Contributor: Li Qiuyuan (Disclaimer: This article is not my experience, and is compiled and distributed according to the oral examination of the contributors).
If we compare the 10,000-dollar households in the 80s of the last century with today's society, I think their standard of living is roughly equivalent to the current annual income of a million-dollar family.
In 1983, when I was still in high school, I was invited to her house by a classmate with whom I had a very close relationship. Her family was known as a "10,000 yuan household" at that time. That experience is still unforgettable to this day.
I was born in 1965 to a rural family in Rizhao, Shandong Province. Knowing the hardships of rural life, I have had the dream of jumping out of the farm since I was a child, so I worked very hard in my studies. Finally, in the summer of 1982, I was admitted to a key high school in the county with the ninth place in the town's junior high school students, which was a major turning point in my life.
In my high school class, my family was one of the poorer ones. Unlike most of my classmates, who are able to go home once a week, I only go home once a month to save money. And these travel expenses are all saved by me bit by bit from my living expenses. Despite the constraints of life, I never pay attention to eating and drinking, as long as I can fill my stomach, I am satisfied. Perhaps it is this simple attitude to life that allows me to thrive when I grow my body, and when I first entered high school, my height had reached 1.66 meters, which is relatively tall among girls.
When I was a freshman in high school, I met a classmate named Wang Yunping. We had a very good relationship, and it was like a no-go at first sight. It didn't take long for us to become good friends and best friends who talked about everything. This friendship not only enriched my high school life, but also became a precious memory in my life.
She excelled in the language and was chosen as the language class representative, while I was the English class representative because of my excellent English score. She had a dream of becoming a Chinese teacher, and I dreamed of becoming an English teacher.
We often help each other in order to make progress together. When I had a language problem, she would lend a helping hand. Similarly, when she is confused about English, I will try my best to answer it.
At that time, Wang Yunping and I were both boarders and lived in the same dormitory. Every day, we would go to the dining hall to eat together, and then go back to the dormitory together to rest. Sometimes, we go for a walk in the playground together and share our thoughts.
Wang Yunping and I are thin, dressed modestly, and always choose cheap dishes when we eat. I always thought that her family conditions were not rich like mine, however, to my surprise, her family turned out to be a 10,000 yuan household.
She told me that her parents also experienced hunger as a child and have been working the production team as adults. It wasn't until after the reform and opening up that they decided to try to work and start a business. I was amazed by this experience and admired her tenacity and hard work even more.
Wang Yunping's parents used to work as porters, waiters and clothing vendors, and with their diligence and wisdom, they started their own business step by step, and eventually became self-employed, opened a clothing store, and then expanded into a clothing factory, thus becoming one of the ranks of 10,000 households.
Despite her family's privileged conditions, Wang Yunping's parents were very strict with her education. They never waste extravagance and cherish every ounce of resources, including food. This family style deeply influenced Wang Yunping and made her a thrifty and pursuing person.
One day in June 1983, Wang Yunping invited me to her home in the county seat. When I heard the news, my heart was filled with anticipation and excitement. I've always wondered, what is the home of 10,000 yuan really like?
After school that afternoon, I got on Wang Yunping's bicycle and went to her house together. Due to her relatively small strength, she seemed to struggle and staggered when carrying me. She offered to let me ride, but I wouldn't ride a bike. So, we decided to get out of the car and do it. Her home is about three kilometers away from the school, and there is a lot of traffic along the way. Wang Yunping and I chatted while walking, and soon arrived at her house with laughter and laughter.
The moment I stepped into Wang Yunping's house, I was deeply shocked by the scene in front of me. A two-and-a-half-story western-style building of about 90 square meters stood in front of me, and its appearance was exquisite and very magnificent.
Colorful flowers and a variety of plants are planted on the balconies on each floor, adding a touch of life and vitality to the whole house. Inside, I was surprised to find all kinds of high-end and stylish furniture in an orderly manner, showing a sense of elegance and taste.
Colour televisions, VCRs, refrigerators, and other electronic gadgets were readily available, which were very novel and expensive items to me at the time. I had only seen them in the newspaper before, but now at Wang Yunping's house, I saw the true face of these real objects for the first time, and I couldn't help but step forward and touch them carefully.
Wang Yunping brought some washed fruits from the kitchen and warmly welcomed me to sit down. We enjoyed the fruit while watching the TV show. At that moment, the excitement and joy in my heart was beyond words. This visit gave me a more intuitive and profound understanding of the life of 10,000 households, and also made me full of expectations and longing for the future life.
After watching TV for a while, Wang Yunping invited me to visit her room. Her room was on the second floor, near a place I knew at the time that I only knew was a "thatched house". Later, Wang Yunping told me that they called this place "bathroom" at home.
