Return to the 1982 Staff Compound

Chapter 42 Going to the provincial capital

Now we have an extra tape recorder, which is great. Qiu Huoming took out a power strip and plugged in the power supply of the machine.

After being busy for most of the day, he finally finished twenty boxes before dinner. During the waiting time, he was not idle and recited the political book.

At this rate, more than half of the finished products will definitely be delivered by Saturday afternoon.

At that time, the fast recorder had not yet come out, so the production capacity was very low.

Although it is tiring, he still feels a sense of accomplishment. In this era, he has been slowly accumulating original capital from nothing.

At that time, the main task of the industrial and commercial administration department was to "crack down on speculation and profiteering." People were not aware of copyright, and many businessmen were growing in a barbaric manner.

It's still okay this year, but next year there will be a nationwide crackdown. For someone as bold as Fang Jun, the outcome is hard to predict.

Once you get familiar with him, you still have to remind him.

Wucheng County's economy is average. It is a large agricultural county with weak industry. For things like reselling tickets, there are several groups of people at the gate of the Supply and Marketing Building every day. This business makes easy money, but the food is not stable. If you are not careful, you will be sent in for tea.

Qiu Huoming just wants to live a stable life. After all, he still has to take the college entrance examination and he cannot have any stain on him.

-

Chen Suniang was taking an assessment at the factory on Monday and returned home in the evening with a look of excitement on her face.

It is said that her score is quite high, and the specific assessment results will not be announced until the weekend. Qiu Huoming hinted to his mother to send something to his master to test the waters, but was severely criticized by Qiu Jianshe.

The couple started arguing again. Qiu Huoming sometimes felt that his father was a dullard, and sometimes he felt that some of the things his father insisted on were very valuable. In any case, Qiu Jianshe could not be trusted.

Qiu Huoming sighed and decided to rely on himself to be strong...

At night, he continued to record tapes and do math problems. Before going to bed, Chen Suniang helped him put his clothes in order and secretly gave him one dollar and two kilograms of food coupons.

On Tuesday morning, when it was still dark, Qiu Huoming carried his schoolbag and a bag of clothes and rushed to school. On the way, he bought a meat bun for ten cents and ate it with a smile on his face.

When they arrived at the school gate, Sun Zili was already standing in the cold wind waiting in the early morning. He was dressed similarly to Qiu Huoming, carrying a cloth bag and a schoolbag. He had been standing there for an unknown amount of time and his body was shaking.

"Let's go to the security room to take shelter from the wind." Qiu Huoming walked over and said hello.

The uncle guarding the security room asked the reason and politely let them in.

After all, Director Jiang, who led the team today, is also his superior.

The light shone on the open door of the school security room. The sky in the distance was already turning white. Qiu Huoming sat on a small bench near the door and looked at the wall clock in the security room. It was already half past six.

A jeep roared over and stopped at the door of the security room. Director Jiang, who was wearing a green army hat and a short military coat, opened the door and jumped out nimbly. Qiu Huoming shouted quickly, then stood up and called Sun Zili to go over with him.

He walked to the car and found Teacher Cheng sitting in the passenger seat. Her long hair was cut into the popular "ear hair" style, which means the hair was left just below the ears.

She looked much neater and tidy. She fumbled with the door handle for a long time but couldn't open the door.

He simply rolled up the car window and leaned out, "You're here, get in the car, where's Gu Xiaoran?"

Qiu Huoming threw his schoolbag and clothes to the back row and shouted, "Teacher Cheng, she hasn't come yet. I'll go to the intersection to check."

"Go ahead." Teacher Cheng looked around.

Director Jiang took a teacup and walked to the security room to pour hot water.

Qiu Huoming jogged along. There were already more people on West Street at this moment. He stretched his neck and looked into the distance.

Gu Xiaoran is always punctual, there is no reason for him to be late.

He was a little worried, but there were no mobile phones in this era, so he could only wait anxiously for more than ten minutes. Then he heard Sun Zili's voice from behind, "Student Qiu, the teacher wants you to go back to the car first."

"Oh, okay, I'll be right there."

Sun Zili's footsteps faded away.

Qiu Huoming was about to walk back when a running figure appeared in his sight. He raised the corner of his mouth and walked towards her, "Hey, I thought you wouldn't come."

"I'll get the things. Where's your car?" Qiu Huoming took the backpack off Gu Xiaoran's back. It was very heavy and no one knew what she had packed in it.

