The golden age began in 1977

Chapter 374 The Sweet Aroma of Labor Fills the Shop, Goodbye 1981
"Have you heard? The brigade is going to open a food factory, and later a pastry shop, a dessert shop, and a cake shop. They're recruiting pastry chefs right now..."

"Really? Making pastries? That sounds great! We might not be good at sewing clothes, but we've never been afraid of anyone when it comes to steaming buns or frying cakes..."

"I need to sign up. I've loved cooking since I was little, and my mom always says I'm good with my hands..."

"I'll go too. Operating a sewing machine in a garment factory is too boring. Making pastries is so much more interesting..."

"Er Ya, hurry up, go to Kunlun Mountain Road to sign up! Don't you always say that your steamed buns are better than those in the state-run canteen? Here's your chance!"

The female team members spread the news and encouraged each other.

Some young women who originally worked in auxiliary positions in the construction team also had their own ideas.

They found some familiar friends and got together to register.

Some unemployed female educated youth were overjoyed upon hearing the news and went to sign up in groups of three or five.

The Labor Assault Brigade has always adhered to the principle of "better to have none than to have bad ones" when recruiting. It does not recruit continuously, nor can just anyone join.

Sometimes, when some female educated youth returned to the city, the brigade was not recruiting, so they could only rely on the neighborhood committee to arrange jobs.

Now, joining the Labor Assault Brigade has become the preferred goal for educated youth returning to the city and unemployed youth.

The young people all knew that Qian Jin was a capable man, and that working for him would surely lead to a good life.

The registration office was crowded and bustling.

The head of the food processing team was a female team member named Su Xinghua.

She was one of only three female captains in the Haibin City Labor Commando Team. Coincidentally, there were family members working in a food factory, and she had previously worked odd jobs at the food factory with her mother. Therefore, she was selected to be in charge of the selection of students for the food processing class.

Su Xinghua, along with several female squad leaders, was responsible for registration and initial screening.

They not only looked at the registration forms, but also asked the applicants to demonstrate their "skills" on the spot—kneading a dough, making a simple dough flower, or talking about their best homemade snacks.

The selection process lasted for half a month, and finally 280 female students were selected.

In the golden autumn of October, the Food Technology Class officially started.

Qian Jin felt quite regretful.

The construction team was too busy this year, and the food processing class started too late, avoiding the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Otherwise, they could make a huge profit just from the Mid-Autumn Festival mooncake sales.

Of course, good food is worth waiting for.

The food factory does not yet have a suitable factory site, and there is a shortage of skilled craftsmen in the country for the production of pastries and bread.

Food processing classes can only rely on self-study and self-research, which means results won't be achieved in a short time; one can only hope for meticulous work over a long period.

So even if a food processing team is set up before the Mid-Autumn Festival, it will still be impossible to produce mooncakes.

Qian Jin's plan is that the food factory can officially start production before the twelfth lunar month.

During the Lunar New Year, families visit relatives and friends, bringing pastries as gifts; earning that money is all that matters.

After National Day, 280 female trainees curiously entered the training school.

Inside the classroom, the workbench made of long tables was polished to a shine.

But what attracted the trainees' attention most were the "novel gadgets" displayed on the control panel:
Snow-white, fine high-gluten flour, glistening white sugar, yellow lumps exuding a milky aroma, pure white milk powder, and various bottles and jars labeled "baking powder," "baking soda," and "vanilla extract"...

On another table were tools they had never seen before:
Egg beaters with crank handles, metal molds of various shapes, long cloth bags, and several gleaming square metal boxes with glass windows and temperature knobs...

Then there were stacks of new books on the podium—and those books looked unusual, as they were printed on color paper.

This is all so novel.

Qian Jin stood on the podium, looking at the expectant and curious young faces below the stage.

He cleared his throat, his voice booming:
"Comrades, welcome to the Food Technology Class. From today onwards, you are the first cohort of trainees in the food industry of our Labor Assault Team, and you will be the future master pastry chefs, workshop directors, and technical backbones!"

"As you all probably know, our learning is different from the construction engineering class. We don't have as many mentors or teachers, but we don't lack textbooks!"

