Exciting 1979!

Chapter 248 Boss, it's time to change the map
The Rubik's Cube, also known as the Rubik's Cube, was invented in 74 by Ernő Rubik, a Hungarian architecture professor.

However, it really started to become popular at the International Toy Fairs in London, Paris and the United States at the beginning of this year, and then it swept the world throughout the 80s.

In the tape, Amin said that it was the first time she had ever seen such a toy, and many of her classmates were buying it, saying that it would help develop mathematical thinking and improve math scores.

But she couldn't figure it out at all. She fiddled with it a few times and it took her a whole day to get it back to normal, so she didn't dare to play with it anymore. She specially sent it to Wei Ming to test him.

Although Wei Ming is terrible at math, he is quite knowledgeable about toys and games, and a small Rubik's Cube is no challenge for him.

However, it seemed to stump the surrounding passengers, who looked at the small colored blocks that Wei Ming had turned into a mess and started discussing it amongst themselves.

Is it possible to restore this?

"Getting a shovel seems a bit difficult."

"Little girl, are you sure you can do it? Or should I do it?"

"Where did you buy it? I want to buy one for my son too."

Amid the passengers' chatter, Wei Ming handed the Rubik's Cube to Xiao Hong, then told the man opposite him, "A friend brought this back for me from Hong Kong. I don't know if the Friendship Store sells it."

Upon hearing this, the other person shrank back and immediately gave up the idea of ​​buying one for their son.

As the two were chatting, they suddenly heard the passengers next to them hissing and gasping for breath.

Then Wei Hong handed the Rubik's Cube to Wei Ming: "Brother, it's fixed now, it's pretty easy."

To everyone's surprise, Wei Hong solved the Rubik's Cube in less than a minute, and her little expression was full of pride.

The passengers around her were all praising her.

"How did you do that? It's so fast!"

"This girl is really smart!"

"Wow, that's amazing! You're sure to get into university!"

Upon hearing this, Wei Hong remembered something, quickly pinned the Peking University badge from her bag to her clothes, and proudly puffed out her chest, shocking the passengers once again.

"Young lady, are you a student at Peking University?"

"How old are you to have gotten into Peking University?"

"This must be a child prodigy!"

"Young lady, what score did you get on your college entrance exam?"

"How do you usually study? You little brat, come here and listen!"

Wei Hong proudly told them about her situation, neither modest nor exaggerated. Even the train police officer passing by gave her a thumbs up: "She's going to be a pillar of the nation in the future!"

He also caught a pickpocket, so everyone quickly clutched their pockets.

However, Wei Ming was full of doubt. Even if Xiao Hong was smart, this was only her first time playing with a Rubik's Cube. Wasn't this too fast?

"Xiao Hong, did you find some pattern when you solved the Rubik's Cube?"

Wei Hong: "There's no need for any pattern. Just twist it in reverse, no matter how you twisted it. If you twist it to the left in the last step, I'll twist it to the right in the first step, and then we'll work backwards all the way."

Wei Ming's eyes widened like saucers: "So you memorized my movements when I was solving the Rubik's Cube?!"

Wei Hong nodded, and once again received unanimous praise from the passengers on the train, who directly used "little prodigy" as her nickname. If the train hadn't had a roof, she probably would have already floated into outer space.

Wei Ming interrupted the passengers' praise: "Stop for a minute, that's not how you solve a Rubik's Cube. Xiao Hong, close your eyes first."

"what?"

"Close."

"Oh."

Wei Ming then randomly turned the Rubik's Cube, then handed it to the uncle opposite him, asking him to twist it randomly as well, and then asked the lively aunt next door to twist it a few times as well.

Seeing that the color blocks were completely scrambled, Wei Ming then told Wei Hong to open her eyes and put the Rubik's Cube back to its original state.

"Ah, this..." The little girl was indeed stumped. She didn't know the path to the Rubik's Cube becoming like this, and could only figure out the pattern on her own.

For the next half hour, the passengers watched as Wei Hong slowly turned the Rubik's Cube, managing to solve one side several times, seemingly just one step away from success, only to mess it up again as she twisted it.

Someone reached out: "Come on, let me try. I graduated from high school."

However, Wei Hong was so engrossed in the world of Rubik's Cubes that she completely ignored him.

Seeing that her serious expression gradually relaxed, Wei Ming smiled and said, "Alright."

