Development of productivity started in 1981

Chapter 96 Shanghai Real Estate (asking for monthly tickets, double the amount during National Day)
1982年4月19号早上8点左右，王建昆驾驶着C-200停靠到十六铺码头，没想到泊船小弟还是上次那个。

When he saw it was Wang Jiankun, he quickly greeted him: "Hello, Mr. Wang, welcome to Shiliupu Wharf again. How long will you stay this time?"

"I'll probably be staying here for a day. Didn't your friend Ding Shengli help me find a house here? I came to take a look this time. Do you know where he is now?"

"Yes, please wait a moment. I will go find the errand boy and ask him to come over."

"Okay, I'll wait for him on the boat, go and call for help!"

As he spoke, Wang Jiankun returned to the cockpit. He was going to take a nap. He had not rested since he set out last night until early this morning. He only closed his eyes drowsily after entering the Yangtze River estuary this morning, but he still had to open his eyes from time to time to check the radar screen to see if there was any danger.

It was really thrilling last night. We actually escaped right under the noses of two supersonic fighter jets and killed them easily. I don't know if the Americans feel sad or not. It's okay if the plane crashed, but only one pilot parachuted. I don't know if he can be rescued in the dark sea.

This place is a bit far from the US military base, and we can't collect their radio information, so we don't know what their subsequent response will be.

Although I used rhetoric to make them mistakenly believe that I was from the North, and the pilot also reported so, but I finally shot down their plane with a medium-range air-to-air missile. I wonder if they would have any doubts. After all, the North does not have such advanced air-to-air missiles now.

Logically, the battle took place at sea, and they were not able to collect missile fragments, so the most likely possibility is that it was a Beiyang aircraft, or a Beiyang aircraft with Soviet technology.

Wang Jiankun was thinking about something, so he didn't fall into a deep sleep and woke up in less than an hour.

I climbed up and walked to the cockpit to look at the shore, and found Ding Shengli talking to the boy who was mooring the boat. The two of them were talking and laughing happily.

When he saw Wang Jiankun, he quickly stood up and walked to the side of the boat and said, "Mr. Wang, are you awake? You've worked hard sailing. I called you when I arrived just now, but you didn't respond, so I've been waiting here."

"Well, I was a little sleepy this morning after sailing most of the night. I'm almost done with my rest. You said there are two houses that are both good and meet my requirements. Take me to have a look. Are they far from here?"

"It will take about half an hour by rickshaw. It's past 10 o'clock now. Shall we take a rickshaw?"

"Forget it, the rickshaw is still too slow. I'll put down my motorcycle and we can go faster on it."

After Wang Jiankun finished speaking, he started the crane, raised the boom, and then lifted the red Jialing 50 motorcycle that had been manufactured last night to the dock.

Ding Shengli, the mooring boy and passers-by were all surprised when they saw the crane rising on the gray ship and lifting a load of motorcycles from the ship to the dock. They thought the ship was very high-end and wondered what its origins were.

I have seen that motorcycle on the street before, but it is not as good-looking and eye-catching as this color.

After Wang Jiankun finished the lifting, he put away the crane, put on a backpack, locked the cabin, and got off the boat and went to the dock.

He came to the motorcycle, removed the fixing straps and wooden boards, and asked Ding Shengli to help throw the removed wooden boards onto the front deck of the C-200.

He started the engine and asked Ding Shengli to sit in the back seat and show the way.

The first house to be sold is near the Sihang Warehouse. It is an old western-style house with three floors, covering an area of ​​about 180 square meters. There are yards in the front and back. The front yard is smaller, about 30 square meters, and the backyard is larger, about 120 square meters. The house is right on the Suzhou River, and there is a small self-built pier connected to the backyard.

According to information obtained by Ding Shengli, the family's surname is Zhou and they used to be rice merchants. The house was built before the founding of the People's Republic of China and the materials used were very solid. Later, for unknown reasons, the house was confiscated and used as public housing on the street. It was returned to the Zhou family two years ago, but several of the Zhou family's children were preparing to settle in the United States. Their second grandfather found a way for them in the United States, so they planned to sell the house.

Only the eldest son of the Zhou family lives in the house now, because at the end of last year, his entire family went to the United States one after another. The house was too big to sell and no one could afford the price at the time. The street asked them to sell the house to the street, but the price they offered was too low. In the end, the eldest son of the Zhou family was left to deal with the house in China and go to the United States after selling it.

To be honest, this house is quite big. Wang Jiankun had not planned to buy it before because he would not live in it often and he would have to hire someone to take care of it. If he didn't take care of it, it would fall into disrepair very quickly. Moreover, the house is next to the river and no one ventilates it or clears the weeds regularly. It will soon become a thatched cave.

