211 1988
On her first night in her new home, Guan Yuehe couldn't fall asleep for a long time.
It wasn't because I was so excited about finally living in a detached house that I couldn't sleep.
"It's so quiet at home, I'm not used to it."
Having lived in this tenement for so many years, she had long since mastered the art of blocking out noise. No matter how noisy the courtyard outside was, it didn't affect her sleep at all.
But after moving here, there are far fewer neighbors around. The two courtyards next to her are all occupied by one large family, unlike some small courtyards where several families live together.
In the evening, when the family of three went to deliver candy to their new neighbors to introduce them to the community, she felt that the new neighbors all seemed to be friendly people.
Lin Yiku turned her head to look at her, "There are a few steamed buns left in the kitchen."
Guan Yuehe also turned her head, and the two remained silent in the darkness for a few seconds before simultaneously springing up in the dark to prepare a midnight snack.
A dozen minutes later.
"No wonder I couldn't sleep; it turns out I didn't eat enough for dinner." Guan Yuehe nodded in satisfaction. "The steamed buns taste really good when toasted; I'll toast them again next time."
As he spoke, he tore off half of it and stuffed it into Lin Yiku's mouth. The two of them spoke in hushed tones, afraid of waking Lin Ting.
After filling their stomachs, the two didn't rush back to their room to sleep. Instead, they sat on small stools in the kitchen, chatting like old folks with their knees drawn up to their chests.
They got more and more excited as they talked, and neither of them mentioned that they had to go to work the next day and needed to go to bed early.
It makes sense, they moved into a small courtyard that was entirely their own!
Guan Yuehe even had a strong urge to stand in the courtyard and shout, "Thank you, country! Thank you, era!"
The couple chatted until after midnight before reluctantly going back to their room to sleep, and woke up on time every morning without fail.
Lin Ting was sleeping like a little pig; even being carried out of the house and driven to Ginkgo Alley couldn't wake her up.
So, when Lin Ting woke up early in the morning, she found herself at her grandmother's house, with a little fish grabbing her clothes and stuffing it into its mouth. She was still confused about what was going on.
"Lin Ting, are you awake?"
"Grandma, I'm awake!"
"Get up and have breakfast." Aunt Fang came over and helped her change her clothes. After she finished eating, she stuffed a few biscuits into her little schoolbag. "Take them out and eat them if you're hungry."
Just after giving her instructions, Guan Canghai came over to pick Lin Ting up. He, who wasn't in school, was even more anxious than she was. "We can't be late! The teacher might not scold you, but they'll scold me! I've worked for decades and never been late, nor have I ever been complained about by customers or superiors. You have to keep Grandpa's record up..."
—
Guan Yuehe and her family of three moved out of the courtyard at No. 1 Ginkgo Hutong, but in the eyes of their neighbors, there was not much difference between moving and not moving.
Lin Ting was still picked up and taken back to Courtyard No. 3 for meals every day. After school, she would run around the alley with her little dog.
Guan Yuehe and Lin Yiku, a married couple, would go straight back to Ginkgo Hutong after get off work every day, and often go for a walk in the evening, listening to gossip at the entrance of the hutong before turning back. On their days off, they would go back to their house in Courtyard No. 1 to work...
But to say there's no difference wouldn't be accurate either.
The Guan Yuehe family moved away, which was insignificant to the neighbors. But the addition of a general store at the entrance of the alley made it convenient for buying daily necessities and making phone calls, which was incredibly convenient for the neighbors!
"Old Lin, Old Fang, your grocery store is pretty bright. When are you opening? Do you have any discount promotions?"
Aunt Fang replied cheerfully, "We've set the opening date for New Year's Day. Come and buy something then, and you'll get a free egg with every ten yuan spent!"
"Oh my, given how many years we've been neighbors, you absolutely have to come and support us."
With a smile on her face, Aunt Fang used a feather duster to sweep away the dust from the shelves that had just been installed two days ago.
Jiang Guiying brought Yao Yao over to visit her old friend. As soon as she entered the house, she saw Xiao Yu sleeping on the small wooden bed in the living room.
"Ah ah!" Yao Yao pointed at Xiao Yu. The two little kids, who were about the same age, were usually put together by the adults to play. As soon as they met, they would climb together and nibble on each other's hands and feet.
