1994: Starting with unpaid leave

The door opened.

A middle-aged woman wearing a bright red sweater came out.

Her hair was permed into small curls, and her eyes held a scrutinizing look.

Only after seeing Dong Jianguo did they open the door:

"Oh, Xiao Dong, what brings you here?!"

"I was just telling Lao Wan that I'll go back to Hecheng in a week, and if it's convenient, I'll handle the transfer of ownership for you while I'm there!"

Dong Jianguo chuckled: "Those who owe money would be too embarrassed to let their creditors come knocking on their door!"

"Oh, what are you saying? Come on in! No need to take off your shoes, the floor hasn't been mopped yet..."

The two were ushered into the house.

This is a typical family housing unit for railway bureau employees.

The living room was large and well-organized, exuding the dignity of a government employee.

Between the living room and the dining room is a partition made of bookshelves, which are filled with the honorary certificates that Director Wan has received.

"Have a seat, and help yourself to your water." Aunt Wang pointed to the thermos on the coffee table and then turned and went into the hallway.

She walked to the study door and knocked: "Old Wan, Little Dong is here!"

As soon as the door opened, Deputy Director Wan came out.

He was nearly 50 years old, and although he had gained a little weight, he was still quite tall and upright.

He had a square face, thick eyebrows, and a pair of gold-rimmed glasses perched on his nose, behind which were a pair of stern eyes.

These eyes left the deepest impression on Dong Jianguo.

"Director Wan, it's been a long time." Dong Jianguo quickly stood up and respectfully offered him his cigarette.

Director Wan took the cigarette, glanced at it, but didn't light it. He simply held it in his hand and sat down on the sofa. "Little Dong, have a seat. Are you from Hecheng?"

"Yes, we just got off the train, withdrew some money from the bank, and came straight here to check in!"

"Hey, why are you in such a hurry?"

"I feel uneasy about owing money... Director Wan, I'm not trying to be mean, it's just that my parents raised my brother and me this way... That's just how our family is..."

Dong Jianguo explained with a smile.

Although I had a rather unpleasant argument with my older brother last time, he is still my brother, so I can try to say a few good words for him and help him out.

Director Wan adjusted his glasses and turned his gaze back to Erzhuzi: "And this is...?"

"This is my coworker at the textile factory, named Wu Qianzhu. The factory was doing poorly, so he started doing business with me."

Erzhuzi stood up, bowed to Director Wan, and greeted him as instructed by Dong Jianguo: "Hello, Director Wan."

Director Wan finally nodded:

"Yes, young people should be willing to try new things. Although factories used to seem good, taking care of everything from birth to death, it's not a long-term solution. Ultimately, you have to rely on yourself!"

"If you don't go out and explore, you'll never know what you're capable of!"

"Take Xiao Dong for example, how long have you been in business? You've already moved from a bungalow to an apartment building! Xiao Wu, if you work a little harder, you might just be as successful as Jianguo!"

"I'm nowhere near as good as Brother Jianguo. I'd be perfectly content if I were even half as good as him!"

Wu Qianzhu's answer made Director Wan smile broadly.

During the conversation, Sister Wang had already served the fruit.

After exchanging pleasantries, Dong Jianguo didn't linger any longer and took out a pack of kraft paper from the travel bag he was carrying.

Upon opening it, there were five stacks of brand-new 100-yuan bills inside:

"Director Wan, this is what we agreed on before. It hasn't even been a month yet, and I've brought you the remaining balance."

"Please click here. If there are no problems, then all that's left is the transfer of ownership of the new house."

Seeing that the bank's promotional banner was still in place, Director Wan waved his hand:

"Forget it, your brother and I have known each other for a long time, why bother with formalities? If there's a problem, I'll just call his department!"

"My wife needs to go back to Hecheng next week, so we'll go with her to complete the property transfer!"

"Alright! That's what I've been waiting for!"

After Dong Jianguo finished speaking, he bent down again, took out a large plastic bag of braised eggs from his travel bag, and handed it to the table.

"Hey, Xiao Dong, what are you doing? There are regulations for us cadres!"

"Director Wan, you probably don't know this, but I not only sell eggs now, I also run a food processing plant. This is our first batch of products."

"This isn't a gift; we just want the leaders to try it and give us their valuable feedback."

"Besides, even if it's a gift, how much are a few eggs worth?"

"this……"

Director Wan was taken aback.

Having said all that, it seems like refusing to accept it would make me seem heartless.

Looking at the bag of braised eggs, Director Wan hesitated for a moment:

"How about this, I'll try a few, and you can take the rest home... It's not easy for you to run a small business. Now that you've opened a factory, you can't just give things away so easily. Being extravagant is a big no-no in business!"

Dong Jianguo didn't press the matter and nodded with a smile.

Director Wan greatly admired this smiling homebuyer.

In his view, it was truly remarkable that Dong Jianguo was able to build his business from scratch.

What's even more remarkable is that this young man is neither arrogant nor impatient, and he doesn't have the slightest hint of arrogance.

Putting myself in his shoes, if I could earn enough for a house in a month at his age, I simply wouldn't have his level of refinement...

So whether you call it support or trying to avoid embarrassing Dong Jianguo, Director Wan casually took a braised egg out of his bag.

Before even tearing it open, I was stunned when I saw the cover.

The sealed packaging is very well done.

The sealing material for the braised egg portion is transparent.

However, a section of the braised egg is preserved at the top, with words, pictures, and patterns on it.

The most eye-catching sight is a red-crowned crane soaring through the air.

Crane City is named so because it is the hometown of the red-crowned crane and has the world's largest freshwater reed marsh wetland.

This wetland is home to a wetland ecosystem formed by rare birds such as the red-crowned crane, and about a quarter of the world's wild red-crowned cranes live here.

As a native of Hecheng, it's hard not to be moved when you first see this symbol.

The same applies to Dong Jianguo.

He experienced the online campaign to elect the national bird in 2004.

In that instance, out of more than 500 million votes, the red-crowned crane came in first with 64.92% of the vote.

However, it was unexpectedly rejected during the final expert review.

Because of the Qing government's policy of isolationism in the 18th century, Western scholars were the first to discover specimens of the red-crowned crane in Japan.

According to international naming conventions, it was named "Japanese Crane" after the place of discovery.

It's hard to accept that the national bird of China has become the Japanese crane.

Perhaps to make up for his regret, Dong Jianguo specially asked his brother-in-law Wang Zhenglong to draw such a pattern on the packaging design of the braised eggs.

"The taste of Hecheng... What a great name! Jianguo, you've really chosen a good name for your factory!"

Director Wan toyed with the braised eggs in his hand, and for a moment he found himself quite fond of them:

"I wonder how it tastes! I, Lao Wan, will be the first person to try crab!"

As he spoke, Director Wan ripped open the packaging of the braised eggs with a "whoosh"...