Moreover, if the house is unoccupied for a long time, it may be damaged. Homeless people may move in and make a mess of it. Then if you ask them for compensation, you won't get much money.

But I thought about it last night, why not imitate some US dollars to make trouble for the Americans. He can make 100% identical US dollars, and no one can tell the difference. The templates are ready-made, and he can use the numbers of the US dollars in the base where he dropped them when he went to Okinawa.

So Wang Jiankun carried 2 US dollars in cash in his backpack, with several denominations and the numbers were not consecutive.

The landlord asked for 5 RMB for the house, because according to Ding Shengli, the landlord's grandfather spent 5 dollars to build it, so 5 is very cheap now. Wang Jiankun plans to bargain to see if paying in US dollars can get a lower price.

Under the guidance of Ding Shengli, the motorcycle first went along the Huangpu River, crossed the Waibaidu Bridge, then turned to the Suzhou River and drove west along the river. After about 5 minutes, we arrived at the house.

After parking the motorcycle at the door of the house, Wang Jiankun took a look at the exterior and found that it was indeed as Ding Shengli said. The house was built very well and solidly. The tiles on the roof were intact, the courtyard walls were made of stone, and there were carved stone carvings on the courtyard windows. The only thing was that the door was not good-looking. It should be a newly replaced ordinary wooden door. It felt a bit out of place with the house.

Without waiting to knock on the door, Wang Jiankun first used his superpowers to check the house, quickly projecting it from the roof down to about 5 meters underground.

Not to mention the surprise, there was a secret room under the master bedroom on the first floor of the house. There were some things in it. Judging from the elements and shapes, they should be gold, silver dollars and some calligraphy and paintings. Before Wang Jiankun could estimate the amount of gold and silver dollars, the gate was opened.

"Excuse me, what are you doing parking your car in front of my house?" A man in his 30s came out. He was well dressed and his hair was neatly combed. However, judging by his face and hands, he must have done manual labor before.

"Boss Wang, this is Mr. Zhou, the owner of the house." Ding Shengli stepped forward and introduced the person to Wang Jiankun, then said to the landlord, "Mr. Zhou, this is the owner of the house who asked me to ask about it last time. His last name is Wang."

The landlord saw that Wang Jiankun was very young, and initially thought that he should not have the power to make the decision. However, seeing that he was riding a fashionable motorcycle and dressed very decently, with a khaki jacket, trousers, leather shoes, and a fashionable backpack, he must have a wealthy family, so he said enthusiastically: "Hello, Boss Wang! Hello! Please come in and have a seat. You can also bring your bike in. If you leave it outside, I'm afraid that the little idiots will damage your bike!"

Wang Jiankun was a little hesitant before, but now he thinks he should buy the house. There should be a lot of gold there. Now that he has seen it, he would suffer the consequences if he does not take it.

So at the landlord's invitation, they pushed the car in. There was a stone threshold about 12 cm high at the door. Ding Shengli asked the landlord for a piece of wood and helped Wang Jiankun push the car in.

After parking the car in the yard, the landlord enthusiastically made some tea and started chatting with Wang Jiankun in the yard, trying to probe into Wang Jiankun's background in his words.

Wang Jiankun didn't want to say too much. After all, the more he said, the more mistakes he made. It was better to keep it a secret. Besides, he probably wouldn't deal with him again in the future. So he said, "Boss Zhou, I haven't seen your house yet. Although my client saw it and told me about it, he was not good at speaking and didn't describe it clearly, so I want to see the situation before negotiating the price with you."

"Okay, let me tell you, although this house was built by my grandfather, it is not old at all. A famous Shanghai designer was hired to design it, and the materials used are also very exquisite. It cost 40 oceans to build it in the 5s, so it's a great bargain to sell it to you for 5 yuan now." Landlord Zhou said as he led the way.

Wang Jiankun did not comment, but said he would take a look first and talk about it after he was done. He patted his backpack to indicate that he had brought the money.

Seeing this, Boss Zhou stopped talking about the price and took Wang Jiankun to look around from the backyard.

The wall of the backyard is higher than that of the front yard and is also made of stone. The gaps should be filled with glutinous rice paste made using the ancient method instead of cement. Wang Jiankun estimated the height and it should be about 3 meters. Because the yard is large, it does not appear closed because the wall is too high.

