Journey 1995:Non-Stop

Chapter 149 Returning to Jianye

"I brought you some blueberries after I came back from outside. Here, don't be shy." That afternoon, Yan Hui went to the processing plant, and the owner gave him some fruit. He brought some back for the owner's wife. (Blueberries are also called "dushi" in Chinese.)

"Mr. Yan, you're too kind. I've seen you've been very busy lately, leaving early and returning late. You've worked so hard," the proprietress said with a smile.

"I'm fine," Yan Hui said, finding the landlady quite polite. "By the way, landlady, I'll probably be leaving for a while next week, so you don't need to reserve a room for me then."

"How long are you going to be gone?" Upon hearing this, the landlady immediately moved closer. "If it's just a short time, I'll hold the room for you, so you won't have to clean it up."

"It'll be over a week. Don't worry about leaving anything for me. I'll leave my things with my friend." Yan Hui shook his head.

"Oh, okay, when you're about to come back, have Mr. Guo tell me, and I'll reserve a nice room for you," the landlady said with a smile.

"Okay, I'll talk to Lao Guo later. You're busy, I'll go pack my things first."

People are really strange. When Yan Hui first came out in 1995, he could carry all his belongings with him. Now, for no apparent reason, he has more and more things, and two big bags can't hold them all.

He plans to bring back a lot of things when he goes back to Jianye, but he doesn't know if the plane will allow them.

A while ago, Yan Hui went to Harbin and bought a lot of things, and even sent some home. He still maintains his good habit of putting money in every letter he writes to his younger sister, Qinglan. Now Qinglan has at least 200 yuan of pocket money every month, and thankfully Qinglan is sensible.

Last month, the most crucial event in China was undoubtedly the return of Hong Kong Island to China. Everyone was incredibly excited. Yan Hui, while inquiring about airfares in Harbin, learned that on July 1st, the day of the handover, Jianye's Dajiaochang Airport officially opened, offering direct flights from Harbin to Jianye. (Renamed Lukou Airport on December 26, 1997)

After packing his things back in the room, Yan Hui slung his bag over his shoulder. Inside were gifts for his cousin and President Teng, and the rest were just two or three pieces of clothing.

Just as Yan Hui had predicted, recently, with these two trucks, Boss Teng was unwilling to have several cubic meters of goods taken away from each truck, as it was too troublesome, so his cousin was "kicked out" of this business chain.

For the first few truckloads, Yan Hui sent his cousin about 50 cubic meters of cargo each time. His cousin should be able to save several thousand yuan just by cutting costs, and combined with his previous savings, Yan Hui figured his cousin could start taking on more truckloads. Yan Hui still didn't know how much money his cousin had. He thought that if his cousin had 3 to 4 yuan, he could lend him money to help him build a bigger business.

In the following days, Yan Hui contacted Wang Hongjun and the processing plant in advance, explaining that he needed to return to Jianye. If Yan Hui couldn't return within a week, he could wire the money directly to Wang Hongjun, who would then help transport it to the processing plant. After processing, Wang Hongjun would help ship a truckload of goods.

In short, people may not come, but goods must not stop being delivered.

Generally speaking, Yan Hui returns within a week. His advance arrangements are simply a precaution.

After settling everything, Yan Hui loaded the truckload of goods onto the train, pocketed the large deposit slips, and boarded the train back to Harbin at the crack of dawn.

He can fly back and doesn't need to send the large bill to President Teng; he can deliver it personally, which will save some money.

The journey from Yichun to Harbin is not far, and Yan Hui bought a hard sleeper ticket.

Lying on his hard sleeper, Yan Hui sipped his soda contentedly. Even the clattering of the train sounded pleasant. He casually glanced out the window; the scenery was beautiful, with lush green trees lining the streets.

Yan Hui suddenly recalled his previous experience. The first time he came here, he had a standing ticket and couldn't understand why people were taking short-distance sleeper berths. But now, Yan Hui already had the answer.

In 1997, with a monthly income of 3 yuan, Yan Hui was a wealthy man even in the economically booming Northeast region. Leaning against the quilt in the sleeper car, Yan Hui felt at peace with everyone.

After arriving in Harbin, Yan Hui became more low-key. That year, Fengtian's GDP ranked seventh in the country, surpassing Hangzhou, Chongqing, and Chengdu, while Harbin's GDP also ranked 17th, its economy at its peak. Yan Hui himself didn't know that when he first left, he went to Tiexi in Fengtian, which was then the absolute center of China's heavy industry and one of the most developed regions in the country.

During the 1999 Spring Festival Gala, Huang Hong's line, "Workers should think about the country; if I don't lose my job, who will?" revealed the wave of layoffs that began in Northeast China in 1998. At that time, Northeast China didn't have this feeling yet; everything was thriving. Harbin, the "Ice City," had a kind of Northeast Asian star feel to it, with many dazzling European-style buildings. Yan Hui didn't get to explore much last time he came, but this time, the journey to the airport was quite long, so he had a good look around on the way.

"Boss, this isn't your first time flying, is it? Many of the bosses I've met who fly are from the South!" the taxi driver said with a smile.

“Hmm,” Yan Hui didn’t want to chat anymore; he wasn’t that curious at the moment. “How long will it take to get to Yanjiagang Airport?” (Note: It was renamed Taiping Airport in 1998.)

"It'll take half an hour, we'll be out of town soon." The driver clearly knew the area well. "Boss, where are we flying to?"

"Jianye".

"That's Jiangsu Province, right? Is that considered the south?" the driver asked curiously.

"Calculate."

"I haven't been that far yet, but flying is great, it's fast, I guess it'll only take half a day!" the driver said with some anticipation.

Yan Hui didn't know exactly how long it would take, so he could only give a vague answer. He made up a few words along the way and kept looking at the road signs—he was afraid the driver would take a detour.

Upon arriving at Yanjiagang Airport, Yan Hui paid the fare and got out of the car, only to find that there were quite a lot of people there.

It's amazing how many heroes can afford to travel by plane!

Afraid of appearing inexperienced, Yan Hui found a service staff member, asked them carefully, and bought a plane ticket for 880 yuan. The flight was scheduled to take off at noon today.

When he bought the ticket, the ticket office gave him a keychain, playing cards, and nail clippers as souvenirs, which Yan Hui accepted with delight. Not only that, Yan Hui also received a box of five Zhonghua cigarettes.

The plane ticket was handwritten, on a long strip of paper with several copies, the last few pages being photocopies. Yan Hui looked at it carefully and then put it away.

The people at the airport seemed quite relaxed. Yan Hui found a place to read a book and overheard two people chatting next to him. One of them complained that a few years ago, you could drink Moutai liquor when you flew, but that's no longer the case. The other person said that people should be grateful because a few years ago, you needed a letter of introduction to fly.

These conversations were all knowledge to Yan Hui. He had basically finished reading all the books and there was nothing left to read, so he simply listened to the bosses' conversations.

Actually, Yan Hui was still a little nervous. Most people would be nervous on their first airplane ride, and Yan Hui felt that it wasn't safe to be in the air. What if a lightning bolt struck?
(End of this chapter)