The golden age began in 1977

Chapter 96: A Group of Brothers Joined the Fellow Family

Qian Jin originally just wanted Qiu Dayong to send someone to replace Wei Xiongtu.

As a result, Qiu Dayong led more than sixty men and charged over!
Hu Shunzi was pushing the cart hard while smoking an economical cigarette when he saw a large group of green military uniforms approaching from afar. He quickly stubbed out his cigarette on the sole of his rubber boots and stood straight against the wall.

Look at the eyes, look at the nose, look at the heart.

look steadily forward.

I absolutely avoided eye contact with this group, wishing I could just become a newly painted slogan on the wall.

As a result, they surrounded him, forming an impenetrable fortress.

Qiu Dayong squeezed to the front.

Hu Shunzi quickly clasped his hands in greeting: "President Qiu, didn't we agree to call it even last time? Why are you coming to see me again?"

"I've been keeping a low profile these days..."

Qiu Dayong flicked his thumb backward.

The crowd parted to reveal Qian Jin, who was stunned.

Hu Shunzi is tall and strong, like a refrigerator with two doors that has come to life. Although he was badly beaten in his last duel with Zhang Aijun, Zhang Aijun was a human weapon, so losing was not shameful.

Now he realized that Hu Shunzi was all show and no substance.

This guy bullies the weak and fears the strong!

Hu Shunzi was very upset when he saw him: "Little Qian, Old Qian—Brother Qian! You're not being fair! I just didn't approve Wei Xiongtu's leave, and you sent people to mess with me?"

Qian Jin was speechless for a long time before explaining:
"I asked Brother Qiu to lend someone to replace Xiao Wei, but Brother Qiu is a loyal friend. When he learned that our brother unit was in trouble, he insisted on bringing his brothers from all over to help..."

Their transport team had a conflict with the educated youth transport team.

When the educated youth transport team suddenly arrived, most of the porters thought they were there to cause trouble, so they all ducked out and tried to find a place to hide.

Only Wei Xiongtu, true to his principles, grabbed a stick and ran over quickly.

After understanding the purpose of the educated youth transport team, Hu Shunzi immediately perked up.

He was furious when he saw the state of his old workers. In contrast, Wei Xiongtu was very brave and loyal.

So he immediately made the decision: "Xiao Wei, you're off today! Everyone else except Xiao Qian, everyone else will work overtime today!"

After Qiu Dayong and his fellow educated youth joined the moving team, today's work became very simple.

He shouted, "All officers and soldiers of the Jiagang Educated Youth Loading and Unloading Company, cheer up and support our brother units today!" Then all the educated youth started working in unison, and the unloading team suddenly became huge.

The educated youth were cultured, and they used their knowledge in their work of moving things.

The heavy, full bags of coal dust were stiff, so they used the lever principle, employing simple shovels and rollers instead of carts to move the bags.

The soldiers in green uniforms lined up, their crowbars flying like dragons beneath the coal dust bags.

Qiu Dayong gestured to Qian Jin: "Power originates from the waist and stance, and the force is directed diagonally..."

Before the words were even finished, the 200-pound sack landed steadily on the wooden block.

Qiu Dayong further explained that they have different methods for moving different goods. For example, they now use the "three-pry-one-push" method to move coal powder bags: three prying motions plus one wooden block.

This method sounds simple, and the principle behind it is physics knowledge that even a junior high school student can understand.

However, applying it to work requires rigorous real-world practice, as the angle and force of using a crowbar vary depending on the terrain and the type of bag.

Thousands of tons of pulverized coal were all transferred into the warehouse.

After finishing the work, Qiu Dayong was about to leave when Qian Jin shook his hand and thanked him, saying, "Mr. Qiu has helped me a lot."

Qiu Dayong laughed heartily: "Don't be so polite with me. What do you mean by 'General Manager Qiu'? This title of 'Commander-in-Chief' is just a term of endearment from my brothers and sisters. Just call me Old Qiu!"

This favor is quite significant.

Originally, this group of workers was supposed to suffer greatly.

Normally, to protect themselves from coal dust, workers would soak their coarse cloth work clothes in water before wearing them, using the moisture to absorb the dust. But now that it's cold, doing this again might cause frostbite.

Today, thanks to Qian Jin's good fortune, the moving team can leave work on time.

