All the heavens begin with the love in the courtyard.

Previously, we ate white steamed buns for four out of seven days, but now we only eat white steamed buns for two days a week and coarse grain cornbread for the remaining five days.

In addition to the staple food, there also had to be side dishes. In previous years, we would eat cabbage stewed with tofu once a month, with some minced meat in it.

Right now, the canteen's warehouse only has cabbage, radishes, and potatoes. There's nothing else, and meat is out of the question.

Of course, some people with connections would often send chickens, ducks, and wild game to the small warehouse. These days, entertainment is scarce, and eating and drinking are already a great privilege. Some people just like that.

The canteen walls are plastered with slogans like "Promote economic development, ensure supply, and learn from the spirit of hard work and perseverance." They also mention promoting the spirit of [name omitted].

However, none of this affected He Yuzhu. He continued to eat as usual, following the leaders' lead. In any case, some people always get their share of the profits.

He Yuzhu had just finished kneading the dough when the factory manager called him to his office. He thought it was something serious that he was being called over so early in the morning, but it turned out to be good news, very good news.

Last night, He Yuzhu was noticed by a big shot, and the factory manager was there as a witness. So this morning, the factory manager was thinking about this matter.

Since the boss likes Sha Zhu's cooking, I'll be visiting his house quite often. When the boss asks about the steel mill, given Sha Zhu's silly nature, if he says something inappropriate, it'll be a huge problem.

So early in the morning, the factory director called He Yuzhu to his office and had a deep conversation for half an hour. Then, the factory director asked He Yuzhu if he had any ideas about becoming the canteen manager.

He Yuzhu was stunned when he heard this, but he quickly realized that this matter was definitely related to last night.

Being the cafeteria manager is great! The salary is 42.5, which is already considered a deputy section chief position. Most importantly, it comes with a lot of power. There are many intricacies involved in procurement and such. Once I become the cafeteria manager, this cafeteria will be my own domain.

Don't underestimate the position of canteen director; it's a very lucrative post, usually filled with the factory director's confidants. The factory director's choice of He Yuzhu speaks volumes.

If it were He Yuzhu's usual personality, even if he became the canteen director, he definitely wouldn't have lasted long. Who told him to be so stubborn?

But now, He Yuzhu has sincerely accepted the position and expressed his willingness to obey the leader's arrangements.

Seeing that He Yuzhu was very sensible, the factory manager nodded with satisfaction and told him to go back to work.

Of course, He Yuzhu could accept being the head of the cafeteria; everyone wants to live a better life, right? But as for other positions, or even leadership positions, He Yuzhu would resolutely refuse to touch them.

As for that factory director, he's currently enjoying great prestige, but in a few years, he'll be demoted, and then Deputy Factory Director Li will take over. However, He Yuzhu isn't worried. Deputy Factory Director Li is even more into this than the current one. As long as he doesn't meddle in other people's business, he can still live his life as usual.

As soon as he returned to the cafeteria, he saw Qin Huairu standing to the side with two aluminum lunch boxes, chatting with Liu Lan. When she saw He Yuzhu arrive, she quickly called out to him.

"Silly Zhu, come here, I need to talk to you about something!"

As he spoke, he handed over the empty aluminum box. He Yuzhu took it, somewhat puzzled. Didn't he give it to Ma Hua yesterday?

He glanced back at Ma Hua, who awkwardly spread his hands and gestured with his eyes to indicate that he couldn't do anything about it.

Well, no need to guess, I know what happened. He Yuzhu didn't take this little thing to heart. He tossed the lunchbox to Ma Hua, put his hands behind his back, and followed Qin Huairu to the outer room of the canteen to talk.

Chapter 15: What kind of wicked thoughts could a scheming woman have?

He Yuzhu followed behind Qin Huairu. Early in the morning, many workers had already come to the canteen. Many of them were families who relied on the canteen for their meals, and coming early meant they could get a hot meal.

Some people who knew them well saw Qin Huairu and He Yuzhu walking one after the other, and many people started teasing the two of them.

The usual jokes were about the young couple being affectionate early in the morning. In the past, He Yuzhu would naively agree, joking that they were just jealous.

When Qin Huairu saw her coworkers teasing them, she not only felt no shame, but also wanted to put her arm around He Yuzhu's hand as usual. He Yuzhu kept a straight face and deliberately lagged behind several steps, which finally revealed the scheming woman's intentions.

He Yuzhu used to laugh it off, but now he really dislikes Qin Huairu coming to the cafeteria to find him all the time, as if he were someone important to her.

The two stopped when they reached a corner. Qin Huairu looked around and, seeing that no one was watching, prepared to tug at He Yuzhu's sleeve again.

