The Red Era: Living in Seclusion in a Siheyuan as a Boss

Chapter 468 Xu Damao "Blasts the Street"!!!
Today is Sunday, at noon, today is Sunday, at noon, outside the quaint courtyard house at No. 95 Nanluoguxiang, a deafening roar of motorcycles suddenly sounded.

"Rumble..."

This sudden noise instantly attracted the curious children in the yard. Like a group of happy little birds, they all ran out from their respective corners to find out what was going on.

When Xu Xiaonian, He Qiu, Huaihua and other children ran to the door, they were stunned by the scene before them.

Xu Damao was seen wearing a pair of fashionable "frog-eye glasses" on his face, riding majestically on a brand new army green motorcycle, stepping on the accelerator wantonly, enjoying the thrill of "blasting the street".

Seeing this, Xu Xiaonian was so excited that he almost jumped up. He widened his eyes and shouted with joy on his face: "Oh! Dad! Is this the new motorcycle our family bought?" As he said that, he looked proudly at his friends around him, his eyes full of pride and showing off.

Xu Damao looked very proud, with the corners of his mouth raised, and boasted: "How about it, thief, dad is awesome, right? This car is awesome, isn't it?"

Xu Xiaonian nodded repeatedly like a chick pecking at rice. What boy doesn't like cars? His eyes were full of desire for motorcycles.

Children nowadays would really yearn for someone who wears bell-bottom pants, sunglasses, has a slicked-back hair, carries a four-speaker tape recorder playing Teresa Teng's songs, and rides a motorcycle around the streets.

He Qiu, who was standing by, stroked the brand new Great Wall CC50 with envy, without blinking, as if he wanted to engrave every detail of it in his mind. "Uncle Xu, you are so awesome! Can you let me try to ride this motorcycle?"

Xu Damao did not answer immediately, but looked at Xu Xiaonian.

Xu Xiaonian became anxious, thinking that this motorcycle was bought by his family and he had never ridden it before, so why did He Qiu want to ride it?

So he quickly spoke, with a bit of displeasure in his tone: "Go, go, do you know how to ride? Don't break my precious motorcycle!"

At this moment, the neighbors in the yard came out of their homes and gathered together to watch the fun.

"Wow! Xu Damao, are you living a miserable life? You bought such a big treasure?" Sha Zhu had a face full of envy and jealousy, and there was a hint of sourness in his words.

Hearing this, Xu Damao's mouth curled up into a smug smile, and he retorted without any courtesy: "I am willing, I am happy, what does it have to do with you? It's useless to be jealous, you can't even afford it if you want to buy it!"

Sha Zhu said sourly: "Tsk! I can't afford it? I don't want to be a sucker. If I had the money, wouldn't it be nice to buy a yard?"

Xu Damao glanced at Sha Zhu with contempt. Although the two families had similar economic incomes, Xu Damao's family background was far beyond that of Sha Zhu's family.

To be precise, Xu Damao benefited mainly from his wife Lou Xiao'e's substantial wealth.

Back then, "Lou Bancheng" went to Hong Kong and left most of his property in Beijing to Lou Xiao'e.

Therefore, Xu Damao and Lou Xiao'e always kept it secret in the early years, fearing that outsiders would get a glimpse of their family's true wealth status.

However, with the spring breeze of reform and opening up, social atmosphere has undergone earth-shaking changes.

Xu Damao also began to become more and more arrogant. He had been coveting the "Great Wall" brand motorcycle for a long time.

Finally, this Sunday, he couldn't suppress his inner desire, so he ran to Liujiazhuang and rode a brand new "CC50" motorcycle back home.

Wow, this is not a bicycle, but a real motorcycle!

Nowadays, even a bicycle is a luxury for ordinary people, not to mention this expensive motorcycle.

Although everyone is familiar with motorcycles, after all, there are some people in the hospital who work for the government and often ride the motorcycles provided by their units back to show off.

But it is public property after all, which is completely different from private ownership.

Buying a motorcycle privately? That's simply a fantasy!
It’s several thousand dollars, almost the price of half a small courtyard!
The "Great Wall CC50" bought by Xu Damao is different from many later motorcycles in terms of modern configurations such as multi-cylinder water-cooled engines, LED headlights, electronic instrument panels, one-piece die-cast wheels, single shock absorbers, aerodynamic spoilers, etc. The "Great Wall CC50" adopts a single-cylinder air-cooled engine, classic fuel tank, round headlights, double-barrel instrument panel, spoke wheels, double rocker arm rear suspension, and exposed engine. Since its birth, it has become popular among the wealthy circles in Beijing.

