When I called Boss Hao to ask for the money, he wasn't surprised at all when he heard that we'd made a deal worth over 2 million yuan; it was as if he'd been waiting for this day. But after hearing the whole story, he just chuckled twice and said two words to me: "Not doing it!"
I was stunned and asked, "Why?"
Old Hao calmly said to me, "Think about it, even if she borrows money at high interest rates, would she have to pay more than 1 million yuan in interest a year on 2.4 million yuan?"
A simple truth brought a chill down my spine. I argued, "But I've checked out this bar; 200,000 a month is no exaggeration."
“I know. Normally, I would say you made a brilliant deal. But you silly Qiangzi, have you considered what time it is now? It's only been a few days since the earthquake, and city leaders are 'risking aftershocks' even when they're soaking in hot springs in the city. If there's just one more small earthquake that people can feel, bars and similar establishments will basically be wiped out! At that point, forget 200,000 yuan, you'll be laughing in your sleep if you can even make 2,000 yuan a month. But if you sign this agreement with her, 2.4 million yuan will still be in her account a year later. She's losing a little money to buy a huge insurance policy from you! The reason she doesn't dare mortgage the bar to borrow money at high interest rates is because the underworld only cares about money. They don't care about earthquakes. Even if an earthquake happens and everyone is sitting on the same 50th floor again, she'll still have to pay back whatever she owes, otherwise she'll have to make porn. You think about it too!”
Damn it, this woman tricked me! I kept telling myself not to fall for her charms, but I still got completely bewildered by a glass of Hennessy that wasn't sweet or salty!
But I've only just become a partial owner of this huge bar, and the blissful dizziness hasn't even worn off yet. Do I really have to go back to reality so soon? I just bought her a drink, and now I'm expected to make her pull out a wad of cash from her wallet, which is practically full of bricks?
I made one last attempt to reason with Boss Hao: "Isn't that all just speculation? Isn't this a normal risk?"
Boss Hao chuckled: "I'm 65 this year. I'm content with a modest life, unlike you young people. I can't withstand any more storms. I don't want to lose my life savings. Qiangzi, others see me as incredibly successful, but I haven't made a single penny in the past two years—"
The last sentence can be ignored, but Lao Hao is determined not to do this business.
This shows that poor Xiaoqiang's career peak can only be a minor manager at "number several pawnshops". Most importantly, he will most likely have to borrow Grandpa Zhao's bicycle to personally deliver people to Yao Village outside the 5th Ring Road in the future - oh no, I do have a 1955 sidecar motorcycle now.
Then a bold idea suddenly popped into my head: do it myself!
Chapter Fifty-Two: The Big Rat
Because I haven't bought Xiang Yu's chariot yet, I haven't really touched the 5 million I have on hand. But if I take out 2.4 million to take this risk, regardless of whether I make a profit or loss in the future, the remaining money might not even be enough for those people's expenses for a year.
I've figured it out. Although Yue Fei's army has 300 men, all I need to do is provide them with food and drink. Even if each person only gets two steamed buns and a piece of pickled vegetable a day, they won't complain. In fact, they now have plenty of rice and flour to eat every day, and they even get to eat freshly slaughtered pigs from the villagers. Their happiness level is at an all-time high, which is evident from how they instinctively straighten their posture whenever I walk past them. I estimate that after another two months of raising them, although they won't become the "Xiao Family Army," getting them to help me with small tasks shouldn't be a problem—Baozi and I are getting married soon, and I plan to lead these 300 men to the wedding. Our wedding customs here are quite harsh, especially on the wedding day. The groom is subjected to all sorts of difficulties, and without a dozen or so strong young men, he can't even enter the bride's house. With these 300 men, I'm not afraid. I don't believe Baozi's family's door is sturdier than the city gates of Jiankang (Nanjing).
On the contrary, those 54 heroes were a real headache for me. These men had the temperament of bandits but the treatment of nobles. Liu Laoliu had somehow gotten money to spoil them so much that they were extremely arrogant. On their first day, they were very dissatisfied because they couldn't get single rooms, and then they complained about the lack of food and wine. Several of the mounted generals, having not ridden for a long time, were itching to ride, so they went to the countryside to search for one, only to find a donkey owned by a villager, for which they could only offer a token ride at 20 yuan per hour.
Zhang Shun, Ruan Xiaoer, and Ruan Xiaowu searched everywhere for water, but only found a ditch. The water was quite clear, but it was shallow; their backs didn't get wet even when they lay on the bottom.
Fortunately, Gongsun Sheng, the Cloud Dragon, didn't come. Otherwise, even if he could fly, with the air quality so badly exceeding the standard, his lungs would probably turn into termite mounds if he flew into the sky.
Moreover, the original text doesn't mention that some of the generals on Liangshan were quite philanderers. Because the bus from Yaocun to the city stopped running at 7 o'clock, these people complained: "Except for Dai Zong, we don't even have a nightlife anymore."
In my eyes, these are not 54 heroes, but 54 giant rats.
So, if I do this 2.4 million deal, I have to find a way to make that 2 million more money. Because even with 5 million, there will still be a time when I can't just sit around and do nothing. When the next batch of customers comes next year, I can't rely on throwing bricks at rich people to make a living anymore.
As Jing Ke and I entered the alleyway, a man had been hiding behind a trash can for a long time. As we passed by him, he suddenly shouted, "There's murderous intent!"
