Reborn in 1977

The safe house was renovated inside and out for a total of twenty days. Not only was the hard and soft decoration all done, but it was also left open for two or three days to dry completely. After cleaning, everything was ready except for the owner to move in.

Today, they were here both to invite Chen Fan and the others and to move.

Chen Fan carried a large bag of luggage to the sidecar and said unhappily, "Lili usually takes care of my luggage, but now I have to help you move. Where is the justice?!"

Anquan packed all the daily necessities he had bought in Huaiguo Old Street, carried them out, and looked around, "Where should I put these things?"

Chen Fan pointed to the large bundle in the sidecar, "Just put it on top and tie it with a rope."

Anquan didn't say a word, directly threw it on top, and then found a ball of hemp rope from the box, tying it while saying, "Don't you think about it? Ke Ying and I cleaned your place. Now, I'm just asking you to help as a porter, and you're already complaining.

There's an old saying that goes, 'Most heroes are dog butchers, and most ungrateful people are scholars.' If Lao Zhang were here, he would carry things without a peep."

Chen Fan glanced at him, "I'm going to tell Lao Zhang that you said he's a dog butcher."

Anquan was speechless and didn't want to talk to him.

Chen Fan pressed his advantage, "Besides, you didn't tell me about this. I know you see that I have the sick and the young here, and you didn't want to disturb us, but that's not a reason for you to wrong me…"

Yu Keying and Jiang Lili packed some small items and hung them on their bicycles, watching the two of them bicker, the smiles never leaving their faces.

With more people, there was more strength, and soon everything that needed to be taken away was packed.

Anquan stood in the courtyard, hands on his hips, looking at Chen Fan's small Western-style building, and said with emotion, "From today on, I will say goodbye to the spacious Western-style house and move into the narrow Shikumen."

Sensing his wife's glance, he immediately changed his tune, "But, a golden nest is not as good as one's own doghouse. Besides, mine is also a small building with its own courtyard. In the end, it's still more comfortable at home."

He took out his key ring, removed two keys from it, and handed them to Jiang Lili, who was snickering beside him, "Here, return the keys to you."

Jiang Lili took it with a red face and directly put it in her pocket, then got on the back seat of the motorcycle.

Anquan rode his bicycle, carrying his wife, and left the courtyard, while still saying, "Don't drive too fast, it's useless if you're too fast, you won't be able to get in."

Chen Fan's mouth twitched slightly. He first drove the motorcycle out. After Jiang Lili locked the gate and got in the car, he increased the throttle and sped away, leaving Anquan with a trail of black smoke, who was furiously shouting in the back.

Soon they arrived at Chengdu South Road. Chen Fan had already smoked two cigarettes before Anquan finally arrived, panting, on his bicycle.

The 5-kilometer journey was not short, and he was already considered fast.

Jiang Lili had never been here before. Looking at the red courtyard walls, she waited for Anquan to open the courtyard door and followed him in. Her first reaction was: So small!

No wonder Anquan said his house was a doghouse. Compared to their large courtyard, the 8-square-meter patio was indeed a bit cute.

Yu Keying then opened the door to the main room and turned on the light. A delicate living room appeared in front of everyone, and Jiang Lili's eyes lit up.

She put a small package on the wooden sofa, curiously looking up and down, and then looked at Chen Fan, "This is what you designed? It's really beautiful."

Chen Fan chuckled twice and didn't say anything. He also looked around a few times, feeling quite accomplished.

Originally, a living room of more than twenty square meters was not very big, and it couldn't compare to their own large living room of more than fifty square meters, let alone the floor-to-ceiling windows on the entire wall with a view.

However, small also has its own exquisiteness.

The living room was divided into two parts. The entrance was a raised flat floor, occupying about half of the area, with a height of more than three meters. A classical chandelier hung from the ceiling.

This was also bought back from the warehouse of the second-hand store. After cleaning the lampshade and polishing the copper rod, it looked very tasteful.

(Republic of China five-headed old copper lamp holder chandelier)

Since the wiring was hidden, the entire room could not see the wires, and the light shone on the snow-white walls, illuminating the room as if it were daytime.

The other half inside was a duplex structure. The lower part was a continuation of the living room, but it was a sunken living room. According to Chen Fan's design, the front half was made into storage cabinets, which would not waste space.

