All the heavens begin with the love in the courtyard.

What Lei Dongbao didn't know was that his unintentional actions last night had created a legendary story.

That night, melon farmer Lao Wang couldn't sleep. The 1.2 mu of watermelons he planted on his private plot were almost ripe, and they represented his family's hope.

Last night he had several nightmares, dreaming that a group of wild boars came to his watermelon field and ruined all the watermelons. After waking up from the nightmare, he smiled wryly and helplessly, thinking, "What wild boars could possibly be in my field on the outskirts of the city?"

But the nightmares kept coming, and by five in the morning he couldn't sleep anymore. Looking at the gray sky outside, he could only get up and take a puff of his pipe.

The old woman was awakened by the smell of smoke and muttered a few words of dissatisfaction. Old Wang, feeling agitated, told her about his nightmare.

Hearing Old Wang recount his nightmare about the watermelon patch, his wife quickly got up. The couple ate breakfast, and then, as dawn broke, they carried a load of pig manure and headed towards the watermelon patch.

As Old Wang was carrying fertilizer, he saw two green heads swaying in his field from afar. His heart skipped a beat, and he quickly quickened his pace.

It was still barely dawn when they got closer and, in the dim light, they saw two scarecrows wriggling in the windless open space. The watermelon rinds on their heads were particularly eye-catching. The scarecrows occasionally let out a strange groan. Suddenly, the frogs in the field started croaking. The couple felt their bodies go limp and stumbled back, shouting as they ran.

"Good heavens! The scarecrow has come to life!"

The sensation caused by the "scarecrow coming to life" incident exceeded Lei Dongbao's expectations. Although the two unlucky guys were quickly taken away by the police, the onlookers who knew the truth spread increasingly bizarre rumors.

Finally, the authorities in Jinzhou had no choice but to publish a clarification in the Jinzhou Daily. However, the more they tried to refute the rumors, the less the public believed them, which is typical of the Chinese mentality.

The reason this legendary story resonates so deeply is that those two unlucky fellows weren't exactly saints either. They'd robbed and murdered before, and this time, the fact that they were inexplicably dislocated, forced to wear watermelon hats, and ultimately draped in straw is itself quite a story.

After the scarecrow came to life, it tormented two wicked men into scarecrows. The story became increasingly bizarre and became a local folk tale. Even thirty years later, people occasionally mention the Jinzhou scarecrow incident online, and it was even featured on Lao Wang's Storytelling Club!

Lei Dongbao only learned about this incident when he woke up the next day. He was quite surprised, but he had absolutely no interest in stories about spirits becoming sentient after the founding of the People's Republic of China.

Over the next few days, with Gao Shengnan's introduction, he visited almost every parts factory in Jinzhou, big and small. With money and Lao Xu's support, he worked for more than a week and finally persuaded several parts factories to supply Xiao Lei's family.

Finally, there's the issue of the motor. We also have to thank Lao Xu for his support behind the scenes. He finally persuaded the motor factory in Jinling County to provide a motor for Xiao Lei's family. Actually, electric fan motors are very simple and the cost isn't too high.

The motor has a simple structure, and since it is mostly made of pure copper, its quality is guaranteed. The only drawback is that it consumes more electricity than electric fans in later generations.

But these days, those things don't matter; quality is king.

Gao Shengnan's resignation went very smoothly; how could it not have gone smoothly?

In this day and age, everyone has a specific role to play. Gao Shengnan didn't want anything and just resigned. I wonder how many people are happy about that?

Besides, she wasn't popular to begin with. Her resignation went smoothly, but the divorce took a week to resolve, and the transfer of her daughter, Xiaoyuan, to another school took several days to finally be settled.

Finally, Gao Shengnan carried a burlap sack containing clothes and other personal belongings for the mother and daughter. This was all their worldly possessions, and the bald man had even checked these items before letting them take them away.

To show his respect, Lei Dongbao personally drove his tractor to Jinzhou to pick up Gao Shengnan and her mother and take them to Xiao Lei's house.