"My sister is sleeping. Let's go see what Grandma Fang is doing."
Hearing the noise, Aunt Fang poked half her head out of the house and beckoned her old friends to go in and check on the shop.
Half of the wall facing outwards in the small room was knocked down and turned into a large window. Every day when the shop opens, the large window is opened wide, the shelves are placed against the wall, the glass counter is placed next to the window, and the telephone is placed on the far left of the counter.
"We're going to hang a sign on the window, with red lettering." Aunt Fang pointed to the wall outside the window. From now on, anyone passing by Ginkgo Alley and glancing in this direction will never miss her grocery store.
"Oh my, that's a great location, very eye-catching!" Jiang Guiying was happy for her old friend, but also regretful that they wouldn't be able to run the shop together and keep each other company in the future.
Her agricultural and sideline products store is still open, although she's the only one left, and the busiest time of day is in the morning. But Guan Weiguo, who delivers vegetables into the city early in the morning, always stays to rest and lend her a hand.
While casually waving a feather duster, Aunt Fang laughed and said, "I remember what Comrade Li from the neighborhood office said back then. He said that we women comrades are not just confined to the kitchen. We should strive to participate in the development of all walks of life."
But right after graduating from high school, Sitian was forced to go to the countryside. Her husband's salary was much higher than hers, so he had to transfer his job to Sitian.
"Thanks to the good policies now, we can still have a job to earn money at our age."
Although the family is wealthy enough for the elderly couple to live comfortably, and their two children are filial, it's still not the same.
"Who can argue with that? You have every right to spend the money you earned yourself."
Finally, at the end of December, the grocery store's telephone was installed.
As soon as it was installed, Aunt Fang hung the price list for making phone calls by the window.
They said they would open on New Year's Day, and as soon as the phone was installed, the family's grocery store started operating.
Although the family's general store is a bit small, it has almost everything you need for daily life.
Children often come skipping and jumping over with money in their hands to buy seasonings or snacks. Lin Ting, in particular, rushes to the front of the gate every day as soon as school is over, peeking out and waiting for her family to pick her up.
As soon as she got home, she couldn't wait to climb off Grandpa Lin's bicycle and head straight for the grocery store.
"Grandma, I'm here to be a sales clerk!"
Guan Yuehe came to pick up Lin Ting after get off work and saw a long queue at the entrance of the alley, all of whom were there to make a phone call.
Some neighbors just wanted to join in the fun, giving out the phone number to their close relatives and friends so they could call here more often. If they kept the call to one minute, they only needed to pay two cents. If they talked for more than three minutes, it would cost fifty cents.
Lin Ting watched the young saleswoman smiling as she collected the money. She just kept collecting, and everyone teased her, asking, "Can you calculate how much change T should give me?"
"The teacher didn't teach that." Lin Ting didn't want to answer, so she said, "There are other people who need to make phone calls. If you're not in a hurry, you can wait to the side."
His serious demeanor made everyone laugh.
Seeing that she was having fun, Guan Yuehe was in no hurry to take her home. Just as she was about to push the motorcycle into Courtyard No. 1, she ran into Cao Lili carrying a lunchbox coming out of Courtyard No. 2.
Cao Lili opened a general merchandise store near the new garment factory, and she would keep watch there during the day. After Chang Zhengyi finished work and left, she would come back to cook and bring the food to him.
Although a new general store has appeared in the alley, it hasn't had much of an impact on Cao Lili's daily necessities store.
The two shops are located far apart, and their customer bases don't overlap much. More importantly, Aunt Fang and Uncle Lin's grocery store is too small and doesn't sell a complete range of products.
"Hey, Yuehe, about that thing I told you last time, do you want to do it?"
About two weeks ago, Cao Lili asked her if she wanted to get a cigarette license to sell cigarettes in the grocery store.
These days, there are quite a few smokers, especially workers, who are willing to spend money to buy a pack that costs several yuan.
However, Guan Yuehe had inquired and found that the certificate was difficult to obtain, as her family's grocery store did not meet the eligibility requirements.
Cao Lili subtly hinted that it could be done, since Chang Zhengyi's sister-in-law's family was in charge of this area.
"No need, running a regular grocery store at home is enough to keep me busy. Thank you."
"Oh! I just said it on a whim." Cao Lili didn't try to persuade her further. After chatting for a couple more minutes, she hurried off to deliver the food.
