Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 851 seems to be going off track?
As the days passed and the Lunar New Year's Eve drew ever closer, Chen Fan acted as if nothing was wrong, riding his horse around the village every day. If you said he was the number one wanderer in Lujiawan, probably no one would disagree.

It was the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month. It had been snowing on and off for several days, and the ground and rooftops were covered with a thick layer of white. Judging from the weather, it seemed that it would not stop.

In the north, several days of continuous snowfall might lead to a snow disaster, but in Yunhu, it has just met the standard of "auspicious snow foretells a bumper harvest".

First, a fire burned away the insects and their eggs in the field, and then this thick layer of snow came. I estimate that the crops will grow very well next year.

At seven o'clock in the morning, Chen Fan and Jiang Lili came out of their room after completing their daily morning exercise. As soon as they opened the door, they saw Zhou Yali practicing Baguazhang in the small living room.

She had already washed and dressed herself, regaining her former elegance as the eldest daughter of the Zhou family, completely unlike the disheveled appearance of a few days ago.

The only difference from before is that I'm going out without makeup. It seems that after returning to China and spending more time with Jiang Lili and Jiang Tiantian, I've gradually stopped considering makeup as essential.

Upon seeing Chen Fan and the other person emerge, she immediately ceased her practice, took two steps forward, and asked with a smile, "Where are we going today?"

Yes, Chen Fan not only took the job himself, but also brought her along. On the other hand, Jiang Lili stayed at home, just like when they were sent-down youth.

Facing the person guarding the door, Chen Fan was able to ignore him and said naturally, "I'm not going to anyone's house today, I'm going to Lujiawan Industrial Park to take a look."

"Oh, that's okay too."

Zhou Yali shook her head, then suddenly slid up to Jiang Lili, grabbed her arm, and whispered, "Lili, is your little brother teaching you a really powerful skill, the kind that's passed down only to men, not women, and only to wives, not sons-in-law?"

She wasn't some clueless little kid; if the couple weren't actually practicing kung fu, she would definitely feel embarrassed to stand guard at the door every morning.

Although she couldn't hear Chen Fan's movements, she could still discern some of the force in Jiang Lili's punches. Otherwise, wouldn't her more than a year of Baguazhang training have been in vain?

But the more she asked Chen Fan, the less he would tell her, showing no brotherly affection whatsoever. It was really awkward.

Pulled aside by Zhou Yali's questioning, Jiang Lili blushed slightly, glanced at Chen Fan, and whispered, "There are no secret techniques. He's just teaching me the tricks of bone forging and energy circulation. It's really inconvenient to open the door."

Could she say that practicing this kind of kung fu requires taking off clothes and having someone point fingers at you? That would be too embarrassing.

She hadn't originally intended to master her kung fu to a high level; just being able to handle some dangers and deal with a few ordinary people would be enough. In critical moments, she even carried a small pistol in her pocket.

However, when she went to the countryside, she was going through puberty and had to keep her head down every day, which caused some minor physical defects. Of course, it was far from being a hunchback, but her posture was not very natural and upright.

The contrast is especially obvious when she stands next to Jiang Tiantian.

Chen Fan told her that by practicing kung fu to the core, using internal strength to temper the bones, and mastering the flow of energy, one could promote secondary physical development and also have the opportunity to correct body shape.

Since it has this effect, what else is there to say?

I didn't teach her before because her skills weren't up to par. She finally mastered the hidden strength by the end of the year, but then a certain young lady showed up and started to shine... Practicing this kind of skill requires more than three months of continuous practice, without interruption even for a single day.

Even if Chen Fan was good at sneaking food, he wouldn't dare to take the risk easily.

Only now that they can live together openly did Chen Fan begin to teach her, which is also an essential part of their morning exercise routine every day.

Seeing Jiang Lili say this, Zhou Yali had no other choice but to pout and say, "Okay, okay, let's just consider it your little secret. I won't ask."

Seeing her pouting, Chen Fan shook his head. "Alright, alright, who are you trying to impress with that pout?"

Then he pointed to Jiang Lili and said, "Once she learns and masters it, then she can teach you."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yali's eyes widened instantly. "I can learn that too?"

Jiang Lili blushed even more, but she was too embarrassed to refuse.

Chen Fan coughed lightly, turned around and left, "Take it or leave it."

Zhou Yali quickly stepped forward and grabbed his arm, "I believe you, I believe you. Little brother, when will Lili be able to master it?"

Chen Fan: "About three months."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yali pouted again, "Three months? By then I'll be back in school. We probably won't see each other again until summer vacation."

