Chapter 27: The Cycling Pals

  Friends who can ride bicycles

  Watching the six partners including He Shicheng and Zhou Di load up twenty bicycles, Yao Fan inspected each one and was extremely satisfied.

  "Not bad, not bad, He Wan Nian has a good eye for talent. These young whippersnappers are quite clever, although they're uncouth, but their hands-on skills are pretty strong." Yao Fan muttered to himself.

  Then Yao Fan ordered: "Each of you push a car and follow me to practice driving."

  Yao Feng led his men out of the back door of the shop.

  Yao Fan led them to the training ground behind the Gongbei Gate and began to train.

  Previously, Yao Fang had trained He Shi Cheng in the courtyard of his home for three consecutive evenings on a mountain bike he brought with him. He Shi Cheng was actually quite bold and was the first to demonstrate by jumping up onto it. However, He Shi Cheng's skills were still lacking and he couldn't ride very far, getting scared and jumping off after going only ten or twenty meters.

  The guards at the gate were in an uproar, a group of soldiers surrounded Yao Fang and his apprentices as they examined the Western-style bicycle. As soon as they heard that Yao Fang was teaching his apprentices to ride the foreign bike, even Wei Guofu couldn't help but rush out, standing aside and laughing loudly: "Brother Yao, what are you doing? What's the point of teaching these little rascals to ride this Western two-wheeler?"

  Yao Fanhui smiled and said, "Wei brother, this is the most popular bicycle in the West. Every day, Western officials and nobles love to ride it for fun. Think about it, if the rich people of the Qing Dynasty are also willing to buy one to play with, won't my business be better?"

  Wei Guofu squinted his eyes from the sunlight and said with a hint of skepticism, "Why would the wealthy people of the Qing Dynasty be as foolish as foreigners, leaving their comfortable homes to suffer under the scorching sun for this strange thing?"

  "Hmm... but you know what? This thing has two wheels that are actually aligned, and when you ride it, it doesn't even fall over. It's actually kind of interesting."

  Yao Feng smiled and said, "They're still too tender, once they learn, they can ride as far as they want without having to jump down. This time I borrowed Big Brother's training grounds to train my subordinates, Big Brother won't blame me, right?"

  Wei Guofu watched as Yao Fan's men rode around the training grounds in a sloppy and unsteady manner, with some of them jumping off their horses in fright.

  He burst out laughing and said, "Brother Yao is too polite. The sun is scorching hot now, which of my little rascals would be willing to go out for training under the sun? Just give the order."

  Yao Fan noticed that Wei Guofu's sleeve, which he had rolled up because of the heat, revealed a watch that Yao Fan had sent someone to deliver just the other day. He smiled and asked: "Big Brother, what do you think of this watch I sold?"

  Wei Guofu gave a thumbs up and said, "Good stuff! Compared to the iron peach pit we used to carry, this is much more convenient. Brother, I don't know how those foreigners' brains work, they just keep coming up with clever gadgets like foreign guns, foreign cannons, foreign watches, and now this foreign car - every one of them is something that our Qing dynasty can't understand or make."

  "Actually, foreigners don't have any special tricks up their sleeves; they just want to make money. They create all sorts of strange things just to make a profit, like those ordinary goods that anyone can make but sell for more money."

  Wei Guofu said: "Brother, you're right! But this sun is too poisonous, I'd better go inside and take a break. If I continue to bask in the sun like this, I'm afraid even my underwear will be soaked through."

  Yao Fang smiled and sent off Wei Guofu, continuing to sweat and train his own cycling team. Although Wei Guofu had left, the poor soldiers who were not afraid of heat and curious onlookers around him did not diminish their enthusiasm, squatting in groups of three or five under the shade of trees and walls, pondering what kind of madness Yao Dong was suffering from.

  "Xiao Si, don't always look down at the ground. If you keep looking down, of course, you'll be scared. Look far ahead instead! The farther you look, the more stable your ride will be! Shi Cheng, you too, remember this for me! Once you start riding, look far ahead!"

  "You're learning well! Keep it up, keep it up, practice until you're proficient. Once you've mastered it, I'll reward each of you with five taels of silver!"

  It is said that where there are heavy rewards, there must be brave men. As soon as they heard that learning would be rewarded with silver coins, the apprentices became courageous and immediately got up after falling down, suddenly having a fearless spirit. They practiced like this until nearly five o'clock, and unexpectedly, He Shicheng and five other apprentices basically learned how to ride bicycles, except for turning corners which was still a bit clumsy, everything else was quite good, which made Yao Feng extremely delighted.

  "Go back and reward two taels of silver for each person! Your performance today is very good."

  The six of them were overjoyed and immediately shouted in unison "Thank you, Master Dong!"

  After two days of training, the six kids taught by Yao Fan had learned to ride bicycles. Seeing that they had acquired this skill, Yao Fan hastily asked He Wan-nian to take them over and promised each of them a monthly salary of two taels of silver, also following the usual practice of paying three months' wages in advance.

  He Wan Nian heard that Yao Fan wanted these five young men and was puzzled, asking: "Brother Yao, what do you want with these five kids? Is it just because they know how to ride a foreign bicycle?"

  Yao Fan knew what He Wan Nian was thinking, and smiled: "I don't expect them to guard the house, I don't care if they can use guns or sticks, as long as they can ride a bike. From now on, when I have something to do, I'll send them to take care of it by bike, and it's also a live advertisement for our company's bicycles."

  "What advertisement?"

