Chapter 232 Amazing
Grand Harmony Brigade.
Treasure Mountain Village.
Bu Zhongshi, with a piece of dogtail grass in his mouth, strolled toward the river with his childhood friends from the village. June and July in the lunar calendar are the hottest months of summer, and swimming in the river to cool off is a daily routine for rural boys.
On the way, one of his friends asked, "Zhongshi, your brother has been in the county for over a month now, right?"
Bu Zhongshi hummed in agreement. "Yeah, it's been more than a month."
The friend said wistfully, "We've never been to the county town before. I wonder what it's like. Your brother gets to work there—it's really enviable!"
Bu Zhongshi spat out the dogtail grass and sighed, "Don't even mention it. I'm just as envious as you are!"
The friend asked, "Zhongshi, your sister, brother-in-law, and brother are all helping your uncle with his work. Why don't you go and help too?"
Bu Zhongshi sighed again. "I'd love to, but my uncle doesn't need that many people right now. He did tell me he'd assign me something when the opportunity arises, but I don't know when that will be."
The friend said enviously, "Your uncle is so capable. If he said he'd arrange a job for you, he'll definitely do it when the time comes. You just have to wait. Unlike me, I don't have any options other than helping out at home."
Bu Zhongshi replied, "I heard my uncle mention something last time. He said Guangdong is developing really fast and will need a lot of workers. If you can't find a job here, maybe going to Guangdong is a good option."
The friend's eyes widened in disbelief. "I haven't even been to the county town, and you're talking about going to Guangdong to find work?"
In this era, the wave of migrant workers heading to Guangdong hadn't yet begun.
Especially in the Double Prosperity area, the trend of going to Guangdong for work didn't start until the late 1980s. By the 1990s and early 2000s, it had become the default path for every working man and woman.
But now, for rural folks who had never even been to the county town, the idea of going to Guangdong was too far-fetched. They didn't dare to think about it, let alone try it.
Bu Zhongshi had only mentioned it casually. He knew nothing about Guangdong and couldn't help but laugh. "I was just talking. For people like us who've never seen the world, if we were sold in Guangdong, we'd probably be dumb enough to help count the money!"
Hearing this, the friend nodded in deep agreement.
Although they were adults, their understanding of the outside world was no better than that of a primary school student in the future. They had never even been to the county town, let alone left the Double Prosperity area.
Moreover, this era lacked televisions, computers, and mobile phones to connect them to the wider world. Growing up in such a small place, they yearned for the outside world but were also in awe of it. Unless someone took them there, they might never dare to leave the province.
The two chatted as they walked toward the river.
Just as they were about to reach the riverbank, the friend suddenly tapped Bu Zhongshi on the shoulder and said, "Zhongshi, look! Isn't that your uncle?"
Bu Zhongshi looked up and saw his uncle riding a bicycle toward them. He quickly called out, "Uncle!"
Deng Shirong braked to a stop and asked, "Zhongshi, where are you headed?"
"The weather's too hot. I was going to swim in the river, but now that you're here, uncle, I won't go."
Bu Zhongshi turned to his friend and said, "I'll go back with my uncle. You go ahead and swim by yourself."
"Alright, you go back. I'll go by myself. There are plenty of people by the river anyway."
Bu Zhongshi nodded, then hopped onto the back seat of his uncle's bicycle and rode home with him.
Three minutes later, they arrived home. Bu Zhongshi jumped off the bike and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Dad, Mom, Uncle's here!"
Deng Shirong parked the bicycle with a smile, then handed over a ten-pound cut of pork hanging from the handlebar. "Take this inside and hang it up."
Bu Zhongshi took the pork and chuckled, "Uncle, every time you come over, we get to eat meat for days!"
As they spoke, Deng Shilan, Bu Erzhu, Bu Xiaoshi, and Bu Xiaofang all came out of the house.
Deng Shilan greeted him with a smile. "Brother, when did you get back from the county town?"
Bu Erzhu nodded at Deng Shirong in greeting.
"Uncle!" Bu Xiaoshi and Bu Xiaofang called out happily.
Deng Shirong smiled. "I just got back yesterday."
