Five years of marriage, always separated [1970s]

Chen Xiaohui didn't have the brand-name bag she was carrying, so Ye Fan bought her a set of skin care products. Ye Fan bought Erbao a stylish small backpack and Geng Huihui a black tote bag, leaving her with books and teaching materials. Yu Wentao didn't want a bag or skin care products, so Ye Fan bought her two boxes of Angong Niuhuang Pills, which are needed by the elderly.

Considering that Ye Jingjing was young, and that medicines, skin care products, and bags were not suitable for her, Ye Fan gave her a signed record of her idol. This record was obtained by Ye Fan's partner from the celebrity agent.

Although Ye Fan's partners were mainly engaged in trade, because there were several people in the company who knew computers and had helped Ye Fan develop several software, he was regarded as one of the new technological elites in Hong Kong, so brokers of all sizes gave him face.

Benben, Leilei and Sensen didn't come but they also received gifts. Ye Fan gave Dabao some money and asked Dabao to buy whatever he wanted.

Although it cost a lot of money, it was earned back in Hong Kong. On the fourth day of the Chinese New Year, Ye Fan and his partner went to meet a foreigner and got a check for one million Hong Kong dollars from him.

Afterwards, the two went to the bank and divided the money between the partners into 10% as agreed, and Ye Fan took the rest back to the hotel. In the evening, Ye Fan asked Er Bao to go and call Chu Guangming.

The hotel Ye Fan booked was a double room, Dabao and Chu Guangming shared one, and when he came, Dabao followed him. Ye Fan opened his bag and took out a few wads of money.

Dabao was puzzled: "Why did mom take out so much money?"

Chu Guangming wanted to ask the same question, but suddenly remembered something: "Aunt Ye, sold it?"

Ye Fan nodded: "My friend is very good at deceiving people. He said your thing was a one-year project of all the employees in his company. After deducting his hard work fee, there is still this much."

Chu Guangming, Dabao and Erbao gasped at the same time, their faces filled with shock.

Erbao pinched her brother, and Dabao gasped in pain. Just as she was about to hit her sister back, Erbao said, "I'm not dreaming!"

Dabao was speechless. He squatted down beside the bed, picked up the money, and said in a floating voice: "Mom, how much is this?"

Ye Fan said: "It would be about one million RMB."

Chu Guangming swallowed his saliva, looking as if he was wondering how it was possible.

Erbao asked: "Mom, is the buyer a foreigner? Are foreigners so rich?"

Ye Fan: "Foreigners are rich but not stupid."

Chu Guangming squatted down next to Dabao: "But, but my little software is worth at most 5,000 yuan. If you give me 10,000 yuan, it's just because they have too much money."

Ye Fan smiled and said, "It's only worth a few thousand dollars for one person to use. You give it to him and let him deal with it. Do you know how many people he sells it to? Overseas countries are developed and many families have computers. Even if he doesn't sell it overseas, he can make back the money in Hong Kong."

Dabao suddenly understood something: "Mom, is this the buyout fee?"

Ye Fan nodded and handed the contract to Chu Guangming: "From now on, you can't sell it to anyone except yourself."

The English contract contained many professional terms. Chu Guangming had a hard time reading it and finally understood it after a long time. It was indeed as Dabao said, this was a buyout fee.

Chu Guangming closed the contract: "Even if it's a buyout fee, this amount of money is too much."

Ye Fan: "If I come forward, the maximum price will be 800,000 Hong Kong dollars. If you come forward, the minimum price will be 10,000 Hong Kong dollars, and the maximum price will be 500,000 Hong Kong dollars. It will definitely not be sold at the current price."

Dabao couldn't help but ask: "Do you look down on mainlanders?"

Ye Fan shook his head slightly, "More than that. They know that the consumption level in the mainland is low, so the labor cost is low. In Hong Kong, for example, in the computer industry, the minimum monthly salary is 7,000 to 8,000. Even if one person is busy for a year, the salary expenditure alone will be more than 100,000. The commercial housing here is 5,000 to 6,000 per square meter. Whether you work from home or rent a house, it will cost tens of thousands of yuan a year. The cost alone is 200,000, and it is not much to sell it for a million Hong Kong dollars."

The three of them were in disbelief and for a moment they didn't know whether to complain about the high housing prices or envy the high salaries.

After a long time, Chu Guangming asked, "Aunt Ye, if your company's employees come to Hong Kong City, can they easily earn over 10,000 yuan a month?"

Ye Fan asked: "Actually, you want to know how much money you can make in a month if you come to Hong Kong City?"

Chu Guangming blushed and asked hesitantly, "Is it so obvious?"

