Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 584 Installing a Telephone

Lao Gao chatted with Chen Fan for a while, but had to leave first because he was in a hurry.

They will first take a car to the Shiliupu Wharf, then take a boat back to Yunhu. After arriving at Yunhu, they can take a cargo ship from Lujiawan to go home.

Moreover, they had Japanese yen in cash, which was more than enough to buy second-class or even first-class tickets. It was just a matter of whether the couple would be willing to spend the money.

Watching Lao Gao and his wife get into the car, Chen Fan let out a barely perceptible sigh.

Who would have thought that Comrade Xiao Gao would have such a firm belief and actually stay in Benjamin Butler to lie low?

According to Lao Gao, although Xiao Gao cried his eyes out when the couple left, he never said he wanted to come back with them. Instead, he said he would study hard at his university and contribute to society when he grew up.

Neither the couple nor the elderly couple, including Takahashi, knew whether "society" referred to China, Japan, or the whole world, but Chen Fan understood.

But he could only sigh in his heart, "Xiao Gao is a good comrade!"

Well, I wonder how long this faith can last. I hope it won't be corrupted by the sweet words and empty promises of those little notebooks.

After riding his bike home, Chen Fan quickly washed up and changed his clothes. When he came downstairs, he saw the two sisters, who had also changed into clean clothes, sitting on the sofa and whispering to each other.

He walked over and asked, "Are you resting at home this afternoon, or going back to school?"

The two sisters looked at each other, paused for two seconds, and then Jiang Lili chuckled and said, "My sister and I finished all the courses for this semester because we studied in advance, and we were bored at home."

Chen Fan raised an eyebrow and sat down next to her. "So?"

Jiang Lili tugged at his sleeve and asked softly, "Can we go to the meeting with you?"

Meeting?
Chen Fan's eyes darted around slightly. "You mean the symposium on 'Shanghai Spy Shadow'?"

The two sisters nodded in unison.

Chen Fan nodded without hesitation and smiled, "Sure, why not?"

Honestly, he was still thinking about the Han Card. If Jiang Lili hadn't reminded him, he would have almost forgotten about this impromptu meeting.

Now, naturally, it's time to start afresh, and the three of them head to the Writers' Association together.

I rushed over just in time for the cafeteria to open.

So I saved another two yuan.

He wasn't the only one with the same idea. A man in his forties, wearing a white shirt, black pants, and black cloth shoes, sat down next to Chen Fan with a lunchbox in his hand and said with a smile, "How's the food in the cafeteria here?"

Chen Fan turned to look at him and smiled, "It's alright, authentic Shanghainese cuisine, rich and flavorful, without too much sugar."

Then he looked at the two sisters sitting opposite him.

As a result, both Jiang Tiantian and Jiang Lili looked blank and gently shook their heads, indicating that they did not recognize them.

Who is this?

The man chuckled and nodded, saying, "I can tell you can't stand sweet food. I can't either. When I first came to Shanghai, the head chef in our company cafeteria was from Wuxi. He loved to add a spoonful of sugar to the dishes all the time, and I couldn't eat a single bite."

Then, since I didn't know how to cook, what could I do? I could only eat noodles every day until I got married, finally saying goodbye to eating noodles three times a day and being able to have a hot meal again.

Chen Fan took a big bite of the pork chop and looked at him with a face full of sympathy. "That's really quite tragic."

The man laughed again, "Tragic? Haha, not tragic at all, on the contrary, people envy you."

Seeing the curious looks on Chen Fan and the two Jiang sisters' faces, he laughed and said, "Noodles are also a refined grain. Back then, it was quite a feat to eat noodles every day. If it weren't for my high salary and my colleagues' willingness to exchange their refined grain coupons for my coarse grain coupons, how could I afford to eat noodles every day?"
And the noodles are delicious too, especially when you add a spoonful of lard—they're incredibly fragrant!

Then he put on a mysterious air and said, "Let me tell you, my wife only married me because she thought I was well-off because I ate noodles every day. Isn't that funny?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Fan and the two sisters exchanged glances and couldn't help but burst out laughing.

But then again, judging from this person's age, they must have gotten married in the early 60s. To be able to eat noodles every day back then, what kind of family conditions must they have had?!

No wonder the girl got married; he's a golden catch!
The man had almost finished eating. He ate the last bit of rice, took out a handkerchief to wipe his mouth, propped his arms on the table, and smiled at Chen Fan, "I heard from Mr. Ba that you want to install a home phone?"

Chen Fan instantly recognized who this person was, and immediately took out a cigarette and offered it to him, "You must be Deputy Chief Engineer Zhang?"

Zhang Xing chuckled, "Yes, from the city's long-distance telephone bureau."

He patted his head first, then took the cigarette and laughed, "I forgot to introduce myself. Luckily you didn't kick me out, or it would have been awkward."

