Traveling back to 1952, starting a comeback from a relief station

Comfortable!

Wang Anping stretched his body and felt no discomfort at all. On the contrary, he felt warm all over and his mind was also clear—it seems that this is how he should practice!

He stretched his arms and legs, preparing to leave.

Not far away, an elderly man in an old cotton-padded coat was also doing his morning exercise. He was looking at me curiously, so I nodded and greeted him before turning around and leaving the park.

There's still some time before I have to go to work.

Wang Anping returned to the courtyard house first, pushed his bicycle, which Yan Bugui had polished to a shine, out of the alley, intending to go to the street for breakfast.

He didn't like the taste of douzhi (fermented mung bean juice), and he found the porridge tasteless, so he ended up ordering a bowl of douzhi instead.

Sipping his soy milk, Wang Anping pondered to himself:

When Qin Huairu comes back, we might as well set up a small stone mill at home and grind soybeans to make our own soy milk. It'll be cleaner and more palatable.

……

Yu'er Hutong Working Group.

"Comrade, who are you looking for?"

Sun Hui had just put down her things and was about to go to the rescue station when she saw a neatly dressed, good-looking young man pushing a cart into the work group's courtyard. She quickly went up to greet him.

Even if you're handsome, you can't just wander around aimlessly.

"Sister Sun, you've struck it rich! It's only been a day since we last met, and you're already disowning your former comrades who worked alongside you?"

Wang Anping parked his car and joked with a smile.

Sun Hui was taken aback at first, then her eyes widened:

"You...you are Anping?"

"My God, is that really you?"

"You look quite presentable after all this styling... cough cough cough, I never expected you to look so handsome after a haircut and a change of clothes."

"I really misjudged them before!"

Although Sun Hui was already married and had children, her eyes still lit up when she saw such a spirited young man.

Her exclamation startled everyone else in the house, who all came out to see what was going on. When they saw that the energetic young man in front of them was Wang Anping, who had been wearing a tattered cotton-padded coat a few days ago, their exclamations spread one after another, and the courtyard suddenly became lively.

On ordinary days, everyone deals with trivial matters concerning family and friends.

When faced with this novel event of "disappearing into the world," everyone is happy to join in the fun and be amazed.

Moreover, most of the working group members were women in their thirties and forties, so they found this kind of thing even more strange, including the group leader, Wang Qin.

Wang Qin walked over with a smile:

"After all this tidying up, Anping is like a completely different person; he's full of energy. By the way, Anping, I have a niece who's about your age, and she's very diligent..."

"Thank you so much, Sister Wang!" Wang Anping quickly waved his hand to stop her. "But I already have a girlfriend. I just met her yesterday. She's a really nice person, and I plan to visit her this week."

Surrounded by a group of older women teasing him, even he, with his thick skin, felt a little uncomfortable.

Those around him immediately felt a pang of regret upon hearing this.

Such a nice young man, how come he found a girlfriend so quickly?

After spending these few days together, everyone had pretty much figured out Wang Anping's personality:

He doesn't look like the kind of honest kid who just buries himself in work. He finishes cooking at the shelter and then quits, not eager to do anything. But when it comes to actually doing work, he doesn't slack off at all.

He can do the work of three people at once, which is cold and tiring, such as washing radishes and scrubbing potatoes, and his cooking skills are also superb.

Besides, they have real skills.

He's incredibly good at math; his mental arithmetic is faster and more accurate than others using an abacus. Who wouldn't praise such a young man?

Liu Yuzhi joked with a smile:

"I didn't expect you to be so quick!"

"Once things are settled, don't forget to invite everyone for wedding candy!"

Wang Anping smiled and agreed:

"Absolutely! Even if one person is missing, we won't skimp on wedding candy for all the ladies!"

After laughing and joking around for a while, everyone went their separate ways to get back to what they were doing.

Wang Anping couldn't leave for the time being, as payday was approaching in a few days. Although salaries were calculated uniformly by the district, each work group had to submit a list and information first, which also involved matters such as personal bonuses and deductions for leave.

Wang Qin asked him to stay so that he could recalculate the payroll for the Yu'er Hutong work group from the previous month.

