Chapter 8

Everyone was waiting at the entrance of the sub-bureau. After making a phone call, Tian Fen walked out of the main gate with a proud look on her face and said to everyone, "Listen up, everyone! I just reported our outstanding achievements to Section Chief Wu. He was very pleased and asked me to convey his appreciation to all of you. We won't be eating at the guesthouse tonight. Go back and freshen up quickly, and then we'll all go to Tongshan Hotel for a feast!"

"Great! Wonderful!" Everyone cheered upon hearing this...

Tian Fen glanced at her watch and said, "It's 4:50 now. We'll leave at 5:30 sharp. Anyone who is late will be left behind and will have to find their own place to eat!" She also shot a look at Xiao Yuanhang.

Xiao Yuanhang pretended not to notice and pulled Tang Jing, saying loudly, "Come on, Sister Tang, let's go back and freshen up. We can't miss the feast!" Then he walked towards the guesthouse, leaving a youthful and energetic back view for Tian Fen.

In this era of material scarcity, the opportunity to dine at one of the top hotels in Tongshui was rare, especially when it was on the company's tab. No one would be late. Xiao Yuanhang had no impression of Tongshui Hotel; in his previous life, he never had the chance to eat there. By the time he became a leader and frequently attended meetings in Tongshui, Tongshui Hotel had long since become history.

Looking at the row of low, earth-yellow painted houses, Xiao Yuanhang found it hard to associate them with one of the top hotels in Tongshui. But this was indeed Tongshui Hotel. Having seen various luxurious hotels and restaurants in the future, he felt quite nostalgic and could only follow everyone into the hotel.

Tongshui Hotel had a central entrance. Inside was a foyer. On the left was a public dining hall where a bowl of rice and a bowl of tofu and cabbage soup cost 10 cents each, and 20 cents could buy you a full meal. If you wanted a stir-fried dish, it would cost 20 or 30 cents per serving, depending on the dish. It was mealtime, and the public dining hall was crowded with people queuing up.

Tian Fen led everyone into the middle dining hall on the right. There were not many people in the middle dining hall, and only four or five of the ten tables were occupied. Want a private room? Sorry, there are none! The most luxurious option was a few semi-private booths at the back, separated by screens.

Without hesitation, Tian Fen chose a semi-private booth. After everyone sat down, she called Jiang Xuefang and Tang Jing over to order the dishes. The restaurant had only one waiter, who was responsible for clearing the tables and did not provide menu or serving services. Want to see the menu? Sorry, there isn't one! The menu was written on a blackboard at the cash register. You had to go and look at it yourself, order the dishes, and pay directly. After receiving the payment, the waiter would give you a ticket, which you had to hand to the kitchen window. The kitchen staff would prepare the dishes according to the ticket, and the waiter would serve the dishes to the window, calling out which table's dishes were ready. The guests had to go to the window to pick up their dishes.

Xiao Yuanhang found this process very curious and joined them to look at the menu. The blackboard listed about 20 dishes, and on the side, there were five levels of set meals ranging from 5 to 25 yuan. He looked closely and saw that the 5-yuan set meal included four dishes and one soup: sweet and sour pork, wood ear pork, pulled sugar ginkgo, and stir-fried fish, with a wood ear tomato soup. He couldn't help but think: This is too cheap!

Xiao Yuanhang compared the prices of the dishes in the set meal with the individual prices on the menu. The sweet and sour pork was 1.25 yuan, the wood ear pork was 0.90 yuan, the pulled sugar ginkgo was 1.05 yuan, the stir-fried fish was 1.55 yuan, and the wood ear tomato soup was 0.45 yuan. The total for the four dishes and one soup was 5.20 yuan, so the set meal was only 0.20 yuan cheaper than ordering individually!

Tian Fen ignored Xiao Yuanhang and, along with Jiang Xuefang and Tang Jing, studied the menu for a long time. They decided to order the 25-yuan set meal, which included 16 dishes and two soups, with whole chicken and fish. The chicken was a whole crispy chicken, and the fish was a large carp weighing about three pounds. It was more than enough for the 11 of them. Even so, Tang Jing still thought it was expensive, considering that pork in the market cost only 70 to 80 cents per pound. For 25 yuan, you could buy a lot of pork!