Gao Shengnan was finally completely heartbroken. Holding her daughter's hand, she boarded the tractor heading to Xiao Lei's house.

Chapter 23: The Electric Fan Came Out

Lei Dongbao's trip to Jinzhou was quite fruitful. Not only did he solve the problem of electric fan parts, but the technical talent Gao Shengnan was a real surprise.

With talent and spare parts in hand, although everything is difficult at the beginning, Lei Dongbao believes that the most difficult stage is over. Although the factory is simple, consisting of only two storage rooms, Gao Shengnan does not mind and directs everyone to start setting up the factory, with Lei Dongbao helping out with odd jobs.

Although electric fans are simple, they were not a simple thing in this era. Although with the help of Lao Xu and Gao Shengnan, the parts were solved, the factories in this era were basically state-employed, and their work efficiency was simply indescribable.

Lei Dongbao spent over a month going back and forth waiting for a batch of fan blade parts, and finally only got a hundred sets. This speed almost drove Lei Dongbao crazy. And what the hell is this world? You spend money to buy things, and you have to beg people to sell them to you.

Moreover, in order to cultivate good relations, Lei Dongbao acted like a grandson, begging and pleading everywhere, and finally managed to buy back each and every part.

Gao Shengnan didn't care about any of that; she was only in charge of the technology. Lei Dongbao even organized all the young people from Xiaolei Village who had just finished junior or senior high school to become apprentices at the electrical appliance factory. These people were the future of Xiaolei Village. Lei Dongbao's plan was that Xiaolei Village would definitely transform into a technology-based industry in the future, and electric fans were the first project.

Among this group of people was a young man named Lei Zhengming, who made rapid progress in his studies and was highly regarded by Gao Shengnan. Lei Dongbao could tell that Gao Shengnan was intentionally cultivating him as a disciple, and also to put Lei Dongbao at ease.

Despite the many setbacks, by early September, the first electric fan assembled by Xiao Lei's family was finally completed, even though it was already early autumn and the weather was still very hot.

When the electric fan produced by Xiao Lei's family started to hum and turn, the cool breeze seemed to blow away all the depression and pressure of the past few months!

In the past few months, Lei Dongbao has been under immense pressure. The Lei family now owes more than 100,000 yuan in loans. In addition to the 30,000 yuan loan for the Angora rabbits, the fan project has also demanded 80,000 yuan. Meanwhile, the Lei family has not made any income. The meager profits from shearing the Angora rabbits are just enough to pay the interest.

Lei Dongbao had never paid much attention to the brick factory and the construction team. The brick factory was barely able to stay afloat, while the construction team was practically shut down, with hardly any profit to be handed over each month.

However, the monthly expenses continued, and Xiao Lei's family owed a huge sum of 100,000 yuan. As for the villagers of Xiao Lei's family, countless people cursed their ancestors behind their backs, and there were also many people stirring up trouble. The county also received a lot of letters of complaint.

The fact that Gao Shengnan was invited back to serve as the technical director and factory manager, with a monthly salary of 500 yuan, was intentionally or unintentionally spread by the bespectacled accountant, caused an uproar throughout Xiaolei Village. Many elderly people cursed Lei Dongbao in front of him, saying he was immoral and had questionable conduct.

Gao Shengnan also received a lot of scolding. She and her daughter were arranged to live in the brigade headquarters, which was right next to the electrical appliance factory. Xiao Yuan was also in the fourth grade of the village primary school. The conditions were indeed very poor. For such a talented person, five hundred yuan a month, Lei Dongbao felt that he had found a treasure.

But the ignorant villagers didn't know this and kept making a fuss. Lei Dongbao was so angry that he called a team meeting and stood up for Gao Shengnan at the meeting. He said that if anyone dared to point fingers at Director Gao again, he would take back all of his family's land. Don't think that he is a pushover!

The fields and land belonging to the Lei family were finally distributed under the household contract responsibility system. The land was divided among the families. Lei Dongbao originally wanted to wait until the end of the year to distribute the land, but because of the electrical appliance factory, the villagers were extremely resentful, so he had to find something to distract them first.

