Www.zjol.com.cn 20061110: 06 Zhejiang online news website
On a cold winter night, the flight slowly stopped at Taiyuan Wusu Airport. Among the people who walked down the gangway, there was a thin and handsome young man, whose steps were faster than those of other passengers. Outside the big glass window of the airport, my mother and cousin are desperately waving to him.
The young man's name is Wang Xiaoqi, 25 years old, from Shaanxi. He left his hometown to work in Japan two years ago. Wang Xiaoqi came back from Japan before Christmas this year. It has been two years since I left home the year before last.
I hope to make money and open my eyes. Life is hard to adapt to.
The reporter invited Wang Xiaoqi to eat in a restaurant. Facing several plates on the table, Wang Xiaoqi is as gentle as a lady. "I'm welcome. I really can't eat. A habit developed in Japan. The Japanese eat less, so we can eat three. "
Japanese usually eat very little, and rice and vegetables are mixed together. The most oily is tempura (meat, seafood or vegetables wrapped in batter and fried), and the hot pot is boiled. However, these are all high-end varieties of Japanese cuisine, and it is not for migrant workers like Xiao Qi to have the money and leisure to taste them. In order to save money, they cook by themselves every day. In the morning, they boil water to make eggs, and at noon, they make a box lunch the night before. In this country with the highest price in the world, rice is also prohibitively expensive. A small bag (about10kg) is 5,000 yen, which is about RMB 350 yuan. They can only buy those broken rice, which are generally not for people to eat. The cheapest dishes in the supermarket are stale onions and potatoes, and fried potatoes with onions are almost commonplace. Go back to the dormitory at night, shave your own noodles, fry a bowl of tomatoes and add more salt. Two years is like one day. Eating has long been a mechanical task, and my appetite has shrunk a little.
The mother loves her son dearly and sends cooked ham by parcel from Shanxi Airlines. The postage is very high. Xiao Qi was reluctant to eat after receiving it. She often takes it out and smells it. She was so greedy that she cut a few pieces and shared them with her roommate. In two years, my mother sent seven packages.
For two years, Xiao Qi smoked a cigarette once in a while, a pack of cigarettes every two days. Smoking will make you hungry. But Japanese cigarettes are more expensive, and the worst price of cigarettes is similar to that of China. Mother sent him cigarettes. Only two items are allowed at a time, plus tax.
The next day after returning home, my mother cooked a table full of dishes. At first, Xiao Qi ate a lot, but she didn't feel full at all, but in the end she vomited it all, which made her uncomfortable for two nights.
Wang Xiaoqi studied art decoration in college and was the only child in his family. His parents are ordinary workers, so he can't find a good job. After graduation, he worked in a private enterprise for half a year, responsible for managing accounts. Romantic Xiao Qi didn't want to deal with boring figures all day, let alone live such a lifeless life, so she found someone to work abroad. "You can open your eyes, make some money at the worst, and you will have capital when you come back."
Going abroad, even as a foreign wage earner, is not so smooth. Application, deposit, presentation skills, professional skills, and related. Many people end up stuck in the physical examination. Xiao Qi was lucky enough to pass all the courses. After completing the formalities, Xiao Qi and a dozen other migrant workers from Shaanxi went to a school in the suburbs of Beijing to receive basic training in Japanese and etiquette. A month later, they boarded a flight from Dalian to Japan. It was the winter of 2003.
The boss is prone to abuse his power, and his work is very hard.
Xiao Qi and others participated in the export of this batch of labor services, which originally belonged to the China-DPRK friendly poverty alleviation project. The first few batches were all Japanese farmers, and only this batch, 13, was from the city.
As soon as I got off the plane, I got on the bus that was picked up by a Japanese company. 13 people joined four companies, which were called "clubs" locally. Xiao Qi and a man from Jinzhong were assigned to a club specializing in processing all kinds of materials. They watched fellow travelers get into Honda and other beautiful cars one by one, but what stopped in front of them was an old van, which felt like "Tianjin Dafa" that even Taiyuan had eliminated. Xiao Qi's heart sank: It seems that it is not a good unit.
Xiao Qi's job is to polish the burrs of all kinds of utensils coming out of Madari bit by bit, from furniture to chopsticks. Eight hours a day. Sometimes I work a lot, work overtime every day, and sometimes I have no rest, which is very exhausting.
As soon as I arrived at the dormitory, the dirty air came to my face. This is a small room about five or six square meters. No one has cleaned it since the last batch of Chinese workers left. Xiao Qi, who pays attention to cleanliness, has been cleaning for a whole week. But it takes longer to adapt to the workplace. There are sawdust everywhere, which makes people cough.
