My wife and I are both time travelers.

Chapter 145 Individual Businesses

A small restaurant near Huashan Road.

Although the location of this restaurant is average and the storefront looks ordinary, the chef inside has excellent skills and the food is very affordable.

Zhou Jiye, Xu Guoqing, and Lao Wen were sitting in a restaurant with several main dishes and two bottles of Shaoxing wine on the table, enjoying a small drink.

"Come on! This trip to Lingnan went so smoothly thanks to Jiye. Let's toast him!" Xu Guoqing suggested, picking up his glass. Lao Wen chimed in, raising his glass with a grin. Zhou Jiye didn't refuse, clinking his glass with theirs before taking a big gulp of wine.

"Have some vegetables to calm your nerves. This Three Yellow Chicken is a specialty here, have a taste." Seeing that Zhou Jiye was drinking too quickly, Xu Guoqing picked up a piece of chicken with his chopsticks and put it in his bowl.

Zhou Jiye thanked him. Although the alcohol content of the rice wine was not high, it had a stronger aftereffect than the liquor. He had just drunk at least three ounces in one gulp, and he was indeed a bit too hasty, which caused his face to flush red.

"This chicken tastes really good!" After tasting a piece of chicken, Zhou Jiye praised it repeatedly for its tender and juicy flavor, saying, "It's just as good as Xiao Shaoxing's!"

"Of course!" Xu Guoqing laughed. "You don't know, do you? The head chef here is my senior apprentice. His skills are second to none in our industry. If it weren't for bad luck, he wouldn't have gotten the chance to work in this restaurant. He would have been working in a big hotel long ago."

"No wonder, no wonder you brought us here for dinner. It turns out you were just supporting your senior brother!" Zhou Jiye joked with a smile.

Xu Guoqing laughed heartily, picked up his wine glass, took a sip, and then used his chopsticks to pick up a piece of stir-fried vegetables and put it in his mouth.

“What you said is not wrong. It’s good for our own people to take care of each other.” Xu Guoqing said while eating, then pointed to the dishes on the table with his chopsticks: “Try them all and see if you like them.”

"Ah Qing, you're acting a bit strange today," Old Wen chuckled. "Are you supporting your senior brother all this time for some other reason?"

"Hahaha, you guys figured it out?" Xu Guoqing laughed immediately, took out a cigarette and lit it around, nodding and saying, "My senior brother's skills are unquestionable, but he's a bit honest and doesn't know how to scheme. If it weren't for that personality, he wouldn't be here."

"To be honest with you, my senior apprentice came to me yesterday and we had a chat. What do you think about him opening his own restaurant with his culinary skills?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Jiye and Lao Wen were both taken aback. Lao Wen, in particular, frowned and said, "Logically speaking, this skill is more than enough to open a restaurant, but the question is, can a private restaurant be opened now?"

"Brother Qing, have you heard some news?" Zhou Jiye asked thoughtfully, his mind racing.

Xu Guoqing looked around and lowered his voice slightly, saying, "There really is news!"

"what news?"

"It's said that private trading will soon be legal. A friend told me that the business registration office will soon be able to process the registration. Once registered, you can apply for a formal personal business license. In the future, private trading will be called... what was it again... right! Sole proprietorship! In other words, the policy is completely open to private individuals. With a formal license, many businesses that were previously prohibited can now be conducted!"

"Really?" Upon hearing this, the two of them immediately perked up and hurriedly asked.

"Of course! It's more real than gold!" Xu Guoqing nodded seriously. This news hasn't been officially announced yet, but it's 100% confirmed and will not change.

"Brother Qing, you're not just asking about your senior brother, are you? Do you have any thoughts on our current business?" Zhou Jiye was familiar with the group of individual business owners, but he didn't know exactly when they emerged.

But it's almost the end of 1980 now, and judging from the timeline, individual business owners would be emerging soon. This coincides with what Xu Guoqing said, so it seems that Xu Guoqing's information is correct; the group of individual business owners is about to be born.

Xu Guoqing took a puff of his cigarette and nodded, saying, "Jiye is right. I brought you here today not only to ask about my senior brother's matter, but also to discuss with you the matter of registering as individual business owners."

“Here’s what I’m thinking: since the policy is open and allows private individuals to legally do business, this is definitely not a trivial matter. Moreover, once individual businesses are legal, the market will change. If it’s the same for people with licenses and those without licenses to do business, then why is the government making such a fuss? Don’t you agree?”

Old Wen seemed thoughtful, nodding in agreement with Xu Guoqing's view. Allowing private buying and selling is one thing, applying for a license is another, and the two complement each other. Once individual businesses emerge, corresponding management systems will certainly follow.

These people have all experienced the changes over the years and are very sensitive to certain aspects. And just as Xu Guoqing said, if having a license and not having a license are the same, then there is no need to do this. It seems that the emergence of individual businesses is also an adjustment in consideration of the current situation of a large number of private stalls and businesses springing up like mushrooms after rain.

Although they are currently making a lot of money in this business and doing very well, private trading still exists in an ambiguous state without explicit permission. However, once it is fully liberalized and formal licenses are allowed, this business will be completely legal. Even though there will be requirements for taxes and management due to the license application process, you can't have it all. As long as they can do business peacefully, these issues are insignificant.

