Substitute Driver's Notes

Chapter 62 Stingy Master Chen

It seems this job won't be rated as fast. Luckily, my kids are all grown up now. If it were a young man, wouldn't that be a huge problem? If word got out, he definitely wouldn't be able to find a wife.

That's not right either. Only an experienced driver would know what "fast" means. A young girl certainly wouldn't understand what "fast" or "not fast" means, which means it won't delay her from finding a wife.

After passing the toll station, Master Chen told Li Wei to go to sleep quickly, as the second half of the night would be too difficult, and he himself hadn't slept well. He might wake Li Wei up to relieve him when he got sleepy.

Li Wei muttered to himself, "This guy is shameless. He was snoring loudly the whole way, and he still has the nerve to say he didn't sleep well."

Look at them, they don't even take off their clothes while lying on the mat. The problem is, if they took off their clothes, they really couldn't lie on the mat; it was too dirty.

Li Wei held his breath, turned the pillowcase over and spread it on the pillow, then lay there on his back.

It's better not to get out of the car, but after getting out and fiddling around for a while, I had to readjust to the smell inside the car when I came back.

Li Wei slowly adjusted his breathing, thinking to himself that if he invited the singer of "Taste" over to lie down for a while, he definitely wouldn't be able to sing that kind of melancholy emotion.

Sure enough, not long after lying down, he felt dizzy and lightheaded. Li Wei didn't know if he was overwhelmed by the smell or if he was too sleepy to continue. He lost consciousness when the truck was going up the bridge and up the slope.

Li Wei was awakened from an unprecedented deep sleep. He saw the sun rising in the east, his car parked in a service area with the air conditioning on, and his driver, Mr. Chen, thoughtfully poured him some water and called him to get up and eat.

Li Wei shook his head, still feeling a bit dizzy. He got up and went to the bathroom, where he washed his hair with cold water to clear his head.

Back in the car, I saw that Master Chen had laid out pickled mustard greens, half a bottle of Lao Gan Ma chili sauce, and a box of stir-fried pickled vegetables with shredded pork on the middle table. It looked like he had cooked it himself. Who would add extra salt when stir-frying pickled vegetables? The white salt crystals formed a layer covering the pickled vegetable strips and shredded pork, along with a few scallions and a stack of pancakes. He was waiting for Li Wei to eat together.

That's not bad, four dishes including scallions.

"Master Li, would you like some instant noodles?" Master Chen asked solicitously.

So generous! Wouldn't adding a large bowl of noodles be too much?

"Forget it! Eating instant noodles takes too long, I'll just eat like this."

"It's okay, we can't load more cargo after unloading this today. We'll load it on the truck tomorrow."

Li Wei shook his head, unwrapped the pancake, rolled up some scallions, and started eating. He picked up his chopsticks, grabbed a shredded piece of meat, chewed it, and then quickly drank some water from his glass.

The last time I cooked for myself, my son said he'd beat a salt seller to death. I should really let that brat come over and see what it really means to beat a salt seller to death.

This isn't shredded meat; it's just a strip of salt. The salt content of this one strip of shredded meat is enough to make a whole dish.

Master Chen told Li Wei that the meat cost ten yuan, the pickled vegetables cost three yuan, and with a bag of salt, the pickled vegetables took ten days to finish, and only half of them were eaten, thus saving money.

Li Wei asked with a pained expression, "How do you eat at home? Do you use this much salt too?"

"Yes! My wife never spends money. She says it's the most economical way, and I think that makes sense."

"Even the kids don't spend money?"

"Making money is so hard! My family never spends money recklessly. My wife has set a standard: their monthly living expenses will never exceed two hundred yuan."

Is that enough?

"How can it not be enough? I'll take the laundry detergent home from the car, and I'll buy two tubes of toothpaste at once, just one for the family. I'll take her to buy some clothes for the New Year, and the two of them won't need to spend any money at home."

"Aren't water, electricity, heating, and property management fees money too?"