Chen Fan glanced at her and said, "Instead of worrying about the timing, you should think about how to develop internal strength. The threshold for developing this is internal strength. Don't let Lili be able to teach you when you're not qualified to learn."

Zhou Yali's pupils slowly dilated. "Dark strength is just the threshold?"

Her eyes darted around twice, and she slowly clenched her five fingers. "It's just internal strength, right? Starting tomorrow, I'm going to practice every day. I refuse to believe I can't master internal strength."

Chen Fan glanced over and said, "You can make resolutions as you please, but could you please not arrest me?"

He paused for a moment, then added, "Also, why not start today? It's still morning."

Zhou Yali released his arm and said casually, "I have to go out to inspect the Lujiawan Industrial Park today, I don't have time."

After saying that, he turned around and hugged Jiang Lili's arm. "But, Lili, when did you develop internal strength?"

Jiang Lili looked at her innocently, "On the day you returned to China."

Zhou Yali frowned. "Then, what about Tiantian?"

Jiang Lili: "My sister arrived half a month earlier than me."

Zhou Yali's face immediately darkened. All three of them were learning boxing from Chen Fan at the same time, so why were Tian Tian and Li Li ahead of them?
She whirled around to look at Chen Fan, snatched the little monkey he had just been holding from his arms, and asked fiercely, "Did you secretly tutor them? Otherwise, why are you so far ahead of me?"

Chen Fan lowered his eyes and sighed inwardly, "This girl actually guessed it?"

It wasn't really about intentionally giving extra lessons; it's just that after each workout, they were exhausted and their energy was severely depleted. To help them recover, Chen Fan would usually use his strength to massage and soothe their muscles and bones. Over time, this would definitely be helpful.

But that's not something to say.

He could only say very seriously, "What tutoring? Where is there tutoring? All these years, have you been practicing diligently and seriously? Has your skill improved? Don't talk nonsense with your eyes open. You reap what you sow. Skill doesn't lie."

Seeing his serious expression, Zhou Yali was momentarily intimidated. Then, thinking about how diligent and earnest Jiang Tiantian and Jiang Lili were when facing work and study, she took it seriously.

She lowered her head and muttered, "Fine, I'll practice for an extra hour at most next time."

In the living room next door, Zhou Zhengdong and Zhao Wanru were having breakfast. Seeing their daughter like this, Zhao Wanru couldn't help but say, "I think I understand now. Only your cousin can handle your daughter. Everyone else is a bit lacking." These "everyone else" included the couple, the elders of the several families who were dependent on the Zhou family, the elders of the Zhao family, the school teachers, the company executives, and so on.

Anyway, no one can control her.

She would only ever look like this in front of Chen Fan.

Seeing that she was intimidated by him, Chen Fan decisively decided to stop while he was ahead.

They ate breakfast together first, and then, as usual, they saddled the two horses and rode out for a walk in the snow, one horse for each of them, while Jiang Lili stayed at home with Zhou Zhengdong, Zhao Wanru, and the little one.

While in the United States, Zhou Zhengdong and Zhao Wanru were always busy with work. This time, they finally had some free time and became addicted to it, no longer wanting to leave the house and just playing with their pets.

As they passed the panda enclosure, Chen Fan patted the panda's head to comfort it before riding off. Zhou Yali had originally wanted to follow and pet it, but seeing him ride ahead, she quickly shook the reins, "Go!"

Two horses trotted along the dike, kicking up snowflakes, and soon arrived at the East Ferry Terminal of Nanhu Commune.

Across the river embankment from the dock lies the Lujiawan Industrial Park, where the first phase of construction has just been completed.

The initial idea for this industrial park came from the leadership team of Nanhu Commune. They discussed it with Secretary Yang and a few others, and then Secretary Yang consulted Chen Fan before the blueprint for the industrial park was finalized.

However, in order to be the first to attend the "meeting," they allocated resources and made preparations while suppressing the news, and construction did not officially begin.

The day after the "meeting" ended, the Nanhu Commune brazenly announced that it would respond to the spirit of the meeting, emancipate its mind, seek truth from facts, stop the struggle, and develop the economy.

Immediately afterwards, a large number of building materials and construction teams arrived on site, and several factory buildings were erected in a short period of time.

However, after the Chinese New Year last year, Chen Fan left in a hurry and did not return for a whole year.

Upon returning, the first priority was to get married, followed by a period of travel and visiting old acquaintances in advance to wish them a Happy New Year.

I only had time to come and take a look today.

