Journey 1995:Non-Stop

Chapter 84 Pager

What are onlookers most afraid of?

Of course, we can't enjoy the excitement.

As soon as Xiao Bao arrived, the number of onlookers increased, and Yan Hui and the others no longer needed to hide. They moved closer and mingled into the crowd.

"I respect you by calling you 'Uncle,' but you don't know how to speak politely?" Xiao Bao pointed at Da Kai. "Your son has been with me for so long, when have I ever mistreated him?"

“I’m not going to argue with you about that,” Cheng Gui said, grabbing Da Kai by the collar, almost lifting him up. He glared at Da Kai and said, “Let me tell you, if you want to get ahead, I can’t stop you, but don’t embarrass me here! Don’t even think about getting involved in my affairs or my people!”

Dad, Da Kai, didn't dare to use any force, but his neck was painfully constricted by the clothes. He could only plead and didn't dare to resist at all.

“Da Kai, he won’t give you any money. Come with me,” Xiao Bao said from the side.

Cheng Gui seemed tired; his arms were a little unsteady, and his body was trembling slightly. He then threw Da Kai's collar forward. Da Kai lost his balance, staggered back a few steps, and finally sat down on the ground.

There were too many onlookers, and Da Kai couldn't take it anymore. He put his hands on the ground, knelt down to support himself, and then fled from the crowd as if he were escaping.

“Something’s off about Xiao Bao,” Lao Guo said, pointing to Xiao Bao who had turned and left. “Look at Da Kai, he’s clearly not very promising, so why does Xiao Bao value him so much?”

“You might not know this, but Da Kai’s dad isn’t just a simple porter. If he were, he wouldn’t be able to keep running to my second brother’s place. His dad was a foreman, just like I was back then,” Yan Hui said.

"Foreman? What's so great about being a foreman?" Old Guo asked casually, looking ahead.

As soon as he finished speaking, Lao Guo quickly looked at Yan Hui and said, "I wasn't talking about you."

“I know,” Yan Hui said, unconcerned about what Lao Guo said, gesturing with his hands to the freight station. “The market here is different from ours. There aren’t many transport teams that can survive here. Uncle Cheng Gui’s group is considered quite powerful. Team leaders like him have a certain amount of influence because they are usually independent, not employed by any particular boss. For example, my uncle always hires a transport team like Uncle Cheng Gui when he comes to ship goods. It’s not busy now, but once it gets busy, the order in which transport teams take jobs is all about strategy.”

"That's true. So, is Xiao Bao trying to get involved here?"

“He’s always trying to steal work here, but when his men aren’t busy, they don’t get any work. Look at my uncle, if you were my uncle, and you came here to move goods, would you ask Uncle Chenggui or Xiaobao and the others?”

"Then we'll definitely find a reliable one." Old Guo said, nodding to lead the way, and then carefully looked at the scale of the freight station. "So, Xiao Bao originally hoped to use Da Kai and Uncle Cheng Gui's reputation to snatch the business here?"

"That's for sure, but Uncle Chenggui isn't stupid. He has a bunch of brothers. If you ask me, now that things have come to a head, Xiaobao probably knows that Dakai's move is a waste. Dakai's days are probably numbered from now on." Yan Hui shook his head slightly. "Let's go, I'll take you over there to take a look. Tonight, Accountant Liu and the others are loading the truck."

"Ah."

Brother Liu's bus departs about once every three or four days. Today's departure is late, and he probably won't finish until after midnight. Feeling bored, he found a chair and sat down, fiddling with his pager.

"Xiao Yan, you're here again?" Brother Liu stood up immediately when he saw Yan Hui. "Is this your friend Xiao Guo? I've met him before."

"Hmm, Brother Liu, your memory is really good," Yan Hui praised, then glanced at the loading area. "They haven't started moving things yet?" "The truck hasn't arrived yet. We'll have to wait all day. I don't know when it will arrive," Brother Liu said helplessly, clearly having a headache tonight.

"Oh, Liu, I just saw you. Did you get a new pager?" Yan Hui's eyes lit up.

“You have a good eye,” Brother Liu said, perking up immediately. “This one is a Motorola, it can display Chinese characters! Your uncle’s Nokia phone can type, I have to keep up with the times too! Otherwise I won’t receive messages from my boss.”

"It can display Chinese characters?" Yan Hui was extremely envious upon hearing this.

In its early days, a pager could only be used to notify someone that "I need to talk to you, call me back as soon as possible." Later, it could send simple numbers. Being able to send numbers was already quite advanced, as numbers could encompass a lot of information, especially for business people. After agreeing in advance, some numbers could include key information such as prices and times. In addition, it could also tell the other party what time they would be waiting on the phone, as well as the phone number of the waiting phone, which was quite convenient.

The Motorola Elite series pager that Brother Liu is carrying is quite remarkable; it can not only receive Chinese characters but also display weather forecasts!

Although pagers at this stage still did not have the function of "replying to messages", they were already very practical. This one cost about 3000 yuan! Yan Hui looked on with envy!

"It's alright, quite convenient. Let me show you." Brother Liu looked at Yan Hui and the other man's expressions and seemed quite pleased, so he generously handed it over.

"Thanks, brother! Wow, even this monitor is different!" Yan Hui and Lao Guo immediately started examining it.

"I definitely have to get one this year!" Old Guo said, admiring the book.

“Then I’ll wait until after the New Year to buy it. I see the price of this stuff changes every year,” Yan Hui said.

"How can you wait until after the New Year? Buy it in advance, so you can hang it on your waist when you go home for the New Year. That would be so impressive!" Old Guo offered a very tempting suggestion.

"Hmm..." Yan Hui thought about it carefully, "It's still a bit expensive... I don't need it right now... Should I wait a little longer?"

"Whatever you want, I'm definitely getting one this year. I can't go out without one on my waist."

"If you ask me, this won't work. If you have the money, just get one of your uncle's—a mobile phone! Or you could get a brick phone; they're much cheaper now," Brother Liu said with a laugh.

"That? How could I afford it?" Yan Hui realized that Brother Liu was teasing them, but he dared not make such a boast. Yan Hui had been out for a year and a half, and all the money he had earned was only enough for one mobile phone. He would have to be crazy to buy one.

As Yan Hui spoke, he returned the pager to Brother Liu, still somewhat reluctant to part with it.

He hasn't started a business yet, and he doesn't have any urgent matters to attend to, so buying now is completely unnecessary. But in any case, Lao Guo's suggestion really appealed to him.

Who doesn't want to make a splash when they go home for the New Year? This year, going home... it's about Liu Yu.
In an instant, a whole host of thoughts raced through Yan Hui's mind, and he suddenly felt a strong urge to have a pager. After all, having a pager on your belt was a symbol of status.

(End of this chapter)