Gao Shengnan's emotions have indeed been somewhat volatile these past few months. The Xiao Lei family is truly destitute. If it weren't for Lei Dongbao's support, she would have run away with her bucket long ago.

Besides Lei Dongbao, Song Yunping also understood her very well. She not only took the initiative to help her take care of Xiaoyuan, but also became her close friend. Ever since Xiaoyuan ate Lei Dongbao's food once, she really became attached to Lei Dongbao. After school, she would go to Lei Dongbao's house for a meal before going home.

As for Lei Dongbao, apart from the first time he had some ambiguous relationship with Gao Shengnan, after arriving at Xiao Lei's house, Lei Dongbao was particularly well-behaved, except when Song Yunping was by his side.

Another reason is that after spending a long time with Gao Shengnan, her skills and talent overshadowed her feminine qualities. Gao Shengnan focused on internal affairs while Lei Dongbao focused on external affairs, and after working together for several months, the two developed some tacit understanding.

The most important reason why Lei Dongbao was able to persevere steadily was that he had Lao Xu's support behind him. When there was a lack of funds, Lao Xu would find a way to guarantee the Xiao Lei family's livelihood. When someone tried to sabotage him, Lao Xu would always protect Lei Dongbao.

This level of support is extremely rare. Lei Dongbao knew that Lao Xu was under no less pressure than he was. If Xiao Lei's Electric Appliance Factory failed, it would definitely become a stain on Lao Xu's political career.

Fortunately, the electric fan was a success. Although Lei Dongbao had many complaints about it when he saw the actual product, such as the square base, which was neither round nor square and was really ugly. Moreover, in Lei Dongbao's memory, the electric fans of later generations were almost silent, while this buzzing sound was really annoying.

The only advantage is its quality, which is really good. It has a full metal casing with a shiny finish. With Gao Shengnan's technical oversight, the quality is at least a level above the electric fans produced by Jinzhou Electric Fan. Although it is better than Jinzhou Electric Fan, it still does not meet Gao Shengnan's ideal quality. After all, the components are basically of varying quality. How good can it be?

Lei Dongbao also comforted Gao Shengnan, saying that once the Lei family had enough capital, they would build their own parts factory, and then not only manufacture electric fans, but also other electrical appliances, ensuring that Gao Shengnan's skills could be put to real use.

Gao Shengnan stared at Lei Dongbao, who looked so confident, and for a moment, she was lost in thought.

Lei Dongbao felt that he should let Lao Xu know that Xiao Lei's family was already able to produce electric fans, otherwise he would be letting down Lao Xu who had given him such strong support!

That afternoon, Lei Dongbao excitedly rode his bicycle to Lao Xu's office, turned on the fan and activated its oscillation function in front of a group of cadres, a scene that surprised many of them.

Yes, in this day and age, a simple swing function amazed the leaders. You know what, the electric fans produced by Jinzhou Electric Fan Factory only had three speed settings, and the wind speed was so fast that the fan base would vibrate when it was turned on to the third speed. They had no idea what the swing function was. It was this kind of quality and this kind of technology, but they still lived well. This is the advantage of the planned economy era.

Lei Dongbao began to demonstrate the functions of the Xiao Lei electric fan to the leaders. From the first to the fourth speed, the wind speed increased from slow to fast. Although the wind speed increased, the electric fan remained very stable. The sudden increase in wind speed made the leaders' hearts flutter, while Lao Xu had a big smile on his face, his mouth was crooked from smiling!

Lei Dongbao turned around and met his gaze. They both saw something growing in each other's eyes, and everything was understood without words!

Chapter 24: The Spring Festival of 80

The appliance brand of Xiao Lei's family is called Thunder Electric Appliances. The brand logo is a lightning bolt. The base and fan blades are made of aluminum alloy, and the entire electric fan shell is sprayed with silver paint, which makes it look high-end.