In the backyard, you can see some small rooms that were built privately, but they have now been demolished. There are some bricks and tiles stacked at the base of the wall. Landlord Zhou saw Wang Jiankun looking at the bricks and tiles, and explained that this house had been allocated by the government to the employees of a unit to live in. After all, there were many employees, and there were not enough kitchens, so they built several kitchens in the backyard. After the house was returned to his family, he demolished these kitchens, otherwise it would look messy.

The gate to the backyard was closed at this time. It should be an old-style wooden door, but it was not installed when the house was first built. Landlord Zhou opened the door and took Wang Jiankun to see the dock at the back door.

The pier was built very solidly, made up of stone slabs. In the past, ships often docked here when his family was doing rice business, and the stone piers for tying ropes have been worn out with marks of varying depths.

Landlord Zhou said that this pier was also on their land deed. If Wang Jiankun had a boat or did business transportation in the future, he could dock here. The backyard was also large enough to build a shed to store things.

Wang Jiankun listened to Landlord Zhou's boasting and did not say much, but asked him to take him to see the room.

The interior of the house is not well maintained. Many wooden floors were installed not long ago and have a different color from the original ones. The walls are also a bit damaged and have traces of smoke.

"Well, if the basic structure is indeed fine as you said, then I won't make a fuss about it. How about we go upstairs and take a look?"

"Great! The upstairs is much better than this floor. The fire was put out in time and didn't burn up there." As he said this, he led Wang Jiankun upstairs to take a look.

The stairs are made of very solid hardwood, the handrails are very smooth, and the railings are carved into rounded shapes. However, there are scratches in some places that ruin the beauty, and a few of them are obviously added later.

The condition upstairs is indeed better, perhaps because it is mainly a bedroom and the people who moved in later took good care of it, so the walls are still smooth. Of course, when Wang Jiankun used his super powers to look at it, he still found a lot of scratches and graffiti by the young man, but they have all been repaired and are no longer clear.

The rooms are relatively large. There are 4 large bedrooms, a study and a tea room on the second floor. The bathroom has running water and a flush toilet. They must have been installed when the house was built, so there are no signs of later renovations. The doors and windows are still original, with delicate carvings and smooth paint.

The third floor has 3 large bedrooms and 1 small bedroom, as well as a small rooftop. There should have been a canopy before but it is not visible now, but the groove is still there.

Standing on the terrace and looking into the distance, there are several houses of similar shapes. The landlord, Mr. Zhou, said that those were also old houses of some big businessmen before liberation. Some have been returned to the original owners or their descendants, and some have not yet found their original owners, so they are still rented out by the Housing Authority.

After looking around, Wang Jiankun felt that the location and shape of the house were good and suitable for living. He would make some modifications, such as strengthening the electrical wires, and installing a water heater in the bathroom. There was space for a ceiling fan in the living room, so he could install one there, and then decide whether to install an air conditioner based on the situation.

After the inspection, the three of them went to the yard to continue drinking tea. After Wang Jiankun took two sips of tea, he spoke first, "Mr. Zhou, I want to confirm with you first, are you fully authorized to make the decision on this house? After the transfer, no one else will come to me and say that they have a share of this house, right?"

"Mr. Wang, please rest assured. My grandfather only has one son, my father. My aunts all married far away. According to the inheritance method at that time, the house belongs to my father. My father has three siblings. My brother and sister have just come of age and I sent them to my second grandfather in the United States. I also have their power of attorney. I can show it to you when the house is transferred. The title deed and the land deed are in my hands."

"That's good. Now that the property rights are clear, it will be easier to discuss the next sale. I heard from Ding Shengli that you plan to sell the house and go to the United States. How are you going to take the money with you? You can't use RMB there."

"Of course I'll change it into US dollars or something else that's easy to carry. Boss Wang shouldn't be concerned about how I bring my property with me."

"I mean, what if I buy your house directly with US dollars? The price should be more favorable, right?"

"Really? You really want to buy it in US dollars? Well~, then I'll give you a 8% discount. 4 RMB is about 2 US dollars when converted into US dollars. Am I sincere enough, Boss Wang?"

After hearing what he said, Wang Jiankun stood up and told Ding Shengli to leave, saying as he walked, "Boss Zhou is bullying me because I am young and ignorant, so there is nothing to talk about."

"Hey! Hey! Hey! Don't go, don't go. We can talk about the price. Boss Wang, you haven't made an offer yet, right?"

Wang Jiankun stopped and turned around and said, "Then let's take the total price of 4, but the exchange rate for US dollars will be 5:1, which means 8 US dollars."

"Brother Wang, your offer is too high. I have already discounted the total price. Why is the exchange rate so different from the official one? How about you exchange it at 3:1?"