A man who looked like a civil servant said, "Your condition isn't good either; it's still a mess."

Wei Hong: "Once you find the pattern, it's simple. Watch closely."

With her nimble little hands, she manipulated the Rubik's Cube, and after about a minute, it miraculously returned to its original state.

"what!"

Everyone exclaimed in amazement, and Wei Hong pulled Wei Ming along, saying, "Brother, this is so much fun, can I have it?"

Wei Ming laughed and said, "It was originally meant for you."

At this point, the man who claimed to be a high school graduate asked, "Comrade, can I give it a try?"

Wei Hong: "Wait here, I'll twist it all out for you."

The high school graduate consciously turned her head away from watching her actions. Wei Ming felt that he had gone to unnecessary lengths; not everyone could remember the sequence and perfectly reverse-engineer it like Wei Hong.

"Give."

The man was quite excited after receiving it. If he was faster than the little girl, wouldn't that mean he was even more amazing than the child prodigy from Peking University?
The passengers who had come to watch the spectacle all gathered around him. Wei Ming told Xiao Hong, "There are definitely more than one or two ways to solve the Rubik's Cube. You might as well look for some more patterns."

"But I can quickly solve the Rubik's Cube using only one rule."

Wei Ming laughed and said, "It's not fast at all. I timed it; it took a little over a minute."

"Isn't this fast enough?"

Wei Ming shook his head: "Not fast enough."

Wei Ming recalls that most Rubik's Cube masters can complete the cube in about half a minute, while the world record for the 3x3 Rubik's Cube is three seconds.

Listening to the siblings' conversation, the man who wanted to show off got a little anxious. It looked like it was about to recover, but as he twisted it, it became a mess again.

More than half an hour passed, and he still hadn't grasped the pattern of the Rubik's Cube. But he was about to arrive at his stop, so he had no choice but to return the Rubik's Cube to Wei Hong.

Wei Hong took another minute to restore it to its original state, but her hand speed was noticeably faster.

If someone else wanted to play, Wei Hong would shuffle the game and hand it over to them.

The next challenger claimed to be a high school math teacher, and the passengers had high expectations for him as well.

As a result, he still hadn't succeeded by the time Wei Ming and the others were about to get off the bus. Then he handed it to Wei Hong, and this time it took Wei Hong more than 50 seconds.

While riding in the car, Wei Hong was still pondering other patterns of the Rubik's Cube. She no longer pursued speed, but hoped to find a faster solution.

Because her older brother said that if she could summarize these patterns, she might even be able to publish a book.

Wei Ming wasn't joking with her. In the next two years, Rubik's Cubes will sell millions of units worldwide, becoming a globally popular educational toy, and the majority of buyers will be students.

This created a market for books that teach children how to solve Rubik's Cubes. He recalled that a young British boy sold millions of copies of such a book, which has enormous economic value.

Other Rubik's Cube tutorials written by Chinese children may not be able to reach overseas, but she is Wei Hong. She has an older brother named Wei Ming, and her brother has an ex-girlfriend named Melinda.

Upon arriving at the scene, Wei Ming and his sister first went to Yang's hometown to borrow a motorcycle and to extend invitations to Wei Hong's teachers for a graduation banquet through Teacher Yang.

"My dad has decided to slaughter the pig for the New Year ahead of schedule." Wei Ming implied that the graduation banquet was still worth having.

Unexpectedly, Teacher Yang smiled and said, "Your fathers came over yesterday to extend the invitations. I counted, and eight teachers are available to attend. He said he would arrange a separate table for us."

Wei Ming's mouth was slightly open. He hadn't expected Old Wei to be so thoughtful, but in fact, Old Wei was even more thoughtful than he had imagined.

When Wei Ming got home, he found that couplets had been pasted on his door.

Wei Ming: "Sailing through the sea of ​​learning, riding the wind and breaking the waves, we compete today."

Wei Hong: "Exploring the mountain of books, we'll climb to the summit tomorrow, working tirelessly under the stars and moon."

Horizontal scroll: Fish leaping over the dragon gate.

Wei Hong: "The wording is quite forceful; it feels like this couplet cost money."

Wei Ming: "What money do you need? This is Old Master Yang's handwriting."

Wei Hong: "I knew it! Nobody in our village or the surrounding villages can do this kind of thing."

Upon entering the yard, Wei Ming saw that not only were the pigs gone, but the chickens were also gone. He asked, "Mom, were the chickens killed too?"