  Yao Fan had to explain: "To make it known to everyone, that is, to let everyone know what this rickshaw thing is all about. You should learn too, Brother Wan. This is a trendy thing."

  He Wan Nian hesitated for a moment before saying: "I have a carriage, it's very comfortable. The rear seat of that foreign-style rickshaw is too small, I'm afraid of falling off."

  Yao Wenhao burst out laughing and stopped trying to persuade him.

  At night, Yao Fang himself picked up a brush and wrote a recruitment notice. Yao Fang had been practicing calligraphy under his parents' strict guidance since he was young, and over the years, he would often copy a few pages in the evening to amuse himself, so his foundation in calligraphy was actually quite good.

  Job Recruitment Notice

  There is a newly established business called Zao Fan, which involves buying and selling goods as well as transportation. With great prospects ahead, we welcome you to join us.

  Due to business development needs, we are now openly recruiting thirty employees, with food and accommodation provided. The monthly salary during the probationary period is one or two silver dollars.

  Those who are diligent and perform well will receive a bonus every month. In the future, they will be converted to formal apprentices with a generous monthly salary.

  Recruitment conditions: "All men who are honest, diligent and physically intact can sign up."

  Applicants must attend the interview on time. Those who pass the interview will be employed on the spot. Under equal conditions, those who can read and write will be given priority admission.

  After Yao Fan finished writing, he arranged for He Shicheng the next day: "Shicheng, you go boil some gruel and come with me to post this recruitment notice at the intersection of Jieye Street to recruit some workers."

  He Shicheng asked in confusion, "Master, with me serving you and Zhou Si, Wang Gui, Wang Xin, Yang Ping, and Huang Huisheng waiting outside for orders, where do we need so many more people? This is a waste of food..."

  Yao Fandao said: "You're considering me, but I have my own arrangements, so don't worry about it."

  Su Sanjie also heard that Yao Fan was going to make rice gruel, so she put down the needle and thread in her hand and took on this task.

  Yao Feng followed into the back kitchen to check, but was chased out by Su Sanjie.

  "Big brother is a person of status, how can he enter the kitchen."

  Yao Cong rubbed his head, he also felt that the kitchen was too dirty and the light was too dim. He walked out and stood outside the kitchen, saying to San Jie inside: "It's been you doing the cooking these days, I really didn't think it through, today I went out to recruit, just in time to hire a cook back."

  He Shicheng interjected, "Master, I have a younger sister back in the countryside. She's very capable and can do all sorts of needlework, as well as physical labor. When watering the fields, she can carry two buckets of water by herself and run seven or eight trips without resting. She also knows how to make pancakes. In short, she can handle any task. If you're not particular about her being a country girl with rough hands, I can call her over to serve Third Sister."

  "That's even better, knowing the root of it all, your sister, I'm at ease."

  Third sister's voice came from the kitchen: "Big brother, don't spend money unnecessarily, save it. You asked Mr. He to inquire about my second sister's whereabouts, and if necessary, use silver."

  "Your elder brother doesn't care about this small amount of money, so you shouldn't worry about it either."

  He Shicheng hastily explained: "Master, my sister doesn't want any money for her work, really! As long as Master provides food, that's enough. My father often says she's getting bigger and eating more, we need to marry her off early." He Shicheng then leaned in closer to Yao Fang and whispered: "Master, I've been thinking, if we can find a reliable partner for my sister in the city, it would be better than marrying a farmer, at least she'll have enough food to eat."

  Yao Feng, the only child, was moved by He Shi Cheng's concern for his sister and nodded: "Then Shi Cheng, you go call your sister over, I'll give her one or two silver coins a month as allowance, including food and lodging."

  He Shicheng was about to kneel down and kowtow, but Yao Feng quickly grabbed his arm. "I've told you many times, I don't like people kowtowing! A man's knees are made of gold, even more so he shouldn't kowtow! Shicheng, if you want to think I'm good to you, then keep it in your heart, from now on let's be brothers for life."

  He Shicheng was moved to tears by Yao Wenyang's words, and his dark face was covered with tears: "Master, you are so good to me, but I know my own identity, and I really can't be considered a brother of the master. I just hope that like in the opera, the master and I will be together for a lifetime, I will serve the master until I am old, and when I am no longer able to work, I will have a son to continue serving the master and support him in his old age."

  He Shicheng wiped away a tear and continued: "The master is so good to me, giving me, a small apprentice, ten taels of silver as wages every month. Such kindness, I will never be able to repay in my lifetime. The day the master went to the Heavenly Palace, Luo, the steward, gave me three months' worth of silver, thirty taels in total. I set off early the next morning and sent it back home to my family in the countryside. When my father saw it, he thought I had stolen money from the shop and was so scared that his legs went soft. After hearing what you told me, master, my father cried and said that our ancestors must have been watching over us for me to meet such a noble person as you. My father told me to serve you well and not to go back home again. My mother said she would go to the temple to burn incense and pray to the Buddha to bless you with a long life of one hundred years."

  Yao Fan secretly sighed and thought to himself that he had already made up his mind to rebel, whether or not he could live a long life of one hundred years would depend on the Buddha's will.

  "Don't cry anymore, big boy now, it's embarrassing for others to see."

  "Uh-huh."

  Third sister-in-law cooked the rice paste made from the stick face, took a small bowl and handed it to He Shicheng. Yao Fan then took He Shicheng and Zhou Di Si to recruit on Industry Street, leaving Wang Gui and four other apprentices at home to watch the house.

  Yao Fan was too lazy to take a car, so he took the two of them on foot to Jianye Street.