Reborn in 1977

Chapter 638: An Idle Move

If you were to ask what's best about Shanghai right now, Chen Fan's answer would be: the city is small and distances are short.

Taking his home as the center, no matter where he goes, the furthest is generally no more than 10 kilometers. For example, going to the airport is within this range.

There are exceptions, but not many.

Jiang Tian Tian's school is relatively far, about 15 kilometers. Riding a bicycle one way takes almost an hour every day, which is really tiring. If it rains, she can't even return and has to stay in the dormitory.

However, things will be better once she gets her driver's license. Driving will only take less than 20 minutes, and she won't have to worry about wind and rain.

Speaking of which, why did Fudan University have to put the school in such a remote location?

Chen Fan's thoughts had just begun to wander when the car arrived at the small courtyard that Zhou Yali had bought not long ago.

See, from the subdistrict office to the house, it's that close.

This courtyard is about the same size as his current house. Except for the absence of that big tree and the addition of a small pond of only a third of an acre, everything else is almost the same.

Director Wang led him inside, and an old craftsman who was working immediately came to greet them.

The old craftsman took out a pack of cigarettes and, without using his hands, tapped the bottom of the cigarette box twice. Three cigarettes of varying lengths popped out. He then handed the cigarette box to the two of them, "Director Wang, only cleaning is left here, and it can be finished today."

After Director Wang and Chen Fan each took a cigarette, he put the cigarette box to his mouth, bit the last cigarette, and then put the box in his pocket. He patted the dust off his hands and leaned towards the match Director Wang offered, lighting his cigarette while glancing at the young man next to him with a silver lighter in his hand, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes.

He had already inquired that this house and another particularly large manor were bought by the same Chinese-American. The young man in front of him probably isn't that Chinese-American; he doesn't look like someone who has returned from abroad.

But he must be related to that person, if not a relative, then a representative.

There have been many such things recently, and he has heard a lot about them.

He just finished the work here, and the next job hasn't been settled yet. Maybe it will fall on this young man.

The old craftsman was originally an old worker in the construction team and had two more years before retirement.

But at the beginning of the year, his eldest grandson returned to the city from the countryside, and his job hadn't been settled. So he let his grandson take his place, and he came out to do "odd jobs."

In fact, he was a skilled temporary worker.

Usually, relying on his old connections with the construction team, he was affiliated with the subdistrict office. When the construction team was too busy or picked up jobs they didn't like, he would go over to work and earn some money to supplement his family income.

Otherwise, with just that little pension, after subsidizing his sons' families, he could barely make ends meet.

While he can still work, he wants to earn as much as possible, and things will be better when his sons make something of themselves.

Unexpectedly, after working for more than half a year, several more old guys who gave way to their family's younger generation joined him. Several people simply teamed up and each brought one or two newly recruited apprentices, forming a loosely organized construction team of more than a dozen people.

With the help of the subdistrict office and the original construction team's connections, they can usually take on small renovation and remodeling jobs.

The restoration of this courtyard was a rare "big project" for them.

But now that the work is finished, the next order hasn't been settled yet. What if they could get involved in that big manor?

Thinking of this, he asked with a smile, "Director Wang, now that this is done, is there any new work?"

Director Wang scoffed, "Master Qiao, I knew your cigarette wasn't that easy to smoke. If it was before the project started, I could have said something, but now there are no new projects. Where am I going to find one for you?"

Master Qiao didn't take it seriously. He had been making a living on construction sites with his own father since he was a child. From the old society to the new China, although the times are changing, human relationships haven't changed. He was long accustomed to polite talk.

Unlike those who only started working in the new society, who always put themselves in the position of the master, picking and choosing when they work, and putting on airs for no reason.

In his opinion, in the old society, you were paid to do things. In the new society, everyone is equal, but you still have to do things well to be worthy of the salary you receive and the benefits you enjoy. You're not some stinky bureaucrat, why put on airs?

So his attitude was extremely good, and he smiled, "Isn't there a manor on Huashan Road? I heard from Lao Qin that there's only one construction team of 10 people working inside..."

Before he could finish speaking, Director Wang's face darkened, and he immediately interrupted him, "Hey, hey, hey, those 10 people are formal workers, with certificates and skills like you. Why don't you mention that there are also twenty or so temporary workers?"

While speaking, he couldn't help but glance at Chen Fan standing next to him. Seeing that his expression hadn't changed, he was slightly relieved.

That Miss Zhou had repeatedly told him to ensure the quality and quantity and complete the restoration as soon as possible.

But there was no way. If it had been a year earlier, he could have transferred several construction teams from the entire construction company over, but the situation is different this year.