Dabao: "We were talking about this money, and suddenly you brought up my mom's company employees. Don't you find it strange?" He rolled his eyes at Chu Guangming: "Didn't I hear my mom say that housing prices are also high? What's the use of a high salary? You earn money in Hong Kong and spend it in Hong Kong. Don't even think about taking a penny home."

Erbao: "Chu Guangming is the only one at home, there is no need to bring him home."

Dabao glared at his sister: "Are you arguing? I mean, I've been working for nothing all year round!"

Erbao saw that Chu Guangming wanted to find a hole to hide in, so he interrupted him deliberately: "You blame me for not explaining it clearly?"

Dabao suspected that his sister was just trying to argue: "You——"

Ye Fan interrupted: "Pause for now. Guangming, do you really want to come to Hong Kong City?"

Chu Guangming was tempted when he heard about the annual income of 100,000, but when Dabao said that, he felt it was unnecessary.

This money can buy several large flats in the capital, and there is still a lot of money left. He rents out the house, and if he is not satisfied with his work in the future, the rent can support him.

If he settled in Hong Kong, this money could only buy one house. Although Hong Kong was very convenient in all aspects, he had to keep working, otherwise he would have to sell the house and rent a house to live on the proceeds.

Although Chu Guangming likes to make money and doesn't hate working, he feels overwhelmed when he thinks about having to work every year in the future.

Chu Guangming spoke frankly: "When I think of the high annual salary you mentioned, I feel that Hong Kong is good. But I think that Hong Kong makes money and I spend it in China."

Dabao: "That's a good wish! How can you have time to go to Shenzhen to enjoy yourself when you work every day? If you don't want to enjoy yourself, save money to buy a house, but you are in Hong Kong, do you want a house in the mainland to live in for your retirement? Have you ever thought about what would happen if you suddenly get sick and die before you decide to retire?"

Chu Guangming was angry but wanted to laugh: "You'd better stop talking."

Ye Fan said: "Dabao, have you ever thought about Chu Guangming earning 500,000 or 1 million yuan a year?"

Dabao nodded: "That's possible. But he has to work hard for a few years, right? It's impossible for them to give him so much money right after graduation. Even if he is a genius, they will have to spend some time to see if he is just a sham. Having said that, he can earn a million yuan a year in Hong Kong. He can't make so much money in the mainland, but he is definitely a treasure of the company, the kind that is accompanied by bodyguards when traveling."

Erbao: "He is a bodyguard arranged by the state. His social status is definitely higher than that in Hong Kong."

Dabao looked at his sister and said, "Aren't you very good at talking?"

Erbao rolled his eyes at him.

Dabao: "Chu Guangming, if you don't have money, I support you to come to Hong Kong City to make a living for a few years. The problem is that you have money now, and you can be as comfortable in the mainland as in Hong Kong City."

Erbao said: "My brother is telling the truth."

Dabao stared.

Ye Fan asked: "What are you two arguing about? You didn't argue when you were kids, and now you want to make up for it?"

The brother and sister glared at each other and turned their heads away.

Ye Fan shook his head helplessly: "Guangming, I asked you if you want to come to Gangcheng because the housing prices in Gangcheng have changed every few days in the past six months. If you want to come to Gangcheng, I will ask my friends to accompany you to look at houses. If you are just tempted and have no plans to settle in Gangcheng, save the money tomorrow and we will go back in two days."

Chu Guangming asked: "Is it in the port city?"

Ye Fan: "You can also bring it back to the mainland. Divide it into several bags and put them in the customs so no one will check you."

"Then take it back." Chu Guangming carefully counted how much money he had, then divided it into two, took up one half and took out a small stack for Dabao.

Dabao was confused, "No, give it to me, why do you want to give it to me?"

"I made it with your computer." Chu Guangming stuffed it into his hand and gave the other half to Ye Fan.

Ye Fan reached out to take it. Er Bao couldn't help but say, "Mom, you're so rude!"

Chu Guangming laughed and teased: "You just found out?"

Erbao remembered something: "I knew it a long time ago. But I forgot it in the past few years."

Dabao nodded: "We worked so hard to write the couplets, but she wanted a cut."

Ye Fan couldn't help but raise his eyebrows: "Without me helping you sell, how much money can you make by just shouting in the park every day?"

Chu Guangming couldn't help but think of what Ye Fangang said. If he went forward himself, he might be able to sell it for 10,000 Hong Kong dollars. If it was in the mainland, he didn't know how to buy it outright, so he might only be able to sell it for 1,000 Hong Kong dollars. Fortunately, there were a few people who bought it. With no connections or channels, it would be difficult for him to sell it for 500,000 Hong Kong dollars.

