Getting suitable storefronts in Xidan wasn’t particularly difficult – it all depended on who you asked to handle it.
After Xia Xiao Lan took Chen Xiliang for a tour around Xidan, Chen agreed to buy government bonds from Branch Manager Wu – who had practically become a part-time real estate agent. If Xia Xiao Lan or Chen Xiliang tried to secure storefronts themselves, they’d waste endless energy. As outsiders without connections, they wouldn’t even know which departments to bribe!
Branch Manager Wu was different – he seemed capable of anything.
He wasn’t working alone. The government bond sales were a task shared across the entire branch. With year-end approaching, Branch Manager Wu had been worried, but now Xia Xiao Lan had introduced another southern businessman to buy bonds. Finding stores wasn’t difficult – even if Branch Manager Wu didn’t know people directly, he had friends and relatives, plus the entire branch’s staff as backup!
For the sake of completing quotas, year-end bonuses, and excellent employee evaluations, finding storefronts in Xidan was nothing.
Like Liu Yong, Chen Xiliang immediately bought 20,000 yuan in government bonds, showing genuine support for national development, and Branch Manager Wu showed equal sincerity. He knew he hadn’t misjudged Xia Xiao Lan – she was a good classmate indeed. Someone willing to donate books to their high school regardless of recognition would also introduce quality clients to him.
Xia Xiao Lan was unnerved by Branch Manager Wu’s enthusiasm.
She thought getting a store in Wangfujing might even be possible. With such a large purchase of 200,000 yuan in government bonds, Branch Manager Wu might circle the entire Beijing on a map – except for restricted areas – and let her take her pick.
“Thank you for going to all this trouble again.”
When Xia Xiao Lan said this, Branch Manager Wu was extremely enthusiastic. “No trouble at all! Solving problems for clients is what we banking professionals should do.”
Though the winds of reform and opening up hadn’t yet swept across the entire nation, Branch Manager Wu’s thinking was already aligned with the world. Banking was the financial industry, and bank employees were certainly financial professionals, but more often they had to see themselves as service providers.
Branch Manager Wu deeply felt the benefits of this transformation. Solving problems for clients, and having them buy government bonds – both parties were satisfied. It was a perfect model.
After all, Branch Manager Wu’s friends and relatives could find out through various connections which properties were for sale and which departments to approach for store rentals.
These were matters that could be handled through relationships.
And relationships weren’t expensive these days – just a matter of cigarettes and alcohol.
His relationships couldn’t solve the government bond quotas though. The moment he mentioned buying bonds, even close friends and relatives would keep their distance!
Work unit purchases were unavoidable, but that wasn’t enough. Being pursued by Branch Manager Wu to buy more, how could families manage? Money was needed everywhere, and government bonds weren’t like bank deposits – they couldn’t be cashed out before maturity.
Knowing one person like Xia Xiao Lan meant a steady stream of potential clients.
Branch Manager Wu didn’t mind helping people – being helpful brought more customers. Otherwise, who would voluntarily come to buy government bonds?
Chasing poor relatives who couldn’t squeeze out two ounces of oil from their bones was useless. Better to catch wealthy people like Student Summer – rich people’s friends were also rich, after all. Birds of a feather flock together.
“This branch manager…”
Chen Xiliang sighed, having previously thought bank leaders were all aloof and distant.
As a wholesale trader, Chen Xiliang rarely had a chance to deal with banks.
Of course, leaders like Branch Manager Wu who personally developed business were rare – most leaders dumped all tasks on their subordinates.
Branch Manager Wu hadn’t actively offered loans to Chen Xiliang, since Chen was only talking about creating a brand without registration or physical business yet, so he hadn’t brought up loans. Even so, Chen Xiliang was pleasantly surprised – he’d never imagined bank leaders could serve as property agents.
It would be years before Boss Chen understood these inner workings, but Xia Xiao Lan’s appearance had accelerated his entrepreneurial journey.
They circled Xidan twice, selecting several suitable properties. Whether they could secure them would depend on Branch Manager Wu’s connections.
Chen Xiliang bought 20,000 yuan in government bonds at once, and Xia Xiao Lan took the opportunity to look for locations for her family’s clothing store.
Opening Luna’s specialty store didn’t conflict with expanding her family’s clothing business. Just like Chen Xiliang wouldn’t abandon his wholesale business while developing his brand – he’d been at it for two or three years and had established regular customers. The women’s clothing brand still needed unknown investments, while wholesale was Chen Xiliang’s cash cow and future channel for promoting his brand.
Chen Xiliang stayed in Beijing for two days, and Xia Xiao Lan withdrew 50,000 yuan from Zhou Cheng’s savings account for him.
Though each person was investing 200,000 yuan, they wouldn’t pay it all at once. Xia Xiao Lan wasn’t easily fooled about what stages required what amounts. This was the difference between experience and inexperience. Not that experience prevented all fraud, but it reduced the chances – unless Xia Xiao Lan herself took action, even the most secure business could lose all its capital.
With the partnership agreed upon, Xia Xiao Lan needed to write to Zhou Cheng.
She wondered how Zhou Cheng was doing at the Military Academy. He hadn’t called or written yet, and she couldn’t help worrying.
…
When Tang Hong’en arrived in Beijing, he went neither to Huaqing University nor the Ji family home.
He first visited Old Ji’s grave, offering white chrysanthemums. Old Ji’s black and white memorial photo showed his usual serious expression. Tang Hong’en and Ji Ya had lived together for nine years, and after marriage, Ji Ya followed him to work in Southern Henan, with few chances to interact with her family. Only during New Year’s did they meet the Ji family, and in those limited encounters, Tang Hong’en believed he’d fulfilled his duties as a son-in-law.
But the Ji family thought it wasn’t enough.
When Tang Hong’en faced troubles, they believed he should have actively let Ji Ya go, and actively prevented involvement with the Ji family, rather than waiting for Ji Ya to propose divorce.
Tang Hong’en firmly believed his principles were correct, willing to stand by his convictions and trust that light would come… while the Ji family wanted him to compromise. In reality, Tang Hong’en was right – though he was sent to the cowshed for reform, he was rehabilitated in just a few years. If he had been a person who easily changed his principles, today’s clear skies after the storm wouldn’t have come!
For someone without any good background to reach his current position in his forties, Tang Hong’en had endured hardships others could hardly imagine.
It wasn’t for power, but to fulfill his ambitions!
When Ji Ya asked for a divorce and took their son, Tang Hong’en didn’t blame them. He couldn’t let his wife and son suffer for his persistence… but Ji Ya’s current changes were hard for Tang Hong’en to accept.
Ji Ya wouldn’t listen to reason.
Better to let her direct any anger at him than trouble a young girl.
Besides, he wanted to talk with the Ji family anyway!
Upon hearing of Tang Hong’en’s arrival in Beijing, surprisingly, the angriest person wasn’t Ji Ya, but Ji Jiangyuan’s maternal uncle. With Grandfather Ji just deceased, did Tang Hong’en think the Ji family had lost their backing and came to bully them?!