Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 784: Going with the flow
Zhou Yali was heartbroken because she wasn't in the family photo, and it seemed like she had been kicked out of the Zhou family.

She secretly wondered to herself, why didn't she let Aunt Lan take the picture back then?

Although we can reshoot later, my little brother will already be over a month old by then, so it won't make any sense.

Chen Fan really wanted to encourage her to go back and make another one, but he was afraid that she would see through his true intentions, so he could only look at her with regret, hoping that she could understand the meaning in his eyes.

You've only had a few good days, and you're already back to be a third wheel? Did you even attend your younger brother's one-month celebration? Be careful he doesn't disown you when he grows up.

Unfortunately, Zhou Yali failed to notice the meaning behind these thoughts and glances.

Jiang Tiantian, who was sitting diagonally opposite him, saw it, but could only helplessly maintain a smile and remain silent.

After only two seconds of sadness, Zhou Yali regained her good mood, raised her head and grinned, "The management team for the Shenzhen factory has been found. The general manager's surname is Ye, and her name is Ye Yufeng. She is ten years older than me and is like an older sister who grew up with me. This time, I brought them here to take up their posts."

She was accompanied by three other people, all descendants of families who had gone to the United States with her grandfather. The one in charge of administration was Fang Xiaoying, the one in charge of finance was Liu Yadong, and the last one in charge of production was Ma Liyuan.

I know them all pretty well, but I'm not as close to Sister Yufeng as I am.

Chen Fan raised an eyebrow and looked at her, asking, "I've always heard you and Uncle talk about how a few families went to America with you back then. How many families exactly?"

Zhou Yali smiled and made a gesture, saying, "There are a total of six families, but only four surnames: Ye, Fang, Liu, and Ma. Their connection with my family can be traced back to before we migrated to Northeast China. At that time, we were all from the same county in Jiaodong. Later, we migrated to Northeast China together, and that's how the following events happened."

When my grandfather was still alive, I heard him say that the Zhou family and the six families and four surnames had a mutually supportive relationship. Although they considered themselves to have joined the Zhou family as servants, my grandfather never treated them as household servants. He also made it clear to them that if any family wanted to establish their own household, the Zhou family would welcome them with open arms and even offer them a gift.

However, for decades, none of them showed any intention of becoming independent. They hadn't even established their own property. Apart from the house their grandfather had provided for them, everyone worked for the Zhou family's businesses, receiving only wages and bonuses, asking for nothing else.

Chen Fan clicked his tongue, and asked thoughtfully, "So loyal? There must be a reason, right?"

Zhou Yali spread her hands and said with a sneer, "Anyway, no one will tell me. The elders of their families only said that Grandpa saved their whole family's life back then, and that joining the Zhou family was both to repay the debt of gratitude and to seek a way to survive. As for the specifics, they didn't say a word."

However, my dad once told me that if any family wanted to become independent, Grandpa's words would always hold true.

Chen Fan stroked his chin, his expression somewhat strange. He pondered to himself that the fact that even the descendants of the Zhou family were keeping the specific reason a secret probably wasn't something to be proud of.

That's true. Of all the people who ventured to Northeast China, how many actually made it big?

If you don't get involved in some dirty business, you might not even be able to keep what you already have, let alone build a family fortune.

After a two-second pause, Chen Fan looked at her and asked, "Let me ask you a question. Are there many people in these six families?"

Zhou Yali smiled, gave him a meaningful look, and said, "I know what you mean. Before, the Zhou family was dwindling in number, and I was the only heir. If I marry out, won't they take over and become the dominant family?"

Before Chen Fan could speak, she continued, "Then let me tell you, that's impossible, because my mother is still here. The Zhao family in San Francisco is very large. Even if something happens to the Zhou family, the Zhao family will step in. It's not up to them to make decisions."

He then spread his hands and sighed, "It's even more impossible now. My younger brother hasn't even been born yet, and Dad has already arranged for me to separate from the family. From now on, the entire Zhou family will belong to my younger brother..."

At this point, she suddenly frowned, tilted her head to look at Chen Fan, and asked curiously, "Brother, was the medicinal wine you gave Dad meant to help him have a son?"

Chen Fan was both amused and exasperated. "What nonsense! What kind of thing guarantees a son? That's just a tonic wine that can improve your dad's health. Once he's healthy, he and your aunt can have a few more children."

Anyway, they're not that old yet. My uncle is only in his forties, and my aunt is even younger. As long as you take good care of your health, you might even have a couple more younger siblings.

