Chapter 228

Once they had stepped outside, Wang Nianzhen immediately shared her story with Tong Xuelu. “My grandmother’s 70th birthday is coming up, and she had always wanted to have the braised pork in her memories. But she keeps saying that those made by my mom and my sister-in-law did not have the right taste.”

“Recently, I brought a piece of your braised pork home the other day, and she said it tasted a lot like what she had when she was a child. So, I am thinking… Perhaps you can make me a pot of braised pork. If you can do that for me, I will do anything for you!”As for why she didn’t just buy it from the restaurant… That was because the restaurant would not be serving braised pork on that day.Furthermore, there was a limit placed on how much each person could buy. If she was to buy all of the braised pork, someone might report her for committing capitalist practices.She had no other option but to broach the topic with the chef of the restaurant directly.Tong Xuelu thought about it some and asked, “You said you work at the garment factory?”Wang Nianzhen was a smart one. As soon as she heard that, she knew there was hope and nodded immediately. “Yes, I work at the garment factory. From time to time, there will be defective fabric and clothing at our factory……”She did not finish her sentence, but both of them knew what she was getting at.Those items might be defective, but they were still very much useful. Not to mention that they would be much cheaper. In addition, no tickets were required to acquire them.Tong Xuelu has money now but not enough tickets. All of Tong Jiaming’s and his siblings’ clothes were turning white from washing. She would need to get them each a new set.And then there was herself. She did not take any winter clothes with her when she left the other Tong family’s house. She definitely would not be able to return for them now.So she just might freeze to death this winter if she didn’t have some thicker clothes made for herself soon.The exchange that Wang Nianzhen had brought up just now solved her problems perfectly.That was what they called someone sending over a pillow when one was sleepy. That was an unexpected benefit of replacing Chef Meng.Awesome!Tong Xuelu said, “My surname is Tong. What’s yours?”Wang Nianzhen’s eyes lit up. “My name is Wang Nianzhen. I am 20 years old, and I work at the Hongyang Garment Factory!”Tong Xuelu, “……”So much information. That was such an old school way of doing things.“It just so happened that I am in need of some cotton and winter clothes. Do you have any at your place?”Wang Nianzhen nodded repeatedly. “Oh yes. It’s starting to get cold, and we started making winter clothing two months ago. How many do you need?”Without any bashfulness, Tong Xuelu confidently listed down what she needed. “I need three sets for myself – a fall set and two winter sets. I also need two sets for boys around 10 years old, and two sets for girls around 5 years old. Do you have them?”Wang Nianzhen was a little bit shocked by how much Tong Xuelu was asking. “We do, but that’s a lot that you are asking for. Are you sure you need that much?”Tong Xuelu nodded. “Someone stole my winter clothes. I won’t be able to make it through winter without replacing them.”Wang Nianzhen bashed the thief for Tong Xuelu when she heard that and said, “That’s not a problem. We will set a time to meet later.”Tong Xuelu thought about it some and said, “Bring the meat to the restaurant ahead of time on the day of. You can come and pick the food when I am done. As for the clothes, you can bring them at the end of the day.”If they take care of them separately, even if they were caught, they could just say that they were exchanging things between relatives and that it was not a trade.Wang Nianzhen liked the idea as well. She returned to her work with a smile after complimenting Tong Xuelu.After she returned to the restaurant, Meng Qingqing asked, “What did that woman want?”Both Tan Xiaoyan and Liu Dongchang looked over when Meng Qingqing asked.Tong Xuelu rolled her eyes inwardly and said, “I used to work with her sister at the garment factory. She recognized me earlier and told me something about her sister.”With that, Meng Qingqing did not pursue the subject any further.