National Tide 1980

"I am a person who does not deserve love..."

Since that night, after Zhang Mi's confession failed, Luo Guangliang's heart had been echoing these words repeatedly.

For this reason, he felt ashamed in front of many people.

He was jealous of the couples who spent the summer together and making love.

He was jealous of Zhang Mi and the young men surrounding her.

He was even jealous of his good brother Xiao Tao.

That boy was better than him, he was really capable, and he actually found a beautiful female college student as his girlfriend.

You should be getting married next year, right?

But what about him?

Why is his own love so unsatisfactory!

You regard others as treasure, but others regard you as rubbish.

He even failed to give away the gold jewelry that he rushed to give to other girls. What a failure is this?

Yes, Zhang Mi is very beautiful, but she will never enter his world.

Ever since, Luo Guangliang's interest in Maxim's Restaurant has waned.

From the end of June to the arrival of July, he never went there once. He spent almost every day in the Temple of Heaven or the car factory doing business.

In order to stop thinking about Zhang Mi, Luo Guangliang focused on making money.

At other times, in addition to taking his father, who suffered from back problems, for massages on time, he sometimes visited bookstalls to buy a few magazines and illustrated magazines, and he also went to Kang Shude's large wine tank to drink a few cups.

Either go to a street billiards club with Xiao Tao and play a few rounds of billiards, or watch the videos in the video room.

He casually gave the gold ring that he couldn't give away to Xiao Tao, lying that he had won it playing cards.

If he is destined to be without emotional satisfaction, then he at least hopes that his brother can be happy.

But the problem is, Luo Guangliang is already twenty-seven years old after all.

His physiology is completely mature, and his imagination about the opposite sex cannot be solved by hardening his heart, "breaking away" or diverting his attention.

Although to outsiders he seemed to be living a comfortable life, the normal reaction of strong hormones deeply troubled him.

And let him know more clearly than ever - he is a strong man who needs a woman!

He was thinking about it when he was dreaming, he was thinking about it when he got up in the morning, he was thinking about it when he saw the couple in the park, he was thinking about it when he saw the man and woman kissing on the video, and he was even thinking about the foreign pictorials under his pillow.

He thought about it all the time and couldn't help it.

Zhang Mi, the girl who suddenly broke into his heart, seemed to bring back all the inappropriate thoughts about women that he had tried to suppress for many years.

This not only made him impulsive, but also made him more and more afraid. He was worried that one day he would do something terrible.

So he had no choice but to go back to Maxim's restaurant in August.

He was unwilling to abandon his love like this.

Although he knew the essence of the matter, which was that he had spinelessly surrendered to his inner desires and thrown his pride to the ground and surrendered completely, what could he do?

Nothing he tried could solve the problem.

On the contrary, the more he wants to alienate women, the more he yearns for the opposite sex.

His soul and body were firmly controlled by Zhang Mi during this process. This was just like what the old people often say - injustice.

So since fate made him meet Zhang Mi, he became one of the silly young people from then on.

And he can't change anything anymore, so he can only let it go.

However, the evolution of things is still so amazing!

Luo Guangliang gave up on himself and went to Maxim, but he didn't see Zhang Mi!

Although Maxim's restaurant was still very busy, Luo Guangliang even arrived before seven o'clock in the evening, but he still couldn't get a seat at the bar.

But when it was time for the performance, the only lead singer on the stage was Cui Jian, who was roaring at the top of his lungs. Zhang Mi didn't come!

Is this girl sick?

Or is something delayed?

Or maybe the contract is over and the restaurant refuses to hire me?

Could it be...could it be that she was afraid of his entanglement and wanted to avoid him?

Luo Guangliang was as anxious as if the house was on fire. He asked everyone in the restaurant who could talk to him.

But the restaurant's business is so good, the band is busy performing, the waiters are busy working, and the restaurant manager can't find anyone.

No one heard Luo Guangliang's inquiry clearly, no one paid attention to his problems, and no one cared about his troubles. Everyone was busy with their own things.