“I have no objection to applying for a license, but how do I apply for it?” Lao Wen asked. “I’ll handle that. I’ll just find someone to register it later. The procedures shouldn’t be too complicated,” Xu Guoqing said.

“That’s not what I meant.” Old Wen shook his head. “What I meant was that there are three of us, and if we add Amin, that makes four. Should we apply for one license or apply separately for each of us?”

"This..." Xu Guoqing was stunned. He hadn't thought of this. He had been thinking about the individual business license and had forgotten that this business was a partnership.

"How about the three of us apply together?" Xu Guoqing said after thinking for a moment.

"I don't think that will work," Zhou Jiye said from the side. "A sole proprietorship, a sole proprietorship—you can tell it's for individuals. The license is definitely for individuals. How can three people apply?"

Old Wen frowned deeply: "Jiye is right. If we can't apply together and each person has to get a license, does that mean we have to work separately? What are we going to do next?"

Xu Guoqing couldn't answer the question for a moment. He thought for a moment and said, "There must be a solution, right? How about I go and find out first? We can figure out what to do after we find out. A living person can't be killed by holding their pee, can they? Don't you think so?"

"Hmm, we need to find out more about this. It's easy for your senior brother to open a restaurant. If he can apply for a sole proprietorship license, just let him get one, rent a storefront, and with this skill, opening a restaurant, even if he doesn't make a fortune, is definitely better than working a regular job with a fixed salary. It's just that we need to think about this carefully. We're all brothers, so we can't let this little thing cause any unhappiness."

Seeing how serious Lao Wen was, Xu Guoqing and Zhou Jiye laughed at the same time: "Don't worry, Brother Wen, no matter what, we're still brothers. Things will work themselves out. No matter how this matter is ultimately resolved, we'll all still have to live our lives as usual!"

"Okay! I'm relieved to hear that." Old Wen grinned, raised his glass and said, "Let's have another drink." The three of them happily downed their drinks. Zhou Jiye picked up the bottle next to him and refilled their glasses, saying as he poured, "Brother Qing, you can worry more about the individual business. Also, the goods from Lingnan should arrive in the next couple of days. What's the situation with the price and sales channels?"

Xu Guoqing said in a relaxed tone, "Don't worry about that. I took care of this as soon as I got back. I found a few people, and they all said they would come to see the goods as soon as they arrived. The price has also been agreed upon. As long as there are no problems with the goods, we will pay you on the spot."

"How much did you negotiate the price to?" Lao Wen asked eagerly.

Xu Guoqing chuckled and winked at them, then held up his fingers and gestured: "Three... one hundred and eighty-one units!"

"Three hundred and eighty!"

Zhou Jiye and Lao Wen exchanged a glance, their expressions filled with barely suppressed excitement. Not long ago, Zhou Jiye returned to Shanghai and quickly rejoined their small group, continuing their business together.

Because more and more people are heading south to Lingnan, many are engaging in the business of sourcing goods from Lingnan and reselling them in Shanghai, resulting in an increasing number of similar products on the market.

Although the business was profitable overall, and they had entered the industry early, giving them a significant advantage in both distribution channels and capital compared to others, the booming industry also led to increasingly fierce competition. Therefore, Zhou Jiye considered diversifying his business by focusing on other products.

Because of his connections with Zhang Bo and Xiang Heng, Zhou Jiye took some time to call the number on the note.

This was a phone number from Lingnan, not Hong Kong. While domestic long-distance calls are more troublesome than international ones, they are still easier to connect. After making contact, Zhou Jiye introduced himself and directly mentioned Xiang Heng's name, saying that Xiang Heng had introduced him. It seemed Xiang Heng had spoken to him beforehand, as the other party was very welcoming and asked Zhou Jiye if he needed any help.

During the phone call, Zhou Jiye inquired about the tape recorder. The other party was slightly surprised, not expecting Zhou Jiye to be interested in such a thing.

However, the other party did not refuse, but told Zhou Jiye that he could get his hands on tape recorders, but the quantity was limited and the price was not cheap. Moreover, it would be slightly more troublesome to import them compared to ordinary clothing or sunglasses. If Zhou Jiye wanted them, it would be best to go to Lingnan in person to discuss it.

After Zhou Jiye finished his call, he consulted with Xu Guoqing and Lao Wen. They were surprised and excited to learn that Zhou Jiye had such a channel. Tape recorders were rare items. They were different from clothing and electronic watches. Although department stores sold them, they required coupons and were not cheap. Even so, they were in high demand.

If you can get your hands on a tape recorder, you won't have to worry about sales at all. Plus, the profit margin is high, so it's definitely worth a try.

The three hit it off immediately and decided to head south as soon as possible. So they went directly to Lingnan, met each other in Guangzhou, and discussed the cooperation in detail.

Finally, they acquired a batch of Sanyo single-cassette four-speaker tape recorders at a price of 122 yuan per unit. This batch of tape recorders totaled 783 units, which was all the other party had.

This was a big deal. Based on the purchase price, plus shipping costs and other expenses, Zhou Jiye and his team invested nearly 100,000 yuan.

Keep in mind that this was 100,000 yuan in 1980! In an era when having 10,000 yuan was still a rarity, 100,000 yuan was a fortune that an ordinary person could not earn in several lifetimes. Even though Zhou Jiye and his group had made a lot of money by trading goods back and forth, this time they had invested almost all of their funds at once.

(End of this chapter)