2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 217 Visiting Gu Qingqing's Home for New Year's Greetings

Tan Lihua's family only stayed in the countryside for three days.

After visiting his maternal grandmother on the second day of the Lunar New Year, Tan Jincheng and his family returned to the city on the afternoon of the third day.

When the village chief learned that Tan Lihua's family had donated the same amount as Tan Lixin, he was greatly surprised. As if afraid that he might not keep his word, on the first day of the Lunar New Year, when no one was visiting each other to exchange New Year's greetings, he took the village accountant to their home to confirm.

Upon entering the Tan family's courtyard and seeing the Audi A6 parked there, the village chief was overjoyed, feeling that he had won this round.

However, this incident spread throughout the village, and people kept coming to his door all day long, surrounding Tan Jincheng like he was a giant panda. Some even wanted to introduce him to potential wives.

Tan Jincheng, who had been faking a smile all day, was practically turning into a crooked-mouthed dragon king.

Overwhelmed by the trouble, Tan Jincheng decided to return to the city as soon as possible. Another thing was that he had made an appointment with Gu Qingqing's family before returning, and he would visit them during the Spring Festival.

Tan Jincheng originally planned to go there on the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, stay for two days, and then go back to Ningbo with Gu Qingqing.

Within two days, several uncles, aunts, and maternal uncles all knew that Tan Jincheng had made a fortune, and that Zhang Qingliang and his wife were now working in his factory.

Close relatives are naturally less affected than collateral relatives, but the mentality of being more concerned about inequality than scarcity is certainly present.

Tan Jincheng also explained that Zhang Qingliang's situation was special; he was in a car accident while helping him with the renovation, which everyone knew. To avoid any long-term consequences, he arranged for the couple to do some light work at the factory as a form of compensation.

As for other elders, Tan Jincheng stated that he would not arrange for them to work in his factory. However, he also indicated that he would try his best to arrange for his younger siblings and cousins, regardless of whether they were academically successful or not, to work in his factory after graduation if they were interested.

If you're a mediocre student, you'll be assigned to the front lines as a junior employee. If you work diligently and honestly, you won't become rich or powerful, but you can at least live a worry-free life.

Those who have completed their studies and want to work in the factory are even more welcome. FlashTech will need some high-end talents in the future, and there is no reason not to use our younger brothers and sisters.

If a close relative wants to start a business, they can provide some start-up capital, but it won't be much and must be repaid within three years. Apart from that, there will be no other assistance for those older than oneself.

Of course, one should help in emergencies, not in chronic poverty. If someone has an emergency and needs money or assistance, Tan Jincheng will definitely help within his ability. However, he would never give money away for no reason.

That's about all you can do. Many things are actually quite simple. Just give your relatives a glimpse of hope, especially regarding their offspring, and most people will behave much better.

Weaknesses, as everyone knows, are also a common weakness in family relationships.

Tan Licheng put his arm around Tan Jincheng's shoulder and laughed, "Kid, not bad. You've made a fortune and you still think about helping your relatives back home. That's good. Your second uncle didn't spoil you for nothing."

"Come on, what have you ever done to show me any love? I've never seen you buy me many good things to eat, but you've taken me to steal chickens and dogs quite a few times."

"What do you mean you haven't bought many good things to eat? I bought you a lot of toys when you were little. It was so hard for me to make money back then. Also, with your brother's grades, he's probably destined to work in a factory screwing in screws. You should pay him a higher salary, or you could just make him your driver after he turns 18."

"Be my driver? Dream on! You think being my driver is so easy? We'll see if he's qualified, unless he serves a few years in the military first."

"Huh? That's a good idea, haha."

Tan Liye watched as his second son and eldest nephew chatted arm in arm, and he felt a little envious, but he couldn't do it if it were him.

“When your business grows big, you should keep a low profile to avoid attracting unwanted attention. Although I know you don’t lack money, it would be better if you donated less than your Uncle Lixin this time,” Tan Liye said seriously.

"I understand," Tan Jincheng replied with a light laugh. That's just how the Three Greats are; they're not bad people, but it's really hard for people to get close to them.

In his past life, he remembered that he later sold steamed buns. Because of his serious personality, he often offended customers, and when his business failed, he had to work odd jobs.

"Jincheng, what do you think about opening an electric vehicle shop in town and selling your electric vehicles? It seems like your brand isn't available in town yet," Auntie asked tentatively.

Tan Jincheng thought for a moment and said, "That's possible. We can also sell some tricycles on the side. Our company will also produce them in the future. However, if you want to do it, you need to know a little about car repair. Otherwise, if someone buys a car from your shop and it breaks down, you won't be able to tell what's wrong with it."

"Another issue is that in rural areas, many businesses operate on credit, so you have to be prepared to advance the funds."

Business in rural markets can be easy to do, as long as the goods are cheap and the quality isn't too bad. However, it can also be quite difficult, as it's mostly business with acquaintances, and credit is inevitable. For example, it's common for someone to build a house for you at the beginning of the year and then collect payment a few years later.

