Journey 1995:Non-Stop

Chapter 6 Forest Farm
The three northeastern provinces were the first in China to build expressways. It's less than 400 kilometers from here to Baishan, or five hours. But after reaching Baishan, it takes another two hours to get to the forest farm, and the road thereafter becomes less accessible.

Shan Ge and Yan Hui were naturally quite familiar with each other. After all, he had been drinking Yan Hui's tea for free for about a month, and he knew that this young man had brains. So, as soon as he started driving, he said to Yan Hui, "Do you know why your fourth uncle asked you to come with me?"

"I don't know." Yan Hui said honestly.

Seeing that Yan Hui wasn't trying to be clever, Shan Ge laughed and said, "He's just afraid that I'll give him the car and run away, hahahaha."

"Ah? No way, my fourth uncle said that you are the one he trusts the most."

"Two different things," Shan Ge smiled and looked at Yan Hui, "Trust is trust, but we still have to be cautious when doing business."

Shan Ge really didn't think there was anything wrong with Fourth Uncle's behavior. On the contrary, he was quite happy: "Your Fourth Uncle has suffered losses, but it's good to be more cautious. I feel at ease following him."

"Brother Shan, why are you telling me this?" Yan Hui was a little confused.

"Hahaha, it seems like you are a promising talent. Your Yan family has some roots."

Yan Hui didn't understand, but nodded cautiously. He didn't know whether Shan Ge was telling the truth or not.

"However, there's no point in telling you all this. People can never be taught by people in a lifetime, but things can teach them just once. When your fourth uncle suffered a loss, I told him about it, but he didn't listen. You won't understand what I'm telling you today. But one day in the future, when you suffer a loss, you'll understand everything when you think of what I said today." Brother Shan was driving the car with a big grin on his face.

Yan Hui looked at Brother Shan carefully and said gratefully, "Brother Shan, I won't say anything else, but I'll remember what you said. Also, if you need any errands this time, just tell me anytime. I'm willing to learn."

"Row."

Yan Hui naturally did not expect such an opening, but after a few words, his relationship with Shan Ge became much closer, and he also roughly knew the relationship between Shan Ge and his fourth uncle.

Shan Ge claimed that his uncle didn't trust him, but that was impossible. If he really didn't trust him, how could he just give him a car worth over 20 yuan? Could a 16-year-old boy really keep Shan Ge under control?

After all, in this day and age, it is normal for a car to be gone for three or five days and never found again.

Bored on the road, Yan Hui was still observing how the car drove.

This Jetta has 5 forward gears and 1 reverse gear, and you need to step on the clutch every time you change gears. Yan Hui asked Shan Ge a lot of knowledge about cars along the way and he understood the general principle.

Brother Shan knows a lot about cars, even too much. He can even repair cars. He is definitely a talent. Yan Hui even thought that Brother Shan was from a car mechanic background.

Shan Ge was never much of a talker when it came to other things, but when it came to cars, he was a talkative bunch. And since Yan Hui was a fantastic and curious listener, the conversation flowed much more smoothly.

The main systems of this car are the power system, intake system, exhaust system, gearbox and braking system.

Brother Shan started with the four-stroke engine, talking about the gasoline nozzle, spark plug, piston, intake filter, throttle, intake valve, and then the gearbox input shaft, output shaft, synchronizer, and also talked about the parallel shaft gears of the automatic transmission and the like.

Then Shan Ge also talked about the ABS system, wheels, hydraulics, and cooling.
Yan Hui was stunned by what he heard along the way. When they arrived at Baishan at noon, Yan Hui even thought that he could take the car apart.

When they arrived at the restaurant for dinner, Shan Ge finally had a good chat and happily ordered an pork elbow, which they ate together.

Even Shan Ge himself didn't know why he was so excited about talking about sex. It was mainly because Yan Hui always asked the right questions, and he loved chatting.

This is why teachers like to explain questions to good students, because good students can draw inferences from what they have learned and absorb knowledge quickly, which makes teachers feel a sense of accomplishment.

Yan Hui finished the conversation without asking Shan Ge why he knew so much. Although he would forget most of this automotive knowledge, it was always a good thing to know more.

In the past, cars were high-tech to Yan Hui, but now after listening to what Brother Shan said, he is basically demystified.

"Brother Shan, why is this thing so expensive?" Yan Hui asked.

"There's nothing we can do. We can't manufacture it domestically. Take this engine, for example. It looks simple, right? But the materials and processing are difficult. It's very complicated."

"If I make it myself, will it be very profitable?" Yan Hui asked curiously.

