Year 1979: Eating meat with my wife and children

Seeing how excited A Zhe and Hou San were, Li Xiangdong smiled but didn't say anything, deliberately keeping them quiet.

Hou San reached out and took the cloth bag off Li Xiangdong's back, then slung it over his own shoulder. "Brother Dong, it must be tiring for you to carry that. Let me carry it for you."

Ah Zhe was also very perceptive. He quickly took out a Daqianmen cigarette from his pocket, put it in Li Xiangdong's mouth, and even helped him light the match.

Li Xiangdong was very comfortable being served by the two men. He took a drag of his cigarette and stretched. "You two, don't be in such a hurry. This isn't the place to talk."

Hou San smiled broadly and said, "Yes, yes, let's go to my dad's office to talk. My dad is in a meeting at the Beijing Railway Bureau. There's no one there to talk to without worry."

Hou San and A Zhe were like two lackeys, serving Li Xiangdong like servants.

The three of them went to Hou Jianshe's office.

"Brother Dong, would you like some tea? I'll pour you some."

As Hou San spoke, he pulled out a tin box, which was full of tea leaves. He grabbed a handful and threw it directly into the teacup.

"Put less!"

Li Xiangdong's reminder came too late. He looked at the tea leaves in the teacup and didn't know what to say.

These days, it's not easy for ordinary people to get a cup of tea. People like Hou San, who do this all the time, are just spendthrifts!

Li Xiangdong felt sorry for Hou San, but Hou San didn't care at all. He patted his chest and laughed, "It's okay, Brother Dong. As long as you help me make money, I'll give you this box of tea."

"These are your father's tea leaves, can you make that decision?"

"My father only has one son, me. Do you think I can make that decision?"

Li Xiangdong waved his hand, refusing to continue the conversation, and also signaled to Hou San to stop talking.

Seeing that Hou San was even contributing tea leaves to earn money, A Zhe hurriedly picked up the thermos and said, "The water inside isn't hot anymore. I'll go get a kettle of hot water. Hou San, where's the water room?"

"There is a water room at the far east end of the corridor."

Seeing the two men being more and more attentive than the other, Li Xiangdong's lips curled up slightly. He was very satisfied with their attitude. Even brothers should keep clear accounts!

He came up with the ideas for making money, so he should definitely be the one in charge in the future, and he should also get the biggest share of the profits. Therefore, it is now necessary to make it clear that he is the leader among the three people.

Ah Zhe returned with a thermos, poured hot water into the teacup, and handed it over.

Li Xiangdong took the cup that A Zhe handed him and took a sip. "My Uncle Hou's tea is so fragrant! Alright, let's not stand here anymore, let's sit down and talk."

After the three of them sat down, Li Xiangdong looked at Hou San and asked, "Can you find a way to switch shifts so we can travel all over the country freely?"

Hou San nodded and said, "No problem, it's nothing."

Li Xiangdong nodded, believing Hou San had the ability. "Do you know how others carry things?"

"Of course I know. Just take the money and go outside to buy watches, radios, televisions, and fashionable clothes, as well as beef jerky, mutton, and chocolate. Bring back anything that we don't have in Beijing."

Hou San raised his arm and showed off, "This watch I'm wearing was bought for me from Shanghai through someone."

Seeing that Hou San was about to continue showing off, Li Xiangdong interrupted, "Alright, I understand. In other words, everyone only carried money when they went to other places by car."

"Making money this way is too inefficient. Can we bring less or no money? We can exchange the money for goods first, sell them in other places, and then exchange them for money again. This way, we can earn more money by going back and forth."

Hearing this, A Zhe and Hou San's eyes lit up. Even if they were stupid, they would understand that this was a faster way to make money!

Hou San asked, "But what should we bring?"

Ah Zhe chimed in, "That's right, Dongzi. Nobody's stupid. If we can bring things with us, who's going to bring money? But what do we have in Beijing? Roast duck? Tianfuhao braised pork knuckle? We can't exactly bring those things with us, can we?"

Li Xiangdong said speechlessly, "And it's Liubiju's pickles!"

At this moment, Hou San suddenly exclaimed excitedly, "I know what to bring!"

Ah Zhe looked at Hou San expectantly, "Tell me quickly what you're bringing?"

Hou San stood up, his neck stiff with pride, and said, "Neiliansheng cloth shoes!"

"Hou San, sit down!"

A Zhe pressed Hou San down into a chair. He felt really stupid for believing that a fool could come up with any good ideas!

Hou San said urgently, "Where did I say something wrong? Neiliansheng cloth shoes are so comfortable to wear, I don't wear anything else but Neiliansheng cloth shoes!"

Li Xiangdong rolled his eyes at Hou San, "You, Hou San, are not Bai Laoqi!"

They live a pretty dignified life, even insisting on wearing Neiliansheng brand old cloth shoes…