Chapter 39: Is Your Big Bowl Tea Really Cooked?

Standing under the eaves, the female comrade hawking Big Bowl Tea was Lu Cheng's middle school classmate Huang Chunjiao, nicknamed Da Huang.

The nickname was given by Lu Cheng; the two once even sat at the same desk.

Once Lu Cheng accidentally grabbed her chest and Huang Chunjiao nearly bit his arm off, so she gave him the nickname Da Huang.

Not long ago I heard that Huang Chunjiao was supposed to go down to the countryside for a labor team—why is she selling Big Bowl Tea here?

Seeing his old classmate, Lu Cheng immediately tipped his hat brim low, walked over, and deliberately asked in a tone, "Comrade, is your Big Bowl Tea guaranteed to be cooked?"

Huang Chunjiao was startled for a moment, looked up at the person, while Lu Cheng lowered his head a few inches.

Not seeing his features clearly, she only saw he was in a blue uniform, and Huang Chunjiao raised her voice politely and said.

"Public Security comrade, we use boiled water, specially steeped in a large aluminum bucket, so it's definitely cooked water."

Lu Cheng still strained his voice, "If it's guaranteed cooked, give me a bowl."

"Oh, okay, just a moment…" Huang Chunjiao glanced at him again, still not seeing his face clearly.

Even though Lu Cheng kept his hat brim down and his head lowered, Huang Chunjiao couldn't recognize him at first; even though Lu Cheng has always had a streetwise image in his classmates' minds, standing upright there, Huang Chunjiao still didn't believe it was Lu Cheng.

Walking to the big bucket at the counter, Huang Chunjiao took a coarse porcelain bowl with a blue rim and filled it with a full bowl of tea.

The so-called tea water is the tea leaf foam sifted from a state-owned tea shop, also called High Fragment.

It's the cheapest offcut of tea leaves; although it's foam, after steeping it carries a jasmine scent, making it affordable for ordinary people.

"Comrade, here you go, be careful, it's hot," Huang Chunjiao handed it over.

Lu Cheng took a sip; there was a fresh jasmine fragrance, quite tasty, economical and affordable.

But however good it was, he couldn't say it was good.

"Pah pah, this still isn't cooked, I'm out."

"Hey, you stay right there!"

Though her name sounds delicate, Huang Chunjiao is actually a tomboy; she never liked playing with girls and always gravitated toward boys.

Because of her rough voice, everyone treated her as a buddy, shaping Huang Chunjiao into a masculine character.

Even if Lu Cheng wore a Police Uniform, she wasn't scared.

"Comrade, you haven't paid yet! You can't leave."

Lu Cheng strained his voice back, "If this isn't cooked, why should I pay?"

"What isn't cooked? Are you sick? You drink tea and then demand payment; being Public Security doesn't help you, otherwise I'll go to your superior."

"No one you find will help; go around this area and ask around—I've never paid for tea."

Huang Chunjiao was taken aback; what kind of People's Public Security is this, she's a reckless scoundrel.

"Zhao Bin, you all come quickly, there's a freeloader here, twist him up."

"Binzi?"

Only then did Lu Cheng see a young man squatting, rummaging through the lower cabinet for tea foam.

Zhao Bin was also a middle school classmate, sitting at the front and back desks then.

"Who doesn't pay? Damn it, you dare come here to eat and drink for free, I'll kill you... Lu Cheng?"

Zhao Bin grabbed Lu Cheng's collar, and upon a closer look, felt familiar.

Hearing Zhao Bin's voice, Huang Chunjiao hurried over to look and even took off Lu Cheng's police cap.

"Damn, it's really Lu Cheng!"

Lu Cheng pursed his lips, "Comrade Da Huang, you're still that wild."

Huang Chunjiao shoved with her broad shoulder, "Screw you, I asked who was teasing me here, turns out it's you."

"Besides me, who dares to mess with you."

"Don't talk nonsense, she's a woman," Huang Chunjiao blushed shyly.

"Changed gender?"

