Chapter 164 Year 3

On the afternoon of the 30th of the twelfth lunar month, sunlight streamed through the bare branches of the sycamore trees in the family compound, casting slanting rays onto the sunlit glass windows.

The heating in the room was on full blast, and a thin layer of white fog had formed on the glass.

Chen Jianguo stood against the wall in the living room, holding a slightly damp rag, repeatedly wiping a brand-new double-door refrigerator. The new refrigerator was huge, almost taking up an entire corner of the living room.

To accommodate this large item, Chen Jianguo insisted on moving his old wooden five-drawer chest, which he had used for over ten years, to the balcony yesterday.

"Dad, you've wiped that panel four times today."

Chen Zhuo sat on the sofa in the middle of the living room, holding a tangerine in his hand and slowly peeling it.

"You don't understand."

Chen Jianguo straightened up, took two steps back, and examined his work, his face full of undisguised pride.

"This is called a brushed metal finish. If you don't wipe it often, it's easy to leave fingerprints. Look at this capacity and the cooling effect. The freezer compartment was frosted up in just half an hour after I plugged it in."

As Chen Jianguo spoke, he reached out and opened the door to the right-hand cold storage room.

A wisp of cold white air seeped down through the crack in the door.

The refrigerator was packed full.

On the top layer was a large bowl of deep-fried ribbonfish that Liu Xiuying had just fried yesterday. The middle two layers were filled with washed celery, garlic chives, a few bunches of bright green spinach, and two bowls full of ribs. The compartment by the door was stuffed with eggs and several bottles of Da Bai Li soda.

"With this space, your mother won't have to hang the meat for the New Year outside the window and freeze anymore."

Chen Jianguo sighed and reached out to touch the drawer of the refrigerator.

"Bang."

The kitchen door was pushed open a crack, and Liu Xiuying, wearing a slightly faded floral apron and holding a spatula still covered in oil, leaned out.

"Chen Jianguo, if you keep leaving that refrigerator door open to let in the cold air, you'll have to pay your cigarette money for next month's electricity bill!"

Liu Xiuying raised her voice.

Chen Jianguo's hand trembled, and he quickly pushed the refrigerator door shut, closing it tightly.

"I was just checking the cooling effect."

Chen Jianguo muttered something and draped the rag over the chair next to him.

"What inspection? Can't you see I'm busy here? Come over and peel these two cloves of garlic."

Liu Xiuying gave orders in a rather impatient manner.

"Here it comes, here it comes."

Chen Jianguo responded and turned to go into the kitchen.

Soon, the kitchen echoed with the crisp sound of spatulas striking iron pots and the sizzling of hot oil.

Chen Zhuo popped the peeled orange into his mouth, feeling quite content.

"Xiao Zhuo!"

Liu Xiuying's voice came from the kitchen again; this time she was calling him.

"exist."

Chen Zhu swallowed the orange and responded with a sound.

The kitchen door was pushed open completely, and Liu Xiuying came out carrying a small porcelain bowl, which was half-filled with sauce.

"We're out of dark soy sauce at home."

Liu Xiuying frowned as she looked at the bowl in her hand.

"This light soy sauce won't give me any color. I'm going to stew a pot of braised beef this afternoon, and if the color is too light, it won't look appetizing."

Chen Zhuo took out a tissue and wiped his hands.

"Light soy sauce actually has a higher amino acid nitrogen content than dark soy sauce. From the perspective of extracting umami flavor from proteins, light soy sauce is enough," Chen Zhuo said cautiously, sitting on the sofa.

Liu Xiuying glared at him.

"Who eats beef during the Lunar New Year just to get that nitrogen stuff? If braised pork isn't red, can it even be called braised pork?"

Liu Xiuying placed the porcelain bowl on the dining table, then turned and rummaged in the pocket of her apron.

She pulled out a crumpled two-yuan bill and two ten-cent coins, walked a few steps to the sofa, and stuffed them into Chen Zhuo's hand. "Go downstairs to Old Li's convenience store at the alley entrance and buy a bottle of Haitian brand dark soy sauce. Remember, it has to be the kind brewed from soybean soy sauce, not the adulterated kind."

Liu Xiuying urged.

"Hurry up, the oil in the pan is still hot. It'll be just the right time to caramelize the sugar when you get back."

Chen Zhuo looked down at the two yuan and two mao in his palm.