Inside the living room, there was a set of tea tables and two sets of low cabinets. The tea table could also be used as a dining table. If there were too many guests, there were wooden boards underneath that could be pulled out, turning the already large tea table into a rectangular dining table.

In the corner, there was also a movable large fireplace, and a chimney as thick as a fist was inserted into the wall, but the fireplace was not lit with charcoal at this time.

On the low cabinet next to it were a radio and a clock. Behind the cabinet was a wooden staircase, which could lead to the attic platform above.

Jiang Lili tilted her head and looked up, but her view was blocked by a set of railings.

Seeing this, Yu Keying pulled her forward, "I'll take you on a tour. It's definitely not as spacious as your house, but it's quite interesting."

Anquan carried the last big bundle in and put it on the ground, took two breaths, clapped his hands, and pointed to the tea table, "Come on, let's go sit down."

Chen Fan walked to the tea table and sat down, turning his head to look around.

Anquan picked up the kettle to make tea. He glanced at Chen Fan and smiled, "It's the same as you designed it, even what furniture to use and how to arrange it, it's all according to what you said."

He put a cup of tea in front of Chen Fan, and then poured two more cups to the side. Only then did he pick up a cup on the tea table, opened the lid, and gulped down two mouthfuls of cold tea.

Then he said, "Everything up and down is the same as you designed it, so I won't take you on a tour."

He leaned back on the chair, turning his head to look left and right, and exhaled a long breath with satisfaction, smiling, "To be honest, when I bought this small courtyard, I was a little unwilling, but there was no way, that's all the money I had. If I didn't buy this and bought my parents' public housing, I would be even more unwilling."

He patted the armrest of the chair, raised his head and smiled, "Now that it's renovated like this, hey, it looks pretty good."

He suddenly leaned forward on the tea table, smiling from ear to ear, looking at Chen Fan and said, "Counting the pavilion room and the attic, there are four rooms in total, and it's not crowded even if ten people live there."

Then he pointed to the top of his head, "This indoor small attic can also be used as a floor, even if a dozen guests come at once, they can still live there. Doing a ritual in a snail shell, you are really awesome!"

After he finished speaking, he leaned back again, "Today, my mother was moved and wondered if she should sell the two public houses at home and buy a small single building like mine, and then renovate it in the same way, which is ten times, a hundred times better than the original!"

Chen Fan looked at Anquan, who was obviously a little excited, so he didn't say anything and just listened to him with a smile.

After he finished speaking, he smiled and said, "If there is a suitable house, it would definitely be better to move out of there. Public housing doesn't have a kitchen, so you can only cook in the corridor. There's also no toilet, and you have to pour the chamber pot every day. How can it be better than having your own single-family courtyard, where everything is convenient?"

Anquan nodded in agreement, "I'll go to Director Wang tomorrow to see if there are any small buildings like this for sale."

Chen Fan pursed his lips, picked up the teacup and took a sip, "The probability is relatively small, unless it is a regular Shikumen, the possibility is greater."

Anquan safely took out a cigarette and handed it over, then put another one in his mouth, and said with a smile, "Then I probably can't afford it. A regular Shikumen house has four more large厢房 (xiāngfáng, side rooms), and it's unlikely to find someone who urgently needs money again. Buying such a house would probably cost ten or eight thousand yuan, which my family can't afford."

Speaking of this, he couldn't help shaking his head when he thought of the stacks of banknotes in Chen Fan's box.

The gap between people is sometimes bigger than the gap between people and dogs.

Fifty thousand yuan! If it were him, he didn't know if he could earn fifty thousand in his lifetime!

Even if he graduated from university, he would only earn 58 yuan a month. If he could get promoted to a small leadership position, let's say he earns 100 yuan, that would only be 1200 yuan a year.

Fifty thousand yuan, he would have to not eat or drink for 41 years... He is already 29 this year, and retires at 60, so he still has to count more than 10 years of retirement pay?!

Chen Fan lit a cigarette, exhaled a puff of smoke, thought for a while and said, "Old An, I have something on my mind. If you think it's right, then listen to it. If you think it's wrong, then just treat it as nonsense and bragging, and forget about it after you hear it."

Anquan was slightly stunned, then stared at him for a few seconds, suddenly grinned, coughed dryly, straightened his back, and said with a smile, "Okay, I'm all ears."

