Journey 1995:Non-Stop

Chapter 25 The First Business

In the next few days, Yan Hui's work went smoothly.

Moving wood, wandering around, and inquiring for information, Yan Yan's college entrance examination season soon approached.

There is a middle school near Tiexi Market. Perhaps because they were worried about the impact on the exam, the cutting machines in the market basically never stopped in the few days before the college entrance examination. They all worked overtime and stockpiled a moderate amount of boards.

That morning, Yan Hui was moving logs when he suddenly heard someone shout, "Yan Hui!"

The logs were really heavy and required four people to lift them. Yan Hui almost fell down because he was distracted.

With four people carrying it, no one person could leave the team, so Yan Hui quickly adjusted his pace and then turned to look at the source of the sound.

Ma Junliang!
Yan Hui recognized at a glance that this was Ma Junliang whom he met on the train.

"You're here!" Yan Hui was delighted. "Is it urgent? No, just wait until I finish moving!"

"I'm not in a hurry!"

Yan Hui was moving things here, and Ma Junliang was standing by and watching, eager to try.

Such logs were still a bit stressful for Yan Hui, so he could only grit his teeth and help everyone move them one by one. It took about half an hour to finish moving the entire truckload.

Yan Hui was so tired that he was sweating all over. Ma Junliang saw it, ran over and handed Yan Hui a towel.

"This can't be used to wipe sweat. There are so many splinters on it. Be careful." Yan Hui said, rubbing his fingers.

No matter how good his skills are, there are some tiny splinters that he cannot find. These splinters are hidden in unknown areas of the fingers and will only be moved by certain movements.

You'll get used to the pain once you get used to it.

"Ah?" Ma Junliang put down the towel. "Are you still going to be busy today?"

"I don't know either. I'll go ask the boss."

After Yan Hui finished speaking, he ran to the warehouse door and asked his second brother.

"This is the only bus in the morning. The one in the afternoon will not come until four o'clock. I see your friend is here, so you can go and do your own thing." The second brother said with a smile.

"Thank you, Uncle Li. I'll stay with my friends for a while. I'd better come over early in the afternoon." Yan Hui thanked him.

"Go ahead," the second brother was still very satisfied with Yan Hui, and went straight back to the house after saying that.

Yan Hui was just about to leave when Dakai followed him.

"Hey, Yan Hui, did you just ask your second brother what time the bus will arrive today? What did he say?" Dakai asked as he watched his second brother walk away.

"This is the only car this morning. I'm not sure about the afternoon." Yan Hui had no choice but to tell Dakai half of the information.

"Okay, then I'll go out for a while and come back after lunch. Alas, your uncle is really awesome. You see, your second brother gives your uncle face. He will tell you about this kind of thing as soon as you ask him. I asked him twice and he said he didn't know!" Dakai was a little indignant.

"My friend just happened to be here," Yan Hui said, not wanting to explain. "I'll be leaving now."

After saying that, Yan Hui took Ma Junliang to visit the market.

Not long after he walked out, Yan Hui met the young man who came to sell dogs a few days ago. He looked disheveled and there was blood on his arm.

"What's going on?" Yan Hui hurried over.

"It's okay, bro. I just fell down because I was carrying too many things." Although the boy had an arm injury, he was still smiling happily.

"So you're here to see me?"

"Ok!"

"My friend is coming over, I'm going to show him around, you can come too."

Tiexi was a large market, divided into several distinct areas. The Southern Fujianese working there weren't just Fourth Uncle, but also many of Yan Hui's old family members. Yan Hui knew a few of them, though he wasn't very familiar with them.

But even so, when walking in the market, there are still three or two people to say hello to. In the eyes of Ma Junliang and others, Yan Hui is very impressive.

"Boss Lin," Yan Hui passed by Boss Lin and saw Boss Lin smoking at the door, so he took the initiative to say hello.

"Yan Hui, is this your friend?" Boss Lin looked at the two people next to Yan Hui.

Ma Junliang looked okay, just a bit plain, but the boy selling the dog looked like a little beggar.

"Yeah, my friend," Yan Hui said, not caring at all. He pointed to the clinic not far away and said, "He fell down. I'll go apply some medicine on him."

"Oh oh oh, you fell. Go quickly then." Boss Lin said with a smile.

Yan Hui led the two away, and the young man took the initiative to say: "Brother, I don't need to apply medicine, it's okay!"

"You've been beaten up like this, and you're not applying any medicine?" Yan Hui shook his head helplessly. He didn't really have any skills, but seeing this young man, he wanted to help.

The boy's name is Song Zhiyuan. He is only 14 years old and seems to have dropped out of school.