Entering the room, I saw a huge bookshelf filled with all kinds of books. Wang Yunping walked to the bookshelf, picked up a beautifully bound **, and told me that this was her favorite book, and she was willing to give it to me as a souvenir.
Wang Yunping's bed is not a hard bed, and it feels soft and comfortable to sit on. Her wardrobe is full of clothes from all seasons, which piqued my curiosity. I couldn't help asking, "Ping, you have so many clothes, why do you always wear those two sets at school?" ”
Wang Yunping didn't care about this, she replied lightly: "I was in school mainly to learn cultural knowledge, not to perform. It is enough to have two sets of clothes that can be worn in rotation. ”
In the evening, at about five o'clock, I realized that it was not early, so I planned to say goodbye to Wang Yunping and return to school. In addition to getting dark, I also need to rush back to the school cafeteria to eat.
Wang Yunping seemed to sense my hesitation, and she offered to let me stay at her house for dinner, and said that she would take me back to school by bicycle after dinner.
To be honest, I did want to stay, but my pride made me decline her invitation. Just as I was about to leave, Wang Yunping's parents came home from the factory. When they saw me, they were a little confused, so they asked Wang Yunping to introduce me.
After a few brief introductions, Wang Yunping's parents learned that I was her classmate and had a very good relationship. So, again, they warmly invited me into the house.
Wang Yunping and her father and I chatted casually in the living room, while her mother was busy preparing dinner in the kitchen.
At around seven o'clock in the evening, Wang Yunping's mother carefully prepared a large table of sumptuous meals, arranged them neatly, and then invited us to eat. There were a lot of dishes on the table, including fish, meat, noodles, rice, eggs, and two dishes that I had never seen before. It was the first time in my life that I had seen such a luxurious and rich dish.
In the face of these delicacies, I tried to restrain my appetite and eat as elegantly as possible. Wang Yunping's parents were very enthusiastic, constantly putting vegetables in my bowl, and said kindly: "Now is the time for you to grow up, eat more." ”
I ate two steamed buns and a small bowl of rice, and I was embarrassed to continue eating. After dinner, another round of fruit was served. That night, I felt like I was living like an emperor.
On the way back to school, I kept feeling why there was such a big gap between people. It would be great if I could be born in a family like Wang Yunping.
However, I did not feel inferior because of the huge difference in family background with Wang Yunping. Since that day, I have come to understand that in order to have a good life, we must keep working hard. And for me, striving means working harder and harder. Only when I am admitted to university can I have the opportunity to jump out of the countryside and let my children live a life like Wang Yunping.
In the summer of 1985, the college entrance examination came as scheduled. In the end, I was admitted to a major university with a score of more than 30 points higher than the undergraduate line. During my time at university, my tuition and living expenses were covered by the school, which made me no longer have to worry about financial problems.
During my university years, I threw myself into my studies and constantly improved myself. In the second semester of my last year of college, I was fortunate enough to be recommended to work as an English teacher at a key high school.
In 1989, I successfully passed the exam and became a full-fledged high school teacher. This is an important milestone for me to change my life step by step through my unremitting efforts.
In 1993, my college friends invited me to join their factory and help their team. At that time, orders for this factory were mainly from abroad. Since I have a solid foundation in English, I quickly adapted to my new work environment and successfully crossed industry boundaries.
Over time, I have gained a lot of experience in the factory. In 2008, I decided to start a foreign trade company with my husband. Our company grew gradually, and at its peak the number of employees reached more than 100 people.
As a girl from a rural background, I am very happy that I have been able to achieve such an achievement. After getting rich, I didn't forget my hometown. I funded the construction of a cement road for my hometown, helped build an ancestral hall in the village, and sponsored a large number of poor college students to complete their studies.
Wang Yunping passed the college entrance examination and was admitted to a university in Beijing, and after graduating from university, she successfully became a Chinese teacher in a university. However, life for her family has not been smooth sailing over the years.
While she was in college, her father's factory began to struggle and eventually had to go bankrupt. After going bankrupt, the royal father unfortunately fell into a gambling habit, which gradually broke up the originally harmonious family.
After graduating from university, Wang Yunping worked hard and gradually got her life back on track. Over the years, Wang Yunping and I have maintained a close relationship. Whenever we return to our hometown for the Chinese New Year, we will take time to get together, reminisce about the past, and talk about the future.
I recall that when I was in high school in 1983, Wang Yunping, a classmate from 10,000 households, invited me to her house to play, and that time was unforgettable for me. It was that experience that planted the seeds of a happy life in my heart.