"Boss Zhou, there is less US dollars in the market now, and many people want to go abroad or buy foreign products. The black market price is about 6:1. I'm already at a disadvantage by offering 5:1. Besides, I'm giving you a large sum of US dollars directly, which saves you a lot of trouble and you don't have to worry about being cheated."

"It can't be that different. My family, including the young and old, went to the United States and relied on the money from selling the house to get through the difficult times."

"Then let's both compromise and take the middle value, 4:1 exchange, total price 1 US dollars. If it's okay, we'll go and transfer the ownership right away. If not, I'll go to the next house. There are still some houses like yours on the market."

After hearing what he said, the landlord thought that it would not be as fast and safe as exchanging RMB for US dollars on the black market or buying other valuables to take to the United States, so he said with difficulty: "Boss Wang, since you really want to buy my house, we have a good relationship. I will sell it to you for 1 US dollars. Boss Wang, can you show me your..., hehe!" He smiled and made a gesture of counting money to Wang Jiankun.

"Okay, I really want to buy it. The money is in the bag. Mr. Zhou, please let me see the house deed and the land deed." He put the bag on the stone table and patted it to indicate that the money was inside.

"Okay, Brother Wang, please wait a moment. I'll get it right away." He ran into the house and came out with two pieces of paper in a short while.

Wang Jiankun actually used his super powers to check and confirmed that they were indeed real house deeds and land deeds, so he took out 1 US dollars from his bag, one stack of 100 denominations, one stack of 50 denominations, and one stack of 20 denominations, which were 5, 3 and 2 respectively, and placed them on the stone table and pressed them down with his hand.

When the landlord saw so many green US dollars on the table, his breathing became a little rapid. Although his ancestors were very rich, it was no longer the case when it came to him. His father was not well-off and could not keep up with the pace in the new era, so he gave up all his business and devoted himself to becoming a rich man. He also went to the countryside to do farm work for several years, so he was still very excited to see so much cash.

He quickly handed the land deed and the house deed to Wang Jiankun, then took the US dollars and counted and checked them. His second grandfather came to China last year and showed him what US dollars looked like. At that time, he also planned to let him sell his house to exchange for US dollars to go to the United States, so he taught him how to identify US dollars.

Wang Jiankun took the deed and looked at it. After the landlord counted and checked it, he said, "Boss Zhou, my US dollars are correct, right? If you agree, you can take the US dollars and I'll take the deed. Let's go and transfer the ownership right away before the Housing Authority gets off work in the morning."

"Okay, okay! Let's go right away. Follow me into the house, I'll grab a bag and take it with me. Lock the doors and windows and we'll go together."

As he said this, he went into the house, took out a bundle, carefully wrapped the money in it and tied it around his waist. Fortunately, the weather was not hot yet, so he wrapped it with his coat and it was not conspicuous.

They arrived at the Housing Authority and the transfer was completed smoothly. Of course, Wang Jiankun paid the tax, while Boss Zhou did not have to pay. It might be that the country had special policies for their type of real estate transactions or something, so Wang Jiankun did not ask in detail.

After the transfer, Boss Zhou said that he would pack up his belongings and move out tomorrow, so he asked Wang Jiankun to wait for him for a day.

Since the transfer had been completed and the title deed was in hand, there was no need to worry about him changing his mind, so I agreed to let him pack his luggage and stay another night.

He went into the house and helped the motorcycle out, then took Ding Shengli to a small street restaurant for a simple meal, and then went to another house.

This house is much smaller, but it is on Nanjing Road. It is a two-story building, about 5 meters wide. The lower floor is suitable for a shop, and the upper floors are used as warehouses and residences.

According to information obtained by Ding Shengli, the family's son went to study in Japan last year, worked there and had no plans to come back. He wrote to ask the old couple to sell the house and go to Japan to live a good life with him.

As for what kind of job the son of that family found in Japan, I didn't find out, but I heard the landlord boast that he could get a monthly salary equivalent to 2 RMB in China, and working there for one month is equivalent to three years of work assigned in China.

At present, most students studying abroad in China are sent by the government. They actually just work there and don’t come back. I guess they don’t know how to be grateful. So Wang Jiankun lowered the price again and again when negotiating with them. He exchanged the US dollars for them at a rate of 6:1. It cost 4 US dollars to buy the whole house.

The old couple didn't understand, so they asked a relative who knew to help check the authenticity of the money. Seeing that Wang Jiankun was so willing to pay US dollars for the house, the relative asked him if he could exchange some foreign currency for him at a price of 6:1.

Wang Jiankun was worrying about what to do with the remaining US dollars in his bag. When he saw someone wanted to exchange them, he asked him to come to the house tomorrow to exchange them. There were more than 9 US dollars in total, and it was first come, first served.

