Chapter 38

"This special zone has a great reputation, and it looks not much different from your county. Hey hey hey... be steady!"

Zhao Hong, who was bumped by his bicycle, shouted, and the cyclist who was carrying him said, "It looks fine here, but you haven't been to Shekou. They are blasting mountains and filling the sea! That's the biggest change."

"Did they really blow up the mountains and fill the sea?"

"Of course it's true. The mud was flying high, just like an earthquake. It happened a few months ago. You came too late and didn't see the excitement."

Chen Lanjun held onto the back seat of the car with both hands and said, "Cousin, don't underestimate this place. Changes have to come little by little. This is a place with great potential."

The cyclist who was giving her a ride laughed and said, "What you said is exactly the same as what the Hong Kong guy I used to give her a ride on said."

"Have you ever carried people from Hong Kong?" asked Chen Lanjun.

"Yeah, that's how it turned over."

After such a bumpy ride, my bones were almost falling apart, but we finally arrived.

After paying the taxi fare, Chen Lanjun and Zhao Hong walked along the ridge of the field.

Chen Lanjun saw a man farming in the field from afar. She looked carefully and found that the farmer was wearing a floral shirt and his long hair was flying in the wind. People of this era have not yet suffered from the trouble of hair loss. Every one of them has hair as thick as if they had used BAWANG anti-hair loss shampoo. At first glance, he looked like a gangster who should be fighting on the streets of Hong Kong, but at this moment he was working barefoot in the paddy field with his trouser legs rolled up. It was quite funny.

Zhao Hong also saw it and asked curiously, "What kind of clothes are these? They are so fancy."

State-owned garment factories in the mainland today do not make clothes of this style.

Chen Lanjun guessed: "It's probably second-hand clothes from Hong Kong."

When a stranger entered the village, a big yellow dog jumped out and barked.

The shouting startled the gangster farmer in the field. He raised his head, his small eyes full of vigilance: "Hey, what are you two doing!"

Chen Lanjun smiled at him and said, "This is Nanfeng Village. I'm looking for someone."

"Who are you looking for?"

"My classmate is called Ajing, Su Ajing! Her aunt married into this village."

The young and dangerous farmer walked over in the mud, one foot deep and one foot shallow: "Oh, you are the friend that Sister Jing mentioned, I am his cousin."

"What a coincidence, I'm Chen Lanjun and he's my brother Zhao Hong. What's his name?"

"Everyone calls me Ah Shan, please give me a hand, brother."

Zhao Hong pulled Ashan onto the ridge of the field and asked: "Where did you get these clothes?"

Ah Shan brushed the mud off his body and said, "I bought it at the market, it's very cheap. Come on, I'll take you home."

Ashan was leading the way. In front of a red brick house, a few chickens were pecking at rice. A woman with her hair in a bun was holding a large bamboo winnowing basket and feeding the chickens with a "clack-clack" sound.

"Mom, Jing's friend is here."

Aunt Su looked up and said with a smile, "Come in and sit down. Grandma is inside."

When Grandma Ajing saw Chen Lanjun, she was extremely happy and held her hand tightly, saying, "Good girl, you're here."

The old man has been cared for for a few months and has become a little tanned, but he looks better and in better spirits. You can tell at a glance that he is being well taken care of.

Aunt Su came in with a kettle and poured water into the enamel cup.

Chen Lanjun looked around and didn't see Ah Jing, so she asked, "Thank you, where's Ah Jing?"

"She's out doing something. She'll be back soon."

After a few simple greetings, Aunt Su turned to Ah Shan and said, "Go to the neighbor's house and borrow a bamboo bed for this boy to sleep on."

She said apologetically, "I'm sorry, the house is small, so I have to ask you to sleep in the main room."

"It's okay, it's okay. We are sorry for disturbing you." Zhao Hong said quickly.

"You guys sit down, Ah Shan, please keep me company, I'll be out for a while."

Ashan was not the one to talk to, he just sat there honestly and answered whatever Chen Lanjun asked.

"Where did Ajing go?"

"She went to Shekou to move soil. They are short of manpower there now. She will be paid for each day's work."

As they were talking, they suddenly heard a heart-wrenching rooster crow.

Are you going to kill a chicken?

Chen Lanjun stood up and said, "Don't you want to kill me? No, we don't need to do that."

As he said this, he was about to walk out.

Grandma Ajing, who had been sitting there, grabbed her hand and refused to let go: "You are a distinguished guest, and you should do so."

