Chapter 1355 Meeting

The least valuable thing in Beijing right now is labor.

Ordinary people are never afraid of wasting their energy, but they are afraid of having no place to use their energy, or that their energy is wasted but not exchanged for a grain of rice.

According to normal market conditions, people would be scrambling to do Su Yi's job for 50 cents, let alone 1.5 yuan?

1.5 yuan for pulling three trips of goods, this job is considered "high welfare" for any low-level ordinary people, let alone Qin Huairu who has been struggling on the food and clothing line for many years?

Three years ago, Qin Huairu's husband Jia Dongxu died unexpectedly. Qin Huairu, who was still pregnant at the time, replaced Jia Dongxu's shift and entered the factory as an apprentice.

According to reason and regulations, the salary plus subsidies for apprentices who have just entered the factory is 16.5 yuan. The apprenticeship period for fitters is three years. After three years, they can be converted to regular employees and become "half-time" first-level fitters, with a salary of 25 yuan, plus subsidies, which is 27.5 yuan a month.

But Qin Huairu has elderly parents and young children to support, and it is impossible for her to survive by supporting a large family with a monthly salary of 16.5 yuan.

Qin Huairu's mother-in-law Jia Zhang went to the factory to make trouble several times. The factory leaders sat together to discuss, and the deputy director Li Xinmin came up with a good idea.

That is to pay Jia Dongxu's compensation pension to Qin Huairu, who is on duty, in the form of salary every month, so that Qin Huairu can enjoy the treatment of a first-class fitter three years in advance as an apprentice.

In this way, although the factory will suffer a little loss in general and will have to pay Qin Huairu a lot more money and food, it solves the survival problem of Qin Huairu's family, which can be regarded as the best of both worlds.

It must be said that Li Xinmin handled this matter very well. This plan was unanimously agreed by the factory leaders and was readily accepted by Qin Huairu's family.

Is a salary of 27.5 yuan enough to support two adults and three children?

It depends on how you say it.

If you eat poorly, don't buy new clothes or any big items. Try to buy less or no non-essential items. Pray that your family of five will not get sick. These five people can barely survive in Beijing in the 1960s with 27.5 yuan.

Such a life is much better than the countryside.

In the 1960s, the minimum living standard in Beijing was 5 yuan per month. Generally speaking, the minimum living standard issued by the state is to ensure that a person will not starve to death.

For example, now, in 22 years, the minimum living standard in Beijing is 800 yuan per month. Can you survive in Beijing with 800 yuan a month?

All you can say is that you will not starve to death if you spend almost all your money on food.

Qin Huairu's salary averaged 5.5 yuan for a family of five, which is 50 cents higher than the minimum living standard.

Calculated based on the average daily income, it is 90 cents a day.

At that time, the worst corn flour and other coarse grains were about 8 or 9 cents per catty. Even if all the daily income was used to buy coarse grains, you could only buy 10 catties.

Is ten kilograms of coarse grains enough for her family of five for a day?

It is enough if they are not full, and this is not an exaggeration.

At that time, there were no vegetables, no oil, let alone meat, and they only relied on grains to survive hunger. The consumption is so great that it is difficult for modern people to imagine.

Even if an old man like Jia Zhang eats freely, he can easily eat more than one kilogram of coarse grains in one meal.

This is unimaginable in modern times. Now an adult man may not be able to finish two taels of noodles in one meal.

A young boy like Banggeng is in the period of growth. He eats more in one meal than an adult in two meals. His appetite is amazing, so there is a saying that "a young boy will eat his father out of poverty."

Qin Huairu can't buy only coarse grains with an average daily income of 90 cents. It is difficult to swallow coarse grains every meal, so she also has to eat some "two-in-one (coarse grains and fine grains mixed together)".

In addition, there are water, electricity, coal, firewood, rice, oil, salt, and various expenses for sewing and mending at home. Her salary can only ensure that the whole family will not starve to death.

In order to ensure that her children would not go hungry, go to school, and have new clothes to wear, she could only try every possible way to find money and all the materials she could use.

This situation today is like a person in Beijing who relies on more than 4,000 yuan a month to support an old man and send three children to school.

Such a heavy burden of life would crush a grown man.

Poverty breeds evil schemes, and wealth breeds conscience. Everyone says that the widow Qin sucks blood, the widow Qin is hateful, and the widow Qin does not want Bilian. In fact, the fundamental reason lies in one word - poverty!

So the old saying goes that there must be something sympathetic about hateful people. It is difficult for ordinary people to imagine how a pretty widow with three children and a mother-in-law can survive in this sinister society with so little money.