"You want to make cars?" Shan Ge was shocked for a second, then looked at Yan Hui with some disdain. "Then you're just dreaming. There are tens of thousands of profitable businesses in the world. You're just going to do whatever you hear? Making cars is hard to do with hundreds of millions of dollars. Even your fourth uncle wouldn't dare to think about it. You, just stick to the timber business. With your fourth uncle around, you can become a millionaire in two years."

"I'm afraid that in two years, a household with a monthly income of 10,000 yuan will be worthless." Yan Hui and Shan Ge were quite familiar with each other, and he said with a smile.

"Haha, you have ambition. Come on." Brother Shan did not offend Yan Hui.

The economy has developed very rapidly in recent years. Yan Hui was born in 1979. When he was a child, a steamed bun cost only 5 cents. Later, when he was in junior high school, it cost 10 cents, and now it costs 20 cents.

Just two years ago, a millionaire was a legendary figure, but this year they are no longer so rare.

After eating and drinking, the two got in the car and headed for the forest farm.

Southern Fujian is also a mountainous and wooded area, but it is not as stunning as here. Once the car enters the forest area, people seem very small.

Before the two entered the forest farm, someone even stopped their car and checked the cigarettes and matches in it.

Shan Ge was a smoker, so as expected, his matches and cigarettes were taken away. There was no way to complain.

"Last time I followed the forestry boss in, no one checked. Damn, the mountain is closed due to heavy snow!" Shan Ge returned to the car, a little annoyed. "Just now he wanted to take it away, and I said I wanted to smoke one now, but he didn't even give me this little courtesy. What a shame."

"Can I buy more after we go in?" Yan Hui asked, "Brother Shan, I'll find a place to buy it for you later."

"There's a small shop in the forest farm. They sell tobacco! We'll talk about it later."

The second brother was naturally upset that he didn't get to smoke this cigarette, but he still took Yan Hui to the destination and met the contact person.

Yan Hui originally thought that he would meet a big boss who looked very elegant, but he didn't expect that the person he met looked more like a farmer, and was also a disabled person with only half of his right arm.

Shan Ge was in charge of the entire docking work. The two chatted for only a dozen words, then left the house together and went to the warehouse to look at the logs.

Yan Hui was used to the smell of wood, but after walking for more than ten minutes and arriving at the warehouse here, Yan Hui still felt that he had broadened his horizons.

All the buildings here are made of wood, with no prefabricated panels to be found. They look very primitive and rough. The so-called warehouses here are not for storing wood at all, but for storing logging equipment.

The wood was, of course, piled in the open air.

The climate in Baishan is a little colder than that in Fengtian. It has not thawed yet in this season. Although it is above zero at noon, there is still snow everywhere in the forest area.

After arriving here, Yan Hui felt that his morning judgment had been somewhat wrong. Fourth Uncle had asked him to come here for many reasons. On the one hand, he wanted him to be there so he could keep an eye on Shan Ge, and on the other hand, he was mainly training him.

If you want to understand the timber industry, the best way is to start by understanding nature from a forest farm.

As for what Fourth Uncle said before about “worrying about quality issues”, that is pure nonsense.

There is simply no poor quality wood in this place.

Piled up here are logs with a diameter of 40 to 50 centimeters. Each log is cut into lengths of about three meters, and some of the logs have numbers written on them.

Judging from the cuts on the wood, it was all cut with a chainsaw, and the entire area where the wood was stacked exuded a strong original wood fragrance.

Shan Ge chatted with the one-armed elder brother for a few words, confirmed the situation of the wood, and then said to Yan Hui: "Xiao Hui, we will probably stay here for two months."

"Okay." Yan Hui didn't have much luggage, and most of his belongings were on him. He could stay here as long as he wanted. Although it was cold in the mountains, it was April after all, so he could definitely endure it.

"I have a friend here. We're going to drink tonight. How much can you drink?"

"I don't know how to drink. Brother Shan, just focus on your own things and don't worry about me."

"Okay," Shan Ge obviously didn't want to take Yan Hui with him. He took out a 50-yuan bill from his pocket and said, "Your fourth uncle said that I will provide you with food and accommodation while you are here. I know you have money, but I can't let you go without. Here, take this for the next few days' food money."

"Thank you, Brother Shan." Yan Hui took it with both hands without hesitation.

After Shan Ge finished talking, he took Yan Hui to their residence in the forest farm.

The living conditions here were ordinary, just ordinary thatched huts, shrouded in a gloomy haze, covered with thick plastic sheeting and some unknown type of hay. The quilt, judging by its color, hadn't been washed in at least a year. There was a faint stench in the house, but the kang was quite warm. Yan Hui took a look and was quite satisfied; this was much better than what he'd experienced at the train station.