He instructed the class monitor to lead the students to distribute the books, and the female students were astonished when they received them.

Their guess was right; the book was indeed printed in color, like the magazine "Popular Cinema."

However, the paper used is definitely of a higher grade, and the smell of ink is intoxicating when you open it. The pictures on it are so realistic that they make your mouth water.

Qian Jin held up a textbook high: "Look, everyone, these beautiful snacks, these tempting cakes and cookies, they weren't drawn, they were photographed and printed."

"These textbooks will be your secrets for the future, they are your teaching materials. Everyone should take good care of them, because these are the dessert books that I went through a lot of trouble to buy back from abroad."

The female trainees nodded in agreement.

Some of the female trainees brought newspapers and immediately began making covers for their books.

Qian Jin laughed and said, "No rush, this book won't break so easily."

"You can see that it has a layer of plastic wrap on the outside, but it's very thin. Because when we make desserts, we will inevitably deal with things like oil, salt, sugar, and flour, so they have provided a protective wrapping."

"Okay, I'll continue. The pictures in the book are taken with a camera, but the actual pastries are made by people, using the flour, sugar, and butter we have at hand, and using these tools, following scientific methods!"

“These things are available to people in other countries and in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, but currently in our coastal city and in many parts of our country, people want to eat them but have nowhere to buy them!”

"Or if what you buy doesn't look good or taste good, that's really bad. It doesn't demonstrate the superiority of our socialism!"

He surveyed the room, his eyes gleaming: "So what is our mission?"

"The goal is to turn these valuable insights from books into delicious snacks that our local residents can enjoy on their dining tables and when visiting relatives and friends, so that our fellow villagers can also experience this sweetness."

The female team members applauded enthusiastically, their eyes filled with admiration as they looked at him.

Squad leader Zhao Wuzhuang even raised his fist and shouted slogans: "Make snacks for the people! Let the people enjoy sweetness!"

The trainees then shouted in unison, "Make snacks for the people!"

"Let the people enjoy sweetness!"

Qian Jin originally wanted to give them a pep talk, but the way the female team members looked at him made him a little nervous, so he skipped the rest of the motivational talk and went straight to the control panel to prepare for the demonstration.

He picked up a piping bag and a metal nozzle and showed them to the female team members: "Making desserts, not steaming buns."

"It is a skill, but also an art. A slight error can lead to a huge mistake."

"A little more or less flour, a spoonful more or less sugar, a degree higher or lower oven temperature, a second longer or shorter baking time, can result in vastly different products."

"We want to open a factory, make money, live up to the trust of the people, and make our 'Labor Sweet Shop' brand a success!"

Once the mobilization was over, his work was finished.

Classrooms are beginning preparations for the official start of classes.

Qian Jin then introduced another woman.

The food processing class lacked instructors, not because there were none, but because he used his connections to invite several qualified pastry chefs from a food factory by the sea.

The supervisor of shift one is named Liu Guilan. She just retired this year and was once a March 8th Red Banner Pacesetter at the food factory.

After Qian Jin introduced Liu Guilan, Teacher Liu opened the book with great interest and looked at it with great delight: "Fellow students, our first lesson is related to your book."

“I’ve spoken with Mr. Qian. These books, the formulas and processes in them, are advanced experiences he painstakingly acquired from abroad. They are advanced production technologies from overseas.”

No one here understands the value of these reference books better than she does.

The above content, rich in illustrations and text, details the recipes, processes, and equipment requirements for various Western-style pastries. In this age of limited information, let alone a book like this, even a single sheet of paper is priceless.

Qian Jin's claim that they are secret techniques is not an exaggeration.

Putting down her book, Liu Guilan continued, "From now on, these books will also be our study guides! But..."

She changed the subject, her tone becoming serious, "The master leads you through the door, but the practice is up to you. I am your teacher, but I am also a student, because there are so many things in the books that I am seeing for the first time."

"In this situation, it can be said that there are no real teachers to guide us step by step. We have to rely on ourselves, learn from each other, experiment repeatedly, and each of us must study every word in the book, figure out the characteristics of each raw material, master the use of each tool, and then become self-taught."