"Get lost."

"Hey, this is the Da Huang I know..." Lu Cheng said, while Zhao Bin circled him, tugging here and pulling there.

"Hey Lu Cheng, where did you borrow that dogskin? Don't even say it, looking human-like in it—lend it to me for two days, I also want to look human-like."

Lu Cheng pushed him away, flicked his uniform, "What are you borrowing? This is mine."

"Stop messing."

"No one is messing with you; I'm now a proud Railway Passenger Police."

"Stop it, look at you— you've always liked making jokes with people, that bad habit hasn't changed."

It seemed he couldn't avoid showing off, so Lu Cheng simply took out his work badge with a red seal.

Zhao Bin glanced, "Hmm, not bad, you even got a fake badge, but be careful, forging documents is illegal."

Lu Cheng had to pull out his handcuffs again.

Zhao Bin rolled his throat, looked up, and asked skeptically, "Really, no joke?"

Lu Cheng pointed at the jeep on the street, "See? My superior assigned me a special car; ordinary people don't get that."

Zhao Bin took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, then lunged to the ground, clutched Lu Cheng's thigh, and burst into sobbing and wailing.

"Wow… how can you be a Railway Passenger Police? That's the railway system; we all came from the same middle school—how can I be selling Big Bowl Tea here!"

"You shouldn't be a Railway Passenger Police; we agreed to go down to the countryside as a team, fighting the heavens and earth—how did you become a Railway Passenger Police!"

"You quit quickly, quit, wow… you poop in my mouth!"

Lu Cheng kicked his leg a few times without moving it, "Alright, alright, buddy, I'm fine now; you should be happy for me."

"Wow, no way, you can't be a Railway Passenger Police; we promised to suffer together—how did you get into the Railway Department? Quit now."

Lu Cheng's forehead darkened, "No, you keep saying—weren't you the one who said you'd go down to the countryside? How are you selling Big Bowl Tea here? You kid are lying to me; luckily I didn't go."

After hearing that, Zhao Bin's expression returned to a smiling look.

"Who forced you? I was originally set to go down to the countryside for the labor team, but my uncle said the station was going to set up a Collective Enterprise to serve tea to passing tourists, so I didn't go down."

Zhao Bin's uncle is a deputy director in Train Station Logistics; using connections, he arranged for his nephew to be placed in the Collective Enterprise without having to go down to the countryside for the labor team, and it was still doable.

"What about Da Huang?"

Zhao Bin stood up, brushed his clothes and said, "Jiao Jiao was also set to go down to the countryside for the labor team, but I feared she would suffer, so I asked my uncle to arrange for her to come in as well."

Lu Cheng looked at the blushing Huang Chunjiao and curiously asked, "Jiao Jiao is also called up? When did you two start hooking up?"

Huang Chunjiao gave him a light smack and said, "You, Lu Cheng, still speak as harshly as before."

Zhao Bin and I are Revolutionary Comrades, having sworn to the Red Book; we are a pure revolutionary love, able to stand the test, capable of bearing the great revolutionary mission as a heroic revolutionary couple.

Lu Cheng solemnly nodded, "Comrade Da Huang, what you said is wonderful; I will learn from you."

Huang Chunjiao rolled her eyes and said, "You can stop that; among the classmates in our class, yours is the least steadfast Revolutionary Will."

"Seeing what you say, I'm not that bad either; now I also want to be a good comrade, striving to one day be on par with Comrade Da Huang."

Lu Cheng walked around the small shop and said, "Not bad, work has no hierarchy; selling Big Bowl Tea is also serving the people."

Zhao Bin, unconvinced, said, "Then let's swap roles."

"Then let's just forget it."

Lu Cheng looked again for a while; he hadn't expected that such a small Tea Stall would have ten employees.

"Binzi, do you still need more people?"

Lin Qingyan, who had been worrying about having no job and feeling gloomy every day, thought working at this Tea Stall was not bad.

And with a classmate connection like Zhao Bin, it's a chance not to be wasted.