60s: I have a store

Chapter 472 The situation is a bit serious
Zhou Yimin said goodbye to Director Li and set out on the journey home with Zhou Zhiming and Master Cao.

The sunlight shone on them, and the shadows of the three people were stretched out.

"Brother Zhiming, this time it was thanks to Director Li's help that we were able to find such a professional person like Master Cao to help us repair the road."

Zhou Yimin spoke as he walked, his tone full of gratitude.

Zhou Zhiming nodded quickly and agreed, "Yes, Brother Yimin, with Master Cao's help, there is hope for our Zhoujiazhuang."

Master Cao scratched his head a little embarrassedly, and said with a simple smile: "You are too polite. It is all my job. I am glad to be able to help you."

As they were talking, they arrived at where Zhou Yimin parked his motorcycle.

The motorcycle was parked there quietly. Under the sunlight, the metal shell shone with a cold light, exuding a unique mechanical beauty.

Master Cao's attention was instantly attracted. His eyes widened in disbelief and his steps stopped involuntarily.

“This…is this a motorcycle?”

There was a slight tremor in his voice, as if he had seen some rare treasure.

Master Cao slowly approached the motorcycle and walked around it non-stop, never taking his eyes off it.

His hands gently touched the body of the motorcycle, from the front to the rear, and every part was like exploring a whole new world.

"I only heard about it, but I didn't expect to actually see it."

He muttered to himself and uttered exclamations from time to time.

Zhou Yimin looked at Master Cao and said with a smile, "Master Cao, do you like it? I'll take you for a ride when I have time later."

Master Cao waved his hands quickly, "That's impossible. It's such a valuable thing. I... I just want to take a look."

Although he said this, he couldn't bear to take his eyes off the motorcycle.

At this time, Zhou Yimin looked up at the sky and found that it was getting late, so he said, "Master Cao, why don't we go and see how the road is repaired? We'll have time to show you enough later!"

Master Cao finally reacted and realized his own gaffe. He immediately felt embarrassed, his face slightly flushed, and he explained, "Boss, I'm sorry! I've never seen such a good thing, so I couldn't control myself for a moment."

Zhou Yimin smiled and said, "Master Cao, it doesn't matter. You don't have to call us the boss. Just call us by our name, or Yimin."

Master Cao nodded without hesitation. The three of them temporarily put aside their curiosity about the motorcycle and headed towards Zhoujiazhuang, starting their journey to build the road.

The three of them rode motorcycles towards Zhoujiazhuang.

Along the way, the breeze blew gently, bringing a hint of coolness.

The poplar trees on the roadside are arranged neatly, like loyal guards, silently guarding this land.

Master Cao sat on the back of the motorcycle. This was his first time riding a motorcycle, and he felt both excited and nervous.

He held on tightly to the armrests of the seat, but his eyes could not help but look around, watching the scenery along the way receding.

Pedestrians on the road cast curious glances at the motorcycle, full of novelty.

In that era, motorcycles were rare items. Most people had only heard of them but rarely had the opportunity to see one in person, let alone ride one.

Some children even chased the motorcycle for a distance, their eyes full of envy.

"This motorcycle is really fast, much faster than me walking." Master Cao couldn't help but sigh.

Zhou Yimin responded with a smile: "Yes, there will definitely be more and more means of transportation in the future, and traveling will be more convenient."

Zhou Zhiming also nodded and added: "Yes, the country will definitely get better and better. I hope it won't be so difficult in the future!"

Master Cao is full of confidence: "The country will definitely get better and better."

The three of them drove and chatted at the same time.

Master Cao did not expect Zhou Yimin to have such broad knowledge. There were some things he had only heard from others, so he wanted to tell them out loud to show off and let Zhou Yimin and Zhou Zhiming see his knowledge.

Unexpectedly, it ended before it even began, and what was said did not surprise Zhou Yimin at all.

On the contrary, Master Cao had never heard of what Zhou Yimin said.

Everyone who heard it was shocked.

Zhou Zhiming said at this time: "Master Cao, you don't know that Yimin works in a steel factory and has invented many things."

Master Cao always felt that he had heard this name somewhere, but he couldn't remember it for a moment. He didn't expect that the young man in front of him was so capable. He was also a little curious about what he had invented.

"What was invented?"

