Take Arada back to the past

Chapter 822, Partner

He still has things to take care of today.

Since you've already resigned, you definitely need to apply for a business license.

However, what he actually wanted to do was to establish a private enterprise.

There are specific regulations for sole proprietorships, but no specific regulations for private enterprises.

Therefore, it needs to be affiliated with another entity.

Many people with connections have already completed the process.

He would be affiliated with an import and export company, because import and export companies have foreign exchange quotas.

Having worked at the Industry and Commerce Bureau for so long, he knows the ins and outs of the business inside and out.

As for the store, he has already rented a store in Xiushui Street, but it is not open yet.

I rode my bike to the Industry and Commerce Bureau and went directly to the branch office.

"Old Company Commander!"

Yang Xiaole came in and greeted everyone with a smile.

He hadn't been gone for very long, but Song Lin's appointment as acting director had already arrived. If nothing unexpected happened, Song Lin would be taking over the branch office's affairs from now on.

Song Lin stood up with a smile and shook hands.

There she was, complaining, "Xiao Le, why didn't you just register with a unit under our branch of the Industry and Commerce Bureau? You're familiar with this place! Why did you have to go to the import and export company!"

Yang Xiaole handed him a cigarette and smiled, "Old Company Commander, I'm planning to earn foreign exchange through exports. If the branch office also has export quotas, I'll definitely register with our unit!"

Song Lin sighed helplessly upon hearing this: "Alright then! If you encounter any difficulties in the future, be sure to let me know."

Yang Xiaole happily agreed.

No wonder that during the wave of people leaving government service to start their own businesses, those within the system were more likely to succeed than others.

Connections are really important.

It started out as a matter of personal favor, but later it became about self-interest.

Some of the people who went into business in 92 were at much higher levels than him.

This is all about connections.

The two chatted for a while before he left.

Then I went to the import and export company.

This is also his old territory. Although he didn't reach the highest level, his current leader is Yu Yongsheng.

The relationship between the two is pretty good.

Jiang Yan has now been promoted to deputy director level.

If others can do it, how could he not?

Moreover, the credit limit given to him is quite high, and it can be adjusted later.

After spending some time at the import/export company, I left with all the documents.

With these things, he can handle import and export matters.

In two or three years, once the private sector is liberalized, he can gradually break free from it.

……

He had naturally told his family about his trip to the north long ago.

As for the goods, he doesn't plan to deal with them for the time being.

Most of today's "scalpers" operate on a small scale, relying on their capital to make round trips.

Many people earn hundreds of thousands or even millions a year.

But in his opinion, it was still too slow.

If Mu Qizhong could trade canned goods for airplanes back then, then he certainly could too.

Of course, this is not the time yet; the military industry will need to wait several more years before it can proceed.

But the others are fine.

So he needs to go and take a look first.

……

That evening, after having dinner at home, he explained the situation to Qu Ying again.

The next day, I took a plane to Harbin ahead of schedule.

The reason he arrived at the destination early was naturally to find Zhang Shaoting.

There are two routes from the mainland to Moscow.

K3/K4 goes in the direction of Mongolia, exiting from Erenhot.

Another route is K19 and K20, which goes through Manzhouli, passing through Tianjin, Tangshan, Harbin and other places, all the way to Manzhouli, and finally connects to the Trans-Siberian Railway.

This time, he took the route through Northeast China.

Now that the Heilongjiang Production and Construction Corps has been abolished, communication is much easier than before.

……

"Xiao Le!"

As soon as he got off the plane and left the airport, someone called out to him.

"Starling!"

Yang Xiaole went over and hugged the other person.

Zhang Shaoting looked at him and laughed, "You kid, you gave up a perfectly good branch office leader position to become a black marketeer. What were you thinking?"

Yang Xiaole chuckled: "Brother Ba, I must have my reasons! Come on, let's eat first. Give me a braised goose in an iron pot, and a sweet and sour pork. Let's have a couple of drinks."

"Alright! Let's go! Get in the car!"

Zhang Shaoting agreed and, smiling, led him to the jeep next to him.

Zhang Shaoting's rank already qualifies him to be provided with a dedicated vehicle.

The car drove directly to a state-run restaurant in Harbin.

The restaurant was bustling with activity at that moment.

Because of the trader network in Northeast China, Harbin is an important transit point, and there are quite a few traders here, after all, Harbin is also an industrial area.

You can also find supplies here.

……

The two entered a reasonably upscale privately owned restaurant.

"The food here is good, but state-run restaurants are so arrogant. The food is terrible, and the staff are rude!"

After he came in, Zhang Shaoting muttered something to him.

Yang Xiaole sat down and looked at the restaurant's decor, which was considered quite upscale for this era.