Wang Anping just arrived last month and only worked for four days. His total salary came to 6.62 yuan.

Fortunately, he doesn't rely on this salary to make a living.

Otherwise, I'm afraid I'll have to pay in advance this month.

He carefully checked the payroll, straightened out a few minor errors, and then left the office for the shelter. Sure enough, he drew another round of astonishment.

Washing vegetables, chopping vegetables, cooking...

For Wang Anping, this rescue station was like a dungeon where he could gain cooking experience, earning at least two or three hundred proficiency points every day.

I checked the progress of the cooking while eating:

【Cooking Skill Level: Skilled (4534/10000)】

We're still a long way from the next level; at the current pace, it'll take another month or so.

However, as Wang Anping progressed from the "home-style" level to the "skilled" level, he mastered many pastry-making techniques and gained a deeper understanding of the intricacies of cooking. He also developed a greater expectation for upgrading his culinary skills.

After the meal, Wang Anping rode his bicycle to Qianmen Street and went straight to Chen Xueru's silk shop.

There weren't many customers in the shop at the moment. As soon as he entered, Chen Xueru called him into her office, took out fifty yuan, and handed it to him.

"This is your wages from last month."

"Fifty yuan?" Wang Anping was taken aback. "I only worked here for four days last month, how could I possibly earn that much?"

"Although you only worked for four days, you came every day and helped me sort out all the previous messy accounts, and even recovered several thousand yuan in bad debts. You deserve this money," Chen Xueru said honestly.

Seeing that she said that, Wang Anping accepted it without any qualms.

He thought to himself:

This money is really easy to earn; in just a few days, it's equivalent to two months' wages for an average worker.

He finally understood why Chen Xueru was willing to spend so much money to have him do the accounting.

He hadn't expected that Chen Xueru's one shop could generate a net profit of seven or eight thousand yuan a month, and that was during the off-season right after the Lunar New Year.

Once spring arrives and business picks up, the monthly profit could easily reach tens of thousands.

No wonder the higher authorities are pushing for joint public-private ownership.

Those ordinary workers earn only twenty or thirty yuan a month, which has to support their families' basic needs.

Even if they are officials, they can rise to the ministerial level.

It only costs a couple hundred yuan a month.

She's just a small shop owner, yet she earns tens of thousands a month just by running one shop. How can others possibly feel a sense of balance with that?

Wang Anping didn't know if Chen Xueru herself was aware of this, but he decided to remind her when the opportunity arose.

"Anping, is your relationship... settled?"

In the office, Chen Xueru made a cup of tea for Wang Anping and brought it over, then sat down on the sofa next to him.

Wang Anping looked up at Chen Xueru with a puzzled expression.

She seems a little... resentful?

Although he had transmigrated, Wang Anping did not believe that his imposing presence would immediately conquer women and make them fall at his feet.

At that time, Chen Xueru had a well-off young man introduced to her by someone.

Wang Anping also felt that Chen Xueru was not an ideal daughter-in-law, and as for the rest, well…

"It's settled then, I'll go to her house on Saturday to take a look."

Wang Anping gave Chen Xueru a strange look.

Chen Xueru nodded:

"Okay, her two outfits are being rushed out."

"Don't worry, it will definitely look beautiful when it's made. She will be the most dignified bride."

Wang Anping didn't want to dwell on the topic any longer. He glanced at the shop's layout and said:

"Your fabric and style are quite fashionable, but isn't the store's layout a bit too old-fashioned?"

"If it were an open counter, it would look bright and spacious, and it would be convenient to take things out."

Wang Anping has no business acumen.

Having seen so many shops from later generations, compared to those of this era, I can easily see at a glance how to make things more convenient.

Chen Xueru's silk shop is still the same as any other normal shop.

The glass display case is in front, and the fabrics are piled on the shelves behind. If customers want to see the fabrics, the staff have to take them down one by one, which is very troublesome.

Upon hearing this, Chen Xueru immediately became interested.

Although Wang Anping looked like she came from the countryside, after getting to know her, she found that this person was different from others in terms of her thoughts, knowledge, speech and behavior, and had a kind of insight.

Seeing that he had an idea, he quickly pressed for more information:

"How do I do it? Tell me in detail."