Gu Xiaoran panted, "Don't... talk, let... me... slow down." Qiu Huoming, carrying a backpack, walked with her at a slow pace.

"The tire... is flat. I realized it just before I left the house... I have no choice but to run here." Gu Xiaoran touched his chest which was rising and falling.

"It's okay, the time is just right." Qiu Huoming said with a smile, "Wipe off the sweat, just consider it as exercise."

"It's easy for you to say it, but you can try...try. It's a long way." Gu Xiaoran finally calmed down.

Seeing him and Gu Xiaoran arrive together, Teacher Cheng's heart suddenly fell into place, "Have you eaten? Get in the car first, we are leaving."

Qiu Huoming took the initiative to sit in the back seat of the car, Gu Xiaoran sat on his left, and Sun Zili sat on his right.

Director Jiang opened the car door, put some force on his feet and sat in the driver's seat by inertia. After closing the car door, he turned around and asked, "Are you not prone to motion sickness?"

Sun Zili raised his hand, "I might be carsick."

Director Jiang opened the central control, took out a bag and handed it over, "Don't vomit in the car."

"Oh, okay." Sun Zili held the bag tightly and placed it on his knees.

"Let's go." Director Jiang skillfully shifted gears, stepped on the accelerator, released the clutch, and turned the steering wheel. The car roared and drove along West Street towards the outside of the city.

After passing the urban-rural junction, there were farmlands on both sides of the road. Qiu Huoming was quite excited at first, and he and Gu Xiaoran and Teacher Cheng were looking at the scenery on both sides and chatting. After driving for about an hour, everyone began to lose interest.

The car window was slightly open, and the wind was blowing in. Sun Zili kept his eyes closed from beginning to end, looking as if he wanted to keep away from strangers.

After another half an hour, Teacher Cheng also began to feel sleepy. His head drooped from time to time, and then he suddenly opened his eyes, repeating this over and over again. Qiu Huoming felt dizzy watching this.

Gu Xiaoran leaned on the back of the chair and fell asleep. Qiu Huoming sat in the middle, bored, so he simply closed his eyes and began to recall the contents of the book in his mind.

Before he knew it, he fell asleep too.

It was not until the car suddenly stopped that he suddenly woke up and found Gu Xiaoran leaning on his shoulder. As he was looking at her and considering whether to wake her up, her eyelashes began to flutter. Qiu Huoming could not think of a countermeasure for a moment, so he had to close his eyes quickly.

Sure enough, after a moment, she opened her eyes in a daze, and found herself leaning on Qiu Huoming's shoulder. A blush suddenly appeared on her cheeks. She quickly sat up straight and turned her head to the window.

Qiu Huoming then opened his eyes, yawned and looked around.

"Get out of the car and move around. If you need to go to the toilet, go there. We'll be there in more than an hour." Director Jiang opened the car door and jumped out.

Teacher Cheng opened the car door smoothly this time. She opened the door and turned to ask Gu Xiaoran, "Do you want to go to the bathroom with me?"

Gu Xiaoran nodded, "Okay, let's go together."

The parking lot is a roadside restaurant. In order to attract customers, a public toilet was set up next to it.

Qiu Huoming also jumped out of the car, "Student Sun, are you going to release the water?"

Sun Zili shook his head with difficulty and refused to speak.

People who are carsick are afraid of vomiting if they open their mouths, so Qiu Huoming looked away sympathetically, jogged a few steps, caught up with Teacher Cheng and the others, and headed towards the toilet.

Director Jiang squatted on the curb and smoked a cigarette. He waited for Teacher Cheng to come back, then walked towards the toilet alone.

This is a small town in another county, probably close to the provincial road, and it is relatively prosperous. The radio in the restaurant is playing pop songs, and a few children are squatting at the door playing pebbles.

Director Jiang came out of the toilet and walked back. Halfway through the journey, he put another cigarette in his mouth. It was difficult for him to hold it in in the car.

Seeing him approach, Teacher Cheng called out to the students, "Let's go, get on the bus."

Qiu Huoming opened the back door and took the initiative to sit back in the middle seat. Gu Xiaoran got in the car and looked at his left shoulder somewhat awkwardly.

Qiu Huoming followed her gaze and saw a puddle of water on his shoulder.

"Maybe the water splashed when I was washing my hands." Qiu Huoming explained. As soon as he finished speaking, Gu Xiaoran's ears turned red.

In a flash, Qiu Huoming suddenly understood...