Chapter 248: Dinner Party

The workers in the factory were overjoyed when they heard that a movie would be shown on their day off; after all, watching movies was one of the main forms of entertainment in this era.

This position of Projectionist was initially a policy adopted by Lou Bancheng to cater to the new era and get closer to the workers, and also so that his driver (Xu Fugui) could have a way to make a living in the future.

The Rolling Mill's original five projectors were all purchased under the arrangements of Lou Bancheng, but at the time, only Xu Fugui had barely managed to learn the trade and put one to use, while the remaining four were left in the warehouse gathering dust.

It was precisely because of this move by Lou Bancheng that the Rolling Mill could be said to be the only one among all the state-run large factories in Sijiucheng to have its own projectionists.

However, with the hiring of Xu Damao and the subsequent addition of workers, the projectors finally saw the light of day again. Later, the number of projectionists increased, and the factory purchased four more, which led to the nine projectors they have today.

Other factories received the notice issued by the Rolling Mill and immediately broadcast it within their own plants; for a time, the praise for the people in the Projection Group was overwhelming.

This was an entertainment and leisure project that could enrich the spiritual culture of the workers, and no factory could refuse it.

Previously, they couldn't be invited; although the Rolling Mill had many projectionists, the projection equipment was limited, so every time they went to the countryside, they worked in teams of two, taking turns. This was also the reason why every time they went to the countryside to show movies, the whole town would turn out.

Li Huaide received thank-you calls from the various factory directors, and he couldn't stop grinning; he felt more and more that Xu Damao was a talent, and that his initial move had not been wrong. Thinking of this, he made a call to the Logistics Department and the Propaganda Department.

"Dingguo, have Xu Damao come over," Li Huaide hung up the phone and then called Zhang Ping'an.

"Understood, Factory Director." Zhao Dingguo didn't dare to ask for details and went straight to the Projection Group to find Xu Damao.

"Damao, Factory Director Li is looking for you this time; don't go saying things you shouldn't."

"Oh, oh, okay." Xu Damao wasn't too worried; after all, the praise from the factory workers wasn't fake.

"Zhang, Director," Xu Damao ran into Zhang Ping'an on the way over.

"Mm, Damao, you performed well this time; Factory Director Li is likely going to praise you."

"Hehe, I just got lucky, like a blind cat bumping into a dead mouse."

"Haha, let's go."

"Knock, knock, knock."

"Come in."

"Hahaha, Ping'an, Damao, you two did a good job in logistics this time; several factory leaders have also called to express their thanks."

"Factory Director, it is only under your leadership that we in logistics have been able to achieve such dazzling results. Of course, Damao also put in a lot of effort in this matter."

"Hahaha, good. There is a dinner party at the Mechanical Factory tonight; you two heroes come along with me."

"Understood, Factory Director."

"Mm."

Xu Damao still felt like he was dreaming as he walked out of the office. The Factory Director was praising him and taking him out to eat—was I about to reach the pinnacle of my life?

"Stop daydreaming and go back to properly review the knowledge I taught you."

"Ah? Oh, oh."

Xu Damao realized what he meant. Drinking table culture, right? Ever since he won over his father-in-law before getting married, he had rarely used it, but now it could finally come in handy again.

In the evening, Zhang Ping'an told his father, and then he and Xu Damao took Li Huaide's sedan to the Mechanical Factory.

Actually, as the Logistics Director, Zhang Ping'an was already a middle-to-high-level leader in the Rolling Mill and had the right to use the Jeep allocated by the factory, though it was limited to just the right of use.

However, Zhang Ping'an was either away on long trips or in Sijiucheng, so he basically had no use for it.

Currently, only three factory directors at the Rolling Mill were qualified to have cars assigned to them; it seemed they were cars from the Soviet Union, which were a bit more comfortable to ride in than the Jeep.

"Hahaha, Huaide, Ping'an, come in quickly. This must be Comrade Xiao Xu, right?"

"Uh, hello, Leader, I am Xu Damao."

"Good, indeed, mm, not bad."