Just a few days ago, he was in a laboratory hundreds of kilometers away, facing tens of millions of yuan in project funding and a screen full of underlying computing power data. At that time, Professor Li Jianming held his hand, trying to get him to stay in the ivory tower to crack world-class mathematical conjectures.

Now, he is a twelve-year-old boy who has been sent by his mother to buy soy sauce.

"OK."

Chen Zhuo clutched the money in his hand and stood up.

Pushing open the security door, a blast of cold air, mixed with the aromas of cooking from every household, rushed into the hallway.

On the third floor, Aunt Zhang was frying ribbonfish in the hallway. The gas stove was set up right outside her door. In the boiling oil, the ribbonfish pieces coated in batter were rolling around, emitting an enticing aroma.

Chen Zhuo walked down the stairs.

"Oh, Xiao Zhuo."

Aunt Zhang, holding long chopsticks, turned her head and saw Chen Zhuo, a smile appearing on her face.

"Hello, Grandma Zhang."

"Happy New Year! Happy New Year! Where are you going on New Year's Eve?"

Chen Zhuo stopped, greeted them, and pointed downstairs.

"My mom is stewing meat in a pot, waiting for the dark soy sauce to color it, so I need to go to the corner store at the end of the alley to buy a bottle of soy sauce."

Aunt Zhang laughed after hearing this, and the hot oil in the pan sizzled.

"Oh my, our top student in the family compound, the great scientist, is personally running errands to buy soy sauce during the New Year holiday?"

Aunt Zhang looked Chen Zhuo up and down, her tone full of the unique fondness and envy of an elder.

"Your dad said that after graduation, you'll be guaranteed a stable, government-supported job."

In her mind, going to university meant leaving this residential compound and getting a stable job.

As for things like gifted youth programs, physics, and mathematics, she didn't understand them, nor did she need to.

"It's not that exaggerated, Grandma Zhang. She just changed places to continue her studies."

Chen Zhuo smiled, his tone very ordinary.

"This child has been steady and mature since he was a child."

Aunt Zhang used long chopsticks to pick up a piece of golden-fried ribbonfish and handed it over.

"Here, it's fresh out of the oven, have a piece."

"Thank you, Grandma Zhang. My mom just fried some meatballs, and I'm full now."

Chen Zhuo waved his hand.

"Go quickly, don't delay your mom from cooking."

Chen Zhuo continued down the stairs.

Although it was afternoon, the sunlight was still very bright. The snow on the ground had long been trampled solid, and in some places it had melted and then re-frozen, making it hard and slippery to walk on.

A strong smell of firecrackers filled the air.

At that time, fireworks and firecrackers were not yet completely banned in the city. Everywhere there were red paper scraps from the firecracker explosions, like a scattered red carpet on the snow.

In the open space of the family compound, several teenagers were playing with firecrackers.

They wore thick cotton-padded coats, and the cuffs were shiny from wiping their noses so often.

A boy held a box of Black Tiger firecrackers and scratched the side of the box hard.

Hissing white smoke immediately rose from the lead wire.

The boy timed it perfectly, and just as the white smoke grew larger, he forcefully threw the firecracker at a broken metal can in the middle of the open space.

"Bang!"

The tin can was blown up, flipped in mid-air, and crashed onto the snow with a thud.

The boys shouted and jumped excitedly.

Chen Zhuo walked slowly past, his hands in the pockets of his down jacket.

The boy who threw the firecracker turned around and saw Chen Zhuo.

The children in the residential compound all know each other. They often run around downstairs and know who is who.

"Brother Zhuo, are you in or not?"

The boy sniffed, then generously pulled a firecracker from the box and handed it over along with the matchbox.

Chen Zhuo stopped in his tracks.

He glanced at the firecracker wrapped in red paper in the boy's hand, but didn't reach out to take it. Instead, he smiled and raised his hand, showing off the two yuan and two mao coins he had been clutching in his palm.

"I can't play it."

Chen Zhuo shrugged, his tone revealing a helpless sigh.

"He was carrying the Empress Dowager's urgent imperial edict on his back."

The boys, who were only a few years old, were stunned for a moment.

"My mom was heating oil in a pot, stewing braised pork, waiting for the dark soy sauce to be added for color."

Chen Zhuo pointed with his thumb in the direction of his apartment building.

"If this soy sauce had been brought back even a minute later, the braised pork would have burned, and my mom would have set me on fire like a firecracker. You guys can play with it yourselves, but watch out when you throw it."

