Courtyard Houses: Starting with the principle of hard work paying off

Chapter 263 Knowing People and Making Good Use of Them: Taking the Little Ones Out for Hot Pot

Li Hongbing and Cai Quanwu had known each other for quite some time and had had many interactions, so Li Hongbing knew Cai Quanwu to be a reliable person.

Even without the relationship between Xu Huizhen and Chen Xueru, this person is still worth using.

As for Master Niu.

Given his background and his deep connections with the old guard, he was naturally a very suitable candidate.

The key is that Master Niu used to be a connoisseur; he's knowledgeable and has a lot of expertise, so he's not easily fooled.

Although the authenticity of antiques today is quite high for future generations, the industry of counterfeiting and high-quality imitations did not just begin in the future; it was already prevalent in ancient times.

This industry is treacherous; without keen insight and experience, it's easy to suffer losses.

Niu Ye is a man of principle, concerned with his reputation, and his character is widely praised. Li Hongbing met him and, although they didn't become close, they got along quite well.

The key is that Li Hongbing no longer needs to rely on Guo Youzhong's reputation as his master. With his current status and position, he is already capable of gaining Master Niu's recognition and respect.

The other party also has ancestral property and family wealth. Even if they don't work, they can live comfortably for the rest of their lives, barring any unforeseen circumstances.

However, we are now in a difficult period. Even though Mr. Niu has plenty of money, we still lack food.

Li Hongbing paid them with grain to help him collect some antiques.

At this stage, food is more valuable than money.

Since food was scarce, and he got along well with Li Hongbing, plus he enjoyed dealing with different people and antiques, Niu Ye was not reluctant to work for Li Hongbing.

As for Cai Quanwu.

Even if Li Hongbing didn't offer any compensation, given the relationship between the two families, he wouldn't refuse in the slightest.

not to mention.

He and Xu Huizhen were able to get together because Li Hongbing encouraged him to bravely pursue their relationship, which led to their current happy life. Cai Quan was deeply grateful to Li Hongbing.

They originally didn't want to accept payment from Li Hongbing, but now they not only have to take care of themselves, but also help Xu Huizhi and He Yongqiang's family in the countryside, so their demand for food is naturally high.

Just like the plot of the TV series, people in the city experienced a reduction in rations, making life difficult, not to mention the rural areas.

When Xu Huizhi encountered difficulties and was on the verge of not being able to make ends meet, she secretly sought help from her brother-in-law, Cai Quanwu. Cai Quanwu knew what kind of person Xu Huizhi was, so he secretly helped her out.

Later, when Xu Huizhen found out, she didn't say anything to Cai Quanwu, but tacitly approved of his actions.

It was because he understood Xu Huizhen that Cai Quanwu did that.

Actually, Cai Quanwu had no relationship with Xu Huizhi and He Yongqiang. Everything he did was for Xu Huizhen.

Cai Quanwu knew that if Xu Huizhi approached Xu Huizhen, Xu Huizhen wouldn't "stand by and watch someone die," and would still help.

Cai Quanwu knew about their past relationship and affairs, so to avoid embarrassment for them or to save Xu Huizhen's face, he acted as a middleman to act as a buffer between them.

With the food provided by Li Hongbing, he can also help alleviate some of the pressure on Xu Huizhen.

There's no need for Master Niu and Cai Quanwu to go through the trouble of searching. As long as someone has something to sell, they can take a look at the items and buy them at a suitable price.

Li Hongbing, who had never been exposed to antiques before, naturally knew nothing about them, at most only a few hearsay concepts or knowledge points.

However, he has a system, and after a little exposure, he has gradually gained experience points in antique appraisal skills. He is no longer the novice he used to be.

However, Li Hongbing didn't have much time or energy to put into this. Usually, he would let Niu Ye make the decisions himself, making the decisions when he was confident and letting Li Hongbing decide when he was unsure.

Li Hongbing wasn't worried about Niu Ye making any underhanded moves or playing any tricks. If he were to do that, Li Hongbing wouldn't be easily fooled.

Li Hongbing has a large group of people behind him. Not to mention his master and fellow apprentices, many people in the culinary world of Beijing would give him face.

Offending Li Hongbing, who is currently very successful, just to embezzle money is not a good choice.

Moreover, Master Niu is not short of money and values ​​his reputation and face, so he obviously values ​​these things more.

"Xuande incense burner?"

"Yes, Master Niu has already examined it. It's genuine, and it's said to have been passed down from the other party's ancestors. Master Niu guarantees that. It's just a little pricey..."