Before Zhou Yimin could speak, Zhou Zhiming started talking first: "Water well, instant noodles, rice cooker"

Master Cao finally remembered that he must have seen Zhou Yimin's name in the newspaper. He didn't expect that he had invented so many things at such a young age.

"Great!"

After saying that, give a thumbs up!
Zhou Yimin said modestly: "Not worth mentioning, not worth mentioning."

The time spent chatting passed quickly, and soon they returned to Zhoujiazhuang. As soon as Master Cao entered the village, he was shocked by the scene in front of him.

He saw electric wires hanging from the poles in the village and bright lights coming out of some houses. He was a little bit unbelieving: "This village actually has electricity?"

Master Cao said in surprise. In his knowledge, even in the old city, there were still some remote corners that might not have electricity. He did not expect that this seemingly ordinary rural area already had electricity.

Zhou Yimin explained: "The village built a reservoir in the back mountain and also built a hydroelectric power plant."

Master Cao was shocked again. You know, not everyone can get a hydroelectric generator. But thinking about it, Zhou Yimin invented so many things, it was probably a reward!
Otherwise, it would be unlikely for a purchasing section chief alone to get something like this.

Then he noticed the villagers.

Although they were dressed simply, their faces were full of health and they did not look pale or skinny.

You have to know that most people nowadays cannot even get enough to eat, so most people are pale and thin, especially those in rural areas.

City people, at least there is a ration, you can’t say that they eat well!

At least they won't starve to death, but the situation is not certain for people in rural areas. Due to constant natural disasters, grain production has been decreasing, resulting in many rural areas having little left after paying the public grain tax.

Every grain of food must be carefully calculated to ensure it can last until the next harvest.

Also, the children are laughing and playing in the village, full of energy.

"Zhoujiazhuang is completely different from what I imagined." Master Cao couldn't help but sigh.

Zhou Yimin explained: "It's still not a rural area, there's nothing different."

Master Cao nodded and understood what Zhou Yimin meant, so he did not pursue the matter any further. However, he became even more curious about Zhoujiazhuang.

However, he did not forget his job and soon turned his attention to the road conditions. They walked along the main road in the village. The road was relatively flat. Although there were some potholes, the villagers would fill them with soil and stones in time. It can be seen that it was frequently used and maintained attentively.

However, when they turned into a small road, the scene before them made Master Cao frown.

The path was bumpy, with potholes of all sizes. Some of the potholes were so large that people could easily lie down in them.

The road surface is bumpy and it is very difficult to walk on. If you are not careful, you will sprain your ankle.

Master Cao squatted down and carefully examined the potholes. He found that the soil in some places was soft and he sank into them as soon as he stepped on them.

"The condition of this path is worse than I thought." Master Cao stood up, patted the dirt on his hands, and said solemnly.

Zhou Yimin and Zhou Zhiming looked at each other and saw worry in each other's eyes. They knew very well that such road conditions not only brought great inconvenience to the villagers' travel, but also seriously restricted the development of the village.

Afterwards, the three of them walked around the entire Zhoujiazhuang and got a general idea of ​​the road conditions in the village.

Master Cao's brows were furrowed more and more. He knew in his heart that the road conditions in Zhoujiazhuang were more serious than he had initially imagined, and the workload of road construction should not be underestimated.

He didn't know whether Zhoujiazhuang could come up with so much money, but this was not what he cared about.

Then Zhou Yimin, Zhou Zhiming and Master Cao stood in the center of the village, looking at the rugged road in front of them, and the atmosphere seemed a little solemn.

Zhou Yimin frowned and was the first to break the silence: "Master Cao, look at this road, is there any hope?"

Master Cao pondered for a moment and said slowly: "The road can be repaired, but the workload is much larger than I expected. Given the current situation, it will probably take two or three months to complete."

Zhou Zhiming felt nervous after hearing this and asked cautiously, "Master Cao, does it really take so long?"

Master Cao nodded helplessly and explained: "Look at the road surface, there are too many potholes, and the foundations in some places are unstable and need to be re-compacted. In addition, the roads in the village are complicated and the construction is not easy, so the construction period will not be short."

Zhou Yimin took a deep breath and said, "Time is not a problem. This road has been in disrepair for decades, so two or three months won't make a difference. As long as it can be repaired, we are willing to wait no matter how long it takes."

