Starting with vegetable greenhouses in 1988

Chapter 240 Playing with It (Long Chapter)
The morning sun was shining brightly, making the iron gate of the Beijing City Vegetable Company gleam, and the paint on the iron railings showed signs of age under the light. Li Zhe gripped the steering wheel of the Volga and brought it to a steady stop beside the gate.

The old man in the gatehouse poked his head out, smoking a pipe, and squinted at the rare Soviet car. The embers in his pipe flickered twice. "Comrade, who are you looking for?"

Li Zhe rolled down the car window and said in a clear voice, "I'm Li Zhe from Langfang. I have an appointment with General Manager Liu Jianhua."

The old man slowly flipped through the registration book, tracing lines on the pages for a while before finally ticking the name "Li Zhe" and pressing the button on the barrier. "Squeak—"

The iron railing slowly rose, and Li Zhe stepped on the gas and drove the car into the yard.

The yard was more spacious than I had imagined. Several old-fashioned trucks were parked on the cement ground, their cargo beds still stained with mud from the last time they transported vegetables, half-dried and whitish in the sun. The office building was a two-story red brick building, its walls peeling so badly that the gray bricks underneath were visible, and a few clumps of weeds grew at the base of the walls.

Li Zhe parked his car under the old locust tree in front of the building and went inside carrying his black briefcase.

The red paint on the stair railings was worn smooth, revealing the wood grain underneath. The gray terrazzo floor in the stairwell was spotless, and you could smell a faint scent of soapy water when you walked on it.

A banner reading "Advanced Unit in Vegetable Supply" hangs on the wall of the second-floor corridor. The edges are yellowed and curled, giving it a genuine sense of age.

"Boss Li is here!" Just as he reached the door of the "General Manager's Office," the door was opened, and Liu Jianhua came out to greet him.

"President Liu." Li Zhe shook hands with him; the other man's palm was slightly warm.

Liu Jianhua, dressed in a dark blue Zhongshan suit with pen marks on the cuffs, warmly invited the room in, saying, "Please sit down, please sit down."

He turned around and poured a cup of hot tea from the thermos. The words "Learn from Dazhai in Agriculture" on the enamel cup were worn away and almost illegible. He placed it on the coffee table next to Li Zhe: "A friend just gave me Tieguanyin yesterday. Try it."

"Thank you, Mr. Liu." Li Zhe sat down in the rattan chair and put his briefcase on the table. "I'm here today to report to you on the greenhouse expansion. I just started a company called Sijiqing Vegetable Company."

He unzipped his jacket and took out a neatly bound plan. "This is the detailed plan. Please take a look."

Liu Jianhua took the plan, tapped the page on "cooperation model" with his finger, and looked up with a smile in his eyes: "Sijiqing provides the technology, the growers provide the land and capital, the credit union provides the loan, and we are responsible for the purchase—this works! It connects all parties."

"The main purpose is to provide the villagers with some security, so they can feel more at ease." Li Zhe smiled, picked up his teacup and took a sip, the aroma of tea mixed with the steam wafting into his nose. "However, when it comes to harvesting the vegetables, we'll still need to trouble your company to put in extra effort."

“That’s no problem.” Liu Jianhua put down the business plan and leaned forward. “How many farmers are willing to join us right now?”

“I’ve received quite a few inquiries lately, and I’ve remembered all the names. There are already over a hundred people,” Li Zhe replied.

Liu Jianhua frowned: "A hundred people can only grow a hundred or so acres of land at most. How can that amount of vegetables be enough for the whole capital to eat in winter?"

"Don't worry," Li Zhe quickly explained, "There's no official publicity yet. I've prepared two strategies: First, I'll have the town government take the lead and convene a mobilization meeting with the village party secretaries, and have the village loudspeakers broadcast my news about making money in greenhouses every day."
Secondly, we're discussing with Director Bai from Beijing TV that we'll make a movie about greenhouse farming, which we'll then screen outdoors in the countryside so everyone can see firsthand the benefits of greenhouse cultivation.

After listening, Liu Jianhua slammed his hand on the table: "Good! You've put your mind to good use!"

His eyes gleamed. "That's how we should do it, get more people involved. Don't worry about policies and benefits, I'll fight for them for you. If you encounter any difficulties while growing crops in greenhouses, just come to me. If I can't solve it, we'll ask the organization."

No matter who it is, they can't affect our food supply project, and we certainly can't let the people of Beijing go hungry."

"You're right." Li Zhe felt relieved and rubbed his hands together. "Mr. Liu, there's another small favor I'd like to ask you. Could you perhaps find some seeds for pickling cucumbers and green beans?"

Liu Jianhua was taken aback: "These two dishes aren't commonly eaten in China; they're mostly popular with foreigners. What do you need these seeds for?"