Chen Lanjun wanted to stop it, but she heard the rooster's crowing suddenly stop. It seemed that there was no way to spare the chicken.

When it was dark, Ajing came back. She came in with a middle-aged man in work clothes. Ashan called out "Dad", who should be Uncle Su.

Ah Jing's face darkened a shade, and when she saw Chen Lanjun, she smiled happily: "Sister Lan, you are finally here! Uncle, this is the Chen Lanjun I was talking about."

"It turns out that our little benefactor has come. Come, please take a seat."

"That's too much."

"It's my duty," Uncle Su insisted, pulling out a chair and inviting Chen Lanjun to sit down. "If it weren't for your help, grandma wouldn't be so well now. Come, sit down."

Unable to refuse the kind invitation, Chen Lanjun had no choice but to sit down.

The dishes are relatively simple, including stir-fried cabbage and steamed eggs. The only meat dish is braised chicken.

"Come and try it. Our three-yellow chicken tastes especially good." Aunt Su picked up a chicken leg and put it in Chen Lanjun's bowl without saying a word, and gave the other chicken leg to Zhao Hong.

The so-called three-yellow chicken refers to a chicken whose feathers, beak and claws are all yellow, and is a local specialty.

Chen Lanjun took a bite of the chicken and found it neither dry nor tough, but smooth, tender and fragrant. It was just a simple steaming and the taste was amazing.

"It's delicious." She praised, "I can tell from the taste that Aunt Su raised it with great care."

"Haha, yes, I have been taking care of these three yellow chickens for the past six months. If I take them to the county to sell, they will be sold out in no time." Aunt Su happily scooped another spoonful of chicken soup, "Here, this chicken soup is sweet and refreshing, and it is also delicious when used to soak rice."

After dinner, I took a bench and a palm-leaf fan to enjoy the cool air under the eaves.

Ajing quietly explained the situation here.

It turned out that since the implementation of the new policy, Uncle Su was selected to work as a laborer in Shekou, and Aunt Su raised chickens by herself. The situation at home improved little by little, and only then did they have the confidence to bring Grandma Ajing and Ajing to live with them.

"In addition to his monthly salary, my uncle also gave him a bonus in the first two months, four cents per car." Ah Jing said, "Once the bonus came, everyone was very happy and things were done faster. Some small jobs could not even be handled in time, so I shamelessly went to help with the work and was paid by the day."

"Bonuses are also given." Chen Lanjun raised her eyebrows. She had once suggested to Zheng Mei at home that the income of the workers in the village-run furniture factory should be evenly distributed in the form of bonuses. Although Zheng Mei agreed at the time, she later encountered many objections, saying that "I have never heard of collective enterprises having rules." In the end, nothing was done and it remained the same.

This special administrative region dares to directly issue bonuses, which is a pioneering move. I just hope there won’t be any setbacks.

Chen Lanjun asked Ah Jing: "It must be tiring to work over there, right?"

"I am a little tired, but I am embarrassed to eat plain rice at home." Ah Jing sighed and moved the small stool closer to Chen Lanjun. "Sister Lan, I also tried the plan you taught me. I found the village cadres and did a lot of ideological work. They agreed that if there are people willing to invest, it is okay. But the village will not give any money."

Not only that, this originally poor and average village also mocked Ajing: "Doesn't your aunt make money by raising chickens? Just ask her to pay."

In addition to the lack of cooperation on this side, another problem was that Ajing simply couldn't find anyone from Hong Kong who was willing to invest.

"I asked someone about it, and they said that our place is far from the border and it's not very convenient, but then nothing happened."

After listening to this, Chen Lanjun nodded. This matter was indeed a bit difficult.

She thought for a moment and said, "Let's talk about this later. I came here for three reasons. First, to see you. Second, to see if there is any opportunity. Third... I want to see my sister. She fled to Hong Kong before."

Ah Jing nodded in understanding: "Ah, that's right. I've been looking for someone here and there who should be able to help me ask. I'll take you there tomorrow morning."

"Don't you still have work to do tomorrow? Even though you're a temporary worker, it's better to say hello to people and see things through to the end." Chen Lanjun said.

"That's how it should be," Ah Jing smiled sheepishly, "but Sister Lan's matter is more important, so I want to give it priority. If it really doesn't work, I can ask my uncle to talk to him about it."

"It's okay." Chen Lanjun smiled. "It just so happens that I also want to see what this industrial zone created by blasting the mountain and reclaiming the sea looks like."