When the relative heard him say that, he hurried home and exchanged 1 US dollars first, and then agreed with Wang Jiankun to exchange the rest on the first floor of the house at 9 o'clock tomorrow morning.

After buying the house, Wang Jiankun gave Ding Shengli 150 US dollars, and the rest was a reward for him.

Ding Shengli's hands were shaking with excitement after receiving the US dollars. This was 150 US dollars, which could be exchanged for nearly a thousand yuan on the black market, which was enough to offset his hard work for more than two years.

After calming down, he said to Wang Jiankun, "Boss Wang, do you need someone to run errands for you? From now on, I will follow you and I will do whatever you tell me to do."

Wang Jiankun was looking for him to help manage the house and open the store, so he said, "You can see that I just bought a house, and I can't come here often, so I want you to help take care of the villa. Please renovate the first floor of this house on Nanjing Road according to my drawings to make a retail and wholesale store for lighters and electronic watches. You can hire someone to look after the store, and you can live on the second floor yourself or let the staff live in a room. What do you think?"

"Boss, I'm willing. My sister Ding Ling graduated from junior high school and can write and count. Can you let her be the waitress? I'll let my sister live on the second floor to look after the house, and I'll live in my own place. I'll usually go to the villa by the Suzhou River to clean."

"Okay, after the renovation is finished, your sister's salary will be 3 yuan per month for the first three months, and she can have two days off each month. After three months, her salary will be increased depending on the situation. As for you, you can continue to help me find a house and a store, and then I will give you a commission. How about that?"

"Boss, you are so kind to us. I have no objection. I will definitely complete the decoration quickly and well. But how can I give you the money from the sale? It's too much and I'm afraid I can't hold on to it."

"It's good that you thought of this. So, in a while, my transport team will have a ship dock at Shilipu Wharf every other day. When the time comes, you can give the payment to the waiter on the ship, and then take over the goods from him and sell them. Inventory and reconciliation will be conducted once a month."

"That's good. Boss, you have a big business. You also have a shipping team. Is it the same big ship as the one you drove this time?"

"Yes, then ask your friend, the boat boy, to introduce someone who sells tickets on the shore. I'll have someone talk to him about the rules. You can tell him the general idea first."

"Okay, thank you, boss. I thank you on their behalf. We'll treat you to dinner tonight!"

"You don't have to spend any money. Take me to a restaurant owned by someone from Yangzhou. I'll treat you to a meal. Invite everyone you know."

"Okay, Boss, let's go to Shilipu Wharf first. I'll go call someone, and then we'll walk there together. There's a new restaurant opened by someone from Yangzhou nearby. It'll be close for you to go back to the ship after you finish eating."

The two men arrived at the Shilipu Wharf. Ding Shengli borrowed a bicycle and ran to call his little brother. The boatman couldn't go because he had to guard the wharf, so Wang Jiankun asked Ding Shengli to pack a portion and bring it to him later.

The dishes made by this Yangzhou boss are indeed better than Shanghai cuisine. Although they are also light in taste, they are well-made with good color, aroma and taste, and the taste is also suitable for Wang Jiankun.

The four young men brought by Ding Shengli were eating so much that their mouths were drooling. If Wang Jiankun hadn't had the super power of drinking and cheated, they would have been drunk by the cups of wine they were offered.

I didn't remember the names of the four people brought by Ding Shengli, Wang Jiankun, but from their words and deeds, they seemed to be well behaved. According to Ding Shengli, they all finished junior high school and then went to the countryside. Later, they gave up the college entrance examination because their families were poor, leaving the opportunity to study to their younger brothers and sisters.

They tried to find some work near the dock, such as picking up passengers or helping with moving and running errands. Their income was extremely unstable. Wang Jiankun did not promise anything at the dinner table, but just asked Ding Shengli to take them under his wing and help find a house. He would ask them to do work when he had work in the future.

When they finally parted, Wang Jiankun paid Ding Shengli to pack a portion for the boatman. The others looked at the remaining dishes and asked if they could take them away for their families. Wang Jiankun naturally agreed. It can be seen from this that they are still very family-oriented, which shows that they have good character and we can rest assured to leave some things to them in the future.

That night Wang Jiankun stayed on the boat and counted the stars for a long time before he slowly fell asleep.

The writer has no holidays, and a chapter of 7 words is presented. Please vote for us, fellow book lovers. The monthly votes will be doubled during the National Day holiday. It depends on you, fellow book lovers, whether the monthly votes this month can reach a thousand!

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(End of this chapter)