Chapter 40

In the third year of junior high school, when everyone who had gone to visit my grandmother for the New Year returned home, a total of eight children gathered at my grandfather's house, making the place lively all of a sudden.

My uncle also came back from my aunt's house, reeking of alcohol. He took out a copy of the "Comprehensive Dictionary of Chinese Idioms" and a small box from under the bed.

Feng Yiping took them and saw that the dictionary cost thirty-five yuan, and the small box contained a Hero fountain pen, the price of which he didn't know, but it was definitely not cheap. My uncle hadn't given him any New Year's money before, but this time, he made up for it all.

Feng Yiping didn't hesitate to accept them, "Uncle, you spent so much money, aren't you afraid that your future wife will be angry?"

Mei Yiliang waved his hand and said loudly, "How could she be?"

After a while, he added, "We bought them together, thinking that you should study hard and write more good articles."

"Hehe, no wonder. I heard that your future wife's family runs a furniture factory?"

"Lower your voice, what future wife," Mei Yiliang was afraid that Mei Jianzhong would hear and start asking questions non-stop.

"It's not really a factory. Her father was a master craftsman at the city furniture factory. After retirement, he rented a place on the street and opened a small workshop. There aren't many people in total."

"Oh," Feng Yiping had a better understanding. At this time, old state-owned enterprise workers who had the courage to do this must have some ideas and wouldn't be too concerned about family background or household registration. At least, Uncle's future father-in-law wouldn't be too difficult to deal with.

"So, what does the factory mainly do now?" Feng Yiping asked.

"Everything, the master's skills are good, and the work is excellent. We do both old customers and new ones they introduce. They want what, we make what," Mei Yiliang said.

"How's business?"

"It's okay. There's always work to do every day. The styles are similar to those of large factories, and the materials are the same. Our products are of high quality and cheaper. Many people come through word of mouth from regular customers."

Feng Yiping understood. Due to the scale or manpower, the furniture factory was actually producing on order, and there wasn't much in terms of sales or business development. In essence, it was like the village carpenters, except that the village carpenters only earned labor fees, and the materials for the furniture were provided by the customers, while the factory provided both labor and materials.

The core competitive advantage should be Uncle's master's high level of skill, reasonable prices, and the custom-made model.

At this time, when buying appliances, people preferred imported brands, especially Japanese ones.

But in the furniture industry, there were no well-known brands in the market. Buyers relied more on the reputation of relatives and friends. Therefore, Uncle's master's factory was still doing well, but if it didn't change and didn't think long-term, the future would be worrying.

After the Southern Tour of Comrade Xiaoping last year, a large number of people entered the business world. According to statistics, 120,000 public servants resigned to start businesses, and 10 million people entered the commercial sector in various ways! Companies in all industries sprang up like mushrooms after rain, and the prices of various raw materials in the market soared.

The furniture industry was a very promising industry and could be classified as a necessity. Even the most frugal families might not buy appliances, but they definitely needed furniture. With a population base of over a billion, just think about the demand!

Moreover, the furniture export market was also huge. Later, many furniture factories in coastal provinces that specialized in exports achieved annual sales of tens of millions of yuan, which was not difficult.

The furniture market was large, but the entry barrier was low, with no high requirements for factories or equipment. There were ways to do it with more money and ways to do it with less. Many people had their eyes on this market.

Believing that competition in this industry would become intense from now on, Uncle's master's factory would find it difficult to maintain its current leisurely and comfortable state.

Feng Yiping was somewhat familiar with the furniture industry. He had visited several furniture factories before, but that wasn't the key. The key was that he remembered many furniture styles.

Before he and Zhang Yan became a couple, Feng Yiping lived in a shared apartment with several colleagues, all happy bachelors, living together harmoniously and lively.

After two of his colleagues brought their girlfriends to live with them, conflicts began to arise for some reason.

So after Feng Yiping and Zhang Yan got together, he didn't want to share an apartment with others at all, not only for convenience but also to avoid conflicts.

Those days were sweet and tragic. The sweetness was self-explanatory, but the tragedy was the constant moving. In the worst year, he and Zhang Yan had to move three times, from east to west, from west to south, and from south to north.

If Feng Yiping had any obsession, it was with housing. This was why, when he arrived in Guangzhou, he bought two houses, partly for investment and partly due to his obsession.

During those years of forced moving, Feng Yiping's focus on the internet shifted from looking at beautiful women, military news, and entertainment gossip to reading posts on various forums about home renovation.

Seeing others transform a new or old house, big or small, into a warm and comfortable home after months of hard work, he couldn't help but drool.

These forums also included discussions on various furniture styles. Not only did he, but Zhang Yan also did a lot of research, collecting information on the computer and writing notes in a notebook. They were very comprehensive and detailed, and even though they didn't own a single square meter of their own house, they were considered experts in home renovation and furniture.

Feng Yiping could confidently say that the preparations Zhang Yan made for their wedding were less than one-fifth of the preparations they made for their future home renovation.

They often discussed what style they would use for the renovation and what furniture they would have, and they updated their plans every quarter based on the latest trends.

These preparations were indeed useful when they renovated and decorated their first house, but when they renovated the subsequent houses, they were much more casual, possibly because they had already poured so much passion and hope into the first house.

However, those classic furniture styles, if brought to the present, would undoubtedly be a great asset.