This year, there are a particularly large number of families buying, changing, and repairing houses.

In addition to many overseas Chinese returning to China to visit relatives and buying houses along the way, more ordinary families have the need to improve their housing.

Some are changing houses. After changing houses, they need to do some simple renovations, right? Some who don't lack money even ask to tear down and rebuild.

More people don't have the means to change houses, but when their children return to the city, they also need to build a bed frame or partition off an attic.

Many of these require formal construction workers to do.

Those jobs that don't require formal workers, such as painting a wall or replacing a door or window, the men in the family can solve themselves, at most asking a skilled neighbor to help, and they can solve it.

So all the jobs that come to the subdistrict office are jobs that can't be refused.

Now, the several construction teams of the construction company have already been broken up and assigned to various households to work, and it's already good to arrange 10 formal workers for that big manor.

So, here comes the question. Since there's such a shortage of construction workers, why does Old Qiao's construction team still lack work?

Of course, it's because "all work is under unified planning"!

Even roadside stalls that supply goods and sell them in busy places are managed by the subdistrict office. Otherwise, if you can't produce a letter of introduction, you're disrupting the market and will be taken away!

Even if the construction team is only selling their labor, are you not afraid that someone will be jealous and complain if you dare to take on jobs privately?

Therefore, it must be carried out under the unified management of the subdistrict office's housing management office, otherwise it's all unreasonable.

And the housing management office hasn't wasted it. They usually assign Old Qiao and his team a lot of work. Otherwise, in less than a year, the construction team would be able to develop to a scale of more than a dozen people.

It's just that everyone has a desire to improve. Old Qiao and his team now don't want to do odd jobs that don't earn much money and have set their sights on that lucrative "big project."

Master Qiao nodded repeatedly, smiling and said, "Yes, yes, yes, they are all formal workers."

After a pause, he glanced at Chen Fan. Based on Director Wang's expression just now, he dared to be sure that this person was definitely the one who could make the decision.

Then he coughed and finally put on the airs of an old-timer, "Director Wang, you also know that when this small western-style building and the big villa on Huashan Road were built, I participated in them.

If the owner requires a new replacement, then I certainly wouldn't say much, but since the requirement is to restore it to its original state, I certainly have more say in this."

Director Wang curled his lips, hesitated for two seconds, and ultimately didn't want to take the blame, "Master Zhuang not only participated in the construction but was also the foreman."

Master Qiao's smile remained unchanged, "Yes, yes, having more familiar people can also improve efficiency, right?"

Director Wang disclaimed responsibility and stopped talking, turning to Chen Fan, "Writer Chen, what do you think?"

Chen Fan smiled slightly, noncommittal, then turned and pointed to the house, "Let's take a look inside first, then we'll talk."

With that, he walked inside.

The small western-style house was two and a half stories high, with white walls and red tiles, and the exterior walls were plastered with gravel, giving it a very stylish feel.

Like Chen Fan's house, there was a canopy supported by four Roman columns in front of the door, with the canopy connected to the second floor, where a door opened onto a balcony with railings.

The front door was a double door, which was already open. Inside, several young people were on the ground, wiping the floor carefully with rags, while the experienced workers were checking for leaks and making repairs.

The floor and the meter-high wainscoting on the walls were all made of teak panels, which gleamed with a dark, black-gold luster under the sunlight streaming in through the three glass windows.

On the west wall, there was also a well-restored fireplace.

Chen Fan turned around in place and continued walking inside.

Director Wang and Master Qiao followed closely behind him, wanting to offer an introduction, but Director Wang remembered that Chen Fan himself lived in a small western-style house, so he consciously kept his mouth shut.

Master Qiao, however, cautiously gave a brief introduction, "As per Director Wang's requirements, in addition to repairing the entire house, we also installed special wiring to power the air conditioning, and we installed telephone lines in the wire troughs.

If there is a need to install a telephone in the future, you only need to connect it to the junction box on the back wall."

Chen Fan nodded slightly in response.

He also climbed up to the attic on the top floor to take a look before hurrying downstairs.

Only after walking out of the gate did he smile at Director Wang and say, "Master Qiao's craftsmanship is excellent. Please have him come over and help with the repairs there tomorrow as well."

Director Wang finally breathed a sigh of relief and smiled at Master Qiao, "Aren't you going to thank Writer Chen?"

Master Qiao had already nodded and bowed, "Thank you, Writer Chen, thank you."

After Chen Fan walked around to the other side of the car and got in, he gently tugged on Director Wang's sleeve and asked in a low voice, "Which writer is he?"

