131 Washing machine (bug catching)
The next day at noon, Guan Yuehe took some time to tidy up the office, collect new office supplies, and also moved all her documents and files over.
Gao Zhiyuan helped out and also added two sets of desks and chairs, as well as filing cabinets, to his office, just waiting for the new colleague to arrive.
In the afternoon, Gao Zhiyuan gave directions to many comrades who came to him, saying, "The Customs Office is the third room at the far left; there's a sign on the door."
Guan Yuehe finally got over her novelty about the new office and started checking the calendar every day before leaving get off work, seeing every day as a countdown to New Year's Day.
On the day before New Year's Day, Guan Yuehe finally left work on time and went to see Li Xuelian. The two of them went home together.
“You and your partner haven’t had children yet, and you can still go out on a date on New Year’s Day.” Li Xuelian’s head ached just thinking about her mischievous child. “It’s been almost half a year since ‘Romance on Lushan Mountain’ was released, and my partner and I haven’t found the time to see it.”
Since its release, the cinemas have been packed with people. Guan Yuehe couldn't get tickets at first, and later she and Lin Yiku couldn't find a suitable time to go see the movie.
I don't know if I'll be able to make it in time for New Year's Day.
But more important than watching a movie is buying the washing machine first.
"Buy a washing machine? Have you gotten a number yet?" Li Xuelian said, "Last time I passed by the washing machine factory's store, it was packed with people."
Guan Yuehe smiled and said, "I have a good neighbor who helped me get in line. I'll have to go early to queue again tomorrow."
There are imported and domestic washing machines on the market. There is a store in the alley that sells the Bailan brand produced by the Beijing Washing Machine Factory. Jin Junwei went to see it and said he thought it was good, so he decided to buy the Bailan brand.
After discussing it with Lin Yiku, she also decided to buy a White Lan brand washing machine, and asked Jin Junwei to help her get a number in the queue.
Guan Yuehe was excited all night because she was about to buy a big item for her family. She took out her savings and counted them. Looking at the numbers in the passbook, she felt very at ease.
After she was promoted, her monthly income was about the same as Lin Yiku's, and with bonuses, it was estimated to be a little more than Lin Yiku's salary.
Their combined salaries are quite high. In addition, apart from building a toilet, they haven't spent much money in the past six months. They also eat mostly at work. They can steadily save at least 150 yuan a month.
Guan Yuehe held the savings book with satisfaction and said, "We're really amazing! We bought big-ticket items, we bought a house, and we still managed to save so much money!"
"Once we've saved enough, we'll buy a small courtyard house." Lin Yiku hadn't forgotten what she'd said before: if money wasn't enough, who wouldn't want to buy a small courtyard house and live a secluded life?
"Comrade Lin Yiku is ambitious! He's only lived in his new house for less than a year, and he's already thinking about buying a small courtyard!" Guan Yuehe put away her savings book and then put the money she had set aside for buying a washing machine tomorrow into her bag. "Keep up the good work!"
Just as he finished speaking, the lights in the room went out with a snap.
"Tsk! When do you think we'll have electricity all day long here?" Guan Yuehe sighed, not expecting Lin Yiku to give an answer. Power rationing is getting worse, but we can't live without electricity these days. She thought the country would solve this problem sooner or later.
Just as Lin Yiku was about to discuss this issue with her, she had already pressed her hands and feet against hers, sighing contentedly, "The bed is warmer when two people sleep together."
The previous question had been forgotten; she was too excited to sleep and threw him a new one: "Have you noticed that Chang Zhengyi hasn't been secretly burning paper money late at night anymore?"
Lin Yi thought for a moment, "We don't go to public restrooms anymore, so we rarely run into him outside late at night."
"...That makes sense." Not only them, but even Chang Zhengyi no longer needs to go all the way to the public toilet outside. His chances of encountering "ghosts" have been greatly reduced, unless there are "ghosts" in the No. 2 courtyard.
"The gate of the automobile factory's building management department has been thronged with people. Many people want to compete for the gatehouse of No. 2 courtyard. Sitian said that people outside are also thinking that there are good things buried in the alley and are planning to come and dig them up."
After saying that, she added that when she came home from get off work today, she saw someone coming to ask Ding Laowu for money again...
She said whatever came to mind, mostly trivial things that would be forgotten as soon as they were said. Lin Yiku also unconsciously started talking about gossip she had overheard. The two chatted one after another until Guan Yuehe finally got sleepy and her breathing calmed down, and the room became quiet.
The next day, without Lin Yi's repeated calls, Guan Yuehe got out of bed as soon as she heard the noise, took a look at her watch, and saw that it was almost six o'clock.
I ate the leftovers from last night at home and only took one bicycle out.
Just then, a family of three across the street also came out pushing their bicycles.
They exchanged greetings and tacitly lowered their voices so as not to disturb the other sleeping neighbors, only speaking loudly once they were outside the alley.
Aunt Hu woke up early and went out after hearing the noise. She saw the two neighboring houses leaving their yards one after the other.
"How strange, why are they going out so early on such a day?" Aunt Hu asked, puzzled.
Meanwhile, Guan Yuehe and her group of five headed straight for the car factory's sales office, thinking that they would be able to get ahead of the line because they left early. However, when they arrived, there were already forty or fifty people ahead of them.
It seems everyone enjoys joining in the festive atmosphere; even in the freezing cold, people are out early to queue.
While we were queuing, someone ran up to us and whispered, "Do you need a number? It's fifty-one."
Both families shook their heads.