"You should understand what Mr. Qian is saying. You will be the future of the food factory. Every kind of pastry and bread you learn here will become a sweet and delicious food for the people of Haibin City."

"So we have to work hard, understand?"

"Understood!" the female trainees answered in unison, their voices clear and resonant, filled with ignited fighting spirit and a sense of mission.

Young people these days are too easily inspired to have a sense of mission.

Qian Jin and the teacher repeatedly encouraged them, stirring a strong desire within the girls:

You absolutely must learn how to make desserts!
We must make delicious desserts!
The learning has begun.

The process was far more difficult than imagined.

Making desserts and bread is quite different from making steamed buns and flatbreads. The first step is to understand the ingredients.

Liu Guilan held up a bag of flour and introduced it to the trainees: "This is high-gluten flour, suitable for making bread, noodles..."

"This is standard flour, with moderate gluten content, suitable for making cookies and shortbread..."

"Sugar comes in two types: granulated sugar and powdered sugar. The difference in particle size leads to different dissolving speeds, which affects the taste..."

When these contents are explained, many people are confused.

The female team members often make sweets and pastries at home, but they are used to adding salt and alkali by feel.

So when Liu Guilan said that many things needed to be weighed and mixed using a precision scale, they felt like they had entered a new world.

One girl instinctively said, "Are there really so many rules? Isn't making desserts the same as making steamed buns or dough? Too much water? Add flour. Too much flour? Add water..."

The surrounding area immediately erupted in laughter.

The girl realized she had said the wrong thing, and blushed deeply, quickly lowering her head.

They quickly realized it.

Actually, learning about the different ingredients used in various desserts is quite simple; you just need to memorize them, as they are all explained in the books.

When the afternoon came and they started learning how to use the tools, everyone, including Liu Guilan, had their eyes darting around:

How can I beat egg whites to stiff peaks using a hand-cranked egg beater?
How do you squeeze out beautiful patterns from a piping bag?

How do I control the temperature and time in an oven?

Even Liu Guilan had no experience; she had to figure everything out by trial and error.

After finally mastering the basics, it was time for practical application and experimentation.

The foundation of the desserts is cookies, and the first product they tried to make was butter cookies.

According to the book, the butter should be softened at room temperature and then whipped with sugar until fluffy.

As a result, several team members either couldn't beat the butter properly because it wasn't softened enough, or they overbeat it and the butter separated into oil and water.

After finally managing to squeeze out a flower, my hand trembled while I was squeezing it out, and the resulting flower was crooked and uneven.

They were put into the oven, but the temperature wasn't controlled well; some were burnt, and some weren't fully cooked. When they came out of the oven, they were all different shapes and colors, looking like a pile of burnt lumps of earth.

The tasting process was even more awkward.

Some were too sweet and cloying, some had no flavor, some were too hard and gritty, and some were soft and shapeless.

Liu Guilan was very dissatisfied, but she kept a straight face without blaming anyone:
"Why are you all hanging your heads? Who is born knowing everything? As Mr. Qian said, failure is the mother of success. As long as we study hard and summarize our experiences, we will always succeed."

"Come on, let's find the reasons together. I've noted down a few reasons for the failures I've observed."

She opened the notes she had taken while watching the game and began to comment on each group one by one:
"Was the butter in Group 2 used straight from the refrigerator? What does the book say? It clearly states that it should be softened at room temperature!"

"Group Three, did you put in too much sugar? The recipe says 50 grams, but you put in 70 grams, didn't you?"

"And for your group, class monitor, has the oven been preheated long enough...?"

When Qian Jin arrived, he heard the instructors from each class leading their teams in summarizing their experiences.

He would occasionally peek over to take a look, but he wouldn't discuss the technical details; he would only emphasize standards and attitude.

“We’re going to open a factory in the future, and the products need to be standardized. They should taste the same today and tomorrow. We can’t rely on intuition; we need data and processes. So all the data must be standardized, and all the processes must be regulated…”

He wasn't worried that the students wouldn't learn how to make pastries.

Pastries and cakes aren't atomic bombs or lithography machines; they're like shooting a gun.

With bullets and talent, you can train sharpshooters.

With books to guide you and materials to practice with, you can train to become an excellent pastry chef.

Precise raw material ratios.

