Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 447 The Tallest Building

From the intersection of Dianye Road, head northeast across the entire Fengtian urban area. Qingshuitaizi is located between Fengtian and Tieling, under the jurisdiction of Xinchengzi District, now called Shenbei New District.

Just keep following the Beijing-Harbin National Highway 102 and you'll get there.

It wasn't until 93 that the government started to pay attention to the "Strange Slope," enclosing the land and charging admission fees. Right now, it's just a section of dirt road in the wilderness, located at the foot of Maoshan Mountain.

After walking for nearly fifty minutes, the two cars arrived at Qingshuitaizi. After asking around, the enthusiastic villagers pointed out the way. As soon as they heard that we were there to see the Strange Slope, they became excited and proud, acting as if they wanted to lead us there.

"You guys came to see that strange hill too? Oh, let me tell you, it's really weird. You don't even need to pedal to go up the hill, you just slide up. We've all tried it, it's true. It's over there, over there, see that mountain peak? It's right below there. You go down this way, drive sideways like this and you'll get there. It's about two miles, not far at all, just a blink of an eye."

The name "Strange Slope" was given by the locals without any expert consultation.

After exiting the national highway, following the villagers' directions, we walked towards the distant mountain peak. Sure enough, after a little over a kilometer, we could see a group of trucks, jeeps, and bicycles crammed together, surrounded by a dozen or so people watching.

The two cars pulled up and stopped by the roadside. Everyone got off and stood by the cars to look. There were a few people riding bicycles on that section of dirt road, "testing the waters." The bicycles belonged to the villagers next door. This guy was wearing a military overcoat. It cost him 50 cents to ride it once. He was quite clever.

The driver of the truck that came by to test the road glanced at Xiaowei and his companion and said, "You guys are here to watch too? Your truck is too light, so it's not fast. The heavier the load, the faster it goes and the bigger it feels. If you don't believe me, try driving my truck." He pointed to the Dongfeng truck parked on the side.

Xiao Wei said, "You've tried it? It really runs uphill by itself?" He handed him a cigarette.

The driver took the cigarette and laughed, saying, "Sure enough, it just sped up by itself, and I had to step on the gas to get it back up. It's really strange. When they told me about it, I didn't believe them. I came here today specifically to see if it was true. Damn, I lost a drink."

Xiao Hong watched for a while, then turned and patted Xiao Wei: "Let's go, let's drive over and try."

Xiao Wei said, "Driving is no fun. Let's rent some bicycles and ride them." The dirt slope is only a hundred meters long, just a section in the middle of the village road. It won't be tiring to ride back. This is because people were poor back then, and in the countryside, everyone relied on walking. Bicycles were a luxury, which is why this place was only discovered now.

Xiao Hong happily ran over to rent a bicycle. This guy had three old bikes for rent. Xiao Hong rented one and turned around to call out to Geng Hui. He grabbed the handlebars and said, "It's 50 cents per person, 50 cents per person."

Xiao Hong said, "Okay, you do the counting. We'll only use this one vehicle. You just need to count the people."

Geng Hui said, "I can't ride a bike." Xiao Hong was taken aback and asked the guy renting out the bike, "She can't ride, so I have to take her. How much does that cost?"

The guy said, "Look at your little sister, you just said you'd calculate it by the number of people, isn't she a person?"

Xia Maosheng said with a twitching face, "How dare you talk like that?"

The guy laughed and said, "I'm not right. It's calculated per person, fifty cents per person. I don't care if you're riding or sitting, right?"

Xiao Hong pulled Geng Hui and said, "Come on, let's not argue with him, let's go and give it a try."

The guy said, "Who cares about paying?"

Xiao Wei said, "I'll ask you for it. There are several people here, so we'll calculate it all together."

My friend counted the people and said, "Eight people, it's only four yuan, you can just pay it and that's it."

Chen Hui said, "Seven? Didn't you see my wife is heavily pregnant? If she falls, will you compensate me?"

The Dongfeng driver said, "Why bother? Let him make a few bucks. You have a car, just go for a spin. Cars are much heavier than bicycles, and you can even pick up speed."

Xiao Wei said, "It's okay. Riding a bicycle feels different from riding in a car. Let them have fun."

The Dongfeng driver said, "That's true, you car drivers won't be short of a few dollars." Over there, Xiao Hong, with Geng Hui, had already ridden past, wobbling and screaming as she experienced the feeling of going uphill without pedaling. Uncle Wang and Aunt Wang watched their daughter's madness with amusement. Aunt Wang said, "She really doesn't need to pedal! That's strange. What do you think is the reason?"

Uncle Wang looked at Xiao Hong and her sister and said, "How would I know? Just knowing that's how it is is enough. Do you have to take apart the rice cooker and figure out why it can cook rice?" Aunt Wang raised her hand and gave her a heavy punch.

After playing for a short while, it got dark. Xiao Wei started the car and turned on the headlights. Chen Hui drove Chen Xiao back and forth several times. Uncle Wang and Aunt Wang also rode their bicycles back and forth a few times. Only then did everyone get in the car and head back, satisfied.

Uncle Wang said, "They could make a lot of money by fencing off this place and charging admission fees."

Aunt Wang said, "You think you can just wait and see? The government will be here to take care of it in a few days. It's like money falling from the sky."

Xiao Hong said, "Why don't they do it in their village? It's such a great opportunity!"

Xiao Wei said, "The village doesn't have that authority; it has to be reported and applied for. How could the city possibly give such a piece of land to the village? Just you wait and see, even if this place is developed, it will have nothing to do with this village. It will still be as poor as ever."

Uncle Wang said, "I can make some money by opening a snack bar and selling soft drinks and cigarettes."

Xiao Wei shook his head and said, "Not necessarily. If they really start collecting fees, even if you open a snack bar or sell cigarettes, you'll probably have to pay to get it done. Who here can afford that? In the end, it'll be the wealthy people in the city who come to do it. Everyone has relatives and connections."

Aunt Wang said, "That's right. Not all the businesses in our county have connections, let alone those around here."

Uncle Wang rolled down the car window, lit a cigarette, and said, "Just focus on living your own life well. What's the use of worrying about other things?"

As the car entered the city, it immediately went from pitch black to brightly lit. Aunt Wang said, "No wonder everyone wants to go to the city. Look how bright it is, and there are still so many people on the road."

Looking out the window, Xiaohong said, "Wow, it's a big city! Look at these buildings, how tall they are!"

Uncle Wang chuckled and said, "You stare at the tallest building in Fengtian every day without saying a word. How tall is it? And you already think it's too tall."

Xiao Hong paused for a moment, thought for a moment, and asked, "Which building is the tallest in Fengtian?"

Xiao Wei said, "You haven't been up to Uncle Chen's office building?"

Little Hong stared wide-eyed and said, "Uncle Chen? That building in the power plant? It's the tallest in Fengtian? I don't know. Isn't the TV tower the tallest?"

Xiao Wei, his face darkening, said, "We're talking about a building. Is a TV tower a building?"

Xiao Hong chuckled a few times, grabbed Xiao Wei's arm, and said pitifully, "I want to eat on the TV tower. All my classmates went, and they're showing off to me."

(End of this chapter)