The old workers' attitude towards Qian Jin changed drastically, from casual to polite.

They already knew Qian Jin's identity as the deputy captain of the security task force, but since it was none of their business, they didn't care much about it.

However, today they discovered that Qian Jin could direct the largest porter force in Jiagang, the educated youth porter team, which was closely related to them. They could no longer treat Qian Jin casually as before.

Qian Jin takes this in stride.

He still worked diligently and left work on time after finishing his tasks.

He rode his bicycle back to Taishan Road, but didn't see the tricycle. He went to the old warehouse to find Mi Gang, who used to skewer vegetables for people.

Mi Gang and his group were overjoyed to see him return and immediately surrounded him:
"Chief Qian, can you guess how much money our company will make today?"

Qian Jin shook his head to indicate that he did not know, leaving the opportunity to show off to Mi Gang.

Mi Gang was indeed invigorated: "You'd never guess, because I don't know either!"

Qian Jin rolled his eyes: "Are you kidding me!"

Mi Gang said enthusiastically, "No, how could I dare to tease you?"

"Zhu Tao and Lao Zhao didn't mention their sales figures, but it must be incredibly popular. We haven't had a moment's rest all day; we've been washing vegetables and making skewers the whole time!"

"We've run out of bamboo skewers from the other day, so we'll have to make more overnight!"

Qian Jin laughed and said, "That will be a bit tiring."

Liu Dazhuang, who was slicing potatoes, exclaimed, "I'm not afraid of hard work, I'm just afraid of not finding a job and not earning any money!"

The mobile canteen business has taken off.

The labor shock brigades will be disbanded, and all members will be transferred to work in small collective enterprises, becoming regular workers!

Although small collective enterprises cannot match the status of state-owned enterprises, team members are happy to join them if the income and benefits are comparable.

Qian Jin asked Mi Gang for the location of the tricycle. When he rode there, the tricycle was still surrounded by people.

It was rush hour, and the mobile canteen was experiencing a new peak in business.

Just then, a squad of people dressed in Type 65 green military uniforms and wearing red armbands appeared.

They pushed through the crowd, and the leader held a copy of the "Provisional Regulations on Combating Speculation and Profiteering":
What kind of business are you running?

Zhu Tao took out a pack of cigarettes and handed it to the four men:

"Comrades, please have a smoke. We are selling a dish called Mala Tang here, and our business is run by all members of the Taishan Road Labor Commando Team."

"Stop spouting nonsense!" The man in red armbands slapped open his cigarette with a booklet. "Spicy hot pot? Just the name screams feudal, capitalist, and revisionist dregs!"

Zhu Tao was unhappy: "We are running a small collective enterprise, serving the working people and our worker brothers and sisters."

"If you don't believe me? Fine, I'll take you to our Taishan Road Neighborhood Committee to see the paperwork!"

The red armband still harbored doubts.

Zhu Tao changed his mind and gave him a few skewers of vegetables instead.

This is where the function of bamboo skewers in making the skewers becomes apparent.

Since the voting team couldn't carry aluminum lunchboxes or enamel mugs, each person could simply hold a skewer by hand.

They ate the skewers with some skepticism, then praised them highly, giving them thumbs up repeatedly.

Seeing this, the crowd felt even more at ease and began to scramble to buy the grain coupons and coins, which jingled with excitement.

Qian Jin watched from behind and couldn't stop laughing.

This must be Xu Weidong's idea.

Two of the four red armband-wearing men were familiar faces: Xu Weidong and Chang Shengli!

They were just putting on a show.

Xu Weidong saw him and winked at him.

Chang Shengli greatly admired Qian Jin: "Chief Qian, I heard you've arrested another smuggler, protecting the interests of the country and the people? That's amazing!"

Qian Jin said, "It was just a coincidence."

He then asked, "This isn't your first time here today, is it?"

"I've been here more than ten times." A man in a red armband rubbed his leg helplessly.

Despite being known for their incredible stamina and running prowess, they were still exhausted today.

"Luckily, your mala tang is delicious, so I always have something to look forward to every time I come." The red armband member chuckled again.

Qian Jin shook hands with them:
"Thank you for protecting our business. Let's wait a few days until our business stabilizes, then Lao Xu will call us and we'll treat everyone to a meal."

Chang Shengli resolutely refused: "We have rules; we are not allowed to accept invitations to meals and banquets from the masses..."