“A friend of mine received an order for canned goods exported to the Soviet Union and urgently needs these two kinds of vegetables to make canned goods,” Li Zhe explained.

A look of surprise flashed across Liu Jianhua's eyes, then he smiled: "You've got quite a network! Coincidentally, we happen to have both of these imported seeds in our warehouse." Without hesitation, he picked up a pen and wrote a note on a sticky note: "Take this to the logistics department to get them, and just say I approved them."

"Thank you so much." These seeds are not only available elsewhere, but many people have never even heard of them. It's rare that this Mr. Liu is not only straightforward but also truly gets things done.

The two chatted for a while about the greenhouse expansion before Li Zhe took his leave.

Regardless of Mr. Liu's motives for helping, he handled things openly and honestly, and Li Zhe was willing to accept this favor—this autumn, they really needed to make a big splash and not let down the expectations of their family and friends.

……

The staff quarters of the Beijing Television Factory.

In the second-floor bedroom of the Wang family, Wang Ting stretched and sat up from the bed. The collar of her pajamas slipped loosely to her shoulders. The branches of the locust tree outside the window swayed gently in the wind, and the tinkling of bicycle bells came from downstairs, one after another.

She rubbed her eyes and got out of bed. As soon as she stepped into her slippers, she heard her mother, Chen Shufang, making noises from the kitchen.

When they opened the door, they were startled to see Chen Shufang carrying soy milk out of the kitchen.

Chen Shufang looked her daughter up and down: "Did the sun rise in the west today? She usually doesn't get out of bed until noon on weekends, what's wrong with her today?"

Wang Ting went into the bathroom and combed her long hair in front of the mirror. Her fair face was reflected in the mirror: "Li Zhe asked me to go out."

"Where are you going so early?" Chen Shufang put the bowl of soy milk on the table, the rim of the porcelain bowl making a soft sound. "I've never seen you this eager to help out at the vegetable shop before."

Wang Ting didn't answer, and closed the door to wash up.

Chen Shufang pouted, feeling a little dissatisfied, but still set out the bowls and chopsticks for her daughter.

After washing up, Wang Ting sat down to eat and said with a smile, "Mom, your cooking is still the best."

"You're just good at flattering me." Chen Shufang put down her chopsticks and asked, "Where are you going today?"

Seeing that she couldn't avoid it, Wang Ting replied, "Li Zhe is moving to the backyard of the courtyard house, and he's short of appliances, so he asked me to go buy some."

Chen Shufang snorted: "Hmph, do you think it's something big? Why are you hiding it like this?"

Wang Ting retorted, "What did I try to cover up? My dad knows about this."

Chen Shufang said sourly, "Fine, you told your dad, but you didn't tell me. I've figured it out, no matter how much I serve you two, I'm still an outsider."

Wang Ting ignored her, ate a few mouthfuls of rice, and went back to her room to change her clothes.

"You brat!" Chen Shufang muttered under her breath.

Just as I was clearing the table, I suddenly heard two short, clear car horns blaring downstairs.

Wang Ting came out of the bedroom, put on her coat, picked up her backpack, and said, "Mom, I'm leaving. I won't be home for lunch."

Chen Shufang called out from behind, "What's the rush? Li Zhe hasn't arrived yet! A girl should be more reserved; why wait for a man like that?"

Before she could finish speaking, her daughter had already run down the stairs. She shook her head, walked to the balcony, and looked down from the railing. There was a white car parked on the open ground below. She didn't recognize the car's logo, but the car was so shiny that you could see your reflection in it.

"This is..." Chen Shufang's heart skipped a beat, and she subconsciously called out to the living room, "Old Wang! Come and see, whose car is that downstairs? It's so impressive!"

After shouting, she remembered that her husband, Wang Guangwei, had gone to a meeting at the factory early that morning, and the only sound in the living room was the ticking of the wall clock. She gripped the railing tightly again and saw the driver's side door open. Li Zhe, wearing a leather jacket, got out of the car and went around to the passenger side to open the door.

Wang Ting came out of the stairwell, the two exchanged a few words, and then Wang Ting got into the passenger seat.

Li Zhe closed the car door, the car engine made a soft sound, and slowly drove away from the family building.

Chen Shufang's grip on the railing tightened slowly, her eyes filled with complex emotions—envy mixed with disbelief. "Did Li Zhe drive this? Where did he get it? Even my own Lao Wang isn't allowed to ride in a car, how come he..."

The Volga drove smoothly through the alley, at a slow speed. The window was rolled down halfway, letting in a cool breeze. Wang Ting smoothed her wind-blown bangs: "Have you bought all the furniture?"

"It's almost done. We just moved in a few days ago." Li Zhe gripped the steering wheel, glancing at her delicate face out of the corner of his eye. "We haven't bought any appliances yet. Let's go take a look together."

