Rebirth in the 50s: The Couple with the Hidden Space-Chapter 487 - 373: Street Canteen

In the evening, following Aunt Wang and a group’s campaign, every household started sending their firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar to the street canteen.

Zhou Jiao didn’t know if everyone was wholeheartedly contributing everything without holding back. But she and a few acquaintances certainly wouldn’t do that.

The joyful sounds of everyone in the night echoed loudly and lingered for a long time. Indeed, it’s a cause for celebration; in these times, being able to eat until full at will is indeed joyful.

Early the next morning, the door of Zhang Guoqing’s home had already been knocked on countless times. The couple, smiling broadly, looked at the excited and enthusiastic relatives, friends, and neighbors in front of them and could only open the door and listen to their visions.

Even before mealtime, door knocks, shouts, and the cheers of children resounded through the streets and alleys. Gradually, people started gathering in groups and heading to the canteen.

The women were happy to be free from chores, and the men were glad they didn’t have to queue in the cold winter or hot summer. Along the way, laughter filled the air, occasionally interspersed with little rumors about the three meals, sparking waves of exclamation.

Zhou Jiao wished she could capture this moment in a photo, preserving it forever. She looked at the smiling face of her son in Zhang Guoqing’s arms and had a sudden realization—one must seize the moment and enjoy it, savoring the present pleasures.

With this understanding, her mood improved, and she looked at Zhang Guoqing with playful intrigue. This man is remarkable! Why bother coming to the canteen instead of going to work?

When the group arrived at the canteen, there was already a long queue in the hall, and many were seated at the tables. Self-reliance, everyone went up, took their utensils, and queued up.

Immersed in the scene, listening to everyone’s laughter and smelling the aroma of the food, Zhou Jiao reminisced about her university canteen days. Watching those who received their breakfast pass by with their bowls, she wondered about the cook’s skills and began to miss the master chef from the south.

Alas...Master Fatty just left like that. Left a note for Zhang Guoqing and disappeared without a word. It’s good that he left, left when he should have.

Looking at the wide variety of breakfast options in front of her, Zhou Jiao pulled her thoughts back.

Buns, steamed bread, deep-fried dough sticks... they really went all out.

Lin Juhua signaled to her, and she smiled—having someone in the right place is indeed useful.

After sitting down, looking at the assorted breakfast dishes from Father Zhang, Mother Zhang, Zhang the Second, and the two sisters of the Zhang family, Zhou Jiao couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

Mother Zhang looked around the canteen happily, "Lively, isn’t it? Your second sister-in-law says there’ll be big fatty meat at noon. Life is getting better and better."

Her words sparked conversation at the neighboring tables.

Zhang Guoqing quickly finished his meal, took over his son, and whispered, "Eat quickly, if not enough, go get more."

Mother Zhang, sitting beside them, overheard and couldn’t focus on chatting with their relatives. She quickly followed up in a low voice, "Don’t drink the porridge first, eat the buns, soak the dough sticks in porridge."

Zhou Jiao nodded repeatedly, "Mom, you eat quickly too." She had a small appetite and couldn’t stuff more food down. Her mother-in-law, on the other hand, should eat more. It would be a pity if they go back to rations in a few days.

Zhang Guoqing had long noticed that their family belonged to the overly polite type. The management said to take as much as you could eat, waste was shameful. The detailed rules hadn’t been rolled out yet on the first day, but he discovered that many were already wasting food. Who would heaven punish if not them?

Holding his son and carrying a tray, he stood up and walked to the front of the line. After a while, he and Mother Zhang came back with ten meat buns and ten deep-fried dough sticks. These wouldn’t even fill the gap between his father’s teeth. Why be overly polite?

"Dad, you and mom keep eating. Aunt Chen and Uncle, is it enough? I’ll help you get more."

Zhang Meihao’s mother-in-law quickly waved her hands, "No need. I’ve had enough. Let Uncle eat, and we’ll talk later."