“Our company wants to organize a joint event with your company. Do you still have this rule?” Qian Jin interrupted him and asked.

Chang Shengli thought for a moment and shook his head: "There really isn't one."

Qian Jin laughed and said, "Isn't that enough?"

Business is booming and operations are going smoothly.

That way, he would have no worries.

Qian Jin rode his bicycle home, took out the gold box, and bought some supplies, filling two net bags and a cloth bag. He then went to the air-raid shelter to visit Qiu Dayong and his group again.

It was cold, and there was no one outside the air-raid shelter.

He leaned his bicycle against the concrete block of the air-raid shelter, where the dry grass on both sides of the entrance was swirling and shedding its leaves.

A gust of wind blew past, and Qian Jin tightened the collar of his work clothes, stepping on the gravel scattered on the ground as he entered the air-raid shelter.

He turned on his flashlight, and the beam shone directly onto a faded propaganda booklet titled "Grasp Revolution and Promote Production."

A musty smell mixed with a salty, damp, and fishy odor wafted over me.

Shining a flashlight on the wall, you see red slogans with nails hammered into them, and salted fish hanging from them by strings.

Further in, the smell of kerosene hit them again, and Qian Jin shuffled in, supporting himself against the slippery cave wall.

At first, you could still see some sunlight from the setting sun, but after the third bend, it was completely dark, with only the faint flickering lights in the distance.

Qian Jin switched to a high-powered flashlight, and as the beam swept across the dense mold spots on the cave ceiling, it suddenly illuminated a human face.

"Who is it?" someone shouted from the other side.

Qian Jin was startled. He instinctively stepped back and bumped into someone, which scared him even more.

When I turned around, it was Zhang Aijun.

Zhang Aijun muttered, "They stepped on my foot, they bumped into my bird."

The person who had just appeared asked what they were there for.

Qian Jin said, "I'm here to find Comrade Qiu Dayong."

The boy who appeared was about half a teenager, wearing a work uniform that was clearly two sizes too big, with frayed edges on the lead-gray cuffs.

He held up a lantern, its shade covered in a layer of indelible black ash: "Looking for my second brother? Who are you?"

Qian Jin said, "My name is Qian Jin. A couple of days ago..."

"Oh, I delivered medicine to my Tiger Brother before." He turned around and called out, "Second Brother, Brother Qian Jin is looking for you!"

"Come with me inside."

As he spoke, he picked up a burlap sack from the ground.

I don't know what's inside. The sack brushed against the moss on the cave wall, leaving a green trail on the vermilion characters that read "Dig deep caves and store grain widely".

As you walk further in, the view suddenly opens up.

The 30-meter-long cavern was divided into more than a dozen compartments by tarpaulin. The "walls" made of stacked cargo boxes were covered with the People's Daily, and the straw mats on the ground still bore the marks of the burlap sacks from Jiagang.

In the most open area, a patch of land was enclosed by a tattered canvas, where a coal stove sat with a kettle on top.

"Brother Qian! What brings you here?" Qiu Dayong emerged from behind a canvas curtain, his work gloves still covered in fish scales.

Qian Jin switched to a flashlight and swept the beam across the tarpaulin-covered partition, revealing a coal stove inside with a pot of mixed fish stewing on it. The fishy smell emanating from the gaps in the lid filled the air-raid shelter.

He shoved the net he'd brought into Qiu Dayong's hands, saying, "The ventilation in here is terrible. You still dare to light the stove? Something bad will happen!"

Qiu Dayong grinned: "It's alright, there are ventilation ducts, and the wind is still quite strong today."

He pointed to the stove chimney and gave Qian Jin a look.

The roof of the renovated air-raid shelter is quite flat, and the pipes for each furnace extend deep into the rock wall at the top of the shelter.

Qian Jin was still worried: "There's a lot of fog in Haibin City in winter. Once the wind stops and the fog comes back up, you have to be careful about ventilation. After you seal the stove at night, be very careful about carbon monoxide poisoning!"

Qiu Dayong said, "We all understand that. Actually, we don't burn the stove at night. We turn it off when we go to sleep—there aren't that many coal dust pieces!"

He glanced at the net, his eyes glued to it.
A thick stack of plasters, liquor, sugar cubes, and two large pieces of dried cured meat—all good stuff!
Opening the cloth bag, I found it full of brand-new work gloves.

