Chapter 27: My Face is So Handsome It Can Be Used as a Credit Card (Second Update)

On the way back, Zhang Xiangyang, sitting in the passenger seat, asked Chen Geng for the nth time, "Third Brother, you really don't know that female officer?"

Even though Chen Geng usually had a good temper, at this moment he was almost at his wits' end: "Second Brother, I'm telling you for the last time, I really, really, really don't know her! I don't know her a thousand times over!"

"Oh, oh..." Zhang Xiangyang's eyes darted around, clearly not believing Chen Geng. Ignoring Chen Geng's frustration, he continued to press, "If you don't know her, why is she so nice to you, even picking out two good cars for you?"

"How should I know?"

"You don't know?" Zhang Xiangyang's tone was full of suspicion.

Chen Geng was almost at his wits' end: "I'm handsome, my face can be used as a credit card in America. This girl is completely smitten with me, okay?"

"Okay, okay, whatever you say, it's fine." Zhang Xiangyang was utterly impressed: "A female officer, Third Brother, you're really something. But what about Qianmo? She's still a bit young, isn't she?"

Chen Geng sighed, feeling like he was about to go crazy. Lin Shuyao was really ruthless. Not only did she pick out a 212 Jeep and a 750 sidecar motorcycle, both in excellent condition, the 212 Jeep was from the end of 1979, with a 2.5L engine and a 3-speed manual transmission, and had only been driven for less than 6 years. The 750 sidecar motorcycle was even newer, from 1982. When Chen Geng took the keys from Lin Shuyao, he felt like he had been tricked. This was evident from the faces of the people on the 750 sidecar motorcycle, who looked at him as if he were an enemy of the class.

After a bit of banter, Zhang Xiangyang finally became serious and asked Chen Geng earnestly, "Third Brother, I haven't asked you yet, what do you plan to do with these cars?"

Although he didn't know what Chen Geng planned to do with the cars, based on his understanding of Chen Geng, he was sure that Chen Geng wasn't asking the leader for a car. But beyond that, no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't figure out what Chen Geng was planning to do.

"Tell me, what do you think of the Jeep?" Chen Geng didn't answer directly but asked a counter-question.

"Good, of course it's a good car. Only county-level leaders are qualified to have such a car. In our factory, only the factory manager and the party secretary are qualified to have a 212. What do you think of this car?" Zhang Xiangyang's face was full of envy when he talked about the 212 Jeep.

Chen Geng felt like giving up: "Brother, I'm not asking about that. You can't be so unreasonable."

But then he thought about it and felt more relaxed. For his brother, the best car he had ever ridden in was the 212 Jeep. In an era where cars were still a symbol of privilege, without comparison, having a 212 Jeep was something everyone envied. How could he expect his brother to say the car was bad?

"Let me put it this way, the comfort of the 212 Jeep is actually quite poor. Compared to imported sedans, or even domestic Shanghai and Volga sedans, it's much worse..."

"Who doesn't know that? The Jeep is a military off-road vehicle, how can it be compared to a sedan?" Zhang Xiangyang interrupted Chen Geng dismissively: "But the regional commissioner of our district just got a Santana. A few years ago, he was also driving a 212 Jeep." After a pause, Zhang Xiangyang added, "Forget the 212 Jeep, even if you gave me a black crow, I'd be happy. I'd polish it every day, you believe me?"

I shouldn't have asked Second Brother. For someone who doesn't even have a bicycle, talking about whether a Jeep is comfortable or not is like playing the lute to a cow. Chen Geng felt a deep sense of defeat.

After a long pause, he finally managed to say, "... I believe you!"

"Then what do you really want to say?" Zhang Xiangyang pressed on.

"Let's talk about it when we get home. The others are waiting, so I don't have to repeat myself."

"Oh..."

...

"Third Brother, you really borrowed cars from the military? Can I ride in them too?" Yang Lei looked at the shiny new Jeep and 750 sidecar motorcycle with bright eyes, his face full of admiration and respect when he looked at Chen Geng.

When Chen Geng said he was going to the military to ask for cars, Yang Lei didn't believe him. You can't just ask for a car and get one; why would the leaders give you a car? But when a 212 Jeep and a 750 sidecar motorcycle appeared in front of him with a rainbow of light, Yang Lei felt like his eyes were going to be blinded.

"Look at your lack of ambition!" Chen Geng sneered: "Are you satisfied just riding in it once?"

"Then... can I ride in it more often?" Yang Lei asked cautiously.