But currently, Feng Yiping didn't want to tell his uncle about these things. No matter how smart he was, he was still just a junior high school student. Knowing about an industry he had never been involved in and being able to design furniture would only cause trouble. Age was always a hard obstacle!

In short, Feng Yiping didn't want to draw attention to himself. He couldn't avoid being seen as smart and somewhat talented, but he definitely didn't want to be seen as a prodigy.

So, even if he wanted to talk about these things, the timing was crucial, and it wasn't necessary to do so now.

On the third day of the New Year, they were still invited to several families for dinner, eating with guests they didn't know well. They ate from one house to another, and although they couldn't eat much, the warm hospitality was deeply appreciated.

On the morning of the fourth day, Feng Yiping took seven cousins—Rongrong and Ruirui from his eldest uncle's family, Chengcheng and Qingqing from his second uncle's family, and Yangyang, Yunyun, and Dongdong from his third uncle's family—to his house.

On the way, Feng Yiping was the true leader of the children.

Rongrong from his eldest uncle's family, Chengcheng from his second uncle's family, and Yangyang from his third uncle's family could take care of themselves, but they were holding New Year's gifts and couldn't take care of the other children. The rest had to be taken care of by Feng Yiping.

Ruirui was the youngest and often needed to be carried. Dongdong, the most pampered child from his third uncle's family, was already over four years old and could walk on his own, but after a while, he started to drag his feet, saying, "I'm so tired!" and demanding that Feng Yiping carry him.

Carrying children up the mountain was a strenuous task, and Feng Yiping's current weak body could only handle it for a short time. He had to take breaks frequently while carrying two little ones.

Rongrong and the others also shared their gifts with Qingqing and Yunyun, taking turns to help Feng Yiping. Finally, the eight of them arrived at Feng's house, with everyone except Ruirui and Dongdong out of breath.

Seeing them, Wen Hua ran to Feng Yiping's house to report, and Feng Zhenchang waited at the door with a long string of firecrackers, lighting them as soon as they appeared.

Mei Qiuping came forward and took Ruirui from Feng Yiping, "Ruirui, do you miss Auntie?"

Ruirui said in a baby voice, "Yes, Auntie, Happy New Year."

Mei Qiuping touched his little face, "Ruirui is so good and so understanding."

Feng Zhenchang took the gifts from their hands, and Yangyang, covering his ears, said, "Uncle, did you set off all the firecrackers? Do you have any left for us to play with?"

Feng Zhenchang took out a box of small firecrackers, "Is this enough? If not, there are more at home."

"Enough, enough, let's go play." They didn't rush into the house but went to set off firecrackers with Chengcheng and Dongdong.

Lunch was lively and enjoyable. At their aunt and uncle's house, they were not shy, and the three girls were a bit more reserved, while the four boys fought over the food they liked, turning the dining table into a battlefield.

Fortunately, Feng Yiping and the others kept an eye on them, preventing the table from being overturned.

After lunch, Yangyang and Chengcheng went to play with Wen Hua and Wen Hui, while Rongrong and Yunyun took Dongdong and Qingqing for a nap, and Feng Yiping held Ruirui.

After washing the dishes and tidying up, Mei Qiuping took the sleeping Ruirui from Feng Yiping, and Feng Zhenchang, after a sip of strong tea, asked, "How much should we give each of them?"

They had more money now and planned to give New Year's money to their nephews and nieces.

"I think three yuan each," Mei Qiuping said.

"Three yuan doesn't look good. How about five yuan?" Feng Zhenchang suggested.

"Five yuan?" Mei Qiuping's voice rose, "When we went to visit, did they give one fen? Usually, five yuan is enough for a gift!"

"Lower your voice, you'll wake Ruirui." Feng Yiping was troubled by such issues. Mei Qiuping really treated money as her life, and most of the time, Feng Zhenchang was the same, but he also cared about face, especially now that they had some means. This conflict seemed inevitable.

Fortunately, Feng Yiping still had some influence with his parents, "Let's go with what Dad said, five yuan each. It's only a few more yuan in total."

"Alright, alright, you and your father have money, I'm just used to being frugal." Although Mei Qiuping was still unwilling, she didn't argue further. After all, it was for her brothers' children, and giving more would also bring her face.

When giving the money to the children in the afternoon, Mei Qiuping showed no resentment, "Keep it hidden, don't let your parents know, or they'll take it away."

The children were very happy. Even at their grandmother's house, they didn't get as much. Rongrong was the most understanding, refusing several times and saying she didn't want it.

Mei Qiuping wasn't worried that her brothers wouldn't remember this favor. It was impossible for the seven children to keep it a secret.

At around three o'clock, Feng Zhenchang and Feng Yiping took the seven children back home. The idea of having the seven children stay overnight was out of the question; they couldn't handle it.

On the way back, they carried more things, but with the New Year's money, even Dongdong was more obedient, and with Feng Zhenchang's help, they returned faster than when they came.

When they reached the last mountain, they met Feng Yiping's eldest uncle, and the father and son returned home.

By the fifth day of the New Year, fewer people came to visit, and some started working in the fields.

On the sixth day, it was busier again because many people who worked away from home left on the sixth or eighth day. Many families set off firecrackers, and especially the mothers, followed their children, giving endless instructions until they watched them walk far away, over the mountain, and out of sight, before turning back home.

Fathers were less expressive, usually setting off firecrackers and silently carrying the children's luggage to the village entrance, then finding a place to smoke quietly.

After another day of play, it was the eighth day, and school was about to start.

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