While eating, Chang Zhengyi listened to Cao Lili say that Guan Yuehe's family did not plan to apply for a cigarette license.
He wasn't surprised at all. His parents had said many times: Guan Yuehe and Lin Yiku, that couple, are very serious when it comes to important matters. They're really angry right now.
So no matter how high a position they hold, people in the alley might be envious, but actually very few are truly jealous.
They only feel at ease when these kinds of people are in leadership positions.
—
On New Year's Day morning, Guan Yuehe and her family of three went to help out at the grocery store.
People from the neighborhood came to buy things because of the "buy ten yuan and get a free egg" promotion, and the queue almost stretched all the way to Changhu Street.
At home, some people were responsible for collecting and giving change, some for delivering eggs, and some for taking things from the shelves... Guan Yuehe was responsible for moving the stored goods from the original bedroom.
The family ran a general store, using only the small room as the storefront and the large room as a warehouse.
A neighbor wanted to rent this room from her because they didn't have enough rooms, but she refused.
She worried that someone might rent the house, tear down the back wall, and open a shop. Even if they didn't open a shop, with so much stocked up at home, what if the tenant got greedy and stole things?
In short, it's not worth it for a monthly rent of just over ten yuan.
Lin's parents offered to calculate the rent for her, but she refused.
She was busy restocking the shelves in the grocery store, moving things in and out, and she seemed quite happy about it.
She even considered the possibility that if she had stayed in the state-owned factory, she might have actually taken a leave of absence without pay and opened a grocery store at home.
"Yuehe, there's no salt left on the shelf."
"They're here!"
The New Year's Day celebrations were lively all day long, and this excitement continued into the Spring Festival.
The streets outside were packed with people, and festive red lanterns and banners were everywhere. The phone at "Ginkgo Alley Grocery Store" kept ringing. Every time Aunt Fang and Uncle Lin received a call, they would stand at the gate of No. 1 Courtyard with a tin megaphone and shout inside: "Hey so-and-so, your relative is calling!"
Even on New Year's Eve, the phone kept ringing non-stop.
Guan Yuehe and her family of three stayed in Ginkgo Hutong until they finished watching the fireworks before leisurely returning to their courtyard.
Before going to bed, Guan Yuehe took out her savings book and did some calculations, deciding to first return the two thousand yuan that Ding Xuewen and Ye Zhiqi had borrowed.
When I first borrowed the money, I planned to divide it into four equal parts, with each family paying back a little.
But Ye Zhi Qiu was going to quit her job to start her own business, so she was definitely short of money. She told her three other friends that she would pay them back slowly after the New Year.
In addition to the two thousand yuan borrowed, Guan Yuehe also contributed an extra one hundred yuan. The interest rates in banks are high now; if you deposit money for three to five years, ten thousand yuan can earn more than a thousand yuan in interest each year.
Therefore, many elderly people in the hutongs believe that money can be made more money in the bank, and that it is not worth it to buy a small courtyard for 30,000 yuan and leave it for a year without it increasing in value by 1,000 yuan!
Lin Yiku had no objection, but was puzzled: "The resignation process isn't finished yet?"
"That's normal. Once the application is submitted, you have to hand over all the work properly. Some companies, if they want to keep you, won't let you leave for at least six months."
However, considering the timeframe, there should be a result by the end of the year.
No need to wait until after the New Year; on the afternoon of the first day of the Lunar New Year, Ding Xuewen and Ye Zhiqi brought Fengchun to Yinxing Hutong to pay New Year's greetings, bringing her good news.
"Senior, my resignation application has been approved. I'll go get the necessary permits to open a travel company after the New Year."
"Very good!"
No sooner had he finished speaking than Lin Sitian and Xu Chengcai arrived with their families to offer New Year's greetings.
Lin Ting received twice as much New Year's money this year as she did last year, and Guan Yuehe helped her deposit it into a separate savings account.
The days seemed like a time of great prosperity and excitement, and it was thought that 1988 would continue to be just as lively.
March has arrived in the blink of an eye. The excitement of the Spring Festival still feels like it was just yesterday, but the joy of the Spring Festival has come to an abrupt end, followed by a series of unexpected changes.
Lin Yiku told her that the military rank system had been reinstated, and his salary structure would be changed again. But for him, the adjustment would mean a slight increase in his salary.