Seeing this, he was somewhat bewildered and excited: "What is this?"

Qian Jin waved his hand, "I can't come empty-handed, can I?"

"I noticed you weren't wearing gloves while you were working today. Luckily, I'm currently the head of the street security task force, so I can get some gloves from the neighborhood committee."

Qiu Dayong patted his arm hard: "Where can we get welfare supplies? Brother, you've really saved us from a tight spot."

"Sit down, sit down! Hey, this crappy place of ours doesn't even have a place for you to sit."

Qian Jin casually sat down and said, "You can stay here, but I can't sit down?"

"I don't mean to offend your privacy, but why do you live here? You must have a home in the city, right?"

He knew early on that many small collective enterprises' construction teams were cleaning up air-raid shelters, and he also heard that they were for educated youth returning to the city.

He had always guessed that it was for the later large-scale return of educated youth to the city, but he never expected it to be for the current educated youth returning to the city.

Qiu Dayong sighed, took out a cigarette butt and put it in his mouth: "I have a home but I can't go back."

"You've seen the conditions here. If you had a choice, who would choose to live here, right?"

“Take me for example. My family is large, with six people living in an 18-square-meter space. My sister-in-law is heavily pregnant, and apart from my father and brother, the rest of the family are women. How do you think I can go back?”

Wearing oversized work clothes, Xiao Qiu said, "Don't even mention my second brother, I don't even have a place to live at home."

Qiu Dayong then pointed to the next room: "That's where Da Zhou lives. He's related to Master Zhou from your neighborhood boiler room, but he can't visit his relatives."

"Back in those special times, Da Zhou was a simple-minded man with a fiery temper. When the neighborhood committee asked him to report misconduct, he revealed that his father had a copy of 'Jin Ping Mei' hidden in his house..."

He shook his head as he spoke:

“Da Zhou’s family pretended he didn’t exist, so he had to go to the countryside. Now that he’s back, his family still won’t accept him.”

"And then there's Xiangjun. When her parents were alive, they didn't care much for her. Now that they're gone, she has two older brothers in the house, and the two couples fight over the house every day. How could they tolerate her?" Qian Jin said, "I understand what you're saying, but you're working in Jiagang after all. Does the port not care?"

"How can they manage this? The port authority says we're unplanned workers." Qiu Dayong exhaled a smoke ring in frustration. "Let me tell you, my situation here is already good; at least I've got my household registration."

“There are a few people whose situations are complicated. They can’t even get temporary household registration. The housing management office comes to evict them every day. Logically speaking, they are not qualified to live here!”

The cigarette butt contained only a little tobacco, which was gone in a few puffs.

The crackling of the kerosene lamp wick made the shadows on his brow bones even deeper.

Qian Jin took out a pack of cigarettes and handed it to him.

Qiu Dayong laughed and said, "You can see how pitiful I am now, can you?"

Qian Jin shook his head and said, "I can see how powerful you are. You are a fierce dragon lying dormant in the depths of the abyss. Once the storm rages outside, you will surely soar to the heavens!"

Qiu Dayong was taken aback: "Huh?"

Qian Jin said, "I'm serious."

As our ancestors said, "When Heaven is about to place a great responsibility on a person, it will first test their will, strain their muscles and bones, starve their body, and thwart their endeavors, so as to strengthen their resolve and increase their abilities!"

Xiao Qiu, who was staring intently at the candy in the net bag, suddenly looked up and grinned when he heard this: "Hey, how do you know my second brother's motto?"

"Go away!" Qiu Dayong kicked his younger brother, somewhat embarrassed.

Qian Jin asked, "Do all the brothers and sisters in your transport team live here?"

Qiu Dayong said, "No, most families can make room for a bed."

Qian Jin said, "You are indeed amazing. Even if they have better conditions, they are willing to follow you. You will definitely become someone important in the future!"

Qiu Dayong became even more embarrassed by his praise, rubbing his hands together and saying:
"The main problem is that we are all unpopular, so we have to stick together to avoid being bullied."

“When I was sent to the countryside, I worked as a cadre in the militia company. They trusted me, so they let me temporarily be the leader.”

Qian Jin asked, "Going to the countryside is tough and tiring—I know that."

