Chapter 159 Uncle Liu
The character Jiangnan during the factory layoffs in the nineties is not an isolated case in China.
He is more like a classic character, representing the group of university graduates affected by the times, laid off, and without opportunities to develop again.
They often have good learning abilities and knowledge, but due to family environment, personal cognition, or perhaps character flaws, they eventually end up struggling for decades at the bottom of society like other laid-off workers.
However, they differ from ordinary workers in one obvious way: they are unwilling to resign, yet unable to change their circumstances, thus developing a habit of criticizing and complaining about the times, and some even begin to boast and exaggerate to cover their inner emptiness.
In the pavilion, Uncle Liu eloquently narrated his life story, also revealing his character and behavioral habits.
Yang Xiaoxiu was very smart, and each time the conversation drifted and the other started boasting, she would timely interrupt with questions, steering the topic back.
Li Jing, on the other hand, mostly watched quietly, recording each word and action of the others in his mind.
Compared to the characters described in books, Li Jing hadn’t experienced that social period, so there was no specific image in his mind.
But in conversations with Uncle Liu, Li Jing seemed to see Jiangnan in his forties or fifties recalling the past before him.
The image of Jiangnan in his heart became more rich and realistic.
Later, Uncle Liu seemed to be in high spirits and took them to his resting room.
What he called a resting room was actually the school’s temporary storeroom for the gardeners to place their tools.