Reborn in 1977

After returning to the hostel and loading the computer into the car, Chen Fan said goodbye to Xiao Peng and sped towards Yunhu.

As he expected, the journey was swift, and he arrived at the old Chen family residence before 6 PM.

Huang Li and the others regularly came to clean, so the house wasn't dirty. Chen Fan tidied up a bit, lit the coal stove in the kitchen to boil water, and after making the bed, the water was boiling. He poured himself a cup of hot tea to rest for a while, and then checked the time, it was already 6:30, so he got up and went outside.

It didn't matter before, but now that he had confirmed his relationship with Jiang Lili, after returning, his first stop had to be the Jiang family, otherwise, it would be considered impolite.

After some picking and choosing, he took a few things and put them in the passenger seat of the car, then Chen Fan drove to the cotton mill.

Jiang Heng and Shen Xueyi were extremely happy about Chen Fan's arrival and quickly welcomed him in.

Jiang Heng took out a pack of cigarettes and handed it to Chen Fan, "Help yourself, don't worry about me."

He was in the textile industry and had studied textile engineering in school. Because he often dealt with flammable materials, he never smoked.

Chen Fan waved his hand, "I don't smoke often either, only when I'm socializing."

There was no way around it. Whether it was the production team, the machinery factory, the health department, or now the writers' association, they were all heavy smokers, and it was impossible not to be influenced.

Jiang Heng smiled and nodded, "It's good to smoke less. Although you are still young, you should also pay attention to your health."

Shen Xueyi said while busy, "Lili called yesterday, saying that both of them have work to do. She has to go to the laboratory with her teacher, and Tiantian also has to go to the magazine to study. They won't be back for the summer vacation."

"I was wondering if you would come back, but you came today."

She put a cup of green tea in front of Chen Fan and turned the electric fan on him, "Sit down for a while, I'll go cook."

Saying that she walked towards the kitchen.

Chen Fan said with a smile, "I'm just coming back for a visit, I'll be going to Shanghai in a couple of days."

He had nothing to do now, so he might as well go to Shanghai to accompany his girlfriend and work out the outline of the Western fantasy novel.

In addition, there were more than a dozen manuscripts from provincial literary magazines that he planned to finish in these two months.

Including "Jiangnan Literature", he would try to reduce contributions to these magazines in the future, especially long novels, which would no longer be serialized in magazines.

Of course, the relationship couldn't be completely cut off. Every few months, he would write a short story for each of them, which could be regarded as maintaining the relationship.

Originally, he contributed to these magazines to earn royalties. Thanks to the generosity of the little notebook, he was now very well-off. In addition to the 380,000 yuan in Zhang Shifu's hands, he also had nearly 80,000 yuan in cash, so he didn't lack money at all.

Furthermore, once the Western fantasy novel system was established and published in the United States through the Zhou family's publishing house, that would be a real fortune.

Even kindergarten children knew how to make such a simple calculation, let alone him.

When Jiang Heng heard that Chen Fan was going to Shanghai, he knew that he was going to accompany his daughter, and his face immediately lit up with a smile, "It's good to go to Shanghai. Neither of the sisters has ever been far away from home, and I don't know if they are used to being outside. We are relieved to have you there to accompany them."

Chen Fan grinned dryly, feeling inexplicably guilty.

If he knew how he took care of Lili, he didn't know if he would freak out.

Jiang Heng took a sip of tea, changed the subject, "I heard that your uncle came back to find you last month. Why didn't he stay in Yunhu?"

Chen Fan's expression stiffened slightly, and he said cautiously, "He did stay for a day,"

He made a gesture with his hand, his expression a little embarrassed, "It's just that, maybe I wasn't ready yet."

Normally speaking, since he and Lili were already like that, he should have let his uncle and the Jiang family meet. Even if it wasn't to discuss marriage, it was a courtesy of a family meeting.

It was just that he had been alone since he was a child and was used to handling everything himself, so he subconsciously forgot about relatives and friends and didn't think of this for a while.

Jiang Heng blinked, nodded suddenly, and said with emotion, "That's true. After all, you've never met him since you were so old, so it's normal to have a hard time accepting it."

He looked up at Chen Fan, with a bit of pity in his eyes, and smiled, "It's okay, there will be plenty of time in the future. When your uncle returns to China next time, we'll invite him to dinner."

He didn't say any words of persuasion, but this sentence already contained all the meaning.

Chen Fan nodded sincerely, "Okay, I'll arrange it when he comes back to China next time."