Of course, you can't be poor and you are right. Since Qin Huairu got the disease of poverty, she has indeed been twisted and has lived like a leech.

Hearing Xiaodang's intermittent account of the whole incident, Qin Huairu was surprised, happy, angry, and regretful.

What surprised her was that she didn't expect that the college student who was admired and praised by all the female workers in the workshop actually lived in her compound and became her neighbor.

What made her happy was that this college student was so rich and generous!

He only paid one dollar and fifty cents to move something!

This was simply taking money for granted!

If she could get along well with such a rich and generous neighbor, wouldn't he be able to help her in the future?

She was angry because Bang Geng was bad and the three aunts were shameless.

What was a pity was that the three aunts "snatched food from the tiger's mouth" and took away the fifty cents.

Otherwise, how great would it be to earn two dollars more today, which was more than her two days' salary?

It's fine now. I lost fifty cents in vain and let the third aunt take advantage.

"This guy who succeeds more than he succeeds but fails more than he deserves should be beaten. He let the third aunt take away fifty cents for nothing!" Qin Huairu became angrier as she thought about it, as if her own money had been stolen.

"Mom, I promised him to wait for him at the factory gate," Xiao Dang stopped crying and said anxiously, "It's all my fault that my brother didn't let me go find Uncle Silly. It took me so long and I don't even know if he's gone. "

"You can't go to Silly Zhu for this matter!" Qin Huairu's eyes flashed and she was making calculations in her head.

Although Sha Zhu can "bully him", Qin Huairu also has a way to let Sha Zhu do the work and keep the money in her own pocket, but she thinks that what is more important than the one dollar and fifty cents is to have a good relationship with the college students.

If a woman wants to have a good relationship with a man, she will inevitably say something flattering, and it is easy for someone to take advantage of her. If Silly Zhu were here, this silly young man should stop being jealous and beat him up.

Wouldn't that turn a good thing into a bad thing?

So this matter must not come to Si Zhu.

You have to do it yourself!

Qin Huairu quickly thought about what to do to leave a good impression on the college students. She turned to Xiaodang and said: "Xiaodang, take Sophora japonica and hurry to the factory gate to wait for the uncle. Don't miss it! Mom! Let’s go find a cart!”

"Mom, are you looking for my stupid uncle?" Xiao Dang asked.

"Haha, your stupid uncle may not be able to lend you the carts in the factory!" Qin Huairu chuckled.

Silly Zhu is upright and has offended many people. Banerche belongs to the purchasing department, and many people in this department have been offended by Silly Zhu.

In fact, in the Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill, Shazhu was not as happy as Qin Huairu.

"Xiao Dang, if I meet your stupid uncle, you must not tell him about this!" Qin Huairu warned again worriedly.

"Why mom?" Xiaodang didn't understand.

"I told you that you don't understand, just listen to me!" Qin Huairu didn't bother to explain, and waved her hands to tell her two daughters to leave quickly.

"Mom, I want to eat the donkey and roll around!" Xiao Huaihua said.

"Donkey rolling is not delicious. When you make money, mom will buy you some bean curd candies." Qin Huairu petted little Sophora japonica's head lovingly.

Although the so-called bean root candy is called sugar, it is made from soybean flour. It has a slightly sweet taste and is very chewy.

This thing was one of the cheapest children's snacks in the North in the sixties.

"Okay!" Little Sophora Flower immediately smiled happily.

Children are easy to deceive.

Xiaodang took his sister to the factory gate, and sure enough, he saw Su Yi coming out soon.

"Uncle! Uncle!" Xiaodang immediately greeted him happily.

"The joy from Jia Dang +88..."

Su Yi smiled and nodded, still a little surprised why he didn't see the "premium customer" stick?

At this moment, Banggeng has contributed a lot of malice and anger to Su Yi, and he has a deep resentment towards Su Yi.

"Uncle, my mother has already gone to find a carriage, and your affairs have been taken care of for you!" Xiao said seriously as if he were a young adult.

"What about the car?" Su Yi asked with a smile.

"She's not here yet, but my mother asked me to tell you that she will be here soon." Xiao Dang said hurriedly, "Uncle, just wait a moment and she will be here."

wait?

Not knowing how long the wait would be, Su Yi was too lazy to stand at the entrance of the factory.

"In this case, when your mother comes, you ask your mother to go directly to the door of the department store and wait for me." Su Yi said to her, "I have something else to do and don't have time to wait here."

"Ah?" Xiaodang was a little dumbfounded.

"Maliciousness from Jardan +19..."

"Uncle, are you not keeping your word?" Xiao Dang asked suspiciously.

