1994: Starting with unpaid leave

"Hmm, this smells pretty strange... I've never smelled it before."

"It's sour with a hint of spiciness, and the spiciness has a meaty aroma..."

Secretary Wang tried to help the leader summarize the essence of the situation, but unfortunately, he felt that his language was somewhat dull and empty, and he couldn't quite describe what the essence was.

"You try it first."

Director Wan handed the chicken feet to Secretary Wang, deciding to let his subordinate be the guinea pig first.

Secretary Wang dared not disobey. He frowned, squeezed a chicken foot out of the packaging, hesitated for a moment, and then took a bite.

This time, the strange smell he had just caught exploded in his mouth.

The sourness from the acetic acid in the braising sauce, the spiciness from the wild growth of the pickled peppers, and the freshness of the chicken feet themselves blended together and danced gently on Secretary Wang's tongue, repeatedly stimulating every taste bud.

Seeing his secretary eating non-stop, Director Wan leaned over:

"How is it? Is it delicious?"

"Well... how should I put it?" Secretary Wang pondered for a long time, but couldn't come up with a way to describe this strange taste.

"Let me have another piece to try..."

Seeing that Secretary Wang had won another large piece, Director Wan grew impatient and snatched the bag of chicken feet back from him, taking one for himself as well.

"Ugh! Ugh! Ugh!"

He finally understood why Secretary Wang, who was usually so eloquent, was speechless.

This flavor is truly indescribable!

Especially the sour and spicy taste, which makes you want to eat another piece after finishing one.

Moreover, if you eat it quickly enough, before the spiciness even has a chance to register, your mouth will already be filled with the savory aroma of the next chicken foot...

He ate one piece after another, and the bag of pickled chicken feet was soon empty.

"Hiss...this young Dong...hiss...he really has some good stuff!"

Secretary Wang, who was standing to the side, felt sorry for him. She only felt a little better when she remembered that Dong Jianguo had also given her a box.

He wiped his mouth, recalling what Dong Jianguo had meant on the phone:

"Director Wan, I think Factory Director Dong probably wants to get this new product sent on the train too... What do you think?"

"The chances are quite high... I feel that once Lao Zhang tries this flavor, he definitely won't refuse it."

"Did he deliver it to Old Zhang?"

"I delivered it. Director Zhang isn't in his office, so I left it with me..." Secretary Wang replied, then hesitated for a moment, "He also delivered one to me..."

"you?"

"Previously, Director Dong's braised eggs were sold to the Hecheng Passenger Transport Section, and they sold quite well during the National Day holiday. But for some reason, they haven't placed any more orders, and he's been very anxious, so he came to me for help..."

Director Wan raised an eyebrow: "Jiang Dahai?"

"Hmm... the problem seems to lie with him, but I don't know why..."

Secretary Wang was cautious and made only limited reports.

As a deputy director transferred from the Hecheng Railway Bureau, Deputy Director Wan is quite familiar with the situation there.

Jiang Dahai has always been used to extorting money and favors, but because of his connections, no one has ever done anything to him.

If we let these kinds of people run wild, those who want to get things done will be driven to their deaths!

Seeing that Director Wan remained silent, Secretary Wang continued his report:

"But later I contacted Director Zhang here, and from then on, Director Dong's orders all came through us..."

Director Wan nodded:

"You did a good job on this. It's only right that Xiao Dong gives you a box of chicken feet."

"Okay, you can keep Director Zhang's box of chicken feet for now. I'll take it over to him to try before lunch tomorrow."

"good!"

Secretary Wang nodded and turned to leave Director Wan's office.

Just as he was leaving, he saw Director Wan take out another bag of pickled chicken feet from the box...

Back at his workstation, he thought for a moment, then picked up the landline and paged Dong Jianguo.

Please leave me a message: "The goods have been received. Director Zhang is not available at the moment, but Director Wan is very satisfied... No, please change the last sentence to 'Director Wan likes it very much'."

……

Xiju Residence.

Back home, Dong Jianguo put Xiuyun to bed and started fiddling with the VCD player.

These days, there's a shortage of everything, except pirated goods.

Whether it's from overseas, Hong Kong, or mainland China, you can almost always rent pirated DVDs.

Two days ago, Dong Jianguo accompanied Xiuyun to watch "True Lies". This time, he rented the Hong Kong film "From Beijing with Love".

Inserting the disc, Dong Jianguo lay back on the bed, picked up his wife's legs, and gently massaged her swollen calves, which were a little swollen from pregnancy.

While the television was playing the opening credits, Dong Jianguo truthfully reported to his wife:

"Honey, I have something to tell you. My second brother has also gone home on leave. He rented the small shop at No. 3 Middle School. I gave him a 2,000 yuan red envelope..."

"Well, if Second Brother doesn't have enough money, could you give him some more..."

Xiuyun adjusted her body and found a more comfortable position.

Compared to her sister-in-law's stinginess, Xiuyun had a good impression of her second brother and sister-in-law's family.

Although the factory is still losing money, the daily income from selling wholesale eggs has not stopped, and since she has already paid off her mortgage, she felt that helping out was no big deal.

"There's something else. I was thinking of treating the classmate who helped me with my license to a meal. Would you like to come along?"

Hearing him mention this, Zhou Xiuyun turned her gaze from the television back to Dong Jianguo's face.

"You're treating your classmates to dinner, what would I do there?"

"Aren't you my wife? Let's go together. Besides, she's a female classmate. It wouldn't look good for a grown man like me to have dinner with her..."

"Is she pretty?"

"I can't compare to you."

"Tch, you're just trying to fool me!"

"Really, I swear to the lamp!"

Xiuyun thought for a moment and said, "Then I won't go to the factory tomorrow morning. I'll go to Yongqing Market to buy some clothes."

"Otherwise, if I dress too plainly, people might think I'm being taken advantage of!"

"Would you like me to come with you?"

"No need... I have someone with me..."

"By the way, I checked and it says that the accountant and the factory's accountant and cashier cannot be the same person. Besides, I haven't passed the accounting exam yet."

"Do you think we should hire Tian Lina as our accountant? I can work as the cashier and manage the money under her guidance. That way, it's less likely to cause problems."

Lately, Xiuyun has been spending an hour reading accounting books every night when she gets home, which shows she's paying more attention to things at the factory.

Dong Jianguo readily agreed to his wife's request.

Soon, the movie started, and Dong Jianguo stopped massaging his wife's legs and climbed behind her to watch the movie with her.

For him, Stephen Chow's movies are truly the kind that he can watch over and over again without getting tired of them.

No matter how tough the days get, seeing him on screen always brings a smile to my face.

The same goes for his wife, Xiuyun.

Boss: "Judging from your outfit, you seem pretty smug. These rooms will cost you seventy yuan, and you have to dismantle them before noon every day. How about that? Is that okay?"

Ling Lingqi: "Okay, but I don't like this."

Boss: "Would you like to call a lady?"

Ling Lingqi: "Let's try some local products... What are you doing?"

Boss: "Didn't you want to try the local ones? I'm famously good at this around here..."

The unexpected laughs in the movie always made Zhou Xiuyun, who was in Dong Jianguo's arms, laugh out loud.

Dong Jianguo had hardly ever heard this kind of laughter in his previous life.

Why aren't you laughing? Isn't it funny?

"Of course it's funny, but watching you laugh is even more enjoyable than watching a movie..."

Dong Jianguo shifted to a more comfortable position, then hugged his wife and continued watching.

"Hey... just enjoy your movie, stop bothering me."

"Hmm...you see..."

"Hate……"

……