Comfortable life in Siheyuan

Liu Qingshan followed a group of leaders from the steel rolling mill, talking and laughing as they walked towards Sha Zhu's small restaurant. Sha Zhu, wearing an apron and a chef's hat, stood at the door to greet them.

"Welcome all leaders, thank you all for taking the time out of your busy schedule to come and give me some guidance." Sha Zhu had just been lectured by He Daqing, and now he could speak more decently.

"Wow! Director He speaks differently today. He's so polite!" Director Yang looked at Sha Zhu with surprise and teased.

"Director, what are you talking about? I have controlled my temper over the years and now I am cheerful with everyone." Sha Zhu was not angry, but started to complain about his grievances.

"Please come in, let's talk inside!" Tian Xiuyun started to greet people with a smile.

The group walked into the hotel with smiles on their faces. Everyone looked at the clean and fresh new hotel and praised it.

"Dear leaders, thank you for your help and concern for He Yuzhu over the years. Today's meal is not a grand opening dinner.

Firstly, we are not planning to hold an opening ceremony. We can just set off some firecrackers at noon tomorrow. Secondly, I invited you all here today mainly to ask you to try the dishes. This is the first time I open a restaurant, and I don’t know if you will like it. Please give us some suggestions!”

Tian Xiuyun's words were also suggested by Liu Qingshan. This statement also means that he doesn't want everyone to contribute.

In fact, everyone here has tasted Sha Zhu’s cooking. They are all smart people and know what it means.

"We are very picky about words, Zhuzi, you have to show your real skills!" Liu Qingshan deliberately joked.

"Of course I will. I guarantee you'll want more after eating it."

"Zhu Zi, as long as you have a good meal today, I will arrange for the canteen's reception meals to be held directly in your restaurant in the future. But you have to get a private room."

Director Yang has always treated Sha Zhu as his own. During the years he was away, Sha Zhu had been using his power in the kitchen to take care of him.

"No problem. Thank you in advance. The construction of the private rooms is taking a while. I'll open it first, and there will be private rooms later."

"Okay, then get busy. We all came here on an empty stomach!"

Sha Zhu responded and went to the kitchen to get busy.

"Qingshan, what are you busy with now? I heard from Zhuzi that he hasn't seen you for a while?" Director Yang looked at Liu Qingshan and asked suddenly.

"I'm doing scientific research and guiding students. Now I have a project that has reached a critical stage, so I can't leave for the time being," Liu Qingshan explained.

"What project is it? Can it be implemented in our factory in the future?" Director Yang also became curious.

"This thing is not uncommon. What I am studying now is titanium alloy, which is to carry out in-depth development based on the original foundation." Liu Qingshan said with a smile.

"Hasn't this thing been around for a long time?" Deputy Director Qin asked casually, knowing more about it.

"Yeah, it's just further research!"

"We can't reach those things, right? I guess they will be used in some special fields, right?"

Director Yang also knew that this high-tech material would definitely not be used for civilian purposes first.

"Yes! The military, medical, and aviation fields will be used first."

While everyone was still preparing to chat, the food had already arrived.

The first dish was spicy chicken. As soon as it was served, everyone was attracted. A plate of red peppers and a lot of chicken.

"This dish is great, it means this restaurant will be prosperous in the future." Director Yang praised it.

"Thank you for your good wishes!" Tian Xiuyun said with a smile, then took the plate back to the kitchen.

The dishes were served even faster afterwards. Fish-flavored shredded pork, twice-cooked pork, mapo tofu, Kung Pao chicken, and Dongpo pork elbow are all Sichuan dishes.

I also made a few Shandong dishes, including sweet and sour carp, nine-turn large intestine, four-happiness meatballs, etc.

At this moment, everyone was amazed by Sha Zhu's cooking skills and they were so busy eating that they didn't even have time to talk.

After a while, seeing that everyone couldn't eat any more, Sha Zhu came out with a smile and said, "Everyone, my cooking skills are pretty good, right?"

"Shazhu, you are using our cymbals! Why didn't I realize you had this skill before in the factory?" Director Yang said with a deliberately stern face.

"The factory director criticized me, and I have to explain it to you." Sha Zhu said as he walked to the table of the factory leaders.

"Director, I'm not hiding anything. When the factory hosted a party, I cooked a lot of dishes, but not as many as today!"

In fact, the factory leaders also knew that the hospitality in the factory used to have standards, so they couldn’t do it so carelessly. Moreover, in the previous years, materials were tight, so they couldn’t do it like this!

"You're just cooking for the factory without paying enough attention to yourself. I'll criticize you at the meeting later!" The secretary also echoed.

"I accept the criticism and will cook more attentively in the future. I will serve all the leaders and workers well."

After the dinner, Liu Qingshan stood at the door with Sha Zhu's family, helping to see people out one by one and constantly saying nice things to them.

After everyone left, only the family members were left in the room. Sha Zhu sat down on the stool, exhaled a long breath and said, "Wow! I'm so tired, this social event is really not easy."

"You're just getting started. When we were in the small cafeteria before, didn't I have to do this to see off important leaders?" Liu Lan teased as she looked at Sha Zhu who was slumped there.

"It's really not easy for you!" Sha Zhu cupped his hands and said admiringly.

"Zhu Zi, I stayed in the kitchen the whole time today and didn't come out just because I wanted you two to practice your speaking skills. Now that you run your own shop, you can't talk in a choking way like before." He Daqing was quite satisfied with Sha Zhu's performance today.

"Brother, I think you and my sister-in-law can't continue this job. Once the restaurant gets busy, you won't be able to take care of the factory." Yu Shui looked at today's dishes and had some guesses in his mind.

"Yeah, I didn't feel that way when I was eating at home before, but today's table of dishes really shocked me. This business must be good." My brother-in-law also said.

"Of course not, Zhuzi, with your skills, you can definitely make a lot of money." Liu Qingshan smiled and patted Sha Zhu's shoulder.

"It's not that easy. This restaurant can only accommodate about ten tables now. We can't make a lot of money." Sha Zhu's face was filled with a satisfied smile.

"But we have to plan ahead," Tian Xiuyun interjected, "This restaurant has just opened, so there must be a lot to learn."

"Yes, yes, yes, we need to change our uniforms too. I see other restaurants have uniform work clothes." Liu Lan added.

"We also need to hire two waiters," said He Daqing.

Everyone was talking at once, and the discussion was in full swing. Sha Zhu looked at his family in front of him, and his heart was filled with warmth.

Liu Qingshan had drunk a lot today and was feeling dizzy. After Sha Zhu and his family had finished cleaning up the restaurant, they happily headed towards the courtyard.