Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 835 Take a Break

The three elderly comrades invited Mr. Huo to stay at their home, but Mr. Huo did not respond, taking it as a joke and letting it go.

However, when Chen Fan invited him to collaborate again, he was immediately interested and asked, "How can we collaborate?"

If you could own your own hotel, wouldn't it be easy to reserve a room for yourself all year round?
If all else fails, I can just pay for the room myself; it's not like I'm not paying!

It's better than before when the hotel was always fully booked and we had to wait for rooms in other cities.

Chen Fan made a gesture, about to speak, but suddenly stopped and chuckled, "It's time, why don't we eat and chat?"

Then the elders sat down at the table with composure, while the younger ones joined in. Before long, two cold dishes, eight hot dishes, and a soup were served, along with a plate of vegetables that Liu Juan had just stir-fried and brought from the south. Twelve dishes were then on the table.

Chen Fan, holding a small wine glass, shared his experience with Mr. Huo, "This matter is difficult to handle. Jianguo Hotel is an example. It's Beijing, under the emperor's nose, so everyone has a special sense of pride and is particularly sensitive to things like capitalists and foreign capital."

If there's any issue with foreign investment, they'll always try to obstruct it. You can't say they're wrong; they're just being patriotic and trying to ensure the purity of that thing.

Therefore, we need to change our approach and perspective, which will make things much simpler.

For example, boarding first and buying a ticket later.

Mr. Huo's eyes were particularly large, and now they were sparkling with a strange light. "You mean, you want to build the hotel first, and then talk to the higher-ups about using this place as a hotel?"

Chen Fan: "Yes and no. The way it was done is right."

He pointed outside and said, "Like that building to the north, if we had announced from the beginning that it was for foreign companies, believe me, I wouldn't have been able to build it!"
But I won't say. What will I say? I'll talk about the Beijing office that's being prepared for Yunhu Machinery Factory. Although this office is quite large, no one's saying it can't be used, right?

The five people at the table stared at him, stopping their eating, drinking, and picking up food, staring without saying a word.

Chen Fan glanced around, and after two seconds, he finally realized what was going on and quickly said, "I didn't mean that was the plan from the beginning. It was indeed originally intended for Yunhu Machinery Factory, but they didn't want it in the end, right? It was just sitting idle anyway, and then my uncle and cousin's company needed an office, so we just offered it up."

What I just said was all an afterthought, yes, an afterthought!

The five of them breathed a sigh of relief and then each went to eat their own food.

Zhou Yali wiped away a cold sweat, shook her head, and said, "I thought you had planned this all along. My dad didn't even plan to enter the domestic market so early. How could you have planned it all along? It really gave me a big shock."

Chen Fan ignored her and continued speaking to Mr. Huo, "To say it's wrong is that we can't hide it from our superiors. There's a standard for this kind of thing: you have to keep it from your subordinates but not from your superiors. You have to be honest with your superiors, and you also have to explain the steps of the plan clearly, and explain that you had no choice but to do this in order to ensure the smooth construction of the hotel."

Frankly speaking, the higher-ups can understand, but if we wait until things are already set in stone before discussing it, they'll think it's deception, and that wouldn't be good.

Mr. Huo nodded repeatedly as he listened, "Yes, yes, that makes sense, I'll remember it."

He paused for a moment, then asked, "What exactly are the steps in the plan you mentioned?"

Chen Fan raised his wine glass in a toast, took a small sip, and then smiled and said, "Just like my cousin buying the Ningjun Prince's Mansion, first you find a place, and after you find it, you go to the property owner to talk about buying the house."

One important point here is that you need to spend two or three times the market price to help the residents or businesses there complete the relocation in order to successfully get the house. Otherwise, even if you buy it, you won't be able to get it into your hands.

After purchasing the property, we can build it however we want, and once the house is completed, we can invite relevant organizations to cooperate.

No one would refuse a windfall; whether you approach the Municipal Tourism Bureau, the Beijing Hotel, or the Friendship Hotel, they'll all be happy to get involved.

Mr. Huo listened and nodded, and after Chen Fan finished speaking, he immediately asked, "Which organization do you think is the best to cooperate with?"

Without hesitation, Chen Fan said, "Of course, it's the Beijing Hotel. That hotel is located on the east side of the Forbidden City. It currently consists of three buildings: the Old Building, the East Building, and the West Building. Between the hotel and the Forbidden City, there is a small plot of land. If we can acquire that land, even if we can't build a high-rise, we can build a small but exquisite hotel with two or three hundred rooms, according to five-star standards, or even higher. That would be enough."

The hotel will be just across the street from the Forbidden City, making it extremely convenient in terms of location, guest experience, and errands.

