Return to 1983 Hunting Xing'an Mountains

Chapter 749 Xu Laonian: I'm so proud! (Going to the city on business)

February 7th, the 2th day of the twelfth lunar month.

The weather was sunny, but a cold wind was blowing.

Xu Ning stayed at Old Sun's house in Sandaohe for three days. During that time, he only went ice fishing with Sun Lianyu and did not go hunting for livestock in the mountains. After all, he came to catch up with old friends, not to have fun.

Before leaving, Sun Jiwei gave him a bag of money totaling 10 yuan. The money was given very readily, and Xu Ning did not hesitate or stand on ceremony. He picked it up and handed it to Wang Hu, telling him to put it in the car.

He stood under the car chatting with the Sun family for more than ten minutes. Only after Meng Ziyan, Guan Hua, and Sun Lianfang got into the car did he wave and climb into the driver's seat.

Sun Lianfang didn't stay at her parents' home for the Spring Festival. It was her first year of marriage with Guan Lei, so she definitely had to go back to Qing'an with him for the holiday. Otherwise, even if the Sun family didn't say anything, the villagers would gossip, saying that the Sun family's son-in-law wasn't assertive enough and was afraid of the Sun family...

Such topics are common in rural areas, and there is always gossip. Take Li Baoquan, for example. He was very controversial in Qing'an Village. For the first three or four years after he married into the Chang family, he was the talk of the village. People would say: "This Baoquan is really a live-in son-in-law. He doesn't even dare to shout when he talks to Chang Juan. He's like a little cat. He doesn't act like a man. He's a good-for-nothing!"
The old Dongfeng car slowly drove away from the front of Old Sun's house, and returned to Qing'an Village at 3:30 pm with a smooth and unobstructed journey.

Xu Feng, with a cheeky grin, leaned over, glanced into the back of the carriage, and exclaimed while covering her mouth, "My god! Two sacks of fish! How long are we going to eat this?! Oh my god, there's a live sheep too! Where did they get that?!"

Hearing her yelling, Liu Lizhen quickly came over and kicked her, saying, "Can't you just shut up for a second?"

"Mom, look! A live sheep! It's even bleating."

Xu Ning walked around the front of the car, and Guan Lei and Wang Hu jumped off the car and said with a smile, "The sheep was brought by Uncle San, and these two jars of fruit wine were sent by Liu Zhu."

Liu Lizhen was taken aback when she heard Liu Zhu's name: "Liu Zhu, oh my, how can this child be so kind? He always brings me something every time."

Xu Ning said, "Yeah, he chatted with me until after 10 o'clock yesterday before going home. He insisted that I stay at his house for two days. If I didn't have a lot of things to do at home, I would have agreed."

"The sheep your third uncle bought?"

"Yes, there are sheep farmers in their village who specialize in raising sheep. They can just go and catch them. Let's hurry up and unload them into the house. I still have two big bags of money in my car, and I can't carry them all by myself..."

Xu Feng raised her hand and said, "Second Brother, I'll help you carry it. I can carry it!"

She didn't think too deeply about it; she just wanted to help Xu Ning ease his burden. However, Liu Lizhen understood what she meant and frowned, asking, "Where did you get the money?"

Xu Ning stepped on the pedals, took down the two large bags of money totaling 21 yuan, and said with a grin, "Your youngest son has a heart, doesn't he? He made 21 yuan just by going through Wangxing and Sandaohe!"

"Oh my god, my second brother is amazing!" Xu Ning gave a thumbs up and praised him.

Liu Lizhen was a little confused and asked, "Why?"

"Let's go inside and talk about it. Hurry up and come inside, it's quite cold outside."

Liu Lizhen followed her youngest son into the hospital with suspicion, while Sun Lianfang, Guan Hua, and Meng Ziyan had already met up with Wang Shujuan. At this time, all three daughters-in-law were pregnant, except for Guan Hua, who was still not pregnant. In fact, she was under a lot of pressure, but Wang Hu was inconsistent in his efforts and could not hit the bullseye, which made her very anxious.

Once inside, Xu Ning threw the money onto the kang (heated brick bed) in the west room and then recounted what had happened.

"You're such a good old man, you've already prepared the money before you even asked."

Xu Ning nodded: "Yes, Lianfang's father and third uncle are not lacking in anything either, so they gave the money to me directly."

"Yeah, they've all been good to you. Just keep that in mind."

Liu Lizhen didn't say much about this. It wasn't that she didn't understand, but she knew that Xu Ning would definitely do what he set his mind to, so there was no use in trying to persuade him. It was better to go along with his wishes and let him develop his own path.

They had eaten something on the way and weren't too hungry, so they sat in the reception room and chatted.

Xu Ning, meanwhile, was calculating with a scrap of paper and a pencil. The Sun family invested 10 yuan, but had to give up 6% of the shares. Wang, Li, Liu, Jin, Hu, Qian, and Xuemin each contributed 1 yuan for 14%, which gave up 20% of the shares. Xu Ning's ideal situation was to give up 35% of the shares, so that he would have 65% left.