All the parts are purchased, and after technical debugging, they are assembled. Including labor and parts costs, how much does such an electric fan cost?

Lei Dongbao had calculated this cost more than once, and the final result was between seventy and eighty yuan. The reason for the fluctuation was that there were too many uncertain factors. In order to find all the parts, Lei Dongbao traveled to most of Anyun Province. Although the parts were also available in Jinzhou, the quality of many parts was just average. Lei Dongbao preferred to spend a lot of effort and money to find new suppliers.

To be honest, Lei Dongbao is not satisfied with this price, very dissatisfied. Although the price of a table fan of this size on the market is now above 150, that is the retail price. Lei's Thunder fan has almost no price advantage.

Moreover, in less than two years, once the electric fan craze sweeps Guangdong Province, several electric fan factories will be supported across the country. In Anhui Province alone, there will likely be hundreds of small factories producing electric fans. At that time, a price war will definitely break out, and small village and town enterprises like Xiao Lei's will have almost no chance to fight back.

There's another thing. Jinling County will definitely establish a state-owned electric fan factory then. Will they still support Xiaolei's electrical appliance factory then? I guess Lao Xu will probably have been transferred long ago. At that time, Xiaolei will truly be left to fend for itself!

However, Lei Dongbao was not worried. He even had a faint expectation: let the storm rage on!

What Xiaolei Village needs most right now is capital. Only with capital can Xiaolei Village have a place in the era of heroes from humble backgrounds in the 1980s and 90s!

With the finished electric fans already produced, Lei Dongbao felt even more confident in applying for a loan. This time, he applied for a loan of 500,000 yuan. In addition to stocking up on inventory, these funds would also cover advertising costs. He planned to launch the Thunder Electric Fans brand next year, aiming to make a splash before the Guangdong province craze arrived and earn his first pot of gold.

Only if Xiaoleijia earns its first real pot of gold next year can it truly thrive like a dragon entering the sea. With money, it can focus on research and development and launch new products. Right now, Xiaoleijia is far too poor.

The reasons for this loan were very valid. Old Xu also brought the electric fan to the meeting room and, in front of everyone, painted a rosy picture for his colleagues. If Xiao Lei's appliance factory really succeeded, Jinling County would have a remarkable achievement to show for itself in the future, and it could even be reported to the city and province as an advanced model!

At this meeting, Lao Xu had the upper hand, but a huge dispute still arose over the loan amount. The conservative side suggested giving Xiao Lei a maximum of 100,000 yuan and sending a working group to Xiao Lei to prevent them from spending the money on inappropriate things.

Old Xu firmly disagreed. Xiao Lei Jia was just starting out, and if the higher-ups interfered now, the final outcome would be unpredictable. 500,000 was too much, and 100,000 was too little. In the end, Old Xu talked until he was hoarse, pledging his own future to guarantee Xiao Lei Jia, and finally negotiated a limit of 200,000.

Lei Dongbao was somewhat disappointed to see that it was only 200,000 yuan, but he was still quite satisfied. In 1979, a village-run enterprise had already obtained more than 300,000 yuan in loans within a year, which was simply unimaginable. All of this was because of Lao Xu.

Without Lao Xu, Xiao Lei's family probably wouldn't have been able to get the initial loan of 10,000 yuan to raise Angora rabbits. Lei Dongbao is extremely grateful for this!

With bullets in hand, the task of charging into battle was now his responsibility. Lei Dongbao began frantically purchasing spare parts and started thinking about how to make the Thunder Electric Fan a resounding success next year!

Having the first electric fan in person was like a reassurance, putting many people at ease for the time being. Even the villagers who had been stirring up trouble have quieted down recently, because they know that Lei Dongbao is currently riding high and they can't bring him down at all, so it's better to take a break!

In the last few months of 79, everyone in Xiao Lei's family was busy. Almost every household was raising Angora rabbits. The number of breeding rabbits had increased two or three times in a year. With the addition of breeding rabbits purchased with subsequent loans, it had gradually become a considerable scale. The women and children in the family had almost no free time now. The rabbit grass in the vicinity had been almost completely cut down.

