Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 618 Visiting the alley

Driving to Dashilan Hutong, Chen Fan stopped at the entrance of the courtyard and got out of the car.

It was the time for the workers to go to work, but when they saw a strangely shaped car parked in the alley, some of them forgot about going to work and rushed over to see what was going on.

Just then, a few people came out of the courtyard. They had seen Chen Fan before. The one in the lead was surnamed Yan and worked as an accountant in a nearby shop.

Upon seeing Chen Fan, he first greeted him politely, then stared intently at the van, "What kind of vehicle is this? I've never seen one before."

As soon as he said this, the dozen or so onlookers all stared at Chen Fan expectantly.

Although Yunhu Automobile Factory's two models have been featured in newspapers and magazines many times, those newspapers and magazines are mostly industrial journals, and the newspapers have only published them in Yunhu and Jiangnan Daily. Moreover, not many cars have been sold in the past two months, so most people have never seen this model.

Holding the keys in his hand, Chen Fan said with a smile, "This is called a minivan. It's produced by Yunhu Automobile Factory, but there are more than a dozen other automobile factories across the country that also produce them. It was only launched in July, so there aren't many of them, which is why you haven't seen one before."

Grandpa Yan nodded in realization, "So it was a minivan."

He shook his head. "It looks a bit like a loaf of bread."

Then, looking puzzled, she asked, "Then why not call it the Steamed Bun Cart? It does look a lot like a sliced ​​steamed bun to me."

Steamed buns come in round and straight cuts. To be honest, they do look more like straight steamed buns than bread.

Chen Fan was a little speechless. He never expected this old man to have such a unique way of thinking, so he patiently explained, "This bread is also a direct translation from English. Foreigners call this kind of vehicle a minibus, which sounds like bread, and it also looks like bread, so it's called a bread van."

Grandpa Yan's eyes widened. "What do you mean, 'bewitched'?"

Chen Fan's eye twitched slightly. "English, English, it means a small passenger vehicle."

Grandpa Yan still didn't understand what death meant, but he did understand that it was a foreign language and the key word was "bus".

Chen Fan didn't want to waste any more time arguing with him, so he raised his hand to say hello and went into the courtyard.

The crowd didn't disperse; in fact, it grew larger. Grandpa Yan, adopting the air of a learned man, loudly lectured his neighbors, "Do you know what kind of vehicle this is? It's a minivan. It's called a 'mantou' (steamed bun) because it looks like bread. There's a reason for that."

Chen Fan, exasperated, turned into his master's courtyard and closed the gate behind him.

The three masters were sitting in the living room drinking tea. When they saw him coming, Lin Yuanxiang immediately asked, "What's all the noise outside?"

Chen Fan walked to the octagonal table and sat down. He poured himself a glass of water and then said, "I borrowed a car to take you to Grandpa Liu's place, but we got surrounded by onlookers. They'd never seen him before, so I just said a few words."

"Oh."

Lin Yuanxiang nodded, then asked curiously, "What kind of car? They haven't seen it before?"

Zhang Xuansong finished his tea in one gulp, wiped his mouth, stood up with his cane, and said, "We're already at the door, why don't we go out and see for ourselves?"

He then walked outside.

Lin Yuanxiang agreed, and immediately put his hands behind his back and walked out with Li Shangde.

Chen Fan was the only one left sitting on the stool. When he saw that they had all left, he quickly drank the still-hot tea and then hurried after them.

After he left, Li Shangde locked his own courtyard gate, walked out of the gate, and saw the van parked next to the back house.

While greeting the neighbors, Zhang Xuansong walked around the car for a while, and when Chen Fan came out, he gestured for him to open the door.

Lin Yuanxiang had been waiting by the passenger door. Once Chen Fan unlocked the door, he got in without a word. Zhang Xuansong couldn't win the argument and could only sit in the middle row with Lao Li.

Chen Fan drew inspiration from the Wuling Sunshine for this car. Its interior space is more spacious than that of earlier minivans. Lin Yuanxiang wiggled his buttocks, turned his head to look around, and finally nodded slightly, "Not bad."

The crowd, still watching, dispersed reluctantly after seeing that everyone had gotten into the car and even started the engine, watching the car slowly drive away.

Chen Fan drove onto the main road and headed straight north.

A dozen minutes later, we arrived at our doorstep.

Then, they picked up Zhou Yali and the other two, making a full group of seven, and drove together to Grandpa Liu's house.

Just like last time, only Grandpa Liu and his bodyguard were at home.

Although Grandpa Liu is now basically retired due to illness, his wife still insists on working at her unit, often working overtime until very late. His secretary is also stationed at the unit, only coming here every day to report on work and receive instructions.

