Chapter 41
After a long separation, Chen Fengjun was a little at a loss as to what to do when Chen Lanjun hugged her.
After a few seconds, she raised her hand and gently patted her sister's shoulder.
"I missed you, too."
Chen Fengjun looked at Chen Lanjun carefully and said with emotion: "You have grown so big. When I left, you were only this tall."
"That's right. It's been at least six or seven years." Chen Lanjun smiled slightly. When she smiled, she looked a bit like Chen Fengjun. "It's not convenient to talk here. Let's go somewhere else."
There were no teahouses or restaurants near the train station, so Chen Lanjun and Arong said hello and asked two cyclists to take them to the nearest state-owned restaurant.
The weather was hot, and the doors and windows of the state-owned restaurant were wide open. Before we got to the restaurant, there weren't many people inside.
Chen Fengjun picked up her leather handbag and said to Chen Lanjun, "What do you want to eat? Just order it. I'm here, of course, it's my treat."
"Okay." Chen Lanjun smiled and ordered several delicious dishes and teas served today.
The rule is to pay first and then eat.
Chen Fengjun took out her wallet. In addition to Hong Kong dollars, there was also a stack of newly exchanged Great Unity Banknotes. She counted the amount and handed it to the waiter. The waiter took it and asked, "Where is the meal ticket?"
Oh no! It’s been a while since I’ve eaten at the state-owned restaurant. Chen Fengjun was so busy exchanging money that he didn’t realize he was exchanging some meal tickets.
Chen Lanjun handed over the meal ticket at the right time: "Here, it's here."
Chen Fengjun said apologetically: "I didn't think it through and asked you to pay for the meal."
"What does it matter?" Chen Lanjun took her arm and walked towards a table. "Sister pays and I pay for the meal ticket. This kind of cooperation is just right."
They sat down and waited for their food to be served.
Although I haven't seen you for many years, I didn't know what to say for a moment.
Chen Fengjun thought for a moment and asked, "Is everything okay at home?"
"Fortunately, my mom and dad opened a furniture factory in the village, and now our family's conditions are much better."
Chen Lanjun briefly told her about the recent situation at home, and Chen Fengjun nodded repeatedly after listening.
"This way, I can feel a little more at ease. It's just a pity that I can't be with my parents in the next few years." Chen Fengjun took out an envelope from her handbag and gently placed it in front of Chen Lanjun.
"These are for household use, you can take them back."
It’s not a thin envelope. Just by looking at its thickness, you can tell that there is a lot of money inside.
Chen Lanjun's eyes circled around the envelope and she didn't take it immediately.
"Although my sister originally intended to give it to the family, can this money be used for another purpose?"
"What do you mean?" Chen Fengjun looked puzzled.
Chen Lanjun sat up straight and leaned forward slightly: "I want to open a small factory with you."
She thought about this matter for a long time. It would be a very worry-free thing if Chen Fengjun and she could work together to set up a factory.
Chen Fengjun has now obtained Hong Kong citizenship, and legally speaking, she is a Hong Konger. If she is willing to invest in a factory with Chen Lanjun in the mainland, then this identity will bring many conveniences, whether in terms of taxation or strategy, it will be much more convenient than if she sets up a factory on her own. If she does it alone, she may be labeled as a speculator in the turmoil of reform, and she will inevitably sing "Tears Behind Bars".
But if Chen Fengjun joined, there would be a natural identity barrier and this kind of thing would not happen.
Chen Lanjun stared at Chen Fengjun expectantly: "Sister, let's work together to set up a factory, okay?"
"What? What...factory?"
Under Chen Lanjun's eager gaze, Chen Fengjun asked with some stammering.
Chen Lanjun pointed to the watch on her wrist and said, "It's a small electronics factory. I want to assemble electronic watches and sell them myself."
In the 1970s, with the development of integrated circuits, electronic watches became very popular. Hong Kong was an important production center for electronic watches during this period.
Unlike the hundreds of yuan mechanical watches currently sold in the mainland, cheap electronic watches after widespread mass production have a significant price advantage. The first time Chen Lanjun worked in a factory, she assembled electronic watches.
When she saw so many watches, she enviously said to her trainer, "This watch costs about a hundred yuan, right? When I work for a few months and get paid, I will buy one too."
The master smiled, picked up an electronic watch and said, "This one is only ten dollars a piece."
Such a huge price difference shocked Chen Lanjun at that time, and it can also shock the vast majority of customers in the mainland now.
Chen Lanjun has asked around these days, but currently, there is still no store here that specializes in selling electronic watches.
Very good, she is the first person to try it out.
However, Chen Fengjun's reaction was slightly beyond her expectations.
Chen Fengjun touched his nose and said awkwardly, "Opening a factory... But the situation in the mainland is not very stable now, the risk is very high."
"Besides, when people from Hong Kong set up factories, there must be a lot of procedures. We don't have any roots here. If they want to block you, you can't do anything. All the money will be wasted."
"I'm not very familiar with electronic watches either."
…
She listed several reasons why it was not suitable to run a factory, still thinking about what else she could say.
Fortunately, a dish of fried rice noodles saved Chen Fengjun, who couldn't think of any reason. The waiter put a plate of fragrant fried rice noodles with eggs and lean meat on the table and said, "Serve."
Chen Fengjun breathed a sigh of relief, grabbed the chopsticks, and urged: "Come on, eat it while it's hot."
After a moment's silence, Chen Lanjun picked up the chopsticks and started eating in silence.
Her sister's attitude was beyond her expectations. Something that she thought was well-planned suddenly came to a halt.
After listening to the long list of reasons just now, Chen Lanjun felt that they were not the real reasons.
My sister had her own concerns, but she didn't say anything, and Chen Lanjun didn't feel comfortable asking.
Although they are sisters, the years of no contact between them have formed an invisible barrier.
The atmosphere suddenly became awkward.
A few more dishes were served. Chen Fengjun buried his head in eating and refused to look at Chen Lanjun.
After the meal, Chen Fengjun put down his chopsticks and said, "You should go back in a few days."
"Um."
"Give my regards to my parents and little sister."
"Don't worry, I will."
"When I have free time, I will go home to see them."
"good."
Chen Fengjun wanted to explain something, but didn't know how.
After a long while, she silently pushed the envelope of money toward Chen Lanjun and said, "Take care of yourself."
Chen Lanjun accompanied her to the train station.
When they parted, Chen Fengjun waved his hand and turned to leave.
Chen Lanjun gently called her, "Sister, I hope you will think carefully about setting up a factory. I can take care of the money and the formalities. I just... you are the person I trust the most, please think about it carefully, just treat it as a small request from me, okay?"
Chen Fengjun nodded hesitantly.
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