Motorcycles are now a symbol of wealth. In an era when the average monthly income is only one or two hundred yuan, buying a motorcycle that costs tens of thousands of yuan is no different from buying a Porsche in later generations, and is equivalent to a "billionaire" in later times.

Nowadays, whenever someone gets a motorcycle, the first thing they do is to go to the repair shop to modify the exhaust pipe so that the motorcycle can roar "boom boom boom..." all the way, showing off its greatness.

The factory price of "Great Wall CC50" is 2500 yuan, but it has fallen into an embarrassing situation of having a high price but no buyers.

Due to the extremely limited production of this model, in fact, it is often difficult to buy even at this price.

Take Xu Damao for example. If he had not purchased the car through Liu Zhiye's channel, he would have had to face the helpless reality of paying a higher price if he wanted to get the car.

This is out of the ordinary. Xu Damao spent nearly two or three thousand yuan to buy a motorcycle, which caused a more shocking sensation than anyone buying a house.

Money is still valuable these days.

Ma Weidu later said: "In 1990, I opened the Haima Dance Hall and lost 43 yuan! At that time, a courtyard house in Beijing only cost 1 yuan. If I had used all this money to buy courtyard houses in Beijing, I would definitely be the richest man in Beijing today."

No one has foresight and no one can predict the future!

Later, Mr. Ma, who was engaged in antique business and had hundreds of thousands of dollars in his hands, did not realize that the courtyard houses in Beijing would be so valuable now. What's more, what about the ordinary people who could just solve the problem of food and clothing at that time?

Of course, Ma Weidu’s statement that a courtyard house in Beijing cost 90 yuan in was definitely an exaggeration!
But in the late 70s, a smaller courtyard house in Beijing cost about six or seven thousand yuan.

In the 1970s and 1980s, people with an annual income of 10,000 yuan were rarer than billionaires, and many people did not have the money to buy a house even if they wanted to!

It's not that they don't want to buy it, but they really can't afford it! According to statistics from relevant departments, the average annual wage income in 1978 was 580 yuan, which is 48.3 yuan per month.

Don’t be fooled by these averages, because these days, 80% of workers earn between 20 and 40 yuan per month!
Not to mention the 90s and s, even in the s, if you had yuan, you would be considered a well-known figure, as famous as today's entertainment stars!
Nowadays, the country is carrying out housing reform.

Commercial housing is booming.

A larger courtyard house in Beijing costs more than 10,000 yuan, while a smaller one only costs a few thousand yuan.

But for most families, this price is also astronomical.

Take the high-income Sha Zhu family as an example. They would have to save for 5 years without eating or drinking to be able to afford it. It is really too difficult and they have never thought about it!

The poor can’t afford it, and the very few rich people won’t buy it either. Why?
One reason is that rich people are still a minority. The monthly salary of formal employees in state-owned enterprises in Beijing is only 40 to 50 yuan. It is not easy to find a millionaire in a neighborhood. Only a few families can afford a TV. If you can buy a portable tape recorder after getting married, you will be envied by your neighbors. Where can you find 10,000 yuan?

In addition, most of the courtyard houses in Beijing these days were taken over from "rich landlords", and many of them are home to several families, making them only slightly more beautiful than the slums.

Therefore, people who live in courtyard houses are not envied. Instead, people who live in high-rise buildings, which have just become popular these days, are the ones who are envied. People with high incomes all live in high-rise buildings.

People who are really willing to spend ten thousand yuan to buy a yard would prefer to buy a villa rather than a courtyard house.

Besides, rich people these days don’t have the awareness to buy houses.

Either put the money in the bank, it is safe and you can earn interest! Or buy some rare items, such as refrigerators, color TVs, air conditioners, washing machines, motorcycles, or even cars!
These objects can demonstrate a person’s status and position these days!
Even when buying a house, they would rather buy an apartment than a courtyard house. After working hard to get out of the slum, who would want to go back to that hellhole!

Moreover, people nowadays have no idea of ​​taking out loans. Of course, the financial system in society was not perfect at that time, so don’t even think about taking out loans to buy a house!