Everyone took their seats one after another, and as a few glasses of wine went down, the atmosphere became lively. Xu Damao was also an expert at adjusting the atmosphere, and everyone didn't look down on his position; instead, they tried to build a relationship with him, thinking that perhaps they could invite Xu Damao to show movies in their villages in the future—after all, who doesn't want to show off in front of others?

Relying on his glib tongue, Xu Damao successfully drew everyone's attention, and he was knocked out before the meal was even half over. However, everyone was still savoring Xu Damao's drinking toasts.

"If one can drink half a jin but drinks eight liang, such a comrade should be cultivated."

"If one can drink eight liang but drinks a jin, such a comrade I can trust."

"Mm... Comrade Xiao Xu's words are profound indeed; not bad, not bad."

This was a summary of the five-thousand-year history of Chinese drinking table culture by netizens from his past life; how could it not be profound?

But regardless, Xu Damao had really stolen the spotlight today, and everyone present would likely remember him.

On the way back, only Zhang Ping'an was still sober; Li Huaide was also a bit drunk.

"Ping'an, when you go back, have Xu Damao summarize what he said today and hand it to me," Li Huaide said, then became muddled.

"..."

"Done."

Zhang Ping'an had the driver take Li Huaide home first and then helped Li Huaide upstairs.

"Sister-in-law, it was a happy day today; at Brother Xu's factory, Brother Li drank a bit too much."

"Alright, help me get him to bed and then hurry home to rest. Is the driver, Xiao Wu, still downstairs?"

"He is."

"Tell him to come pick up Li tomorrow morning."

"Understood, Sister-in-law. Then I'll head back first."

"Mm, go ahead."

Xiao Wu drove Zhang Ping'an and the other back to the Siheyuan, and on the way, Zhang Ping'an told him about the matter.

It must be said that being a driver nowadays was still very sought after, especially for those driving cars for leaders; they were all considered high-quality men in the eyes of matchmakers.

After sending Xu Damao home, Zhang Ping'an also went home, washed up briefly, and went to bed.

In the blink of an eye, it was the day off. Lou Xiaoe and Li Aihua came over to play again. Fortunately, Zhang Ping'an had gone back to his hometown to pick up his grandparents, otherwise, he would have had another headache.

However, Lou Xiaoe hadn't yet obtained her parents' consent, so she acted the same as before, only it was a pity she didn't see Zhang Ping'an.

At the Zhang Family Village Back Mountain, Zhang Ping'an was once again pruning and trimming. The tea trees he had originally planted from cuttings had grown out, and the later ones were still growing.

Zhang Ping'an simply plucked them bare, then irrigated them with some Space Water, fed the surrounding animals some water until they were full, and only then entered the space to start stir-frying the tea.

"Hmm... not bad. Although it's not as good as the one in my space, at least it's better than most of the tea on the market. The old remnants of the former dynasty will have a treat again, it's just a pity the quantity is still a bit small."

This Tea Tree that had been plucked bald yielded only fifteen jin of fresh tea, and less than five jin remained after roasting, but that only served to highlight its preciousness, didn't it?

Zhang Ping'an checked the time; it was already afternoon, so he tidied up, went down the mountain to pick up his grandparents, and returned to Sijiucheng. Fortunately, Lou Xiaoe and the others had also returned home by then.

In the early morning, Zhang Ping'an took the tea leaves and found Tong Laosi. Only after some trading did Zhang Ping'an bring out the tea leaves.

"Laosi, I've gotten my hands on something good."

"What? This is tea?"

"That's right, but only your Jin Ye will be able to tell the quality of this."

"Alright then, please come with me."

The eight people Zhang Ping'an had treated were now full of energy every day, not at all like old men. Of course, they also kept his medical advice in mind and didn't dare to act recklessly, which made Tong Laosi trust Zhang Ping'an even more.

"Is this tribute Pu'er?" After Jin Ye brewed the tea, he felt a jolt of spirit. They had this stuff too, but it was all old tea cakes; this was clearly new tea.

"Ahem, it's different."

"Oh?"

"You'll know once you drink it."