Chapter Ten: Each has his own destiny and each is at peace with himself
Zhu Shijun replied, "For comrades like Liu Yuanzhou who are undisciplined and unorganized, and have been blocking organizational intelligence, the organization has dealt with them before, there are precedents. I think it's just a matter of following the rules."
Sun Qianjin said, "Right, we will handle it according to the rules. The principles of our organization have not changed. We still adhere to the principle of 'punishing the past and warning the future, treating the disease and saving the people'. For this kind of thing, we will seize it together and deal with it together, and never tolerate it. I think this matter should be handled promptly, tonight."
"Alright, tonight then, see you tonight Old Mo." Lei Xiao Tian smiled and said.
Liu Yuan saw that everyone was still joking and teasing him, and no one blamed his "betrayal". For a moment, he also put down his guard and said generously: "Old Mo is just Old Mo, this meal is on me, it's considered as an apology to you guys."
Xue Xiang saw that Liu Yuan and Li Hongjun had made up their minds, and then asked: "What about you four? Are you going to the factory for work or to join the production team?"
Sun Qianjin said: "My dad arranged a job for me at the Chaoyang Iron and Steel Factory, driving a cargo truck." Sun Qianjin's father was also a demobilized military cadre. Although he was also affected in this disaster, after the problem was cleared up, he was released ahead of schedule and is now the director of the Second Light Industry Bureau of Beijing Municipality.
Sun Qianjin finished speaking, and Lei Xiaotian, Kang Tong, and Zhu Shijun did not say a word. Xue Xiang guessed that the three of them definitely had no good place to go, and if things didn't work out, they would have to go to the countryside or mountains. For a moment, the atmosphere was somewhat dull, and Xue Xiang downed his wine in one gulp, saying: "If you're planning on going to join the production team, then don't go."
When Xue heard this, the six people's faces changed color at the same time. Although at that time, propaganda always said that educated youth going to the countryside was voluntary and spontaneous, but in fact, there was no administrative order requiring forced implementation. However, a leader's call was already more powerful than all orders and propaganda. Children who listened went voluntarily, and those who refused were easily dealt with. The organization first came to your home to mobilize you. If you didn't understand the situation, they wouldn't assign work to you, and would leave you hanging. Finally, the leaders of your parents' units would talk to them, put pressure on them, and in no time, they would bring you under control.
Xue Xiang said this with a reason. He knew that next year would be the last batch of educated youth going to the countryside, and in two years, all educated youth would have returned home. In fact, many educated youth had already found connections and returned to the city through backdoors in previous years. If they were to go to the countryside again now, it would only be a waste of three years without any practical significance.
"Third brother, if we don't go to the countryside, our living expenses will be cut off. My dad hasn't come out yet, and I'm the only one at home. They can't do anything about me being lazy and not leaving, but I'll just have to starve." This time it was Zhu Shijun who spoke up, his father was a cadre in the Central Propaganda Department and is also being sent away, his mother has already passed away.
"Yah is just a fool, when did Third Brother ever let the brothers go hungry? Since Third Brother said so, he must have a way. Lei Xiao Tian chimed in: "Right, Third Brother, you've been talking for half a day and still haven't said where you plan to go."
"You say I'm stupid, but what can you do? It's clear that Third Brother is gone, and now what are Xiaowan and the others going to do? Besides, if Third Brother doesn't go to join the queue, would those guys from the Revolutionary Committee dare to come and bother us?" Zhu Shijun regained his composure, feeling pleased with himself.
"Yes, Third Brother, what are your plans? Anyway, I'll follow you wherever you go." Lei Xiaotian didn't bother to counterattack Zhu Shijun. His parents were originally cadres in the Beijing Municipal Committee, but after being investigated, they were both laid off and stayed at home. He also had a sister who went to the northern border to join a production team.
Xue Xiangdao said, "I'm definitely not leaving home, of course, and I won't be entering the factory either. I plan to go to university! Old Pig, you shouldn't throw away your books either, prepare well. Ma Lei and Xiao Kang are out of the question, they're not focused on this, but you're different." Zhu Shijun was very good at his studies when he read, and normally dressed like a refined scholar.
Xue Xiang's words stunned everyone again, what was wrong with Third Brother today, why did he keep saying astonishing things.
"Third Brother, you're not talking nonsense, are you? Our big courtyard only has two university quotas, I remember the district revolutionary committee recommended Wang Junchang and Li Zhengwei's two silly girls. Are you thinking of some trick to get the quota from Zhang, the head of the revolutionary committee?" This time it was Li Hongjun who spoke up, he and Kang Tong were the only ones who hadn't spoken until now. Kang Tong was a taciturn person, everyone knew he would definitely follow Xue Xiang's lead, so no one asked him. Li Hongjun was the only one among those present whose family had not been affected by the turmoil, and his father held a high position. Originally, Xue Xiang had nowhere to go, but he himself wanted to join the army, which made him feel very uncomfortable, so every time they talked about their future prospects, he basically remained silent, afraid of stimulating his companions. Now hearing what Xue Xiang said was really astonishing, and he couldn't help but interrupt and ask.
"I didn't say I'd go to university this year, first prepare well for the review, maybe there will be a turnaround." Xue couldn't speak too dead, of course he couldn't say that next year the college entrance examination would resume and he could enter university at the beginning of the year, otherwise he would be asked silly by several people. Fortunately, he had a good reputation in this small circle, and his words were always accurate, so although everyone was puzzled, they didn't ask further questions.
Xue Xiang continued from his previous words: "As for the problem of eating mentioned by Qianjin, I thought of a way to make money, let's discuss it together."
