The people are concerned

Author: You Lingjun
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-04-01
Features: What can a woman do when laid off? What should a man do when unemployed? This is a poignant novel about the layoffs and entrepreneurial struggles of contemporary urban workers. It depicts the painful experience of Shengzi, a laid-off worker, who faces the issue of unemployment, followed by his wife's divorce and the dire living conditions of not being able to afford basic necessities. In this era, all hardships are opportunities. Amidst his confusion, he uses his own hands to build a world for himself: starting with selling watermelons, running a clothing business, and eventually founding his own company by leading a group of laid-off workers. He once again proves the vow of "men must be self-reliant."
This is a poignant novel about the layoffs and entrepreneurial struggles of contemporary urban workers. The protagonist, Shengzi, is a foreman in a mechanical parts factory in a northern city. After being laid off, he experienced confusion, aimlessness, self-doubt, lamented his unfair fate, and even flew into rage. For the sake of his mother and son, he tried renting a shop but failed, sold watermelons by renting a truck but was extorted by road ragers, and helped Ruizi sell clothing but was cheated out of thousands of yuan by a small clothing dealer. After enduring multiple setbacks and failures, he finally stood up bravely, "believe in yourself, start over," and tirelessly explored ways to survive, stubbornly fighting against his not-so-great destiny. With the attitude of a tough man and a strong individual, he established his own "Shengda" plumbing repair and installation company, leading a group of laid-off workers and their families on a difficult yet hopeful and bright path of re-entrepreneurship, with the spirit of "a drop of water wears away a stone" and a meticulous work ethic. He broke free from his and realized his life's value.
The book also describes Shengzi's divorce from his wife Mei, who wanted to study abroad, his emotional entanglement with Ruizi, his teenage girlfriend and a wealthy clothing store owner, and his romantic relationship with Chuan'er, a public relations girl from the clothing factory. It particularly focuses on his emotional journey with Yan'er, a laid-off woman from a chemical plant who had suffered abuse from her husband, Shen Xiaogang, from their (accidental meeting) to becoming close friends, falling in love, and eventually living together.