"Okay, where do you plan to buy it?" Wang Ting turned to look at him.

"Let's go to the department store; they have a wider variety of goods," Li Zhe suggested.

The car turned onto Chang'an Avenue and quickly stopped in the parking lot in front of Wangfujing Department Store. When the two entered the building, it was already quite lively, mostly with young women, and the air was filled with the scents of face cream and fabric. The home appliance section was on the second floor, and as soon as they went up the stairs, they heard Teresa Teng's song playing from a tape recorder: "If I hadn't met you, where would I be..." Her sweet and gentle voice echoed among the shelves.

Drawn by the singing, Li Zhe walked to the counter and asked the sales clerk, "Comrade, I'd like a dual cassette recorder."

Seeing that the two were well-dressed, the saleswoman pointed to the shelf behind her and said, "We have Panda and Hundred Flowers brands here, both high-end products, single and double SIM cards available. Which one would you like?"

Li Zhe pointed to a large wooden tape recorder, the style of which matched his home's decor: "How much is this one?"

The salesperson gave a thumbs up: "Wow, you have great taste! This is a Baihua brand dual cassette recorder. The sound quality is excellent. The song 'I Only Care About You' that's played in the mall was played on it. It's on sale now for 300 yuan."

Wang Ting frowned slightly: "So expensive?"

"A single card is too cheap for your status," the salesperson said, pointing upwards. "Listen to the sound quality, it's like a live performance. Other brands simply can't match this pitch. Besides, last winter, you couldn't get it for less than 380 yuan."

Wang Ting said, "300 isn't cheap either."

"Sir, the price really can't be lowered. But I can give you some cassette tapes as a gift, all classic songs, so you don't have to buy them again, which is a kind of discount." The salesperson pointed to the bottom of the counter, "Please feel free to choose any of these cassette tapes."

Li Zhe smiled, feeling that the department store's service had become noticeably more flexible after the New Year. "We'll take this one." The two picked out a few cassette tapes they liked and then browsed other electronics.

Walking to the washing machine counter, Wang Ting touched the enamel tub of the twin-tub washing machine: "This is practical; it keeps my hands warm when washing clothes in winter."

Li Zhe nodded; he hated doing laundry the most. The two then looked at a hair dryer, razor, and water heater.

Upon seeing the water heater, Wang Ting looked at it with envy, saying, "I want to buy one too, but my mom can't bear to part with it."

Li Zhe laughed and said, "That's easy. If you want to take a bath, come to my place."

"Ugh." Wang Ting pinched his arm with her slender fingers. "I told you not to talk nonsense."

When they arrived at the TV counter, the salesperson was introducing the TV to a customer: "It's an 18-inch Panda brand TV with a remote control, but you need a receipt." Just as Li Zhe was about to speak, Wang Ting pulled a neatly folded piece of paper from her backpack and handed it to the salesperson: "Excuse me, could you please check if this will work?"

The salesperson unfolded the receipt, glanced at it, and nodded: "The color TV receipt can be used."

Li Zhe looked at Wang Ting in surprise; in those days, color TV tickets were more valuable than money. Those around them also cast envious glances.

“My dad got it from the factory. We already have a TV at home, so it would be a waste to leave it here,” Wang Ting explained in a low voice, her ears turning slightly red—she had begged her father for several days to get it.

Li Zhe didn't stand on ceremony and used the ticket to buy a new color TV.

The two browsed around some more and bought a few small appliances. They had almost everything except for an air conditioner. Li Zhe finalized the delivery time with the salesperson, then left with Wang Ting, carrying the small appliances.

The car drove into Suzhou Hutong, turned into the depths, and stopped at the gate with a wooden sign that read "Courtyard No. 7".

Wang Ting got out of the car and looked up to see two vermilion gates, the verdigris on the door knockers gleaming with the warmth of time. Li Zhe pushed open the gates, and in front of him was an exquisitely carved screen wall. To the left, the front yard was swept clean with blue bricks, and four rear-facing rooms were neatly arranged on either side. "This is the front yard."

Passing through the hanging flower gate, Wang Ting was even more surprised by the scene in the backyard—the spacious courtyard was paved with blue bricks, the crabapple tree in the middle was just sprouting new buds, and a yellow dog was lying under the tree, wagging its tail and running over when it saw people.

"Woof woof..." The yellow dog rubbed against Li Zhe as usual, and then barked twice at Wang Ting.

Wang Ting took a step back and hid behind Li Zhe.

"Don't be afraid, its name is Jinzi, it doesn't bite." Li Zhe squatted down, patted the dog's head, and beckoned to her, "Want to give it a try?"

Wang Ting shook her head, still not daring to.

Li Zhe took half a steamed bun from the kitchen and handed it over: "You feed it."

