Chapter 001 Rebirth 1984

If there is no formal position, the salary will be significantly lower than that of regular employees, there are no promotion opportunities, no retirement benefits, and one will hardly enjoy any corporate welfare. Moreover, there is a risk of being laid off, leaving essentially no security.

In that era, large state-owned enterprises could meet all the needs of a person from birth to death

If Li Weidong also did not have a formal position, such an attitude towards work would have led to his dismissal long ago

In the 1970s and 1980s, the transportation company was one of the leading state-owned enterprises in the Qinghe region. After all, wherever there are people, there is a need for supplies. Even during relatively chaotic times, when other enterprises were unable to ensure production, the transportation company's operations did not come to a halt

This person is Li Weidong's direct superior, the workshop director of the repair shop, Cui Dashan

I was just demoted to the auto repair workshop, and I remember staying here for a full three years before I was transferred to another position

Li Weidong's father had been in poor health for a long time, so he opted for early retirement. After graduating from junior high school, Li Weidong took over his father's position in the finance department of a transportation company, where he learned accounting under the guidance of a mentor

At that time, I was demoted to the auto repair workshop and fell into a state of despair for quite a while, almost becoming a good-for-nothing. Later, when my father learned about this matter, he gave me a severe beating, and only then did I sincerely repent and begin to study repair techniques earnestly

A driver jumped down from the cockpit of the old liberation vehicle and rushed into the workshop shouting: "Director Cui, quickly find someone to take a look for me, my vehicle won't start!"

Li Weidong's father is an accountant at a transportation company. After Li Weidong took over the position, he naturally became an accountant as well. However, Li Weidong was not cut out for the role of an accountant; after only three months on the job, he made an error in accounting for an amount of one hundred yuan.

At that time, state-owned enterprises operated under a system akin to a communal meal, where the mentality of whether one worked more or less, performed well or poorly, or whether one worked at all, was all regarded as the same, had already begun to spread within the state-owned enterprises

In the state-owned enterprises of the 1980s, the treatment of formally employed workers with a fixed position and those without such a position was vastly different

The two individuals speaking are also children of transportation company employees. These children of transportation company employees grew up together in a family compound and attended the transportation company children's school, where they all know each other.

In this repair workshop, gasoline and engine oil often leak onto the floor, therefore smoking is strictly prohibited within the workshop to prevent fire accidents. Anyone who feels the urge to smoke must go outside to the shade of a large tree, as there must be absolutely no sparks inside the workshop

Touching his somewhat slender body, Li Weidong could not help but fall into a reverie.

Master Cai nodded slightly, casually handed a cigarette to Cui Dashan, and then spoke: "The order just received from the team members is urgent; we need to go to the train station to pick up a batch of goods, but the fire won't start. The vehicle was working fine just yesterday!"

Looking at the group of poorly dressed individuals entering the workshop, Li Weidong could not help but let out a long sigh

Gazing at the 1984 he had written on the ground, Li Weidong felt a surge of mixed emotions in his heart

Working in a state-owned enterprise, even without a formal position, is certainly better than being a second-rate individual in society. Moreover, these are all children of employees from transportation companies, and once their parents retire, they will naturally be able to step in and become formal workers.

Li Weidong's father is an accountant at the transportation company in the Qinghe area, which is why Li Weidong was born and raised in the company’s residential compound.

However, these two individuals do not share Li Weidong's fortune; their fathers are still in their positions. Therefore, even if they join the transportation company, they do not have formal worker status.

In 1984, Li Weidong was sixteen years old. Born in the late 1960s, he has a name, "Weidong," that reflects the characteristics of his era

"Apprentices with no tasks at hand, come forward to assist!" said Cui Dashan.

In accordance with the usual circumstances, during his rebellious phase, Li Weidong would certainly retort to Cui Dashan, only to be kicked by Cui Dashan before obediently returning to the workshop

However, Li Weidong has been reborn and is no longer the self-destructive rebellious youth he once was. He immediately stood up and, without saying a word, walked into the auto repair workshop

Alright! Xiao Zhao responded and immediately ran over

Qinghe District Transportation Company

Who made Li Weidong a formal worker

As a large state-owned enterprise, the Qinghe District Transportation Company must take care of the children of its own workers. However, within state-owned enterprises, there is a saying that each position is filled, and even the children of its own workers can only start working without formal employee status.

At this thought, Li Weidong felt an impulse to return home; he longed to see his parents once more

At the entrance of the auto repair workshop, a somewhat immature young man is squatting beside a large tree, holding a branch in his hand, and is writing the four digits "1984" on the ground

Li Weidong wandered aimlessly in the repair shop, occasionally stopping in front of an antique car, resembling a visitor at a museum

The utterly bored Li Weidong also quietly walked over

"Go ahead, move the car over there. I'll find someone to take a look for you." Cui Dashan took the cigarette, did not light it, but casually tucked it behind his ear

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, after their parents retired or resigned, their children could take over the vacant positions and join their parents' original workplaces, even assuming their parents' former roles. Before the 1990s, this was the most important method for recruitment in state-owned enterprises.

Why hasn't he argued with me today? This kid wouldn't happen to be sick, would he?" Cui Dashan thought with a puzzled expression

At that moment, a voice sounded beside Li Weidong

For instance, the transportation company in the Qinghe region has its own hospital, its own school, and its own supply and marketing station. It can address all aspects of life, including clothing, food, housing, transportation, and even matters related to birth, aging, illness, and death. Except for cremation, which requires the services of a funeral home, the transportation company can resolve all other issues.