"But at least when you go to the countryside, you'll have a proper place to stay, right? And working in the countryside might not be any harder than being a porter, right?"

Qiu Dayong shook his head: "You're right, but the future is different."

"Staying in the countryside means you can only toil in the fields for a living, while staying in the city gives you a chance to move up in society."

"I don't want to be a farmer in the countryside for the rest of my life. I'll find a way to make a name for myself if I go back to the city!"

The flashlight shone on Qiu Dayong.

The figure reflected on the stone wall of the air-raid shelter was tall, imposing, and distorted.

Qian Jin spotted the trail of a ruthless man.

Now is a good time to invest.

He also wanted to change Qiu Dayong's fate if possible.

He didn't know how many illegal and unethical things the Qingyong Alliance would do in the future, but Qiu Dayong and others were still innocent for now.

If he could, he would like to help people like that walk the right path.

Qiu Dayong is capable, courageous, and patient. If he had the opportunity to walk the right path, he could also succeed.

Seeing Qian Jin staring at him silently, Qiu Dayong assumed he was dissatisfied with his answer and continued speaking:

“I was sent to work in an old forest farm in the Xingan Mountains of Northeast China. In the winter of 74, our group of educated youth were starving and went to fish on the ice of the river. There was a hole in the ice, and one of my brothers fell in and was never seen again.”

"There's also a sister named Xiangjun. She's very pretty. The commune leader in the countryside who was sent there had lost his wife and wanted her to be the mother of his children. Hehe, she has six children, and her eldest daughter is the same age as her!"

Qian Jin nodded: "I understand. I've been to the countryside, so I understand."

Qiu Dayong rubbed his chin, then looked at the two nets with a troubled expression.

Qian Jin smiled and said, "No need to say more, it's still the same thing: mutual assistance among proletarian comrades."

Qiu Dayong smiled wryly: "You still call yourself a proletarian?"

Qian Jin said, "The parasites of the proletariat are still proletarians."

He knew how to connect with these people from the lower classes.

Because he used to be from the lower class.

"I've never seen anyone talk about themselves like that before." Qiu Dayong's smile was much more intense this time.

Some people came upon hearing the noise and looked at Qian Jin by the dim light of a kerosene lamp.

Qiu Dayong called out, "Xiao Wang, go get the dried shrimp we've been drying. Xiao Zhou, stoke the fire a little bigger. It's been so humid these past few days. Da Chen, didn't you hide some peanuts?"

Then he said to Qian Jin, "This is the only condition. Don't mind it. You haven't eaten yet, have you? If you don't mind, just stay and have a bite."

He called out again, "Xiangjun, gather up some good stuff. We have distinguished guests today, so we must treat them well."

"Yes," a girl answered crisply.

Qian Jin had no intention of staying for dinner.

He still needs to oversee things at the mobile canteen, so he should be back by now.

But given the current environment and situation, he can't leave. No matter what reason he gives for leaving, he'll be branded as someone who looks down on the educated youth transport team.

Especially after Qiu Dayong spoke, several more young men came over, all of whom were familiar faces who had helped him earlier that day.

When Qian Jin offered them cigarettes, they responded with even greater friendliness and respect.

The earthen stove outside was lit, and the aroma of oil wafted in. Xiao Qiu immediately ran out to see what was happening.

Not long after, a girl in a grass-green military uniform brought over a steaming hot lunchbox.

Inside were piles of golden-brown fried ribbonfish segments.

Qiu Dayong magically produced half a bottle of soy sauce and handed it over: "Xiangjun, see if you can cook a couple of dishes. This is what Xiao Zhao traded with someone for oysters when he went to unload the cargo today."

The girl took him away with a smile.

Qian Jin looked up at her, and just as Qiu Dayong had said, she was indeed a beautiful girl.

She must have spent a considerable amount of time in the countryside; her skin, exposed to the wind and sun, had developed a wheatish hue, and even in poor lighting, its roughness was still visible, but this did not detract from the striking beauty of her features.

Her eyes, in particular, leave a deep impression. The two very faint lines at the corners of her eyes are like the rendering of a fine brush painting, making her almond-shaped eyes even brighter.

Qian Jin met her gaze, and before she could even smile, her eyes were already smiling.

An enamel mug was placed on the stove in the air-raid shelter, filled with aged jasmine tea, the tea stains so thick that the tea flavor was undetectable.