Upon hearing this, the boys immediately grinned.

In their world, whether you're in middle school or university away from home, the only truth in the compound is that you're afraid of your mom getting angry and hitting you with a broom when you get home. That vague sense of distance from before vanished instantly.

The boy who had handed the firecracker chuckled and withdrew his hand, then bent down to prepare to strike it himself with a match.

Chen Zhuo turned around, took half a step, and then suddenly stopped.

He casually raised his head and glanced at the second floor of the apartment building behind the boys.

"By the way, Tiger."

Chen Zhuo looked at the boy who was bending down to strike a match, his tone gentle, even carrying a hint of concern from a neighborly older brother.

"When I went downstairs just now, I saw that your balcony window was open, and your dad seemed to be peering out the window looking for you, with a feather duster in his hand."

The boy's hand trembled violently.

The firecracker, which had just sparked, instantly became unbearably hot. He screamed in fright and threw the smoking firecracker and matchbox into a snowdrift some distance away.

"Holy crap! Wasn't Dad supposed to be on duty at the factory?"

The boy, his face filled with terror, scrambled back two steps, craning his neck to stare intently at his empty sunbeams, barely daring to breathe. His companions nearby also jumped in fright, quickly hiding their firecrackers in their coat pockets, craning their necks and looking around furtively, afraid of being caught in the crossfire. "Bang!"

A muffled thud came from the snowdrift, sending up a small clump of snow mixed with mud.

Chen Zhuo did not turn back.

He put his hand, which was clutching the change, back into his pocket, a leisurely smile on his lips, and continued strolling unhurriedly toward the alley entrance, braving the dry, chilly afternoon wind.

A group of terrified children were left behind, still standing in the cold wind, anxiously watching the empty second-floor balcony.

The street at the entrance of the alley was much more lively than the residential compound.

A long row of stalls selling Spring Festival couplets and red lanterns lined the sidewalk, creating a sea of ​​red. Bicycles selling candied hawthorns were parked by the roadside, their glass cases filled with strings of hawthorns coated in clear syrup.

Bicycles and tricycles come and go on the road, most of them with newly bought New Year's goods hanging on their handlebars.

Old Li's small shop is located on the corner of the street.

Newly pasted "Fu" characters were affixed to the sliding door, and several boxes of loose tangerines and boxed apples were piled up at the entrance.

As I pushed open the door, the bell above the door jingled once.

Behind the cabinet directly opposite the door was an old CRT television set. The screen was replaying the Spring Festival Gala from previous years. Zhao Benshan and Xiao Shenyang hadn't appeared yet, and a singer in a red dress was singing on the screen.

The shop owner, Lao Li, was wearing a shiny black leather jacket and standing behind the counter, taking out payments for customers.

There were three or four people crowded in front of the counter.

An older woman wearing a floral headscarf was picking through loose sunflower seeds in a plastic basket, while a middle-aged man in a jacket was buying cigarettes. Chen Zhuo didn't try to squeeze in; instead, he walked to the shelf against the wall, his gaze sweeping over the rows of condiments.

Vinegar, cooking wine, sesame oil, soybean oil.

His gaze lingered on the bottom floor.

There were several bottles of soy sauce there. He squatted down and glanced at the label.

Two bottles of light soy sauce and one bottle of premium soy sauce, but not the Haitian brand dark soy sauce that Lao Li wanted.

"Uncle Li."

Chen Zhuo stood up and called out towards the counter.

Old Li was busy giving the middle-aged man change when he heard the sound and looked up from a pile of change.

"Hey, Xiao Zhuo, when did you get back?"

Old Li recognized Chen Zhuo.

In this residential compound, Chen Zhuo's name is quite well-known.

"I've been back for a few days."

Chen Zhuo walked to the counter.

"Uncle Li, we're out of dark soy sauce. My mom asked me to buy a bottle of Haitian brand dark soy sauce, but I can't find it on the shelf."

"Dark soy sauce."

Old Li handed the two yuan in his hand to the middle-aged man and turned to look at a cardboard box behind him.

"The soy sauce sold out quickly during the Lunar New Year holiday. The shelves are empty, but there are still some in the boxes. Let me get you some."

At this moment, an old man wearing an old cotton-padded coat walked up to the counter, holding two bags of salt and a bottle of Erguotou liquor.