In the stairwell next door, Yu Keying was leading Jiang Lili downstairs, and vaguely heard their conversation, and couldn't help but stop and hesitate.

On the contrary, Jiang Lili smiled and pulled her, whispering, "It's okay."

Yu Keying turned her head to look at her, revealing a smile, "Then let's go listen too."

Chen Fan slowly smoked and drank tea, waited for them to turn out from the stairwell, then turned back and smiled, and then asked Anquan a question, "How do you plan to spend your four years of university?"

Hearing this question, Anquan couldn't help but be stunned, looked at him blankly, then looked at Yu Keying who had just sat down, and turned back to say, "Isn't it just studying hard, learning more knowledge, and then skillfully applying it after being assigned a job?"

Chen Fan turned to Yu Keying and smiled, "Do you think so too?"

Yu Keying blinked, not knowing how to answer.

Could this answer be wrong?

Jiang Lili had the same question as her. She sat next to Chen Fan, poured water into his cup, and asked, "Isn't that how it is?"

Chen Fan pointed to the tea stove on the table, "It's fine not to have a fire in the winter, but not even lighting a tea stove is too stingy."

(White clay tea stove from the 1970s)

Anquan's old face darkened, and he walked towards the backyard holding the tea stove, "I owe you."

Yu Keying held back her laughter and quickly went to clean the brass kettle and teacups.

Since they were going to make tea, they had to use special cups. She still understood this common sense.

After a while, Anquan came back with the tea stove, and Yu Keying put the cleaned teapot with tea leaves on the stove, then poured a pot of boiling water, and a fragrance of tea filled the air, and the room seemed to be much warmer.

Chen Fan slowly took a sip of tea, but the first thing he said was to Jiang Lili, "Old An's words are more suitable for you, because you have me. I will help you arrange everything, you only need to focus on knowledge and academics."

Jiang Lili's eyes flickered slightly, and she smiled sweetly at him without saying a word.

That's how it is. When there is a man in the family, the man naturally makes the decisions. She will do whatever he says. Why think so much about other things?

Chen Fan then turned to look at Anquan, and said seriously, "But you are different. You are the head of the family, and you have to plan for the family and the future at all times, instead of just focusing on the present and being unchangeable. You can't get ahead by following the rules."

Anquan frowned tightly, squinting his eyes thoughtfully.

I just said something about not having money. At this time, you criticized me head-on. Could there be any connection between the two?

You can make money, first by writing books, and second by helping the development of Lujiawan, and enjoying the dividends of the production team.

What do I have?

I can't earn royalties, and I don't have superior insights. Even if I make contributions to the unit, the unit has its own system, and it is impossible to give too high a reward. At most, I will be credited and given priority for promotion when the time is right.

But that doesn't add much to my salary, and it still doesn't have much to do with money!

After a few seconds of silence, he raised his head to look at Chen Fan, frowning and asking, "If I were you, what should I do?"

Chen Fan leaned back in his chair, leisurely lit a cigarette, looked at him and smiled, "If I were you, academics would definitely be very important, because that is the foundation of a student, and also the stepping stone to advancement. If your grades are not good, you will not have the confidence to speak in front of teachers and the school."

Anquan looked directly at him without saying a word.

Yu Keying also stared at Chen Fan, waiting for him to continue.

Chen Fan took a puff of smoke and said seriously, "But, academics are only a stepping stone to advancement. You need to use excellent academics as a platform, and on this basis, develop your own career."

Anquan frowned tightly, and said thoughtfully, "Just like the educated youth in Lujiawan, uniting them and weaving connections for myself?"

Chen Fan shook his head gently, "That's just a means, not an end."

He looked at Anquan and smiled, "What is your purpose in wooing them? What is the use?"

Anquan said while thinking, "Since it is a network, it should be able to help each other. After they graduate, they can exchange what they have."

He raised his head to look at Chen Fan, and smiled, "Just like you coming to Shanghai, we can't find a guest house, but you can, because you have connections in the health system and the identity of a writer, and they are willing to help you. When that group of educated youth grows up, they will also be willing to help me."

Chen Fan smiled, "How long will it take? Four years later, they will graduate and be grassroots cadres like you. Even if some of them can become middle-level and senior cadres in the future, how long will it take? Ten years? Twenty years?

