186 New Stage
Guan Yuehe was finally able to leave work on time.
When you arrive at Ginkgo Hutong, it's the time when students get home from school. Adults who are off work, whether they are riding bicycles or motorcycles, all get off at the entrance of the hutong to avoid driving in and hitting the elderly and children.
"Why is Yuehe leaving get off work so early today?"
"yes."
"I heard we're going to the Great Hall of the People to sign a contract tomorrow, and a TV reporter is going to cover it. Yuehe, are you going too?"
Guan Yuehe nodded.
"We'll see you on TV and in the newspapers again this time."
She will go, but she probably won't appear on TV or in the newspapers, since many high-ranking officials will be attending tomorrow. And in this joint venture project, she's just one member of the negotiation team.
Her family all knew she was going to attend a signing ceremony tomorrow, but they all tacitly avoided mentioning it.
Guan Yuehe found it amusing; she herself didn't feel nervous, but they seemed to be the ones who were more nervous.
Guan Canghai hesitated, but after being glared at by his wife, he ultimately remained silent.
Thinking to myself: It's the Great Hall of the People! National leaders will be attending the signing ceremony, isn't it normal to be nervous?
The room was quiet when Aunt Fang steered the conversation toward Ding Xuewen.
"It's good to hold the banquet at a restaurant. It's less troublesome and you don't have to bother your neighbors."
Ding Xuewen booked a banquet at a small private restaurant near his home and invited his relatives and friends to eat there.
No one else said anything, except that a small restaurant had opened in Changhu Street, also specializing in banquets. The head chef was a retired master chef from the state-owned restaurant in Changhu Street.
Guan Yuehe immediately became interested and asked where the old master's shop was located, saying she wanted to go there for a meal another day.
“They only accept wedding banquets. If you hold your next wedding banquet, it will be when Lin Ting gets into university,” Guan Canghai said.
Guan Yuehe patted Lin Ting's head. It would take more than ten years for this little kid to take the college entrance exam.
"Let's wait until Jingjing takes the college entrance exam; it'll only be a couple of years."
As they talked, the topic drifted off to completely different places.
Upon hearing the sound of Lin Yiku's motorcycle, Guan Yuehe immediately took Lin Ting home.
After watching TV, the family of three resumed their evening study routine, which had been interrupted for four months.
Lin Ting, who was sitting on the table and causing trouble, couldn't hold on and fell asleep halfway through her studies.
The next morning, the family of three woke up at the same time, seemingly the start of another ordinary day.
But today is particularly unusual for Guan Yuehe.
Before leaving, Lin Yi squeezed her hand tightly, saying, "Everything will go smoothly."
"The mission will definitely be completed smoothly!" Guan Yuehe smoothed his collar and then said to Lin Tingdao, who was sitting on the kang and not fully awake, "Mom will bring you something delicious when she gets off work."
Lin Ting didn't know if she had heard clearly, she just kept nodding.
Aunt Fang came over to urge people to leave for work, and took Lin Ting to Courtyard No. 3.
—
As Guan Yuehe watched the representatives from both sides of the joint venture pick up their pens, she held her breath until they put down their pens, shook hands, and applause broke out. Only then did she exhale softly and join in the applause.
She witnessed the new development of Wuxing Automobile Factory and the new stage of the domestic automobile industry.
Perhaps in ten or twenty years, we'll say, like our elders: "Things are different now. A dozen years ago, our car factories, our country's car industry, were..."
The signing of the contract does not mean the matter is over. How this automotive joint venture will operate, and whether it will benefit the domestic automotive industry, still needs time to tell.
Guan Yuehe sighed, "After completing one journey, another begins."
Li Xuelian patted her arm, "Well, at least you've already come a step."
They are currently exploring and moving forward at the same time, and no one can fully predict what the future holds.
"Director Guan, Director Li, aren't you two going home yet?"
Guan Yuehe and Li Xuelian exchanged a glance and said in unison, "Let's go."
The two walked together into the bike shed, and Li Xuelian suggested, "I got off work early today, let's go out to eat together?"
Guan Yuehe raised an eyebrow. "Your two kids are grown up and don't need to be watched over every day. My little one is still waiting for me to bring him food back."
"Sigh! Don't say anymore!" Li Xuelian said worriedly, "The children are getting older and there are more things to worry about. Both of them only think about playing. I've been called in by the teacher several times because of their grades! I'm not going to go next time, I'll let their father go."
Hearing her so worried, Guan Yuehe laughed gleefully.
"You're still laughing?!" Li Xuelian laughed angrily. "Gao Zhiyuan's daughter is in the same class as my son. She's the class monitor, and my son is the teacher's 'troublemaker'... It makes me so angry!"
Guan Yuehe laughed even louder.
Although Lin Ting may not necessarily be a studious child in the future, and may even make her and Lin Yi very frustrated, it doesn't stop her from gloating over her friends who are currently worried about their children's education.
Let's have some fun first.
"By the way, I haven't asked you yet, how did you feel about attending the signing ceremony at the Great Hall of the People today?"
"Don't even mention it."
"What's wrong?"
"There were so many people taking pictures inside, how could I possibly look around? It felt like I just went in and came out again." She even shook hands with her boss, and it still feels a bit unreal.
"You shook hands? Wait, stop the car up ahead, let me shake your hand, that'll count as me shaking hands with the leader too."
Guan Yuehe: "......"
—
Guan Yuehe hadn't forgotten the promise she made to Lin Ting when she left home that morning.