He Yuzhu was prepared and quickly took two steps back, which surprised Qin Huairu.

In front of everyone, this scheming woman always pulls this trick; He Yuzhu has truly witnessed it firsthand.

"Sister Qin, just say what's on your mind. Don't pull tug at each other; it's not a good look!"

Perhaps He Yuzhu's tone was a bit harsh, because a look of embarrassment instantly appeared on Qin Huairu's face, and tears began to well up in her eyes again.

Seeing this familiar scene, He Yuzhu felt agitated and increasingly disgusted with the widow, as he truly owed her nothing.

In the original novel, every time she made this gesture, the kind-hearted He Yuzhu would immediately soften and give her whatever she wanted!

He Yuzhu looked around and saw that many people were watching them. He made up his mind and pretended to leave.

"It's alright, I'll get back to work now, dinner's almost ready!"

Qin Huairu could clearly hear the impatience in He Yuzhu's tone. Seeing that tears were no longer effective, she felt a surge of grievance and distress. She wanted to turn around and leave, but remembering the purpose of her visit, she forced back her tears and mustered her courage to speak.

"Shazhu, could you help me get twenty pounds of cornmeal from the cafeteria? My family is really starving!"

He Yuzhu almost choked on the air. This woman was definitely up to no good. He usually helped her take food from the cafeteria, and now that he hadn't brought any leftovers home these past few days, she was actually coming to the cafeteria to find him.

Without saying a word, He Yuzhu shook his head firmly.

"Sister Qin, I can't do this. Public property is limited. I know your family situation. You have many children and several mouths to feed, but you're not starving, are you?"

Seeing He Yuzhu's refusal, Qin Huairu's face showed even more grievance. Faced with He Yuzhu's accusation, she immediately explained in a fit of anger.

"Don't you know my family's situation? It's not like it's the New Year, but all three of my children haven't had a single new outfit since the beginning of the year!"

He Yuzhu finally understood that Qin Huairu wanted to take advantage of him so that she could save the money she would have spent on grain and buy some cloth to get new clothes for the children.

In the past, even if He Yuzhu didn't get cornmeal for her from the cafeteria, he would still buy it for her with his own money.

However, "a little kindness is appreciated, but too much kindness breeds resentment." This kind of assistance has been going on for many years, and now whenever Qin Huairu encounters any difficulties, her first thought is He Yuzhu.

As a mother, her thinking is not wrong. Her salary is low, and that little money is just enough for the family to eat and drink, but other expenses are really out of the question.

The reality is that although Qin Huairu's salary is so low, she still takes a few yuan from her salary every month to give to her mother-in-law, while she tries every means to get money from He Yuzhu.

He Yuzhu was no longer willing to listen to the widow's explanation. It seemed that his refusal a few days ago had not been clear enough. Fine, he would be more resolute. Anyway, he couldn't have her two ounces of fat meat.

"Sister Qin, I can't help you with this. I know your family situation, but you have to understand me. I've been working for so many years and I don't have any savings. I'll be thirty next year. If I don't save some money to get married, I'll really be a bachelor for the rest of my life. So from now on, I'll have to be frugal. I'm sorry!"

Seeing that Sha Zhu was unresponsive to both gentle persuasion and force today, Qin Huairu's eyes lit up when she heard him mention his wife again, and she said...

"Silly Zhu, if you take care of this for me today, I'll take care of your wife situation, okay?"

"Not good! Sister Qin, you don't need to trouble yourself with this. My third uncle said he'd introduce me to someone these past few days, and she's a teacher. But I prefer the classy type, so I really can't help you with this. I have to go now, I need to get back to work!"

After saying that, He Yuzhu turned and left without waiting for Qin Huairu to speak, leaving Qin Huairu looking bewildered.

Qin Huairu had completely lost her appetite for cornmeal. When she heard that her third uncle was introducing a potential partner to He Yuzhu, she panicked. This was a recipe for disaster!

Thinking of this, she turned and ran out of the factory, heading home. Originally, Qin Jingru was supposed to go back today, but since this was the case, she had to stay another day. She would have a good talk with Jingru later and ask her to find a way to deal with that idiot Zhu tonight, so as not to give others a chance.

Originally, she thought she could drag it out as long as possible. It would be better if He Yuzhu didn't like her cousin. She could keep him hanging on for a few more years, and sooner or later he would be hers.

Judging from Sha Zhu's behavior these past few days, it's obvious he's trying to get rid of her, which has made her feel terrible. Right now, she can only let her cousin Qin Jingru step in. Rather than letting an outsider benefit, she might as well let her own people benefit.

