National Tide 1980

After the year-end bonuses were issued, the whole country of Japan ushered in a spending spree.

Except for those who are engaged in dispatching and part-time jobs and can only work part-time, all Japanese who have formal jobs are extremely happy during this period and each is planning the use of bonuses.

However, on this issue, the differences between Japanese people of different ages are actually quite large.

As the backbone of Japanese society at this time, people in the prime working age of around forty are still more rational.

Just like Director Taniguchi, their generation is the baby boomer generation born after World War II, which is called the "lump generation" in Japan.

Although they entered society at the height of Japan's rapid economic growth.

But because this generation experienced hardship when they were young, it is normal that there is no meat in the curry sauce for dinner.

Therefore, they are deeply afraid of poverty. Even if they are rich, they still dare not enjoy themselves as they please and spend too much without restraint.

For example, when Director Taniguchi was chatting with Ning Weimin, he recalled that before the Olympic Games were held in Tokyo, they lived a life lacking in electrical appliances.

Things like wells, bathtubs, mosquito coils, wind chimes, coal stoves, kimonos, and tatami mats have always been with him in his daily life.

It wasn't until the 1964 Olympic Games that all this ancient history was gone.

It can be said that the Japanese of their generation actually have something in common with those who grew up in the 1950s of the Republic of China.

Be down-to-earth and hard-working, be honest about your duties, especially cherish the hard-earned happy life, and don’t have too many unrealistic ideas and pursuits.

Often before the bonus is received, a more practical use has been planned.

In addition to using the bonus to pay off your mortgage, car loan and credit card balances.

Many people also set aside a large portion of their children's education funds.

In addition, you need to plan for your own retirement, or save money in the bank or buy some financial products for investment.

Therefore, what they really spend on living and enjoying life, apart from buying a few clothes, getting New Year's goods, and going to a better restaurant for a meal, the biggest expense may be traveling.

Just as Mr. and Mrs. Taniguchi planned.

However, in comparison, this is not the case with their younger generations. They belong to the generation that follows their desires and consumes.

The Japanese born in big cities in the 1960s are called the "new human generation", which can almost be compared with those born in the 1970s or 1980s in the Republic of China.

They spent their childhood in Japan's period of rapid economic growth. They are a generation that has no idea of ​​war and post-war material scarcity. They are often criticized by their elders for "having no patience," "being spoiled," and "having no common sense." blame.

Most of these new human beings experienced a life of adding new electrical appliances to their homes every year when they were young.

Things like telephones, double-door refrigerators, color TVs, water heaters, air conditioners, stereo combinations, and microwave ovens were all introduced into their own homes by their own eyes.

When I was in school, most people could close the door and turn on the air conditioning at home, lay chemical fiber carpets on the tatami mats, put Western-style furniture, and watch American TV series in jeans or listen to British rock music.

This change in life makes this generation feel awesome and cool.

But few people mind that traditional culture and neighborhood life are being destroyed at the same time.

So don't look at August of this year, the original manga of "Chibi Maruko-chan" has just begun to be serialized.

But it gained huge popularity once it was launched.

In the final analysis, this work, which revolves around the daily life of the naughty elementary school student Maruko and his family, is the reason why Japanese readers are so popular.

In addition to being humorous and amusing, more importantly, this comic reflects the common memory of the post-war generation of Japanese.

The story of "Chibi Maruko-chan" is set in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Maruko-chan happens to be the "new generation of humanity" born in Japan's golden age.

Therefore, for this generation, life seems to be getting sweeter and sweeter all the time. Without the worry of poverty, they spend money extravagantly.

They are far less planned than their parents for how they spend their bonuses, and are used to using credit cards to overdraft.

Houses, cars, home appliances, game consoles, designer bags, watches, designer clothes, they want everything.

The enjoyment of eating, drinking and having fun is also essential.

Restaurants, bars, pachinko, skiing, hot springs, overseas travel, and Disneyland.

Nowadays, it is mainly young people of this generation who are having fun in various entertainment venues and spending money like water.

Therefore, no matter how much bonuses are given, it does not seem to be enough for them. There is no doubt that they have become the main consumer force in this era.

Even children like Yujiro Sakai and Miyoko Kagawa, who come from poor and remote backgrounds, believe that no matter how much money they spend today, they can earn it back through hard work tomorrow.

Otherwise, why do you still dare to make such a big show when treating guests when you are clearly in huge debt?

This is the role of optimism, just like the title of Luo Dayou's song - tomorrow will be better.

However, despite this, they are not the Japanese who have the most optimistic expectations for the future and are the most daring to spend money.

Because the junior students who were born just a few years later than them, that is, those born from 1965 to 1969, are even better than them in these two aspects. They are pure hedonists and determined Believer in consumerism.