How do you maintain this relationship for such a long time? Yes, you and I helped them with this college entrance examination, especially you, who were busy for them. They will definitely be grateful, but what about ten years later? What about twenty years later?"

Anquan frowned tightly again, "Then you mean it's useless to befriend them?"

Chen Fan smiled and shook his head again, "No, it's not only useful, but also very useful."

Anquan looked at him blankly, even more confused.

Jiang Lili blinked her eyes wildly, thought for a while, and silently gave up thinking.

If she was asked to study cultural knowledge, she could get started quickly, but if she was asked to consider these ethereal things, she would be completely clueless.

In this regard, let alone comparing with Chen Fan, even her sister is much better than her.

Yu Keying, who was sitting next to Anquan, thought for a while and said, "Old Chen just said that befriending them is only a process, not an end, so does that mean that we need a goal to strive for, and we can also use them, so that it makes sense to befriend them?"

Then she raised her head to look at Chen Fan, "And this goal can't be too far away, it's best to be something that can be used right now. In addition, this goal must also benefit them.

When a group of people are united by interests, interests are the best adhesive. Otherwise, it can only be a one-shot deal. When they feel that they have repaid Old An's favor, they will become ordinary friends. It's okay to have meals and tea and help with small things, but don't think about big things that require effort and favor."

Chen Fan gave her a thumbs up, but his eyes were on Anquan, "Look at your wife, and then look at you. I really don't know how your wife married you."

Anquan, upon hearing this, even started to puff up with pride, saying confidently, "Hey, you're right about that! It was precisely because of my relentless pursuit that I successfully won over your sister-in-law, and she's followed me these many years without regret. What's the matter? You can be envious, but you'll have to bear it!"

Chen Fan's lips twitched slightly, and he grabbed Jiang Lili's hand, "Envious of you? Is mine not good enough?!"

As soon as these words came out, Anquan gave a thumbs up, and Jiang Lili, her face flushed, laughed out loud along with Yu Keying.

The slightly serious atmosphere from before was swept away.

Anquan took out a cigarette, lit it, and looked at Chen Fan, saying, "Since you know my brain can't turn corners, don't play that enlightenment game with me. Just tell me directly, what should I do?!"

Chen Fan, smoking his cigarette, smiled and said, "Weren't you worried about money just now? Then let's start with how to make money. Think about how you can earn money. Once you have a goal, then make a plan. Can you make a plan?"

Anquan frowned slightly, "A plan to make money?"

If it were a commune financial plan, he could come up with it easily, but a plan to make money?

He didn't know how to do this problem!

Chen Fan looked at him and said, "Set a big goal, then set small goals, which is how to make money. Is it organizing students to engage in work-study programs, or starting your own projects and organizing students to implement them, and then enjoying the benefits according to their respective contributions?

Then there's the listing of usable resources, which ones can be used, which ones can't be used, which ones can be used indirectly, list them all clearly, and then fit these resources into the plan execution process..."

The eight common methods of making plans, time method, checklist method, three-stage method, OKR method, classification method, four-quadrant method, Gantt chart method, PDCA method... Chen Fan certainly wouldn't tell him all of them.

It was completely unnecessary.

He only extracted some simple key elements to tell him.

Finally, Chen Fan pressed the cigarette butt into the ashtray and said to him, "I've given you the method. How to do it depends on you."

Anquan frowned tightly, staring blankly at him, without saying a word.

Chen Fan slapped his forehead and turned to Yu Keying, saying, "Hurry up and exchange him, really, your husband is beyond saving."

Jiang Lili couldn't help but laugh and gently punched him.

Yu Keying covered her face directly, "I'm stuck with him, I can't even throw him away."

Anquan glared, "What nonsense are you talking about? I just wanted to test you. It's easy to say, first set a big goal, then set a small goal, huh, you think you can just set it? If I let you do it, what could you do to make money?"

Chen Fan sighed faintly, saying helplessly, "Old An, do you still remember what I said to you not long ago when you asked me what to do with those educated youth with families?"

Anquan was slightly stunned, then suddenly reacted, slapped the table, and said excitedly, "That's right, we can contact the supply and marketing cooperative, wholesale goods for the students to sell, and we can also apply to the school to set up tea stalls on or off campus."