Standardize the process flow.

Temperature control is refined.

The appearance is designed to be aesthetically pleasing.

The trainees summarized their experience into four key aspects. Once these four aspects were mastered, they were able to quickly produce qualified desserts.

Qian Jin observed several times during his visits to the classes and noticed changes in the snacks produced by each class:

Piping techniques have evolved from crooked and uneven to smooth and even; patterns pressed out by cookie cutters are becoming clearer; and cakes are no longer pitted and uneven after being unmolded, but smooth and flat.

Different classes produce different types of pastries and cakes; not all students need to study the same things.

Some classes made crispy and sweet peach shortbread, some made rich and creamy butter cookies, and others made soft and delicious sponge cakes or chewy sweet bread.

When Qian Jin went home, he would often bring back some desserts.

It completely confused the little ones.

They have delicious snacks every now and then, which makes them the kings of the kids on the street.

They took these snacks to the street and shared them with their friends, successfully winning them over.

As the training progressed and the technology matured, the construction of the food factory proceeded rapidly.

The dyeing factory was thoroughly cleaned and renovated, and the ground was completely paved.

This is really thanks to the construction team.

The hardening of the entire plant requires a large quantity of cement, and we can only use so much cement because of the supply from relevant municipal departments.

Private dealers started appearing.

The middlemen wanted to get construction data from them, but that was out of the question.

The construction team itself isn't enough!
The building materials obtained by the construction team from relevant units will only be used on the construction site and will never be used for private profit. Of course, in this case, it is reasonable to use more materials and upgrade the specifications of the factory buildings they need for their own use.

The roof was repaired, the walls were painted, and the water and electricity lines needed to be overhauled.

Needless to say, the original water and electricity lines had long been abandoned.

The hydropower team has redesigned and reorganized the layout.

The water supply system is centered around deep wells. Qian Jin installed high-grade deep well pumps purchased from the mall and laid brand-new PVC pipes to form a water supply network, connecting to various parts of the factory. At the same time, a water supply interface was reserved as a backup.

He has seen what a modern factory in the 21st century looks like, so he plans the details he can do now according to the standards of a modern factory.

For example, hygiene and safety are very important in food factories, so he set up multiple cleaning and disinfection pools in the factory. The water pipes were also installed in the open for easy maintenance, but they were protected against freezing and insulated.

One of the most important lessons the construction team learned from their previous work on public spaces and public kitchen renovations was that drainage is crucial.

In this way, the entire factory's water supply and drainage system was re-laid with large-diameter PVC-U drainage pipes, and open ditches and floor drains were also installed. Qian Jin led a team to conduct an experiment, which showed that the wastewater could be quickly discharged after it was formed.

Power supply is a priority.

Qian Jin is most dedicated to this aspect of his work.

The food factory's equipment was almost all purchased from the mall, and they were all power guzzlers.

At this point, the factory's locational advantage became apparent. They brought in a dedicated line from a nearby substation, and the power supply station also came to install an independent distribution cabinet. The power grid specifications within the factory area were similar to those of the First Machinery Plant.

Qian Jin had planned the functional areas of the factory well in advance, including a baking area, which was a key area. He requested the power supply station to reserve high-power lines for it.

With the water and electricity issues resolved, only heating remains.

The heating system also took advantage of its location. The food factory was close to the thermal power plant, so it benefited from the power plant's facilities and laid steam pipelines after connecting to it.

This thing isn't just for keeping employees warm in winter; keeping them warm is a minor issue. The important thing is that it can provide a stable heat source for the production workshop.

While the construction team was busy with the water, electricity, and heating work, Qian Jin directed Chen Jingdi to lead a team to divide the large factory building into functional zones and carry out specific renovations.

Based on the food factory's production process, he rationally divided the main building of the dyeing factory:

The raw material warehouse requires a dry, well-ventilated, rodent- and insect-proof environment.

The pretreatment room is tiled and easy to clean.

There's also a baking workshop equipped with stainless steel workbenches, dough mixers, ovens, and baking pans.

This is a core area, so it was handled with extra care. The walls were insulated, and a powerful ventilation system was installed, with high-powered exhaust fans and a wide new flue.