Because when he first entered society, it coincided with the expansion of Japan's economic bubble and companies recruiting a large number of employees.

The generation like Director Taniguchi’s children form a separate group, known as the “bubble generation.”

Their goal in life since childhood is to get rich quickly and live the same life as Americans. However, everything left by their ancestors seems old and backward to them.

During their childhood, parents who had previously prohibited their older siblings from standing up to eat instead began encouraging them to walk, chew gum, and even swallow hamburgers.

Because from that time on, the entire Japanese society believed that it would not be wrong to imitate Americans.

When they grow up, the unemployment rate in Japanese society is almost zero, and the lifetime employment system of large companies guarantees an iron rice bowl for office workers for a lifetime.

Even because some economic experts predict that there will be a labor shortage in Japanese society in the future, many companies have begun to enter schools to grab people.

Not only are graduates from prestigious schools becoming popular, but third-rate college students like Director Taniguchi's son, Shinyu Taniguchi, are also needed by companies and are recruited with preferential treatment.

Therefore, they, the "bubble generation", are the ones who are so arrogant that they take all the good things in life for granted and regard instant gratification as their only pursuit.

They don't worry about tomorrow anyway, they only play with their heartbeat, so they are also the ones who can spend the most money.

Despite his young age, he is generous in his actions.

They not only need the sporting goods, game consoles, motorcycles, and sports shoes that are most needed at their age.

They also imitate their older brothers and sisters who are more mature than them, learn to put on makeup, fall in love, buy luxury goods, and go to high-end places to spend money.

It doesn’t matter if you don’t have money. In this era, there is no need to worry about work. You can either work to earn money or ask for it from your own father.

It was easier for young and beautiful girls to want money, and it was at this time that aid communication began to rise.

This was an era when poverty was laughed at but not prostitution. It had not been long before women had legal employment opportunities, and men were spending money too lavishly.

Driven by material desires, many girls are eager to use the fastest way to make money to obtain high-end leather bags and high-end clothing that can make their peers envious, so they naturally hang out with rich men.

No one feels ashamed of this kind of thing. They only worry that their friends and acquaintances will look down upon them because of their shabby clothes.

In fact, this kind of mentality can also be seen in the current republic.

It's just that we need to change the term. Our Chinese call this phenomenon "sugar daddy".

Anyway, for the Japanese who have received bonuses, now is the time for everyone to spend money in competitions.

Moreover, in this kind of competition, the younger the "players" are, the less they care and the less they take their labor income seriously. This is the most depraved and crazy side of Japanese society in this era.

This kind of unhealthy social custom of advocating extravagance and treating money as money is not acceptable to the "old devils" who have survived hard times.

For foreigners, especially foreigners working in Japan, this is even more exciting.

I won’t talk about anything else, but let’s talk about the Ginza branch of Dan Gong Restaurant.

Those domestic workers who followed Ning Weimin to Tokyo to work felt mixed emotions at this time, and major emotional problems arose.

why?

Just because equal work is paid differently, we are not worried about scarcity but inequality.

They are not Ning Weimin, how can they understand the essence of this kind of thing with a higher level of vision than ordinary people?

They also do not have the means of Ning Weimin to increase their personal income by participating in financial speculation games or collecting rent from the landlords of the Tantan Palace Restaurant.

They only know that everyone is a laborer, and they work even harder than these indolent Japanese.

However, their income is significantly lower than that of these Japanese employees.

On weekdays, that's all at work, watching those Japanese customers come with beautiful women.

In addition to ordering high-end dishes such as shark's fin and bird's nest, I also drank French red wine worth hundreds of thousands or two hundred thousand yen.

Although they also think that the level of luxury of spending money like water is exaggerated, the domestic employees of these altar palaces are not jealous.

After all, Japan is a developed capitalist country, and those customers who can dine at high-end restaurants like Ginza are either rich or expensive celebrities.

This kind of luxurious life for ordinary people is commonplace for others. This is how they have lived since they were young.

They are very aware of the huge disparity between themselves and these customers. They are not comparable people at all, so what is there to be sad about?

However, what they found hard to accept was that the Japanese waiters hired by Tan Palace actually surpassed them in income. This was a bit unreasonable.

Because these guys obviously have no academic qualifications and no skills. They are all the bottom leaders among the Japanese.

Even these guys are not good-looking, not even tall. If they were born in the capital, they would not even be able to pass the preliminary examination for Tan Palace recruitment, and their image would be tarnished.

But just because he is Japanese, he can earn a monthly salary of 400,000 yen just by guiding customers and ordering dishes for them every day.

