The magic of fate is difficult for mortals to estimate.
Hong Yanwu never dreamed that Uncle Li, who was guarding the "Polar Bear", was an old acquaintance of his family. And judging by that, he had already had an employment relationship with the Hong family.
So the plans for that afternoon were completely disrupted.
Without even entering the courtyard gate, at Uncle Li's urgent request, Hong Yanwu took him directly and turned back to the Hong family.
Uncle Li was also very particular. He insisted on buying some fruits along the way, and also bought some toon from a vendor as a door-to-door gift. Even Hong Yanwu wouldn't let him pay for it, insisting on doing his part.
As expected, we became old acquaintances.
When Uncle Li entered the Hong family's door, Hong Lucheng and Wang Yunlin were stunned as soon as they stood up. Their expressions were similar to Uncle Li's expression when he saw the Hong family's yard.
Uncle Li couldn't help but said a little sadly, "Why, you don't recognize me anymore? That's right, I'm old. Take a closer look, we haven't seen each other for more than 20 years..."
Unexpectedly, although Hong Lucheng stuttered a little, he immediately called out his name.
"Why, why don't you recognize him? You, you are Li Fu."
Wang Yunlin recognized her after being reminded like this. "Yes, you are Li Fu. We haven't seen you for so many years, and I don't dare to recognize you."
Uncle Li was excited now and took a step forward especially excitedly.
"It's me, I'm here to see you. Boss, madam, you can just call me 'Dafuzi'. How have you been doing in recent years? I, I'd better kowtow to you..."
As he said this, the old man bowed down to bow as soon as his eyes moved. Fortunately, Hong Lucheng had quick eyesight and helped him to hold him.
"No, what are you talking about kowtowing to? What era is this from?"
Wang Yunlin also said, "Yes, we are no longer partners. From now on, we will treat each other as relatives and friends. Let's still call them 'Lao Li' and 'Lao Hong'."
"Don't dare, don't dare..."
"Oh, Lao Li, don't be polite. Come, sit down quickly, and let's talk slowly. Look at your white hair, you are still two years younger than me..."
Hong Lucheng took the initiative to pull the person over, and then rushed forward to face Hong Yanwu who was standing aside.
"Third brother, are you so blind? Why don't you make some tea for Uncle Li?"
"Hey", as Hong Yanwu responded, he went away, and Uncle Li became Uncle Li.
On this day, Li Fu, Hong Lucheng, and Wang Yunlin kept talking about the past, and even had dinner at Hong's house.
This was the first time for him to eat food cooked by Wang Yunlin himself. He was so happy that his face lit up, and you could tell how honored he was.
From the sidelines, Hong Yanwu probably figured out the relationship between Uncle Li and the Hong family.
Li Fu is a native of Raoyang County, Hebei Province. He came to Beijing to find a job at the age of fourteen and was introduced by his fellow villagers as an apprentice at "Yanmei Building".
When he entered the store, it was actually the time when Hong Lucheng was learning business from his father.
According to the rules of the Hong family, when eating, "everyone eats at the same table, no different". Since the two of them eat next to each other and are about the same age, their relationship is closer than others.
As time went by, Hong Lucheng discovered that Li Fu was particularly diligent and studious, and felt that he was spiritual. He loved chatting with him even more. Not only did he encourage him to learn more and ask more questions, but he also told him the principle of "art is not a burden on the body". Now that he has free time
, and also taught Li Fu to recognize a few words.
Later, there was an accidental fire that burned down the house in Li Fu's hometown. His parents asked someone to send a message to Li Fu to ask him to raise some money. Hong Lucheng knew that the apprentice had no income, so he took out ten yuan from his monthly money to help him.
, which solved the temporary difficulty in his family. As a result, the two of them developed a feeling of kindness.
In this way, when Hong Lucheng was able to take care of some store operations for his father, Li Fu also became a waiter in "Yanmei Building".
Later, in 1937, Hong Lucheng and his wife "escaped the rebellion" and were forced to leave Beijing. During the past eight years, Li Fu married the daughter-in-law from his hometown and continued to work hard in the "Yanmei Building"
.
He did not forget Hong Lucheng's advice. Not only did he strive for excellence in the business inside and outside the hall, but he also learned the skills of a "restaurant", and gradually became a "Yanmeilou" who can do everything except the kitchen.
The transfer was huge.
You know, there is a saying in the old capital that the three treasures of the house are "the kitchen worker, the waiter, and the waiter", and they are not called for nothing.
In terms of attracting and retaining customers, the latter two are no less important than a chef who can make good dishes.
A capable waiter, with nimble legs and feet, able to carry three plates full of hot dishes with one hand. He has sharp eyes and a good memory. After a customer comes once, he will be able to recognize the customer the second time. He also has the ability to know the names and sales of the dishes in the restaurant.
He knows the prices by heart and has the ability to rely on mental arithmetic to settle accounts.
In addition to serving towels and adding tea and water to the guests, the waiter is also responsible for making various refreshments. The most important thing is to understand the customs and etiquette of weddings and funerals in the capital in order to assist guests who come to the restaurant to entertain their relatives and friends.
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Therefore, in those days, guests liked to hold large-scale banquets at a certain restaurant. In addition to the quality of the dishes, they actually wanted to get the attentive service of the waiter and the etiquette of the waiter.
