She swallowed.
He quickly asked, "Boss, what's our number?"
"Let me see."
Xiuli is illiterate. Not every woman in the countryside is literate. There are literacy classes offered by the government, but some families don't allow their daughters to attend. Zuo Yan glanced at the number and said, "Number 37, that's pretty close."
Seeing his wife so nervous, Zuo Yan smiled and handed her the ticket: "Wife, you've always been lucky. Here, take this. You might win in a bit."
Xiuli hesitated for a moment, but Zuo's mother took the voucher without saying a word and stuffed it into Xiuli's hand: "He's right, this unlucky child has been unlucky since he was a child!"
The motorcycles on stage were not only a great stimulus to the workers.
This also greatly stimulates the technologies below.
The authorities haven't truly loosened the purchase restrictions yet, meaning that for now, buying a motorcycle still requires a motorcycle ticket, just like a bicycle ticket. And even if they did loosen the restrictions, they wouldn't be willing to buy them.
Wang Shouren, that heartless man, sold them to public institutions like the post office, charging a "friendship price," basically fluctuating between 2500 and 3000.
The ones sold in department stores won't be so cheap. The initial price set for department stores is 6888, and they will be available after the New Year.
Take Feng Xian and Song Qiao, for example.
They planned to buy a courtyard house in the city. The owner was asking for 8,000 yuan (note that Zuo Yan's family bought a small room in the courtyard house, while these two were buying the entire courtyard house). With their combined salaries, they could afford it. The problem was that the courtyard house was too far from their workplaces. Even if they bought it, they wouldn't have much time to take care of it.
If they win this motorcycle, then they won't have to worry anymore and can focus on saving money for renovations.
“Alright, let’s begin.” Wang Shouren didn’t waste any words and reached directly into the box, grabbing a handful: “Ten spots this time, the prize is a radio. Let me see…”
"Number 37."
When the first number came out, Zuo Yan was stunned for a moment, then Xiuli was stunned for a moment, and finally, Zuo's mother was stunned for a moment.
Then, the three of them blushed with excitement.
"Honey, we got it! We got it!" Xiuli grasped Zuo Yan's hand, her excitement overflowing.
"Yes, yes, yes, it's a hit!"
At this moment, Wang Shouren's voice came from the stage: "Those whose numbers are called, take your tickets and come up to claim your prize."
"Here you go, sir!" Xiuli immediately handed it over.
Zuo Yan nodded and, amidst the envious gazes of the crowd, forced his way out.
"Number 832".
"Number 67".
"..."
After calling out ten numbers in a row, the crowd erupted in cheers. Winners and losers alike were ecstatic. Even those who hadn't won were incredibly smug when they saw someone they knew win, exclaiming to the person next to them, "See that big oaf? That's my buddy!"
The look in his eyes, the tone of his voice—it was as if he himself had been infected.
Each person stood on the stage, holding a radio and grinning foolishly.
Wang Shouren had no intention of repeating those old-fashioned ideas about hard work.
He smiled and asked, "Are you happy?"
"Happy!" Zuo Yan shouted, especially loudly.
He recognized the radio; it was a "Red Flag" brand made in Shanghai. He'd heard it was really good, and he never imagined he'd be able to use it himself today.
"If you're happy, then get off here. I'm moving on to the next one. Don't get too cocky, or you might end up with a sack over your head!"
Wang Shouren's words drew a burst of laughter from the audience. The main reason was that the ten people on stage were indeed all very smug, and after Wang Shouren said that, they quickly restrained their expressions, but no matter what, they couldn't suppress the smile on their lips.
Zuo Yan happily carried the radio to his seat.
Xiuli looked at the radio cautiously, wanting to reach out and touch it, but afraid of breaking it.
"This is a radio?" Mrs. Zuo looked at the big black box and liked it more and more. "It's really high-tech, big and good. From now on, we'll put this in the living room so we can listen to it anytime."
"Mmm!" Zuo Yan nodded repeatedly; he had wanted this for a long time.
These days, the nights are truly boring. I can't sleep and don't know what to do. It's only because I have a wife that the nights aren't so boring. But even if every night isn't "so boring," it's not good. For a while, Zuo Yan was really weak, and his mother-in-law only calmed him down for a few days after laughing and scolding him. Now, it's good to have something to do, it's good to have something to do~
As the first group of people went down, the crowd below became even more excited.
Why?
Because there's no shady dealings involved.
Everyone on stage was someone I knew; some were newly hired, some had been working there for a while, and some were former employees of the old factory. It really was a matter of chance. It all depended on luck. That meant I also had a chance to get one. For most people, this was good news.
"Alright, next up, the second prize."
"Number 77!"
"Number 138!"
"Number 4396!"
"Number 9527!"
"Number 288!"
A burst of enthusiastic applause erupted from the audience, and several young men, their faces flushed, walked up. These were bicycles! Phoenix brand bicycles, no less! These days, owning a bicycle made you a cool guy. Of course, if you had a motorcycle, you were the coolest guy around.
Five handsome young men, beaming with joy, also stood in the center of the stage.
They received their bicycles.
Finally, the big prizes were revealed.
"Alright, the last one, which is today's first place winner, and also the grand finale of tonight. So, it is..." Wang Shouren paused here, and he could clearly feel the breaths of the audience hold for a moment: "Oh, right, before I tell you what the first prize is, I want to tell you that those who didn't win don't need to be discouraged. We've also prepared some small gifts, which will be distributed to everyone tomorrow afternoon."
The crowd; ...
Is this what I want to know?
What I really want to know is whether I won the lottery!
Those in the audience clearly hadn't experienced the kind of suspense Wang Shouren displayed in his previous life. Anyone who's lived through the 21st century knows this. These days, what doesn't involve suspense? Announcing rankings is suspenseful, even TV dramas leave cliffhangers. Even authors, when writing novels, if they promise readers five chapters a day, and it happens to be at a point where they can create suspense, will shamelessly postpone the fifth chapter until the next day.
This tactic is incredibly effective; they have a whole repertoire of clever tricks for stirring up emotions.
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