Siheyuan: Since 1962

Chapter 168 Mooncakes
"Mr. Duan, this is the snack that Master Nan Yi from our factory and I think is most suitable to give to the workers as welfare."

Zhou Weimin opened the oil paper package, revealing several shiny mooncakes inside.

"Mooncakes? Are you planning to use this as a welfare benefit?"

Duan Weihong was a little surprised. If they only planned to distribute snacks during the Mid-Autumn Festival, mooncakes would be acceptable.

But Zhou Weimin had told him before that they were going to give out mooncakes on every holiday. Even if the workers didn't mind, it would still be a bit unreasonable to give out mooncakes.

"Yes, it's mooncakes, Mr. Duan, please try it first."

Zhou Weimin nodded at him, picked up the mooncake, broke it in half, and handed it to Duan Weihong.

Duan Weihong frowned after just one bite. The taste of this mooncake was far worse than the egg cake that Zhou Weimin had brought before.

He carefully looked at the mooncake in his hand and muttered, "Pearl seeds, sesame seeds, this is..."

"The green ones are shredded winter melon, and the red ones are shredded radish. They are both added in after they are stir-fried until fragrant."

Zhou Weimin explained at the right time, and then said with a smile: "The taste of Mr. Duan's mooncake is a little worse, but it has been stored for much longer than egg cakes. If you store it carefully, it will not go bad in a few months, but the taste will be a little worse."

"Oh? That's great. Tell me what your plan is."

Duan Weihong also understood Zhou Weimin's thoughts at this time and motioned for him to continue.

They have all been through hardships and are well aware of the importance of keeping the mooncakes for a long time. Although the taste of this mooncake is not as good as the previous egg cake, it is still delicious and is actually a better choice for workers.

"Mr. Duan, here's my plan. We'll give out egg cakes and moon cakes as well. Give out egg cakes first, and moon cakes next time. Before distributing benefits, let the cadres do a statistics and let the workers choose what to give out. In this way, those who want to put it aside can choose moon cakes, and those who want something better can choose egg cakes. And in this way, the canteen's pressure on making snacks can be reduced a lot, and they won't be too rushed."

Zhou Weimin explained his idea in detail. Among the mooncake fillings, only melon seeds are hard to find, but they can be replaced by other things. Other materials are not difficult to find, and there is no purchasing pressure at all.

He brought out this low-end version of the five-nut mooncake, thinking that if Duan Weihong wanted to involve other factories, the purchasing pressure on those factories would be less and the voices of opposition would be smaller.

"Yes, your idea is very good. It takes care of workers with different situations."

Duan Weihong smiled with relief. Zhou Weimin was indeed different from those people. He never did anything to stand on Li Huaide's side, but was actually doing practical things.

At the same time, do things without sticking to formalities, so as not to put yourself in danger and be targeted by others.

People who stick to their beliefs and never give up in today's situation are certainly worthy of admiration, but people like Zhou Weimin who know how to take advantage of the situation can bring more benefits to the workers.

"If you have an idea, implement it as soon as possible. Only when it works can more factories learn from it."

"Women's Day is coming soon, and I plan to implement it starting from Women's Day."

Zhou Weimin had thought about it a long time ago. The benefits on Women's Day are only for female comrades, so there will be less pressure to distribute snacks, and it is most suitable to use it as the first trial holiday.

"If you have good news, come directly. I will greet the guards, and you won't need to check when you come over next time. After you are done with the snacks, come and talk to me more often. This old man's place is usually very quiet, and the flowers and plants in the yard can only keep me company."

Duan Weihong laughed tiredly as he spoke. Zhou Weimin was taking advantage of the situation, and so was he.

If there is nothing to deal with, he rarely invites people to his home. After all, if too many people come, it will easily arouse suspicion.

"Hey, Mr. Duan, just don't find me annoying in the future. Chef Nan Yi from our factory has come up with a lot of delicious dishes. I will cook them for you to try when the time comes." Zhou Weimin stood up and continued, "I'll go cook first. If you want to eat anything, just tell me."

"Just do it. There are only two of us eating today, so three dishes and a soup will be enough. Any more will be a waste."

Duan Weihong gave some instructions and went back to eating mooncakes.

The taste of this mooncake is average at first, but it becomes more fragrant the more you chew it. It really shows the effort put into it, and the workers will definitely like it.

……

after an hour.

Duan Weihong put down his chopsticks with satisfaction. The food was really to his taste.

I'm old now and I can't eat as much even if I want to. It's really a pity.

"Don't worry about me, old man. Man is made of iron and rice is made of steel. Only when you are full can you gain strength."

"Mr. Duan, I have already eaten four steamed buns. I really can't eat any more."

In fact, Zhou Weimin only ate until he was 80% full, which was just right. If he ate any more, he would have been too full.

"When I was your age, I could eat eight, not to mention four. But there was nothing to eat back then. We had to fight with others for wild vegetables. If we couldn't get them, we would starve. Or we could go deep into the mountains. I don't know how many people died in the mountains just for a bite to eat..."

Duan Weihong paused as he was talking, and said with a self-deprecating smile: "I am old now, and I always think about the past... Come on, play a few games of chess with me."

"Mr. Duan, I haven't played chess since I left school. If I don't play well later, you can't laugh at me."

Zhou Weimin followed Duan Weihong happily, without mentioning anything about Duan Weihong's chatter just now.

He knew nothing about the things of Duan Weihong's era, and the more he spoke the more mistakes he would make, so he just had to be a listener.

Besides, Duan Weihong didn't intend for him to respond, he just wanted to say it out loud, and it would be nice if someone could listen.

Walking into the study, Duan Weihong pointed to a rack of six bottles of Xifeng Liquor on the ground and said with a smile, "Hey, playing chess is just to kill time, there's nothing funny about it. These are what those old guys had someone bring to me yesterday, take them back when you leave. An old man can't drink much in a day, so it would be a waste to leave so much liquor here."

Zhou Weimin looked at Duan Weihong's remaining two engineers and said with a smile, "Draw."

Duan Weihong put down his teacup and said unhappily, "How can you play chess like this? You try to exchange pieces with me, but it always ends in a draw."

Zhou Weimin said cheerfully, "I can't beat you, so I have to do this. It's not considered cheating."

It is true that Duan Weihong likes to play military chess, but he is actually a terrible chess player. In order to make Duan Weihong happy, he can only play like this.

They were all replacements, so naturally you couldn't tell that he was letting the game go.

Duan Weihong put away the chess pieces and started to move them again, pretending to ask casually: "You, I heard that Lou Ruizhong came to you, what do you think?"

(End of this chapter)