Chapter 375 Three Advices
The next morning after breakfast, Secretary Jin drove a group of people to Chinatown. Compared with a few months ago, the place was obviously much more deserted.
Lin Siqiao took a look and found that about one-third of the shops on the street had signs indicating for rent or sale.
The further you go in, the more grim the situation becomes.
Seeing several ragged people lying in the alley, the six people who were accompanying them subconsciously wanted to go over and help them up.
Secretary Jin quickly stopped the people and gave them some advice.
If you want to survive safely in the country, the first thing you need to learn is to mind your own business.
"These people are local homeless people. They usually move around at night. If you see them, just take a detour and don't bother them."
"Also, try not to go out at night. This place is different from China. Robbery and shootings on the streets are common. You must protect yourself."
What Secretary Jin said was all true, but it was also meant to warn them.
After hearing this, several people were not only scared but also confused. These people didn't look very old, and they all had hands and feet. What did it mean for them to lie on the ground and wait for death?
Also, there are so many homeless people on the streets, don’t the government departments do anything about it?
In response, Secretary Jin just shook his head.
It’s not that the government doesn’t want to intervene, but they really can’t do it.
Affected by the oil crisis, the country is in the midst of a great economic depression.
Along with these came the closure of a large number of businesses and the continuous increase in the number of unemployed people.
At the same time, prices have risen exorbitantly.
Coupled with the sluggish stock market, thousands of investors are trapped, and the government is now having a headache.
Secretary Jin was just speaking when there was a bang!
It seemed like something fell from the building opposite.
Lin Siqiao was the closest, about twenty meters away.
She saw clearly that it was a person, a man.
The bloody face mixed with brain matter and blood splattered all over the passers-by walking downstairs. Several people were so scared that they trembled all over and screamed.
Lin Siqiao also came back to her senses amid the screams of passers-by. She didn't expect to encounter such a bloody scene on her first day in the country.
Secretary Jin was fine. He had seen such scenes several times and had become somewhat immune to them.
When he saw the people who were accompanying him, their faces turned pale, and he quickly took them to another alley.
Secretary Jin’s second piece of advice to everyone is this.
Next time you go out, make sure you keep your eyes and ears open, especially avoid high-rise buildings.
Several people said they had learned something from it.
Yesterday they thought that the situation abroad might be better than in China, but now it seems that life abroad is not easy either.
With mixed feelings, the group arrived at the residence arranged by the embassy.
Because of President Xie's case, many people in Chinatown moved away with their families, so there were many empty houses in this area, so the embassy rented a small Western-style building.
There are two floors, and a small courtyard of more than 100 square meters in front of the door.
Unlike the locals who like to plant flowers and plants, wherever Chinese people live, the most common crops planted in the yard are various vegetables, fruits and melons.
Don't underestimate these. The prices of vegetables, fruits and melons in our country are comparable to those of beef.
The embassy placed these six people here, mainly taking their language and living habits into consideration.
The few of them looked up and down the stairs and found that the house was fully furnished. In addition to these, they also saw some household appliances that they had never seen before.
For example, large-screen color TVs (1969), drum washing machines (1928), household vacuum cleaners (1901), and small refrigerators (1879).
Because the summers here are cool, the temperature is between 20 and 30 degrees most of the time, and there is no air conditioning installed in the house. However, air conditioning has actually been popular in the country for a long time.
These alone were enough to open these people's eyes.
After Secretary Jin explained to them the usage and precautions of these electrical appliances, he took out a few envelopes from his briefcase.
The country implements a weekly wage system, with an average weekly wage of 68 pounds.
But now the economy is in recession, and what people actually get is not as much as announced, probably only about 50 pounds per person.
Taking into account the issue of rising prices, the embassy finally paid them a weekly salary of 70 pounds.
In addition, each person was given £150 as resettlement allowance.
Secretary Jin saw that everyone was stunned for a long time and no one took the envelope, so he asked.
“Are you dissatisfied with the salary?”
"No, no."
Several people waved their hands and asked again, "Secretary Jin, are you sure the 70 pounds you just mentioned is your weekly salary?"
Secretary Jin nodded, "That's right."
After getting a positive answer, several people were still dumbfounded.
70 pounds a week, that's 280 pounds a month, which is more than 1,600 yuan when converted into Chinese currency.
Even if they saved for two years without eating or drinking in the country, they still couldn't save that much money.
Seeing their surprised and excited expressions, Lin Siqiao knew that everyone must have fallen into a misunderstanding.
But she could also understand that people who went abroad for the first time would feel this way.
That is, when people see anything, they will subconsciously convert it into domestic prices.
But this is a country, the price level is completely different from that in China, the purchasing power is also different. If we pay everyone 30 or 50 a month according to the domestic standards.
With the prices in Yilon City, I'm afraid everyone won't be able to survive for a week.
Sure enough, after Secretary Jin finished explaining the prices here to them, they all fell silent.
In China, an egg costs 5 to 6 cents, so they can barely understand why it costs five times more here.
But why does a small tomato cost only 2.5 yuan per pound?
It's summer now, and you can buy more than a large basin for five cents in China! This price is no longer a question of whether to eat it or not, it’s unheard of!
The prices of shrimps and crabs are also outrageous, more than 20 yuan per catty. This price is no different from robbery.
At this time, they could only sigh that fortunately they had a yard where they could grow something to be self-sufficient. They felt much better when they thought about it.
Secretary Jin knew that they had just arrived and it was normal for them to feel uncomfortable for a while.
After chatting for a while, they were asked to pack up first and wait until around 2 pm when the embassy would send staff to take them to familiarize themselves with the surrounding area.
Before leaving, Secretary Jin specifically emphasized to them the tipping culture here.
This is the third piece of advice today.
Secretary Kim had no other choice but to deal with this cultural difference.
Everyone may not understand, but since they have come to someone else's territory, they can only choose to respect.
When they heard that not only was dining out expensive, but they also had to tip the waiter, several people shook their heads like rattles.
They unanimously decided to cook at home whenever possible and not give the other party the opportunity to take advantage of them.
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