Qin Huairu simply refused to believe that her cousin, that fair-skinned and pretty silly girl, couldn't win over a 30-year-old virgin.

What kind of wicked thoughts could a scheming woman possibly have?

She simply wanted a long-term meal ticket. She was a widow with three children and a mother-in-law. Given her circumstances, if she wanted He Yuzhu to marry her, there would definitely be a lot of gossip.

She wondered how much gossip would circulate. After so many years of hesitation and agonizing, she still couldn't make up her mind to choose between her husband and her child. She simply couldn't decide, especially since she had a troublesome and unpleasant mother-in-law.

He Yuzhu could guess Qin Huairu's thoughts to some extent, but considering the prevailing social atmosphere of the time, he felt that the main reason Qin Huairu hadn't made up her mind was because she cared about her reputation.

Although she often flirted with other men in the steel mill for food, it was always in a joking manner. The old women in the steel mill workshop had made similar jokes with other men quite often.

Moreover, she was a widow raising three children and her mother-in-law alone. This vulnerable status naturally evoked sympathy, so no one would call her promiscuous.

This era was one where being poor was considered glorious, so such fame was all the more precious.

In addition, she was from the countryside, and all the women in her family were proud of her because she was able to marry into the city and transform from a farmer into a working-class person—such an inspiring story.

If, at this point, she suddenly marries a chef—and a well-off, unmarried one at that—what would people say about her?

What will the neighbors say about her?

What would the people at the steel mill say about her?

What will her relatives and friends in her rural hometown say about her?

Everything she has now comes from her deceased husband. If she remarries, what will her mother-in-law say about her?

Therefore, due to various factors, she was never able to truly accept He Yuzhu!

After all these years of talk, it can all be summed up in one piece of nonsense.

This woman has never truly fallen in love with He Yuzhu!

Chapter 16: Bitter Fruit

If a woman has truly fallen in love with a man, and sees how he has treated her and her family, silently sacrificing for them for so many years, even if he were a stubborn rock, she would soften and would have already thrown herself into his arms.

Only a lifelong virgin like He Yuzhu would foolishly dedicate his entire life's energy and effort to raising someone else's child to adulthood.

She even proactively found her child a really great job. She had saved up her own money for several years to buy a TV, but as soon as she moved in, before she could even turn it on, it was taken away.

When he got old, he didn't want to go out to work anymore. As a result, Qin Huairu took the initiative to take on a high-paying job for him, saying, "If you don't go out to work, what will your family eat?"

Is this something a human being would say?

And what did He Yuzhu get?

He went from being called "Silly Uncle" by his three children to "Silly Dad," but he never strayed from the word "silly."

Alas! Reality is too cruel for He Yuzhu!

That's why He Yuzhu wanted to cut off this hopeless relationship as soon as possible. Even if Qin Huairu wanted this relationship to take root, sprout, and bear fruit, He Yuzhu would uproot it. The fruit of such a relationship would be bitter!

He Yuzhu quickly forgot about it. The New Year was just around the corner, and people are in high spirits when they have good news. He had been promoted to canteen director, which meant a monthly salary increase and he would have full control over the canteen from now on. This was a good thing.

There's another good thing: He Yushui is getting married over the New Year. Once the wedding is over, he'll be completely free. With that silly girl around, every time she comes back, she gets bewitched by Qin Huairu and ends up nagging him for ages.

He was also quite excited about his relationship with his younger sister. He had raised her to adulthood and now she was finally getting married, which was a great relief.

Despite his carefree personality, even an iron man has his weaknesses, and that weakness lies in family.

His mother died early, and he lived with his father when he was a child. Don't think that his father was a good person. He was a complete scoundrel. From the time He Yuzhu could remember, he had to support himself with his own hands.

How did he acquire his culinary skills?

Because he was forced to do chores by his father from a young age, from steaming buns to cooking, and then to setting up a stall on the street to sell, He Yuzhu did all of these things. Can you imagine a ten-year-old child getting up at five in the morning to steam buns and sell them on the street?

He Yuzhu had experienced all of these things. When he got a little older, his father suddenly disappeared without a trace.

Upon further inquiry, it turned out that the stepmother had found a husband for him and his sister, but she didn't want them as a burden, so she essentially abandoned them.

During those years, the two siblings were destitute and relied entirely on the help of their neighbors, especially an old man and a deaf old lady who provided them with great assistance.

Fortunately, He Dapeng still had some conscience, and he left the house to his brother and sister. Later, He Yuzhu got a job at a steel mill with his skills, and was finally able to support his sister. He worked there until he was twenty-nine years old.