"No, I gave them to your Aunt Chunhua. After we go to the capital, we won't have time to take care of them anymore." Xu Shufen quickly came over to take her children's luggage.

Old Wei has already made up his mind; after National Day, he and his wife will go to Beijing to try their luck.

He has clearly felt this in the village these past few days. Everyone has become very respectful of him. No one disagrees with what he says; they all flatter and indulge him.

But what's the point of that? It's not challenging at all!

So he felt it was time for him to upgrade to a different map and challenge a more difficult dungeon. Hmph, Master Jing, here I come!
After greeting her parents, her mother started preparing the meal, while Xiaohong lay down on the bed and continued fiddling with the Rubik's Cube. Her speed was improving, albeit very slowly. But once she reached the minute mark, every second of improvement was gratifying, just like in a 100-meter race.

And every small improvement may mean the birth of a new way to solve the Rubik's Cube.

Half an hour later, her mother came to call her for dinner and noticed that her daughter's fingers were starting to leave afterimages: "Hey, what are you playing with?"

“It’s a toy my brother received from his pen pal in Hong Kong; it’s for exercising the brain.” Wei Hong placed the solved Rubik’s Cube on her bedside table. 46 seconds.

Xu Shufen was very happy to hear that it was a brain exercise, but she became a little worried when she heard that it was a gift from a pen pal in Hong Kong.

"This pen pal is a girl, right?" "Yes."

"Do you know how old she is?" She was worried that it was another girl who had some close relationship with her son.

"Seems similar to me?" Wei Hong remembered her older brother mentioning it.

Her age is somewhat reassuring; she's still a little girl.

Xu Shufen then asked, "Does your brother have any photos of her?"

"Mom, you don't suspect that my brother has started dating someone again, do you?" Xiao Hong laughed. "This is a pen pal. We may never meet in person. My brother just wants to learn about the outside world through her."

Hsu Shu-fen: I hope so.

Every time Wei Ming comes back, a lot of people come to his house. Moreover, there is a graduation banquet to be held tomorrow, so tonight is especially lively. Wei Ming and his sister are eating while answering questions from enthusiastic villagers.

Now that Xiaohong is helping to share the burden, many families with students are curious about what life at Peking University is like.

Wei Hong tried her best to make her college life sound interesting so that these parents would be more motivated to urge their children to study hard.

Because of the National Day holiday, the students in the village all came back. When Wei Hong saw a few junior and senior high school students in the crowd, she immediately took out her Rubik's Cube and played with them. However, she deliberately hid her strength so as not to discourage them too much.

Although Old Wei was preparing to go to Beijing, he was, after all, the honorary principal of the village primary school, and asked Wei Ming, "If this thing can really train the brain, why don't we buy some for the school?"

I'm not sure if it can train Wei Ming, but smart people do play better. However, "This should be hard to buy in China. Mine is imported from abroad. After a while, if the factory in Hong Kong starts production, it should be available in China soon."

At that time, Hong Kong was a very important toy manufacturing base in the world. Regardless of whether there was any authorization, its production volume was very strong.

Early the next morning, Chunhua, heavily pregnant, came over with Qi Delong to help, and Accountant Jia also actively helped with the arrangements.

Old Jia even specially hired a chef from the next village who specializes in weddings and funerals. He was a big, strong man who could wield an iron shovel to stir-fry dishes.

The master chef and his two apprentices could handle the task without Xu Shufen's help.

At her parents' request, Wei Hong specially wore a new red dress today and stood at the door to greet guests, her face almost stiff from smiling.

Her expression only relaxed a little when she saw Yang Shuting and other teachers riding over on bicycles.

Some teachers taught her first-year high school knowledge, while others taught her how to prepare for the college entrance examination in her second year of high school. She was genuinely happy to see these teachers, who had used all their skills to help her fill in the gaps in her knowledge in a short period of time and achieve a high score that she would normally find difficult to reach.

Of course, their professional careers also benefited from teaching Wei Hong, and the school received far more financial allocations than in previous years.

The old principal didn't come today, but asked Teacher Yang to bring a red envelope as a gift. Accountant Jia personally took charge of the accounting and wrote it down.

Teachers give higher gifts, often over a dollar, while villagers give less; five cents is considered a lot, and many families only give one cent, which is the only amount a family can afford, but it's enough for the whole family.

