Chapter 92
◎Osmanthus Ice Fermented Rice Wine◎
Since being publicly reprimanded by Professor Ruan in the research and development group last time, Si Junxiang had completely lost face in front of everyone. In addition, his position as the group leader had also been revoked by Professor Ruan, and he had completely lost his former arrogance.
He came to the laboratory less and less, sometimes only showing up every two or three days, and would leave on some excuse after less than half an hour. In the final stages of the project, he was even more decisive. Without even saying a word, he directly had someone put the laboratory key in Professor Ruan’s office and completely withdrew from the research and development group.
Some of the process reports that needed to be summarized, the acceptance checklists for the factory, and several of the experimental records that he had previously taken over all became a mess. In the end, the members of the research and development group had to share the burden and finally managed to sort everything out before the deadline.
Someone said in private that they had run into him once. He was loudly complaining in the canteen that “there’s no need to waste time on a broken project.” But when this news reached the laboratory, everyone was so busy that they didn’t even have the interest to discuss him, and no one paid any more attention to his empty seat.
Tangtang was shoveling noodles into her mouth, and she was still looking at the materials in her hand while swallowing.
Zhou Shunian put a mouthful of meat into her bowl. Seeing her gobbling down her food, he couldn’t help but frown and persuade her, “Eat slowly.”
“I know. Brother Shunian, you should eat too,” Tangtang said indistinctly.
Seeing the radiant smile in her eyes, and even the bangs on her forehead exuding a cheerful energy, Zhou Shunian couldn’t help but curl his lips. “You’re so happy?”
Tangtang put down her chopsticks, her tone light. “Of course. This project is officially ending tomorrow. Although there’s no reward, in these two months, I’ve followed the research, adjusted the parameters, and watched it grow from nothing. Seeing the data get closer and closer to the expected results, it feels even happier than getting a scholarship. This is a very precious experience.”
“When the project ends tomorrow, what do you want to do?”
“Mmm…” Tangtang thought seriously for a moment. “Teacher Sheng’s project ended a few days ago, and now the research and development group’s project is also officially ending. The next few days will be much more relaxed. Let’s go and watch a movie. It’s been a long time since we’ve watched a movie. I heard from my roommate a few days ago that a new movie has been released recently.”
“Alright. I’ll come and find you at the laboratory tomorrow. We can go out and celebrate together.”
“Alright.” A smile appeared on her lips.
…
The research and development group was a modular research and development model with a division of labor, mainly divided into four directions: the pre-treatment group for raw materials, the extraction process experimental group, the stabilization technology group, and the data summary and analysis group.
Tangtang was in the extraction process experimental group. The day before the delivery, the group uniformly stored the samples in the laboratory’s refrigerator.
“Su Xintang.”
Tangtang was suddenly called by name and looked up. Professor Ruan was holding her sample in his hand. Next to him were two technicians from the factory, who were looking down and checking the acceptance checklist.
“Is this the sample you submitted?”
Tangtang looked at the number label on it and nodded. “Yes, professor. This is the last batch of stabilization test samples I’m in charge of.”
Professor Ruan unscrewed the bottle cap, and a clear and moist fragrance of jasmine filled the air. Unlike the previous samples, which had a green and watery vapor, it had a layer of a gentle and lingering aftertaste. The liquid was clear and translucent, and there was no sediment at the bottom of the bottle, which was a sign that the stabilization process was in place.
“Are all the process flows recorded completely?” Professor Ruan turned sideways and let the technician take the sample, his gaze falling on Tangtang.
“They’re all recorded.” Tangtang opened her notebook, her voice clear and bright. “Low-temperature enzymatic hydrolysis is completed within four hours after picking. During distillation, maintain…”
A satisfied and affirmative smile appeared on the face of the technician from the No. 2 Daily Chemical Factory. He nodded with a smile while recording the data. “The aroma retention is better than the last submission, and the accelerated oxidation data of the stability test has also met the standard!”
As he spoke, he looked up at Professor Ruan. “This batch of samples can be used as the first batch of qualified small samples and sent to the factory for pilot evaluation.”
Only then did a smile appear on Professor Ruan’s face. He patted Tangtang’s shoulder. “Organize your process parameters into a standard operating procedure and send it over with the samples tomorrow. It’s good that you can stabilize the quality in the final stage.”
“Thank you, professor. Thank you, Technician Zhang.” Hearing this, a clear and bright smile couldn’t help but appear on Tangtang’s face. She felt that her efforts during this period finally had a solid and real feeling.
After seeing off the technician from the factory, Professor Ruan had everyone stay for a meeting. “The project is over, and there’s still some project funding left. Do you all want to have a big meal or go on a trip?”
A unanimous cheer came from below. “Let’s go out and play! Let’s relax and reward ourselves!”
A cheerful smile appeared on Professor Ruan’s face. “Alright, then everyone, let’s gather at the school gate tomorrow. We’ll go to Zhou Garden for a boat ride! That’s all for our meeting today. The meeting is dismissed!”
…
It was almost May, and the temperature had clearly risen. The air was filled with a lively dampness. The voices of men and women came from the distant sports field, and the moon quietly rose from a corner in the east.
When Tangtang returned from the laboratory, she unsurprisingly saw Zhou Shunian under the dormitory building.
“Xiaohui, you can go back first.”