He then mentioned Mr. Wu's expectations for the hotel when the East Building of the Beijing Hotel was being built: "If you can acquire this land and, according to Mr. Wu's wishes, design and build a high-standard tourist hotel with the Forbidden City as a reference and maintaining a consistent style, everyone will be happy."

Upon hearing this, Mr. Huo slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "Great, this is the place!"

Li Shangde, Lin Yuanxiang, and Zhang Xuansong all nodded in agreement, saying, "If we can fulfill Mr. Wu's wish, it will be worth it no matter how much money we spend."

Chen Fan turned his face and smiled, "If we can acquire that land, it really won't cost much. Including demolition, construction, and renovation, it should only cost a few million US dollars."

Then he said to Mr. Huo, "Of course, home renovation is a bottomless pit. If you're going for a high-end renovation, besides high-end building materials, you can spend a lot of money on various mahogany furniture, genuine antique ornaments, and Persian carpets."

But that's unnecessary. The point is to create a high-end, sophisticated, and understatedly luxurious feel. I estimate that ten million US dollars would be more than enough.

It seems that when the VIP Lou Hotel was registered in 1985, its registered capital was US$1000 million.

Now that it's been brought forward by five or six years, the same $1000 million seems a bit less?
The current exchange rate of RMB to USD is almost at its historical high, reaching 1.5:1, while in 85 it was 2.85:1, a depreciation of nearly half. The same amount of USD can now be exchanged for even less RMB.

However, prices now are not as high as they will be in five or six years, so this evens out.
Upon hearing that it only required $1000 million, Mr. Huo immediately nodded, "Okay, I'll invest in this project."

He then looked at Chen Fan and smiled, "You asked me to invest in a hotel in Shenzhen, and I agreed. Now, how much of this hotel can you invest in?"

Without hesitation, Chen Fan grabbed Zhou Yali, who was eating, and pointed at her, saying, "She's the one who invested. I'm very poor, it has nothing to do with me."

Mr. Huo, with a hint of a smile in his eyes, turned to Zhou Yali and asked, "Ms. Zhou, how much can your company invest?"

Zhou Yali blinked blankly, "How about investing 500 million too?"

Mr. Huo laughed and said, "Then it's a deal. Let's not talk about the company's shareholding for now. The shares will be calculated based on the actual amount invested, and we'll each have half."

Zhou Yali swallowed the food in her mouth, picked up a napkin to wipe her mouth, and said, "Oh."

Then he looked at Chen Fan and gestured with his eyes, asking what was going on.
Chen Fan grinned, "Once this hotel is completed, we'll be able to see the Forbidden City from our rooms."

(Forbidden City View Room)

The deal was settled, and the gains were even doubled.

After finishing his meal, Mr. Huo politely declined Chen Fan and his three masters' invitation to stay again and left in a hurry.

As for the specific implementation work, Chen Fan couldn't do it, and Zhou Yali couldn't do it herself, so it naturally fell into Ye Yufeng's hands.

It easily resulted in a string of complaints.

Fortunately, Mr. Huo handled all the hotel preparations in Beijing, without them having to do anything. With Chen Fan's example and the detailed implementation steps explained, given his connections in Beijing, it would be truly strange if things didn't work out.

Chen Fan had long since put these matters out of his mind and, under the supervision of his three masters, began making the ointment.

Even Zhang Xuansong, who felt restless if he didn't go to the Taoist temple every day, had been keeping a close eye on his precious apprentice these past few days. He didn't need to give him money, but he was indispensable in finding medicine, especially now that it was winter and some herbs were hard to obtain. But no matter how difficult the medicine was to get, Old Zhang never hesitated.

More than a week passed in the blink of an eye. Chen Fan first performed surgery on his master, Li Shangde, and then applied freshly made ointment.

Three days later, Li Shangde slowly opened his eyes after the gauze covering them was removed.

He looked at the group of people standing in front of him, then suddenly grinned and said, "Oh my, you two have both gotten so old?"

Zhang Xuansong spit out a mouthful of saliva and said irritably, "He's over seventy years old, how can he not be old?"

He immediately realized what he meant as he spoke, "You can see clearly now?"

Li Shangde smiled happily, "Before, when I looked at things, it was like looking through a layer of frosted glass; I could only see the general outline. Now, my eyesight is just as good as it was twenty years ago."

He then looked at Chen Fan and gave him a thumbs up, "Your medical skills are excellent!"

Since it worked, the three of them immediately went to find the old general.

After three days of verification and evaluation, the higher authorities finally agreed to let Chen Fan perform the surgery on the old marshal.

