At noon, the agency staff walked to the canteen one after another with rice bowls. Only when eating can you meet some people you don't usually see. No, Feng Qikun from the Family Planning Office rushed out of the gate on his bicycle in a hurry. Come in. He quickly rides to the entrance of the canteen, throws the bicycle away, and rushes into the canteen.
Feng Qikun is about 40 years old and a native of Shihe Village. The town government is known for being very careful about budgeting. Take this meal for example. He usually goes to work without seeing anyone, but when it comes to meal time, he is more punctual than the rooster crows. He is sure to rush over from home with a stopwatch. He has a wife and children, but in order to enjoy the free lunch in the cafeteria, he had to give up eating with his family. For more than ten years, he has never missed a meal, rain or shine.
Shen Tong also came to the cafeteria with a rice bowl. As soon as he entered the cafeteria, the government officials surrounded the stove like an iron barrel, trying to find every opportunity, but not even a fly could fly past.
"What's the rush? What's the rush? Haven't you seen the meal yet? I've never seen you people. You're not so active in your work. You eat more than those who work in the fields." He is doing it. Liu Ma, the rice cook, shouted loudly while cooking the noodles.
Everyone seems to be used to this kind of life. Some people banged their bowls and chopsticks and shouted: "Liu Ma, when the secretary is here, you are both meat and vegetables. When the secretary is not here, you just eat potatoes and cabbage all day long. Look, in the vegetables There’s not even a bit of oily smell, so do you think it won’t make our digestion faster after eating it?”
"Don't complain to me here. You said that all of you are leading cadres, and that one is no better than my cooking wife. If you have the ability, you can come back and buy groceries. I cook them for you every day. You won't have backache when you stand and talk." When you get the money, you will deduct it one by one, and it will be nice if I can give you free meals. Another day I will give advice to the secretary and collect the food expenses from you one by one."
Liu Ma, it doesn’t matter if you are the mayor or ordinary people, your mouths will be clucked together, which proves the saying, those who are barefoot are not afraid of those who wear shoes.
After a while, the noodles were not cooked yet, and some people couldn't wait anymore. They picked up the chopsticks in their hands and scooped them up. The people next to them saw it and followed suit, pushing Liu Ma almost to the top of the swill bucket. After a while, the pot of uncooked noodles had been snatched away. Everyone who had caught the noodles was very happy and squeezed out of the crowd with shiny faces.
Liu Ma helplessly started to move down again, chattering endlessly: "I have never seen you people, just like the Japanese devils."
When it was Shen Tong's turn to fish out the noodles, people who had just eaten the first bowl came over again. They didn't care, picked up the chopsticks, licked them with their tongues, and directly inserted them into the pot to fish out the noodles.
"What are you fishing for? Just potatoes and cabbage. Can you fish out the meat?" Zhang Yisheng from the Agricultural Committee Office wore thick eyes and turned over and over in the vegetable pot without blinking.
Shen Tong finally caught the noodles, and when he walked to the pot, it was almost bottomed out. Liu Ma looked serious, holding a spoon in her hand, standing in front of the pot like an iron tower, and asked: "What bowl is yours?"
Shen Tong said aggrievedly: "This is my first bowl."
"This is your first bowl? I obviously saw you have already taken one bowl, why do you say it is your first bowl now?" Liu Ma was like a resentful woman, with a long face filled with bitterness and hatred, as if she wanted to eat her. Same as home.
Shen Tong handed the bowl over and argued: "Look for yourself, the edge of the bowl is still clean, I won't jump in and grab it, right?"
The people on the side also testified for Shen Tong, so Liu Ma picked up the spoon, put it into the pot and scooped out a spoonful of vegetables, then shook it again and put it into Shen Tong's rice bowl. She also muttered: "A new guy here Yeah, I haven’t done much work yet, and I’m quite angry.”
Shen Tong couldn't argue, and walked out of the canteen angrily with the rice bowl. Eating a meal is like queuing up to buy a train ticket. It requires quick eyesight, quick hands, and nimble legs and feet. If you react a little slower, come on, you go back to eat instant noodles at noon today. Bar.
Today, the leaders of the town are not here, so some people choose to eat in private rooms. Some people are already accustomed to eating in the peasant style, squatting at the door, forming a circle, chatting, laughing and anecdotes.
The young female cadres ate less and basically chose to go back to their dormitories for dinner. A dinner without women would be less interesting to talk about. But the older women, with their legs crossed and more heroic than some male cadres, still Let them talk about men and women, adding a word or two from time to time.
When Shen Tong was eating, the cadres in the town just asked about his situation. Some even asked about similar topics like what his ancestors did, which made it difficult for Shen Tong to answer for a while. Zhao Yitang said that the level of cadres in Shihe Town Not high, and from this point of view, it is indeed the case.
Feng Qikun was having dinner and was about to leave on his bicycle in a hurry. Someone else asked: "Why are you going back in a hurry? We will play mahjong later."
Feng Qikun wiped his mouth and said: "The child's mother is not at home today. I have to go back and cook for the child. I guess I will be home from school by now. I'll come over after I've finished cooking. Count me in."
"Oh, it's better to pack some food and take it back to the children," said Zhao Zhikang from the enterprise office.
Feng Qikun thought about it in a daze, then got off the bicycle and said, "You're right, I'll go in and see if there's any food left." After saying that, he set up the bicycle, took it and hung it on the handlebar. took the rice bowl and walked into the canteen.
After a while, Feng Qikun and Liu Ma had a quarrel in the cafeteria, but Zhao Zhikang and the others laughed there. He said, "Kunzi is such a scumbag."
After Shen Tong had eaten, he walked to the dormitory. After a while, Feng Qikun rode out on his bicycle. Looking at the empty rice bowl, he probably didn't have food, but Shen Tong carefully noticed that Feng Qikun's pockets were bulging. You can tell it's a potato by its shape.
Shen Tong despised this kind of man who was calculating and calculating, but looking back, he was also forced by the pressure of life. If he were rich and the conditions allowed, would Feng Qikun still be like this? Shen Tong couldn't help but feel some pity for him.
As soon as they arrived at the door of the dormitory, the door of the dormitory next door, which had been closed these days, was actually open. Shen Tong walked over curiously and knocked on the door.
The person who opened the door was actually Liu Huiman, whom she had met on the street that day when she went to the countryside. Shen Tong was excited for a moment. He said incoherently: "Hello, my name is Shen Tong."
Liu Siman tied her forehead hair behind her ears with her hands, smiled and said, "Hello, my name is Liu Huiman, and I'm here to intern at the town government."
The sweet smile made Shen Tong feel numb all over, especially the proud bust, which was like a circle drawn with a compass with the breast as the center, full and well-proportioned. Shen Tong's mouth was dry for a moment, and he wanted to touch it.
Liu Huiman looked at Shen Tong's dazed eyes, and her face suddenly turned red.
Shen Tong also realized his gaffe and said happily: "Welcome to your arrival. My dormitory is next door. If you need anything, call me anytime."
Liu Huiman smiled again, and Shen Tong leaned forward unconsciously.
It turns out that Liu Huiman graduated today, and Ma Guotao promised Liu Dalei to arrange a job for his daughter. Before the job is implemented, she can intern at the town government for a period of time. Liu Dalei's family is poor, and the whole family has lived on a kang all their lives. But Now that his daughter is older, it would be inappropriate to live together again. So Ma Guotao asked Liu Huiman to live in the town government.