At first, I knew nothing. Japanese foreman always loses his temper and swears at every turn. What he understands is "Bagyaru" and Japanese "idiot". He was really scolded. Xiao Qi, who never swears, will quietly reply a sentence or two in Chinese, but if he doesn't understand Chinese, he loses the meaning of cursing. He swore with the Japanese he had just learned, but he was afraid. In the end, I only ended up silent and then silent.
Xiao Qi soon became familiar with the work. In order not to be scolded, but also to prove that we China people are not idiots, he worked hard and did it quickly and well. But he found that it would only make him more tired. Those "smart" colleagues will work slowly, and delay means the same workload but more money. And if you finish your work early, there will always be a new job. Don't expect special respect for praise. Wages are paid according to working hours, 8 hours a day. In the second year, at the best time, you can earn 6.5438+0.2 million yen (about 8,400 yuan) a month. It's at least fifty thousand yen.
On one occasion, when Xiao Qi looked down at the fire in the kerosene stove, he was burned by the flame that suddenly jumped out, and both knees were burned, but the boss only took him to the hospital to get medicine, and he had to go to work the next day, and asked him to move down a big truck with wood on it. After moving to three quarters, Xiao Qi couldn't hold on any longer, and the boss had to allow him to rest for two days. Speaking of which, they all have medical insurance in Xiao Qi, so they don't have to spend the boss's medical expenses, but the boss is afraid of delaying the construction period. But not all bosses are so black. Workers who are assigned to other clubs have lighter workload, can take vacations on time, and their wages are much higher. Clubs often organize outings and hot springs, but their own clubs have never given employees similar benefits. Xiao Qi's boss is a middle-aged man with a beard and looks gloomy. He doesn't talk at ordinary times. He is always critical when he opens his mouth. He often drinks and swears when he is drunk. Moreover, as soon as I arrived at the factory, the name disappeared and became an "Ou" (surname: Wang) in the boss's mouth, instead of "Ou Sang" (Mr. Wang) called by other clubs. Xiao Qi didn't complain about anything, but he felt that his life was terrible and he met such a boss.
At one time, when there was no job in the factory, the boss "subletted" Xiao Qi and them to another flower farmer's field to collect flower seeds. This is actually illegal, but Xiao Qi and others have no choice. That flower farmer has a good family. Tea and water will be served every day during the break, Japanese snacks will be sent to greet everyone, and people will be led to take a sea bath every week during the break. Language barrier, speak with pen and paper. Xiao Qi really wants to stay there. Unfortunately, the good times did not last long.
What makes Xiao Qi happiest is the rest day. At first, he wrote home letters. If a letter is not overweight, the postage is about RMB 7 yuan, and it is always dense to write. Later, instead of writing letters, he recorded with a small walkman. If you have something to say, record three or five sentences and record another three or five sentences every few days. I didn't want my roommate to hear me, so I ran to the wild, under the bridge, by the sea and whispered in the wind. Postage for sending tapes is more expensive, but Xiao Qi has an invention: when a tape is full, he divides it into several parts, carefully wraps it in an envelope, or sends it as a letter, and the cost is 7 yuan. When his father received the letter, he recorded these parts and put them in the tape recorder. This invention has never been discovered by others.
Foreign countries attach importance to credibility, while Chinese people perform poorly.
Japan is such a strange and sometimes admirable country.
Their domestic products, whether electrical appliances, cars or gadgets, are the most expensive. The same product made in China is much cheaper. Rich Japanese, of course, he will choose expensive. This is a question of dignity: everything in Japan is the best and should be the most expensive. I am a rich Japanese.
In Xiao Qi's understanding, there is no so-called patriotism education in Japan, but this kind of education has penetrated into every point of Japanese life.
Xiao Qi bought a Nissan camera. When taking pictures at the seaside, I accidentally touched the sea water, so I took it to repair it, and people refused to repair it. If you need to repair the camera, the camera repair fee for 30 thousand is 50 thousand. No way, Xiao Qi took the camera back to the dormitory and soaked it in clear water for a whole day. He felt that the salt in the seawater was soaked, so he wrapped it in a quilt and put it in the washing machine. Take it out and you can take pictures again.
"Back in China, not only is the air and environment too dirty to adapt, but there is also a feeling that nothing is convenient. For example, if you leave your wallet in the store, you can't get it back, but don't worry in Japan, the store will send it back to you soon. " Xiao Qi said.
Take the subway, no one checks the tickets, most of them are from China. There will be signs in Chinese and Korean that say "Please don't take away the goods in the store without permission", but there is no Japanese sign. When shopping, I often meet an old Japanese man who always whispers, "This is too expensive for you.". All kinds of tangible and intangible discrimination make Xiao Qi feel very uncomfortable.