He looked away and laughed, "There's nothing I can do. Habits formed over such a long time can't be changed overnight. After all, they have secure jobs and fixed salaries. Whether you eat or not, they still get paid."

Zhang Shaoting nodded slightly.

"Yes! Things have changed so much!"

Pulling himself back to his senses, he asked, "How have you been lately? How is Master doing in Hong Kong?"

"I'm fine, and my master is doing well in Hong Kong. He should be back in the next couple of years, then you'll be able to go back and see him."

Zhang Shaoting was an orphan who was raised by Master Suo, and they had a very special bond.

It can be said that their relationship is equivalent to that of father and son.

Hearing this, Zhang Shaoting nodded slightly.

The two then chatted there.

When the food arrived, the two clinked glasses.

Zhang Shaoting took a sip of his drink before asking, "You said you came here to tell me something important. What is it?"

Yang Xiaole thought for a moment and then smiled, "I'm planning to resell some things from Russia. Do you need any agricultural equipment?"

Beidahuang was one of the earliest places in China to use mechanized equipment on a large scale.

There is a huge gap between demand and supply for agricultural machinery.

He was naturally going to resell agricultural equipment.

Zhang Shaoting pondered for a moment after hearing this, then shook his head: "I don't think it will work. The higher-ups won't allow it right now! This matter is still too sensitive."

Yang Xiaole naturally knew this, and then smiled and said, "I won't let you trade, but instead I'll buy the equipment from you. Do you want it? You'll receive the equipment after you enter the country, and I need your unsold products. It's just that my quantity is relatively large."

Because there are currently no export ports in Northeast China.

Of course, this is not allowed; their machinery and equipment transactions all need to go through import and export companies.

"This……"

Zhang Shao hesitated for a moment. If that were the case, then it wouldn't be a big deal.

That's something we can try.

Then he asked, "Tell me, how do you do it?"

Yang Xiaole then told him about her plan.

It's actually just a pattern used in later generations.

It's just a shell company.

Zhang Shaoting's State Farms Administration was responsible for transporting goods to the port and arranging their transit, while he transported the goods to the interior to complete the handover.

The missing items can be transported from the mainland.

Nowadays, ordinary traders without export permits must strictly adhere to regulations, and the amount of goods they carry each time they pass through customs cannot exceed 35 kilograms.

Even those with the necessary paperwork still need to pull strings to get a few train cars.

However, the connections that Zhang Shaoting can utilize are far beyond what ordinary people can compare to.

After listening, Zhang Shaoting pondered it over.

He then asked, "But there are problems with that too. Why should they deliver the goods first? And what about the price? If it's too high, they definitely won't be willing. If the price is the market price, then we might as well import it from abroad."

Yang Xiaole smiled and said, "How you deliver it is my business. You just need to have the people at the border let the goods in. We've also taken care of the connections over there. As for the price, 50% of the market price, is that acceptable?"

The Russian bear has always earned foreign exchange through global machinery exports, which it then uses to buy other things.

The profit margin for machinery is not that high.

If it were a legitimate import, the price certainly wouldn't be this low.

The principle behind how middlemen make money is to take advantage of the price differences of goods in different local markets and resell them.

A pound of pork costs 1.5 yuan in mainland China, but it costs 1 ruble in Russia.

At the current exchange rate, 1 ruble can be exchanged for 4.8 yuan.

A profit of 3.3 RMB.

After deducting travel expenses and costs for clearing customs, the profit is around 50%.

Of course, there are many types of goods, some with low profit margins and others with very high profit margins.

This was before.

The price of live pigs was just deregulated in the second half of this year, and the price has skyrocketed from 1.5 yuan to 4.2 yuan.

The consumption of pork dropped immediately.

So now the whole country has gone from not being able to afford meat before the reform and opening up, to being able to afford meat after the reform and opening up, and then to not being able to afford meat this year.

Starting this year, pork is no longer required to be rationed.

There have been instances of pork stockpiling in various regions.

Meanwhile, other types of coupons are gradually being phased out. As for grain coupons, they are still in use, but in reality, they are no longer valid.

The official cancellation took place around 93.

Zhang Shaoting's eyes lit up upon hearing this.

He hesitated for a moment before saying, "But... wouldn't that still be reselling? We're a state-owned farm, so there's nothing wrong with us, but wouldn't that still be disadvantageous for you?"

Yang Xiaole smiled upon hearing this: "Brother Ba, this matter is beneficial to the farm. With your ranks backing me up, those of lower rank can't investigate me, and those of higher rank are protected by you. What am I afraid of?"

The level of the Production and Construction Corps is sufficient.