Wang Ting hesitated before reaching out, and Jinzi obediently took the steamed bun from her mouth, licking her palm with his tongue, which tickled her.

On the roof of the west wing, a tabby cat squinted in the sun. Seeing Li Zhe, it meowed once and lazily flicked its tail. Wang Ting stood up and pointed at the cat: "Is that cat yours too?"

“It was kept by the previous owner of the house. It catches mice in the yard. I feed it occasionally, but it's not friendly, so don't touch it casually.” Li Zhe then pointed to Jinzi, “I raised it. It's used to being free-range and is friendly to people. Once it gets used to you, you can play with it.”

He clapped his hands and introduced, "There are three main rooms in the backyard, three rooms each in the east and west wings, all with side rooms. Shall we go in and take a look?"

Wang Ting followed them into the north room. To the left, in the living room, stood a brand-new sofa and coffee table. Sunlight streamed through the glass windows, casting a warm glow on the sofa covers. To the right, in the dining room, a swivel table gleamed, looking as new as if it had never been used.

“This room on the east side is a study, where we usually work, and my parents can stay when they come.” Li Zhe pushed open the door to the east wing room, where the stove was gleaming. “This wing room has been converted into a kitchen.”

After looking at the north and east rooms, he led Wang Ting back: "The bedroom is on the west side, let's go take a look."

"Okay." Wang Ting followed obediently.

The bedroom was larger than her living room, with a brass mirror on the dressing table and a large wardrobe mirror reflecting one's image. The west wing room had been converted into a bathroom, with white tiles all the way to the ceiling and a corner reserved for a water heater.

"This bathroom is huge!" Wang Ting touched the smooth tiles, thinking that it was even bigger than her bedroom. It would be so comfortable to put a big wooden tub in there for a bath.

Although she was somewhat prepared, she was still stunned when she saw this magnificent courtyard house! Their two-bedroom apartment was considered spacious in Beijing, but compared to this…

She sighed softly and decided not to tell her mother, lest she be hurt.

The midday sun was shining brightly, and the two set up a small hot pot in the restaurant, the clear broth bubbling away.

Li Zhe put the mutton rolls into the pot; the paper-thin mutton cooked as soon as it was cooked. Wang Ting added spinach, and tofu cubes floated in the soup. The fragrance of chrysanthemum greens mixed with the mutton's aroma filled the room.

After finishing her meal, Wang Ting rushed to the kitchen to wash the dishes, the water running loudly.

Li Zhe was fiddling with his newly bought tape recorder in the living room. When Wang Ting came out wiping her hands, Leslie Cheung's "Silence is Golden" was already playing from the tape recorder, its upbeat melody swirling around the room.

"Does it sound good?" Li Zhe patted the sofa next to him. Wang Ting sat down next to him, and as soon as she sat down, he put his arm around her waist.

Feeling the warmth and faint fragrance in his arms, Li Zhe couldn't help but kiss her red lips.

Wang Ting's body stiffened instantly, her eyelashes trembling frantically. His hand slid up her waist, and when he touched her breasts, the soft, large breasts were very elastic, too big to be fully grasped with one hand.

Wang Ting let out a soft "Mmm," her body going limp in his arms.

Her kiss was awkward and shy, her teeth occasionally brushing against his lips, but Li Zhe's kiss deepened, his hand sliding down her clothes—

"Stop!" Wang Ting pushed him away abruptly, her cheeks flushed red. "If you keep doing this, I won't come again!" She glared at him angrily, her tone slightly coquettish.

Li Zhe smiled, pulled her back into his arms, and placed his hand respectfully on her waist: "Okay, I won't tease you anymore, just a hug."

He could feel the body in his arms still trembling, her soft waist rising and falling gently in his palms, and the scent of shampoo lingering in her hair.

The song on the stereo changed to a slow love song, and the two leaned back on the sofa to listen, occasionally exchanging a few words.

As the sunlight shifted from the window onto the wall, gradually turning orange-red, Li Zhe then escorted Wang Ting home.

The lights in the apartment building were already on. Wang Ting had barely entered when Chen Shufang pulled her into the kitchen. "Where did you two go today?"

"I went to Li Zhe's house to buy him home appliances." Wang Ting said, picking at her fingers.

Chen Shufang turned off the gas stove and turned to stare at her daughter: "Before you get married, don't keep going to your man's house." She paused, her voice lowering, "Also, never get too close to him. Men, once they get what they want, they don't cherish it anymore, you know?"

"Mom! What are you saying?" Wang Ting's face flushed red. She stomped her feet and ran back to her room, closed the door, and leaned against it, her heart still pounding.

Thinking about Li Zhe's hands groping her body that afternoon, and their kiss on the sofa, she felt both ashamed and angry. Clutching her clothes, she muttered under her breath, "How annoying..."

(End of this chapter)