But what saddens him even more is that at the beginning of coming to China, more than a dozen Japanese agreed that if someone made unexpected money, such as winning the lottery, he must not share it with his companion Sanqi. Perhaps this is an exotic brotherhood. However, one day, when Xiao Qi found a wallet with about 6,000 RMB and several insurance cards in the supermarket, he gave it directly to the service desk of the supermarket without thinking. He left his name and address and went to the supermarket. He wanted to let the Japanese know that China people have always been honest and polite.
A few days later, the owner of the wallet sent a thank-you note and a cake. But none of China's companions who ate the cake said that Xiao Qi was good, and it was given and passed around. What Xiao Qi heard was cynicism such as "that stupid X" or "You are really a living Lei Feng".
Xiao Qi always shares the food sent by her mother with her roommate, even if no package is delivered to her home. I thought it was not easy for people in a foreign land to be "iron" and form lifelong friends, but later I felt that everyone was like this and there was no real heart-to-heart. It is only in such a living environment that we must maintain a so-called unity. Otherwise, you will be more isolated.
When returning home, Xiao Qi flew from Japan to Dalian, then from Dalian to Beijing, and then transferred from Beijing to Taiyuan. In less than 12 hour's journey, I feel that some people's quality is getting lower and lower. The last flight was really annoying: the plane from Beijing to Taiyuan was a night flight, and the man next to it (China, of course, with Taiyuan accent) asked the stewardess if there was any dinner service, but he looked very angry after getting a negative answer. Xiao Qi has traveled all day and is eating his own bread.
Seeing that the man was always staring at himself, he thought he must be very hungry, so he gave him bread. Unexpectedly, the man not only didn't say a word of thanks, but also proudly said, "I don't want to eat your bread, I want to eat hot rice and hot dishes!" " "Xiao Qi anger stomach pain.
Xiao Qi thinks that it can't be said that the Japanese are bad for China people. I heard that the first batch of China people who came to work were well paid. But there are many Japanese. If you are strong, he will be soft, and if you are weak, he will be horizontal.
The past is unbearable, based on domestic entrepreneurship.
Originally, according to the contract, Xiao Qi should have worked for three years before leaving Japan. In his original plan, he must visit Tokyo in the third year. Tokyo is more than 300 kilometers away from my place of work, just like Taiyuan to Beijing. Xiao Qi works hard and usually just walks around the seaside where he lives, but he doesn't go anywhere.
However, he may never go to Tokyo. In June165438+1October this year, the Japanese economy as a whole continued to slump, and clubs in Xiao Qi were going to lay off staff. At this time, Xiao Qi has quietly learned the operation of the motor that can make anything, and he can make his own working program. In the face of Japanese persuasion, Xiao Qi looked at Admiralty's companion, who lived in a room for two years, while the other looked at him in silence. Finally, Xiao Qi agreed to leave. The 13 people who came on the same flight in those years were very lively, and now only Xiao Qi is the only lonely figure who returned home after canceling the contract. In addition, two female workers left their club and disappeared. It is said that they made a lot of money by going to Tokyo. Xiao Qi said, in fact, no one is naturally willing to do dark things. )
The contract was terminated, but the company did not pay the liquidated damages. At Xiao Qi's insistence, he didn't get an extra month's salary until one hour before boarding the plane. He can't and can't get more. But Xiao Qi is not going to insist, he just wants to go home quickly.
However, the urgency in imagination, such as seeing a beloved person crying in his arms, has never happened in reality, and tears can't flow out. Just got back, just got back. Everything is the same as it was two years ago, except that I have a little more yen deposit.
It's a pity that I can't go to Tokyo. But Xiao Qi said that he would never go to Japan again, and he would never let his children go to Japan again-unless they went abroad to study or travel. After coming back for a week, he had no other ideas, so he had to find a suitable company to work early. It's still a little early to start your own business. In the new environment, he needs to study again and learn more things.
Postscript: Last year, a documentary "Our Life in Studying Abroad-Days in Japan" was quietly premiered on Beijing TV. No publicity, no advertising, but the ratings are firmly locked. How many Japanese studying in China have so many unknown bitterness and helplessness, tenacity and struggle. If you see a lot of scenes in the film and television drama "Beijingers in new york", what you see from this documentary is only the real heaviness. Therefore, when I know the story of Xiao Qi, I have an impulse to write it down. Not curious, not grandstanding. Readers can appreciate reality and reflect on history.
Xiao Qi feels like a loser. He didn't make it to the end and came back quietly without any achievement. But I have the opposite view. The two years' experience in Japan has given Xiao Qi more growth and knowledge than his peers. More importantly, he has always retained the dignity and virtue of China people. I wish him a new and beautiful starting point when the new year comes.
(Characters in the text use pseudonyms)
I don't know how you feel after reading it. . If it's not foreign, it's better than domestic.