Then Xue told them about the old house and the antique business, and they all clapped their hands in excitement. In their eyes, there was no such thing as profiteering. Hearing that there was money to be made, everyone laughed with gleeful faces, for making money meant having meat to eat, and eating meat was their top priority at the moment. Even if it meant giving up on the good fortune of becoming a soldier, they would still choose to make way for the chance to eat meat.
Xue Xiang raised his hand to stop the laughter of several people, pointed to the small Shi sleeping in his arms, and said: "Everyone should not be too happy about this matter. We need to plan carefully. First, who among us has knowledge of antique appraisal? None of us do, right? So finding an old craftsman who understands appreciation is our top priority at the moment. Secondly, when purchasing, we need to disperse and avoid going to one place in a crowd, which would attract attention and make it difficult to handle. We can't let others follow suit and spread the news everywhere. Let's go to those quiet places that the small ones haven't visited before, choose those high-gated mansions or ancestral homes of officials. Finally, there are issues with start-up funds and dispersing goods. I can only contribute 50 yuan from my side. When dispersing goods, everyone should find several household registration books, preferably go to the Beihai Ice Rink to find some guys to help disperse them. The person selected must be reliable, or else we'll end up with nothing but trouble." He wouldn't say that he was an expert in antiques himself, so even if others couldn't imagine him being a time-traveler, he still couldn't explain the differences, and it was better not to mention it at all.
Xue Xiangyan's words were clear and logical, well thought out, and several people nodded in agreement as they listened.
Sun Qianjin said, "Let's do it as San Ge said. I know someone who is an expert in identifying this thing. My uncle's factory has a lame old man named Lao San. His family has been doing this for generations. Their ancestors opened an antique shop called Bo Gu Zhai in the Liuli Factory, which was passed down for over 100 years until his father took it over and merged it with others. After more than ten years of struggling, his father didn't survive and was tortured to death, and he himself had his leg broken. Now he works as a gatekeeper at my uncle's factory."
Xue Xiang said to Sun Qianjin: "Alright, I'll leave this matter to you. Remember to keep it confidential."
Sun Qian nodded in agreement. The matter of authentication had been basically settled, and the crowd began to pool their money together. Excluding Xue Xiang's 50 yuan, the six of them managed to scrape together less than 10 yuan. It was not even a fifth of what Xue Xiang had contributed, and several people felt embarrassed. Feeling embarrassed meant they had to shift the direction of the struggle, which was their usual method of diverting conflicts. Zhu Shijun was the first to fire: "Comrade Liu Yuan, you said you'd invite us to Old Mo's place tonight, but with just this 1 yuan and 43 cents in your pocket, we can't even afford a bowl of congee." The words "comrade" and "you" were used together in a rather creative way.
"Old pig, don't be foolish. That kid said he'd treat us to dinner but didn't say who would pay the bill. He's probably going to eat his fill and then pretend to be dead when it comes time to settle the account. In any case, we'll have to cough up the cash or lose our lives. This isn't the first time he's pulled this stunt, he's done it before and gotten away with it. You're just too gullible." Sun Qianjin chimed in.
"Right, from a psychological perspective, a person's behavior habits have great inertia. Comrade Liu Yuan-chao's behavior, when deepened to the philosophical realm, is an error of metaphysics, always viewing things in a one-sided and static way. You say that every time Liu Yuan-chao shouts 'settle the bill', he just sits there pretending to be dead, and won't exert his subjective initiative or discuss with the boss from a business perspective how the menu pricing structure for this meal is unreasonable, from the perspective of hygiene..." Zhu Shi-jun was eloquent as always, and launched into a tirade.
At this moment, everyone stood up and attacked him. Liu Yuan was squeezed to the point where he couldn't get down from the stage. He slammed his wine cup on the table and said: "This time it's for real. We agreed that I would invite you all out to dinner as an apology, how could we go back to the way things were before? You guys can leave after dinner, I'll take care of the bill, this is the best solution." He had thought about this earlier, just like Sun Qianjin said, but now that it's been exposed, this trick won't work. Now he was being pushed against the wall by these few people and could only grit his teeth and hold on. It seems that in the future, he'll have to come up with new tricks. Foxes are getting more and more cunning, making life difficult for hunters, Liu Yuan sighed inwardly. At worst, he would just have to eat a "dictator's meal", he could still get the upper hand over these guys, at most they would make him wash dishes for a few days, as long as Third Brother didn't find out, it wouldn't be a loss of face.
Xue Xiang saw Liu Yuan being squeezed out and hastily mediated: "Let's talk about going to Lao Mo's later, after we've dealt with the current matter. We can go to Lao Mo's every day then. Lao Mo will be tired of us going to the Beijing restaurant, where they receive state guests. The few of us can also enjoy the treatment of state guests."
"Stop it, Third Brother. We agreed to go to Old Mo's, so let's go to Old Mo's. I, Liu Yuan Chao, have always been a man of my word, and tonight you'll see what I'm capable of." Liu Yuan Chao was determined to tough it out, for if they lost face this time, those guys would be talking about it for years to come, and he knew them all too well.
You're one to talk, with your empty words and arrogant attitude. In the past, when we were short of money for our gathering, who should we reason with? Everyone would secretly sigh in unison. But thinking carefully, according to this guy's wordplay, he said "treat" but not "pay", which also makes sense. It seems that from now on, we need to be careful with his words and can't let him take advantage of us again while pretending to be clever.
Liu Yuanzhao did not know that several people had already set their alarm for him to red alert.
