National Tide 1980.

Unlike the inspection team that returned to the capital after a brief tour, Sun Wufu and the twenty or so people he brought with him were all permanent troops. They were planning to set up camp in Japan, and at least they had to help Ning Weimin set up the waste recycling company.

In particular, each of them was originally a farmer from rural Hebei. Even the capital city seemed like a glamorous world to them, so when they came to Tokyo, they had a deeper understanding of the abundance of Japanese society.

For example, none of them had ever been on an airplane before.

From the moment they boarded the Japan Airlines flight on September 1988, 9, this group of people were overwhelmed with excitement. Everything they saw was new to them.

A simple airplane meal and free drinks during the flight were enough to get them excited.

Especially the flight attendants' exquisite makeup, soft voice, uniforms, stockings and long legs, as well as the thoughtful etiquette and meticulous service unique to the Japanese.

This made these rough guys distracted, blushing and so useless that they couldn't even utter a complete sentence.

It's really amazing that I have experienced the temptation of uniforms before even coming to Japan.

Even Sun Wufu was the same, he was almost bewitched by the Japanese women.

From this perspective, Ning Weimin's decision to send this group of people, who have no idea about women, to the glamorous world of Japan is a bit like sending a sheep into a tiger's mouth.

Isn't this a sincere test of their willpower?

It's really a bit ill-considered to say the least.

As for why they arrived so late, much later than the inspection team?

It's really not their fault. It's just that Ning Weimin asked them to help buy too much hardwood furniture.

In addition to helping to search for furniture for the trust store, Sun Wufu and his colleagues also had to help transport the furniture to Yunyuan after the purchase, and also helped with the packing. It was not until September 9 that they managed to finish everything.

As a result, after finishing the work, I was not only exhausted, but the Mid-Autumn Festival was approaching on September 9th.

Ning Weimin never treated his subordinates harshly, so after learning about the specific situation here, he simply told Sun Wufu to allow them to rest in the capital for two days, rest up, and come back after the Mid-Autumn Festival.

But then again, although these strong laborers have never seen the world and get dizzy when they see beautiful women, they are quite efficient at their work.

They are all hard-working people. They are used to doing manual labor. They have no complaints when being ordered around and recover quickly.

They slept soundly for two days in the capital, got a haircut, took a bath in a bathhouse, and then had a big meal in a small restaurant before leaving. Everyone felt full of energy again.

Moreover, they were all very honest. They didn't even ask about the treatment and wages here, and just followed Sun Wufu out obediently.

These people have very simple ideas.

In addition to the fact that they were looking forward to flying abroad, the main reason was that they all trusted Sun Wufu.

You have to know that they are all from the same village, and the reason they can live the life they have today is all because Sun Wufu brought them to the capital to make a living, where they have enough food to eat, warm clothes to wear, and can earn money.

They were all grateful for this, and couldn't help but think that Japan is a well-known developed country.

Since Sun Wufu brought them to Japan to see the world, even if the conditions in Tokyo are bad, they can't be worse than those in the capital.

It’s true that their idea may be a bit simple, but it’s not wrong.

Although the business they are engaged in is too lowly, it is impossible for waste recycling workers to make a living in the city center of any city. The best places to stay are the edge of the city or the fringe of urban and rural areas.

As soon as they got off the plane, Ning Weimin got a bus to take them directly from the airport to Katsushika Ward, which ranks second to last in economy among Tokyo's 23 wards.

But then again, Tokyo's level of development is there for everyone to see. After all, it is the most developed city in contemporary Asia.

To make an analogy, it was like the Majuqiao area in the capital city thirty years later, where a large number of working workers gathered.

Compared with other areas in Beijing in the same era, no matter how backward or how low the consumption is, it is definitely more prosperous and advanced than Wangfujing in the 1980s.

So don’t underestimate Katsushika City as an area with a large elderly population and low-income families.

Walking down the streets of Katsushika Ward, you can often see many elderly people taking a leisurely stroll or low-income families struggling to make ends meet.

Don’t underestimate the area compared to other areas in Tokyo. Katsushika Ward is full of old and dilapidated houses, and the street sanitation is only so-so, and it only looks clean on the surface.

In fact, the messy situation of wires is like a spider web, which causes serious safety hazards.

Moreover, since most of the old houses in Japan were made of wood, rats were easily bred.

If you walk into the alleys of Katsushika Ward, you will see those disgusting creatures hiding in dark corners if you are not careful.

But in the end, we have to admit that for Sun Wufu and others, these shortcomings are too common. They also exist in the capital, so they are nothing at all.

And Katsushika Ward is still a part of Tokyo after all, and its comprehensive urban appearance is still much stronger than other cities of this era.

At least here there aren't piles of garbage and colorful plastic bags flying in the wind like in Beijing.

Especially the public toilets, whose cleanliness and hygiene were far beyond the black and smelly makeshift toilets in the alleys where they rented in Beijing.

Therefore, in the eyes of Sun Wufu and others, Katsushika District in Tokyo is already a super developed city with many cars, tall buildings, advanced technology in every aspect and far ahead of the others.