In this way, he has plenty of money and doesn't have to worry about the risk of a broken capital chain.

That evening, when Xu Laonian heard that the Chai and Sun families had given Xu Ning 21 yuan, he slammed his fist on the table, glared, and shouted, "My son still has all the face! Look how well my son is doing! Erli, is my son doing any good?"

Wang Erli laughed and said, "That's perfect! My second nephew is smart; he's got the makings for business!"

"Haha, absolutely!"

Xu Laonian didn't get angry because Xu Ning owed 11 yuan in debt. Unlike normal parents, he felt that money wasn't something anyone could borrow. These days, if your family is struggling financially, borrowing even two yuan is harder than climbing to heaven, let alone borrowing 11 yuan.

He felt very proud of this, even somewhat pleased. That evening, after drinking two glasses of wine, he opened up: "Back when I married your mother, our family wasn't too short of money. Your grandfather had a fixed salary and a share of supplies, so we were living a comfortable life. But ever since your grandfather passed away, our lives have gotten worse every day..."

Wang Erli interjected, "That's still better than some families in the village. They're not starving, they just need a little meat."

"But it's these two pieces of meat! I've put so much effort and struggled for so many years for these two pieces of meat... I never thought that this little brat would set up this whole mess at home."

Seeing that he was starting to ramble on again, Liu Lizhen rolled her eyes and said, "Don't keep going on and on after just a little bit of alcohol. That's enough."

"My youngest son managed to bring back 20 yuan, isn't that something to be happy about? Isn't that something to be excited about! I'm very proud..."

Old Xu waved his hand with great enthusiasm, almost as if he were about to stand up and shove a baton into his hand.

The people around them lowered their heads, trying not to laugh, but they couldn't help but want to laugh as they listened to Xu Laonian's words.

There's nothing you can do. What can you do with a father like that? If it were someone else's father, seeing his son bring home 20 yuan, he would be terrified and tell him to send it back immediately, lest he lose everything and be left with nothing. How would the family pay it back then? Even if they tightened their belts and lived frugally, it would still take them thirty to fifty years to pay it back.

But Xu Laonian wasn't afraid. There were signs beforehand that Xu Ning wanted to take over the business, and Xu Laonian agreed without saying a word when Xu offered his salary as collateral.

Despite the frequent arguments between Xu Ning and his own father, their relationship is rather unusual and difficult for most people to understand.

"My dad is right! My second brother really makes me proud!"

Xu Feng's childlike remark brought the atmosphere in the room to its peak, and everyone could no longer help but burst into laughter.

Currently, Xu Ning has nearly 30 yuan in his hands. If you include the money that Liu Xuemin, Lao Jin, and others haven't sent, he will have around 35 yuan.

In the evening, Xu Laonian sipped his tea and offered advice to his beloved son, saying, "You shouldn't be so concerned about saving face! These days, saving face is useless in business. Don't you have powerful connections in the city and the province? Just open your mouth."

"Go away! Get the hell out of here! Go inside and sleep! Look at how you talk to the kids! You're always giving them terrible advice!" Liu Lizhen yelled and cursed, using a few light punches to drive Xu Laonian to the east room. Then she said to Xu Ning, "Don't listen to your dad's nonsense. If our family scrapes together a little, and you add what they borrowed and invested, we can get close to 40 yuan. If word gets out, the whole of Qing'an will know, and you..."

Xu Ning nodded: "I know, I'll spend it all in a couple of days."

Liu Lizhen paused for a moment: "As long as you know it, that's fine."

"I'll stay home and rest for a day tomorrow, and then I'll go to the city the day after. Write down what you all want to buy, and I'll buy it all."

“Okay, your sister-in-law might have to go to the city. I’ll ask her tomorrow.”

The next day, Xu Ning sat at home for a while, but feeling it was boring, he went to the village office. He chatted with Du Shoucai for half an hour, and then made a phone call to Yang Yusheng right on time.

"Third Uncle, I want a whole car repair shop."

"I heard about it. Come over tomorrow. I'll have your Uncle Sun make the arrangements. Stay here for a couple of days and take care of the paperwork and stuff."

Xu Ning felt quite relieved. He first responded and then asked with a smile, "It's all settled, Third Uncle. How's your matter going?"

"What's the situation? It's still very early on. I'm also waiting to talk to them."

The second half of the sentence is the key point: a conversation? Who was talking to Yang Yusheng?
Xu Ning smiled and said, "I understand. I'll go tomorrow. We can chat when I get there."

After hanging up the phone, Du Shoucai said, "Is your dad really happy at home? Did he manage to tear the roof off before he could even lift it up?"

"Oh dear, he wouldn't dare to lift the roof, the house was only built a few days ago, but he was really happy, I'm impressed, old man, what kind of father is he?"