Despite it being the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, and tomorrow being Lunar New Year's Eve, the industrial park is still bustling with activity.

The roar of machines from the factory buildings could be heard clearly from the embankment. Trucks loaded with goods came and went from time to time; raw materials went in, and packaged finished products came out.

Zhou Yali rode alongside him, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes. "Business is good here. You can tell from the loading and unloading workers. They are quick and efficient, which means they are highly motivated. They handle things gently, which means they are very responsible. In the United States, these kinds of workers would be considered high-quality workers."

Chen Fan smiled and said, "He's a high-quality worker here too."

Zhou Yali turned to look at him and asked curiously, "How do you train them?"

She shook her head as she spoke, "I don't believe that this training program was created by Lujiawan themselves; it must have been your doing."

Chen Fan shook his head and laughed, "Then you're wrong. The training of these workers has nothing to do with me; they arranged it themselves."

If I had to pinpoint anything related to me, it would be that I only gave advice to two people. One was the importance of training new employees, and the other was that training should be approached from both technical and managerial perspectives.

I haven't said anything else besides that.

After saying that, he turned to look at her and said, "Don't forget, even the best plan needs good execution. And I haven't been back to Lujiawan for a year. It wasn't until this time that I came back with you all."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yali was even more confused. "Then how did they do it?"

He then looked at the industrial park and said, "If we can replicate this model in Shenzhen and create a similar training system, the work efficiency of the Shenzhen industrial park will definitely be greatly improved."

Chen Fan shook his head and laughed, "You're overthinking it. Actually, apart from skills training and memorizing factory rules, there's nothing else special about them."

After a pause, before Zhou Yali could ask further, he revealed the answer directly: "The reason they work so hard and have such a high sense of responsibility is simply because they were afraid of being poor in the past, and now their work is tied to the collective. They know that the better the factory is, the higher their income will be, which is why they are behaving this way."

Zhou Yali frowned and thought for a moment, then asked, "Is this the collective enterprise you were talking about with Dad yesterday? The enterprise's development is tied to the collective, and the profits are shared by the collective?"

Her face scrunched up in a frown. "We can't learn this."

We can't just give away the Zhou family's assets to all the employees, can we?

Wouldn't that make me a sucker?

Chen Fan smiled and shook his head. "You don't need to think about these things now. Wait until the Zhou family's company and our company have become very large conglomerates and are facing growth bottlenecks before you start thinking about these issues."

After saying that, she pulled on the reins, and the mare walked down the slope. "Come on, let's see how it's done inside."

Zhou Yali is someone who is easily comforted. Just a moment ago she was frowning, but in the blink of an eye she put the problem to the back of her mind, shook the reins, and quickly caught up.

As soon as the two came down the slope, before they even entered the factory gate, Ye Shubao strode up to greet them.

He grinned and laughed loudly, "Teacher Chen didn't stroll around the team today; he came here to inspect the work!"

Chen Fan dismounted, tossed the reins onto the horse's back, and let the mare play by herself. Then he took the cigarette Ye Shubao offered and said with a smile, "We've already walked around the whole team, there's nothing much to see, so we've come to town to take a look."

Ye Shubao smiled and nodded at Zhou Yali, then turned and said, "There's not much in the team, especially in winter when all the leaves have fallen. If it weren't for the snow these past few days, at least we could see some snow scenery. What else is there to see?"

He pointed to the industrial park and laughed, "This is where it's really beautiful. Raw materials are pouring in, and finished products are being hauled out truckload after truckload. That's all pure 'money' coming in and going out!"

As she spoke, she turned to look at Chen Fan, pursed her lips, and said, "I really didn't know before that running a business could be so profitable. We went through so many hard times back then. Now things are much better. We've started a collective enterprise, and not only are we making money ourselves, but we're also helping the surrounding production teams to live a good life."

As soon as he finished speaking, he patted Chen Fan's arm and laughed, "All these changes started with your family farm and cooked food workshop. You are our great hero."

He then pointed to the industrial park and said, “You should have come and seen this a long time ago. Look how thriving we are here. And this is just the beginning. We will take it step by step, grow bigger and stronger, and let people all over the country see that besides Huaxi Village, there is also Lujiawan.”

He spoke with great enthusiasm, and Chen Fan didn't interrupt, just nodded in agreement.

After a long while, Chen Fan smiled and said, "It's good, it's good, but..."

He turned his head, looked at Ye Shubao meaningfully, and smiled, "Why does it sound like the train is going too fast and is about to derail?"

(End of this chapter)