Zhou Yali nodded in realization, "Oh... so it wasn't a son he was supposed to have? Then Dad's in trouble."

Chen Fan, Jiang Lili, and Jiang Tiantian sitting next to her all instantly brightened up and stared at her intently, like a badger in a melon patch, their eyes filled with only two words: scribbles.

As a result, Zhou Yali didn't continue. She casually changed the subject and said to Chen Fan, "Sister Yufeng and the others don't have experience managing a company, but they have been working at the grassroots level for seven or eight years. They are very familiar with grassroots management, have solid professional skills, and have experience starting from scratch. I think they are quite suitable for the situation at the Shenzhen factory."

This time, I asked my dad for help, and he told me to talk to him myself. So I went to Sister Yufeng first and pestered her for several days before she finally agreed to come and help me for 5 years, after which she would return to the United States.

Sister Xiaoying, Brother Dong, and Brother Yuan were the helpers Sister Yufeng found for me, and they'll only be working for me for five years.

After a pause, Zhou Yali smiled at Chen Fan and said, "I'm thinking of transferring them to the US headquarters in five years. They'll become the core management team for both of our companies. What do you think?"

Chen Fan raised an eyebrow. "Not return it to the Zhou family? Do you think they'll agree to that?"

Zhou Yali chuckled and said, "Why should we pay it back when we borrowed it through our own abilities? As for whether they agree or not, that depends on you. Think of a few good projects. If our company's development prospects are better than the Zhou family's, I'm confident I can persuade them."

Your question was very good. The six families are indeed much more numerous than the Zhou family. Each family has more than twenty people. Apart from two or three elderly people who no longer care about their affairs, there are more than ten people working for the Zhou family. The six families together have more than eighty people.

No matter how well the Zhou family prospers, we can't promote so many people to management positions. Besides, we need to open up some management positions to white people, otherwise it will be difficult for them to integrate into mainstream society.

This is also why Sister Yufeng and the others have been stuck at the grassroots level. In fact, they would definitely have had better opportunities if they left the Zhou family, but Grandpa Ye and Grandpa Fang disagreed, so there was nothing they could do.

I'm different. Although my dad separated me from the family, I'm still a member of the Zhou family, and you are also a member of the Zhou family. My dad said that Grandpa Ye and the others really like Auntie and won't treat you like an outsider.

"If Sister Yufeng and her team work for our company, it won't violate the rules set by Grandpa Ye and the others, and they'll have better career prospects. Why not?"

Chen Fan nodded, "Okay then, I'll be waiting for your good news."

These days, the legal system in the United States is relatively sound, so it's not so easy for someone to seize family property. Not to mention that Zhou Zhengdong is a lawyer, so he's not worried about anyone "turning the tables" on him.

The reason I asked that question earlier was to see what the relationship was between these people who depended on the Zhou family and the Zhou family. If there was any discord, then these people should not be given important positions.

Now it seems the friendship remains the same?
In that case, he hoped that Zhou Yali could work hard and dig a little deeper into her own backyard, trying to bring over more talent and resources.

Now that Qianfan Company and Wanmuchun Company have laid a solid foundation, they will enter a period of rapid development. If they lack manpower, especially trustworthy manpower, it will definitely affect the company's development.

The Zhou family is undoubtedly a lamb that's easy to fleece!
The four of them sat together drinking tea, mainly Chen Fan and Zhou Yali chatting. When it was almost time, they went upstairs to their rooms to rest.

Chen Fan returned to his room and looked at the enormous golden nanmu bed, unable to help but let out another long sigh. He had originally planned to test the bed's sturdiness tonight, but now that plan was all ruined.

Honestly, couldn't she have come a day or two later? Why did she have to come today?

Just as Chen Fan was secretly complaining, the door was suddenly pushed open.

Chen Fan whirled around, looking at Zhou Yali with a speechless expression. "Can't you knock? What if I wasn't dressed?"

Zhou Yali slowly opened her eyes, her gaze filled with shock. "Little brother, you didn't sleep naked, did you?"

Chen Fan's face darkened. "Is that the point? The point is to knock on the door!"

"Oh."

Zhou Yali casually knocked on the open door and dragged her suitcase in.

Chen Fan was completely bewildered by her actions. "What are you doing?"

Zhou Yali laid the suitcase down without explaining, and said without looking up as she opened the suitcase, "Bring the TV up from here."