Fortunately, Chen Fan is a licensed physician with an intermediate level medical qualification. Although he works at the Provincial Writers Association, his license is still registered at Yunhu First People's Hospital, so he is not practicing medicine without a license.

In a numbered hospital operating room, Chen Fan was focused on performing surgery, while a dozen senior doctors stood by and watched.

Alternatively, it could be described as "supervision".

However, seeing those hands steady as a machine, without the slightest tremor, precisely removing every tiny lesion, these veteran doctors were all relieved.

The surgery went smoothly, and the treatment was completed after ointment was applied to the eyes.

Unlike the legendary surgery without anesthesia, today's surgery, although without anesthesia, involved acupuncture. Throughout the entire procedure, the old general remained unconscious, which did not cause any negative impact on his nerves.

His skillful acupuncture and steady hands immediately attracted the attention of the hospital leadership.

After leaving the operating room, as the nurses escorted the old general to his ward, several leaders immediately surrounded him and extended an invitation.

However, Chen Fan declined all offers, citing his limited medical skills.

He wouldn't have wanted to take action if it weren't for his master and the old general; being a doctor is exhausting, you know.

Chen Fan is a person of status now, and he was even kept behind by the old political commissar at the literary and art congress that just ended not long ago, which made him quite the center of attention.

Hospital leaders dared not make things difficult for such a person, and seeing his resolute attitude, they could only regretfully give up.

As for whether he will be invited to help again in the future?

After Chen Fan selflessly offered the prescription for treating his eyes, the leaders said they didn't need it at all, as they could handle it themselves!
This can be considered as resolving any concerns about the future.

Three more days passed, and the old coach's stitches were removed.

His condition was much more serious than Li Shangde's, but after treatment, his recovery was much more obvious. He could only see a faint light and couldn't even see a person's shadow clearly... This was the result of more than a year of dietary therapy and conditioning; otherwise, his condition would have been even more serious.

Now, after treatment, one eye has improved significantly. Although it is still similar to high myopia, with glasses, he can read books on his own, and the smile on his face has never disappeared.

The reason it's described as one eye is because the other eye is truly beyond saving; no matter how much Chen Fan's medical skills improve, this is the only outcome.

After checking on the old marshal's recovery, Chen Fan rewrote a new diet plan and carefully instructed him, "This diet plan has stronger medicinal properties. Make sure the orderly prepares it on time, and you also eat it on time. Otherwise, your health will deteriorate, and then it will be too late to reverse the damage."

Upon hearing this, the three masters pulled the orderly aside and repeatedly instructed him until the orderly swore to memorize the recipe before they reluctantly let him go.

When I got home, I checked the time and realized it was already January 22nd.

Chen Fan lay on the sofa, staring blankly at the calendar at home. "Didn't we arrive in Beijing on the 8th? How come it's the 22nd today?"

I left Shanghai just after New Year's Day, then stayed in Shenzhen for a few days, and after the opening ceremony on the 7th, I came to Beijing the next day.

That evening, I finalized two projects with Mr. Huo, and then we began making medicine and treating patients.

Half a month has passed in the blink of an eye?
Zhou Yali, who was sitting on the chair next to him, walked over expressionlessly upon hearing his words, plopped down next to him, took a watch out of her pocket, and handed it to him, saying, "Here."

Chen Fan was stunned for a moment, then turned to look at her. "What is it?"

Zhou Yali pouted, "A birthday present? Your birthday is on the first day of the twelfth lunar month, but you were completely busy that day. You had just finished treating Master's eyes and then went to check on the old general. You didn't get back until late at night. Who would have time to wait for you?"
Also, Sister Tian and Lili called you that day, but you weren't home, so I answered. They also prepared a gift for you, but they can only give it to you when you get back.

I figured since we'd already missed it, I'd wait until you're done with your work before we talked about it.

Now that you seem to have woken up from work mode, here's your belated birthday present. Don't say I forgot!

Chen Fan then took the watch, looked at it closely, and laughed, "Oh my, it's a Patek Philippe platinum and diamond watch, it's very expensive."

He then held up his watch and waved it at Zhou Yali, saying, "Thanks."

He's been under a lot of pressure these past few days, afraid something might go wrong, so he's put all his energy into it. Only today, seeing that the old man's treatment has achieved the expected results, has he come back to his senses.

After a couple of seconds, he smiled at Zhou Yali and said, "How about this, I'll take you somewhere tomorrow so you can relax a bit."

Zhou Yali immediately perked up and looked at him excitedly, "Where to?"

Chen Fan smiled and said, "Baiyun Temple."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yali was immediately shocked. "Are you sure? Go to that place to relax?"

(End of this chapter)