So when Chen Fan and his group arrived, the quiet courtyard immediately became noisy.

When Chen Fan came last time, he underwent a security check. This time, with three girls present, the security guard was caught in a dilemma: whether to search or not. He was embarrassed and embarrassed.

Finally, Grandpa Liu heard the commotion and told them to go in, which solved the problem.

That morning, they stayed there chatting with Grandpa Liu.

Zhou Yali, in particular, acted as if she had met an idol, constantly asking about her experiences in the battle back then. Grandpa Liu wasn't angry at all; on the contrary, he was in good spirits and told her stories from back then.

Jiang Tiantian and Jiang Lili were initially a bit reserved and even hesitant to speak, but as Grandpa Liu continued his narration, they gradually relaxed and listened with rapt attention, just like Zhou Yali.

As for Chen Fan, he first chatted with everyone and then gave Grandpa Liu a diagnosis.

Yes, my health has improved significantly since my last visit, which shows that the medicinal diet has been effective.

It's not that Chen Fan's medical skills are much better than those of the national masters in Xiyuan, but the old man's body is almost riddled with holes. At this point, he would have needed to stay in bed for many years and would often fall into a coma. Many treatments were not available, otherwise they would have the opposite effect.

Unlike traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions, medicinal cuisine focuses on nourishment in daily life, and its medicinal effects are not obvious. It mainly focuses on gradual conditioning, so it will not put too much burden on the body.

After a year or two of recuperation, even if there is no significant improvement, at least the pain will be alleviated and some strength will be restored.

We'll adjust the medicinal diet recipes later, gradually increasing the medicinal effects, and see if there's a chance to improve my health.

Seeing that it was almost time, Chen Fan went to the kitchen and prepared a table of modified Sichuan dishes, which the elderly people ate with great relish.

After accepting the meat ration coupons and money from the old man, he said goodbye and left.

As Chen Fan left, he felt a little regretful that another elderly person hadn't come today.

That makes sense, though. Right now he's swamped with all sorts of things to do, and there are so many important decisions to make, he really doesn't have much time.

……

After dropping his three masters off at home, Chen Fan drove home, glanced at the rearview mirror, and asked, "Shall we go for a stroll through the hutongs later?"

Zhou Yali was still immersed in the excitement of meeting and dining with the legendary figure. It took her two seconds to come back to her senses. She looked up and said, "You decide. Anyway, I don't know much about this place. You can decide." Chen Fan smiled and said, "Well, when it comes to the cultural characteristics of old Beijing, the hutongs are definitely the best. It's just that the hutongs now are very different from those of the past."

Especially the courtyard houses, most of which have become large tenements, with many families living in one courtyard. For example, the once magnificent Prince Gong's Mansion was the residence of powerful ministers Heshen and Prince Qing Yonglin. Later, Prince Gong Yixin became the owner of the mansion, hence the name Prince Gong's Mansion.

Therefore, there is a saying that "one Prince Gong's Mansion is half of the history of the Qing Dynasty".

Historical buildings like these should be protected, but now more than 200 households from eight different organizations live in them.

If even the Prince Gong's Mansion is like this, one can only imagine what other places are like.

Hearing this, Zhou Yali couldn't help but feel puzzled. "Then why did you let me stroll through the hutongs?"

Chen Fan smiled and said, "To understand the local customs and culture, you have to start from where the people live. The hutongs preserve the complete customs and culture of Beijing. Although the environment is a bit poor, they are the easiest and most direct places to visit."

According to national policy, the higher authorities have decided to develop the tourism industry, so these alleyways will be renovated sooner or later.

The hutongs will definitely be much better in terms of environment after the renovation, but when traditional residences become tourist attractions, some things just won't be the same.

Many people believe that my country had no tourism industry before the reform and opening up, but that is not the case. As early as the 50s, my country opened up to inbound tourism, but the management was relatively strict.

Later, under the supervision of General Manager Zhou, the unit in charge of tourism also formulated a long-term tourism development plan. In the first two years of its implementation, it achieved very good results, with a significant increase in inbound tourism revenue.

Unfortunately, before the plan could be fully implemented, a typhoon struck, and the strong winds nearly wiped out the tourism industry.

Apart from city parks, many of the scenic spots from later generations are now basically abandoned. Only a very few famous mountains and rivers that were famous in history can attract tourists from other places.

However, thanks to the boss's intervention, inbound tourism was finally preserved, with about 4000 foreign tourists entering the country each year, spending an average of about $1000 per person, which can generate millions of dollars in foreign exchange for the country.

This foreign exchange was even more than the product exports of most provinces.

