After several rounds of drinking, some of the workers who had the ability to drink became drunk. While he was awake, Yang Liufang told the village chief Shitou that after he and Ah Fu returned home for the New Year, he and the master would divide the vegetables and meat in the cafeteria into six portions, and they and his four apprentices would share some. It's hard work in the factory. The village chief often arranges for people to visit and pay attention to fire prevention.
After the explanation, I saw the workers and their families eating, drinking and having fun, and one drunk woman actually danced the Yangko dance. It was a rare occasion for everyone to get together harmoniously at the end of the year. Yang Liufang couldn't bear to be disturbed and whispered a few words to Li Tongfu and Qin Jiajun beside him, and they went to pack the gifts and luggage they needed to take home, waiting for them to finish packing. Yang Liufang said goodbye to the head of Shitou Village again and sneaked out to avoid spoiling everyone's happiness. Then he got in the truck and set off to Xizhou together.
When they arrived at the train station, Qin Jiajun and Yanhua bought platform tickets, bought them some snacks and water for the road, and put them on the train before leaving. When I was about to get off the train, I didn't forget to tell my uncle and aunt to pay New Year's greetings on their behalf.
The train started to move, and pleasant light music came from the radio. Along with the music, the announcer began to broadcast: "Comrade passengers, today is February 4, 1989, the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, which is the beginning of the Spring Festival in our country. Thank you for traveling. This train, this train..."
"Brother, it's the beginning of spring."
"Yeah, spring came really early this year."
"Well, it's just that we have to celebrate the New Year on the train."
"Well, that's better than none of us going back and leaving our godfather and godmother alone at home."
"Yes. Brother, I may be drunk. I'll take a nap first."
"Well, then you can sleep on the upper bunk, no one will disturb you."
"Thank you, brother." Yang Liufang said, took off his shoes, climbed to the upper bunk, sat on it, lowered his head, unfolded the quilt, got in, and fell asleep quickly under the influence of alcohol.
When he woke up, it was dark outside the window. Apart from the snoring of passengers in the sleeper car, there was only a faint light in the corridor. Yang Liufang was a little anxious and needed to go to the toilet. He was afraid of disturbing his brother on the lower bunk, so he climbed down carefully. As a result, Li Tongfu, who had been drifting away all year round and was a light sleeper, was still woken up by him.
"Brother, you're awake."
"Brother, I'm sorry, I went to the toilet and woke you up."
"It's okay, I'm a light sleeper."
"Where are you?"
"It seems that we have passed Baoji."
The two talked quietly, Yang Liufang put on his shoes and walked along the corridor towards the bathroom. When Yang Liufang came back from the toilet, Li Tongfu was still awake.
"Brother, is there any water?"
"Yes, I'll get it for you. Are you hungry?"
"You're not hungry. Just drink water."
Yang Liufang drank the water and continued to climb to the upper bunk to sleep. I couldn't fall asleep no matter how drunk I was, and every once in a while there would be the sound of station announcements coming from the train. In this way, he didn't fall asleep until he passed Xi'an. Li Tongfu knew that he was tossing and turning before going to bed at dawn, and did not wake him up to eat. Yang Liufang slept until he passed Shangnan and entered Henan before waking up. Stretching his head and looking at the lower bunk, Li Tongfu was sitting on the sleeper, leaning on the quilt and pillow, reading his copy of "The Way of Drying" by Kazuo Inamori.
"Brother, it looks good."
"Well, it's easy to understand and quite practical. Now that you're awake, go wash up and I'll get you something to eat."
"Is there anything to eat?"
"Yes, Brother Shitou brought ten pounds of cooked mutton and ten pounds of cooked beef. Brother Qin and Yanhua also bought some water and snacks."
"Oh, okay." Yang Liufang climbed out of the berth, took out his towel and toiletries, and went to the bathroom to wash up. Today is New Year's Eve, and it's past ten o'clock in the morning. Everyone has been gathering together at home to make dumplings and stew meat when it's time to go home. There are few people in the washing area, so Yang Liufang doesn't need to wait and finishes washing quickly. When he came back, Li Tongfu had already cut a piece of cooked beef and a piece of cooked mutton.
"Have you finished washing? Come and eat."
"Well, brother, you are coming too."
"I ate it this morning. The beef and mutton braised by my sister-in-law were quite good."
"Oh, let me try it." Yang Liufang picked up a piece of beef with his fingers and took a bite. It was indeed soft and delicious, and he started to eat it as if no one else was watching. After eating two pieces of meat and drinking some water, Yang Liufang soon felt full. He burped and went to wash his hands. When he came back, he looked for a book to read like his elder brother until night. When the train passed Xinyang, a train salesperson came over with a trolley to sell snacks, including dumplings. Yang Liufang and Li Tongfu each ordered one. Although it was not delicious, it was New Year's Eve after all, so there was a sense of ritual.
The train arrived in Hangzhou at four o'clock in the morning. Because there were no trains between Wenzhou and Hangzhou, they had no choice but to leave the station and go to Wulinmen Long-distance Bus Station, and buy bus tickets to go back after dawn. The two dragged their luggage to the train station square, where there were only a few tourists. Compared with the thousands of lights in Hangzhou City and the bright fireworks flying high from time to time, it was indeed very deserted. Yang Liufang and Li Tongfu were there. I feel lonely in such an atmosphere.
"Brother, let's take a taxi to Wulinmen."
"Well, the yellow fish car must be gone at this moment, so take a taxi."
"Happy New Year, brothers. Where are you from? Where are you going by taxi?"