"However, there is another way, which is to barter with grain, and that can help lower the price..."

"Forget about the grain. Although I have connections, it's not easy to handle too much. I'll use money instead. It's okay if it's a bit expensive, since it's a good thing."

"Okay, I'll let Uncle Niu know later."

"it is good."

"And these too, take a look. These are paintings by Wu Changshuo..."

"Not bad."

"..."

Li Hongbing was quite satisfied with Niu Ye and Cai Quanwu's recent "harvest," especially the Xuande incense burner from the Ming Dynasty, which some people would even consider a family heirloom.

Of course.

The items Li Hongbing asked Master Niu and Cai Quanwu to collect for him weren't all antiques; they also included calligraphy and paintings by contemporary or modern masters.

Among the works I've collected before, there are already paintings by Huang Binhong, Qi Baishi, and Xu Beihong, and today I received a painting by Wu Changshuo.

These are all contemporary masters, but the prices of their works are far from the exaggerated figures of millions or even hundreds of millions. They can usually be bought for a dozen or twenty yuan.

It may seem "cheap," but you should know that in this day and age, it's already half a month's salary for most ordinary people.

Furthermore, the auction prices in later generations may have been subject to some shady dealings or inflated figures.

Li Hongbing collected these items partly because of their future value, but not for the purpose of reselling them at a higher price in the future.

Doing this might yield amazing returns, but for Li Hongbing, decades have long since lost their meaning.

Besides its inherent artistic and aesthetic value, keeping it at home or passing it down to future generations is also a form of cultural heritage.

Buying now is definitely "entering the market at a low price".

Of course.

Li Hongbing wouldn't just blindly plunder these things, because at this time, there were simply too many good things to be had.

“No, I’m with Jianwu, Jianjun and Qingwan today, so it’s not convenient. You can take these things to my mother-in-law’s old house first, and I’ll pick them up later.”

Seeing what Niu Ye and Cai Quanwu had accomplished so far, Li Hongbing was quite satisfied. He then said to Cai Quanwu, "As for the funds for collecting antiques, I think Niu Ye has used them up quite a bit. I didn't bring that much money with me today. I'll come over again tonight to pick Xue Ru up from get off work."

"it is good."

Faced with Li Hongbing's arrangement, Cai Quanwu gave a succinct reply of one word. The collection of antiques was mostly handled by Master Niu, and Cai Quanwu's main task was to act as a middleman, facilitating communication between Li Hongbing and Master Niu, and ensuring the safekeeping and transportation of the items Master Niu collected.

Since Chen's mother moved to Li Hongbing's place, the original house has been empty, and Li Hongbing has taken it over to use as a "storeroom".

The fact that Li Hongbing possesses a system space cannot be revealed, so once the items reach Cai Quanwu, they must pass through another intermediary to ensure their safety.

Compared to Niu Ye, Li Hongbing trusted and felt more at ease with Cai Quanwu, but regarding the secrets of the system, Li Hongbing didn't even let Chen Xueru know, so he naturally had to be extremely cautious.

It was precisely because of the existence of the system and the system space that Li Hongbing thought of using his inexhaustible money to collect a batch of antiques.

It would be such a waste if we just left these precious things left by our ancestors to be looted and destroyed in a few years.

Li Hongbing's abilities are limited, but using the system space to protect a group of people incidentally is not a problem.

if not.

Aside from antiques, I need to find a way to exchange my money for gold bars before the third set of RMB replaces the current second set.

A house is not suitable at the moment.

Otherwise, when things get tough, his properties might bring him unnecessary trouble.

Moreover.

For Li Hongbing, current housing prices may not be expensive.

But Li Hongbing understood the development of housing prices and knew that for the next few decades, until the reform and opening up, housing prices would hardly change.

If you want to buy property, you'll have to wait until after the reform and opening up.

Besides.

Li Hongbing collects antiques, and he only uses money to buy them.

As for the grain in the system space, aside from using it to pay Niu Ye and Cai Quanwu's wages, Li Hongbing never considered bartering it for goods.

It's a famine year now, and grain prices have been rising again and again, even reaching ten times the price Li Hongbing paid when he bought it. Moreover, there's a market but no price; pigeons appear on the market or the black market and are quickly snapped up, so there's no worry about selling them.

Logically, Li Hongbing taking out the surplus grain would be the way to maximize profits, but such a risk is too great and could easily bring trouble upon himself.