"Do you want a seat? Get one at the front of the line, guaranteed to get one today. Only fifteen..."
Both families continued to shake their heads.
The person who came to ask questions wasn't annoyed at not making a sale, and continued asking the people behind him. Before leaving, he reminded them, "When there are more people later, it will be even harder for those of you at the back of the line to get in."
But to his surprise, of the five people in line, apart from the pale-faced man and the young woman who stepped outside the line to wait, the remaining three were quite capable, managing to block those who tried to cut in line and successfully buying two washing machines.
Guan Yuehe looked at the two green washing machines in front of her and asked Lin Yiku and Jin Junwei to find a tricycle, otherwise they wouldn't be able to take the washing machines back.
"This is cyan!" Yuanbao corrected him meticulously.
“...Okay, cyan.” Guan Yuehe didn’t argue with her about it. She thought about going back to install the washing machine and then continuing to sleep on the kang (a heated brick bed).
A short while later, Lin Yiku and Jin Junwei brought back a man riding a tricycle. The group worked together to load the washing machine onto the tricycle and secure it before heading back to Ginkgo Alley.
The man picked out Jin Junwei, who looked the most amiable, and said, "I haul goods here every day. Several families in your Ginkgo Alley have bought washing machines. You must all be workers from the Five Star Automobile Factory, right?"
“My wife is, everyone else is a worker’s family member.”
"The benefits at your car factory are really good. By the way, I heard there are lots of good stuff buried under your Ginkgo Alley, is that true?"
Guan Yuehe couldn't help but laugh, only to hear Jin Junwei reply, "It's fake."
But the men didn't believe them, saying they definitely hadn't gotten any "insider information," and confidently declared, "They've dug pits everywhere, and truckloads of boxes are being shipped out; there must be a lot of good stuff!"
Jin Junwei could only give a perfunctory reply; even though he told the truth, this man still didn't believe him.
It was almost ten o'clock when they returned to Ginkgo Hutong. People who were sleeping in were getting up and moving around. They heard shouts of "Make way!" and "Two washing machines!" coming from the entrance of the hutong and came out out of curiosity to see who had bought a big item.
"Yuehe, you bought a washing machine?!" Aunt Bai exclaimed, running over to see them carrying the washing machine home. She asked, "Is it a Bailan brand? How much did it cost?"
"We only have this single-cylinder model, it's two hundred yuan." Guan Yuehe said, "There are so many people queuing up, if you want to buy one, you have to go very early in the morning, we almost didn't get a chance."
Aunt Bai exclaimed in surprise, "Really only two hundred? The washing machine at Guaziwang costs over seven hundred, how come there's such a big difference?"
When she went to ask about the price, she immediately backed down when she heard it was over 700 yuan. She thought to herself that even if she hired someone to do her laundry, 700 yuan would be enough to pay for several years' worth of laundry, and she could also save on electricity bills.
Jin Junwei, who knew more about these things, replied, "Their products are imported, so they must be expensive. Our single-tub washing machines are much cheaper. Even the Junzilan brand twin-tub washing machine costs over six hundred, while the Weili brand twin-tub is cheaper, around four hundred..."
As she listened, Aunt Bai took notes, thinking that if she wanted to buy a local Bailan brand single-tub washing machine, she could still afford it if she gritted her teeth.
Upon hearing this, the others all followed to the west wing to inquire about washing machines on the market from Jin Junwei. Jin Junwei was good-natured; as long as people spoke politely, he would tell them everything he knew.
But as soon as he heard someone shamelessly ask to borrow the washing machine, he gave his daughter a look: Go and call your mom over.
A short while later, Guan Yuehe heard Zhou Hongqi cursing and quickly poked her head out of the bathroom to see what was happening.
Sister Hongqi is as reliable as ever.
He can fight, yell, and even fix appliances.
Zhou Hongqi helped install the washing machine in her house.
When Jiang Guiying and the others came to see, this time they didn't say that their bathroom was too spacious and a waste of space.
Guan Yuehe said proudly, "We've thought about it before. The washing machine has to be placed inside the house. The bathroom is spacious enough to fit it in."
From now on, I can just throw the clothes I take off after showering into the wash tub, which is so convenient.
After Lin Sitian came over and saw it, she also urged her parents to buy one, generously patting her pocket and saying, "I'll pay for the washing machine!"
Aunt Fang waved her hand, "You should keep your savings for yourself. Your father has savings, so he doesn't need your filial piety."
“I can use it even if I buy it, and I don’t want to wash clothes anymore.”
"Then keep it, you can buy it later."
Two days ago, Lin Sitian mentioned at home that Chen Lizhong was going to work at a TV factory. Aunt Fang thought to herself that she was probably giving them a heads-up that she would bring Chen Lizhong home for dinner at the end of the year.
They're not young anymore, so I guess the two young people have been thinking about marriage for a while now.
Aunt Fang thought she should buy it after she got married.
Guan Yuehe gently patted her washing machine and said to Lin Sitian, "Family members can use it for free."
Lin Sitian immediately fawned over Guan Yuehe's arm and said nice things.
Meanwhile, several of the elders in the family are already thinking about buying a washing machine as well.
The No. 1 courtyard was bustling all morning, and it wasn't until noon that the number of outsiders coming to "visit" stopped.
Guan Yuehe pulled Lin Yiku out the door, planning to go out for a nice meal and catch up on the movie they'd been talking about for half a year.
"I bought a house at the beginning of this year, and a washing machine at the end of the year. Next year... I'll try to buy another big item next year!"
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