Her salary also increased slightly due to her seniority.
But this increase is negligible compared to the ever-rising prices.
The good thing is that while the prices of daily necessities outside have increased significantly, they have a grocery store at home and can stock up on supplies, so they don't have to go out and queue up to buy them.
"Why does it feel like money has suddenly become worthless?" Aunt Hu said to Jin Junwei in the yard, listing which items had increased in price several times over. "Last year they just said the factory would raise wages, and this year prices have risen so much... It would be better if prices didn't rise at all!"
Rising prices haven't had a major impact on the families of workers in Ginkgo Hutong to the point of making life unbearable. But closing down some of the branch factories would truly make life impossible.
"What does it mean to close some branch factories? Which branch factories will be closed? What's the situation with our agricultural and sideline food processing plant?"
"And what about our parts factory? What's the procedure for shutting it down? How will the workers from the branch factory be resettled? Will they be merged into other branch factories or...?"
No one dared to voice the worst possible outcome.
Since the first state-owned enterprise went bankrupt, the bankruptcy, restructuring, and merger of state-owned factories have become commonplace. Some state-owned factories, which once offered such good benefits that everyone was eager to work for them, suddenly found themselves bankrupt as soon as the tide of change came.
Some state-owned factories even worked three shifts to rush production in the first half of the year, but by the second half of the year they were unable to pay wages and had to stop working.
Most of the workers who were forced to stop working and go home waited and waited, but instead of being recalled by the factory, they waited for the factory to go bankrupt, sell off its assets and buy out the workers' years of service.
Although we all work in branch factories under the main automobile factory, we are all workers of the Five Star Automobile Factory. Under the main factory, some branch factories are not doing well, while others are doing exceptionally well.
The poorly performing branch factories are going to be shut down, so they should at least be relocated to other branch factories, right?
"Oh dear, stop keeping me in suspense! I'm getting so impatient!"
"Yeah, Lao Lei, is this news accurate? Where did you hear it from? The factory hasn't released any information about it!"
Old Lei shrugged nonchalantly, "Is that even a question? People from the TV factory went to several of our branch factories to find out what was going on. Some were asking about the equipment, and others were asking about the technical workers. Isn't it obvious?"
The person asking the question felt a chill run down their spine, but still pressed on, "You only asked the skilled workers? What about us ordinary workers?"
"I don't know about that." It all depends on how it's negotiated. Some factories, even though they've been merged, still require that the workers be properly resettled.
However, some of the merged factories couldn't settle their workers.
Lately, everyone in Ginkgo Hutong has been talking about the closure of some of the branch factories. The atmosphere in the hutong is somber, and many people are holding their breath, ready to explode at the slightest spark.
The number of arguments and fights has increased rapidly.
Just as Officer Song was about to retire to a less demanding department of the municipal bureau, he was still frequently dragged along to "solve cases" for his old neighbors. On his days off, Officer Song didn't stay at home; he would either go to the police station or invite Cai Ying and Xinan to eat out with the family of three.
Unable to find Officer Song, upon seeing her and Guan Yuehua return to the alley, someone joked, "There's a professional detective here, go find Yuehua."
One of the neighbors, hiding in the crowd, whispered, "We should have Yuehua go and catch those parasites in the factory!"
Hearing this, others chimed in, "Exactly! Arrest these corrupt officials! How did a perfectly good factory end up losing so much money? They're all under the same car factory, so why are the other branch factories so profitable?"
"Our branch factory manager lives in a villa and can use the company car at will. He must have been poaching our manager!"
The neighbors casually suggested that Guan Yuehua go and catch the person, but in reality, they were taking the opportunity to vent their dissatisfaction and share their speculations.
If Guan Yuehua were to actually go and adjudicate cases involving neighbors who are constantly arguing, what difference would it make from her voluntarily walking up to Guan Yuehua, this firecracker, and getting yelled at?
This girl's fiery temper is well-known in the alley; everyone knows it.
As soon as the two sisters entered the room, Jiang Guiying sighed: "What exactly is going on? The factory hasn't given us any clear answer. The workers have been making a fuss for half a month now."
He went to the factory to make trouble for the leaders, and when he came back, he made trouble in the alley.
She wasn't annoyed by the noise from her neighbors, but rather by the news of "closing down some of the branch factories."
