181. Life of a Miser

Children's growth process is not necessarily smooth sailing, such as the current problems of the second daughter Yan Zhen.

Yan Chu did not define this child as a bad child because she cheated him for money on the excuse of textbook fees. In fact, many children have lied to their parents more or less during their growth process, but the difference is the severity of the situation.

Yan Chu felt that this was an experience in the life of many children. This kind of change is a test for children, and the same is true for parents.

Although he wanted to train the two children, considering that the fastest train from the provincial capital to Shenzhen City also takes six days, and the two children are thirteen and eleven, both of whom are growing up, Yan Chu bought hard sleeper tickets. The two children are not small, so they also need to buy adult tickets.

In this way, the three train tickets cost a total of 65.1 yuan. Now the average wage of workers is around □□10, and this ticket price is not cheap.

"Dad used to buy standing tickets when he went to Shenzhen, and he also took advantage of you two to try the hard sleeper train."

Yan Chu carried the luggage of the three people, and the two girls also carried backpacks, which contained winter vacation homework and books to read on the train.

Yan Chu's economic control was quite strict in other aspects, but when it came to studying, he didn't save money at all.

These eras look similar, but there are still subtle differences in the evolution of history and some cultural works, so Yan Chu has developed the habit of learning about the current world culture every time he arrives in a new world.

Now there is a very spacious study room in the Yan family's house, and a whole wall is a bookshelf, which is full of books.

Some of them were bought from bookstores, some were bought from second-hand book stalls, and there were also several ancient books that Yan Chu collected from recycling stations. These books can be read at any time when the family wants to read them.

At present, the learning atmosphere at home is still very good. Young children selectively read comic books with many illustrations, and older children read story collections or some famous works. They may not understand everything, but they are subtly changed by the power of books.

If she hadn't noticed that her father was generous with books, Yan Zhen would not have thought of using this lie to cheat money.

"How much is a standing ticket?"

Yan Zhen couldn't help asking.

"It's cheaper than a hard sleeper. A standing ticket only costs 13.8 yuan, which saves 15.8 yuan for a round trip, enough for the family's expenses for half a month." Yan Chu led the two daughters to the ticket gate and answered her.

"It's uncomfortable to stand, right?"

Yan Zhen thought, this trip is a full seven days. Even if the place is spacious enough to sit directly on the ground, it must be uncomfortable to stretch your legs and feet and curl up for such a long time.

She thought about how she had found excuses to ask her father for six yuan this semester, which was saved by her father from these places.

"It will only take seven days. If you bear with the discomfort, it will pass. So Dajin Erzhen, you should study hard, not for dad and grandma, but for yourself. Only by studying hard and finding a good job, you will be qualified to sleep in a hard sleeper or even a better soft sleeper when you travel far away in the future."

While talking, the father and his daughter checked their tickets and walked towards the platform through the ticket gate.

Yan Chu had taken countless trains and was accustomed to the exterior and interior of the train. However, the two sisters were different. They were curious about everything and wanted to touch the green train directly.

The exterior of the train was majestic, but the interior was a bit cramped. The sisters' joy was slightly reduced after entering the train. It was not for any reason, but it was too crowded.

The provincial capital station was not the starting station of the train. Some people on the train had already lived in the train for two or three days. The weather was cold and there was no window for ventilation. Almost as soon as they entered the train, the two sisters were disgusted by the smell of feet mixed with human smell and vomited. They wanted to turn around and run away.

This time is just when people who work away from home go home to visit their families. Anyone who can find connections to buy tickets will come. Usually, trains at this time are overloaded.

That is, the train that originally carried 100 people actually carried 120 people because of various connections. The extra 20 people either squeezed into the standing ticket car or took the seats on the one side of the aisle of the sleeping ticket car. With large and small luggage, it really proved what it means to be difficult to move.

This scene is not quite the same as the sisters imagined. They are used to the unpleasant smell and look forward to Shenzhen. They put on smiles again and followed their father to their beds.

It seems that three people got off the train in front of them. The beds were messy. The conductor probably didn't have time to tidy them up. When the father and daughter found their seats, their beds were already occupied. It was only when they took out their tickets that those people embarrassedly gave way.

Looking at the quilt that countless people had slept on, Yan Jin and Yan Zhen didn't know whether they should lie on it. There were still seven days to go.

Forget it, I don't care about being pretentious anymore. I shook the quilt and bed sheet, closed my eyes and sat up.

At this time, the two sisters had already had some premonition of the hardship of the journey, but this premonition was not deep. When the train started to blow the whistle, the scenery that kept receding by the window captured all their attention.

"Make way, make way."

The train was full of noise and laughter, buzzing in my ears without stopping. Louder than these laughter and noise was the shouting of the dining car attendant, full of energy, high and loud.