Buying an electric scooter on credit is not uncommon. Another point is that most electric scooter sellers in towns and cities offer repair services, which provides after-sales support and allows them to earn a little more money.

“Oh right, there are a lot of people buying on credit. We don’t have that much money to invest, so let’s forget about it.” “If you want to open one, I can lend you the initial start-up capital. I can also talk to the distributors and ask them to give you a relatively cheaper purchase price. But I won’t have the energy to manage it after that. If you lose money, don’t blame me.”

"Another thing is that if it affects the brand, the supplier has the right to cut off your supply. Even if I plead for them, it won't work. Besides, I won't plead for them."

Tan Jincheng's remarks dampened the enthusiasm of the group, who were initially eager to open a shop. They were all genuine farmers with limited education and little ambition for a better life.

Their life goal is to earn some money, build a beautiful house, raise their children to become college students, gain prestige in the village, and help take care of their grandchildren in their old age.

"Forget it then, let's just work honestly and earn money to support your younger siblings' education."

“Yeah, my buddy from the next village opened a building materials store in town. He’s got a headache from collecting debts at the end of the year. Business isn’t that easy,” Tan Licheng chimed in.

"That's how it is in the countryside. If you want to do business, it's better in the city. It's all cash, and whether you can make money depends on your skills."

Tan Lihua hesitated to speak. These were his brothers and sisters. He wanted to tell them that the business was viable and that selling electric bikes in town could actually be profitable, but he was afraid that they wouldn't know how to run it.

The initial capital is actually enough from their current savings. As for the issue of buying on credit, an electric scooter costs no more than 3000 yuan, and as long as the quantity is controlled, there shouldn't be any problem.

Forget it, let's talk about it after Jincheng leaves. It's not appropriate to go directly to Jincheng about this; it's better to handle it myself.

From his son's words and the previous incident of asking Zhang Xuhui to be his assistant, Tan Lihua realized that, apart from Zhang Qingliang, who was in a special situation, his son did not want any relatives older than him to be too close to him.

Rural people value hierarchy and social order. It's understandable that his son doesn't want these things to happen to him. Zhang Qingliang, a younger generation, also said that even though he works in his son's factory, it's common for him to not see his son for ten days or half a month at a time. He also told his son not to reveal his identity to the grassroots employees.

However, there is some truth to this thinking. He founded his own company, so he must have his own system for employing people. How he employs people is his right. Besides, helping relatives and elders shouldn't fall on his shoulders.

Helping is a favor, not helping is one's right.
-
February 2, the fourth day of the first lunar month.

At six o'clock in the morning, Tan Jincheng was dragged out of bed by his mother, Zhang Suzhi. Today was the day he was going to visit Gu Qingqing's family for the New Year, and the couple took it very seriously.

"Mom, isn't this too early? It's not even dawn yet," Tan Jincheng said speechlessly.

“What do you mean by early? If you drive there quickly, it will take about six hours. You won’t get there until after 12 o’clock. There’s no way you can arrive in the afternoon to pay New Year’s visits. I was planning to call you at 5 o’clock.”

"This isn't a special case. What's the difference between arriving at 12 o'clock and arriving at 1 o'clock? Besides, the other side might not care about this. Let me sleep a little longer."

"Stop sleeping! Get up! This is your first time visiting someone properly, so be serious and make a good impression."

"Okay, okay, I've never gotten up this early all year round. Chinese New Year is really tiring. I won't be coming back next year."

"Whether you come back or not, you have to get up today. Stop dawdling."

"."

The trunk was packed full, containing not only cigarettes, alcohol, and cosmetics, but also local specialties from Yicheng such as Mozi Su and Fangpian Gao. Zhang Suzhi had prepared all of these, and she also gave Tan Jincheng red envelopes of varying amounts.

Because she was unfamiliar with the local customs, Zhang Suzhi had been making many preparations ever since Tan Jincheng returned home before the Lunar New Year.

Tan Jincheng found out everything about the family: how many people were in the household, how many brothers the parents had, what the grandparents' hobbies were, and how many children they had. It was as if he were a new son-in-law visiting his daughter's home.

It's worth mentioning that Tan Jincheng only buys Moutai when it comes to alcohol, for which he was scolded by his father and mother. These days, Wuliangye is more popular and prestigious than Moutai.

I even went out of my way to buy a case of Wuliangye liquor for that.

His mother kept urging him, and Tan Jincheng had no choice but to get up quickly, eat a quick breakfast, and set off. Since it was still the Spring Festival period, there weren't many vehicles going to Zhejiang Province.

With no obstacles along the way, Tan Jincheng finally arrived in Yiwu for the second time before 1 p.m.

As soon as the vehicle entered the main road near Gu Qingqing's residential area, a figure could be seen waiting at the entrance of the residential area in the distance.

(End of this chapter)