Chapter 66: Is Xie Yunshu Going to Lose Her Job?

The office was indeed much warmer than outside. Xie Yunshu sat on the sofa nearby, a wave of warmth hitting her, but she couldn’t help shivering slightly.

Oh no, she might really catch a cold. Catching a cold costs money, and if it got serious, it would affect her work. So she quickly stood up and silently started doing some stretching exercises on the spot. Moving would make her sweat; sweating a little would keep her from feeling cold.

Downstairs, people from the project team were coming in one after another under their umbrellas to pick up their lunch boxes. Because the rain was heavy, some chose to sit in the first-floor meeting room to eat in small groups. On such a cold day, being able to eat hot food was truly a blessing.

A chubby man sitting by the door eagerly opened his lunch box, his face instantly breaking into a smile. “Where did they find this cooking master? Eating like this every day, I’ve gained ten pounds this month already.”

In those still tough times, there was no such thing as dieting. Though he said that, his speed eating was anything but slow.

Yesterday’s dish was pork stewed with mushrooms, with thick vermicelli sheets and a few red chili peppers added. The spiciness wasn’t overwhelming, but on such a cold day, just one bite spread warmth throughout the body. The pork was fatty but not greasy, the mushrooms fully soaked in the broth, and eaten with rice, it was so delicious that one almost wanted to bite their own tongue.

Another dish was stir-fried Shanghai greens, quickly cooked with pork to heat it up. The color was bright green, fresh and crispy, carrying the natural fragrance of vegetables.

There were only seven or eight female comrades in the project team, and since they ate less, they often couldn’t finish all the food. “It’s tasty, but we just can’t finish it, and it’s a waste.”

A big guy nearby chuckled, “Sister Chen, if you can’t finish, just give me some. I can eat a lot and I’m not afraid of gaining weight!”

It was always like this. The few women would not finish their meals but hated wasting food, so they would share it with the male colleagues.

Sister Chen sighed reluctantly, “This isn’t fair. We all have the same food standard, but you guys eat more than us. Isn’t this a disguised loss for us?”

The big man happily took a bite of pork and played innocent, “What can we do? The food standard is set by higher-ups like this. Who told you ladies to have such small appetites? We can’t eat less just because you can’t finish, right?”

Sister Chen was an accountant, around thirty years old, and glared at him, “Zhou Dawei, don’t say another word, next time if there’s leftover food, I won’t give you any!”

Tian Hao, sitting at the edge, was in charge of logistics. Hearing this, he laughed and smoothed things over, “As long as you’re full, that’s what matters. Don’t fuss over who’s losing or gaining. Losing is actually a blessing!”

Sister Chen sneered, “If losing is a blessing, then why don’t you lose some?”

She knew very well that the meal funds allocated from above were only one yuan per person. It was impossible to have separate meals just for a few women. Even if they separated the meals, it wouldn’t benefit them much. There was no way the cooks would individually calculate and return a few cents just because some meals weren’t eaten. These men were taking advantage and then acting smug, which was really infuriating.

However, while these few were chatting, they didn’t notice a few middle-aged men standing just outside the meeting room door.

The man furthest out, dressed in a Zhongshan suit, looked about fifty. He held a lunch box and smiled a little: “Su Bai, looks like everyone still has complaints about the meals!”

Shen Subai replied calmly, “Given the current conditions, there’s no better solution.”

“That stubborn boy, you always block me with one sentence!”

The middle-aged man didn’t get angry, just gave him a helpless look and turned to a nearby office. “Come here to talk, don’t disturb the comrades eating.”

He was the Party Secretary of Haicheng City. Behind him were several leaders from Haicheng’s Housing and Urban-Rural Development Department. Though it was raining hard, they had come to inspect the project. According to Secretary Jiang, rainy days better reveal safety issues on site.

They had just walked around in rain boots under umbrellas and found no major problems with Shen Subai’s work.

Sitting at the table, Secretary Jiang opened his steaming lunch box, somewhat surprised: “Eating this well on a one-yuan meal standard? Su Bai, I thought you don’t do superficial stuff!”

Shen Subai smiled slightly, “It’s always been this meal standard. The cook didn’t know there were leaders around yesterday. She’s been sending meals for days and definitely isn’t losing money on this.”

Secretary Jiang believed him — after all, he had watched this kid grow up…

Nearby, the housing department director started eating. These leaders had lived through the hardest famine years, so they naturally respected food and never wasted any. Two bites of mushrooms, one bite of greens, then some rice.

“Really tasty. This pork is home-cooked, so fragrant!” The director praised highly, then took two more bites of rice, “The rice portion is sufficient too.”

Shen Subai took out a small tea cup, “These are pickled vegetables and chili oil served with the meals. Everyone likes them. I took some in this cup.”

“These are basically freebies?” Secretary Jiang became interested. He tasted the pickles, a smile appearing in his eyes, “Which restaurant is this cook from? The taste and portion are great, the pickles are good too.”

Shen Subai was honest, “Not a restaurant. A female comrade cooks daily and delivers it here. We settle payment with her at the one yuan per meal standard and signed an agreement.”

“An individual?” Jiang Secretary was stunned for a moment. Then he recalled the complaints he heard earlier from the women in the meeting room, pondering, “Su Bai, the southern land is about to be developed — a key project in the city. There will be many migrant workers and workers from the south coming here. Safety is crucial, but we also have to solve the eating problem well.”

Shen Subai nodded, “I will think of a way.”

Secretary Jiang shook his head, “Not ‘think of a way,’ it must be solved before the new year. I already called the contractor from the south before coming here. They planned to continue this style of meal delivery, but now I have a new idea.”

Shen Subai’s heart stirred — if they stopped delivering meals, does that mean Xie Yunshu might lose her job?

Secretary Jiang continued, “We must ensure not only the project team eats well, but also the migrant workers! I just toured the workers’ dormitory. Most are preparing to go home, but when I asked, I learned that mealtime is a big problem there. They’re all our people, contributing to the country. We can’t treat them differently.”

“Actually, the comrades delivering meals to the project also sell meals outside the site every day, at a low price and with enough quantity.” Shen Subai pressed his lips, unintentionally adding, “But everyone has gotten used to the food she cooks…”

Secretary Jiang chuckled, “This is the first time I’ve heard you speak up for someone. Looks like this lady’s cooking skills and character are both good.”

This great nephew of his was like a machine at work — not just strict with outsiders but even with family, never showing favoritism. To put it nicely, he was upright; to put it harshly, he was too blunt.

If it weren’t for his family background, Su Bai wouldn’t be suited for officialdom and would have been better off staying in the army…

His sister at home was desperately anxious, mumbling to herself because women were rarer than giant pandas in the army. Su Bai was cold and rigid; when girls liked him, he wouldn’t even give a smile back.

So they used connections to transfer him to Haicheng to handle safety issues and paired him up with the slick talker from the Tian family, hoping he would “learn” quickly and soon bring a girl home…