2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 11 The King of Children (Please continue reading)
We won't have dinner at Grandma's place; we'll go back to Grandpa Tan Jincheng's place. My uncle had some wine at noon, and Tan Jincheng is driving his electric tricycle towards his village.

In rural areas, these electric tricycles are quite popular. They can carry some goods and a few people. One of these electric tricycles costs about 2000 to 4000 yuan.

Actually, selling these electric tricycles or electric scooters would be a good idea if the opportunity arose, as the profit margin is still quite good.

A new electric scooter costs around 3000 yuan, though the price may vary depending on the brand.

The price of a second-hand electric scooter ranges from 300 to 1000 yuan. Apart from the battery, there is little cost to make this thing.

With the development of urban industry, the demand for electric scooters among workers is huge, and the profit margin in this area is actually quite good.

However, the principal of 12 seems a bit insufficient, which is a bit of a headache.

Having been reborn, my current plan is to make up for some regrets from my previous life, use the prophet's knowledge to make money, and build a career.

However, with the current capital, it's difficult to expand the business simultaneously, which is a happy problem.

If I had known I was going to be reborn, I would have memorized a few stocks, especially those that would experience a short-term surge, so I could have made a quick profit.

Hindsight is always 20/20.

"You weren't telling the truth just now, were you? Working on a ship isn't that easy, is it?"

"Oh, Mom, why are you asking this? Whether it was easy or not, it's all in the past now. I'm not going to get on the ship again."

"You told your dad yesterday that you wanted to start a business. How much money did you save on the ship?"

Actually, Zhang Suzhi wanted to ask this question earlier, but there were too many children, and she was afraid that if she asked, they would talk about it everywhere, which would have a bad influence.

"I have 12 yuan saved up, and I have a few thousand yuan on me for pocket money."

Then, Tan Jincheng said with a smile, "Does your family need money? If so, I can contribute some, but I can only contribute a maximum of 2 yuan. I'll keep the rest as principal."

"It's not your place to spend money at home. Keep your money for yourself," Tan Lihua said irritably.

This son is determined not to study, and there's nothing we can do about it.

Luckily, I created a new account.

"You can earn that much money on a ship in a year? That's more than your dad's salary!" Zhang Suzhi said with some curiosity.

"The minimum wage for crew members is roughly equivalent to the median wage in first- or second-tier cities in China. When I boarded the ship, it was $600 a month, which was the lowest wage."

"Oh, $600 is about 5000 in our country's currency. It went up a bit later, and since there weren't many expenses on the ship, I saved it."

"The salary is pretty good. If you work on a ship for a few years, you can save up several hundred thousand yuan, which is much better than working outside."

"It's not that easy. We're on a cruise ship, so the environment is a bit better. If it were a cargo ship, the work would be very hard."

The work of ocean-going sailors is not so simple; the deep-sea waves, the gloomy and terrifying atmosphere, and the strong sense of oppression can be suffocating.

The salary and benefits are good, but capitalists don't give you such high benefits for no reason; there must be a reason.

Most sailors who go to sea have a story to tell.

The two villages weren't far apart, and the family arrived in the car after only a few words of conversation, even though Tan Jincheng wasn't driving fast. When they arrived at their home, only the elderly and children remained, a typical situation in almost every rural area. The central region wasn't particularly poor, but staying at home offered little hope for a better future.

Working away from home is a reality that every young and middle-aged person in rural areas must face these days, and this will remain true 20 years from now.

If given the chance to be reborn, Tan Jincheng would indeed not mind returning to his hometown to invest, but all of this must be done on the premise that he is strong enough to protect his business.

The meal was ready, and Grandpa and Grandma exchanged pleasantries once again.

After dinner, there was no entertainment in the countryside, and Zhang Suzhi was quite tired after a day of travel, so she went to bed early.

Tan Jincheng watched TV for a while, chatted with his grandparents, and recounted his daytime experiences at sea once again, which made his eldest cousin, Tan Jintian, very fascinated.

This kid was very mischievous as a child, and he grew up to be just like a little rascal. However, he was very loyal and treated his brothers and sisters very well.

He was classmates with his fourth uncle's cousin in junior high school. Because his roommate mocked his cousin for his father's death, this guy beat him up so badly that he was hospitalized.

At the time, we lost a lot of money and had to pull a lot of strings to barely get him to finish junior high school.

He was only 10 years old at the time, but he kept shouting that he wanted to go to sea in the future, which scared Tan Jincheng into immediately shutting up.

My second uncle only has one son, and he's an only child. I'm afraid he'll be led astray. If he really plants the seed of going to sea, my second uncle will probably beat me to death.

"Go to sleep, go to sleep, your brother is tired, I'll tell you tomorrow."

Nothing happened that night. When Tan Jincheng woke up the next day, his father had already passed away. Tan Lihua, who had only taken one day off, had to rush back to work today.

Tan Jincheng and his mother Zhang Suzhi will stay at home for a few days, and their father will come to pick them up during the National Day holiday. This was arranged yesterday.

Actually, Tan Jincheng wanted to take his mother back with him, but his father was still a little worried.

In the countryside at that time, there was really nothing to do, and there were no peers. The older younger siblings had to go to school, leaving only a few little kids who weren't old enough to go to school following behind Tan Jincheng.

In the eyes of these children, this older brother who suddenly appeared was much more approachable than their own older brothers.

Nothing more than the gifts I brought back and the snacks from the convenience store that won them over.

He practically bought up all the snacks in the convenience store, attracting not only his own younger siblings but also other children in the village who followed him around.

And so, on the second day after Tan Jincheng returned to his hometown, the already small village was thrown into chaos by him. Wherever he went, seven or eight children followed him, creating quite a spectacle.

This made Zhang Suzhi smile bitterly. She had thought her son had grown up and matured, but once he returned to the village, he completely revealed his true colors again.

Fortunately, Tan Jincheng, who was letting loose, still had some sense of propriety and did not take the children to dangerous areas such as the riverbank. They just wandered around the village aimlessly.

Two days passed quickly, and National Day arrived. Tan Lihua came as promised to pick up the mother and son to take them back to the city.

When the snack tycoon was about to leave, the village children were almost crying, following Tan Jincheng around, reluctant to see him go.

Even his younger siblings who came back from vacation were reluctant to see their good older brother leave.

"What's going on? I've only been back for two or three days, how come there are so many children?" Tan Lihua asked with a puzzled look.

(End of this chapter)