In Beijing in 1902, a strange thing called a "four-wheeled iron horse" came to the Forbidden City.
Its body is wooden and open, with a roof and double rows of seats.
The appearance still looks like traces of European horse-drawn carriages from the 18th century.
This is the first automobile that has been documented in the capital city.
However, this fashionable gadget, which Yuan Shikai managed to get from the United States with great difficulty and presented as tribute to the Empress Dowager Cixi of the Qing Dynasty, was driven into the background after being driven once.
Not for anything else, just because cars cannot solve the problem of inferiority and inferiority.
The Empress Dowager Cixi would not allow anyone to sit in front of her, including Sun Fuling, her royal chauffeur.
However, the feudal resistance and ignorant rejection could not stop the progress of science and technology.
Forty-four years later, the people of the Republic have a completely different perception of cars.
In 1956 in Beijing, almost everyone was excited that our country had successfully manufactured its first car of its own.
At that time, the National News Film Studio even made a special trip to shoot a documentary for this event that caused a sensation throughout the country.
The film not only completely records the process of the first domestically produced car rolling off the production line by the 54-year-old driver Ma Guofan.
There is also a scene of Master Ma shaving his head and face just for this matter, and cleaning up neatly.
These details are the most touching, and a writer even composed a song "Old Driver" based on them.
It is a pity that twenty-six years have passed by in a blink of an eye, but the manufacturing capabilities and technical levels of our domestically produced automobiles have not been significantly improved as we expected, but have instead remained stagnant.
In 1982, the number of motor vehicles in my country was still pitifully low, with less than 2 million vehicles nationwide.
Compared with before the reform and opening up, the number of cars driving on the streets of Beijing has not changed much, both in terms of model and number.
Most of the motor vehicles that can be seen are Jiefang brand trucks, Songhuajiang brand buses, 630 medium-sized station wagons, 130 medium-sized trucks, and 212 jeeps.
Even three-wheeled motorcycles have not yet been phased out.
This year, our Huhai brand sedan has just begun to consider the issue of installing air conditioning in the car.
This year, my country’s plan to jointly produce automobiles with well-known foreign automobile manufacturers is still in the negotiation and inspection stage.
Among all the domestically produced cars, only the Hongqi sedan barely reaches a certain level.
As for other imported small cars, Warsaw, Victory, Jim, Austin, Standa and other old vehicles that are close to being eliminated account for the majority.
So let alone the German Mercedes-Benz, the French Bairu, and the American Chrysler, these truly high-end international cars are rare for Chinese people to see.
Even Nissan's economical vehicles like Daihatsu, Mitsubishi, Datsun, and Toyota, or gadgets like toys like Polonaise and Fiat, are still rare and good cars.
To be honest, in this era when cars were not yet popular, even the technical content of the driver's profession was extremely enviable and admired by ordinary people.
Not to mention that in every unit, car drivers are respected high-end talents.
You can show your temper according to your temper, put on airs, get the first bonus, make fun of the leader, and make your superiors look bad.
The profession of taxi driver is even more high-end among high-end professions, with a very special luster.
Since the reform and opening up, due to the increasing number of foreigners in Beijing, the income of this group has also skyrocketed.
Taxi drivers have not only become frequent visitors to Western restaurants and high-end shopping malls, but they also have very high requirements for choosing a spouse.
It is not uncommon to find a teacher, a flight attendant, or fall in love with a beautiful actress.
Think about it, even the drivers responsible for driving are so awesome these days, what about the people who can ride in small cars all year round?
It can be seen from this that Ning Weimin can own a car that he can use at his own discretion, and it is a fairly new imported car.
What an enviable and shocking thing it is!
To a certain extent, this means that his status is equal to that of the bureau chief and county magistrate.
This is not an exaggeration at all.
Because of the current national conditions, the 1979 declaration that the country allowed individuals to own private cars is not yet feasible and legal.
The limited domestic automobiles are used as production resources and are allocated to personnel of a certain level for use, and are called official vehicles.
Taking the specific situation in Beijing, only those at the director level enjoy the privilege of being equipped with public buses, not even deputy directors.
If you want to get out of the category of no-name cars and 212 jeeps, and get into a serious sedan, you have to at least get to the director level.
If you want to go one step higher and take the red flag car, you have to be at the ministerial level.
It is precisely because of this that the Hongqi sedan is nicknamed the "minister's car".