Five Star Automobile Factory is a large factory with tens of thousands of employees, so why are they going to close some of its branch factories?
Jiang Guiying agreed with her neighbors, believing that the factory's poor performance was due to some of the factory leaders not doing a good enough job.
The Guan sisters, Yuehe and Yuehua, remained silent. At this moment, it was best to say less and refute.
The decline of a factory is rarely solely the fault of its leadership. Current policies, the impact of foreign-invested enterprises and small rural workshops, and the existence of the "iron rice bowl" system within the factory all contribute to low worker morale...
There are too many reasons; every bankrupt factory has different problems.
But they all point to one thing: times have changed, and individuals and groups that fail to keep up with the times will be left behind.
Early June.
The Wuxing Automobile Factory's headquarters has finally issued a clear document announcing the closure and merger of some of its branch factories, including a parts factory, a food processing plant, and a soft drink factory...
Meanwhile, the Wuxing Automobile Factory released a list of laid-off workers, and the names of many old neighbors from Yinxing Hutong were on the list.
Like Wu Erni and Jin Changsheng, neither of them were skilled workers; they were workers from factories that had been shut down. The factory only gave their family one job quota.
Only one of the couple can be transferred to another branch factory for reassignment, while the other will be laid off and stay at home unemployed.
Laid-off workers are considered to be on unpaid leave, but they do not need to pay labor insurance for their employers. They can find odd jobs or become self-employed. If the factory needs to recruit workers later, it will give priority to hiring laid-off workers.
After discussing it all night, they finally decided that Wu Erni would stay and work at the factory, while Jin Changsheng would go and help Wu Jiawang collect scrap.
Don't let the unkempt appearance of collecting recyclables fool you; it can be quite lucrative. Wu Jiawang has saved enough to buy a small courtyard house, but he hasn't been willing to spend the money; he's been keeping it in the bank to earn interest.
Luo Guifang, who was also on the layoff list, wasn't worried at all.
Baoyu works at the hospital dispensing medicines. Baoan is now a level three fitter. After graduating from university last year, Baoning chose to stay and work for a foreign company in Haishi. Unlike state-owned enterprises where the income is guaranteed regardless of the circumstances, the salary is high. Three months' salary is more than her annual salary.
Cai Ying said enviously, "All three of your daughters are successful, what are you still worried about?"
"I'm worried, I'm worried all day long," Luo Guifang said with a laugh, then suddenly whispered, "I'm thinking of roasting sunflower seeds and selling them at the school gate, what's your plan?"
“Me? I was going to retire anyway, so two or three years early won’t make a difference.” Cai Ying said, “Northwest plans to get married at the military base and can’t take leave to come back. I plan to wait until Southwest has summer vacation and go to the military base with her.”
"Wow! Northwest is getting married? When did she start dating? Where is her boyfriend from?"
"It was introduced by my boss. We met once, hit it off, and decided to get married as soon as possible. His girlfriend is a local and works in a military factory."
“They’re such a perfect match.” This time, it was Luo Guifang who envied Cai Ying. “The hospital leaders introduced Baoyu to potential partners, but Baoyu didn’t like any of them.”
"You're just worrying unnecessarily. With Baoyu's qualities, plenty of men are pursuing him. Just wait, the best ones are yet to come."
After discussing her child's marriage, Luo Guifang returned to her work. She planned to go and collect sunflower seeds and wanted to ask Cai Ying if she knew anyone who could help collect them.
“There really is! One of the purchasing staff in our cafeteria often brings back raw sunflower seeds from the countryside for people. You wait, I'll ask her about it tomorrow.”
"Okay! Sister Ying, thank you!"
"We're all neighbors, you help me, I help you, there's no need for these formalities."
Once Luo Guifang confirmed the matter, she went to find Aunt Bai again. Aunt Bai said she also wanted to set up a small stall selling fried food at the elementary school. The two could keep each other company.
Although Bai's two sons were not on the layoff list, Bai was a very worried person and was afraid that if there were any layoffs in the future, her family would be laid off, so she decided to prepare in advance.
This kind of situation happens in almost every courtyard.
When the factory's documents and layoff list were first released, everyone was crying and making a scene.
But life goes on.
So, before summer vacation even started, everyone was busy again, searching for ways to make a living.
Author's Note: [Heart emoji]
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