The remaining rooms are the cooling room, the packaging room, and the finished product warehouse, which are relatively simple.

Qian Jin spends almost every day at the construction site. On weekdays, after finishing get off work in the evening, he has to come over to check on things before he can go home.

Unfortunately, the food factory he wanted was not the same as the food factory in Haibin City.

The current food factory in Haibin City was renovated after the founding of the People's Republic of China. It was not renovated much in the following 20 years and was just used as is.

In this situation, the construction team had to renovate this old factory building, and it was all thanks to Qian Jin and his engineers meticulously attending to the details.
"Mr. Zhang, is the exhaust fan enough to ventilate this baking workshop? Won't the fumes and heat accumulate on the roof?"

Zhang Zhenhua glanced at the tall factory roof and wanted to say it was alright, but Qian Jin, though ostensibly consulting him, had already finalized the renovation plan. So, he could only ask in return:

"Then what should we do?"

Qian Jin took the blueprints and made a few annotations on them with a pencil: "I suggest adding a few ventilation louvers with rain caps at the highest point of the roof, using thermal pressure natural ventilation to assist in exhaust, and expelling the fumes..."

Chen Jingdi asked him to inspect the projects that had already been renovated.

Qian Jin carefully examined the documents and still had suggestions for improvement:

"Captain Chen, the rodent-proof barriers in the raw material warehouse must be high enough and the gaps must be small. Rats are ubiquitous; they steal food and carry too many bacteria, making them the natural enemy of food factories!"

Chen Jingdi nodded vigorously, gesturing with a "ho ho" sound, indicating that he had requested that a smooth stainless steel plate be used to block the gaps, and that the gaps between the plate and the floor and walls be sealed with cement.

Qian Jin shook his head: "The stainless steel plate is too short, rats will climb the wall. Cover the entire wall with tiles—don't worry about wasting material, save where you can, and use plenty of material where you shouldn't..."

From September to December, the construction site was bustling with activity.

The bricklayers worked tirelessly, sweating profusely as they built partition walls and laid tiles.

The carpenters were making doors and windows and installing ceiling jogs with their clanging and banging.

The plumbers meticulously laid pipelines and installed equipment.

The able-bodied men were responsible for moving materials and cleaning up the site.

And so, 1981 entered its final month with a snowfall.

The food processing class has concluded, and its management structure has been initially established.

Team leader Su Xinghua served as the factory director, taking full responsibility for the operation of the food factory.

Liu Guilan was appointed as the technical director, in charge of all aspects of production processes and quality control.

Several female team members who excelled in training and demonstrated strong organizational skills were appointed as workshop directors and team leaders.

In Qian Jin's plan, the food factory will adopt a "front store, back factory" model.

In addition to supplying goods to supply and marketing cooperatives and department stores throughout the city, they also plan to open their own branded pastry shops, "Labor Sweet Shop," on the main streets and residential areas of the city.

This allows them to directly engage with consumers, understand market demands, and build a brand image.

Of course, the workers don't yet understand what market demand or brand image are, and Qian Jin doesn't expect them to understand either.

The giant ship of the Labor Assault Brigade still depends on him to steer it.

Many significant events occurred at the end of 1981. The Suzhou Embroidery Group held the West-81 exercise, using NATO as the hypothetical enemy, creating the largest military exercise in human military history.

Egyptian President Sadat was assassinated during a military parade celebrating Armed Forces Day, while Antigua and Barbuda declared independence.

Not many people in China paid attention to these news reports; the stars of the last month of 1981 were the Chinese women's volleyball team.

At the third Women's Volleyball World Cup, a girl named Lang Ping appeared on the Chinese team. She helped the national team win its first world championship in volleyball, one of the three major ball sports.

According to statistics, in 7 matches, the Chinese team spiked the ball a total of 1116 times, of which Lang Ping spiked the ball 407 times, scoring 79 points. Her spiking accuracy rate was close to 50%, and the nickname "Iron Hammer" spread from then on.

In response, university students in the capital took the lead in shouting the slogan "Unite and revitalize China".

Qian Jin later used this slogan, painting it on the exterior wall of the soon-to-open food factory.

He also painted the slogan on other restaurants and factories.