Director Wang glared at him subtly, "Lao Qiao, how long have you been away from the construction team that you've forgotten the rules?"

Master Qiao was stunned and lightly patted his mouth, "My mistake, my mistake."

After a pause, he asked, "So, do I hand over the keys today?"

Director Wang thought for a moment, "Report to the other side first thing tomorrow morning, and give me the keys then."

He exhaled, "I still have to say hello to Master Zhuang, otherwise he might not let you in. You're lucky that the homeowner came to inspect today and agreed to let you go over, otherwise no one could have done anything, you can't stand up to Lao Zhuang."

Master Qiao chuckled twice, "That's right, that's right, I also have to thank you for your help."

He wanted to ask if this young man was the homeowner, but remembering the rule of "just work and don't talk," he held back.

After Director Wang got into the car, he waved and watched the van drive away before happily turning around and entering the courtyard to share the good news with his old brothers.

Chen Fan drove towards Huashan Road, pretending to ask casually, "Are there many people like Master Qiao? I mean, lacking work."

Director Wang rolled down the car window, shook his head, and smiled, "It's not that they lack work, there aren't enough people even if we double the workforce. More and more people are exchanging and buying houses now, and in order to solve the housing problem, the city is also making plans to build several new workers' villages. There's a shortage of construction workers everywhere now.

Master Qiao was originally an old worker in the district's construction company. His father was a construction worker in the old society and had worked with European construction companies in Shanghai, so he is very familiar with brick and stone construction. This skill can be considered a family tradition. After the restructuring after the founding of the country, he joined the district construction company.

Wasn't it at the beginning of the year that the eldest son of his family returned from the countryside? He wasn't able to get a job, and since all his other children were still in school and hadn't reached working age, he retired early and let his eldest grandson take his place, while he took on odd jobs.

Later, he formed the current construction team with several other experienced workers in similar situations, and our housing management office assigns them tasks and manages them.

It was also a coincidence this time that he had participated in the construction of the two houses your cousin bought back then, so I guess that's what sparked his interest."

In the end, he still covered for Master Qiao, as having ideals always sounds better than making money, especially in this era.

After listening, Chen Fan's summary was two points: Master Qiao has skills, and he has the skills to build the top private residences in old Shanghai from the Republican era to the present.

Secondly, Shanghai is currently in urgent need of construction workers.

This is somewhat similar to the capital.

In the first half of the year, many construction teams were idle and had no work to do, so they could only repair old houses. Now, these small jobs don't require construction teams to do them; just send a few apprentices. The experienced workers are all following the construction teams to do "big projects."

Construction is starting from the south to the north.

He had some ideas in his mind, but there was no rush now. He would discuss it with Secretary Yang and the others after returning to Lujiawan.

Construction is an industry with great potential, and Lujiawan also has a construction team that was formed to build a toilet for him.

If this construction team can be brought to Shanghai and cooperate with Master Qiao and his team, it will definitely be a win-win situation.

But Lujiawan is also a treasure land now, and it's not certain whether people are willing to come out.

If they are willing, he is happy to arrange it for them. If they don't mean to, then forget it.

At most, it's just one less big project in the future where he can get a share of the profits, just earning a little less money. For the current best-selling American author, it's all small change.

Just consider it a casual move, optional.

…

Soon, they arrived at the large manor on Huashan Road.

Unlike the small courtyard, the gate here was closed, after all, the space inside was too large, and a lot of construction materials were piled up. There are many idlers now, if people are allowed to come in at will and take something, the construction team leader will also have to bear the responsibility.

Director Wang called for the gate to be opened, and Chen Fan drove in again. After getting out of the car, he walked around the empty space.

Compared with the small western-style house just now, this is a large construction site.

The swimming pool, which was originally filled with weeds and sewage, had been cleaned up, and even the tiles had been knocked off, and various equipment had been removed. This was to rebuild a new swimming pool.

The three buildings, one main and two auxiliary, standing not far away, had all been demolished into empty shells, and the old materials that had been dismantled were piled up on the side, waiting to be renovated.

One had already been completed, while the other had just finished demolition. The amount of work in the two courtyards was indeed incomparable.

In this state, there was no need for him to go in and take a look, he couldn't see anything anyway.

Director Wang had just pulled Master Zhuang aside to talk for a while, and then he came over and said with a soft smile, "The place here is a bit bigger, so the progress will definitely be a bit slower. But when Master Qiao and his team join in tomorrow, it will speed up the progress."

Chen Fan nodded lightly, offered Master Zhuang a cigarette, and then left with Director Wang.