Chapter 161: The Courtyard-Wide Meeting

Zhou Yimin was still catching up on sleep. He hadn’t gotten much rest the night before, having followed the villagers to watch the commotion and ended up tossing and turning half the night.

He vaguely heard someone calling from outside. Only then did Zhou Yimin get up, squinting as he opened the door to see who it was. It turned out to be Brother Zhao.

Alright then! Brother Zhao did technically count as a leader.

“Brother Zhao, what’s the matter? Come in and talk.” Zhou Yimin welcomed him inside.

Seeing Zhou Yimin looking like this, Zhao Zhenguo couldn’t help asking, “Didn’t sleep last night?”

What time was it already?

Zhou Yimin nodded. “Didn’t sleep much. There were wild boars causing trouble in the village last night—we killed eleven of them, I…”

“Wait, how many?” Zhao Zhenguo interrupted, shocked.

“Eleven. What about it?”

Zhao Zhenguo gasped. Eleven wild boars—that was no small number. Wild boars weren’t easy to take down; he knew firsthand how fierce they could be.

“Eleven? Any left?”

He was hoping to snag a few for his instant noodle factory. Who didn’t want meat? Every factory, every work unit was short on meat.

Sure, their noodle factory handled a lot of flour, but that didn’t mean the workers weren’t going hungry. Grain still came from the farmers—and weren’t they the ones struggling the most?

Besides, flour was flour, meat was meat. Just because you had noodles didn’t mean you had meat to go with them.

Zhou Yimin shook his head. “No more. The steel plant got five, the subdistrict office took three, two went to my Uncle Zhang, and the villagers ate the last one.”

“Yimin, next time remember to save a few for our instant noodle factory too!”

Zhou Yimin brushed it off. “We’ll talk next time, next time.”

Then Zhao Zhenguo repeated the content of the earlier meeting, focusing on how popular their instant noodles were and how the factory was speeding up construction.

“I also heard that at the end of this year, we’ll be awarded ten thousand U.S. dollars in foreign exchange,” Zhao Zhenguo said happily.

Only ten thousand?

Zhou Yimin mentally scoffed. If marketed right, instant noodles could easily rake in tens of millions of U.S. dollars in a year, and they were offering just ten thousand as a reward?

And that wasn’t even for him personally—it was for the whole factory.

But in Zhao Zhenguo’s eyes, the higher-ups were already being very generous.

Everyone knew how scarce foreign exchange was in the country right now. They wished they could stretch every dollar to the limit. To encourage overseas Chinese to send remittances back, the state had even introduced “Overseas Remittance Coupons.”

A lot of people didn’t realize it, but remittances were not just a financial lifeline for returned overseas Chinese and their families—they were also one of New China’s earliest sources of foreign currency.

Since the start of the planned economy, the state had implemented a policy of unified purchasing and sales. Essential items like grain, cotton, and oil were all rationed, meaning that even if returned overseas Chinese had money, they still couldn’t buy more.

So the state rolled out remittance coupons based on the amount of money sent home. With these, people could buy scarce items at special overseas Chinese supply stores or designated shops.

The remittance coupons had been first issued in Fujian and only rolled out nationwide this year.

For the sake of foreign exchange, the state had no choice but to treat returning overseas Chinese differently.

Zhao Zhenguo added excitedly, “By then, we’ll get a share of the foreign exchange coupons. Yimin, you’ll definitely get a good amount too.”

At this time, something even more valuable than remittance coupons was the foreign exchange certificate, which was specially issued for use by foreign embassy staff and visiting foreign guests.

These certificates could circulate like currency and be used at Friendship Stores to buy grain, oil, and cotton without any rationing. They could also be used to purchase the latest styles of clothes, foreign-brand shoes, cosmetics, and even imported TVs and air conditioners—often at prices cheaper than regular shops.

When Zhou Yimin heard the words “foreign exchange coupon,” his eyes lit up.

If he were rewarded with foreign exchange coupons, he could use them to buy special goods without anyone questioning it.

“Well, that sounds great,” Zhou Yimin said with a smile.

“Factory Director Yang asked me to come see if you had any good suggestions,” Zhao Zhenguo said, not forgetting the purpose of his visit.

Right now, their factory placed a lot of importance on Zhou Yimin’s input.

Zhou Yimin shook his head slightly. “Not at the moment. This current instant noodle product should be enough to meet overseas demand. Like I said before, we should continue researching local tastes and produce accordingly.”

He didn’t think there was a need to launch cup noodles so soon. Better to wait until next year.

The two chatted a bit longer before Zhao Zhenguo took his leave.

The aunties and grannies in the courtyard soon came over to ask Zhou Yimin who that man had been.

“He’s the supervisor of the instant noodle factory. The son of Director Li from our subdistrict office. He’s been to our courtyard before—don’t you all remember?” Zhou Yimin explained.

“Oh, no wonder he looked familiar.”

Someone finally made the connection.

“He rode a bicycle last time. This time he came in a car—who could’ve recognized him?”

“So he’s the supervisor of the instant noodle factory. I heard they’re hiring. I wonder if our Haitang has a shot.”

…

News about the noodle factory hiring had spread long ago.

Many people from their courtyard had already gone to the subdistrict office to sign up. Whether they’d be selected or not would depend on how the office arranged things. Everyone was waiting for updates.

Then the crowd started asking Zhou Yimin for news about the factory.

Since he seemed close to the director, surely he had some inside scoop?

“I heard they’re speeding up expansion to complete hiring ahead of schedule. So I don’t think you’ll have to wait long—you’ll probably hear something within a week,” Zhou Yimin said, deciding to share a bit.

Everyone perked up at the news.

Back inside his room, Zhou Yimin no longer felt like sleeping.

Come evening, someone knocked on his door.

“Brother Yimin, come out—it’s time for a courtyard-wide meeting!”

A full courtyard meeting?

That was a classic scene from some old drama! And this was actually the first time since he’d transmigrated here that he’d been summoned to one.

The meeting was held in the central courtyard.

Residents from the front and rear courtyards all came out, each bringing their own stool.

Unlike those TV dramas where the three elders put on a whole show like they were high-ranking officials, their courtyard’s three elders didn’t sit down. They stood at the front, as if reporting to the residents.

That was the difference.

Zhou Yimin nudged Li Youde and asked, “Any idea what this is about?”

Li Youde shook his head. “No clue. I just came out too.”

The courtyard hardly held meetings more than once or twice a year, and when they did, it was always over something big. They wouldn’t waste everyone’s time with trivial matters—those usually got resolved privately between the three elders and the residents.

The elders knew everyone worked hard during the day and just wanted to relax after hours. No need to bother the whole courtyard over minor stuff.

Luo Dapeng leaned over and said, “Judging by the look on the First Elder’s face, it’s probably good news.”

Indeed, the First, Second, and Third Elders all had smiles on their faces—it looked like it was going to be something worth celebrating.

Someone couldn’t hold it in and asked the First Elder, “So what’s this about, Elder?”

Everyone fell silent and turned to the three elders.

“It’s good news! Is everyone here?” the First Elder asked.

(End of chapter)