Buying antiques is not illegal or violates any policies at present, but reselling grain is a different matter.

In the past, it might have been acceptable, but doing this kind of thing during a famine when the whole country was tightening its belts was tantamount to courting death.

Li Hongbing wouldn't treat government officials like fools.

Profiting from national disasters is not something Li Hongbing wants to do, even if it's extremely profitable.

After finishing his business with Cai Quan, Li Hongbing went to check on Li Jianwu and the others. Seeing that the kids had finished chatting, he "kidnapped" Xu Jingli and took them out for a stroll.

As for Xu Jingping, she is still too young. Li Hongbing is leading a group of children and it is inconvenient for him to take care of her. So he left her in the backyard of the tavern and let Cai Quanwu continue to look after her.

Xu Jingli grew up on Qianmen Street. Although there were many shops here, they didn't feel very new to her. So Li Hongbing took them directly to Wangfujing Department Store, which was not far from here.

During this process, Li Hongbing didn't spend much money. Li Jianwu, Zhao Jianjun, Zhao Qingwan, and Xu Jingli were all sensible children. Even if they saw something new and interesting, they wouldn't ask for it.

They enjoyed the process more than buying things, and were very happy the whole way.

On the contrary, Zhao Jianjun used the money and coupons given by Li Hongmei to buy everyone a string of candied hawthorns, even Li Hongbing, an adult, got a share.

Seeing that it was getting late, Li Hongbing led them to the nearby Donglaishun restaurant and said with a smile, "Let's go, your uncle and Uncle Li are treating you to hot pot today."

In those days, Donglaishun wasn't the only hot pot restaurant in Beijing; there were many established brands that had been around for a longer time. However, Donglaishun was located near the Dong'an Market in Wangfujing, so Li Hongbing chose the nearest option.

These little guys had been walking for most of the afternoon, and even though they were still full of energy, as if they had inexhaustible energy, they were still children, and Li Hongbing didn't want to tire them out too much.

Zhao Jianjun, who was standing to the side, suddenly spoke up: "Uncle, how about next time? We just had sauerkraut fish for lunch, and I'm not hungry yet!"

"Are you really not hungry, or are you just worried about your uncle spending money?"

Li Hongbing looked down at Zhao Jianjun and immediately saw through his nephew's thoughts.

"I had a big lunch, so I'm really not hungry yet."

It's true that Zhao Jianjun was afraid of spending Li Hongbing's money, and it's also true that he wasn't hungry.

Lunch was a hearty meal with plenty of meat and oil, and everyone could eat as much as they wanted. Even after spending most of the day browsing in the Wangfujing department store, Zhao Jianjun didn't feel hungry much.

When Li Hongbing brought them here and said he would treat them to hot pot, it would be impossible for Zhao Jianjun not to be happy, since the opportunity to eat out is very rare throughout the year.

If so, it was usually his uncle, Li Hongbing, who took him there.

Although their family was well-off, Li Hongmei was thrifty and hardworking, so she wouldn't be so extravagant and "wasteful." At most, she would buy some nice things to celebrate when something good happened in the family.

Zhao Jianjun refused such a good offer, not only because of Li Hongmei's instructions before he left, but also because he had just had a good lunch and was now going to have hot pot for dinner. Even though he was just a child, it seemed too extravagant to him.

Even though it wasn't his own money that was being spent, but his uncle's, he still couldn't bear to let his uncle, Li Hongbing, spend money.

He is now six years old. Although he is still a child, he clearly knows more than Li Jianwu and Li Qingwan.

"what about you?"

In response to Zhao Jianjun's statement, Li Hongbing looked at Li Jianwu, Zhao Qingwan, and Xu Jingli.

"Uncle, I'm not hungry."

"Me too."

"I'm not hungry either."

"..."

After Zhao Jianjun started, whether they were genuinely not hungry or pretending, the little ones all had the same attitude.

Seeing how united they were, trying to save money for themselves, Li Hongbing couldn't help but smile and said, "You're not hungry, but I am. Why don't you come in with me and get something to eat?"

After Li Hongbing said that, even Zhao Jianjun couldn't object.

They can choose not to eat, but you can't stop your "starving" uncle from eating, can you?
soon.

Li Hongbing then led Li Jianwu, Zhao Jianjun, and the other kids inside.

As a decades-old brand, Donglaishun, which used to be bustling with business, is now very quiet and deserted.

The appearance of Li Hongbing and others actually brought some vitality to the store, and even the waiters couldn't help but feel a jolt of energy.

(End of this chapter)