Kuitun was once a military city, located five kilometers north of Wuyi Highway. And just around the corner there is a relatively large military station, which is also a relatively busy military station. Military vehicles, supplies or new veterans coming from Wucheng usually stop here to rest.
There were several troops stationed in KT City, but later on, during several major reorganizations of the troops, they were either dismantled or reorganized and moved, and in the end there were not many left.
When Li Long saw the military station while driving his tractor, he was really relieved.
Driving the tractor from home, even though he rested along the way, the constant vibrations of the tractor still gave him the feeling that his body, including his internal organs, was shaking all the time. He couldn't recover in an hour. .
We will soon reach our destination, so he will naturally feel a little happier. He needs to have a good rest tonight!
The tractor turned right and entered the road leading to KT City. Li Long relied on his memory and drove directly to the north of the city, where the No. 1 Construction and Installation Company of KT City was located.
Of course, this place is now close to the outskirts of the city, and further north is farmland. But a few decades later, this place was actually considered to be in the middle of the urban area. To the north, many units and residential buildings of the Seventh Agricultural Division were developed, and later some parks and scenic spots were developed.
The vegetable farmers who used to grow vegetables at the urban-suburban junction north of the construction and installation company all became rich after their greenhouses were demolished. In the past, those who farmed here were looked down upon, and most of them were outsiders. Later, they became the envy of everyone.
So, the world is wonderful.
Li Long drove the tractor to the entrance of the construction and installation company. Seeing that it seemed to be off work, he parked the tractor aside.
"Are we here?" Li Anguo was the first to ask. He was a little excited, but also a little nervous, nervous about his future.
"We're here, but don't get off yet. I'll go over and explore the way first." Li Long said, "Let's find Section Chief Ma first."
Ma Aihong is a construction and installation company As the section chief, Li Xiangqian did not elaborate on his specific duties, and Li Long was not easy to ask. He planned to go to the place and inquire again.
"Okay, then go and ask first." Li Anguo and the others admired Li Long's social skills. If you can't do it yourself, then let someone who can do it do it.
Li Long picked up a black bag from the tractor and walked to the door.
The entrance of the construction and installation company is in a small alley. There is no special gate guard here. There is an old man sweeping the yard. Judging from the situation, he is about to close the big iron gate after sweeping. Li Long stepped forward and handed the old man a cigarette. The old man glanced at Li Long and shook his head to express that he didn't smoke.
"Uncle, I am from the Ma County Supply and Marketing Cooperative. Our section chief is friends with your Section Chief Ma here. He asked me to help deliver something. Is he in there now?"
"Chief Ma?"
"Well, Ma Aihong, Chief Ma." Li Long explained.
"You said Aihong, they are off work." The old man stopped sweeping the floor. Li Long looked at the big splendens broom and always felt it looked so familiar.
"Have you got off work?" Li Long looked confused, "How can I deal with getting off work now? This is my first time here, and I don't know where their home is..."
"Aihong and his family live not far away. Look, "the old man is quite Enthusiastically pointed the way to Li Long, "Exit the gate of our company, walk forward for about fifty meters, turn right and go in, less than a hundred meters away, turn right again and there is an alley, on the left hand side. In the second road, the third house is Ma Aihong’s courtyard. He should be having dinner now."
"Hey, thank you, sir." Li Long repeated what the old man said, and after getting the old man's approval, he took it out of the black bag. A piece of air-dried meat was handed over:
"Uncle, this is the air-dried wild boar meat from our place. You can try it before I leave."
Before the old man had time to speak, Li Long He had already turned around and hurried out of the door.
"Hey, this young man is quite generous." Smelling the smell of meat, the old man smiled. Although he also gets a salary here, it is not easy to eat meat. Just a piece of air-dried meat weighing more than one kilogram would take two days of work to buy.
Li Long arrived at the tractor, cranked the engine, and said as he prepared to drive:
"Chief Ma went home from get off work for dinner. Come on, let's go to his house and put the things away. Send it off and then ask about the situation."