That's right, of course Ning Weimin had his own car in his previous life.
In 2020, in order to avoid the license restriction policy as much as possible, he owned a Grand Cherokee and an Audi A8 in his own name.
The company also owns a Toyota Accord, a Buick GL8, and two Jinbei Dabaos.
And he has touched a lot of luxury cars in his life.
Either rent or borrow, Mercedes-Benz, Bentley, Lincoln, Hummer, Ferrari, Cadillac, they have all been tried.
To be honest, cars are too special and rare in modern times.
The happiness he felt when he drove this pickup truck on the road was far beyond the luxury cars he drove in his previous life.
Even he himself had never thought that the taste would be so wonderful.
The first difference is reflected in the road conditions.
What was the road condition like in Beijing in 1982?
It cannot be denied that the roads outside the city are bumpy and bumpy, and many places are covered with loess and gravel roads.
But it is different in the city. The Second Ring Road is open to traffic, and the urban areas of Beijing are all asphalt roads.
And because there are few motor vehicles, although the road is not wide, it is enough for use.
Even crowded and lively places like Beihai, Forbidden City, Tiananmen, Wangfujing, and Shichahai can be passed smoothly.
There is no bus expressway. Regardless of whether it is a bus or a truck, once it runs parallel to a car, it will often take the initiative to avoid it.
After all, everyone knows that the person sitting in the car is definitely not an ordinary person.
There are no worries about monitoring, taking pictures, deducting points, speed testing, or checking for drunk driving.
When it comes to investigating violations of traffic regulations, the traffic police can only catch them in action.
Secondly, parking is extremely convenient.
Large places have specially designated parking lots, but small places can just park along the side.
Not only does no one charge parking fees, but all car guards are voluntary workers.
Moreover, no one is competing for parking spaces, and the trouble of driving down to the basement and circling left and right is eliminated.
I believe that drivers who have been to Beijing can compare the road conditions and fares in Beijing in 2020.
You know how cool it was to drive around the capital in 1982.
In addition, Ning Weimin’s pickup truck has an advantage that no one else can match, that is, the make of the truck is extremely impressive.
Of course Pierre & Caton Company is a black-brand truck, 31-00446. When the traffic police came all the way to see the brand of the pickup truck, they knew it was a foreign-related vehicle.
(At that time, there were 30 provinces and cities in my country, not counting Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, and Qiongyu had not yet been established. In order to avoid conflict with the 64-type license plate, 01 was suddenly changed to 31, and the black plate was reserved for foreign-related institutions)
As a result, we often take the initiative to provide some special care.
Often when there are not many vehicles, the traffic police will use the hand control of the traffic light to turn the red light into green for Ning Weimin to allow him to pass.
That was an unexpected surprise!
There are no traffic restrictions, no traffic jams, no red lights, it’s a smooth road!
If you want to travel east and west, take Chang'an Avenue.
If you want to travel between the north and the south, take the Second Ring Road.
Whether running east-west or north-south, as long as you don't go into an alley, the speed is like Nezha riding a hot wheel, and you will arrive in a blink of an eye.
This is called driving! It embodies all the conveniences that a car should have!
Once times change and you miss this era, you will be the richest man in the world and come to the capital, and you will no longer be able to enjoy such smoothness!
More importantly, cars have an extraordinary importance in the hearts of most people these days, and they can satisfy people's vanity.
After Ning Weimin drove his car back from the company, the first thing he did was drive back to Shan'er Hutong, hoping to take Kang Shude, who was resting at home, out for a walk.
As a result, the neighbors in the alley were shocked when they discovered that Ning Weimin had driven back a car.
Although this pickup truck only has seats for two people, the back is just like a truck.
But after all, this is a new car that has only been driven for two years, and it has the appearance of a sedan.
Everyone who lives in Shan'er Hutong, whether they are familiar with Ning Weimin or not, many people took time out of their busy schedule to come here.
There are no other requirements. As long as you can see the cab of the car and touch the steering wheel, you will be quite satisfied.
“Look at the people, they are really awesome, the cars are running, this is when you become an official...”
“Pull them down, foreign companies are doing a good job in protecting the people. The main reason is that their units are rich and they don’t watch “Xinwen Lianbo”. Their company advertisements are shown every day. In the past, Casio was in charge...”