As for commercial facilities and living infrastructure, these are much more complete than those in Beijing.

There are clinics, post offices, banks, shrines, parks, police stations, all kinds of shops, izakayas, ramen restaurants, pachinko, snooker, and bathhouses.

At night, there are also neon lights everywhere, various shops play music to attract customers, commercial advertisements in light boxes can be seen everywhere, and there are even more drunkards urinating everywhere after drinking than anywhere else.

Who can say that such a prosperous and glittering place is a slum?

It is particularly worth mentioning that Shibamata Taishakuten in Shibamata, Katsushika Ward, is famous in Japan as the filming location of the movie "Tora-san's Story" shot by Shochiku. This is actually the hometown of the protagonist of the movie, Torajiro.

Anyone who has seen this movie will know that the street architecture in Katsushika Ward is quite traditional, with a strong Showa style.

Especially for Chinese people, this is a different kind of exotic custom.

In this situation, you can also see elderly people wearing kimonos, office workers in suits, young women with painted eyebrows and fashionable clothes, and students in uniforms carrying leather backpacks.

It is conceivable that all of this has deepened Sun Wufu and others' feeling about the affluence of Japanese society.

Not to mention anything else, even the daily clothes of the Japanese on the street were so decent. Even if Ning Weimin told Sun Wufu that they were in a slum, they would never believe it and would just think that Ning Weimin was joking.

It must also be said that Ning Weimin was quite considerate of the lives of Sun Wufu and others.

Knowing that they had just arrived and couldn't speak the language, they must have encountered many inconveniences in their daily lives.

Therefore, Ning Weimin found them a landlord who owned the entire apartment and was also Chinese.

They booked all fourteen rooms on the third floor for a total of 800,000 yen per month as dormitories for Sun Wufu and his friends.

In addition to no language communication problems, the landlord also opened a convenience store and a vegetable store nearby.

In this way, it would be much more convenient for Sun Wufu and his friends to buy things on weekdays, and they could buy on credit even if they didn't bring any money.

As for landlords bullying newcomers, discriminating against them, and cheating them, that is impossible.

It’s not that the landlord is a good person, but the money in Ning Weimin’s pocket is too convincing.

You know, Ning Weimin, in such a poor place, was willing to pay such a high price to rent so many rooms for Sun Wufu and others to use as dormitories. He was simply a big customer that any property owner dreamed of.

Moreover, with so many people living here, it is necessary to take care of the landlord's convenience store business on weekdays.

The landlord is not stupid. Even if they have no fellow-townsman feelings, he will try his best to be considerate and tolerant to Sun Wufu and his friends who are new here, just for the sake of money.

Even though he looked down on Sun Wufu and other mainland laborers for being rustic and could not stand the smell of salty hairtail fish when they took off their cloth shoes and exposed their socks, he would only hide his contempt and disgust in his heart. Instead, he would smile for "Fukuzawa Yukichi" and patiently teach them what they should pay attention to when living in Japan.

Maybe this is why “when a person has money, he is surrounded by good people”.

For Sun Wufu and his family, the landlord's attitude is secondary. The key is that the condition of the house is excellent, which is so good that it is unbelievable and makes them overjoyed.

You should know that the house that Ning Weimin rented for Sun Wufu and others was not the "Abbado" built of wood or lightweight steel, but the "Mangxiong" built of heavy steel frame or reinforced concrete.

This type of house is earthquake-resistant, sound-insulated and safe. In terms of thermal insulation and comfort, it is much better than the "Abbado"-renovated apartment in Ginza.

Apart from anything else, just say that this apartment has windows, so the lighting and air permeability are much better, and people living here are less likely to become depressed and sick.

Moreover, the house is not small, with one room at least six square meters, which is spacious enough for two people to live in.

In addition, there is an elevator in the corridor and a telephone downstairs. Each room has an independent kitchen and toilet, as well as tables, chairs, benches and basic household appliances. Even pots, pans, and quilts are ready-made.

When Sun Wufu and his companions arrived, they not only moved in with just their luggage, but also took a step into the four modernizations in one step.

There are all kinds of facilities, such as menus, refrigerators and washing machines. It is very convenient to live here.

Are there still those who are dissatisfied and unhappy?

To be honest, the rent here is low only because the remoteness of the area affects the value, and it does not mean that the quality and condition of the houses are poor.

For Sun Wufu and his friends, such a dormitory is much better than living in a small bungalow with four people in Beijing, and it is also much better than the simple buildings where many Beijing citizens live.

In the words of Sun Liuwu, the son of the village chief, "I never thought that we could live in a small Western-style building after coming to Japan. Even the village chief in my hometown couldn't live in such a building. This is almost as good as the treatment of a county chief."

Needless to say, such a dormitory naturally boosts people's morale, and everyone is grateful for the arrangement made by the big boss Ning Weimin.

That’s not all. After getting to know the landlord, seeing the residence, and getting the keys, Ning Weimin took Sun Wufu and the others out for dinner.