Qiu Dayong took a bite but was too embarrassed to pay, so he pulled out a box of fried noodles.

He took a bowl, poured in fried noodles and boiling water, added two grains of saccharin, stirred it with a broken-handled aluminum spoon, and handed it to Qian Jin.

The inscription on the spoon handle is only four blurry characters: '大有可为' (Great potential).

Fried ribbonfish, dried shrimp stewed with shredded radish, stir-fried spinach, stir-fried shredded potatoes, and cabbage and clam dumpling soup.

With four dishes and a soup, Qian Jin could tell that this was the best meal their team could offer.

It's estimated that the oil they used to treat him to this meal has already consumed a month's worth of oil.

Qian Jin ate heartily and praised Yi Xiangjun's cooking skills, which made Qiu Dayong, Yi Xiangjun and others very happy.

Qiu Dayong said, "You came so suddenly this time. I didn't prepare anything in advance. I don't even have a bottle of baijiu. It's so cold, so I can only offer you beer."

As he spoke, he opened another bottle and handed it to Zhang Aijun: "Defective products intercepted by the port authority."

"Hehe, they didn't want it, so I kept it. Anyway, it's just the bottle that's the problem; the wine inside is fine."

The so-called defective products do not necessarily mean that the quality of the wine is problematic; in most cases, it is the label that is problematic.

Qian Jin looked at the labels on the bottles. Some had misprinted words, some had missing designs, and some only had half of the neck label.

His heart moved.

This label is a misprinted label and should have some value.

So he said to Qiu Dayong, "I like collecting cigarette and liquor labels, and these kinds of misprinted labels are quite hard to find. If you..."

“You want to take it? I still have some of these here. I usually take them down to amuse the kids!” Qiu Dayong laughed.

He told his younger brother, and the boy got up and ran into the air-raid shelter, returning a short while later with a large bag.

Qian Jin looked at the labels by the light of a kerosene lamp and saw that there were not only some wine labels but also cigarette labels.

Qiu Dayong continued, "If you need this, I'll keep an eye out for it for you in the future and collect any I find."

Qian Jin clasped his fists and expressed his gratitude.

Qiu Dayong waved his hand: "Hey, don't be silly. You've given us treasures, and we've given you garbage. If you thank me again, I... I really don't know what to do."

He then asked, "Do you need any help tomorrow? I'll arrange for people to help you in advance."

"Because the ocean clock at the train station is broken, ask me to bring the brothers over to fix it tomorrow."

Qian Jin said, "I don't need any help, but do you know how to repair clocks?"

Qiu Dayong said, "I can do most of the small jobs on machinery."

“My dad originally worked in the repair shop, so he learned a bit from what he saw and heard. Later, he worked with a repairman in the forest farm for two years, so he can tinker with everything but can’t do anything well.”

Qian Jin's eyes lit up: "I have a foreign clock on hand. When can I bring it over so I can take a look at it?"

Qiu Dayong readily agreed: "Why bring anything? I'll go with you after we finish eating. Clocks are easier to fix than watches; I can usually fix them."

Eat and drink enough.

Zhang Aijun loaded all the mislabeled beer bottles onto his vehicle, while Qian Jin rode his bicycle with Qiu Dayong on the back.

Qiu Dayong chuckled: "We're not well-off enough to afford bicycles, so we have to make you our driver."

Qian Jin said, "If you can fix my clock later, I'll give you a bicycle."

Qiu Dayong immediately said, "Come on, don't be ridiculous."

He has excellent craftsmanship and a keen eye for detail.

Upon seeing the exquisite clock that Qian Jin had taken out, he immediately said, "Oh, a five-spring clock from Western Europe. It's usually fine."

He carried a set of tools with him and quickly disassembled the outer casing.

Qiu Dayong's explanation was simple, but dealing with the five-spring clock was actually quite difficult. Qian Jin had a clockmaker examine it, but the clockmaker didn't even open it up. Upon seeing the clock's condition, the clockmaker immediately waved his hand and said it couldn't be repaired.

Qian Jin sought out Qiu Dayong as a last resort, hoping to take the opportunity to get closer to him.

The five-spring clock has three sets of sesame chains, five coiled springs, and two ringing mechanisms, for a total of eight bells.

The craftsmanship of this clock is very exquisite, requiring many steps to assemble, and similarly, it requires many steps to disassemble for repair.