"Watching less TV saves electricity. I never pay the heating bill; the upstairs and downstairs neighbors pay, and my house is quite warm."

Li Wei gave him a thumbs up admiringly: "Master Chen, you really know how to manage your money."

Mr. Chen said proudly, "That's right, none of us drivers have saved as much money as I have."

After a conversation, Li Wei felt ashamed. He thought about how frugal the other person was. They didn't buy clothes, didn't eat good food, and the couple never ate out. They would put extra salt in their stir-fries and eat them for several meals. They wouldn't even take the air conditioner if it was free because it was a waste of electricity. They were also reluctant to use the fan. They only had two bicycles at home, and when they smoked at home, they only smoked the cheapest ones.

Looking at myself, I haven't saved any money over the years, yet I still keep thinking about eating something nice.

Li Wei asked curiously, "Master Chen, what's your greatest pleasure?"

Master Chen squinted, lost in thought, and after a long while replied, "I feel that when I hold a handful of money and count it, my heart immediately feels at ease."

"Master Chen, I think you should work at a bank and count money every day."

Master Chen shook his head dismissively: "The way they count other people's money is that; I'm counting my own."

Li Wei was in awe; he was so thoroughly educated during the meal that he was speechless.

Master Chen lamented that people nowadays don't know how to manage their money anymore. He recounted his experience of working away from home in the 1990s, during which he only spent five yuan in six months, prioritizing saving money above all else.

Five yuan for six months? Li Wei listened blankly, and only after Master Chen finished packing and changed shifts did he carefully start the car and leave the Zhejiang Taihu Service Area.

This section of road is different from the Su Expressway. Not only is there one less lane, but the emergency lane is also blocked. During the day, there are also signs indicating that the lane is narrowing and drivers should slow down from time to time.

After traveling over a hundred kilometers, Li Wei calculated that his average speed was less than thirty kilometers per hour. He finally arrived in Qiantang and followed the directions he had been given, turning west onto the ring road. He finally saw the sign indicating the way to Jinhua.

After crossing the highway, the road became wider. Li Wei drove for a while longer and saw signs for Zhuji everywhere, which made him a little confused.

Where is Jinhua? Why are there no signs all of a sudden? Did I take the wrong road?

Li Wei was unsure of what to do, so he quickly woke up Master Chen. The man sat up yawning, looked around, said "Let's go," and lay back down to continue sleeping.

Li Wei had no choice but to bite the bullet and drive on. He nervously saw the sign for Zhuji Service Area and realized it was almost noon, so he drove straight into the service area and parked.

After calculating the distance, Li Wei felt he was at a disadvantage and called for Master Chen to get up and take over the shift.

Seeing that Li Wei looked unwell, the guy wisely patted his head and said that he had overslept, then invited Li Wei to eat.

Is it the same old story? There's a standard allowance for living expenses, so if you save money, it's all yours? Let's talk about it when you get off the bus at home.

Li Wei slumped over, silently munching on his pancake.

They don't help clean up after meals, and they just lie down on their berths without caring whether they're dirty or not.

It seems that the harmonious relationship between the two is gradually disappearing, and they are becoming increasingly taciturn.

Aside from the roar of the engine and the occasional sound of someone smoking outside the window, the atmosphere inside the car suddenly became eerie.

Master Chen seemed to have gotten used to this, and they remained silent the whole way.

Upon reaching their destination, Li Wei finally got up, cooperated in untying the tarpaulin ropes, and then stared blankly at the narrow open space. This wretched place allowed for unloading on one side only. After unloading one side, the truck had to be moved to the other side before unloading could continue. They didn't dare unload everything at once, otherwise the uneven load would easily cause it to tip over.

A moment later, the forklift operator came over, and Mr. Chen called out, "I'm going to sign for the freight payment. Mr. Li, if the truck needs to be moved, could you move it to a different spot? I'm going to the finance department to collect the freight payment."

Li Wei grabbed him: "No, I can't reverse."

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P.S.: This chapter is a bit rambling, please forgive me, friends. It's a transitional period, definitely a transitional period.