To buy a siheyuan, you must pay the full amount at one time. Even in later times, if you want to buy a siheyuan in Beijing, you still can't get a loan or pay in installments. This is the biggest bug!

However, compared with the 70-year property rights of ordinary commercial housing, the courtyard houses in Beijing have permanent property rights!
When it comes to property rights, the trouble is even greater. At that time, most of the courtyard houses in the capital were generally home to at least 10 families, and each family had an heir to the property rights. If one family disagreed, the transfer could not be completed!
This is a headache for many buyers!

It may take more than a year to negotiate with each family one by one and get them all to agree on the resettlement conditions!

Therefore, the above two problems also discourage many people who want to buy a Siheyuan!
Liu Zhiye came from later times, and he knew that there were some courtyard houses with good locations in the capital city in later times, and their prices were sky-high.

Moreover, the resources of Siheyuan have become scarce, and often there is no market for them even if they are priced. Therefore, he told the people around him not to keep their money in the bank, but to buy as many Siheyuan as possible.

Some people listened to advice, like Yan Jiecheng, who would do whatever Liu Zhiye said.

People like Sha Zhu and Xu Damao were skeptical and didn't take it seriously.

Nowadays, as an employee of a company, the government allocates houses to you. Besides, there are plenty of courtyard houses in the capital. Is it necessary to hoard houses?
In response, Liu Zhiye just smiled and shook his head, his eyes revealing some deep meaning, as if to say: "Don't regret it in the future!"

What Shazhu Xu Damao didn't know was that the price of Siheyuan courtyard houses in the capital city has risen to a sky-high level in later generations, reaching 2 to 20 per square meter. No matter whether it is Dongcheng or Xicheng, the most humble Siheyuan courtyard house starts at tens of millions. Those with better locations and larger areas are already worth hundreds of millions!
History cannot be repeated, and once it is missed, it is missed. But Liu Zhiye is an exception, as he comes from the future.

Liu Zhiye not only actively purchased courtyard houses himself, but also encouraged people around him to invest together.

He knows very well that the value of these old houses lies not only in their unique architectural style, but also in the history and culture they carry.

Not only that, Liu Zhiye had a bigger plan in mind.

He plans to set up a professional house rental company in a year or two and purchase a large number of neglected courtyard houses under the name of the company.

Once he successfully acquires a house, he will start the restoration work, preserving its original charm while incorporating modern electrical facilities to give these old houses new life.

We've strayed a bit off topic, let's get back to the point.

It is said that the "Great Wall CC50 motorcycle" purchased by Xu Damao caused quite a stir among the neighbors in Nanluoguxiang. The degree of shock was comparable to the scene in modern society where villagers suddenly saw someone driving a Rolls-Royce back to the village.

This is the only scorpion shit in the Nanluoguxiang area.

Wow, after not long, the crowd of onlookers was huge.

Today is the weekend, and most of the men and children in the families do not go out.

The children were there purely for fun, but the men were different. They were really interested in Xu Damao's motorcycle. They circled around it, their eyes full of envy, and they couldn't move away.

One of the men said, "Hey! Director Xu, your car is not cheap!"

When Xu Damao heard this, a smug smile appeared on his face. He gestured a number with his hand: "Ah! It's really not cheap to get this much!"

The crowd was immediately excited. "Oh my god, this price is too outrageous. Even if my family saves for five years without eating or drinking, we still can't afford this car!"

Someone shouted to Xu Damao, "Wow! Director Xu, this has to be you!"

"What a rich guy!"

Another person quickly agreed: "That's right, don't you see how well off Director Xu's family is? Buying a car is a piece of cake for him!"

Sha Zhu looked at Xu Damao, who was looking so proud in the crowd, and felt so envious and jealous that he kept muttering, "Tsk! What's so great about it! It's just a broken motorcycle. I'll buy one in a few days."

He felt that he was outdone by Xu Damao again, and felt very unhappy. He always wanted to find an opportunity to save his face.

As lunch time approached, the crowd gradually dispersed.

Looking at Xu Damao who seemed to be still a little reluctant to leave, the third uncle Yan Bugui said jokingly: "Damo, you bought such a big thing, you have to treat us to celebrate!"

