The Leader 2

If Chen Qi wanted to wage a business war, there were all too many dirty tricks he could use.

But he didn't want to deal with them that way. Besides, times were different; it was easy to get shot for things these days.

In later years, the capital would have a famous folk-culture attraction called the Lao She Teahouse. Established in the 1980s, it offered big bowls of tea for two fen, as well as fancy refreshments and opera performances.

Back then, young people chased Hong Kong and Taiwan pop culture and didn't like watching opera, while older people thought it was too expensive and couldn't bear to go.

The Lao She Teahouse lost money for a while before finding a way forward: it packaged itself as a representative of Beijing folk culture and put on performances for foreigners, winning government recognition in the process.

When foreign heads of state came to the capital, they would all visit the Lao She Teahouse. Later still, tourism boomed, and visitors from elsewhere in China and ordinary foreign tourists went too, lining up to check in and drink those two-fen bowls of tea.

In later years, drinking a big bowl of tea became a viral check-in activity. But trace it back to its roots, and it had all begun with these educated youths, who had braved discrimination and ridicule and kept their heads down as they ran their tea stall...

Chen Qi's plan was, first, to develop it along the lines of the Lao She Teahouse, and second, to expand the business, starting with a department store.

In any case, the tea stall had become a sensation again, routing the competition.

And the foreigners' impact was plain to see: a leader was finally coming to inspect the place!

A leader's inspection always required arrangements.

The higher the rank, the longer the preparations took. Some visits were announced months in advance, sending everyone below into a flurry of activity to clean up the dirt and disorder.

Chen Qi had thought the visitor would be a deputy city official at most. When he got the notice, he was startled: the city's top official was coming, and that was a much higher rank.

Take Yuan Kuocheng, for example. Because he performed "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," he was received by one big shot after another. After leaving Zhongnanhai that day, Yuan Kuocheng calmly went across the street and drank a bowl of soy milk.

General Wang even wrote him a letter, saying, "I'm a loyal listener of yours, and so is my grandson. I tell the children, listen to Uncle Yuan's stories, and you'll have a good teacher to learn Mandarin from. Thank you..."

The leaders themselves were also quite casual and often dropped in on places without warning. There were many such examples, so there was no need to go into them.

Early morning.

The sky was just beginning to lighten when Huang Zhanying started pounding on the door outside like a ghost. "Chen Qi! Chen Qi!"

"Coming, coming!"

He hurriedly put on his shoes, still wearing the same polyester shirt, and called out to his parents before running outside. Chen Jianjun and Yu Xiuli felt a deep sense of frustration. Increasingly, they felt that a sadly thick barrier had grown between them and their son.

"Have you got everything ready?"

"Yep, take a look!"

Huang Zhanying was carrying a few wooden boards and a wooden frame. Chen Qi fiddled with them a little; they were quite sturdy.

"Let's go!"

The two set off on their bicycles, bringing everything to the Qianmen Archery Tower.

Their friends were already busy sweeping the ground and wiping down tables and bowls. The teachers from the opera school had once again come of their own accord, bringing students to help. They were very enthusiastic now, perfectly willing to be used as free labor.

Chen Qi gave directions as usual. "Put up the little blackboard!"

"And those Peking opera masks-hang them in horizontal rows."

"Lay the handkerchiefs out flat, and don't wrinkle them!"

"Where's the English book?"

"Here! Right here!"

Someone hurriedly brought over a copy of "English 900." Chen Qi handed it to a bespectacled friend with a strongly scholarly air and said, "Don't make a point of pretending to read, but make sure people know you're reading all the time."

"Teacher Chen, I'm slow-witted by nature. Please just say it in plain language."

"Oh, come on!"

Chen Qi pushed him into a seat and tossed the book down beside him. "Say you're sitting here, busy wiping bowls, but there's an English book right by your hand. Wouldn't that establish the image of someone diligent and eager to learn?"

"But I don't know English!"

"That's why you're learning! Right, everyone, gather round! Come on, come on!"

Chen Qi waved everyone over and said, "I taught myself English too, and I don't know much. I'll teach you a few simple expressions. I made up a few lines that are really easy to remember. Listen up!"

"Come means come, go means go!"

"Nod for yes, shake your head for no!"

"To greet someone, say hello, hello, hello, ha-hello..."

"Teacher Chen, why've you got a bit of a Tangshan accent? Sounds like the United States isn't far from Tangshan, huh?"

"Cut the nonsense and follow along. Next time foreigners come, you'll be able to manage a little too. Don't let them laugh at you!"