The two chatted about some trivial matters. When Jiang Heng heard Chen Fan say that he had completed all the subjects' exams, he was surprised beyond words, and finally could only shake his head and sigh, "I heard Lili and the others say that you had been helping them preview university courses a long time ago. It's not scary to have talent, the key is to work harder than others, no wonder you can achieve today's achievements."

At this time, Shen Xueyi came out of the kitchen with the dishes and shouted with a smile, "Dinner is ready."

Jiang Heng stood up, made an inviting gesture to Chen Fan, and said with a smile, "Your aunt and I have already had dinner, I'll have a couple of drinks with you."

Chen Fan was not polite, walked over and sat down, and picked up the wine bottle to pour two glasses of wine.

Shen Xueyi took off her apron and sat beside him to accompany him.

Jiang Heng raised his glass to signal, took a sip of wine, and said, "Last time you mentioned the down jacket fabric production line, the report has been sent to the Department of Light Industry, but because it is a major matter, the department still needs to conduct multi-party research and careful study, and it is estimated that it will be difficult to get results in a short time."

Chen Fan ate a bite of food and said seriously, "My proposal to open a down jacket fabric production line is also related to Lujiawan. Now Lujiawan's poultry breeding industry is getting bigger and bigger. In addition to themselves, they have also driven the other four production teams in Nanhugongshe. If five production teams do it together, the amount is very large."

"So I want Lujiawan to take the lead in running a collective down cleaning enterprise in Nanhu. This matter is already underway."

"When this factory is set up, we will have a large amount of finished down available. Although selling down directly can also make money, it is still not as good as running our own down jacket factory."

"Lujiawan is not an ordinary production team. The daily net profit is tens of thousands, and the total annual profit is conservatively estimated to be over ten million…"

Shen Xueyi couldn't help but exclaim, "So much?"

Jiang Heng was also very surprised. Although the cotton mill had nearly 10,000 employees and more than a dozen branch factories, when it came to calculating, the total annual profit was not even as good as Lujiawan.

This was a bit outrageous.

Chen Fan turned his head and smiled, "It's a lot, but this money is not entirely controlled by the brigade department. They also have to give dividends to the small teams and production team members below, and the remaining amount is probably only two or three million."

Jiang Heng sighed, "That's still very impressive."

He was no stranger to the production team. Whether it was before or after his reinstatement, he had often run to the production team near the prefectural committee.

Even though Jiangnan is a land of fish and rice, with abundant rice harvests every year, the dividends distributed to the commune members only amounted to a few hundred yuan a year, barely comparable to the wages of an average formal worker in the city.

Those who grew cotton or rapeseed earned slightly more, but the difference was limited.

A place like Lujiawan, capable of distributing six to seven million yuan in dividends, was unheard of.

Lujiawan had a total population of just over four thousand but less than five thousand. After deducting the share for the production teams and accounting for the elderly, the weak, women, and children, each able-bodied worker would still receive three to four thousand yuan. That was already ten to twenty times more than other production teams.

Compared to places with harsh natural conditions, those areas were lucky to distribute a few dozen yuan a year, and it was not uncommon for them to be in debt for food rations year after year.

In this light, Lujiawan could indeed be considered a relatively strong unit.

It was just that the time was relatively short. If given more time, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, Lujiawan might even surpass several large factories under the prefectural committee.

While he was pondering, Chen Fan continued, "Therefore, Lujiawan has the full capacity to run a factory of considerable size.

However, apart from money, Lujiawan has nothing else – no technology, no equipment. That's why I'm thinking it would be best if the cotton mill could also join in, with you running a down jacket fabric production factory. After producing the fabric, you can sell it directly to Lujiawan's garment factory. With down and fabric, we can produce down jackets.

I've inquired around, and currently, down jackets are very popular in some southern regions. Many people there don't wear cotton-padded jackets in winter but instead buy down jackets.

As for the northern market, it's still completely untapped. But down jackets are actually more suitable for the north, so we're facing a very large, blank market."

At this time, Shen Xueyi said from the side, "After you mentioned it last time, I also inquired and checked the data. There are still a few down jacket factories in China. Why don't they sell down jackets to the north?"

Chen Fan turned around and smiled, "Because they are responsible for earning foreign exchange. Almost all down jackets are used for export, and only a very small number enter the market through department stores, and they are always in short supply."

Shen Xueyi nodded thoughtfully and stopped talking.

