The birth of the Hong Kong Island family

1946.

In late August, the weather is hot.

This is the Western District of Hong Kong Island.

The Western District and Sheung Wan of Hong Kong Island are mainly warehouse areas and dock areas. In later generations, Hong Kong Island's "prosperity moved eastward" and the commercial center developed from Central to Wan Chai and Causeway Bay. Therefore, the development of Sheung Wan and Western District was not as good as it was.

Lin Zhichao stood under an arcade on Baode Street. He was cleanly dressed and had a high-spirited air. He did not look like a refugee at all. He took out a piece of paper, made sure that the address here was correct and that the words were not stained by sweat, and walked inside.

I saw that there were many "refugees" living in the corridor under the arcade. They hung their belongings directly on the wall or placed them in the corners, but they were still neat and orderly, indicating that they had not given up on life. Children were playing in the corridor, and some women were sitting in the corner with their children in their arms. This scenario is the result of Hong Kong's population surge, which is expected to last for several years. After all, millions of people will flock to Hong Kong later.

The refugees expressed envy when Lin Zhichao walked into the arcade. Having a shelter from the wind and rain was their greatest hope. The aisle under the arcade can barely cover some rain. Once there is a violent storm, thunder and lightning, they can only bear it silently, hold the child in their arms, and beg God to calm down as soon as possible.

They just hope that their men can find a job as soon as possible, and then find a way to find a place to live. Even if many people are crowded into a small house, it is still very happy. Even a wooden house is now a very luxurious residence.

Arriving on the second floor of the arcade, Lin Zhichao discovered that he didn't know which room the 'cousin' he was looking for lived in.

He has a cousin living in Xiangjiang. When Xiangjiang fell a few years ago, this cousin took his wife and daughter back to his hometown to seek refuge and farm. Hong Kong was liberated last year, and my cousin’s family returned to Hong Kong soon.

Lin Zhichao got his residential address through a letter his cousin sent back to his parents in his hometown, so he came to seek a place to stay. Although they are cousins, Lin Zhichao has high hopes.

People in Guangdong Province are relatively united when they go out, and they are relatives and neighbors; if they are taken in, then Lin Zhichao will not have to sleep on the streets.

"Instead of knocking on the door one by one, it's better to shout here!"

"Brother Gao Fu, Brother Gao Fu"

Just after shouting a few times, the doors were opened one after another, which startled Lin Zhichao, thinking that he was about to be thrown into the trash.

"Young boy, what are you shouting about? Are you a resident here?"

"Who are you, Li Gaofu?"

Granny and aunt questioned Lin Zhichao one after another, with vigilance in their eyes.

Fortunately, Lin Zhichao was good-looking, and he wore clean and tidy clothes, and he didn't have any big or small bags. It might not be refugees who broke in, so everyone didn't speak too much.

Lin Zhichao was about to answer, and asked, when he saw that a door not far from him was also opened, and he was overjoyed.

"cousin"

The young woman who was called had a pregnant belly of four to five months, and there was a little girl of five or six years old following her. It was Chen Shufang, the cousin's wife that Lin Zhichao was looking for.

Chen Shufang was taken aback for a moment, and then asked uncertainly, "Who are you?"

Lin Zhichao reacted quickly and said quickly: "I am Lin Zhichao, brother Gao Fu's cousin, a cub of Lin Yunzhi's family. My father used to be brother Gao Fu's primary school teacher. You went back to your hometown to take refuge in the past few years, and we met several times. Have eaten."

A series of words quickly focused on the relationship between relatives, teachers and students, etc. Chen Shufang couldn't say it even if she wanted to deny it.

Sure enough, Chen Shufang remembered and said, "You are Zhichao. You have grown so much in recent years that you almost can't recognize him."

Just recognize it!

Lin Zhichao quickly handed over the fruit he bought for more than 1 Hong Kong dollar, targeting the little girl, and said: "I bought a little fruit for the child! By the way, cousin, where is my brother Gao Fu?"

The ins and outs, the unspeakable intimacy, is not only for Chen Shufang, but also for the grandmothers, aunts and elder sisters who are watching the fun.

As soon as the little girl saw the fruit, she took it instinctively, until she was startled by her mother's eyes; but it was too late, and she couldn't let go of the fruit.

Chen Shufang knew that if Lin Zhichao came to visit them at this time, it was very likely that he would seek refuge, that is to say, stay overnight; but his own home was only more than 200 square feet, and there was room for a grown man to live there.