"Ambition!" Chen Geng scolded Yang Lei harshly: "If you want to learn to drive, there's no problem."

"Really? Can I really learn to drive?" Yang Lei's eyes lit up like the 5000W high-power searchlights in the factory.

"Isn't that obvious... Do you really want to learn to drive?"

"Damn, who doesn't want to learn to drive?" Yang Lei cursed unconsciously: "If I could drive, not only would I not worry about finding a job, but I could even find a flight attendant as a girlfriend."

Chen Geng was speechless: "Damn! A driver finding a flight attendant as a girlfriend? Are you kidding?!"

But then Chen Geng immediately realized that in 1980s China, being a driver was still a highly respected technical job and a very popular profession. "Stethoscope, steering wheel, labor and capital department head, and purchasing agent" were the four most popular professions in society. "Stethoscope" referred to doctors, and "steering wheel" naturally referred to drivers. Although drivers were ranked second, they were even more popular than doctors because drivers could use public cars for personal use. Whether driving a small car for a leader or a truck for transportation, drivers always had extra income.

Even in this era, when flight attendants were surrounded by a halo of glory, most of them still preferred drivers as their life partners rather than civil servants or entrepreneurs. Which flight attendant wouldn't want her boyfriend to have a "private car" to pick her up after a tiring day of work?

In fact, in the 1980s, many flight attendants did choose drivers as their boyfriends. A flight attendant who could always borrow a unit car to pick her up was envied by her colleagues to the same extent as being picked up by a top-of-the-line Mercedes S600 20 years later. It was like a real-life version of "My ideal man is a hero, and one day he will come to pick me up on a cloud of five colors," making her colleagues, who were freezing in the cold, full of envy and jealousy.

If Yang Lei really knew how to drive and could always "borrow" a unit car, finding a flight attendant as a girlfriend wouldn't be difficult.

But in this era, being a driver was a highly sought-after profession, which meant the entry barrier was very high. You couldn't just learn to drive by paying money; the only formal ways were through the public works technical school, the military, or a company's training program.

Of course, there were also informal ways, which involved learning from an experienced driver in the company. However, this required connections within the company and with the department that issued driver's licenses. Compared to the formal ways, the informal ways were even harder because it required the company's leadership to vouch for you and speak well of you. The question was: what qualifications did you have to make the leadership vouch for you?

The Third Military Equipment Repair Factory was a military equipment repair unit, and it had the capability and qualifications to repair trucks and Jeeps. Using the vehicles sent for repair to learn to drive was possible, but not everyone could take advantage of this.

So, even if Yang Lei wanted to learn to drive, it wouldn't be that easy.

"Compared to being a ten-thousand-yuan household?" Chen Geng asked again.

"That..." Yang Lei hesitated for a moment, but then his eyes became determined again: "I still want to learn to drive."

"Why?" Chen Geng was surprised.

A ten-thousand-yuan household, everyone envied, how glorious! Chen Geng thought Yang Lei would prefer to be a ten-thousand-yuan household rather than a driver. But this guy was quite determined to be a driver.

A ten-thousand-yuan household was the limit of personal legal wealth that people could imagine in this era, the ultimate goal of life. Since becoming a ten-thousand-yuan household couldn't change Yang Lei's mind about learning to drive, Chen Geng felt even more confident about his plan.

"Because if I learn to drive, I can have the opportunity to be a leader's driver and drive a small car," Yang Lei started out a bit embarrassed, but quickly became more open in front of his brother, with a look of longing on his face: "Look at those ten-thousand-yuan households, no matter how glorious they are, they are still farmers, working hard in the fields every day. But drivers are the leaders' confidants. Look at the drivers in the city who drive for leaders; they are so arrogant, with their eyes on top of their heads. Their work is easy, they are not exposed to wind or rain, and they can often go out to eat and drink with the leaders. They can also receive gifts and earn at least half a ten-thousand-yuan household a year. Even though they are just drivers, they are actually more glorious than being a department head. No matter how powerful a ten-thousand-yuan household is, they are still farmers and can't compare to a leader's driver."

After saying this, Yang Lei asked cautiously, "Third Brother, can you drive? Are you really going to teach me to drive?"

(There is no intention to belittle or look down on farmers. I myself am the child of a farmer, but in this era, people's thoughts and views are like this.)

"What car haven't I driven?" Chen Geng snorted: "Not to mention this old 212 Jeep, the latest Santana, and even the Audi that Germans don't sell in our country... I've driven many cars. Teaching you to drive is nothing."