Reborn in 80: Starting with hunting in the mountains to get rich

Chapter 268 Aunt Zhang Watches Li Ju'an Drive

Learning to drive in the 80s was very difficult. It took a long time, and there were many small skills to learn. You had to pass a test to get a learning permit, and then you would drive around with your instructor.

Li Ju'an got a lot of scoldings from Master Chen; he really was more arrogant than a leader in a government agency.

Looking at Li Ju'an's expression, Master Chen scolded him, "Don't you dare be so defiant. What makes us special? It's because we have a rare skill. Go out and ask around, how many people in the entire Xing'an Mountains can drive? I can count them on my fingers."

Master Chen tossed Li Ju'an a few books and told him to learn mechanical principles and car repair skills.

In his previous life, when Li Ju'an was taking his driver's license test, he didn't need to learn so many small details. Sitting in his Dongfeng sedan, flipping through the pages of a book on mechanical principles, he felt a buzzing pain in his head. He opened the hood of the sedan and used a screwdriver to inspect each part, examining the mechanical components.

This car is harder to take care of than an old man. There are no auto repair shops, so the driver has to fix it himself. When he's not driving, Master Chen often takes him to check all the mechanical parts, saying, "If you don't check these things before you go out, do you believe me if this car breaks down on the road? It'll break down without a doubt."

Who wants their car to suddenly stall in the middle of a mountain road? If it's a long-haul truck driver, and their truck suddenly stalls in the middle of a dark mountain road in the middle of the night, the driver will be in a panic, trying to open the hood with a flashlight to fix it, which is very dangerous.

Learning to drive is easier in later generations, but drivers who took the driving test in the 80s all had a thick book on mechanical principles. They first had to spend a lot of time learning car repair techniques, and only after mastering those could they learn driving theory and actual driving skills.

Li Ju'an recalls that in 85, learning to drive a large truck cost 1800 yuan and took a year. This price was unaffordable for most families. It required both time and money. The training combined the roles of driver and auto mechanic.

Back then, 1800 yuan was a lot of money. In 85, the monthly salary of an ordinary worker in the forest farm was 50 to 60 yuan. This was equivalent to several years' savings for a family.

Holding a thick book on mechanical principles, Li Ju'an said, "Master Chen, is there any way to learn faster?"

Master Chen lightly slapped him on the back of the head and scolded, "This is just the beginning. You're already thinking about slacking off before you've even gotten the hang of it? I'll test you before you can start driving after you've thoroughly mastered this book."

Li Ju'an got out of the car; the training vehicle was a Dongfeng 140. In those days, training vehicles were still common, such as the Dongfeng 141 and the Zhujiang Bus.

He spent a month thoroughly studying the two books he had on hand, waiting for Master Chen's spot check. When Master Chen asked questions for the fifth time, he finally pushed up his glasses, looked up, and said, "You're ready, get started."

Li Ju'an breathed a long sigh of relief. He had been waiting for these words for far too long. Finally, he could get started; his hands were calloused from turning the pages so many times.

He quickly climbed into the driver's seat. There was no heater in winter, no air conditioning in summer, and no power steering. Spring and autumn are the best seasons to practice; driving is physically demanding.

Master Chen shouted excitedly, "Clutch! Shift gears! Brake!"

By the end of the day, Li Ju'an's fingers were calloused from gripping the steering wheel. The clutch didn't have a synchronizer, so downshifting required double-clutching, and starting the car required cranking a lever. Cars in this era were different from those of later times; starting a cold engine, even in the dead of winter, would leave you drenched in sweat.

He gripped the steering wheel, making U-turns on narrow roads, maneuvering three steps forward and two steps back, and turning the wheel while stationary. Master Chen wanted nothing more than to yell at him through a megaphone, his backside practically glued to the seat. These terms are obsolete in later generations, but they were the daily routine for drivers of that era.

Li Ju'an was so angry he wanted to slam his fist on the steering wheel, and he was so frustrated he wanted to curse. He could drive, and having lived two lives, he was quite skilled at it, but the domestically produced cars of the 80s were really difficult to drive; he was either driving or doing maintenance and repairs.

The villagers often saw him crawling under the wheels of cars to repair them. He was both the driver and the mechanic.

Sun's mother and Aunt Zhang went into the mountains to gather wild vegetables. In the early spring, the sisters-in-law and other women in the village would go into the mountains in groups to dig for wild vegetables.

Spring is the season for eating wild mountain vegetables. Now, Grandma Sun is carrying a basket filled with wild celery, four-leaf clover, duckbill vegetables, bitter greens, dandelion, bracken, monkey leg vegetables, and sesame seeds.

Besides picking wild vegetables, Aunt Zhang, feeling quite romantic, also gathered some wildflowers, intending to bring them back to dry and make flower tea. Her basket was filled with rhododendrons, wild roses, and golden lotuses, all blooming in succession—the flowers she had picked.

The two men saw Li Ju'an lying under the car, face up, with a screwdriver in his hand and tools in his mouth, repairing the car under Master Chen's guidance.

Sun's mother and Aunt Zhang were quite surprised. Aunt Zhang exclaimed, "Li Ju'an?"

In their minds, Li Ju'an was just a hunter who hunted in the mountains; they had no idea that he could drive.

Before the 80s, cars were government vehicles; private ownership was prohibited. Cars were a luxury for everyone. Only after the policy was relaxed in the 80s did people gradually begin to own private cars. At that time, having a "red driver's license" was something to be very proud of, a true symbol of status.

Furthermore, at that time, there were no driving schools that charged fees. Most people didn't even have the qualifications to learn to drive; they had to be affiliated with a company or have special connections to be guided by experienced drivers. Ordinary people couldn't pass the test even if they paid, because without proof of employment, they couldn't take the driving test.

Aunt Zhang's eyes lit up; she had long wanted to use her connections to get her son a driving lesson. If he could hold the steering wheel and be a driver, it would be a status symbol – one person driving, the whole family not having to go hungry. But last year, she carried a basket of eggs and approached many people, including Yang Dezheng and the production brigade's team leader, Wang, but no one paid him any attention.

Captain Wang said at the time, "We ourselves can't even drive, how can we ask your son to learn to drive? I actually envy those who can drive."

Aunt Zhang had no choice but to give up reluctantly. She felt that people who could learn to drive all had certain social connections. She went to great lengths to get her son, a farmer, a job in a factory's motorcade. However, her son ended up in a regular workshop and wasn't even qualified. To learn to drive in the workshop, he would have to change his status from farmer to worker; otherwise, he would have no chance to learn at all.

She went to great lengths, trying all sorts of methods, and her son was so annoyed by her antics that he stormed out of the workshop in a fit of anger, saying, "Whoever wants to learn how to drive can learn, I'm not learning."

Aunt Zhang was at her wit's end; all her kind words and gentle persuasion failed her, so she had to give up the idea. But seeing young people learn to drive was what she admired most.

Now Li Ju'an was driving in front of her, crawling under the car to repair it, which made Aunt Zhang shout with surprise. His voice was so loud that almost half the village could hear it.

"Li Ju'an is learning to drive! Li Ju'an from the Li family can drive now!"