All the women in the train section could drink, and many were skilled drinkers. When the sub-bureau leaders came to inspect, these skilled drinkers would step up and ensure the leaders were well-entertained, often drinking them under the table. Tian Fen, Jiang Xuefang, and Tang Jing all had good drinking capacity, able to handle half a liter of 50-60 degree liquor.

No banquet was complete without alcohol. After some discussion, they decided to order bottled liquor instead of loose liquor. A bottle of 60-degree Tongshui liquor cost 1.55 yuan, which they felt was a bit expensive, but since Section Chief Wu had given the order, they ordered five bottles and 11 glasses, paying a total of less than 40 yuan. After handing over the tickets, the waiter brought them the liquor and beer and then sent the tickets to the kitchen.

The dishes at Tongshui Hotel were served quickly, and within half an hour, all the dishes were on the table. By then, the women at the table had already finished three bottles of liquor! With the technical performance over and their achievements recognized, everyone was in high spirits and began to drink freely. After a few glasses of liquor, the atmosphere at the table became lively.

Not all the women at the table were heavy drinkers. Li Xin, Zhang Nan, and Hu Yajie, the business representatives and train attendants, could not drink. Under the enthusiastic persuasion of Tian Fen and Jiang Xuefang, they managed to drink two small glasses and turned red, refusing to drink any more. Tian Fen then ordered them to drink beer instead.

Xiao Yuanhang had a good drinking capacity, but this was based on 38-40 degree liquor from the future. The 60-degree Tongshui liquor burned his throat like fire, making him very uncomfortable. He coughed after the first sip. Jiang Xuefang, sitting next to him, thought he couldn't drink and suggested he switch to beer. But Tian Fen wouldn't let him off, saying, "You won the technical championship, so you have to drink even if you get drunk!"

Tian Fen's attitude stirred Xiao Yuanhang's competitive spirit. It's just drinking, who's afraid of whom? Ignoring Jiang Xuefang's advice, he joined the women in drinking the strong liquor. The liquor of this era was very pure. The 60-degree liquor was initially hard to handle, but after getting used to it, it tasted rich and fragrant. Xiao Yuanhang could keep up with Tian Fen and the others, drinking two sips per glass. By the time the liquor was finished, he had not fallen behind at all. The five bottles of liquor, excluding Li Xin, Zhang Nan, and Hu Yajie, were evenly divided among the other eight, with each person drinking about 6 ounces. After finishing their beer, although no one was completely drunk, they were all about 60-70% tipsy, with some walking unsteadily.

The banquet ended before 8:00 PM. Li Xin, Zhang Nan, and Hu Yajie, who couldn't drink, were the most drunk, walking unsteadily and at risk of falling. Tian Fen arranged for three people to support them and walked them back to the guesthouse. It was just getting dark, and the day's heat had been swept away by the evening breeze, making the walk very pleasant.

Jiang Xuefang, Tang Jing, and another train conductor, Hao Xin, didn't want to go back so early and wanted to take a walk and enjoy the cool evening. Xiao Yuanhang also didn't want to go back and decided to join them. Although Tian Fen had a good drinking capacity, she rarely drank except when entertaining superiors. Today, to get Xiao Yuanhang drunk, she had to join in, but she ended up feeling dizzy and wanted to rest early. She gave some instructions to Jiang Xuefang and then left the four of them and the three drunk women and their supporters to return to the guesthouse.

In this era, there was not much to do in the evening besides watching movies. There were no karaoke bars, nightclubs, or anything like that. Even the latest movie had been showing for almost an hour. The four of them walked aimlessly down the street, chatting.

When they reached the front of the Tongshui Railway Sub-bureau Cultural Palace, they heard the strong rhythm of disco music. Tang Jing stopped and said, "I heard they opened a dance hall in the Cultural Palace. Did you hear the music? Let's go check it out."

The four of them were already 60-70% tipsy when they left the hotel, and the cool evening breeze made them even more tipsy. The music excited them. Hao Xin said, "Xiao, you won 80 yuan in bonuses today. If there's a dance hall, you have to treat us to a dance!"

Xiao Yuanhang, feeling bold from the alcohol, waved his hand generously and said, "Sure, no problem!"

**********************************************************************

PS: New book needs your support, please add to your collection and give recommendations!

{Piaotian Literature}