In his view, this statement is the most powerful voice of the era, possessing a brilliance that time cannot wash away. What can truly overshadow its radiance is the far-sighted appeal of the leader:

Long live the great unity of the people of the world!
After nearly half a year of hard work, the former site of the dilapidated dyeing factory has finally undergone a complete transformation.

The dilapidated wall has been repaired and painted white.

The tall factory buildings were cleaned and the broken windows were replaced with bright glass.

The factory area was cleared of weeds and garbage, and a smooth cement road was laid.

Stepping inside the factory reveals a completely new look:
The walls are snow-white, the floors are spotless, the functional layout is clearly divided, the brand-new water and electricity lines are neatly arranged, and the reserved equipment bases are sturdy and reliable.

A pump house was built next to the deep well, with steam pipes wrapped in a silver insulation layer.

The air was no longer filled with the smells of mold, rotten grass, and decaying mud, but rather with the unique, refreshing aroma of dried cement mortar.

With the arrival of 280 female workers, this newly renovated and enormous building finally began to come alive again.

The female workers were stunned when they entered their work area.

Many of them knew about the old dyeing factory on Langya Mountain Road, and many of the girls had played there when they were children.

This place is overgrown with weeds, making it a great spot for catching grasshoppers and crickets.

So when they first learned that they were going to work in this place, the girls were uneasy and worried about their future.

As it turns out, Qian Jin was very reliable.

Give them a reliable future.

In mid-December, on a sunny day, Qian Jin arranged for the Haibin City Labor Assault Team Food Factory to officially open for production.

On opening day, the cameras were clicking away.

The Labor Assault Brigade already has its own video recording team, and Qian Jin hopes to preserve more audio-visual materials from that era, as this will be very important in the future.

On the platform, where the camera was pointed, Qian Jin, dressed in a trench coat, looked handsome and dashing.
"Comrades, you are now the technical backbone. I want to tell you that our goal has never been a small workshop, but to build a formal, reputable food factory..."

"Our ultimate goal is to compete with those well-known foreign food brands, suppress them, and showcase Chinese pastries to the world..."

"To achieve our established goals, we must do at least three things!"

"First and foremost, quality is our lifeline! Raw materials must be fresh and qualified, production must strictly adhere to the process, and hygiene must be impeccable! Every single pastry that leaves the factory must live up to the 'Labor is Glorious' brand..."

"Secondly, we need to offer a wide variety of products and innovate the flavors. We must study the tastes of the local people in our coastal area and develop new products! We must always remember that we can never be detached from the people or the consumers. We will produce whatever the people like to eat..."

"Innovation requires thinking and must be combined with reality. For example, we have a lot of seafood by the sea, so could we try adding some seaweed powder to make savory cookies? When our local fruits are in season, could we make jam-filled cookies?"

"Third, the appearance must be exquisite! Pastries, pastries—whether it's the taste or the appearance, we need to put in the effort!"

"Our packaging is simple now, but the pastries themselves must be beautiful! The piping decorations must be exquisite, and the shapes must be cute! In the future, when conditions are better, we will also design beautiful packaging boxes! So that people can buy them, not only enjoy eating them themselves, but also feel proud to give them as gifts..."

The female team members listened to Qian Jin's speech with determined eyes.

The teams led by Qian Jin are never ideologically problematic, after all, Qian Jin is very good at making grand promises.

This is also related to the confidence of the female workers in the food factory.

They are no longer the unemployed young women who only knew simple housework. More than two months of professional training and practice have enabled them to master real skills.

Ability and competence are often linked to self-confidence and self-esteem.

Another point is that the food factory has a very good environment, and their work clothes and benefits are also very good, which brings a strong sense of professional pride and responsibility to a group of young women.

Food factories need to maintain hygiene during production, so Qian Jin didn't arrange for firecrackers to be set off. Instead, he arranged for a group of male workers who enjoy lively activities to perform lion and dragon dances and play drums and gongs.

The food factory opened this morning.

In the afternoon, four "Labor Sweet Shop" pastry shops located on Langyashan Road, Taishan Road, Huangshan Road and Lushan Road also opened their doors to customers amidst the festive sound of firecrackers.