"Brother Gao Fu is still working in a trading company, and you get off work very late!"

Lin Zhichao immediately said: "Well, I'll come to him in the evening to catch up with him. Cousin, you have a good rest first. It's important to take care of yourself. I see you are going to give birth to a son this time."

Sweet mouth, eat everywhere.

After saying that, he turned around and left without hesitation.

He thought very clearly that if he continued to entangle with Chen Shufang, she might reject her. In this way, Lin Zhichao became a little passive behind.

Therefore, instead of being passive, it is better to wait for Li Gaofu, the cousin, to come home before he comes to visit.

We are both fellow villagers and relatives, so Li Gaofu is very likely to take in Lin Zhichao.

In this way, Lin Zhichao's residence was settled, and then there was the matter of finding a job.

Step by step, Li Chaoren is now just a "street boy" (walking around the streets), Airship Tai is now just a helper (his mother's grocery store), and the fourth uncle and the chartering king are still in the mainland.

After Lin Zhichao left the corridor.

"Shufang, it looks like this is a relative who wants to stay with you. You have to be careful. Your home is only a little over 200 square feet in total."

"Yes! But this young boy is quite handsome, so Gao Fu might not be worried, haha!"

"Recently, more and more people come to Hong Kong to seek a living. The downstairs is full of refugees. It is inconvenient to come in and out, and I worry about them stealing things."

Chen Shufang immediately showed her aggressive side, and fought against the women with her hips on her hips.

"Live in a P, I can't even fit a kennel at home!"

"Sister-in-law Gao, you've taken a fancy to him. I'll introduce him to you right away. Anyway, your man doesn't get off work until midnight."

"Poor Li, if your family is so poor, will others steal your things? They are all from the same hometown. You have some moral integrity when you speak. When you came to Xiangjiang, if your relatives hadn't helped you, you wouldn't have been the same as them."

The women made a lot of noise and finally went back to their houses. In fact, everyone had work in their hands, such as washing and mending clothes for others.

"Brother Gao Fu"

At around eight o'clock in the evening, Lin Zhichao finally came to Li Gaofu, who had just gotten off work, and his voice conveyed intimacy.

"Zhichao?"

Li Gaofu was very surprised at first, and then happily came closer to check it out.

"It's me, Brother Gao Fu!"

"It's really you! Good!"

The two of them soon communicated happily while walking towards the arcade.

Knowing that Lin Zhichao had gone to his home, Li Gaofu complained: "This Shufang, why didn't you know to leave you sitting at home and let you wait outside for so long!"

Lin Zhichao immediately said: "Brother Gao Fu, it's not my sister-in-law's fault. It's because I want to go out for a while. Now that I'm coming to Hong Kong to make a living, I naturally need to be familiar with the environment here first, so that I have a greater chance of being hired."

He directly stated his purpose of coming - to make a living, so as not to let him stay overnight later. After all, Li Gaofu knew clearly that he had no place to live.

Looking at Li Gaofu's expression, Lin Zhichao feels very hopeful.

"Haha, that makes sense. It seems that you are still very smart and able to adapt to the environment after reading a lot of books. Don't worry, I will help you!"

"Thank you, Brother Gao Fu!"

People in this era are still very simple, and some people who are not relatives may be taken in.

When you go out, you don't have to worry about fellow villagers cheating on you, let alone your waist.

Finally walking into the place where Li Gaofu lived, Chen Shufang felt a little unnatural. Fortunately, Li Gaofu was very enthusiastic.

He is an employee of a trading house, which is a respectable job, and he is quite generous in his dealings with others.

After sitting down, Li Gaofu quickly asked about business: "You don't have a place to live yet, right?"

Lin Zhichao nodded. Through observation, he found that although it was only more than 200 square feet, he could still get a bed by separating it with cloth or wooden boards. He didn't want to live outside, where there were many mosquitoes and noisy.

Sure enough, Li Gaofu pointed to a space and said, "Just stay with me first, and then figure out a way!"

Chen Shufang showed displeasure, mainly because she felt very inconvenient.

But Lin Zhichao acted quickly and said hurriedly: "Then I'll trouble Brother Gao Fu and my cousin. Don't worry, when I find a job, I will share the rent and miscellaneous expenses."

Li Gaofu also said to Chen Shufang: "Zhichao has read a lot of books and understands some English. It is not difficult to find a job. Everyone has difficulties starting a business when they are away from home. Ah Fang, please be more responsible."