When they arrived at the clinic, Yan Hui knew the doctor. He gave the doctor 5 cents and the doctor applied iodine to the injured area of ​​Song Zhiyuan with a cotton ball.

"Tell me, what happened to you? Who hit you?" Yan Hui asked after walking out of the clinic.

"I," Song Zhiyuan said, knowing he couldn't hide it, "I don't know who it was. I came here last night. After selling two dogs and four baskets, I went to sleep under the bridge. I was beaten at night and my money was stolen."

"All your money was stolen?" Yan Hui glanced at Song Zhiyuan.

"No, they just took away 5.40 yuan, and I put the rest of the money under the stone in the bridge tunnel. Last night I ran to the corridor of the family building over here to sleep. In the morning, I went to the bridge tunnel, but there were still people there, so I didn't dare to go over. I waited until everyone over there left and I got the money, then I dared to come over." Song Zhiyuan patted his trouser pocket to indicate that he had money.

Yan Hui breathed a sigh of relief: "Okay, I have nothing to do today, I'll take you to a fun place."

Ma Junliang nodded, and Song Zhiyuan was very happy and followed Yan Hui all the way.

The fun place Yan Hui mentioned is a small square about one kilometer away from here.

"What is this for?" Ma Junliang was a little confused.

"Look over there," Yan Hui pointed to one side of the square, "there's a place for singing over there!"

"Singing?" Both of them looked in the direction Yan Hui pointed.

Because it was morning, there were not many people in the square, but there was still a dozen people gathered in one area. Yan Hui and the other two moved closer and heard the singing from the loudspeaker.

As I walked closer, I found that a boss had set up a stall here, with audio equipment, a TV, and a few microphones.

In the past, when Yan Hui went to the train station to sleep, he always passed by here at night. At that time, there were always a lot of people here, but singing here cost one yuan per song, and Yan Hui was always reluctant to do so.

"Brother Hui, can you sing?" Song Zhiyuan asked.

"Yes, I have always been the best singer among my brothers since I was a child!" Yan Hui said proudly.

"Is this true?" Song Zhiyuan looked eager to try.

"Really? Don't believe me? I'll sing you a song!" Yan Hui also became interested. This was the first time he had thought of such a thing, mainly because he made money selling ginseng. Carrying wood for his second brother was too hard, and he was reluctant to spend the money he earned. Now it's still okay.

This boss had three sets of equipment, all of which looked very simple. The so-called televisions were very small, with screens less than 20 centimeters wide, and were black and white. But to Yan Hui, these were considered very advanced.

Yan Hui and the others came over, and the boss immediately started to recruit them: "Come on, sing a few songs! The first song will be 5 cents!"

This price was a pleasant surprise to Yan Hui, so he asked, "Boss, what songs do you have?"

"Everything!"

"Is there a song?" Yan Hui thought about it for a few minutes, thinking about it, and finally asked, "Is there a song called 'Special Love for a Special You'?"

"Yes! Of course there is!" The boss started to adjust the sound, pressing a button on the speaker, "Try it!"

Yan Hui took the microphone and listened to the familiar music, feeling more energetic all over his body!

“I will not regret
After going through all of this

Put a heart
It’s ready.”

When Yan Hui sang to this point, everyone around him focused their attention on him.

His Minnan accent is different from Cantonese, but it is particularly deep, which is very rare in the Northeast. In addition, he sang really well, and when he sang the key sentences, people around him also sang along.

After the song was finished, many people around applauded, with Song Zhiyuan applauding the most enthusiastically.

"Okay, boss, it's settled, fifty cents." Yan Hui took out fifty cents and handed it to the boss.

After paying, Yan Hui was about to leave when the boss suddenly stopped him and said, "Young man, you sing really well! Sing a few more songs!"

"Huh?" Yan Hui thought it was a bit expensive. "Next time, bro?"

It was almost lunchtime, and some stalls were already crowded. The owner, not wanting to miss this opportunity, leaned over to Yan Hui's ear and whispered, "You sing so beautifully. Sing a few songs for me. I don't want any money."

This boss doesn't just make money from singing. He sells everything from food to drinks at his stall. The more people come around, the better it is for him.

free?

Yan Hui was delighted when he heard this: "Okay, play me a song called Cang Hai Yi Xiao!"

Yan Hui hadn't expected to be able to sing so freely this time. He sang five or six songs in a row, each one a perfect performance. His voice was deep and captivating, and there was no one else like it in the square.

More and more people gathered around, and several of them were eager to try and show off. Yan Hui saw that the other microphones had been rented out, so he took the initiative to say goodbye to the boss.