Master Cao then looked troubled and added: "There is another problem. It is not realistic to cover the entire surface with cement.

The national cement production is limited. Last year, the national production was only 324 million tons. So many places need cement. Even with Director Li's help, we cannot apply for so much.

In my opinion, we can only pave the low-lying areas with cement and compact the high areas with rollers to ensure basic traffic flow.”

Because when it rains, low-lying areas are usually flooded; high-lying areas don't have this kind of trouble.

Therefore, in areas with high terrain, all you need to do is compact the road to prevent water from washing away the soil.

Zhou Yimin said without hesitation: "Master Cao, let's do as you say. You are a professional and we trust you. Just go ahead and do it. If you encounter any difficulties, we will work together to find a solution."

After hearing this, Master Cao felt relieved. What he feared most was meeting people who pretended to know everything and gave blind orders. Now that Zhou Yimin trusted him so much, he felt very relieved.

Zhou Yimin said at this time: "Master Cao, why don't we go to my house, sit down and discuss it in detail?"

Master Cao nodded and did not refuse. Moreover, he came here because he wanted to get closer to Zhou Yimin.

Zhou Yimin turned to Zhou Zhiming and said, "Brother Zhiming, go and invite the old branch secretary over as well!"

Zhou Zhiming nodded and ran to find the old branch secretary.

Zhou Yimin took Master Cao home first.

Zhou Zhiming ran to several places and finally found the old branch secretary.

The old branch secretary saw Zhou Zhiming so anxious and said, "Zhiming, is there any problem with the road construction?"

Zhou Zhiming took a deep breath and said, "Old Party Secretary, Yimin and I went to the city and found a professional to come over. We just inspected the road conditions in the village. Now we are going to Yimin's house to discuss the specific plan."

When the old branch secretary heard that the road was going to be repaired, he immediately put down his work and hurried over.

"Why are you still standing there?"

"Go!"

Zhou Zhiming didn't expect that the old branch secretary was so anxious, so he quickly followed.

As soon as he entered Zhou Yimin's house, Master Cao was once again shocked by the scene before him.

There was honey and milk powder on the table. These were extremely scarce supplies at the time and ordinary people could hardly even see them. Yet Zhou Yimin placed them on the table so casually. How could he not be surprised?

Master Cao couldn't help but sigh in his heart that Zhou Yimin's family conditions were indeed extraordinary.

It seems that it is necessary to establish a good relationship with Zhou Yimin.

Zhou Yimin then asked, "Master Cao, would you like tea or water?"

After hearing this, Master Cao thought for a while and said, "Yimin, I just need to drink water."

Zhou Yimin nodded, then poured four glasses of water and scooped a spoonful of honey into the glass.

Then give the water to Master Cao.

Master Cao didn't take it seriously and thought it was just an "ordinary" glass of water.

I didn't expect it to taste sweet as soon as I drank it.

Then he asked, "Yimin, did you add honey to the water?"

He couldn't believe it. Such precious honey was used to entertain people?

If it were Master Cao himself, he would definitely be reluctant to give it away. Wouldn't it be better to keep such a good thing for his family to enjoy slowly?
Zhou Yimin didn't care: "Isn't honey meant to be drunk?"

After hearing what Zhou Yimin said, Master Cao was speechless. He knew that honey was to be drunk, but not like this!

But these words must not be said out loud!

"Makes sense!"

While the two were still chatting, Zhou Zhiming brought the old branch secretary to Zhou Yimin's home.

Before they even sat down, the old Party Secretary spoke: "Yimin, I heard you came to me, is there any progress on the road construction?"

Zhou Yimin was not in a hurry: "Old Party Secretary, don't be so anxious. The road has been in disrepair for so many years. Is it still a short time to fix it?"

"Have a drink of water first!"

The old branch secretary also knew that this kind of thing really couldn't be rushed. He took the water Zhou Yimin handed over and drank it, but there was no reaction.

Master Cao was a little dumbfounded. Could it be that the old branch secretary in front of him didn't realize that honey was added to the water?
However, he didn't know that those who could come to Zhou Yimin's house for entertainment were basically distinguished guests, so Zhou Yimin would use honey water to entertain them.

The old branch secretary was shocked at first, but after drinking many times, he got used to it.

(End of this chapter)