Just as Chen Fan was about to speak, a sudden inspiration struck him: "The learning machine is finished?"

Zhou Yali then looked up and chuckled, "Let's see if Tian Tian and Li Li are asleep. Let's call them over to play games together."

Chen Fan immediately turned around and went out, closing the door behind him to prevent the air conditioning from escaping. Then he went next door to call the two sisters before going downstairs to move the television.

Currently, televisions in my country can be described as a "hodgepodge of brands," with all sorts of specifications available. The smallest domestically produced television has a 9-inch screen, while slightly larger ones are 12 or 14 inches, followed by 17, 19, 20, 21, and 22 inches. The 22-inch model is currently the largest.

20-inch TVs are rare, but there is a brand called "Feiyue" that is 20 inches. There is also a brand called "Chunlei" which is a combination unit that includes a sound system, a record player and a 22-inch color TV. It looks like a floor-standing speaker and looks particularly impressive in the living room.

The reason there are so many specifications is that whatever production line you buy, that's the type of TV you can produce. Later, with the introduction of national standards, many different specifications were gradually unified.

The television that Zhou Yali bought for Chen Fan was a 22-inch Metz television made in the United States with an all-plastic casing.

In recent years, Metz TVs have been the most popular TV brand in the United States. Their advertisement "I also want a Metz" is almost a household name in the United States. As a result, Zhou Yali came to China and bought a Metz TV.

(A Metz television set with an all-plastic casing from 1974)

Chen Fan carried the television upstairs. Zhou Yali had already disassembled the learning machine and placed it on the large rosewood desk. Jiang Tiantian and Jiang Lili curiously leaned on the desk to study it.

The pose was a bit too alluring, which aroused someone's desire and intensified their resentment towards someone else.

After setting up the television, without Zhou Yali's explanation, Chen Fan only glanced at the parts before starting to assemble it.

A short while later, the television screen lit up, and the "Spring" game console made its first appearance in the country.

Chen Fan pointed to the main unit, which was about half the size of a modern laptop box, and asked, "Why is the brand 'Spring'?"

Zhou Yali waved her hand, "Make differentiated products, otherwise they're all WMC, which doesn't enhance memory at all. Spring is the best, you can remember it easily."

Chen Fan didn't hesitate. He picked up a game cartridge, inserted it, and after a few simple adjustments, the "Kung Fu Blocks" game appeared on the TV screen.

Picking up the controller to play the game, Chen Fan quickly passed three levels, captivating the two sisters beside him.

Games are indeed harmful.

Zhou Yali originally wanted to wait until Chen Fan failed the first round before speaking, but seeing that he passed the rounds one after another, she was too lazy to wait and said directly, "After this learning machine was successfully developed, it became more popular than the computer we developed ourselves before once it was put on the market."

Connect a gamepad to play games, connect a keyboard to learn typing and computer operating systems. Many business people and college students like it. Most importantly,..."

She picked up a rather heavy box next to her and said with a smile, "If you connect this external floppy disk drive, you can use it directly as a computer to process office software."

Buying this machine is like getting a personal computer and a game console—nothing beats the deal. So, my friend, our company has another flagship product.

Without turning his head, Chen Fan asked, "Why didn't you develop a learning machine first? The sales of that computer aren't as good as this one."

Zhou Yali pursed her lips, "Because the computer project came first, and this project was only started after that was completed."

She paused for a moment, then shrugged. "Okay, I admit it was a mistake. I should have listened to you and given up on computers to make learning machines instead."

In just a few words, Chen Fan passed three more tests.

He then handed the handle to Jiang Lili, stepped back two paces to make room, and smiled at Zhou Yali, saying, "This decision shouldn't have been made by you, right?"

Zhou Yali blinked, a bright smile appearing on her face. "My friend, you are wise. This is indeed Dr. Engelbart's suggestion, but I did not insist on opposing it."

Chen Fan pursed his lips and asked, "So, Doctor wants more say?"

Zhou Yali laughed and said, "It's normal for him to have demands; after all, everyone thinks of themselves. And I'm just going along with it to let him see that his decisions aren't always correct."

He shrugged and laughed, "After all, developing the learning machine a few months later won't affect our ability to make money."

Chen Fan raised an eyebrow and gave her a thumbs up.

Zhou Yali chuckled twice, then turned to look at the game screen on the TV, but instead brought up something else, "Little brother, I saw you writing another fantasy novel last time, have you finished it yet?"

(End of this chapter)