With today's abundant dishes, we can definitely get our money's worth, especially the Xu family at the east end of the village. They have five sons and a family of nine, and they only gave a dime, and they hadn't even eaten breakfast yet.

At this moment, Lao Wei didn't care about gains or losses at all. He just wanted to treat everyone to a good meal before he left, to remember his kindness as Wei Jiefang, and to protect their old house.

In addition to his own pig, he also obtained a batch of frozen chickens and frozen ribbonfish from the meat processing plant.

So today we have chicken, fish, and meat. Although we don't have any ducks, we bought a lot of salted duck eggs from the market.

Chicken, duck, fish, and meat—everything's ready.

"Why isn't the food served yet? What time is it?" Zhao Qiusheng, a villager and brother of the brigade leader Zhao Chunlai, shouted.

There are many brothers in his family. Since Zhao Chunlai came, his brothers naturally came too. Yesterday, when Zhao Chunlai saw Lao Wei, he even offered him a cigarette. He probably thought that another big leader was about to emerge from Lao Wei's family.

This is also what disappoints Lao Wei the most. If even Captain Zhao has lost his temper, what's the point of me staying in this Gouzi Village?

However, the Zhao family was actually somewhere between accepting and not accepting, so at this time, it was the people with the surname Zhao who took the lead in urging the meal to start.

This scene pleased Lao Wei. This was exactly what he wanted. There's a villain to make for a plot twist!

Old Wei walked over to Zhao Qiusheng's table and patted his shoulder: "Qiusheng, you're still so impatient. Look at you, you're in such a hurry. The reason we haven't started eating yet is because we have important guests who haven't arrived yet."

"What distinguished guests? The old Party Secretary and the brigade leader are both here. This is not expensive."

He had barely finished speaking when Accountant Jia, who was keeping the books at the door, called out, "Secretary Song is here!"

Zhao Qiusheng turned his head. "Secretary Song? Which Secretary Song?"
Zhao Chunlai suddenly stood up, slightly bowed, and went to shake hands with Secretary Song, the top leader of Hengheli Commune. Behind him were the director of the town's supply and marketing cooperative and the head of the grain station.

Old Wei went over to shake hands with Secretary Song. Secretary Song shook hands with Old Wei briefly, then grasped Comrade Wei Ming's hands with both of his, appearing exceptionally formal.

His family has a television. I saw Wei Ming exchanging gifts with his Japanese friends on a CCTV program a while ago. What an honor that is!

Wei Ming wasn't very familiar with Secretary Song, but he was already considered a high-ranking official among the villagers.

So Secretary Song was seated at the same table as the old Party Secretary. All the main figures of the day were at this table, but there were still quite a few empty seats. So Zhao Chunlai also went over to serve Secretary Song, showing concern and care for him.

However, before he could even settle in, Jia San'er at the door shouted again, "County Magistrate Qin has arrived!"

County Chief Qin, accompanied by the deputy county chief in charge of education, came to offer his congratulations. At this point, all the villagers couldn't sit still and stood up to watch the spectacle.

"The couplets at the entrance are quite well written," said County Magistrate Qin, who was in his prime.

Wei Ming shook hands with County Chief Qin: "It was written by one of my elders, and it is indeed very good."

Wei Ming behaved neither servile nor arrogant, clearly someone who had been through many high-profile events. After all, he often saw vice ministers at Peking University, not to mention he had attended the National Congress of Literary and Art Workers and met the top figures there.

County Chief Qin and his entourage also sat at this table, and Old Wei pulled his wife and daughter to sit down as well, and then the table was full.

Now only Wei Ming is without a seat, creating a slightly awkward atmosphere.

Captain Zhao was about to suggest squeezing in when Secretary Song pulled him up, saying, "Little Zhao, make room for Little Wei. Don't you have any sense?"

Then, before Xiao Zhao could even warm up his seat, he gave it up and returned to Zhao Jia Dui somewhat awkwardly.

The most important guest had arrived, and Old Wei called out, "Let the feast begin!"

After stealing a piece of pork, Qi Kexiu immediately directed a group of young people to start serving dishes and tofu pudding upon hearing the order.

Teacher Qi was a little frustrated. He originally wanted to take over the job of the accountant, but he couldn't beat the guy surnamed Jia. After all, Jia was a professional, and the only job left for him to shine was as the head of serving dishes.

Although he didn't show his face, he at least made a good living.