"Comrade, what are the dishes in today's lunch box?"

"Assorted fried rice costs 35 cents a portion, roasted eggplant with minced meat costs 35 cents, and fish slices cooked in vinegar cost 50 cents."

All the rice bowls sold on the bus are much more expensive than eating out or cooking them at home.

Therefore, many people asked, but not many bought.

The pretty female conductor shouted "Give way" all the way, paused several times, and disappeared into the carriage.

It had been a long time since they had been on the train. The two sisters were tired of seeing the scenery on both sides of the train. They looked at their father without saying anything, holding their stomachs and not asking any questions.

The two sisters remembered that they brought a lot of sesame seed cakes and steamed buns with them on this trip. In the past, when their father traveled far away, he also brought dry food. Because the food on the train was expensive, it was more cost-effective to eat the dry food brought at home.

The 1980s was considered the golden age of train meals. At this time, train meals had not yet been outsourced. Regardless of the efficiency, the harvest was guaranteed due to droughts and floods. Therefore, the master chefs did not skimp on the ingredients and seasonings. They added plenty of oil, salt, sauce and vinegar, as well as the slices of meat. A real piece of meat, it definitely tastes the same.

In the 1990s, train meals began to be contracted. In order to make enough profits, the quality of the ingredients became worse and worse, and the level of the chefs began to vary. Only then did more and more people complain that the dining cars were unpalatable.

Nowadays, the cooks on the train are still iron rice bowls, so many of the cooks on the dining car are the chefs of the big restaurants in the past. Their skills are absolutely incredible. Although the box lunches are expensive, they are still worth every penny.

Of course, the best thing is to go to the restaurant on the train, where you can order whatever you want, as long as there are ingredients, as long as the master chef who is there that day can cook it, and as long as you have enough money.

Just when Yan Jin and Yan Zhen thought that dinner would be steamed buns and sesame cakes with boiling water, they were led by Yan Chu to the restaurant car.

Usually the people who come to the train restaurant to eat are either rich or expensive, so the decoration of the restaurant is also very bourgeois. Each table is covered with a small floral tablecloth, and there is a vase by the window with a flower in it. Tenderly blooming flowers.

There was a menu at each location. Yan Chu opened the menu and asked the two children to order by themselves.

"Today is your sisters' first time taking a train, and it's also your first meal on the train. Let's eat something good. Dad borrowed your sisters' favor again. This restaurant is also my first time back."

Yan Chu crossed his fingers, put his elbows on the table in front of his chest, and handed over the task of ordering to his two girls.

"Dad, the things here are too expensive."

Yan Jin is also a little girl who cares about face. She didn't dare to speak too loudly, but just whispered in Yan Chu's ear to remind him.

She thought the price of the box lunch at the dining car was high enough, but when she came to the restaurant, she realized that the mountains are even higher.

Stewed venison, stewed turtle, and white fungus bird's nest were items that the sisters had never seen before, let alone the prices that would blind one's eyes at a later glance.

The slightly more affordable braised prawns in oil, fried shredded chicken in soy sauce, and sliced ​​bacon with winter bamboo shoots all cost a huge sum of three or four yuan.

The two sisters were a bit stunned. How could a dish that costs less than one yuan when they make it at home be sold at such a high price here?

"Eat, let's just have one meal today, and then we can only eat the steamed buns and biscuits brought from home."

Yan Chu pushed the menu forward, and the two girls discussed with each other for a few words, and then ordered the cheapest item on the menu, a piece of leek and eggs for three portions, and three bowls of rice.

"Another braised prawns and a bowl of shrimp and winter melon soup."

Yan Chu added two more dishes. Yan Jin and Yan Zhen felt that their father might have encountered something dirty today, otherwise such a generous attitude towards spending money would never appear in their father.

This meal cost a full twelve yuan, because in the end Yan Chu asked for a canned yellow peach as dessert for the three of them.

After the meal, the two children were both satisfied and heartbroken.

I was satisfied with the taste of these dishes, especially the braised prawns. Each prawn was half a palm in size. The prawn meat was firm and elastic, and when dipped in the sauce, it was extremely fresh. The fragrance is extremely fragrant.

The two sisters even chewed the shrimp shells, and when they smoked the shrimp brains, little stars appeared in their eyes with joy.

Not a single bit of the three dishes was left, and all the soup was added to the rice.

Yan Jin and Yan Zhen thought about how happy their lives would be if they could eat meals like this every day.

It's a pity that it's too expensive. The money spent on this meal alone is enough to make them feel distressed for a long time.

Maybe it was because the first meal was too good. After chewing dry steamed buns and sesame cakes for the next six and a half days, the two sisters understood what it means to move from extravagance to frugality and how easy it is to move from frugality to extravagance.

The days on the train finally became difficult.