Chapter 18 Renting a House
Because there wasn't much wine, the two didn't dare drink too much. After all, it was just one bottle and it was gone.
Eat some food, sip some wine, smoke some cigarette, and chat while eating.
Li Daqi was very surprised at Song Yuanchao's cooking skills. He didn't expect that Song Yuanchao could cook such a good dish now. The braised pork was really flavorful, and his mouth was full of saliva when he took a bite.
As for the braised fish, Song Yuanchao’s method is different from that of ordinary people. He first fries it and then braises it, and he also adds some chili peppers. It tastes better than the usual braised fish.
Even an ordinary plate of stir-fried cabbage has a fragrant aroma because it is fried with lard.
In addition to these three dishes, there is also a plate of peanuts, which were fried by Song Yuanchao until they were extremely crispy. It was a real pleasure to chew them in your mouth.
In addition, Song Yuanchao got two large bones and white radish to cook a pot of soup, which he simmered for the whole morning. The soup was the same color as milk. Drinking a bowl of bone soup in winter can make you feel warm all over.
"Your cooking skills are amazing. I think you can be a chef in a state-owned restaurant." Li Daqi praised while eating and gave a thumbs up.
"Practice makes perfect. You will get better at it if you do it more often. Besides, although I didn't cook much when I was at home, I learned a few tricks from my mom. I have been self-reliant in the local area these years. How can I not know how to cook? This is an essential skill for life."
"Hahaha, that's true." Li Daqi laughed immediately. "I can cook a few dishes, but I can't compare with you. In Liaodong where we live, we are used to cooking in a big pot. We just put everything in it and cook a big pot and eat it with steamed bread. It tastes pretty good. I'll cook it some other day and let you try it."
"Okay! I'll have a good taste then."
Song Yuanchao saw that Li Daqi was particularly fond of braised pork and braised fish. In fact, he knew that almost no one in this era could resist the temptation of meat and fish . Due to the shortage of supplies, most people were starving. It was very good for ordinary families to have meat a few times a month, and it was impossible for them to eat as luxuriously as they did now.
Although Li Daqi loved to eat it, he stopped moving his chopsticks after taking a few bites. Instead, he turned to the plate of peanuts, picking up one with his chopsticks and putting it into his mouth, enjoying the delicious food.
Song Yuanchao deliberately picked up the largest piece of meat in the bowl and put it into Li Daqi's bowl, then picked up a piece of pork chop for him, and smiled and asked him to eat more. Since today was a private gathering between the two of them, they had to eat and drink well. What's the point of eating if they didn't enjoy it?
"Thanks, brother." Looking at the fish in the bowl, Li Daqi's eyes reddened slightly. He didn't say anything. He picked it up, took a big bite, and then drank a sip of wine.
In order to avoid embarrassment for Li Daqi, Song Yuanchao took the initiative to ask about his former classmates. Li Daqi came back earlier than him and should know more.
"It's been so many years, and now there are only three people left who can be contacted."
Li Daqi said that just as Song Yuanchao had imagined, Li Daqi did go to look for his former classmates after he came back, but they had been gone for eight years. Not many of their generation were able to stay in Shanghai. Many of them, like Song Yuanchao, went to other places to work in the countryside, and only came back in the past one or two years.
Among them, there were people who stayed in the local area and did not return. After Li Daqi went around, he finally found out about three of them. These three people were their elementary school classmate Jiang Tao, and junior high school classmates Zhang Bin and Wang Jianjun.
"Jiang Tao came back early. He ran back secretly in 1977, and then stayed in Shanghai and never went back. Last year, the policy changed and he got his hukou right away. Now he works in an enamel factory."
"This guy is smarter than us." Song Yuanchao laughed when he heard it. Song Yuanchao had a deep memory of Jiang Tao. He had a skinny figure since he was a child. When he was in elementary school, he was his and Li Daqi's follower and had a nickname called "Monkey".
Jiang Tao is a little clever, but he is lazy and not good at enduring hardship, so he ran back to Shanghai from the countryside and refused to go back. This is something only someone like him could do.
However, this was also a coincidence. Jiang Tao came back early, and his household registration was immediately implemented once the policy changed. In addition, the return of educated youth to their hometowns had just begun at that time, and job arrangements in Shanghai were not as difficult as they are now. Jiang Tao's family found someone and used his connections to get a job in the enamel factory, which was much better than Li Daqi and others who came back later.
"Where are Zhang Bin and Wang Jianjun?" Song Yuanchao asked.
"They came back around the same time as I did, and they are also unemployed and staying at home." Speaking of this, Li Daqi shook his head and said, "I met with Zhang Bin yesterday. He has been very worried these days. His family conditions are not good to begin with. There are four brothers and sisters, plus his parents and the elderly. The family of eight squeezed into a bungalow and there is no place to sleep. What's worse is that none of them have jobs. If things continue like this, they won't even have enough food to eat ."
After taking a sip of wine, Li Daqi lit up a cigarette and took a deep puff, exhaling the smoke and shaking his head: "Wang Jianjun's family is similar, they are also worried about their jobs. Remember what I said when we met last time? There are dozens of educated youth in our area who have returned and are unemployed. What will happen if this continues?"
Song Yuanchao nodded. The employment problems caused by the return of educated youth to the city were a huge problem, followed by social and public security issues. However, this topic was too big, and Song Yuanchao was just an ordinary citizen. He had no say in it.
"Find some time to call Zhang Bin and Wang Jianjun out to meet them. I haven't seen them for a long time. Oh, and Jiang Tao as well. If he's willing to come, come along."
"That's no problem. Let's do it tomorrow. I'll go find them tomorrow. We all have nothing to do at home, so it's easy to get together."
"Forget about tomorrow, let's wait two days." Song Yuanchao thought for a while and asked, "Daqi, do you have any way to get an empty warehouse or something?"
"Empty warehouse?" Li Daqi didn't quite understand Song Yuanchao's intention for a moment , and looked at him inquiringly with squinting eyes.
"Yes, an empty warehouse or an empty bungalow will do. It just needs to be a little bigger so that we can put everything inside."
"I'm talking about aiding Korea. You're not going to do anything bad, are you?" Li Daqi asked with a squint.
"Go to hell, what are you thinking about!" Song Yuanchao scolded with a smile, and then said seriously: "This is a serious matter. I will tell you what to do later. Think about where to solve the warehouse problem first."
"This..." Li Daqi smoked a cigarette and scratched his head, thinking for a while: "It's really okay to have this warehouse, and as for the bungalow, don't even think about it. Nowadays, everyone's house is tight, where can there be a vacant bungalow for you to use?"
Song Yuanchao was not surprised to hear Li Daqi say this. He nodded and said, "I just asked casually. If there is no answer, forget it. I will find another way."
"Yuan Chao, let me ask you one more thing, this is a serious matter, you are definitely not doing anything bad, right?" Li Daqi asked seriously.
"Don't worry, we are not stealing or robbing, and we are not harming national interests. This is the most serious thing we can do."
"In that case..." Li Daqi hesitated and said, "I can't find the warehouse or the bungalow, but we can think of a way to find a place like that. How about I ask around first and give you news later?"
"No problem, just pay attention, but we have to hurry up, I need it urgently." Song Yuanchao said, then raised the teacup and said with a smile: "Come on, let's continue drinking."
"Okay, cheers!"
"cheers!"