"What about tonight?" Li Anguo thought. It's relatively far away, "How about we find a place to stay before we go?"
"Don't say goodbye yet." Li Long said while driving, "Ask clearly if we can get in, where the company can arrange a stay, then Find a hotel to stay at tonight. If the company can’t arrange a place, then rent a yard.”
Li Anguo and Li Junshan both nodded. It seemed that Li Long had thought everything through.
Very good.
Following the road pointed by the old man, Li Long and the others drove the tractor to the entrance of the alley where Ma Aihong lived. The tractor could not drive in, so he stopped on the side of the road. After turning off the engine, Li Long took his bag. Li Anguo, Li Junshan and Yang Yongqiang all came down, and then Li Junshan went up to the tow truck again. He said at the airport:
"You go over, I'll wait here first. Our luggage is all here, it's not okay to lose it."
"Okay, you watch first, I Go ask about the situation, and when the time comes to talk about people, say there are three people.”
Li Junshan nodded and sat in the car.
Li Long took Li Anguo and Yang Yongqiang to the entrance of Ma Aihong's hospital.
There are rows of courtyards here - the courtyards are not large in area. Looking at the outer walls, a family is only seven or eight meters long, and the depth is only about ten meters. The courtyard and the house are as deep as each other. Although he hasn't gone in yet, Li Long guesses that he can't grow vegetables in this yard, and at most he can only put some things there.
I could hear the sound of radios and televisions in some people’s homes, and the sounds of children crying and adults scolding others. Occasionally, I could hear the crow of chickens, which surprised Li Long. .
Can I still raise chickens?
The iron door was closed, and Li Long knocked on the door.
There were voices inside, and Li Long heard footsteps walking outside, and a woman asking:
"Who is it?"
"Hello, We came here from the Ma County Supply and Marketing Cooperative to find Section Chief Ma.”
Li Long believed that Li Xiangqian had contacted Ma Aihong over the phone. He explained his whereabouts and the other party should know their purpose.
The iron door opened, and a middle-aged woman looked at Li Long and the others with surprise:
"Are you coming from Ma County? Are you looking for our old horse?"
The woman's hair is permed and dyed. , and has a bit of a fashionable feel. He looks ordinary and speaks Mandarin, which quite surprised Li Long.
"Yes, our Section Chief Li is a friend of Chief Ma." Li Long said with a smile, "Let us bring something over to Chief Ma."
The woman looked at it immediately Towards the black bag in Li Long's hand. That black bag is quite big and looks quite heavy. It should contain a lot of stuff, right?
"Let me in." A man inside said.
"Come in, come in." A smile appeared on the woman's face.
Li Long then walked sideways in, followed by Li Anguo and Yang Yongqiang.
The aisle is a bit narrow, with a small house built on the left. Inward is a small courtyard, and further in is the main house. Li Long just glanced at it and seemed to see a cement-built single room in the corner that was smaller than the toilet. There was a curtain hanging at the door, and an oil drum painted with black paint sat on top of the single room. He immediately understood that this was a homemade solar bather.
Not bad, pretty smart.
Upon entering the house, it was a combination of the living room and the dining room. A man in his thirties was sitting at the table eating, and a seven or eight-year-old girl next to him was looking at Li Long and the others curiously. At this time, regardless of whether men or women have a lot of hair, it is rare to see a bald head - really rare.
"Hello, Chief Ma, my name is Li Long, an employee of the Ma County Supply and Marketing Cooperative," Li Long introduced himself, "This is my brother Li Anguo, and this is my friend Yang Yongqiang. There is also my nephew Li Junshan outside, looking at the tractor..."
"You "They came with a tractor?" Ma Aihong looked calm at first, but her eyes lit up when she heard that Li Long came with a tractor and asked, "What kind of tractor is yours?"
"It's my own, a small four-wheeler with 12 horsepower." Li Long smiled.
"Not bad, not bad!" Ma Aihong's expression suddenly became vivid, "Young people are quite capable. I didn't believe it when Xiang told me about it, but now it seems that you can't underestimate others."