In the same workshop, all the dirty, laborious, and heavy tasks are performed by unregistered workers, while the officially employed workers are assigned much easier tasks. In fact, many of the official workers find a corner to sit down, drink tea, and engage in idle chatter.

At that moment, the roar of an engine echoed from outside the workshop, and an old Liberation truck, towing another old Liberation truck, drove into the repair workshop

Even in the 1990s, when the country had already abolished this system, many state-owned enterprises continued to secretly implement succession and job placement practices

... ...

I never expected that I would be reborn, returning to the year 1984

In 1984, one hundred yuan was equivalent to the basic salary of a formal worker for three months, thus Li Weidong was punished and demoted to the auto repair workshop to serve as an apprentice mechanic

After graduating from junior high school, Li Weidong did not continue his studies but instead went directly to work

Therefore, even if Li Weidong squats under a tree drawing circles during work hours, the workshop director can only criticize him a few times and has no way to deal with him

From this perspective, Li Weidong is fortunate, having taken over his father's position at the age of sixteen and becoming a formal worker

Before his rebirth, Li Weidong had too many regrets; now that he has been reborn, he finally has the opportunity to make amends for those regrets

This person appears to be in their fifties, wearing the most common blue work uniform on the upper body, which has four pockets. On the lower body, he is dressed in military green pants, which have many unwashed oil stains on them

"Is that you, Master Cai? Is your car not starting?" Cui Dashan asked.

The old Liberation, the old Gas, the big Yifa, the old Leap Forward of Nanjing Automobile, the small glass of Second Automobile, and the Yao San Ling of Beijing Automobile's Second Factory, truly evoke nostalgia! How could there still be an American Dodge truck? This must have been captured during the Liberation War. Can this vehicle still be repaired? It would be better to send it directly to the museum!

These apprentices are all temporary workers, and they all hope to learn the skills of car repair as soon as possible, which will increase their chances of being offered a permanent position. Assisting the car repair masters provides an opportunity for learning

In the early 1980s, in addition to a large number of educated youth gradually returning to the cities, there were also workers who had been laid off and sent back to their hometowns in the 1960s demanding to be reinstated, vocational school graduates seeking job placements, as well as the originally accumulated unemployed individuals in the cities

"Don't worry about him; anyway, he has entered the workshop and is not doing any work. He is a formal employee, so even if he doesn't work, no one will care." Another voice spoke up.

Li Weidong, during working hours, hurry up and get into the workshop! Even if you are just idling around, you must do it in the workshop!

Everyone knows that Li Weidong is a slacker. Since he arrived at the auto repair workshop, he has only known how to wander around aimlessly and is even unwilling to do the task of sweeping the floor. As long as Li Weidong does not cause any trouble, no one will pay him any attention.

A formal worker holds a secure job, and in addition to salary, promotions, and retirement benefits, they can also enjoy various perks offered by the company, and they are not at risk of being laid off

Cui Dashan looked around the workshop and then pointed to a young man who appeared to be around twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, instructing, "Xiao Zhao, you go and check with Master Cai first. If it cannot be repaired, then go find your master."

The work bell rang, and the workers hurriedly walked into the maintenance workshop

Although automotive repair workers are considered skilled labor, they are ultimately manual laborers; whereas accountants work in an office, sheltered from the wind and rain, and hold a position that is regarded as superior in state-owned enterprises

However, there are not enough job positions in the city, leading to a significant number of unemployed individuals in society

Cui Dashan participated in the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea when he was young, and he also captured a Dodge truck from the U.S. military along with a truckload of American canned goods. After the Korean War ended, Cui Dashan served as a mechanic in the army for several more years, during which he repaired the Type 59 tank

The successor placement system in state-owned enterprises can be considered one of the most common ways of leveraging family connections in the 1970s and 1980s

This situation persisted until after 1986, when the second generation of the FAW Jiefang was launched, which finally resolved the predicament of domestic transportation enterprises relying on foreign-made vehicles

After retiring from the military, Cui Dashan was assigned to the Qinghe District Transportation Company. With the solid automotive repair skills he honed in the army, he was promoted to the director of the automotive repair workshop

From childhood to adulthood, Li Weidong lived in the family compound of the transportation company, was born in the company's hospital, spent his childhood in the company's kindergarten, and attended both elementary and middle school at the company's affiliated schools

In the early 1980s, the vehicles of domestic transportation enterprises were diverse, including those produced independently, those imported from abroad, and even those seized during wartime; it would not be an exaggeration to say they were of all nations.

Li Weidong walked into the auto repair workshop, gazing at the rows of "antique" cars, and a warm sense of nostalgia arose in his heart

Hearing someone call his name, the workshop director, Cui Dashan, stepped out

Li Weidong, it's time to start work, why are you still lingering here? Hurry up and go in!

Li Weidong looked up and saw a robust man standing behind him

Immediately, three or four apprentices gathered around

Li Weidong was demoted from his office position to a workshop worker, which he resented greatly. At the age of sixteen, he was in a rebellious phase, so he simply abandoned his duties, wandering around the auto repair workshop every day, doing nothing, merely watching others repair cars, appearing as if he was just biding his time until death.