The old man placed the items on the counter, took out a handful of crumpled banknotes and a few coins from his pocket, and counted them with some difficulty. "Two bags of salt, one yuan and two jiao; a bottle of wine, three yuan and fifty jiao; the total is..."

The old man lowered his head, muttered to himself, and fiddled with a pile of loose change.

Old Li was busy rummaging through the box for soy sauce, so he didn't pay attention to this side.

"Four dollars and seventy cents."

Chen Zhuo's voice rang out from the side.

The old man raised his head and glanced at Chen Zhuo.

"You have a five-dollar bill in your hand."

Chen Zhuo pointed to the green banknote in the old man's palm.

"Just give him five dollars and tell him to give you three mao in change."

The old man paused for a moment, looked down at the money in his hand, and then looked at the items on the counter.

"Yes, yes, four dollars and seventy cents, five dollars and three mao change."

The old man suddenly realized what was happening, and pulled out the five-yuan bill and slapped it on the glass cabinet.

Just then, Old Li stood up with a bottle of dark soy sauce in his hand.

"Here you go, Haitian dark soy sauce, two yuan and two mao."

Old Li put the soy sauce on the counter.

Chen Zhuo placed the two-yuan bill and two one-mao coins that he had been holding in his hand on the counter.

Old Li took the money, then casually pulled open a drawer under the counter, took out three one-cent coins, and handed them to the old man who bought the liquor. The old man took the change and the liquor, muttering to himself that "kids these days are really smart," and slowly walked out of the convenience store.

Chen Zhuo reached out and picked up the bottle of soy sauce.

"Xiao Zhuo, is studying at university tiring?"

Old Li leaned against the counter, took out a Hongtashan cigarette from the tin box, and put it in his mouth.

"good."

Chen Zhuo switched the soy sauce to his right hand.

"It's similar to junior high school, except the books are a bit thicker."

Old Li exhaled a puff of smoke and laughed.

"You're such a honest kid. All the neighbors say you'll grow up to be a great scientist and build the atomic bomb for our country," Old Li said, pointing to the television above his head.

"Maybe I'll see you on TV someday."

Chen Zhuo followed Old Li's finger and glanced at the large TV. The screen was playing a Brain Gold (a health supplement) video, with two animated old men and women dancing and twisting their waists.

"We don't need to build atomic bombs anymore; I'm going to build something even more powerful."

Chen Zhuo stared at the television screen with a serious expression.

"Uncle Li, Happy New Year! May your business prosper!"

After saying that, Chen Zhuo took the bottle of soy sauce, pushed open the door, and walked out.

The bell above the door jingled again.

Old Li, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, watched Chen Zhuo's departing figure, and shook his head with a smile.

Chen Zhuo was walking home.

One by one, the streetlights along the street lit up, emitting a dim yellow glow, and the sound of firecrackers rose and fell in the distance, one after another, a prelude to the approaching New Year's Eve.

I arrived at my own doorstep.

The security door wasn't closed properly, leaving a crack for myself.

The rich aroma of meat kept wafting out through the cracks in the door.

Chen Zhuo pushed open the door and went inside.

"Mom, I've bought the soy sauce."

Chen Zhuo placed the bottle of Haitian soy sauce on the dining table.

Liu Xiuying rushed out of the kitchen with a spatula in her hand, grabbed the bottle of soy sauce, and glanced at the label on the bottle.

"Made from soybeans, yes."

Liu Xiuying unscrewed the bottle cap, and a rich aroma of soy sauce wafted out.

"You're lucky you ran fast, the gas was just right."

Liu Xiuying grabbed the soy sauce bottle and rushed back to the kitchen in a flurry.

Soon, a sizzling sound came from the kitchen—the sound of soy sauce bursting as it came into contact with hot oil and beef.

Chen Zhuo took off his down jacket and hung it on the coat rack.

He walked to the sofa in the living room and sat down. Chen Jianguo was already sitting on the sofa at some point, holding a teacup in his hand, watching the countdown to the Spring Festival Gala on TV.

The brand-new Siemens refrigerator stood quietly in the corner, its silver-gray panel reflecting a soft light under the living room lamp. Chen Zhuo picked up a tangerine from the fruit bowl on the coffee table.

Slowly peel the orange.

Outside the window, someone had set off a long string of 100,000 red lanterns.

The deafening explosions ignited the entire sky above Zeyang City.

The Spring Festival of 2004 arrived in a grand and spectacular manner, filled with the aroma of meat filling the house and the smell of firecrackers wafting through the streets.