The key is that Cui Jian's music is so magical and the sound is too loud!

No matter Beijing residents or foreigners, no matter guests or service staff, all their attention is focused on him.

This made Luo Guangliang feel how hateful Cui Jian was for the first time.

Although he knew that this boy seemed to have a good relationship with Ning Weimin, but because of his existence, the answer he wanted most was unavailable.

In the end, Luo Guangliang could only deal with it perfunctorily with "I don't know" and "I don't know", and left full of depression.

However, he did not go home,

Instead, he rode his bicycle into the buildings across the road and pedaled to Guangqumen based on his feeling.

He wants to find Zhang Mi by his own strength.

Unfortunately, he lost his way again and never found the building in his memory.

He remembered that there was a lawn in front of the building where Zhang Mi lived, but almost all buildings had lawns in front of them.

He remembered that the stair handrails in that building were made of cement, but after searching for a long time, all he saw were wooden handrails.

That building was actually hidden with Zhang Mi.

In the capital city in August, the moonlight was dim, the lawns were black, the trees were black, and Luo Guangliang's mood was even more terrifying.

Unable to find the doorway, he was completely like a fly fluttering around aimlessly.

He wandered from building to building until those enjoying the shade became suspicious of him and called the "Littlefoot Detective Team"...

Luo Guangliang, who still had not given up, came to Maxim again three days later.

This time he arrived at six o'clock when the sky was still bright, and he planned to ask questions while the restaurant was not busy.

Unexpectedly, this time he met Manager Sha as soon as he arrived. He didn't even have a chance to ask, so he was half pulled and half dragged to sit down.

As a result, he unintentionally got the answer he most urgently wanted to know from Manager Sha's mouth.

Manager Sha's face was red, and he looked like he had drank.

His demeanor seemed very excited, and his slightly lazy expression and movements revealed a shrewdness that others could not match.

The mess on his table also showed what kind of guests he had just entertained.

The ashtray was full of cigarette butts, a few empty wine glasses, especially a bottle of Rémy Martin vsop that was more than half full, and there were only a few small pieces of cookies left on the pastry plates.

Luo Guangliang realized that he seemed to have just finished talking about something important and it was done.

Because they were acquaintances, I pretended to give him a few compliments.

"Manager Sha, you get paid for eating and drinking every day. I really envy you."

"Haha, no matter what, it's trivial. But brother, you really misunderstood. Don't think that I am spending public funds. In fact, what I am talking about is not a business matter, but a private matter..."

Manager Sha laughed heartily and had no intention of shying away from his behavior of harming the public and enriching his own private life.

Luo Guangliang was really a little envious this time.

The reputation of a company like this is fair and square. Apart from Pierre Cardon, I'm afraid there really is no other place.

Also, who can sell a Picardy suit for thousands of dollars, and also open the best Chinese and Western restaurants in Beijing?

What is this loss?

Presumably, even the general manager saw this kind of thing with his own eyes and didn't bother to ask.

He still remembered the last time Ning Weimin treated him to a treat.

They didn't hesitate to use the most expensive XO to hire him. Maybe people like them should live like this, right?

Don't blame anything. If you want to blame, blame yourself for not being able to read well and not knowing foreign languages. You can only work hard.

However, what Manager Sha said later surprised Luo Guangliang.

"Brother, don't be envious. What does it mean to come early rather than come by time? You do. Since we have met today, it's just what we deserve, and it saves me the trouble of looking for you again. Good things come to you too... "

"Good thing? What good thing?"

"Listen to me, no, the guests I am entertaining here today are a few foreign trade friends. Their company bartered with Poland and just got a batch of cars. They promised to pay taxes after paying taxes. The cost price is equal to 24 cars for me. The Italian Fiat does not have much horsepower and is a bit small, but it can still seat four people in the car. The price is very cost-effective, 9,800 for one car! I just want to ask you whether it is expensive. …”

"Car?" Luo Guangliang was even more surprised now, and his eyes widened immediately.