Qiu Dayong worked for more than an hour to wind up the five-spring clock, and the pendulum began to swing rhythmically.

Qian Jin's eyes lit up and he couldn't help but applaud.

Talent.

"Mission accomplished, mission accomplished." Qiu Dayong laughed heartily. "This is a good item, it must have been used for a hundred or two hundred years, right? Only a few springs inside are twisted, it can be fixed without any problems."

"I changed the lubricant, and it should last another ten or eight years without any problems."

He packed his things to leave.

Qian Jin handed him a bicycle ticket.

It was getting late, and Qiu Dayong was in a hurry to get back, so he didn't have time to look at it carefully. After some polite refusals, he saw that Qian Jin really wanted to give it to him, so he accepted it.

"I'll go back and scrape together the money to buy a bicycle. It'll be really convenient if anything happens in the future." He scratched his chin sheepishly.

"Brother Qian, I owe you a huge favor."

Qian Jin patted him on the back: "From now on, we're brothers. If anything happens, we'll help each other out. Don't be shy."

Qiu Dayong readily agreed, "Brother Qian, if you put it that way, we've really climbed the social ladder."

"Anyway, you know us, we're not particularly skilled, just a bit strong. If you need us, just say the word, and we'll go through fire and water for you!"

He carefully put away his bicycle ticket and excitedly jogged back to the air-raid shelter.

Yi Xiangjun and her brother were waiting for him, and they breathed a sigh of relief when they saw him return safely.

Qiu Dayong waved his hand and said, "You're all worrying unnecessarily. We haven't even left the city, what's there to be afraid of?"

"We should still be careful," Yi Xiangjun worried. "Now that the college entrance examination has been reinstated, there are more educated youth returning to the city, and the security situation has worsened."

"How's it going? Is the clock fixed yet?"

Qiu Dayong got excited: "It's fixed! Look, what did Brother Qian give me?"

He handed the bicycle ticket he had been holding all the way to Yi Xiangjun and her younger brother.

Little Qiu was also excited after seeing it: "Wow, it's a bicycle ticket!"

Yi Xiangjun looked at it carefully, then looked up in astonishment: "Brother Dayong, how could you accept this? It's too valuable!"

Qiu Dayong chuckled and said, "Brother Qian insisted on giving it to me. I didn't really want it, mainly because we don't have the money to buy a bicycle..."

"This is a bicycle voucher, it's free," Yi Xiangjun said.

Qiu Dayong was taken aback: "What ticket? Exchange ticket? This is a bicycle exchange ticket? I didn't know that."

He quickly took it and looked at it, muttering, "No wonder this ticket is different from grain coupons and meat coupons; it feels hard to the touch."

Qiu Xiaodi shouted excitedly, "Brother Haozi, Brother Hu, come out and see! Brother Qian, give my brother a bicycle exchange ticket!"

"We're going to have bicycles! Oh, oh, oh, we're going to have bicycles!"

The young people came out in a rush after hearing this.

The light from a flashlight, which one usually wouldn't use, shone on the redemption ticket, prompting a knowing exclamation:
"Brother Dayong, this is a car with a speed axle! This is a luxury car that only the children of cadres can afford!"

Qiu Dayong had only seen this type of bicycle, which had only been popular for a few years, when he was unloading vehicles.

He was in a dilemma: "This gift is too valuable. Maybe I should just send it back to Brother Qian."

"I thought it was just a bicycle ticket. Actually, we don't have the money to buy a bicycle. I was thinking of using the black market to exchange for some plastic sheeting and wooden planks to repair a door for the hole."

Other young people, however, were reluctant to give up such a good car:
"Brother Dayong, Brother Qian is a straightforward person, let's not be so petty and wishy-washy."

"Brother Qian has the demeanor of an elder brother, so let's just consider him an elder brother. The elder brother is giving his younger brothers a nice gift when we meet."

“Brother Dayong, we should get a bicycle. We always look for odd jobs to earn some food and vegetables, but we can’t bear to spend money on bus tickets because walking is too slow. It would be so much better and more convenient to have our own bicycle.”

Qiu Dayong sighed and looked at Yi Xiangjun with a troubled expression.

Yi Xiangjun looked at the moon thoughtfully: "Brother Qian is really generous."

(End of this chapter)