Saying that, he tapped his head, closing his eyes and thinking divergently, "This matter must be led by the student union, in the name of work-study, the purchase price and selling price are fixed, but how the specific profit is divided is important, this must be arranged well.

In addition to the supply and marketing cooperative, we can also learn from Lujiawan and open a non-staple food store..."

He suddenly opened his eyes, his eyes full of excitement, "Let's go find the Chongming Island farm. I had a good chat with the head of the breeding farm last time. We can buy goods from them and then open a non-staple food store in the school, and arrange poor students to work there. And also, and also..."

Chen Fan waved his hand to interrupt him, smiling and saying, "Don't 'and also' for now. First of all, I want to affirm your ideas. These projects can all be implemented, and you can also connect those Nanhu educated youth who have been admitted to Shanghai. You buy goods from the farm, add a little price to supply them, and even if a portion of this money has to be given to the school, the rest is enough for you to earn.

But this alone is not enough."

Anquan didn't say anything, looking at him with unprecedented docility.

Chen Fan's lips twitched slightly, sighed, and said, "Have a long-term perspective. Everything you're doing, every school can do, and you can only do it for the four years you're in school. As a college student with aspirations, you can do better."

Meeting three pairs of eager eyes, Chen Fan smiled and said, "For example, most universities now don't have literary publications, can you do that?"

Anquan was first stunned, then nodded frantically, "Can do, can do!"

Compared to those cooked food stores, supply and marketing cooperatives, and tea stalls, isn't a magazine社 more high-end?!

If he didn't know how high the profits of Lujiawan's sideline business were, he wouldn't even want to touch those 'vulgar' businesses, and would directly concentrate on doing the magazine!

As for the manuscripts, there's no need to worry.

Which college student in this era doesn't like to read some literary works? When we ask them for contributions later, many people will definitely submit articles enthusiastically.

What? Quality?

Ahem, it's just a school magazine, can we lower the requirements a bit?!

If it really doesn't work, can we ask famous writers Chen Fan or Chendong to sponsor two articles?!

Looking at Anquan's eager to act now, Chen Fan smiled again, "In addition to literary publications, you can also organize semi-professional publications in finance.

Or assist students in other majors, helping them to run 'Physics Magazine', 'Chemistry Magazine', 'Mathematics Magazine'... these are all possible.

Such projects can not only help you and your classmates make money, but also increase your qualifications, which is much better than just making money?!"

Anquan became more and more excited as he listened, and finally simply lay on the table, prostrating himself, "Benefactor!"

With a clear idea, the subsequent organization and execution are his strengths, this matter is definitely no problem!

Seeing him like this, Jiang Lili and Yu Keying couldn't stop laughing.

It's just that neither of them looked at him, but looked at Chen Fan.

The difference was that Jiang Lili's eyes were full of admiration and love, while Yu Keying's were full of gratitude.

With Lao Chen's guidance, she believed that her man would definitely achieve excellent results and would not be looked down upon by anyone!

...

Coming out of Anquan's house, Chen Fan touched his stomach and sighed faintly, "I gave a lecture, but I only got a belly full of water."

Jiang Lili smiled at him, "I'll make you something delicious when we get home, what do you want to eat?"

Chen Fan looked at her, smiling, "Aren't you going back to school today?"

Jiang Lili wrinkled her nose, with a bit of unwillingness in her shyness, "You're leaving the day after tomorrow, I want to spend more time with you."

Chen Fan laughed, and after she got into the sidecar, he immediately started the motorcycle and hurried home.

...

The next day, morning.

Both of them rarely didn't get up early.

Jiang Lili snuggled in Chen Fan's arms, clearly awake, but just didn't want to get up.

Until she heard a ring of the doorbell, she immediately turned to Chen Fan, "Xiaofan, someone's here."

Chen Fan opened his eyes, his brows furrowed slightly, "Who would come at this time?"

Someone was coming, and it was no longer appropriate to stay in bed, so he turned over and got up, first tucking Jiang Lili in, "You lie down for a while longer."

Then he walked to the window, opened the glass window, and a gust of cold air rushed in, instantly sobering him up a bit.

He shouted to the outside, "Who is it?"

A few seconds later, a voice sounded, "Comrade Chen, Ba Lao invites you."