"Manager Sha, do you have a car? And it's so cheap!"

"Yeah! How about it, is it a good thing? Brother, do you want it? Can you get one?"

Manager Sha said as he took out a photo and showed it to Luo Guangliang.

Luo Guangliang took it. The car in the photo was indeed not big and looked like a toy.

But the problem is that cars in this era have a superior status.

Not only do people in cars think so, this concept is even more deeply ingrained in the minds of ordinary people.

In fact, for a long time, what Luo Guangliang envied Ning Weimin the most was that he could get a car to drive.

And the key is that this thing is so cheap!

Being able to buy a car for 9,800 is like a fairy tale.

You know, a motorcycle costs two to three thousand.

The cheapest van on the market costs less than 30,000 yuan.

"Me? This...can I buy it as an individual? No need for approval from the Materials Bureau? No need to be affiliated with an organization?"

"No, what batch is approved? This batch of goods cannot be sold to the public. It's embarrassing for the public to drive such a car, so they can only sell it to private individuals. I also tell you that my foreign trade company has already sold a lot of them. . You might as well pay attention, as long as you see this kind of car on the street, it is private. So you don’t have to worry about this matter at all, I will take care of it for you. How about it? I have the traffic brigade and the vehicle management office. My friend, it’s up to me, Lao Sha, to take care of the car brand…”

I have to say that Luo Guangliang was really tempted.

Don't forget, Ning Weimin also suggested that he and Xiao Tao learn to drive a car last time he came back.

But they discussed it for a while and finally decided not to go. Why?

It’s just because it’s so hard to find a car, I feel like it’s useless to learn it, and I don’t have a car to drive, so I’m really addicted and it’s hard to handle.

It's different now. In terms of doing things, Manager Sha is quite reliable.

This guy is not the kind of talk dealer who dares to accept anything or everything. He never promises to do anything small.

Now that the car is almost delivered to him, and there is no need to worry about any procedures, then the two of them can apply what they have learned if they want to learn how to drive a car again.

Imagining the not-too-distant future, Luo Guangliang got into his own car and took his parents, brother and sister-in-law for a drive on Chang'an Street. Luo Guangliang's eyes gleamed.

No matter what kind of car it is? As long as it has four wheels, it's a car.

But then again, the question is why should such a good thing happen to me?

Forget about others, Manager Sha is not in debt because Luo Guangliang knows what he is thinking.

That was because he had been thinking about following Ning Weimin all day long to speculate on stamps, make a fortune, and get close to him, just to find out about Ning Weimin.

For Luo Guangliang, once he accepted such benefits, he could remain tight-lipped in the past and not say a word that he shouldn't have said.

That may not be the case in the future. He is afraid that he will let his friends down.

As a result, because he was silent for a while and did not respond positively, Manager Nasha misunderstood.

I thought he was stupid and didn't really want to buy his car, so I tried my best to persuade him.

"Oh, brother, why are you hesitating about such a good thing? Why can't you trust me? Just do it this way. If you are still worried, let's just pay the money and deliver the goods with one hand, and wait for me to do it. Isn’t it okay for you to give me money if your car has a good brand?"

"Not yet? You think it's expensive? It's not expensive. We're not comparing ourselves to others, we're just friends. Just to save Mr. Ning's face, I want to earn you a penny. I'm a little kid. I'm really kind-hearted, and it's just your bicycle. Is it so good? It’s cold in winter and hot in summer, and you’ll be sweating all over when you go up a hill. Where can I find a car?”

"If we don't fight for face and reputation, what are we doing to make money after working so hard for so many years? We can't let people look down on us, right? Hey, look at my lighter. It's golden, isn't it? But it's not bullshit in front of a car. Mom Yes, who is really awesome? Then you have to take a car."

"You might as well imagine that on a windy or rainy day, when you have no place to hide or when you want to take a taxi, you have to wait in line at the door of the hotel. Someone else gets in a car and passes you by, leaving behind The next big piece of dust or muddy water covers you. What does that feel like?"