Although the child is too young to remember, she, as an adult, cannot break her promise.
So, when Guan Yuehe passed by the supply and marketing cooperative outside the Zhuoyue Garment Factory, she stopped and bought a pastry that the food factory had just produced.
She had only been off the bus at the entrance of the alley for a few seconds when she noticed a small head peeking out from the gate of Courtyard No. 1. After their eyes met, Lin Ting jumped up and down excitedly.
Following closely behind, Aunt Fang peeked out from behind the gate and, sure enough, saw Guan Yuehe returning from get off work.
"You have such sharp ears, you can even tell the difference between the sounds of your parents' cars." Aunt Fang said with a smile, "She asks you eight hundred times a day when you're coming back, just so you'll bring her something delicious."
"He has a really good memory." Guan Yuehe thought to herself: Lin Ting's learning shouldn't be too bad in the future.
"Mom~" When Guan Yuehe pushed the stroller into the No. 1 courtyard, Lin Ting looked up at her with bright eyes.
Guan Yuehe couldn't resist this sweet-talking girl any longer. She quickly pushed the car to the front door and parked it, then immediately picked her up. "I brought you some pastries today."
"Wow~ Mom is so amazing!" Lin Ting praised her and kissed her face several times with both hands, which Guan Yuehe appreciated.
Seeing how happy she was, Aunt Fang guessed that the joint venture must have gone very smoothly.
As a former worker at the Five Star Automobile Factory, Aunt Fang breathed a sigh of relief.
After a while, Guan Yuehe squatted down and watched Lin Ting sitting on a small stool eating pastries. She sighed in her heart again: she and Lin Yiku had actually produced a sugar-coated bullet!
As she looked at it, Guan Yuehe couldn't help but reach out and pinch the two little buns on her head. "Did Grandma or Grandma do your hair? You look like a little Nezha."
A few days ago, on Labor Day, Zhuoyue Garment Factory screened the movie "Nezha Conquers the Dragon King" in its auditorium, which was open to factory workers' families and nearby residents.
The children in Ginkgo Hutong have taken on another role in their pretend play, with many using their family's rolling pins as fire-tipped guns.
"Auntie." Lin Tingyan said succinctly, her eyes fixed on the small piece of pastry in her hand.
Aunt Fang, who was standing nearby, explained, "Yuehua came back from her business trip today, brought some things home, and also helped Lin Ting tie her hair up."
"Huh? My sister went on a business trip? When did that happen?"
"It was a few days ago."
Guan Yuehe responded with an "oh," realizing that she had been so busy that she hadn't even heard about her husband's business trip.
But then she thought about how she left early and returned late every day, and hadn't seen Xiaobangchui for many days.
While busy eating, Lin Tingzheng dodged Guan Yuehe's hand, trying to avoid having his hair touched.
Aunt Fang chuckled, "She's so vain. Yuehua tied her hair up, and she's been holding a mirror and looking at herself all afternoon."
Yuanbao, who was on the other side, came back skipping and jumping. As soon as she saw Lin Ting's new hairstyle, she immediately came over to take a look and even wanted Guan Yuehe to tie her hair into the same style as Lin Ting's.
Well, if we're talking about who in the alley loves to act like "Nezha" and wield a stick the most, it has to be Zhou Xinxin.
Facing Yuanbao's expectant gaze, Guan Yuehe blinked, "You'd be more reliable to talk to your dad."
No sooner had he finished speaking than Jin Junwei returned with his motorcycle, only to be pestered by Yuanbao to get his hair styled like Nezha.
Jin Junwei didn't agree immediately, but said, "You first have to promise that you won't take the rolling pin from home to fight again."
"I won't take him out to fight," Yuanbao immediately raised his hand to assure him.
They don't take him out to fight, but they'll hum and laugh and play with the clothesline pole in the yard.
Guan Yuehe sat at her doorstep watching the performance for a while before taking Lin Ting home to cook noodles.
The car factory workers gradually returned home after get off work, and they were all talking about the same thing:
The joint venture between the factory and a foreign company to manufacture cars has been finalized!
"Whether joint ventures are good or bad is still unclear. Professor Xie, what do you think? Is it a good thing or a bad thing?"
Xie Zhenhua adjusted his glasses. "We want advanced foreign technology, and they want our market. Their intentions are good, but whether it will be successful in the future is uncertain..."
Before Xie Zhenhua could continue speaking, Liu Axiu came out and called him home for dinner.
As soon as she entered the house, Liu Axiu said, "Some people at the factory don't approve of the joint venture, so don't bring it up outside. Okay, let's eat. Later, go to the bus stop early to wait for Tingting. There are a lot of hooligans around outside lately."
"Um."
Aunt Xie was used to their way of getting along. This house was Liu Axiu's one-man show, so it was no use for her to say anything. She picked up her food, took her big bowl, and went out to chat and gossip with the old neighbors.
Some people were talking about the joint venture in the factory and then thought of asking Guan Yuehe about it.
"Don't even think about it. The family of three went out after dinner."
Where to?
"The auditorium of the Zhuoyue Garment Factory shows movies in the evening; you can still catch one if you go now."
—
Once the joint venture agreement for the automobile was finalized, Guan Yuehe felt a huge weight lifted off her shoulders and was happy to go to and from get off work every day.
"Yuehe, what's the good news?"
There's nothing big happening in her family right now, but her childhood friend's big celebration is just around the corner.
Author's Note: [Cat's paw]
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