Mu Qizhong transported the aircraft back then because of the endorsement of the Sichuan Provincial Civil Aviation Administration.

Otherwise, this one incident alone could keep him trapped for the rest of his life.

Lao Mou did go to jail later, but not because of this incident.

The civil aviation level in Sichuan Province is a whole major level lower than that of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps.

Once the Corps holds a meeting and agrees, if they want to deal with him, it would have to escalate to the level of Old Wang to be able to handle him.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Shaoting pondered for a moment: "Xiao Le, what's the point of this? You know, the route we're taking isn't even decided yet! Aren't you afraid something might go wrong?"

Yang Xiaole smiled and said, "Don't worry, as long as you agree, that's fine. You can't make the decision yourself, but you can go to a meeting to discuss it."

That's why he came early.

The reason why the Corps couldn't do it directly was because if the higher-ups discussed imports, the price would have to be calculated based on international prices.

With the same budget, you can buy twice the amount of equipment.

There's no responsibility involved, so the problem shouldn't be too serious.

After all, they don't buy directly from abroad through export ports.

Zhang Shaoting pondered for a moment upon hearing this.

Finally, he said, "Okay, I'll discuss it after I finish eating. How should I let you know?"

"I'm taking the train to Heihe tomorrow afternoon. If you have a result by tomorrow, that would be great. If not, I'll call you when I get to Heihe. If not, then forget it."

Yang Xiaole said something casually.

Zhang Shaoting nodded slightly: "Okay, I'll go ask."

The two then ate their meal there.

After finishing his meal, Zhang Shaoting left immediately.

Yang Xiaole, on the other hand, didn't leave. His train ticket wouldn't arrive until tomorrow; he was just coming to Harbin ahead of schedule.

The earliest middlemen actually existed several years ago, mainly from the Northeast region.

In recent years, people in Beijing and the Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas have also started to join.

Goods trade is mainly concentrated in the Northeast region, because goods can only be carried in 35 kilograms if they depart from Inner Mongolia.

If you take the route through the Northeast, you can still cross to the border via other channels.

Manzhouli is naturally the most convenient place for transportation.

Therefore, this area accounts for more than 80% of the country's middlemen.

As for Heihe and Suifenhe, due to the nature of the railways, there are fewer of them. The railways in Suifenhe and Heihe are for military use and public use.

Moreover, it primarily deals with freight.

"Hey bro! Do you mind sitting for a bit? There are no seats left at the restaurant, and I think you're almost done eating."

As I was lost in thought, someone came over.

They were three middle-aged men.

Yang Xiaole looked at the group and nodded with a smile: "It's alright, have a seat!"

There's only one round trip a week to the Russian side, and tomorrow is the time the bus will pass through Harbin. If it's late, we'll have to wait until next week.

Therefore, many people who had purchased the goods began to return, lest they miss out.

"Okay! Thanks!"

The other man sat down, took out a pack of Zhonghua cigarettes, handed it to him, and said with a smile, "Brother, judging from your accent, you're from Beijing, right? Are you going to the Russians' place?"

"My name is Sun Dacheng. These are my two brothers, Laizi and Pihou."

Yang Xiaole smiled upon hearing this: "Yes! From Beijing. I heard that traders are making money these days, so I'm going to the Northeast to check it out! How did you all start from here? Didn't you start from Beijing?"

Sun Dacheng said with a smile, "We have things to do here, but we have brothers in the south. We can just go to Manzhouli to pick up the goods."

After saying that, he looked at him and smiled, "Brother, it sounds like this is your first time here! What goods did you bring? Do you want me to help you transport them? The cost isn't high, and if we pool our money, we can get a discount."

It would be safer to go together; things aren't very safe in Russia.

Yang Xiaole smiled and said, "You can tell that? It really is my first time. But I didn't bring anything with me this time. I have some friends in Manzhouli who said they'd help me explore."

Sun Dacheng smiled and nodded gently upon hearing this.

He sensed that this guy wasn't an ordinary person.

But it was clear that Yang Xiaole had no intention of joining them.

They then changed the subject and chatted casually.

As Yang Xiaole listened, he learned a little about the situation over there.

Feeling that it was about time, he then left.

……

Zhang Shaoting had not yet given him a reply, so he could only leave by car.

Once on the bus, everyone inside was carrying bags and packages full of things, including daily necessities, food, and drinks.

The train to Moscow took too long, and there were no hard seats, only sleeper berths.

Yang Xiaole bought two premium private rooms at once, so he naturally had the room to himself.

The following morning, the car stopped at Manzhouli Railway Station. Most people got off directly, while some with fewer supplies crossed the border to the other side.

Yang Xiaole did not follow them, but got off the train in Manzhouli.

(End of this chapter)