"Hey, let me put it this way. If you drive a car, Lami will be different. There is a driver from the power supply bureau in our courtyard who drives their leader's car to pick up girls on the street every day. He has never had any When you're free, you often don't even have to pick the ground, just go for a drive, just find a dark place and get the job done. In his words, every girl nowadays gets dizzy when she sees a car. If you want to drive a car and hit the road, even if you don’t tell me, everyone will think your home is special.”

"Hey, let's not talk about others. How about the girl who sings temporarily at Maxim's Restaurant? Don't look at the fact that there are a bunch of young guys around her every day. This one is doing art, and that one is doing music. In the end, she can't do any of them. I don’t like it, as if I have a high vision and a high heart. Aren’t you also dizzy when you see a car?”

"You don't know, he is a southerner who is almost forty, with a face full of wrinkles and a look like a yam egg. I guess the grandson's child is a few years younger than that girl, because he drives a Volga car , said that he wanted to give her a tape, and the silly girl believed it. The man came only a few times, and the silly girl resigned without saying a word and followed the man to Huacheng. If it hadn't been for a car, That old boy can succeed so easily..."

Manager Sha spoke out a lot of his inner thoughts in a drunken state.

However, because he was distracted, Luo Guangliang didn't take most of his words to heart.

However, those last few words suddenly grabbed Luo Guangliang's heart, and even made him break his guard instantly.

"What? What did you say? Which girl, who are you talking about? Zhang Mi? Is it the Zhang Mi who sang in Maxim? She...she quit and went to...Flower City...you didn't lie to me?"

The continuous questioning revealed bewilderment, panic and emotional eagerness.

The Luo Guangliang that Manager Sha knew had always been reticent, and he had never seen him so out of breath.

I was in a daze for a while, and my words were hesitant.

"It seems...it seems right? It should be...that's the name, Zhang Mi, yes, it's Zhang Mi. She recruited half a platoon of men to take her home in turn. Didn't you also send her home? ! What I said is absolutely true. As for what happened in the first two days, everyone has spread the news. Let me think about what day it happened..."

"The grandson wants to give her a fucking gift! Damn it!"

Luo Guangliang was silent for a moment, and when Manager Sha was thinking, he cursed abruptly, then impulsively picked up the half-full bottle on the table and drank it down.

This kind of gaffe made Manager Sha even more stunned, but after all, he was Lao Jianghu, so he understood it immediately.

With a sudden look on his face, he explored carefully.

"Xiao Luo, you... you won't... talk to that girl..."

Luo Guangliang didn't say anything. He waved his hands and felt uncomfortable in his mouth and stomach.

Seeing Luo Guangliang's dejected state, Manager Sha really understood now and lit a cigarette himself.

He lost his joking expression, and after thinking for a moment, he actually said seriously, "Brother, I've been here. Who hasn't had their youth? So I'll tell you a few words. Listen to me, is this true? Son. If nothing else, take a look at the woman in this restaurant first. Which woman is worthy of love? Just that one. Do you see her long legs? Is she beautiful? That was one of the earliest models from Pierre Cardon. She was originally a store salesperson. , fell in love with a male salesman. Later she became a model, and then she found a handsome lighting engineer as her boyfriend. However, when she was partying at Maxim, her boyfriend could only wait at the door pushing his bicycle. So I found a rich official to be my boyfriend. Now that the official dumped me, I found a Hong Kong customer and she has become a professional lover. When the Hong Kong customer is not in the capital, she goes out to fool around by herself. If you want to sleep with her, , it’s very easy. Buy her a few drinks, and she’ll spend the night with you for five hundred dollars. Just don’t talk about feelings. So it’s not that you shouldn’t believe in love. The important thing is to choose the right person. In this feasting environment, you have to find the right person. Love, you're in the wrong place. If you want to have fun, that's the right way..."

He didn't know whether it was because he couldn't stand the mental shock or the taste of foreign wine. Anyway, after listening to Manager Sha's advice, Luo Guangliang felt sick in every pore at this moment. (End of chapter)