I was nearly scared to death. At the same time, Jing Ke suddenly turned around and shouted, "Who is it?"
I thought it was one of those recruiters trying to ambush me, so I pulled out a brick from my bag, stood in a defensive stance, and looked around. But there was no one on the street.
At this moment, the person behind the trash can turned around, ran to Jing Ke's side affectionately, took his hand, and then the two fools laughed together—it was Zhao Bailian, that crazy man who walked with an exceptionally graceful gait.
I pointed at him and said, "Kezi, don't hang out with him anymore. We're good classmates!"
...
The next day, I eagerly awaited Chen Kejiao's arrival. I wanted to humiliate her, to shame her, to discipline her... I thought about it all night, coming up with many vicious ideas, and even chuckled coldly in my dreams. Qin Shihuang and Xiang Yu were kept awake all night by my laughter. They sat side by side on the bed, and Qin Shihuang pointed at me and said, "This coward, he must have done too many bad things in his past life."
My goal is simple: to let Chen Kejiao know that she can't take advantage of me and then act innocent, and she can't take advantage of me while making me feel like she's a customer who paid for my services. Most importantly, she can't say to my face, "Wow, Brother Qiang is so bold!" but then curse me behind my back, "Even if you're as cunning as a devil, you'll still drink my foot bath water..."
Of course, in the end I would say with a magnanimous heart: Fine, since you've already agreed, just sign it. Upon hearing this, Chen Kejiao was overwhelmed with emotion, and so she bowed deeply... no, she began to undress!
I paced around the pawnshop lobby early in the morning, waiting for her to arrive. Baozi, who was on her way to work, asked with concern, "Qiangzi, are your hemorrhoids acting up again?"
Just after 10 a.m., a very well-dressed man walked into my pawnshop. He shook my hand as if he knew me well, then sat down opposite me and pulled a large stack of documents from his bag. He looked familiar, but I couldn't place his name, and I stood there speechless. He glanced at me, seemingly understanding the problem, and smiled, saying, "Manager Xiao probably doesn't remember me. My surname is Chen..."
I remember now, Assistant Chen, the guy who sold me the Wind Listening Bottle. Seeing him brings back painful memories. Ever since witnessing how Ersha treated that Wind Listening Bottle, I've had a deep-seated aversion to blowing things up. I didn't even blow out the birthday candles on Baozi's birthday.
What good news could this person have? I shook his hand warmly and asked, "What favors does Mr. Chen have for me this time?"
"Oh, is that so..." He placed the pile of documents in front of me. "It's about the matter you discussed with Ms. Chen Kejiao yesterday. I brought all the documents with me today."
I exclaimed in surprise, "You're actually family? Are you her brother or her younger brother?"
"Hehe, I'm just the Chen family's private assistant."
I suddenly realized and said, "Chen is a bestowed surname, right? What was your surname before?" I didn't mean any harm by saying this, but I was just thinking about the servants of many wealthy families in the past. Only those who were particularly favored had the right to take their master's surname, like Yang Guozhong, Heshen, and Grand Tutor Hua.
Assistant Chen looked displeased but forced a smile and said, "Manager Xiao, don't joke around. It's just a coincidence."
I also felt that my unintentional remark had been a bit hurtful, so I quickly got to the point. This Assistant Chen might seem like a smooth talker, but he was very efficient when it came to getting things done. He laid out all the relevant documents and certificates from the bar and explained the situation in a few words. Now, all I had to do was bring the pawnshop's documents and get them signed, and the deal would be done.
But I haven't humiliated Chen Kejiao yet!
I placed one hand on my chest and made a gesture of whisking with the other, looking as if I knew everything, and said, "Your Miss Chen is quite shrewd to hand over the shop to me during this time..." Before I could finish my sentence, Assistant Chen interrupted, "By the way, Manager Xiao, that 2 million yuan Wind Listening Bottle didn't break in this earthquake, did it? Oh dear, we didn't know there was going to be an earthquake, otherwise we shouldn't have entrusted such a risky investment to Manager Xiao—even though we only sold it to you for 200,000 yuan."
Their point is clear: investment always involves risk. If you want to make money but are afraid of taking risks, what's the point of opening a pawnshop?
Moreover, this Mr. Chen's words subtly hinted at my true worth. He knew exactly how much that bottle was worth. By bringing it up again, he was trying to humiliate, shame, and discipline me: Don't take advantage of me and then act innocent. You can't take advantage of him and then make him think you're a customer who paid for his services. You can't boast about his magnanimity to his face while cursing him behind his back: "Even if you're as cunning as a devil, you'll still drink cockroach-infused foot bath water..."
Chapter 53 I believe that when I grow up, I will be a BMW.
In the end, the contract was signed, of course. While tidying up the documents, Mr. Chen casually asked me, "Manager Xiao, if we haven't sold that wind-listening vase yet, it would be best to wait a while. The antique market in this city seems to be struggling lately due to the earthquake."
“I’ve already used that bottle as a seismometer,” I told my astonished assistant Chen. “And it’s broken.”
He obviously didn't take it seriously, and even joked, "But there don't seem to be any earthquakes these past few days."
I winked at him: "It's a very small aftershock; it can only be detected with a 2 million yuan wind-listening bottle."