To save trouble, they didn't go far, but just found a ramen restaurant nearby to eat the Japanese's favorite carbohydrate set meal - ramen with fried dumplings.

As a result, even with this ordinary meal, Sun Wufu and his friends enjoyed it to their heart's content and were extremely satisfied.

I have to say that, first of all, the reception attitude of the Japanese is different from that of China.

It was not yet mealtime when they arrived, and the noodle shop owner almost died of laughter when he saw so many customers coming in all of a sudden.

He kept nodding and bowing, pouring water and passing chopsticks.

This kind of politeness was extremely lethal to Sun Wufu and his men, leaving them at a loss as to what to do.

You know, no one in the country has ever respected them like this. The enthusiasm of the noodle shop owner has moved these honest people.

They only hated themselves for not understanding Japanese. Others were so polite to them, but they couldn't respond politely and gracefully like Ning Weimin.

Secondly, when the food was served, these silly boys were extremely happy and no one complained about the simple meal.

You know, manual workers love pasta the most, it helps them carry on.

Moreover, the side dishes of Japanese ramen include meat, bone soup, bean sprouts, dried fish and seaweed.

It looks much richer than the pickled mustard tuber noodles, tomato and egg noodles, and knife-cut noodles in China.

The greasy fried dumplings make people's appetites whet their appetite and make their mouths water.

Compared to their usual meal costing one or two dollars, this set meal is undoubtedly a feast.

They don't know that the official price of this ramen and fried dumpling set meal of 800 yen per person is equivalent to 25 yuan in RMB, which is enough for a banquet for four people in Beijing.

Otherwise, I'm afraid I wouldn't dare to let go of my belly, and I would feel heartbroken.

Finally, it must be said that Tokyo's catering service model is also relatively advanced.

Although we only had noodles and fried dumplings, there was everything including oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, sugar, toothpicks and napkins.

Even the tea is free here, which makes them feel both cost-effective and comfortable.

So this group of rough guys ate until their heads were covered with sweat and looked so happy. Almost everyone ordered an extra bowl of noodles, and those with a big appetite even ordered an extra serving of fried dumplings. They really had a great time.

In short, this meal not only brings physical enjoyment, but also psychological satisfaction.

After eating and drinking, everyone felt that Tokyo was worthy of being Tokyo, the big boss Ning Weimin was a very nice person, and Sun Wufu brought everyone here to enjoy life.

But in fact, they only spent 30,000 yen on Ning Weimin, which was just a common meal for the Japanese.

But at this point, it was time for Ning Weimin to leave, and because he was too busy, he knew he couldn't come here often.

So he left Sun Wufu his phone number and 2 million yen as living expenses for the twenty or so people until the end of October.

Finally, he told Sun Wufu that he had hired a Japanese teacher for them from a language school and that he would contact them tomorrow.

From then on, the Japanese teacher not only gave them classes on time every day, but also taught them some basic Japanese according to their work needs.

Every day he would take a few people led by Sun Wufu out to the streets to familiarize themselves with the social environment in Japan.

The main purpose is to take them to see the situation of waste recycling in Japan with their own eyes, and to help them understand the basic business model of waste recycling companies as quickly as possible. I can be said to be an alternative tour guide.

In this regard, Sun Wufu had to admire Ning Weimin's thoughtful plan.

The fear, guilt and worry I had originally felt because I had just arrived in a foreign country had now dissipated a lot.

At night, they separated into rooms and lay on their beds, saying to each other, "Well, coming to Japan is such a wonderful day!"

"Well, the food is good, the accommodation is good, no wonder people in Beijing are crying and clamoring to go abroad, it really is good."

"Yes, I'm happy! In my hometown, even in the county, there are not many people who are as successful as we are now!"

"Well, we have to remember the kindness of the big boss and Uncle Wufu. Without them, we wouldn't have such a good life. Now that we are in Japan, we have to work hard."

"Well, of course I'll do my job well. But there is one downside to this..."

"What? You are not satisfied with your life? What kind of life do you want to live?"

"No, I mean, watermelons in Japan are too expensive. You don't know, do you? The watermelons in the vegetable shop are 5,000 yen each. I asked this afternoon, and wanted to buy a few for everyone to eat to cool down. I didn't expect the boss to tell me that it was 5,000 each. I was shocked, and it was enough for the three of us to eat noodles and fried dumplings!"

"No way, why is it so expensive? No, it's impossible. Any food in our village is only three cents a pound if it's shipped all the way to the town. Why does it cost so much? One hundred yen a piece is about right. The store owner must be too unscrupulous and deliberately cheated us."

"The shop owner seems to be the landlord..."

"My goodness, this guy is not a good person, a smiling tiger. We should be careful in the future and buy things from his store less often..."

"Well, hide away..."

The landlord probably couldn't figure out why he lost the trust of these country bumpkins so quickly.

Just because he quoted a real price, he was labeled as a profiteer.

To be honest, he felt a little wronged, because the watermelon was worth 5,500 yen, but he even discounted it by a few hundred yen. (End of this chapter)