After Brother Shan decided on a place to stay, he went out and drove away. Yan Hui didn't care and strolled around the forest farm alone.

There were places to eat and a convenience store here. Yan Hui went to take a look and found that there were indeed cigarettes. He bought two boxes of cigarettes and a box of matches, and put them in his pocket, waiting for Shan Ge to come back and give them to him.

The owner of the convenience store is a quiet man. It seems that he likes carving wood. He can sit there for a long time, holding a knife and not paying much attention to people.

They also sell flatbreads here, but Yan Hui didn't feel hungry at all after having eaten a big pork elbow for lunch. While it was still daylight, he left here and walked around.

Most of the buildings in the forest farm are very old, and they look like they were built in the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China. Some of them are dilapidated and leaky. Yan Hui crossed the lumberyard and walked forward, which was the road up the mountain.

There was a long row of houses, similar to the thatched cottage he lived in, but at least sixty or seventy meters long and looking much older. Of the several chimneys in the cottages, only one was smoking, a solitary one.

There is a row of houses behind the thatched house, and you can smell a very obvious stench of feces when passing by.

Yan Hui was a little shocked. He thought that this row of toilets were all toilets, so he walked over to take a look.

After getting closer, Yan Hui found that this was a stable for raising horses. He peeked inside and saw two horses, one that was probably a mule, and a mare that seemed to be pregnant with a big belly.

At the entrance of the stable, there were several things that looked like large sleds. Yan Hui didn't know what they were called. Some of them were broken and were being repaired, probably halfway, but the repairman was not here.

"Dudududu!"

Yan Hui was startled by the sudden sound. Following the sound, he saw a large loudspeaker nearby.

There were several such loudspeakers in the forest farm. Suddenly one of them rang, startling Yan Hui. He thought he was staring and was mistaken for a thief, and the loudspeaker was calling him.

Just as he was about to leave, passionate music came from the zilazila loudspeaker, followed by "Listen to the loud sounds of killing in the training ground over there."

The voice was vigorous and powerful. Yan Hui thought it sounded familiar. After listening to a few more sentences, he remembered that it was from "Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy". He had seen a troupe perform this play when he was a child.

The music coming from the loudspeaker should be a signal in the forest farm, but Yan Hui doesn't know what it means.

After walking around the stable, Yan Hui came to the front of the row of thatched houses, and happened to see an old man coming out of one of the houses.

The old man looked to be in his 60s, with a slightly hunched back. He must have come out to get firewood, and was currently taking wood out of the firewood pile.

When the old man saw Yan Hui, he stood there with his back hunched, staring at Yan Hui.

Yan Hui felt a little scared when being stared at, especially since there were two big yellow dogs without leashes next to the old man, also staring at Yan Hui.

This scared Yan Hui enough. The old man looked a little mentally unstable. If there was no dog, he wouldn't be afraid. But if there was a dog, it would be troublesome. What if the old man let the dog bite him?
Yan Hui reacted quickly as well. He immediately bowed slightly to the old man and said, "Hello, uncle. I'm here with my elders to the forest farm. I'm just taking a look around. If there's anything inconvenient here, I'll leave."

After all, he is educated, and he speaks Mandarin when he goes out. Even if he speaks with a Minnan accent, he can still be understood in the Northeast.

The old man just stayed there, not saying a word or moving, just staying there.

The old man didn't move, the dog didn't move, and Yan Hui didn't dare to move either.

After about ten seconds, the old man finally broke the silence. His voice was a little hoarse: "Are you from Qilu?"

"No, my hometown is Fujian Province."

"Fujian Province." The old man pondered the word for a moment, and it was obvious that he had a blind spot in his knowledge.

He seems to know only about the three northeastern provinces and Qi and Lu.

"Is it far?" asked the old man.

"Well, it's quite far. It took me three days to get here by train from start to finish."

"It's such a long way," the old man thought for a moment, his hoarse voice revealing determination, "It's not easy. Come, I'll give you a meal."

Yan Hui didn't dare to refuse. This old man looked really abnormal, so he could only politely say, "Uncle, do you want to cook for everyone? I can help."

"Yes, give food to everyone," the old man nodded. "It's good to help. Yes, only if you help can you eat."

Yan Hui was quite brave. After hearing what the old man said, he went over to help him move the wood. Then, under the watchful eyes of the two big yellow dogs, he followed the old man into the thatched house.

(End of this chapter)