk out of the textile factory gate and into Zhou Erwa's restaurant.

"Eating at Zhou Erwa's restaurant again tonight? Just three bowls of noodles and a soup pot, is it really that good? Even college students in the city haven't eaten anything good."

"Yeah, why don't you try my wontons?" The vendors grumbled resentfully, extremely envious. Just then, the factory closed, and bicycles poured out, some of them turning towards Zhou Erwa's restaurant. Zhou Liangliang, ignoring the blisters on his lips, looked at the restaurant full of customers, his eyes filled with fervor: "Six cents a bowl of noodles, six cents a bowl of soup pot, is it selling that well?"

"The textile factory workers are rich! Money is easier to earn here!" Zhou Liangliang looked closer for a while, and seeing that everyone was indeed ordering and sitting down to eat, he rode away with peace of mind. Damn it! The latest novels are first published on 69shu. com! I'll be there tomorrow! Selling noodles, selling hot pot! It'll definitely work! His legs kicked faster and faster, wishing he could fly back immediately....

The college students also spent thirty yuan on dinner that night, and they were very satisfied. Zhou Momo sat next to Xia Yao, holding a new doll in her hand, calling "Sister, Sister" incessantly, making the female college students fawn over her. They emptied their pockets of snacks and filled a small basket for her. There was no way around it; this little sister was so soft, cute, and adorable.

"Auntie is so amazing, so many sisters give her snacks." Fanwa squatted to the side, with candy in her mouth, extremely envious.

"Auntie Zhao, can I take Momo to play for a while and then bring her back for dinner?" Xia Yao said to Zhao Tieying, holding Zhou Momo's little hand.

"Of course, you can take her out to play. She thinks about you every day," Zhao Tieying replied with a smile. The textile factory arranged for them to stay at the guesthouse tonight, and they would take a shuttle bus back to the mountain city early tomorrow morning, so they had two hours to play before returning to the guesthouse after dark. Xia Yao wanted to play with Zhou Momo a little longer. This was roughly as Zhou Yan had predicted.

The fact that the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute students and faculty were eating at Zhou Erwa's restaurant twice in a row instead of the canteen had already caused quite a stir at the Jiaozhou Textile Factory. University students were symbols of intellectuals and fashion, and many workers wanted to see what delicious food Zhou Erwa's restaurant was selling that could captivate university students.

The thirty-two extra servings of noodles and the remaining braised beef that Zhou Yan had prepared were completely sold out; even the beef broth in the pot was devoured by the customers who arrived later and missed out.

"I'm sorry everyone, the noodles and braised beef are sold out today. The restaurant will be closed tomorrow. Please come back on Monday," Zhou Yan apologized to the customers who hadn't been able to eat, standing at the door.

"They're all gone so early?"

"Prepare more next time, we were hoping to try some."

"Okay, we'll come again next time." The guests were a little disappointed, but they could only wait until Monday.

"We'll definitely prepare more next time," Zhao Tieying said with a smile. Just then, Zhou Miao rode up on his old bicycle, with two large crucian carp tied to the handlebars with straw, and stopped in front of the restaurant.

"Hey, you caught crucian carp!" Zhao Tieying greeted him with a smile, marveling, "Old Zhou, you've really caught something today! You caught such big crucian carp! We can have them for dinner tonight."

"These two aren't that big, and we lost an even bigger one," Zhou Miao scratched his head. Zhou Yan, standing to the side, silently turned his head away, moving his mouth to control his expression. A note slowly scrolled down: [Two farmed crucian carp, purely grain-fed, of acceptable quality.]