As he spoke, he lit a cigarette on the lighter Chen Fan handed him, took a puff, and continued, "Installing a phone is no problem, I'll just give them a heads-up. Give me the address later, and I'll have someone come over whenever you're free."

Chen Fan grinned and said, "This isn't too much trouble, is it?"

Zhang Xing smiled and shook his head, "Handle it discreetly. As long as you don't make a scene in public, it's not a big deal."

He paused for a moment, then continued, “Actually, there has never been a document that prohibits the installation of telephones for individuals, but as you all know, for the past ten years or so, it has been a matter of style, sacrificing personal enjoyment, and focusing wholeheartedly on work.”

At the time, some people associated home telephones with personal enjoyment, because in the past, only certain households could afford to install telephones.

They're either officials or capitalists!
So, it became the case that anyone who installed a telephone in their home was seen as a greedy, privileged cadre or capitalist. As a result, workplaces, fearing trouble, simply stopped accepting applications for home telephone installations.

He shook his head as he spoke, "Actually, no one applied during that period. On the one hand, they were afraid of getting into trouble, and on the other hand, the cost was too high for ordinary families to afford. Even those who got telephones installed in their homes were all high-ranking leaders, and the cost was borne by their work units."

At this point, he made a joke, "At your current level, you're only one or two levels away from promotion. Once you get promoted, the telephone company will be the one to install a telephone for you."

Chen Fan stopped eating and smoked with him, laughing, "You're flattering me. Sometimes, even a difference of one or two levels can be a world of difference."

He noticed that the deputy chief engineer, Zhang, spoke with a slight Beijing accent, so he switched to Mandarin with a Beijing accent as well.

Zhang Xing waved his hand, "If you said you were still young and needed a few years to mature before moving up, I would believe you. But you're not even 18 yet, and you're already a deputy director. You're talking to me about an insurmountable gap?"

He looked utterly bewildered. "Where are we supposed to put our old faces?"

After making a light joke, Zhang Xing got back to business, "By the way, where do you live? I'd like to see if you want me to arrange a long-term relationship or a short-term one."

Chen Fan: "It's on Panyu Road. Uh, what's the difference between long-term and short-term?"

Zhang Xing waved his hand and laughed, "Of course, long-distance lines are more expensive and short-distance lines are cheaper. And if a switchboard is involved, it's also a huge expense. But it's easier for you on Panyu Road. There are several large companies on that road, and some small shops at the entrances of alleyways also have telephones, and there's a small switchboard there."

"We'll connect a line to your house later..."

At this point, he suddenly asked, "I heard you have relatives overseas?"

Chen Fan nodded. "Yes, they came here yesterday to discuss with Mr. Ba about the issue of recovering royalties for books published overseas without authorization."

Zhang Xing smiled and said, "I heard it from Mr. Ba."

He then changed the subject, saying, "So, you also need to make overseas communications. I'll activate both domestic and international long-distance calling for you then, to make your work easier."

Chen Fan blinked. "Do I really need to do overseas liaison work?"
It's good that long-distance service is available; now I can have long phone conversations with Lili at the Provincial Cultural Palace Guesthouse. Chairman He is such a kind person; he probably won't mind spending a few hundred yuan a month on phone bills, right?

That was enough for our conversation. The group packed up their lunchboxes and headed to the conference room for a meeting.

Similar to the previous symposium on "The Ferryman," the main focus was on inviting Chen Fan to talk about his creative journey, the significance behind it, and what kind of inspiration he hoped to offer readers.

It's roughly the same as reading comprehension exercises, except that reading comprehension is for others to do, while today it's the author's turn to do it.

The meeting was chaired by Mr. Ba, and the more than twenty members of the Writers Association who participated were all very attentive and each took notes.

The meeting, originally scheduled for two hours, was about halfway through when Buffett announced the end of the first half of the agenda.

The second half of the agenda was to have Chen Fan sign and present a copy of the book as a keepsake.

In front of these members, Chen Fan dared not act shamelessly as he did with Buffett. He treated each one with great respect and wrote down his blessings earnestly, naturally winning applause.

After the symposium ended, Chen Fan was still unwilling to give up. He dragged the two sisters along until the end of the workday, hoping to get a free meal from Mr. Ba.

As a result, I ate at the cafeteria again.

mean.

……

June 6th, Tuesday, Grain in Ear (芒种).

The Dragon Boat Festival is just a few days away, and the weather is getting hotter and hotter, so hot that only one person can sleep in one bed.

Jiang Tiantian and Jiang Lili rode their bikes to school early in the morning.

Originally, Chen Fan had instructed them to come back every weekend, but now the two sisters are coming back almost every day.

My world for two!
Chen Fan rolled over on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling, too weak to even groan.