Xu Damao was filled with joy and answered without hesitation: "Uncle San, is there any need to say this? You all come to my house tonight and I'll treat you to dinner!"

Then, he turned around and shouted to Zhuzi, "Zhuzi! I'll take you out for a ride this afternoon, and we'll buy some groceries along the way!"

Yan Bugui was delighted when he heard this. "That's great, it's settled. Uncle, I'm not eating your food for nothing. I have a bottle of 65 Taihang wine at home that I've never been able to drink. Let's finish it tonight!"

When Xu Damao heard this, he smiled even more and said repeatedly: "Third uncle, you are really kind!"

Sha Zhu, who was standing aside, waved his hands gloomily and said, "You guys drink, I have something to do tonight, so I won't go."

When Xu Damao heard this, his face suddenly darkened, and he muttered to himself: If Sha Zhu doesn't go, then who will cook for these people? This meal will be ruined.

"Zhu Zi, aren't you so mean? I treated us to a meal with good intentions, but you just said you didn't want to come. What do you want to do?" Xu Damao said with some displeasure.

Sha Zhu turned his face away, looking reluctant: "I have something to do, I really can't go."

"What can you do on Sunday? Just tell me, where are you going?" Xu Damao obviously didn't believe Sha Zhu's excuse and asked.

Sha Zhu hesitated for a long time before he managed to squeeze out a sentence: "Why do you care where I go? It's okay for me to go to Liujiazhuang, right?"

"Ah? You are going to Liujiazhuang?" Xu Damao was stunned when he heard this, his face full of surprise.

Yan Bugui couldn't hold back his curiosity and asked, "Yes, Zhuzi! Then why are you going to Liujiazhuang?"

Sha Zhu gritted his teeth and said loudly with determination: "Why, just because you can go to Liujiazhuang, I can't go? I'll tell you clearly, I'm going to buy a motorcycle too!"

Hearing this, Xu Damao couldn't help but burst into laughter, "Hahahaha... I understand, Zhuzi, you are jealous of me, right?"

Sha Zhu felt uncomfortable after Xu Damao said what was on his mind. He argued, "Me? Jealous of you? Humph, what on earth is there about you that I should be jealous of? And you are laughing so happily, what's so funny about that?"

Xu Damao shook his head in disdain, a mocking smile appeared on his lips, and he said, "I laugh at you for buying a motorcycle. Regardless of whether you can afford it, I want to ask you, can you ride it? Do you have a driver's license?"

When Sha Zhu heard this, he frowned and retorted unconvincedly: "What's wrong with not being able to ride? Can't I learn?"

However, as soon as he finished speaking, a trace of surprise appeared on his face, "Oh? You need a driver's license to ride a motorcycle?"

Seeing this, Xu Damao became even more proud and continued to mock him mercilessly: "How new! You need a driver's license to drive a car, this is a natural thing, and riding a motorcycle is no exception. See, this is..." As he said, he took out a small driver's license booklet from his pocket, shook it in front of Sha Zhu's eyes, with a show-off look on his face.

Xu Damao is right, motorcycles are also motor vehicles.

You need a driver's license to ride a motorcycle and you also need a license plate.

First of all, regarding the second-wheel license plate, it is a blue rectangular shape, the same style as the current car license plate, and the number is 2-xxxxx.

The motorcycle driving license is very simple, with only the first page containing the owner's relevant information. To transfer it to a second person, simply write the person's name on the second page with a pen and stamp it with the vehicle management office's seal.

In this way, if a third person buys the bike, rides it for a while, and then sells it, the ownership cannot be transferred at all if the second person cannot be found.

Someone asked, why do motorcycles change owners so frequently? This is a feature of this era.

Having a driver's license is not enough, you also need a gas station permit to ride a motorcycle.

Although the economy had begun to reform and open up at that time, it was still a planned economy. Gas stations only accepted fuel coupons. Motorcycles could buy 42 liters of gasoline each quarter, which was 7 to 8 cents per liter. If you had the ability to get gasoline yourself, you could sell the fuel coupon quota and earn 10 yuan.

Sha Zhu suffered a series of blows and looked a little depressed.

In contrast, Xu Damao not only bought a brand new motorcycle, but also got his driver's license early on.

This series of comparisons made Sha Zhu feel very disappointed. No matter how bad he was, he couldn't be worse than Xu Damao!
(End of this chapter)