Only after everything was arranged did he wipe away some nonexistent sweat and let out a breath. "Do I have it easy? Mental labor is even more tiring."

That morning, the students began to sing, and the tea stall opened for business.

There was still a sea of people. Nothing special had been done on account of the leader's inspection, though security personnel were certainly present; perhaps even someone buying tea was a plainclothes officer.

At around ten o'clock, a sudden commotion ran through the crowd.

People immediately parted to either side, and several men came forward, greeting the crowd as they walked. They were all dressed plainly, in long-sleeved cotton shirts, gray trousers, and cloth shoes. The man in front was in his sixties and ordinary-looking, but one glance was enough to tell he was an old revolutionary.

His surname was Lin.

He was a man of action, unique in having successively taken charge of Shanghai, Tianjin, and Beijing within two years. He was often called upon to put out fires.

In Tianjin, for example, the college entrance examination had only just been reinstated, and a great many people had applied. Many students who had achieved the required score still couldn't get admitted.

Once these people had nothing to do, they became the "unemployed youth" of the day. Leader Lin responded by expanding university enrollment and setting up several branch campuses, taking in more than eight thousand examinees.

Thought expanding university enrollment was a thing of the nineties? It was already happening now.

When he arrived in the capital, he likewise cut through the tangled mess with a sharp knife, getting nearly twenty thousand young people into university. He also strongly supported cooperatives, making a major contribution to solving the employment problem.

"Welcome, welcome!"

"A warm welcome!"

The opera school students had been pressed into service as a welcoming party. Leader Lin smiled and waved, speaking in a Shandong accent. "All right, all right, there's no need for such a big display!

"I've wanted to come and see this place for a long time, but things kept holding me up. Lately it's become even more remarkable-you've even gotten involved with foreigners. That's impressive. I couldn't put off coming any longer."

People from the district and subdistrict were there too, and they exchanged a few words with him.

Leader Lin didn't care to listen to them. He walked around the tea stall himself, looking at the teapots and the big bowls. Then he pointed at the Peking opera masks on the rack and asked, "What are these for?"

"We've been working with the opera school recently. There are performances every day, so we hung up some masks as decorations. They help set the mood too," Huang Zhanying stammered.

"Oh, quick thinking."

Leader Lin made no further comment and asked a few more questions about the situation. Then he suddenly said, "Which one of you is Comrade Chen Qi?"

"Hello, Leader!"

Chen Qi stepped forward.

"You've made quite a name for yourself. I read your letter, and I hear you also wrote a screenplay?"

"Uh, I just wrote it on a whim."

"Was it accepted?"

"The Beijing Film Studio accepted it."

"Very good, very good. The Beijing Film Studio is very strict. If they accepted it, that shows you wrote it very well. That's exactly the kind of spirit we need: always eager to learn and striving to move forward."

Leader Lin nodded and glanced at "English 900." Of course he could tell that things had been arranged here, but he didn't expose it. "You're right next to the Qianmen Hotel, which caters to foreigners. You may have more international friends visiting in the future.

"When receiving foreign guests, be neither servile nor overbearing. Don't be nervous, and don't be cowards. If you make the country lose face, I won't let you off!"

The older generation spoke very directly and used plain language. Chen Qi smiled and said, "A few of us are teaching ourselves English, but we're not very good at it."

"Oh? Can you say a few things?"

"Only a few words, like 'hello' and 'good.'"

"Haha! Having that spirit is what matters... Oh, right, are you having any difficulties? Go ahead and tell me!"

Huang Zhanying started. Remembering what a certain someone had told her, she hurriedly said, "No, we can overcome any difficulties we have. And our business is getting better and better, so we're a little short-handed. I hope we can take on new people and help more unemployed youth."

"Good!"

"Excellent!"

Hearing that, Leader Lin finally gave a genuine smile. The government's greatest worry now was the army of unemployed people. "Look! This is the spirit of the young people of our new era! It should be encouraged and spread far and wide!"

He stayed for about half an hour and even chatted with the young performers about opera with great interest.

There were hardly any people of the older generation who didn't like opera.

"Oh my god, I was so nervous I thought I'd die!"

Everyone had been tense the whole time, and Huang Zhanying's calves had even cramped. Only when the leader left did she seem to go limp. "I don't even know what I was saying. Did I say anything I shouldn't have?"

"No, no, you did well!"

Chen Qi encouraged her, then smiled. "There's just one last step. When tomorrow's newspaper comes out, take the page showing the leader talking with us and paste it right up here!"

He slapped his hand against the little blackboard. "Then the job's done!"

(No more...

A whole month completed. Could I ask for a monthly vote?)

(End of chapter)