"Chief Li asked me to bring you something." Li Long He took out a wolf skin from the black bag and said:
"This is a wolf skin. Chief Li said we haven't seen each other for a long time. Since I'm here, ask me to bring it to you. Here." There is also a pack of air-dried meat, which is wild boar meat that I got from hunting in the mountains in winter. It tastes pretty good. It’s a pack of dried salted fish. We caught it in the village reservoir. They’re all wild. Let’s give them as snacks for the children.”
“Haha, Xiangqiang won’t give this to me. This is you. That’s your idea. Your name is Li Long, right? Young man, you are so embarrassed.” Ma Aihong saw through Li Long's little trick at a glance, "Not bad, not bad."
Ma Aihong's wife had been watching from the side before. When she saw the dried meat and dried fish, her eyes lit up. These two big bags, one bag weighs five or six kilograms, which is quite a lot! These dried meats are steamed and cut into small pieces for stir-fry. They can be eaten for a long time!
"Sit down quickly, sit down." The woman greeted Li Long and others to sit down. "You haven't had dinner yet. I'll make food for you."
In fact, the room itself is not big, so if you want to sit down, you can only Sit on the sofa. The Ma family had an old-fashioned cloth sofa, but Li Long and the others did not dare to sit on it, fearing that the three young men would damage the sofa.
"I won't sit down anymore," Li Long put away the empty bag and said with a smile:
"Sister-in-law, you are busy with your work, we will leave in a while." He They don't dare to let women really cook for them. Three grown men, if they really have enough food to eat, they can eat the Ma family's three days' worth.
Hearing what Li Long said, Ma Aihong smiled and said:
"That's okay. There are many of you, so I won't keep you any longer. This time the company is recruiting temporary workers, and it needs a lot of people. I heard from Qiang that some of you have done big jobs, right?"
"Yes. ," Li Long nodded hurriedly.
"Well, Dagong has an advantage, and they are the talents we urgently need. There is a large amount of construction and installation work here this year, and the company will expand in the future. You came at the right time...Xiao Li, do you have Tractor, right? Are you interested in working with us?"
"I...I am an employee of the supply and marketing cooperative." Li Long smiled bitterly. "I must go back there."
"Do you think this is good?" Ma Aihong said with a smile, "I can't force you to stay here. However, you can help me for a few days. Busy. There are relatively few trucks hauling sand and gravel here, and most of them are animal-drawn trucks. So, please help me haul the sand and gravel for a few days.
Look, if you work here, I won't let you work in vain. How about ten yuan for a truck? And you only have to pull the materials, you don’t have to worry about loading and unloading the truck. If you ask for materials like this, I can arrange work for your relatives and friends. I also have something to say to the leaders, how about it? "
He has said this, what else can Li Long say?
But he still has to ask about the key things, so he said:
"Then Section Chief Ma , will your company arrange dormitories for my second brother and the others, or will they rent a house outside? "
"Come here when you get to work tomorrow. I will take people to recruit workers at the door and arrange a place for you to live first. If you have a tractor, your treatment will be better than theirs. I can arrange for you to stay in a guest house. For a nominal fee, they will live in a dormitory or a bunkhouse. How about that? ”
"That's great." Li Long smiled, "Thank you, Chief Ma, so we won't delay your meal. See you tomorrow! See you tomorrow, kids! By the way, kids, this is a wolf stone, to ward off evil spirits. It's a gift. Let's play with you." Li Long took out a wolf's stone and placed it on the table, then left with Li Anguo and the others.
"You're quite good, young man." The woman sent Li Long and the others away, closed the iron door and came back, happily looking at the dried meat and salted fish.
“It’s pretty good.” Section Chief Ma looked at the wolf skin, then at the wolf shoulder stone on the table, and sighed:
“Who would have thought that Li Xiangqian was that kind of guy? , How can I have such an effective person under my command? This person wants to be put here. Then my job will be much easier!"
