Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 21 Military Service Center

The driver brought the car over, and the group got in and drove towards Nanhu.

Li Zhongguo said, "Brother Liu's father was a high-ranking official before the puppet state of Manchukuo, quite influential. Because of his father's class background, Old Liu was stuck at the regimental level and couldn't advance further, so he had to retire to civilian life. He became the deputy general manager and chief engineer of the Fengtian Taxi Company, wielding considerable power. However, he was wounded in battle, damaging his lungs. He can't eat salt, can't do any physical labor, and coughs terribly when the weather gets cold. His health deteriorated day by day. He's a hero; those years, his father almost beat him to death. What a bastard!"

Xiao Wei opened his mouth in surprise, and after a long pause, he finally managed to say, "That's amazing?"

He glanced down at the note, then handed it to Xiaowei, saying, "Keep this safe. Call me if you need anything, don't be shy. When you're out in the world, you have to rely on your friends. Put in the effort, work hard and make something of yourself, then their help won't have been in vain, understand?"

Xiao Wei nodded, carefully folded the note, and put it in his pocket.

Brother Liu's house is located next to Nanhu Park, in the Electric Power Residential Area, and belongs to the Electric Power Bureau.

In the 90s, the power industry was a very powerful sector. The reputation of the "power tigers" was well-deserved. They had money and power, and they had prestige wherever they went. Leaders and cadres of the power sector always walked with their heads held high.

The residential area near the power grid was also quite impressive. It was definitely considered a luxury residential area in the 90s. The area was shaded by green trees, with a very good environment. All the passageways were paved with asphalt, and there was a wide distance between the buildings. The sports field and walking paths were also professionally constructed.

The residential buildings were all large five- or six-story buildings, with large aluminum alloy windows, which was incredibly impressive for that era.

The residential area is right next to Nanhu Park, and it's only a ten-minute walk to the Institute of Engineering. This location is excellent for Xiaowei and Xiaohong.

The car was parked downstairs, and several people went upstairs, opened the door, and entered the house.

The house looked like it had been empty for a long time; it was completely deserted and covered in a thick layer of dust. It had a kitchen, a bathroom, a dining room, three bedrooms, and two large balconies—a layout that would be considered luxurious in this day and age.

There were old-fashioned armchairs in the dining room, and a bed but no cabinets in the room. That was all that was left, and it needed to be filled in.

After the group looked around, Xiao Hong said, "I'll stay here too. It's so comfortable! I can cook for myself and save on accommodation fees."

Xiao Wei smiled and said, "Okay, let's clean up the house so that Uncle and Aunt will have a place to stay when they come. Uncle Li, when you come to the provincial capital, don't stay in a hotel, just stay here. I'll fill in all the things tomorrow."

Li Zhongguo walked around with his hands behind his back, sat down in a chair, picked up the telephone on the coffee table, blew off the dust, put the handset to his ear to listen, heard a sound, pressed the dial button, and made a call.

"Hey? Is this Director Lu? This is Li Zhongguo from Beixi, yes, yes. How are you? Are you doing well? Haha, umm, I've come to the provincial capital. My niece got into the engineering college and came to register. Haha, thank you, thank you. There's something I need. I've found a place, my old regimental commander's place, you can stay there for now, but it's empty. There's a bed, but no wardrobe or anything. Can you help me? Um, okay, okay, thank you. The address is Nanhu Electric Power Community, Building *, Room 301. Um, okay, okay, I'll wait here. When are you free? Let's have a drink. Oh, what a coincidence. Okay, let's get together sometime. Okay, I'll hang up now."

After hanging up the phone, Li Zhongguo said, "The police station will send over some lockers or something later, so we don't have to buy them. Get ready, we'll just put everything away when they arrive. Xiaowei, what about your luggage? Are you going back to get it?"

Xiao Wei looked at Xiao Hong and said, "Do they sell them at school? Let me see, maybe we can buy one here."

Xiaohong said, "Why don't we use the ones the school gave us here? We don't need that many anyway."

Xiao Wei said, "If I'm going to live here most of the time, I might as well leave my family's things here and use the school's things in the dorm."

Xiaohong thought for a moment, nodded and said, "Okay, bring your things from home. I still want to stay here. I'll go see if I can get a refund for the dormitory tomorrow; it's thirty yuan."

Li Zhongguo said, "Can you give me a refund? Don't bother with that. Just leave it there. You can sleep there if it gets late sometimes."

Xiaowei said to Xiaohong, "Listen to Uncle Li. There's a place there, so we won't be caught off guard if something really happens. Thirty a semester isn't much, and besides, there's a subsidy too, over a hundred a semester. You'll even make a profit."

Xiaohong nodded and said, "Okay, whatever you say goes. So we still need to buy it here? Should we buy it at school?"

Li Zhongguo said, "We can't buy things there. Alright, Xiao He, let's go again. Let's go to the military region. The military service center has everything, and the quality there is much better than what you can find locally. Come on, Xiao Hong, you pack first, Xiao Wei and I will go buy things."

Xiao Hong agreed and found a basin and a rag in the bathroom to start working.

Li Zhongguo, Xiao Wei, and driver Xiao He went downstairs and drove to the military service center.

In later generations, few people know the name "Military Service Society," but in the 80s and 90s, it was a very prestigious organization.

The military service store is a supply and marketing cooperative established by the military to serve active-duty military personnel, but in fact it is open to the public. Except for cap badges, collar insignia, weapons and ammunition, all supplies for active-duty military personnel can be purchased here.

In those days, wearing military uniforms and using military equipment was a matter of great prestige, and the quality was indeed superior to civilian products. Cotton-padded jackets, quilts, and overcoats were all light, warm, and durable. Military uniforms were the favorite of most men, regardless of age. Wearing a military uniform was a respectable choice for any occasion.

Back then, for a young girl to find a soldier was as prestigious as finding a rich, handsome, and successful man today.

Moreover, military supplies were quite expensive at that time, considered luxury items of that era, and ordinary people really couldn't afford them.

Military service centers are usually located next to military camps, but Fengtian is a major military region with a large city and many military institutions, so there are many military service centers in every district. However, most of them were closed down when the military and local authorities were transferred in the late 90s.

In those days, military service centers were considered far more prestigious than department stores by ordinary people.