What's even more surprising is that once the waiter or restaurant worker becomes famous, if they resign, the restaurant will lose a number of patrons, and wherever he goes to the restaurant, these regular patrons will follow him
where.
Even the "iron fans" of today's celebrities cannot achieve this kind of loyalty. Otherwise, there wouldn't be so many restaurants opened by celebrities, right?
What is this? This is very personal charm.
For example, one of the "Eight Buildings" in Beijing in the past, the "teacher" Luan Xuetang, who was born in "Xinfeng Tower", is a typical representative. As soon as he left, he pulled "Xinfeng Tower" to lie down halfway.
Therefore, a rare all-rounder like Li Fu is not only the backbone elite that "Yanmei Building" cannot do without, but also the talents that various casinos compete to hire and try to poach. It can be said that this matter
The rise and fall of a "time-honored" business.
But even during the eight years when the Japanese and puppet governments deliberately suppressed the Hong family's industry, Li Fu remembered Hong Lucheng as a good son and remembered the Hong family's kindness. It was rare that Li Fu remained loyal and shared the joys and sorrows with the Hong family.
Not only did he not change jobs because of the high salary offered by other companies, he also tried his best to attract customers and help the Hong family do their best to maintain business.
This made "Yanmei Building" one of the few shops that was still profitable when Hong Lucheng returned to Beijing to take over. So Hong Lucheng also promoted Li Fu to the position of "tangtou".
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It should be said that this can be regarded as a rare good story in the old Beijing business world. And the two men are so united, and they are all about thirty years old, they can fully display their talents to revive the old shop and create something new.
The weather is coming.
Unfortunately, it happened at the wrong time. Whether it was the soaring prices and shortage of food materials caused by the subsequent civil war, or the material control policy of unified purchasing and marketing, as well as the new trend of diligence, thrift and simplicity that permeated the whole society, the Hong family's business was difficult to do.
The living space is getting smaller and smaller.
In the end, under the irreversible situation, the relationship between the two people came to an end.
In 1955, as the last member of the Hong family to leave, it was Li Fu who personally locked the door of Yanmei Building and handed the key to Hong Lucheng. At that time, even the old house of the Hong family had been vacated for the street.
One additional thing to mention here is that in the past, businessmen were forced to move away from home due to livelihood. Well, the so-called "homeland is hard to leave", people have traveled thousands of miles, but they are still connected to the old cemetery at home. So this is
There is another law: "fallen leaves return to their roots".
In other words, people from all over the world come to Beijing to seek life, no matter how much money they earn in the end, they will always return to their hometowns to retire.
For example, in old Beijing trading shops, the usual situation is that people from different places gather together to control different industries. But in any trading shop, non-resident employees must live in the shop. They only have annual leave every year to go back to their hometown to reunite with relatives for a short time. Married
My wife also has to stay in her hometown to take care of her children and take care of her parents-in-law.
Even high-status managers are no exception to this. Their lives are taken care of by their apprentices. If the family can really be reunited, they can only wait until the day they officially resign from work and retire.
Under this situation, Li Fu felt that there was no point in staying in the capital. He also heard that his family had been allocated land, so he planned to work on farming peacefully. Therefore, he refused the government's job placement and took the resettlement fee and savings provided by the Hong family.
Returned to my hometown to reunite with my family.
But it happened that Li Fu was young when he came out as an apprentice, and was only in his thirties when he returned home. In his prime, he could not live in the countryside, and he did not know how to do farm work. He could not adapt to it no matter how he stayed. In the end, he lost his income
The money he received was left for his family to build a house, and he ran back to the capital alone.
Of course, he knew that there were no private business shops in the capital anymore. What he wanted to do was find a job and live a good life. But at this time, it was not so easy for him to ask the government to make arrangements. So he had to rely on casual labor to survive.
He didn't ask much about the Hong family. He was afraid of causing trouble to them and felt embarrassed at the moment. He thought it was not too late to meet again after they had mixed up.
But how can things get better in the days to come?
During the "movement" period, to be honest, Li Fu couldn't stand it anymore. He really wanted to go back to his hometown. But fate played another joke on him. Not only did he not be able to go back, but his wife also came to the capital to look for him.
Coming.
It all comes down to the fact that when he returned to his hometown, he brought too much money home. Not only did his family become the only big family in the village to build a house with blue bricks and large tiles. During the "Three Years of Disaster", their family still had money.
Going to buy high-priced food to eat. Now this has become a crime.
Some people say that Li Fu is richer than the landlords. How could he be exploited? Maybe he is exploiting people. We must investigate carefully. Some people are shouting to "beat the local tyrants and divide their private wealth."
As a result, his wife no longer dared to stay at home, for fear of ending up like the landlord in the same village. Even his son and daughter left the village and hid with their in-laws. Fortunately, the status of the family had not changed, so they did not really suffer discrimination.
After that, Li Fu and his wife became a poor household, surviving in the capital by making cardboard boxes, picking up waste paper, and receiving relief. In the end, his wife died and he started working as a gatekeeper again.
In the end, it was not until I met Hong Yanwu at the "Polar Bear", and thanks to God's ingenious arrangement and that drink in the middle of the night, that they were able to meet again today.