Rural households often kept small stools by the door. By the time Deng Shirong sat down, Bu Xiaoshi had already brought over his uncle's pipe.
Deng Shilan asked, "How's the restaurant business?"
Deng Shirong took the pipe, filled it with tobacco, and struck a match as he replied, "Business is good. We made over a thousand yuan in the first month."
Bu Zhongshi, who had just finished hanging the pork, came back out and overheard his uncle's words. He was stunned. "Wow! If you're making over a thousand yuan a month, that's over ten thousand a year! Uncle, you're amazing!"
The others were equally shocked.
Although they knew their younger brother (uncle) had sold over a thousand lychees and nearly five thousand watermelons earlier, his average monthly income was only about five hundred yuan, which paled in comparison to the restaurant's earnings.
Deng Shirong lit his pipe, took a few puffs, and said, "This income is just decent. I invested over 300,000 yuan in the restaurant, so it'll take a while to recoup the costs."
"What?"
Deng Shilan couldn't believe her ears. "Did I hear that right? You invested over 300,000 yuan in the county restaurant?"
Bu Erzhu, Bu Zhongshi, Bu Xiaoshi, and Bu Xiaofang were all dumbfounded.
They had always assumed the restaurant their younger brother (uncle) opened in the county was similar to the Double Prosperity State-owned Restaurant. Even if it was slightly bigger, they thought it would only require a few hundred yuan in investment.
But now they learned that their younger brother (uncle) had invested over 300,000 yuan.
What did 300,000 yuan mean in this era?
Take Treasure Mountain Village, for example. Any family that could scrape together a few hundred yuan in cash was considered well-off. Even if you gathered all the villagers and searched them, you wouldn't find 30,000 yuan, let alone 300,000 yuan!
So, when Deng Shilan's family heard that their younger brother (uncle) had invested such a staggering amount in the county restaurant, they were shocked beyond words.
Deng Shirong nodded, took a few more puffs from his pipe, and said, "I borrowed all that money from the credit union. Now, with the restaurant, Lychee Mountain, and the tile factory, my annual income is about 26,000 to 27,000 yuan. It'll take me about ten years to pay off the loan.
Of course, the restaurant has just started. I believe business will only get better, and that timeline will shorten significantly. Maybe in just three to five years, I'll be able to pay off the entire loan."
Deng Shirong, having lived to 88 in his previous life, had seen it all and knew how to handle relationships with relatives. That's why he chose to reveal some of this information to his third sister's family—to let them know that while he made a lot of money, he also owed a significant debt to the bank.
Anyone with life experience would understand the benefits of this approach.
In short, it made handling money-related matters much easier.
For example, if a relative or friend asked to borrow money, and you didn't owe any debt while making a lot of money, refusing them could lead to strained relationships.
No matter what they needed the money for—even if it was for gambling—they might resent you for not helping.
But if they knew you owed a huge debt to the bank, they'd understand your refusal. While they might still feel disappointed, they wouldn't blame or hate you.
And if you did lend them money, their gratitude would be even greater, because despite your own financial burdens, you were still willing to help.
So, whether or not you owed money wasn't the point. The point was that having a massive debt gave you more flexibility in such situations.
You could help when necessary, but if the money was for gambling or frivolous spending, you had a valid excuse to refuse without damaging the relationship.
When Deng Shilan heard her brother owed the credit union so much money, she couldn't help but worry. "Brother, you were doing so well at home, making good money. Why did you go to the county town and invest so much? What if you can't make it back?"
Bu Erzhu chimed in, "Yes, it's too risky to invest so much."
Deng Shirong smiled reassuringly. "Third sister, third brother-in-law, don't worry. The restaurant's business is getting better and better. We'll definitely be able to pay back the loan."
Bu Zhongshi, Bu Xiaoshi, and Bu Xiaofang didn't overthink it. They just thought their uncle was incredibly cool. Spending over 300,000 yuan in one go was truly amazing.
At the same time, the three siblings shared the same thought: just how big and luxurious was the restaurant their uncle had invested over 300,000 yuan in?
At that moment, they all wished they could fly to the county town and see the restaurant for themselves.
(End of this chapter)