Journey 1995:Non-Stop

Chapter 175 Father
Grandpa didn't want Yan Hui to buy a refrigerator because he thought it was useless.

In the climate of southern Fujian, vegetables are available all year round, and we don't usually eat meat at home, so the refrigerator isn't really that useful.

But Yan Hui doesn't think so.

Information is very transparent in the village. If you have a telephone at home, your neighbors will give the phone number to their relatives who live elsewhere, so that others can call you later.

If you have a color TV at home, you'll never lack children to watch it.

Having a refrigerator at home can also help your neighbors store things occasionally, which is not a bad thing.

Yan Hui's grandparents were both very kind people and always happy to help others.

From this perspective, Grandpa agreed as soon as Yan Hui said that.

After dinner, my cousin heard about this and volunteered to borrow a car and take Yan Hui to the city.

The nearest major city to the village wasn't Xiamen, but Zhangzhou. My cousin and Yan Hui, one driving and the other looking at the map, arrived in the city in an hour.

"Qinglan, you and your two classmates stay close to us, don't run around!" Yan Hui sternly instructed.

"I know, brother!"

For Qinglan and her classmates, going to the city was a rare opportunity, so everything there was new and exciting.

These days, buying big-ticket items isn't difficult; prices are very transparent. Yan Hui has his eye on the Haier Prince refrigerator, priced at 4300 yuan—it's big enough!

The refrigerator was too big to be moved by car, so we had to find someone to deliver it. Yan Hui also bought a TV and arranged for it to be delivered back with the refrigerator.

As for telephones, you need to apply for one at the post office first.

Within two or three days, Yan Hui had installed the television and refrigerator, which caused quite a stir in the village. As for the telephone, that would be after the New Year; Yan Hui had already paid for it.

Things can't be kept secret in the village. Everyone knows who bought a motorcycle, who bought a TV, whose cow had a calf, and so on.
The eldest brother didn't come back this year, and the fourth brother said he would come back this year, but Yan Hui hasn't seen him yet, and doesn't know if he will be able to come back.

Yan Hui spent the last two days playing with the third brother, but as for the second brother, Yan Hui didn't know where he had gone.

Busy with household matters, Yan Hui's parents finally returned on the 26th day of the twelfth lunar month.

My younger sister went out to play, and Yan Hui stayed at home with his parents, grandparents, and others, and laid out all the money again.

"Is this all the money you've earned this year?" Yan Hui's father asked, somewhat shocked.

He and his wife had worked for so many years and had never earned this much money; it was a full 22 yuan in cash!

"No, I still have 100,000 yuan in outstanding payments, and the goods are still stuck in the Northeast." Yan Hui said smugly.

"One hundred thousand!" The mother was startled. "Then why did you come back? What if the money is lost?!"

"That's payment for goods!" the father interrupted the mother. "If he can earn so much money, how could he not buy goods?"

"But..." The mother didn't know what to say and remained silent for a long time.

"Alright, your parents have seen it too. Go to the bank this afternoon and deposit all the money," Grandpa ordered.

"Okay." Yan Hui nodded.

"Hui, where are you usually these days? In the Northeast or Jiangsu Province?" his mother asked. "It's about time the family got you married."

"Running between two places? I'm not in a hurry." Yan Hui immediately shook his head; he really had no interest. "Our son is promising; let him choose for himself." His father gently shook his head, glanced at Yan Hui, and said nothing more.

In southern Fujian, most marriages for children Yan Hui's age are arranged by their families, but Yan Hui has already broken free from this pattern.

If all goes well, Yan Hui's words will be very useful in the Yan family clan a few years later!
In the afternoon, Yan Hui and his father went to the bank to deposit money, and the father and son finally had time to talk alone.

"I still can't quite believe it, but I never thought you really resemble my older brother. According to you, you'll be able to earn even more money next year." The father still found it hard to accept this.

"Definitely! I'm going to expand my business chain next year, and one day, I'll have the pricing power in the Jianye Timber Market!" Yan Hui said with great enthusiasm.

"How many people will you offend?" the father asked with some concern. "Don't make too many enemies. Your uncle knew how to make sacrifices back then, and you should too."

“Dad, I know, but sometimes you can’t do what you want in business. There’s something I haven’t told Grandpa. When I went back to Jianye before, I was also threatened,” Yan Hui said, recounting how he was threatened by Huang Tianhong.

After listening to Yan Hui's story, his father nodded: "Yes, it's good that you know. I support you."

“Dad, I think you and Mom shouldn’t work anymore. Why don’t you come and help me?” Yan Hui asked.

“No,” Father shook his head. “You need to be careful about this in the future. Among the children of your generation in our family, you are the most promising. None of your cousins ​​have the ability of your uncle. If you succeed one day, take all the money from everyone and manage it for everyone. You should donate and distribute money to the clan hall every year. Remember, you must not let anyone else interfere with your business.”

"But you and my mom..." Yan Hui felt that her parents wouldn't have any problems.

“We’re not cut out for business. What would we do there? We’d only embarrass you. We’ll live a good life with you when you’re successful. We can’t cause you trouble now.” The father made his point very clear.

Yan Hui hadn't expected his father to say these words. He had heard his uncle talk about it before, but hearing his father say it now made a deep impression on him.

In southern Fujian, it's true that some families have several sons who are successful, but they are all independent, each with their own business. It's extremely rare for brothers to start a business together.

In most cases, this is the situation described by Yan Hui's father.

Among a generation, we work hard together, with the support of our parents, to see who is the most successful.

Incompetent clan members will choose to entrust the family's money to the most successful person to manage, and simply enjoy the annual dividends.

Most of these people who contribute money and receive dividends will not participate in decision-making, because their participation would only hinder their efforts.

"Including your cousin in Jianye, if he respects you, let him give you the money to manage, instead of letting him participate in your business, do you understand?" the father instructed again.

"I understand, Dad." Yan Hui carefully wrote down those words.

The father and son went to the bank together and deposited the money. Yan Hui's father watched Yan Hui deposit the money skillfully, and he couldn't describe the feeling in his heart.

He and his wife felt guilty towards their children; over the years, they had only been able to make ends meet and send their children to school, unable to do anything else. He had been working away from home for over a decade, so of course he knew how tough life was out there.

It is said that success was easy in the 1980s and 90s, but only one in a hundred succeeded.

Yan Hui hadn't told his grandfather the story of Huang Tianhong that he had just recounted. His father knew that Yan Hui must have something even more difficult that he hadn't told him, but he couldn't ask. All he could do was go to the ancestral hall this year and pray more for his son.

In Yan Hui's hometown, there is no cell phone signal in the village. Every time he goes out to places like town, he makes a few phone calls. This time when he came to deposit money, Yan Hui made three or four more phone calls and coordinated several orders.

"Dad, I can earn 25,000 yuan from those two phone calls," Yan Hui couldn't help but boast.

The father patted Yan Hui on the shoulder without saying anything.

(End of this chapter)