Zhang Guoqing didn’t insist given the situation. Anyway, the food was there; if they wanted to eat more, they could get it.

The ten buns and ten deep-fried dough sticks were soon devoured by Father Zhang and Mother Zhang. After eating, he glanced at his eldest son’s family, who had been waiting, and then at his daughter, son-in-law, and in-laws who were still eating heartily.

There were too many people here to speak conveniently; he felt he should go back and talk with his eldest son’s family. The way they were eating was too stingy; they had to find a solution.

On the other side, Mother Zhang saw her eldest son-in-law was absent-minded and said, "Your father and mother must be full. You and Meili, go to the village to see them after dinner, and come back to tell us."

Zhang Chunming swallowed hard and said, "Mom, I went back last night. I heard they’re eating pancakes and cornbread; it’s still like regular..."

Before he could finish, Zhang Guoqing quickly coughed a few times, interrupting what he was about to say, winked at him, but seeing his confused face, he felt immensely frustrated.

The old captain was such a clever person; how could he not know to leave some leeway? This time the village had so much grain collected, the elderly wished everyone could just drink porridge every day. If his brother-in-law’s words spread, it could lead to serious consequences like the old captain not supporting the upper decisions, or at minor, everyone would know Zhang Family Village had surplus grain, leading to repercussions later.

"Brother-in-law, have some time to visit the old captain. What they eat doesn’t matter; they and Aunt still want you to keep them company and chat, and if there are any problems, they can ask the captain for advice."

"Mm, do not worry, Xiao Wu."

Old Chen, listening beside, looked at his son and noticed that he understood too, feeling very comforted inside. Even he hadn’t thought about that point earlier. He decided to let his son interact with Xiao Wu more in the future.

After finishing breakfast, everyone parted ways; those who needed to work went to work. Father Zhang and Mother Zhang, concerned about the eldest son, leisurely took Shi Tou and Mai Sui to Zhang Guofu’s house.

At noon, when Zhang Guoqing came back from work, his family hadn’t reached the canteen yet, but from outside the yard, they could smell the rich aroma of meat.

Zhang Guoqing sniffed and said, "Smells good, doesn’t it? If dad and mom came this early, doesn’t the smell make them hungry?"

"Meat."

Zhang Guoqing whispered, laughing as he patted his son’s little head, "Ping’an is really smart. Just point to what you want to eat for daddy, okay?"

Zhou Jiao saw her son nod, gave him a thumbs up, and watching him laugh gleefully, she felt happy too. Children really could understand words now.

As soon as they entered, Zhang Mother immediately waved at them from the line.

With a big plate and bucket of food coming out, cheers erupted from the crowd. Even though forewarned, seeing it with their own eyes was different; the taste and smell of braised pork whetted the appetite even more.

The woman dishing out meat loudly proclaimed, "Stop shouting. Everyone gets a big piece of fatty meat."

As soon as her words fell, slogans followed immediately.

The white rice, braised pork, sautéed three treasures, and more for lunch made everyone laugh heartily and shout, almost lifting the canteen roof.

With the stimulus of everyone having three to five bowls of rice, Zhou Jiao ate two full bowls of rice, the most in her life, to the point of bursting, unable to rise from her seat.

Zhang Guoqing saw this and stifled a laugh, feeling his intestines almost tying up. He realized his wife was really naive, actually following his parents’ encouragement.

For three consecutive days, abundant meals were served, and laughter echoed from every house; in-law relationships improved, couples argued less, and children got scolded less.

The street office staff worried. Looking at the stock levels and calculating repeatedly on spreadsheets, they quickly formulated detailed regulations. The consequence was starting to distinguish workers by type, age, and imposing time and ration limits.

After the announcement, everyone understood and supported it. It was enough to be full and have meat in the dishes, even if it’s just a shred. Such days couldn’t be exchanged for gold, so there was nothing to be dissatisfied with.