And every six months, there is a bonus equivalent to two months' salary.

For this kind of generous treatment, those domestic employees are really disgusted.

Salary of 350,000 yen or 400,000 yen plus bonus of 700,000 to 800,000 yen!

In the past month, these little devils who can eat but not do anything have all become millionaires!

It would be 8,000 yuan if converted into U.S. dollars. If converted into RMB, it would be tens of thousands!

Oh shit! Why?

Why do everyone do the same job, or even more, but the few bucks these little Karamies earn in a month are enough for real experts like them, who wish they could stay busy for a lifetime!

This is too unfair. Where can I find any reason? It's hard not to be angry!

yes! They are subsidized to work abroad. In addition to their domestic wages, they also receive 50,000 yen per month.

Converted into RMB, the backbone of chefs like Yang Feng and Jiang Dachun can earn more than 2,000 yuan, and ordinary employees can earn at least thousands of yuan, which is a little more than what they get in China.

Compared with the average salary level of only 100 yuan in domestic enterprises and institutions, or more than 200 yuan in the same industry.

Each one of them is considered a wealthy class, and their income is several to ten times ahead of their compatriots at home.

But even so, compared with the income of these little devils, it is still not enough. The gap between one day and one place is too big.

Ever since, the side effects started to show up the day after the bonuses were distributed at Tan Gong Restaurant.

Most employees in the country are somewhat mentally unbalanced, and some show a passive and slow attitude towards work.

On the morning of December 11, before Tan Gong Restaurant opened, many chefs and waiters got together to talk, and their words were full of sour dissatisfaction and resentment.

"Hey, let me tell you, did you see that yesterday, those little devils all made a fortune. Darling, there are hundreds of thousands of yen as bonuses! They are so beautiful that their noses are wet with snot!"

"No, I was watching from the side. The accountant paid out the bonuses by name. Everyone in Japan got one, which is equivalent to two months' salary. I didn't say, just them taking this bonus, and we brothers will tie it together , you may not be able to earn even if you work here for a year..."

"Damn it! This is so outrageous! We are all human beings, why should we be treated differently?" Someone was furious.

"Oh, don't pretend to be confused because you understand. Can people be the same? As the saying goes, people are more likely to die than others! Who let me be Japanese..."

"What happened to the Japanese? The Japanese deserve to die! My grandfather's generation had a blood feud with them..."

"Stop it! The purpose of your coming here is to serve the Japanese. Why don't you strangle all the guests who come to visit? There are kitchen knives in the kitchen. You can chop one up if you want."

The man ignored the angry young man and started arguing with him. After saying a few words, he turned his head back to the crowd, where there was a lot of discussion.

"You guys think, how can the Japanese earn so much? Aren't everyone a rich man? I don't think they can do anything! Only the Japanese in our store can do nothing except nod and bow. What else can we do? Our buddies are not the only ones supporting this palace..."

"There's nothing you can do about it. It seems that all enterprises, institutions, companies, and factories are like this..."

"Oh, I thought Japan was great before I came here, but after I came I realized how different I am from the Japanese. The most annoying thing is Aoki in the restaurant, you know that guy, right? He actually showed off in front of me yesterday, saying he was going to use his bonus for a loan soon After buying a car, he asked me if not many people in our area know how to drive a car? The average person’s income will never be able to afford a car? Who do you think he is squeezing? Such a comparison. I really regret coming, I really don’t want to Done..."

"You shouldn't say this. Why do I hear that you are blaming Mr. Ning? Are you cooperating with Mr. Ning to bring us out, and why do you still fail?

"Oh, no, no, I really don't mean that. Don't blame me. Am I the one with no conscience?"

"Then what do you mean?"

"What I mean is very simple, I'm just envious. To be honest, if we also have such a bonus, then I have to go back and I can explain it to the whole family."

"Who says it's not the case? But just think about it, even Mr. Ning can't do anything about this matter. If we follow what you said, how much money will the restaurant have to pay? How is that possible!"

"Yes, Mr. Ning can do something about it. He can't make the decision on this kind of thing, so he has to ask his superiors for instructions. The superiors will definitely not approve it. If you ask me, I'd better be content with what I have. Think about it. After all, we take care of food and housing, and the Japanese can’t compare to that, right? We earn a little less, but we can all take it home.”

"Hey, I don't like to hear this. What do you mean by a little less! That's too much less. This can't be compensated by the room and board fees. If I can get such a one-month bonus, I'm willing to pay the room and board fees. …“

"Can you stop looking for trouble so deliberately? You have to think about it for Mr. Ning. If you bring up this kind of thing, what else will it do besides making things difficult for him? This is a problem that cannot be solved at all..." (End of this chapter) )

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