"Oh, happy New Year, brother, we are going back to Wenzhou. Now we take a taxi to Wulinmen Long-distance Bus Station."
"You two don't take trains often. The long-distance station is closed today because it's the New Year's Day holiday."
"Ah, what should we do? Brother, is it possible that we have to stay in a hotel?"
"Don't worry, brother. Brother, it seems you are just like us. Where are you going?"
"I'm going back to Cangnan, and I'm trying to figure out a way to go back."
"Oh, brother, let's go to Yang City. How about we share a car and go back? If the three of us do it, it's almost like buying tickets from a scalper."
"I thought so too, that's why I took the liberty to bother you."
"Hey, that's great. Come on, let's stop the car."
The three of them carried their luggage and followed each other to the roadside. On New Year's Day, the road was deserted. After waiting for half an hour, no car came. Yang Liufang wrapped up his military coat. Seeing that the elder brother who was traveling with him was shivering from the cold, Yang Liufang remembered that there was another piece of work clothes in the bag. He took it back for a change, so he took it out and gave it to the elder brother. The elder brother took it without hesitation and quickly put it on.
At this time, a Toyota Crown taxi came. The three of them waved desperately and the car pulled over.
"Master, are you leaving?"
"Where are you going?" The master spoke in Hangzhou dialect with a Henan accent. He turned out to be a Henan driver. Yang Liufang instantly thought of the time when he went there and accepted the help of a Henan driver and felt very cordial. He hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Master, let's go to Wenzhou."
"Wenzhou?! It's too far. I can't pull it."
"Let's add more money." The eldest brother, who was shivering from the cold, said boldly.
"If you can't afford it, you should wait for Xiali." The three of them looked at each other in shock. Before they could understand, the driver started his Toyota Crown and sped away, leaving only a choking smell of gasoline.
The three of them waited for a while, and then a lone red car came swaying on the road in front of the station. The three people hurriedly ran towards the middle of the road and waved to stop the car.
"I don't want to live anymore. It's Chinese New Year. What are you doing! I just got out of the car and hit (and hit) Xie. How unlucky I am!" After the driver braked urgently, he rolled down the glass, stretched out his head, and used it like a barrage of bullets. He scolded them in standard Henan dialect.
"I'm sorry, master, I'm sorry." The three of them apologized quickly.
"Master, we want to take a ride." Yang Liufang ran to the driver.
"Step aside, Buddha (says), step aside, Buddha (says)."
The three of them returned to their luggage, and the driver pulled over in front. The three of them hurriedly chased after him, fearing that he would run away.
"Where are you going? It's the Chinese New Year and you haven't come home yet?"
"Master, happy New Year, let's go back to Wenzhou."
"Good guy, stay away."
"How much money do you have to pay?"
"Master, how much do you think is appropriate?"
"Even if you take a long-distance bus, it costs one hundred per person. Let's do this. Two hundred per person. I have to come back empty."
"Okay, master, let's sit down."
"But my car has a low chassis and can survive on uneven roads."
"Okay! Master, we listen to you."
"Then come up."
The three of them opened the trunk and loaded their luggage inside.
"Take off your coat, too. It won't be crowded if you sit there. It's a long way and it will take five or six hours. I'll turn on the heater for you."
"Do you want more money?" Yang Liufang asked stupidly.
"Why do you need to pay extra? The air conditioning in my car is not good, but the temperature is high and the warm air is good." The three of them got in the car, and the driver started the car and drove towards Wenzhou.
"You're just doing business outside."
"Yes, master. My brother and I make furniture in the northwest."
"Well, it's not easy for young people."
"Who are you?" the master asked the eldest brother sitting in the passenger seat.
"Oh, master, I sell mattresses."
"Mattresses, do you still need to buy a mattress? Isn't it a mattress?" Yang Liufang asked curiously.
"Yes, but it's different from the mattress you mentioned. What I sell is Simmons. We are still half of the same industry."
"What is Simmons?"
"Mattress."
"Oh." Yang Liufang pretended to understand.
"Master, why are all our taxi drivers in Hangzhou from Henan?"
"This has a story. Let me tell you." The driver said happily.
It turns out that taxis in Hangzhou were just starting out in the late 1980s. Initially, a taxi company was established by CITIC Group and provided 40 Nissan luxury cars, but they were only used by high-end hotels and foreign guests. Later, it was discovered that the demand for 40 cars was far from enough, and another 30 Japanese-made Toyota Crown sedans were introduced. This car was also a high-end sedan at the time, but the cars introduced in Hangzhou were said to be obsolete cars that had traveled more than 500,000 kilometers in developed countries. Although the car is a second-hand car, after it was put on the market, it was still monopolized by hotels and foreign-related hotels, and ordinary people who wanted to spend money to take a car had no chance. Therefore, the introduction of the above-mentioned cars into the Hangzhou market is still not enough for the increasingly developing Hangzhou economy.
At the beginning of last year, Hangzhou introduced another batch of Xiali, which is the model that Yang Liufang and the others are riding in. Because it is cheap and saves fuel consumption, ordinary people can afford it. It is very popular among Hangzhou citizens. Then they came in in batches and became the Hangzhou Xiali. The main force of urban taxi business. Because there were some drivers from Henan who drove taxis in the taxi company established by CITIC. They were hard-working, not afraid of hardship and tiredness. They had good driving skills, drove a lot, communicated easily with each other, and were very familiar with the roads. Therefore, relying on mentoring and guidance, we gradually monopolized the taxi market in Hangzhou.