A knowing and teasing smile appeared on Chen Xiaohui’s face, but she didn’t say anything and went back by herself.
Tangtang watched as Zhou Shunian walked up to her.
“Is the project over?” Zhou Shunian raised his eyebrows.
A smile spread across her face. Besides being tired, there was also a sense of satisfying accomplishment. “Mhm, it’s over. Everything went smoothly. Small-batch production will start in a few days.”
“Osmanthus ice fermented rice wine?” Her eyes lit up. “Brother Shunian, how did you know I wanted to drink this!”
Zhou Shunian was carrying two packed portions of osmanthus ice fermented rice wine. The ice fermented rice wine at the congee shop on the street behind the school was famous for being refreshing. The glutinous rice had absorbed the sweet fragrance of the rice wine. Underneath was a layer of crushed ice that crunched when you bit it. On top was a thin layer of osmanthus honey. The cool and clear sweetness was wrapped in the unique mellow taste of the rice wine.
It was so comfortable to have a bowl of ice fermented rice wine in this hot weather.
Zhou Shunian handed her the ice fermented rice wine in his hand. “Let’s eat first, then go and watch a movie?”
Before the word “alright” could come out, Tangtang glanced at the clothes she was wearing. Because she had to be in the laboratory, she was wearing a white cotton and linen long-sleeved shirt with a pair of black trousers. It wasn’t very rustic, but she just felt that this outfit was not suitable for a date at all.
“Brother Shunian, wait for me. I’ll go up and change my clothes!”
After saying that, Tangtang stuffed the things in her hand into his and, when she came down from the dormitory building again, she had already changed into a blue dress. Her long hair was combed into two shiny black braids that hung down her chest. On her feet was a pair of white square-toed shoes. She looked gentle, graceful, quiet, and sweet.
After walking out of the school gate, Zhou Shunian had Tangtang wait for him for a while. When he appeared again after a few minutes, he had a bouquet of crabapple blossoms in his hand.
“I was downstairs at the dormitory just now. I was too embarrassed to take it out.”
“Crabapple blossoms?” Tangtang’s eyelashes trembled.
She looked at the crabapple blossoms that were handed to her. The edges of the pink and white petals were tinged with a light rouge color. The stamens were a tender yellow, and the leaves were so fresh and green that you could squeeze water out of them. The petals felt soft to the touch, like holding a ball of freshly melted spring snow.
Her eyes felt a little warm. When she looked up again, she met his smiling gaze.
She couldn’t help but hug Zhou Shunian.
…
The school was going to hold a cultural performance on May Day. Each of the selected classes had to prepare a performance. Unfortunately, Tangtang’s class had drawn the performance lot.
After an organic chemistry class, the class monitor, Zhao Yue, had everyone stay for a class meeting and talked about the need to prepare a performance.
Pan Yanmei said with difficulty, “Perform on stage? But we don’t have any talents. Singing and dancing? Tangtang, can you?”
Tangtang shook her head.
Most of them were still ordinary people. It was rare for someone like Lu Youxin to have the conditions to learn piano and ballet since she was a child. Although Chen Xiaohui considered her family’s conditions to be good, she had never even touched a piano.
Seeing everyone’s dejected faces, Tangtang thought for a moment and said tentatively, “Actually, for a cultural performance, we don’t have to sing and dance. We can also try other things. Isn’t the theme Labor Day? We can write a short play related to Labor Day. The costumes can be simple, and the lines can be as simple and everyday as possible. It will be quick to practice, and everyone will love to watch it.”
It wasn’t that there hadn’t been plays on stage before, but most of them were model operas, and everyone was tired of watching them. If there was a newly written play, maybe everyone would be interested.
Tangtang thought of when they were little. When they participated in the revolutionary storytelling competition, they had combined storytelling and performance, and many people loved to watch it.
“A play?” Tangtang’s suggestion did arouse the interest of some people.
She paused and then added, “If you think it’s too much trouble to rehearse a play, we can also have a small chorus. The song ‘Our Life is Full of Sunshine’ is not bad. The melody is simple, and the lyrics are also encouraging. Our whole class can sing it together. We don’t have to practice any special skills. It’s enough to have momentum when we sing in unison.”
Both of Tangtang’s suggestions were good. Zhao Yue asked everyone, “Then do you want to have a play or a big chorus?”
After some discussion, everyone unanimously decided, “Let’s have a play! A chorus is a bit too simple. On that day, there will definitely be many classes that are either a big chorus or a poetry reading. If we have a play, we will win in terms of the novelty of the form!”
“And most of our class has participated in labor and work experience. We can also incorporate the interesting things from our labor and work into the play.”
Zhao Yue finally made the decision. “Alright, then let’s have a play. Classmate Su Xintang will be the planner of this play and will be responsible for writing the interesting things from everyone’s labor and work into a simple script, determining the main plot and character dialogue. It doesn’t have to be too complicated, just highlight the sense of reality and fun. Chen Xiaohui will be in charge of the acting group. Classmates who are willing to go on stage can sign up with her. I will be in charge of the props group, preparing the props and setting up a simple stage. Dong Shuqing, you will be in charge of the rehearsal group, arranging the daily rehearsal time and place, reminding everyone to come to the rehearsal on time, and coordinating everyone’s progress.”
The class monitor quickly arranged the work item by item.