Du Shoucai smiled and said, "He's been like this since he was a child. How could I not know him? Here's what we'll do: when your older brother comes back tonight, I'll have him send you 15,000 yuan. Our family hasn't saved up much these past few days, so this is just a small token. You can use it for now."

"Sir, I have enough money. If I need a lot more, I'll take out a loan from the credit union."

Du Shoucai said, "It's your own money, so there's no interest. You can use it as you see fit. That's settled."

"Alright, then I won't stand on ceremony. Anyway, in this business, the more capital you have, the better..."

The news that Xu Ning was going to set up a car repair shop quickly spread throughout the village. Not only Du Shoucai heard about it, but Yu Kaihe and Chang Danian also heard the news.

Yu Kaihe hurriedly stuffed 200 yuan into Xu Ning's hand, which made Xu Ning quite uncomfortable. He and the old lady had no relatives or friends at home and no source of income. This 200 yuan was hard-earned. Xu Ning talked to him for a long time before he finally got him to take the money back. Chang Danian, on the other hand, brought over two bear gallbladders and insisted that Xu Ning sell them so he could use them for business.

Once Chang Danian made up his mind, it was irreversible. Xu Ning couldn't refuse, so he had to accept the bear bile, but he didn't intend to sell it. Even if he was short of money, he couldn't do it like that.

The next day, Xu Ning, Li Fuqiang, and Yang Shuhua drove to the city. After arriving in the city, he handed the car over to Li Fuqiang and asked Li Fuqiang and Yang Shuhua to go shopping at the mall, while Xu Ning rode in Lao Qian's car directly to Yanbin Hotel.

Sun Jishan, Yang Yusheng, Sun Liansheng, two strangers, and three familiar faces were all sitting in the private room. Xu Ning apologized repeatedly after entering, saying that he was late and would punish himself with three drinks later.

Sun Jishan smiled, raised his hand and tapped him, saying, "Look at Er Ning's chatter. This is the attitude you should have when asking someone for a favor."

"Haha, sir, look at me, I'm one of your own kids too. As a junior, I have to show my appreciation for being late."

Sun Jishan nodded and continued, "That's definitely family. Come, Erning, let me introduce you. This is your Uncle Wang, from our credit union..."

Xu Ning bowed and shook hands with each person, his posture extremely humble; in Sun Liansheng's words, his buttocks were almost touching the ceiling.

The people in the room were all well-connected. Xu Ning knew he was a junior, so he had to be humble. Yang Yusheng smiled and nodded, saying, "Old Wang, you must take my second nephew's matter to heart."

"Brother Yang, don't worry, your nephew is my nephew too. It doesn't matter when he comes to me!"

Xu Ning hurriedly poured wine and raised his glass: "Uncle Wang, then I must toast you. I'll be troubling you from now on."

"Don't be so polite, didn't you say it yourself, he's our own child..."

"Hahaha……"

Inside the house, everyone sorted things out amidst laughter and chatter.

The dinner party didn't end until after 7 p.m., during which time everything was arranged, including where to build the factory, which car factory to cooperate with, which agricultural machinery station to sign a sales agency contract with, and all kinds of procedures and documents.

The auto repair shop is located in the western part of the city. It is close to Xishan Street and has a large open space for building a factory. In addition, the price is cheap and the lease term is very flexible. Although there is not much foot traffic, the traffic is quite good and cars pass by frequently.

The area is approximately 1500 square meters. The contract stipulates a 40-year lease term, with monthly rent increases, but the rent is payable every two years, giving Xu Ning a great deal of flexibility.

He spent three days in the city, visiting car factories and parts factories four or five times with Lao Qian. They reached a preliminary agreement on cooperation, but were not in a hurry to sign a contract.

It's almost Chinese New Year, and each factory is nearly finished with its sales targets, so they want to renew the contracts next year...

In the evening, Yang Yusheng sat on a wooden bench and said, "Now there are driving test centers in the city. If you have time, you should take the test."

“Great! I think the city is becoming more and more standardized. They’ve even added two traffic lights on Xishan Street.”

"Aren't there more and more people buying cars these days? Which brand are you planning to represent?"

Xu Ning said, "I think we should focus on both agricultural tractors and automobiles. Qing'an is still a rural area, far behind big cities. Moreover, there are many mines and forest farms around the city, so the transportation industry is bound to develop. If we go more than 100 kilometers to the west, there are large rice growers there, so there will definitely be no shortage of tractors to sell."

"You're right, but you should also sign an agency agreement for imported car brands as soon as possible. When life gets better and better, people start thinking about enjoying themselves."

"Understood! Next year, my main focus will be on signing agency agreements."

Yang Yusheng nodded: "Yes, I heard about something when I went back to the province, but it hasn't been decided yet. If you need to go to the province, will you go?"

"Go ahead, it's a good opportunity to network with people in the provincial capital."

"Haha, just wait for news."

(End of this chapter)