“Do you think it’s that easy to become a permanent worker?” Edward Price said. “You’re a veteran, and your parents’ quota is still available, so you could become a permanent worker as soon as you joined the factory. For us to get permanent status, we have to wait until one of our parents retires before there’s an opening.”

“My dad is only 42. By the time he retires, I’ll be retired myself,” Eric Bell said gloomily.

“What are you worried about?” William Reed said. “At least your dad is a middle-level cadre. If there’s a hiring quota, people like you will definitely get priority. My dad is just a worker. We’re the ones who really have it tough.”

Although William Reed said this, he didn’t show the slightest resentment toward Eric Bell. In those days, being able to pull strings was a skill; if you didn’t have the ability, you couldn’t blame others.

Eric Bell probably agreed with William Reed, so he didn’t argue. Instead, he brought the topic back to David Clark: “David, did you go see the factory director? What kind of job did they assign you?”

This was the second person that day to talk to him about job assignments. It seemed people in the factory were really sensitive about this issue. David Clark shook his head. “Let’s talk about it when I start work tomorrow. Whatever job they assign me, I’ll just do it.”

That’s what David Clark said, and that’s what he thought. People in the factory were used to the planned economy model. Once your job type was set, it was for life, so everyone took it very seriously. But David Clark knew that in a few years, the entire country’s economic management system would undergo earth-shaking changes: farmers would become real estate speculators, master machinists would open breakfast shops, professors would become business owners, and business owners would go to universities as visiting professors. All this fuss over job assignments would seem laughable in the future.

“David, did the army make you dumb?” Edward Price asked, puzzled. “You should still have some demobilization money, right? You didn’t spend it all, did you? Why don’t you hurry up and buy some good cigarettes and liquor, and bring them to the factory director’s house tonight? If you want to take a hill, you can’t do it without twenty shots and a grenade.”

“Twenty shots and a grenade?” David Clark was stunned. Come on, is this really a factory?

“What, you guys in the army don’t say that?” Edward Price asked. “Twenty shots means cigarettes, and grenades are liquor bottles.”

David Clark chuckled. “Where would I get the money to give them gifts? Don’t I need to save up to get married? Besides, my sister will be going to college in a couple of years, I need to save some money for that too.”

“College?” Eric Bell laughed. “Little Emily’s grades are just like my sister’s, and you think she can get into college? Don’t kid yourself. This year’s college entrance exam, not a single kid from our factory even got into a technical secondary school, and you’re still hoping Little Emily can go to college?”

David Clark was completely speechless. He really couldn’t tell these guys that he was no longer the old David Clark; he was a graduate student at Hua Qing University, and tutoring a high schooler for the college entrance exam was child’s play for him.

Emily Clark came back from grocery shopping. Besides a few green vegetables in her basket, there was actually a big grass carp weighing over three jin. Fenghua County had the Zhangjiang River running through it, which produced lots of freshwater fish. In those days, the commodity economy wasn’t developed, and there weren’t many fishermen, so it was common to catch big fish. The factory workers didn’t earn much, so it was rare for anyone to buy such a big fish. Emily Clark only gritted her teeth and bought it so as not to dampen her brother’s spirits.

“Wow, fish! Not bad,” David Clark said happily. “This fish is mine to cook. I’ll show everyone my special skill.”

“You can cook?” Everyone, including Emily Clark, looked at him with disbelief.

David Clark smiled and said, “Chairman Mao said the PLA is a great school. I served for two years, so I guess I’m a college grad now. Cooking a fish is no big deal. How about this: Little Emily can cook the vegetables, and I’ll handle the fish. I guarantee everyone will be satisfied.”

Chapter 010: End-of-the-Century Ideals

The spicy boiled fish that David Clark made won everyone’s praise. He had painstakingly perfected this dish during his graduate studies to impress his girlfriend, so naturally the results were extraordinary. According to David Clark himself, this pot of boiled fish was only about a third as good as what he could make before he traveled back in time, mainly due to a lack of various seasonings, especially cooking oil. If Emily Clark hadn’t snatched the oil bottle away in time, David Clark would have poured the family’s entire monthly oil ration into the pot.

“Little David, you really changed after joining the army. You used to only know how to eat, not cook. Who would’ve thought you could make such delicious food now? Even Chef Liu from the small canteen can’t compare,” Eric Bell said, gnawing on the last fish bone, still wanting more.

“Actually, this is the only dish I can make,” David Clark said modestly. “During the self-defense counterattack, our unit stayed in Yunnan for half a year, and that’s where I learned it.”

“This fish is really good,” William Reed said. “And this Wuliangye liquor is much better than the sorghum liquor from our county.”

Eric Bell shot William Reed a look. “What do you know? This liquor costs over three yuan a bottle. My dad’s been in the supply department for years and hasn’t had it more than a few times.”

“Over three yuan?” Edward Price clicked his tongue. “Little David, you’ve struck it rich?”

“Heh, a friend gave it to me,” David Clark said. “On my way back, I saved a cadre from Xiangping Province, and he gave it to me.”