The boss was very happy and whispered in Yan Hui's ear: "Brother, come over when you have time. I won't charge you for singing!"

"Okay!" Yan Hui nodded happily and bought three bottles of soda from the boss!

Yan Hui never thought he would have so much fun today. After calculating the time, it was still early, so he generously treated his two friends to some fried pancakes and walked around for a while before the three of them parted ways.

Ma Junliang also had a lot of fun today, but he didn't talk much. He made an appointment with Yan Hui to come to school to find him when he was free, and he would treat Yan Hui to dinner.

This time Yan Hui finally understood everything about the university's majors, departments, and so on. He would definitely be able to find Ma Junliang next time he went.

After returning to his second brother's place, Yan Hui saw Dakai again. It was already two o'clock in the afternoon.

"Why did you come back at this time? Did you know that there would be no car coming before two o'clock in the afternoon?" Dakai asked Yan Hui as soon as he saw him.

"It's rare for friends to come over, so I can't help it." Yan Hui looked at the parking space, "Fortunately, nothing happened!"

Seeing that Yan Hui didn't seem to be lying, Dakai didn't say anything. He just picked up a cigarette, lit it with a match, and smoked it silently.

What Yan Hui didn't expect was that while he was cleaning the warehouse, someone came to see him again.

Yan Hui kept calling the newcomer Brother Guo, or Old Guo. He wasn't actually that old, only a few months older than Yan Hui. Yan Hui had known Old Guo for a long time; he was from his hometown, but they weren't close. Just now, when Yan Hui was taking the two of them around the market, Yan Hui and Old Guo had exchanged a greeting.

"What do you want from me?" Yan Hui was puzzled.

"It's nothing. I was just passing by. Seeing you here, I wanted to say hello!" Lao Guo said with a smile.

"Oh oh oh, Brother Guo, you go ahead and get busy." Yan Hui said politely.

"Well, you keep busy! Your place is great! There's never anything to do, and you make a lot of money!" Old Guo said enviously. He saw Yan Hui strolling around in the morning and having nothing to do in the afternoon, so of course he was envious.

"How is that possible? We pay according to the number of cars we drive. If we don't do anything, we won't make any money!"

"Is that so? Fine then, you go ahead and get busy."

Lao Guo said hello and then left.

This was just a small matter, but Dakai felt a little uncomfortable watching it.

He basically has no friends. Simply put, he doesn't even have a friend with whom he can share cigarettes.

Yan Hui thought it was normal. If Dakai was unwilling to share cigarettes with others, how could he make friends?
"You have so many friends," Dakai said this with a sour tone after seeing Lao Guo leave and finish his cigarette.

Yan Hui was about to say a few polite words, but then he changed his mind and said, "What's the use? When my friends come, I have to pay for everything. I don't have much money to begin with. Sigh."

When Dakai heard this, his mood instantly improved: "It's okay, don't get angry. Look at me, I never take advantage of you!"

"Well, Brother Kai, you are a good person."

While chatting, we found out that this afternoon's car arrived early, and the porters who were originally resting were activated and all came over.

Sometimes, when only one truck came, the seven or eight movers would work together, earning only 10 yuan per person. Yan Hui was happy with this, because his second brother would split the 10 yuan bills between them, so he wouldn't be shortchanged.

With so many people around, they finished moving the entire truck quickly. During the break, Yan Hui and Da Kai were chatting when someone else came over.

It was the nephew of the driver whom I met at the door a few days ago.

When this person saw Yan Hui, he quickly pulled Yan Hui aside and started chatting with him.

"Someone wants to buy 4 cubic meters of wood. He's interested in the store and the price. I don't know what kind of wood it is, but it's 970 per cubic meter. You can go and help negotiate with him. The customer said he's willing to pay 900, excluding shipping costs." The young man whispered to Yan Hui.

"Okay, I'll go right away." Yan Hui was very excited. The first business was about to start!

After saying that, he immediately went to find his second brother, asked about the time, and after confirming that there was no work within an hour, he immediately followed the young man out of the store.

Dakai looked at Yan Hui's departing back, and he couldn't describe the feeling in his heart, but he just felt uncomfortable.

Yan Hui didn't care what Dakai thought. He arrived at the store in less than five minutes and talked for only ten minutes to close the deal.

Simply put, Yan Hui negotiated the price to 900 yuan per cubic meter, and the timber store owner gave him a commission of 50 yuan per cubic meter, while the driver got a good customer.

In less than half an hour, Yan Hui earned 200 yuan, and he took out another 50 yuan and gave the extra to the driver.

(End of this chapter)