A moment later, there was a sudden noise coming from the courtyard gate.

Chen Fan's eyes flickered slightly, and he immediately got up and leaned out the window. He saw Jiang Lili pushing her bicycle in, carrying breakfast in her hand.

Seeing Chen Fan through the window, Jiang Lili held up the breakfast in her hand, blushing as she said, "I was afraid you'd be hungry, so I brought you breakfast."

Chen Fan nodded in agreement, "You've come back just in time, you must be hungry."

Two hours later, Chen Fan finished washing up and came out of the bathroom feeling refreshed. He sat down by the bed, patted Jiang Lili who was still catching up on sleep, and said with a smile, "Since you didn't sleep well, then take another day off and go to school tomorrow."

Jiang Lili rolled her eyes in annoyance, not wanting to pay him any attention.

That's incredibly unfair.

Chen Fan didn't mind. "You can continue sleeping. I'll go buy groceries. We'll have a big meal for lunch."

Hearing this, Jiang Lili's expression softened a little, and she shifted to a more comfortable position to lie down.

Chen Fan laughed, bent down and kissed him, then got up and walked out.

After lunch, Jiang Lili lay on a chaise lounge, engrossed in reading "Shanghai Spy Shadow".

Chen Fan used his legs as a pillow, closed his eyes, and dozed off, enjoying a rare moment of leisure.

Unfortunately, rare moments of enjoyment are often easily disrupted.

At two o'clock in the afternoon, the doorbell rang on time. Chen Fan patted his thigh and said, "You don't need to go. It should be the person who installed the phone. Go and prepare some tea."

He then got up and walked outside, opened the courtyard gate, and saw two telephone installation technicians, one old and one young, standing outside.

The telephone exchange-issued canvas bags they carried served as their best business cards.

The young craftsman was in charge of connecting the wires outside, while the older craftsman wandered around the courtyard. Seeing Chen Fan following him, he patiently explained, "Some of these small villas built during the Republic of China era have telephone lines. Not only telephones, but also electrical wires, gas, and water pipes are all there."

Over time, some houses remain, while others are gone. But it doesn't matter; as long as you find the old wiring channels and thread the telephone lines through them, you can renovate it neatly, and it will be completely undetectable from the outside.

Chen Fan offered him another cigarette and said with a smile, "Thank you for your trouble, Master."

The experienced craftsman took the cigarette, tucked it behind his ear, and opened a small, inconspicuous iron door in the corner of the room. He turned around and smiled, "Good luck, we found it. Once we find the exit inside the room, we can determine the route of the cable trays. With cable trays, we won't need to run fly wires for the telephone lines; cable trays will look much better."

Even if Chen Fan didn't understand this, he should know from the two masters' hard work in pulling the wires in front of the cable tray that running a fly wire is much simpler than running it in a cable tray. So he took out candy and cigarettes and served them to the two masters as much as possible to make them satisfied.

The satisfactory result was that after spending more than an hour to get the cable trays working, the mechanic lit a cigarette and said, "Want to install a branch unit? I'll just charge you for the unit."

Chen Fan was overjoyed and exclaimed, "Great!"

So when the two technicians left, there were two more telephones in the house.

One phone is placed on the corner coffee table next to the sofa in the living room on the first floor, and the other is installed in my room on the second floor, so that I can answer the phone even when I'm sleeping at night.

Moreover, what was installed today was not a hand-cranked magneto telephone, but a telephone with a dial.

The advantage of this type of telephone is that it can directly "grab" the line through the exchange.

As is well known, due to the lack of telephone exchanges, telephone companies still generally use human operators. When making a call, you first dial the operator's number and then the operator transfers you to the telephone line.

Switches, however, omit this step.

As long as there is an empty line, the telephone signal can be connected directly, which is many times more efficient than manual connection.

Those days of having to wait for hours after making a phone call are finally gone forever!
The only downside is that this black vinyl dial telephone is a bit ugly; it would have been better if it were a retro telephone like the ones from the Republic of China era.

He thought it was ugly, but Jiang Lili didn't. She lay on the sofa, staring blankly at the phone, "Can I call my parents?"

Chen Fan, "Do you know your dad's office phone number?"

Jiang Lili hesitated for two seconds, then looked up with a confused expression. "I forgot. Although I wrote it down in the notebook, the notebook is with my sister."

Chen Fan shrugged. "There's nothing we can do. We'll just have to wait for Tian Tian to come back."

He then rubbed his hands together and chuckled, "I'll call Lujiawan first; Secretary Yang will definitely be shocked."

As he spoke, he reached out to grab the microphone.

But before he could grab it, the doorbell rang again.

Chen Fan looked up in surprise. Who is this?

A voice came from outside the door, "Is anyone home? It's from our Jingdezhen porcelain factory, the delivery has arrived."

(End of this chapter)