In July 1985, after graduating from Chengde Agricultural School, I was assigned to teach at an agricultural middle school in my county, teaching students about crop cultivation. In order to promote the whole society to advocate respect for teachers and re-education, it is in this year that the state designates September 10 every year as "Teachers' Day". I was also very fortunate to join the work in my first year, just in time for the first Teacher's Day, and also enjoyed a precious gift given to me by the first Teacher's Day - a Red Flag bicycle.
Around 1985, the planned economy had not yet ended, bulk commodities still could not be purchased at will, and many commodities had to be purchased with "tickets", such as food stamps, fuel tickets, bicycle tickets, and television tickets. In order to show respect for teachers, this year's Teachers' Day, the county government provided several bicycle purchase indicators for each school in the county, and my subordinate farmers obtained three bicycle purchase indicators, including a flying pigeon and two red flags. You know, in the 1970s and 1980s, the bicycle was a high-end means of transportation, and it was a very honorable thing for men to own a 28 "permanent brand" bicycle and a woman to have a 26 "flying pigeon brand" bicycle. At that time, when a rural boy married a daughter-in-law, if it was a bride who picked up a "permanent brand" bicycle, there must be many villagers and children following and watching behind the bicycle.
In those days, a bicycle was equivalent to a small car today (image from the Internet)
In the autumn of 1985, my daughter-in-law and I were already engaged, although my mother-in-law did not talk about house and "car", but my daughter-in-law worked in the township, going back and forth for more than ten kilometers a day, and she also needed a bicycle very much. In June 1985, the Goumenzi Township Government Supply and Marketing Agency where my daughter-in-law was located also came to a batch of "red flag brand" bicycles, and my daughter-in-law was very hopeful of obtaining an indicator, and paid the deposit two months in advance. But when the indicators were announced, there was no name for my daughter-in-law. As a result, my daughter-in-law was also seriously ill and bedridden for three or two days. These are the things I only recently re-learned when I was sorting out our love letters.
On the evening of June 15, 1985, my daughter-in-law wrote me a letter.
Therefore, knowing that the teacher's day school is going to issue three bicycle purchase indicators, everyone is rubbing their hands and praying that they can get an indicator, and I am very covetous of this gift. There are more monks and less porridge, and that is only about seniority and casting lots. The "Flying Pigeon" bicycle indicator was taken away by the teaching director first, and the remaining two "red flag brand" indicators were allocated by casting lots.
I vividly remember one afternoon in September 1985, when I walked into the office after class, the casting of lots had already begun, and a "red flag" indicator had been taken away. In the two remaining paper balls on the table, there was an indicator, and with me was Mr. Bian Shi ram (Teacher Bian was a high-achieving student who graduated from Hebei Agricultural University and has long been transferred back to his hometown of Cangzhou to work, and he had telephone contact with him a few years ago). In the face of an indicator in the two paper balls, both of us were extremely excited. I asked Teacher Bian to take the first shot, only to see Teacher Bian happily take away the paper ball, open the paper ball, and then throw the paper ball in the waste paper basket... So, I was lucky enough to get this indicator.
Hongqi brand bicycle supply certificate.
One weekend in late September 1985, I was holding a "Red Flag Brand" bicycle supply certificate in my hand, carrying 147 yuan borrowed from the school's finance office, and took a green-skinned train from the lower stage to the Xinglong County Commercial Bureau Department Store to buy my first bicycle. I remember that at that time, every few bicycle parts were packed in a large container, and after unpacking, the master assembled them one by one. Bai Pucheng was a high school classmate of mine who was assigned to work in the Commerce Bureau after graduation. Although there were no fake and shoddy products at that time, and there were few fakes, I still bought a box of "three or five brand" cigarettes at the suggestion of my old classmates in Baipucheng and threw them to the master who saved the car. In less than a few bags of cigarettes, the master "selected" good accessories from the container and saved a brand new and polished "Red Flag Brand" bicycle for me.
Red Flag bikes.
After the car was saved, I put it in the dormitory of my classmate Bai Pucheng and asked him to bother to "run in" for me for a few days, and I took the train back to xiataizi Farm on the same day.
On National Day in 1985, I set off from Xinglong County, rode 180 kilometers, and arrived at my daughter-in-law's house at about 6 p.m. and presented my Teacher's Day gift to my future daughter-in-law. This "Red Flag Brand" bicycle followed my daughter-in-law and our family from Goumenzi Township to Xiaozizhuang Township, and from Xiaozizhuang Township to Banbishan Town.
Around 2004, when the car was placed at the root of the wall outside my dormitory in the town of Banbishan, it was pushed away at night...