The rabbit fur purchasing station established by the brigade gradually gained a reputation. In addition to repaying loans, it even began to generate profits, and the profits were quite substantial. The women who made money raising Angora rabbits were quite grateful to Lei Dongbao, and Lei Dongbao's reputation among women was rising day by day.

Meanwhile, the Xiao Lei family's appliance factory seemed to be gathering all its strength, with parts being hauled back truckload after truckload, and the factory never stopping production. Most of the old bachelors from the brick factory had become workers in the appliance factory, but after working hard for several months, they hadn't received a single penny of wages. This was all just empty promises from Lei Dongbao, who promised to compensate them double in the future.

The main problem is that Xiao Lei's family has to spend every penny wisely now. With a loan of 200,000 yuan, they need to spend money everywhere. Even if they buy all the spare parts, how much stock can they actually keep?

During this time, Lei Dongbao, along with Si Bao and Lao Wu, ran around doing everything. Almost all the parts passed through his hands. He was exhausted and lost more than ten kilograms, but he was quite satisfied.

For Xiao Leijia, it felt like he was creating a new history, and the creator of that history was none other than Lei Dongbao!

The Spring Festival of 80 is approaching without us even realizing it. Time only moves forward and will never stop.

That year, his brother-in-law, Song Yunhui, entered his second year of university. He continued to excel in his studies and was noticed by his advisor, who invited him to join some high-tech experimental projects. He began to absorb the hard-won knowledge like a sponge.

This Spring Festival, Song Yunhui only stayed at home for three days before returning to school. Of course, even though he only stayed for three days, he still made a personal trip to Xiao Lei's house, since his most respected older sister was there!

Besides visiting his sister, Song Yunhui was also very interested in the development of Xiaolei Village. The village's crazy, debt-driven development shocked him greatly. He couldn't understand the future of Xiaolei Village and could only wait and see.

Song Yunping originally planned to attend an open university this year, but the number of Angora rabbits in the village has gradually grown to over a thousand, and may even exceed ten thousand next year. With so many things to do, she had no choice but to temporarily give up the idea of ​​going to school.

She knew that her husband was doing something big, and the only thing she could do to help Lei Dongbao was to manage the logistics well. Lei Dongbao had told her that raising Angora rabbits could also make a lot of money, and the real harvest season would begin next year.

Meanwhile, not far away, another protagonist, Yang Xun, who sells steamed buns, is once again in trouble. He originally thought that he could sell more steamed buns at the station because there are many people visiting relatives during the Spring Festival, but he didn't expect to be caught as soon as he arrived at the station.

This was the fourth time he had been caught last year. This time, his basket was confiscated, he was fined, and he returned home in a sorry state.

That year, although he did earn some money, it was just enough to cover the family's expenses and his younger siblings' school fees. By the end of the year, he had saved less than fifty yuan.

This time, he vaguely made up his mind that he could no longer do small-scale business. If he was going to do business, he was going to do big business and make big money!

On the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, he bid farewell to his mother and, with his last fifty yuan, embarked on his journey to Northeast China!

That year, not only Xiaolei Village was changing, but countless grassroots heroes across China were influenced by the reform and opening up and began to think about their future.

The future of Xiaolei Village has taken a different turn.

Chapter 25: The Genius Sales Team

The spring breeze of 1980 quietly blew towards Xiaolei Village. Just after the Lantern Festival, Lei Dongbao convened a village meeting to announce the development plan for Xiaolei Village this year.

This year, Xiaoleijia's development focus is on two things: first, the Thunder brand electric fans produced by the Xiaoleijia Electric Appliance Factory; and second, the Angora rabbit breeding cooperative.

Xiao Lei's family doesn't have any other side businesses. In previous years, the women and children would often gather at the village entrance to gossip about the man from the east and the old man from the west. Now that they have Angora rabbit farming, who has the time to talk about such trivial matters?