That's basically how the foreigners who frequented the Forbidden City in the 6s and 70s came about.

In addition, the mainland has also specifically opened up independent travel to tourists from Hong Kong and Macao.

All you need to do is apply to a China Travel Service in Hong Kong or Macau and submit basic information. Unless it's a special case, such as a well-known figure in a triad, you can generally get approved and be issued a travel permit.

(China Travel Service in Macau in the 60s)
Independent travelers need to carry a travel permit and apply for a "Return Home Introduction Certificate" at the border. In each place they arrive at, they must first report to the local police station. The household registration police officer will stamp a household registration stamp on the travel permit, and when they leave, they will stamp a cancellation stamp.

During this period, tourists can use this stamp to collect food coupons from the local street office.

This pass is also the most important thing for tourists, equivalent to a letter of introduction for citizens.

In addition, tourists need to keep all their tickets and accommodation receipts as proof of their trip. This proof must correspond to the household registration stamp on the travel permit; if there is even the slightest discrepancy… well, if you can't explain it clearly, you probably won't be able to go back.

So when Chen Fan got home, parked his car, and then called Liu Juan and Ma Lan to stroll around the hutongs by Houhai Lake, they often saw foreign tourists and Hong Kong backpackers whose clothing was clearly different from that of mainlanders.

Their group of five girls and one boy frequently became the focus of attention for pedestrians.

However, Chen Fan didn't care. He simply put his hands in his pockets and wandered around the 78 alley, looking for signs of the future bar street and food street.

Hmm, I really couldn't tell at all.

It wasn't until the 90s that a man named Lao Qi, who loved to drink, opened the first bar here, which was a long time ago.

Chen Fan was right about one thing: although there is no commerce here, it has the most unique charm of old Beijing.

Zhou Yali followed behind her younger brother, looking around curiously the whole way.

The mottled courtyard gate, the various doorways, the rows of blue bricks and gray tiles, and the broken stone lions in front of the gate all piqued her curiosity.

In the alley, you can often see groups of women gathered together, each carrying something and busy with their own tasks, some of them using sieves to sort rice.

It involves pouring the rice onto a sieve and searching for small stones and chaff grains one by one.

These days, there's no such thing as premium packaged rice; it's all sold in bulk, and you have to bring your own rice bag to the grain store to weigh it out.

Naturally, this kind of rice would occasionally contain small stones and stubble that hadn't been properly cleaned.

If you don't clean it properly, it's easy to chip a tooth.

Jiang Lili watched with some curiosity. She wasn't curious about picking rice, though. This was something that most children in the south learned from the age of three, and she was no exception.

Curious as to why there were people sorting rice here, she leaned closer to Chen Fan and whispered, "Aren't northerners supposed to eat noodles? Why are they eating rice too?"

Chen Fan explained with a smile, "There are also places in the north that eat rice. For example, during the Republic of China era, Tianjin was the largest city and port in the north, with a large number of people coming and going. Later, many southerners stayed, so there are many people in Tianjin who eat rice."

The same was true for Beijing. When the country was first established, Beijing was in dire need of reconstruction. At that time, hundreds of thousands of people were sent to Beijing to help with the construction, including many people from the south, and this family was probably one of them.

In addition, Beijing also has rice-producing areas, and rice from Northeast China is also very famous, so it's not unusual to see people sorting rice in the north.

Jiang Lili nodded in realization, "So that's how it is."

Then she took her sister's arm and went to watch people shell corn kernels.

Chen Fan didn't find these scenes boring. Peeling corn was still quite common in later generations, but sorting rice and sewing shoe soles had gradually become rare after he grew up. Now, he found them somewhat interesting.

They wandered through the alleyways, occasionally brushing past other tourists.

Perhaps because they've seen it so often, the locals are used to it. Tourists stroll around, while the locals chat about their own things, occasionally offering their opinions on the tourists who pass by.

"Hey, look, those girls are really pretty."

"Oh no, no... Oh dear, five girls and one big guy? How could he possibly walk together like that?"

"Hey, maybe she's from Hong Kong too. Look at that girl at the front, she's definitely different from us, her clothes and hat are so pretty."

"It's a pity she's not local, otherwise we would have gone over to ask if she's married. If she's not, she would be a perfect match for our third son."

"Tui, you don't even look at what your third son looks like. If you ask me, my eldest son is the most suitable."

Well, as they talked, their voices grew louder and louder, and they started arguing loudly.

Hearing their voices, Chen Fan grinned and laughed silently.

Even though Zhou Yali was usually very easygoing, she couldn't help but blush, angrily punched her younger brother, and quickly walked away.

(End of this chapter)