Jiang Heng picked up his wine glass, took a sip, put it down, and said to Chen Fan, "I have a good idea about this matter. After I arrange the work in the factory, I'll take a trip to the provincial capital another day and personally handle this matter."

Saying that, he suddenly smiled, "Maybe, I'll have to borrow your name at that time."

Chen Fan was stunned for a moment, "Me?"

What does it have to do with me?

Shen Xueyi smiled from the side, "You don't know yet, but your name is very useful. Now, which unit or system in Jiangnan Province hasn't heard of your name? First, you invented a new first aid method, showing you are very familiar with medical skills, and then you designed two cars based on your father's drafts.

In the mouths of some people, you have been described as an omnipotent genius, saying you know everything."

Chen Fan pretended to be embarrassed and wiped away non-existent cold sweat, "That's too unfair to me. Uh, are they going to drag me out for research?"

Jiang Heng chuckled and shook his head, "Don't worry too much. No one believes there is an omnipotent genius, but your reputation is still trustworthy. As long as it's a field you actively get involved in, it must be purposeful, not just empty talk.

Using your name to pave the way is not a joke. At least the leaders of the Light Industry Department will pay more attention to this proposal, which can be regarded as adding a few more weights."

After the words fell, Jiang Heng pondered for two seconds and still hesitated to say, "Xiao Fan, we can be considered a family now, and your uncle wants to tell you something from the bottom of his heart."

Chen Fan put down his chopsticks and turned to face him, "Please speak."

Jiang Heng looked at him and smiled, "You are very smart and talented, but you are involved in too many industries. If you can focus on one industry, you will definitely achieve greater success."

Shen Xueyi couldn't help but nod lightly from the side.

Chen Fan's story was easy to find out, and it would even actively crawl into your ears.

He was proficient in mechanical and electrical engineering and could design two cars, which were also recognized and praised by experts from the First Ministry of Machinery.

Unfortunately, he designed them based on his father's notebook, and most of the credit still went to his father.

Saying he was capable, he was indeed capable, but he hadn't reached the point of being irreplaceable.

This was also the main reason why the First Ministry of Machinery did not insist on transferring him over.

Since they had obtained Chen Fan's father's notebook, he was no longer so important.

The same was true for medicine.

He created a new first aid method, saving countless people, but that was all.

He himself had good medical skills, but only to the intermediate level. He couldn't go any higher. What great use could an intermediate doctor be?

It was only because of that first aid method that the health system had always regarded him as one of their own. Otherwise, no one would even bother to give him a second glance. (Qin Zhongxian and Fang Yuanshou from Fudan Medical College: Who said that?)

Therefore, in the eyes of many people, Chen Fan was talented and proficient in many skills, but that was all. He was far from being irreplaceable.

This was the main reason why Chen Fan could wander from one unit to another, and no one insisted on keeping him.

Faced with Jiang Heng's concern, Chen Fan naturally wouldn't reveal his true abilities. He immediately put on an appearance of humbly listening, "Yes, yes, yes, so I am now focusing on literature and not paying much attention to other things."

But he was secretly rejoicing in his heart that he had successfully hidden his abilities. Fortunately, he was successful, otherwise, he would have been conscripted and used to death.

Jiang Heng didn't care whether it was literature or machinery. Anyway, Chen Fan didn't understand textiles, so it had nothing to do with him.

Seeing Chen Fan so obedient, he nodded with satisfaction, "Good, good, good. No matter what industry we are in, as long as we can do it with precision and depth, we are people who contribute to society."

Chen Fan raised his wine glass, "Yes, yes, I remember. Uncle, let's have a drink."

… …

The next morning, Chen Fan got up and stretched in the yard, which was considered completing today's morning exercise task.

A few days ago, he discovered that his daily morning exercises seemed to be useless. It was the same whether he exercised or not.

Moving his muscles and bones at any time could achieve the effect of morning exercise, which was a bit like the "returning to simplicity" and "nourishing instead of training" that Master Zhang said.

But wasn't that the stage that elderly martial artists reached? I'm still so young, how can I retire?

He shook his head, stood in the yard and took a deep breath, exhaling the turbid air, and then whistled.

In a few seconds, two tabby cats descended from the sky and sat obediently in front of him.

Chen Fan counted the soldiers, "There are no mice in the house, and the work is done very well. Today, I will reward you with two more small dried fish. Go and get them yourselves."

The two tabby cats immediately smiled and rushed to the kitchen.

Chen Fan then pulled the door and got into the car, ready to go to the machinery factory, no, it should be Yunhu Automobile Factory, to buy a car.