Su Yi smiled and took out the money from his pocket, took out a fifty cent note and handed it to her.

"Now, here's the deposit. You take it first. I'll give you the remaining dollar after the work is finished."

"The joy from Jia Dang +99..."

"The joy from Jia Huaihua +99..."

"Thank you, uncle!" Jia Dang said happily as he took the money.

"Aren't you afraid that I will run away this time?" Su Yi said with a smile.

"I'm not afraid anymore!" Jia Dang shook his head vigorously and smiled from ear to ear.

Children don't have any scheming ideas, and whatever they say in their hearts is displayed on their faces.

Su Yi smiled, waved his hand, turned and left.

Behind him, two little girls were hugging each other, laughing and dancing.

"Second sister, take me to buy bean curd candies!" Xiao Huaihua had already begun to swallow her saliva.

"No, we have to give the money to mom." Xiaodang shook his head and refused, "We are children, we can't spend the money casually."

"How can I do that?" Xiao Huaihua questioned, "If I were here, I would have taken us to buy it!"

"My grandma will protect me even if I spend money. If I spend money, I will be beaten to death by my grandma!" Xiao Dang said to Xiao Huaihua seriously.

"Grandma is partial." Xiao Huaihua said.

"That's right! Grandma is biased!" Xiaodang wrinkled his nose, "Fortunately, mom is here, otherwise we would have to starve to death!"

The two young ladies were chatting with each other when they saw Qin Huairu riding a three-wheeled scooter not far away.

"mom!"

"Mom, I want to take a big car!" When the little Sophora flower saw the tricycle, she immediately forgot about the bean curd and jumped up happily.

Qin Huairu ignored her and asked Xiaodang eagerly: "Is the person here?"

Xiaodang nodded repeatedly, handed her the fifty cents and said, "He told you to wait at the door of the department store. He also said that this is a deposit, and the remaining one dollar will be given after the work is completed."

Qin Huairu smiled happily, took the money, picked up Xiaodang and kissed her on the face: "Our Xiaodang is the best! If it was your brother, who has no conscience, he would have run away with the money by now!"

Xiaodang was very proud of being praised: "Mom, am I more obedient than my brother?"

"Xiaodang is the best and the most obedient!" Qin Huairu was in a good mood and praised Xiaodang generously after seeing the cash before doing anything.

She touched Xiaohuahua's head with her big eyes rolling around, and said: "You two go home first, and when mom is done, I will buy you something delicious!"

"I want to eat bean root candy!" Xiaohuahua remembered it again.

"Okay, okay, I'll buy it for you!" Qin Huairu smiled, "Don't run around, mom is leaving first."

She said, and pedaled the tricycle hard to go away.

On the other side, Su Yi, holding a "large sum of money" and a lot of tickets, felt more assured, and went directly to the grocery store, where he bought all kinds of seasonings, melon seeds, candies, canned cakes, etc., in large and small bags.

He spent more than 17 yuan on all kinds of things, and then he turned around and walked towards the department store.

Su Yi enjoyed his current state very much. The things he was doing now were tedious, boring, and even meaningless, but wasn't that the greatest meaning of life?

He was ready to experience a lifetime in this world.

Su Yi saw from a distance a woman in dirty work clothes leaning against a tricycle and standing at the entrance of the mall, looking around.

No need to think, this must be Qin Huairu.

The loose clothes didn't show whether she was fat or thin, her hair was a little burnt and messy, her facial features were delicate, and her peach blossom eyes were full of charm, but most people in this era had a dark yellow complexion due to lack of nutrition, and Qin Huairu was no exception.

It is said that Qin Huairu is a pretty widow, but as the saying goes, clothes make the man, and saddles make the horse. Qin Huairu's "pure natural" image actually makes it difficult for Su Yi to have any thoughts.

He walked straight towards Qin Huairu, who also noticed Su Yi and looked at her hesitantly. Her eyes especially stayed on the large and small bags in Su Yi's hands for a few seconds. Then she hesitated to speak, and wanted to raise her hand but retracted it and said: "Hey - you... are you Comrade Su Yuanchao?"

The design of each action and each tone reveals more than ten thoughts...

Su Yi saw through it but didn't say it. He deliberately frowned and said: "You are the mother of that little girl, right? Oh, I may not have made it clear. I have a lot of big things to pull. I'm afraid you, a female comrade, can't do it?"

Qin Huairu said "Hi" and put a strand of hair behind her ear, smiling: "Women can hold up half the sky, you can't underestimate us female comrades. Comrade Su, whether it is a mule or a horse, you can tell it by pulling it out for a walk. Where are your things?"