The pastry shop doesn't have the cement counters that are common nowadays; instead, it has transparent counters made of a combination of wood and glass.

Inside, neatly arranged, were golden and glossy peach shortbread, adorable animal-shaped cookies, soft and fragrant sponge cakes, as well as sachima coated in powdered sugar and patterned butter cookies.

The pastries were baked at noon and then delivered to four pastry shops.

That afternoon, the four streets were filled with enticing aromas, which attracted a large number of cyclists as the workday ended.
"Wow, when did they open a pastry shop? It smells so good! What did they use?"

"So many varieties, they look so beautiful! Butter cookies are one yuan a pound, not cheap..."

"It's not expensive anymore. Sandwich cookies at the department store cost 1.3 yuan per pound, and cream cookies cost 1.7 yuan per pound. These are butter cookies, they're cream cookies..."

"Yeah, I went to give my boss a gift yesterday. I just bought some children's cream biscuits. Guess how much they cost? Damn, 41 cents for two ounces, more than two dollars for a pound. And they only accept food coupons from all over the country. We working class can only exchange 25 pounds of these biscuits for a month's work..."

"Weigh out some peach shortbread for me, it smells so good, it looks even crispier than the ones in the department store!"

How much does this sponge cake cost per pound?

A group of young people huddled together, curiously looking at the shop assistants in the pastry shop.

Uniform white work clothes are a common sight.

But he was also wearing a white hat and a white cotton mask, and silk gloves on his hands—which is extremely rare.

Some purchasing agents who had the opportunity to travel all over the country or cadres who had seen the world said to those around them after seeing this, "They are just being hygienic."

"Yes, the sales clerks at the First Food Store on the ground floor of the Daxin Building in Shanghai dress like that; it looks so high-class. Now, our Haibin City isn't going to lag behind and is dressing high-class too..."

The saleswomen were dressed elegantly but had smiles on their faces. Even though masks covered half of their faces, they still provided smiling service and warm hospitality.

No matter what you ask, how many times you ask, or whether you buy anything or not, it doesn't matter; they will treat you with the same enthusiasm.

If someone buys something, she quickly weighs and packages it for them. If they have children, she will wrap some other snacks in oil paper for them to try.

Their professional demeanor and enthusiastic service stood in stark contrast to the indifference commonly seen among sales clerks in state-run stores.

What surprised citizens even more was the taste and price of the snacks.

Qian Jinxue's supply and marketing cooperative displayed slogans like "Develop the economy and ensure supply" on both sides, and also displayed slogans like "Small profits but quick turnover, benefiting the people" on both sides of the pastry shop. Of course, these slogans were put into practice, as the prices of the pastries at Labor Sweet Workshop were generally slightly lower than those of similar products from state-owned food factories.

However, it uses more high-quality ingredients, has a purer taste, and is more attractive in appearance.

Moreover, the profit margin is even larger...

Almost all the equipment in the food factory was purchased by Qian Jin from the mall, making it extremely efficient. The only large piece of equipment was purchased in-house, but it is now a relatively efficient tunnel oven.

Furthermore, the food factory has very strict management, which allows for proper cost control and the maintenance of profit margins.

In this way, the reputation of the food factory and Labor Sweet Shop spread rapidly.

Within two days of opening, long queues frequently formed in front of the four shops.

"The best choice for personal enjoyment and a perfect gift"—these are the two slogans used by the Hai Bin Daily to describe the product.

The food factory's production workshop was bustling with activity.

All machines are running at full power.

The two-month group training has shown results.

The female workers worked together, dividing tasks such as kneading dough, shaping, baking, cooling, and packaging, operating in an orderly and efficient assembly line.

The quality inspection team constantly moved between different processes, rigorously checking every step.

The tunnel oven was radiating intense heat, and since it was getting cold, the female workers were even more motivated to work.

Comfortable!

They are genuinely proud that their own food factory has made a name for itself so quickly.

We live in an era that highly values ​​collective honor.

Qian Jin loves this era very much.

And just like that, the second year of the 1980s came to an end without us even realizing it.

Its third year, the fiery year of 1982, quietly arrived amidst the howling winds...

(End of this chapter)