“I know, I know, my company sells fashionable clothes, which are the favorites of young people nowadays. A set of old noses is very expensive, at least more than a hundred...”
“Oh, aunt, don’t tease me, why don’t you pay me back more than a hundred, several hundred? Why don’t you look at what kind of clothes that is? From Paris, France. Pierre Cardin…”
This last sentence, I don’t know if this person was joking intentionally or if he really remembered it wrongly.
Anyway, I scratched the big guy’s itch, which immediately caused a roar of laughter.
So in such an atmosphere, Ning Weimin couldn't leave quickly even if he wanted to.
He must first patiently and kindly let the neighbors enjoy the experience and take everyone to the car to visit.
Unexpectedly, after they had fooled all these people, Aunt Bian and Aunt Luo were attracted by the excitement outside.
Of course he has to be more attentive to these close neighbors who are almost like relatives.
So he took Aunt Bian and Aunt Luo for a drive to Tiananmen Square.
It wasn't until it was almost time for lunch that he finally asked his master Kang Shude to get in his car.
The master and apprentice discussed it in the car and headed straight to the north to eat Hunan cuisine at Ma Kai Restaurant on Gulou Street.
It’s November, and the neighbors are watching them go away with envious eyes.
Look at the pedestrians pedaling against the strong wind outside the car and being blown away by the wind.
Kang Shude couldn’t help but feel proud of his apprentice.
But he really couldn't praise Ning Weimin for his ability and his good work.
Because as a master, the main responsibility is to pour cold water on others and not to let young people raise their tails.
So he kept reprimanding Ning Weimin.
Tell him to be more kind and humble to his neighbors when he comes back in the future, and not to be arrogant.
Otherwise, you will appear uninteresting and easily hated by others.
Of course Ning Weimin could understand his master's thoughts and nodded while driving.
"Don't worry, I understand. I don't know my last name just because of a car. I'm not stupid, why do I have to make others spit on my car and puncture my tires behind my back?"
Ke Kangshude was a little annoyed that his understanding was so off-key.
“You kid, why do you always think the worst of others? How can our neighbors behave like this?”
Ning Weimin is quite true to this.
"Hey, how is it impossible? Your words are too idealistic. As the saying goes, the king of hell is easy to meet, but the devil is difficult to deal with. You yourself also always said that if your five fingers are not aligned on one side, you must be on guard against others.
…”
Kang Shude was so angry that he blew his beard and stared.
“How shameless! We haven’t even eaten yet, and you’re trying to make me angry by quarreling with me?”
Ning Weimin couldn't help but want to laugh, but his mouth didn't relax.
"You are so 'daring'. You have learned all the emperor's words from Liu Baorui's cross talk "The Fight between Kings and Ministers". I would like to ask you, are you not tired of scolding me every day when you see me? You don't like me so much?
That’s me, I get scolded every day, but I still worship you like a god.”
“I am your master! What’s the matter, I can’t be your god? I scold you for your own good. I don’t bother to teach others a lesson. I don’t have that obligation.”
“Yes, yes, do you want to eat at noon today? Don’t go away for a while, you said you are full again...”
As soon as Kang Shude heard this, he quickly changed his tune.
"Are you playing tricks on me again? I'm not old enough yet. I won't be fooled by your kid. If I can't eat it, I'll order it. It will cost you a hundred yuan in a while. Just watch it, I'm happy."
"Okay, whatever you want. But I want to tell you something. Don't be angry. I left my wallet in your room and forgot it."
Kang Shude immediately opened his eyes wide.
“Wait a minute, what do you mean? You didn’t bring any money? You dragged me here without any money! Did you have a premeditated plan? Do you want to eat me today?”
“I don’t mean that. We can order food and eat first when we get there. At the worst, you can sit down and drink tea after we finish eating. I’ll drive back to get the money. Isn’t there a car here...”
Kang Shude flatly refused.
“Don’t mention it, that won’t work. Turn around and go back quickly. You have a car, it’s the same as going back to get the money...”
Ning Weimin really laughed this time.
“Look at you, you can’t even trust your own disciples, and you’re still talking about me. People’s hearts are separated from each other, right? To tell you the truth, I was just kidding you. I still have my wallet with me.”
Consult was so angry that he was completely speechless this time.
I said in my heart, good boy, you are Ma Sanli, are you kidding me?
Alright, let’s go back after this meal is finished!
I will be the first person to spit on your car today...