Today we have meat and vegetables, and also wine. Each table has a bottle of Hengzhou Laobaigan. Although it's not much, it's enough to satisfy our cravings.

Secretary Song became the one in charge of pouring wine at the main table. Originally, apart from the Wei family, Zhou Xingbang had the lowest official rank at this table, but he was the oldest. He regretted letting Zhao Chunlai leave.

As they drank and chatted, County Chief Qin mainly talked to Wei Ming about his life and experiences in Beijing. He had also studied in Beijing and graduated from Yanjing Institute of Technology, two years ahead of Wei Ping'an.

So he was a student at Lin's father's school. It's a pity that Wei Ming didn't know his father-in-law's name or what he taught, otherwise he could have made some connections.

County Magistrate Qin glanced at the dishes and wines on each table, as well as the number of tables, and calculated in his mind that the expenses were considerable. Even though Wei Ming's works were very well-known, he probably couldn't afford it.

So he subtly inquired, "Little Wei, living in Yanjing must be quite difficult."

Wei Ming smiled and said, "It's alright."

Old Wei couldn't understand the word and asked his daughter what it meant.

Wei Hong explained in a low voice, and Old Wei understood. It turned out that the county magistrate didn't quite understand his son's capabilities.

Leaving aside the Oriental New World that rakes in money every day, let him just ask one question: "Does County Chief Qin have any children at home?"

"Yes, I have?"

"how old are you?"

“The eldest is twelve years old, and the second is nine,” said County Magistrate Qin.

"Do you know a children's author named Wei something?"

County Magistrate Qin: "Of course I know."

He places great importance on children's education, and one aspect of that education includes writing. That's why he subscribes to every issue of "Children's Literature" for his children. How could he not know Wei, the current king of fairy tales?

Wei Jiefang smiled and said, "That's another pen name of my son."

"what!"

County Chief Qin was incredulous, his mouth agape. But upon reflection, it made sense. Wei was already earning foreign exchange, so what was wrong with a slightly more extravagant graduation banquet?

So County Magistrate Qin started asking Wei Ming for advice on children's education again. He was treating the children's author as an education expert, although he did know a little about it.

Old Wei was in a great mood. He thought that his future opponents should be someone like County Chief Qin, while Zhao Chunlai, a village-level cadre, should just stay away.

Today is his younger sister's college entrance celebration. Wei Ming originally didn't plan to show off, but Old Wei wouldn't allow it, and County Magistrate Qin and others' respect for Wei Ming rose to another level.

Towards the end of the meal, there was one more important thing to announce.

However, this time it was the old Party Secretary Zhou Xingbang who said: "Yesterday I discussed it with Wei Jiaxiaoming, and he decided to continue donating money and goods to our Gouzitun Village Primary School. In the future, outstanding graduates will be able to receive scholarships every year, and the scholarships will increase with the income level. Outstanding students in each grade will have the opportunity to go out and see the world. In the future, they will have the opportunity to go to Shanghai and Guangzhou!"

"Clap clap clap!"

The villagers, who were in a good mood after a nice meal, spontaneously applauded upon hearing the good news. This was the thing that earned the Wei family the most praise.

County Chief Qin then began to calculate that the money donated every year and the tourism expenses were not a small sum. Moreover, according to Comrade Wei, Xiao Wei had bought two houses in Yanjing. It was likely that Writer Wei had more than one alter ego; he must have other ways to make money.

He's truly a child prodigy, extraordinary indeed. I must cultivate a good relationship with someone like him; if I ever become an official in the capital, I might be able to connect with him.

~
Meanwhile, at Holiland Fast Food in Hong Kong, Lao Gui said he had something to do and needed to rest early today.

In the afternoon, he left the shop and then left Hong Kong Island, arriving in the North District of Hong Kong.

He stood on a hilltop, facing the border between Hong Kong and Shenzhen. On the other side of the border, the people of Shenzhen were celebrating the 31st birthday of their motherland with various cultural activities and fireworks displays.

Because they were so close, Lao Gui could even hear a group of primary school students singing along with the voices on the radio in Chung Ying Street.

The song goes something like, "The flowers once told me how you walked, the earth knows every corner of your heart~"

Old Gui felt a lump in his throat and thought, "If I have no hope of returning to China, could I please help Hong Kong return to China sooner?"
……

(Today's guaranteed minimum)
(End of this chapter)