"Then you can keep him?" The woman said smoothly, "Will he work in the city? As long as he is willing, you can give him that. Will it be over if Li Xiangqian just says something?”
"No, no, no." Ma Aihong shook her head and said, "No. Li told the guy in Xiangqian that this young man did not want to be a worker, nor did he want to receive wages and eat commercial grain. He hunted in winter and sold fish in summer, and earned more money than We want more - you heard it just now, he was driving a tractor, It's not from the company, he bought it himself! I can only let him stay and work for a few days... Oh, what a good prospect."
Ma Aihong is the chief of the engineering department. It is a state-owned unit, and their projects are all arranged by the superiors, so there is no need to run projects everywhere. But when working, many fraternal units are involved, which requires coordination. It's okay to let him direct people to work, but he is really not very good at coordinating relationships. Looking at Li Long's behavior and words when he came in just now, he I feel that if Li Long is asked to coordinate the relationship between units, he will definitely do a good job.
This person makes people feel very comfortable when talking and doing things. What is that word? "Like a spring breeze", that's what it means.
Ma Aihong thought about keeping Li Long working for a few days and giving him a higher salary to see if he could keep him. Of course, the chance of this might not be high. After all, the salary he could offer was not high. . But Li Long has relatives and friends working here, so he might come here often in the future, who knows?
After Li Long and the others went out, Li Anguo and Yang Yongqiang showed excited expressions on their faces. This was the first step!
Li Junshan looked at the three people coming over with smiles and asked:
"How about it? Can it be done?"
"It can be done. Just wait at the door of the company tomorrow morning." Li Long smiled. Said, "Not only are you here, I also have to stay for a few days to do some work."
It doesn't matter if you make some money, since you are in Ma County now, there is not much work, so you can have some free time. Some.
Of course the time cannot be long, we have to put furniture in the house, prepare for the wedding, everything is lined up.
"Let's go find a place to stay." Li Long waved his hand, "Then we'll find a place to eat. I'm starving."
"I'm hungry too!" Li Anguo said with a smile, " I didn't think anything of it before, but now that I'm aware of this, I feel hungry all of a sudden. "
There is a hotel nearby. Li Long and the others found a room for four. They originally wanted a letter of introduction. Li Long took out his certificate to register, and the other party said nothing more. , and also took the initiative to explain that there is hot water here to wash your feet at night.
After Li Long and the others put their luggage and the tractor handle in, they went to the front desk and asked where there was a place to eat nearby. They enthusiastically pointed out that there is a state-owned canteen over there at the 131 Party School. Now There happens to be food.
Li Long and the others hurried over.
The food is average - or, in other words, almost the same as the food in the canteens of Shicheng and Ma County.
Actually, it is much better than many restaurants in later generations. The ingredients are natural, there is no artificiality, the taste is good, and the portion is sufficient. Except for Li Long, everyone else is quite satisfied with the meal.
After eating, they strolled back to the hotel - this meal was paid for by Li Anguo and food stamps. He insisted on it, but Li Long didn't insist anymore, it was only a few dollars. matter.
It has become dark. At this time, the city does not have the various night scenes of later generations. The lights that can be seen are from the windows of every house. Although they are not very bright, they are brighter than those of incandescent lamps. The light slowly shines through, occasionally one by one, which is quite warm.
Back at the hotel, several people chatted for a while, and then soaked their feet with water. The first one to fall asleep was Li Long - he was too tired after driving this day. The main thing is that the shock is uncomfortable - but you have to get used to it, after all, it will take at least more than an hour to play when the wheat is harvested in the summer.
It was even more of a test being under the bright sun at that time.
Li Anguo and the others fell asleep one after another, but Yang Yongqiang did not fall asleep for a long time.
Do you really want to stay and work here?
Being a worker was once Yang Yongqiang’s dream, but now that the opportunity is in front of him, he hesitates.
Maybe it would be better to stay in the village, catch fish and trap rabbits with Li Long, or go hunting in the mountains. I make a lot of money and live freely.
Which one to choose? (End of this chapter)