When Chen Shufang heard that Lin Zhichao could speak English, she said in disbelief, "Do you really know English?"

"There are not many people who know it, but they can communicate easily and know a lot of vocabulary!"

His English level, derived from his previous cultural level, may have a lot of moisture.

But he is doing it for a living now, so he vowed to find a way to improve to a sufficient level within a few months.

To be honest, Lin Zhichao's current belief is to study hard and make progress, even if he sleeps for three or four hours a day, he must adapt to life in Xiangjiang as soon as possible.

Who doesn't want to become a tycoon?

He wanted to too.

But he has an advantage - future information, but also a disadvantage - no background.

Looking at the later tycoons in Xiangjiang, almost all of them had backers - Li Chaoren's uncle and father-in-law was the watch king, Li Zhaoji was the second generation rich, Shar Dantong was the son-in-law, and the chartering king was a Shanghai bank tycoon.

Guo Desheng can be regarded as grassroots, but others are older, and when the time comes, they have already achieved a little success in their careers.

Lin Zhichao doesn't want to belittle himself, so he plans to grow step by step and live up to God's arrangement.

Chen Shufang's heart softened, she stood up and said, "I'll clean up your place!"

"Thank you, cousin"

Li Gaofu said cheerfully: "Thank you for everything, they are all relatives. By the way, I will also help you pay attention and inquire about work. Don't worry, I have been in Xiangjiang for many years and know many people. Looking for a job It’s not a problem for you.”

Although Lin Zhichao wanted to deal with it first, he was also a little pursuing, so he said: "Sorry for bothering Brother Gao Fu, I will also work hard to find a job myself."

"What kind of job do you want to find?"

"It doesn't matter if the salary is lower, the main thing is to get in touch with some people, or have the opportunity to learn something."

"That's it! Okay, you look for it first, and I'll help you look out for it too."

Li Gaofu gave up the idea of ​​letting Lin Zhichao work at the dock. After a short period of observation, he found that Lin Zhichao was good at talking and relatively motivated. Going to the dock was the worst plan.

Next, the two talked late at night before getting ready to rest.

Lin Zhichao lay on the hard floor bed, full of thoughts, but he quickly comforted himself that he was much luckier than many people.

What's more, he has light in his heart.

In the end, he fell asleep quickly, and planned to get up early tomorrow, so as not to cause too much trouble to others.

On the fourth day after arriving in Hong Kong, Lin Zhichao returned to his place of residence carrying half a cooked chicken and a bottle of liquor.

It wasn't until Li Gaofu got off work that Lin Zhichao went home with him from downstairs because he didn't want to be alone with Chen Shufang, even though he had a six-year-old girl. In this regard, Li Gaofu also likes Lin Zhichao's style in his heart, although he says it doesn't matter.

When placing cooked food and liquor on the small table, Li Gaofu asked happily: "Have you found a satisfactory job?"

He felt that his cousin was a bit "arrogant" and he didn't like either of the two jobs he was introduced to.

"Well, I sell newspapers and magazines at a newsstand on Des Voeux Road in Central, with a monthly salary of NT$60."

Li Gaofu frowned and said, "If you don't go to a job that pays 80 to 100 yuan a month for me, how do you fall in love with this job?"

After all, Lin Zhichao has read a book and understands English. It is easier for him to find a job than many people from peasant backgrounds. Especially if he can speak some English, his advantage is even more prominent.

Lin Zhichao poured Li Gaofu a glass of wine and then said slowly: "Although it is only 60 yuan a month, this job has a benefit. There are many foreign magazines and local newspapers. If I work hard, the boss will allow me to borrow them." View moreover, people who can buy these English magazines and books, or people who can buy newspapers, must be relatively successful in society. Even if I exchange a few words with them, I may be able to get some useful information for 60 yuan a month. It’s enough for living expenses, no more than 40 yuan will make you rich.”

Only then did Li Gaofu and Chen Shufang truly realize that Lin Zhichao was a person who was unwilling to be ordinary and was very motivated.

Even Chen Shufang's attitude towards Lin Zhichao became very good. Moreover, although Lin Zhichao bought back half a chicken, he hardly ate it and took the initiative to replenish the health of his children and pregnant Chen Shufang.

These details all show that Lin Zhichao has a maturity that belies his age. At this time, the family has a better attitude towards Lin Zhichao.