Now he has more than 400,000 RMB without asking anyone for help or running around. The most important point is that, except Ye Fan's family of three, no one knows that he has so much money, so naturally no one will be jealous.

If he takes action in the mainland, many people will know about it, and when the news spreads, his aunt and his biological father and mother will all come looking for him.

Even if they look down on 400,000, considering that he is a student and can earn that much, they will definitely think that he can earn more in the future and then pester him.

So although it may seem like a loss for him to work so hard and only get a small share, in fact he gained by avoiding so much trouble.

Chu Guangming smiled and said, "I don't feel bad at all, so why should you two feel bad?"

Ye Fan nodded: "Look at the bright pattern!"

Dabao snorted, "You're just fooling me." He turned to Chu Guangming, "She's my mother, and she's also a businesswoman. If you really listen to her, she'll sell you off and you'll still think you're underpaid."

Chu Guangming didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "I'm not that stupid. Besides, Aunt Ye only wants her share. For example, this time, the signature on the contract is her friend, so he didn't need to show me the contract. I think it's too much if he told me that it's only HK$100,000."

Dabao: "There is no impenetrable wall in the world. It's not that she doesn't want to, but you will find out sooner or later if she lies to you."

Chu Guangming shook his head: "Not necessarily. What if the person who bought my software died in a few years? Besides, if it weren't for this contract, I wouldn't even know the name of her partner. Later, her partner said in front of me that he helped someone sell a piece of software and got more than 100,000 yuan in commission, but he didn't know that the person he was talking about was me."

Ye Fan said: "Dabao, Erbao, learn from Guangming."

Erbao: "Mom, I'm not an adult yet, shouldn't you give me some pocket money?"

Ye Fan put away the money and took out a ten-dollar bill from his bag.

Erbao couldn't believe it: "You, you, you, you only give me one for so much money?"

Ye Fan: "You don't have as many classmates as you do."

"My classmate's mother is not you."

Ye Fan said, "So I deserve to be given so much because I can make money? Geng Erbao, where is your mother being taken advantage of?"

"You you——" Erbao couldn't argue with her, "If you don't give me pocket money now, I won't give you any in the future!"

Chu Guangming laughed out loud.

Erbao didn't understand: "Is it funny?"

Chu Guangming: "Even if Aunt Ye stops doing this now, the monthly interest on her money in the bank is higher than your salary. Do you need to give her some pocket money?"

Erbao opened his mouth, but found himself speechless: "You, I am your friend, she is your friend?"

Chu Guangming: "You are my friend, but you can make money with Aunt Ye. With this money, I don't have to be a nanny for young masters and young ladies. Besides, college now requires tuition fees. How can I pay tuition without money? From this point of view, Aunt Ye is my breadwinner. Parents are of course more important than friends!"

Erbao: "Is there some evil spirit in Hong Kong? Since you came here, it's like your Ren and Du meridians have been opened. You talk more than before."

Chu Guangming could still save tens of thousands of yuan after buying four large apartments with more than 400,000 yuan. He was no longer a floating duckweed, and he had a sense of security and no pressure in life. He was relaxed, just like a carefree college student.

Ye Fan said, "Guangming, divide your money into several parts and let Erbao and my mother-in-law help you pack it."

Erbao: "Mom, don't you need me anymore?" Ye Fan said: "Aren't you going to eat for the next two days?"

Except for a few families who paid for their own trips, Ye Fan paid for the meals and transportation of any family members and employees who followed her. But not many people followed her. These days, Chen Xiaohui took Geng Huihui and Ye Jingjing to wander around. Yu Wentao was tired and either watched TV in the house or went for a walk downstairs. Chu Guangming and Wei Jianshe went together, and Ye Fan was only with Dabao and Erbao.

Almost all of Ye Fan’s twenty-odd employees had been here before and did not need Ye Fan’s company, so they moved in groups of three or four.

The sales staff didn't come, and they knew they were different from the top students, so no one made a fuss. But Ye Fan didn't treat them badly, and gave each of them an extra 500 yuan for the holiday.

Erbao said, "I still need to buy clothes."

Ye Fan: "Didn't you buy it?"

The two kids only brought one set of clothes before. Ye Fan found that their bags were particularly empty, so he asked them to bring a set of autumn clothes and a pair of shoes. Even if they had spare clothes, they would still need clothes and shoes when they arrived in the port city.

Sometimes when Ye Fan gave them pocket money to buy milk tea, they would put it in their pockets and let Ye Fan pay.

Ye Fan was convinced by the two Pi Xiu in her family.

Erbao held her mother's hand and acted coquettishly: "Mom, good mom, don't you want me to dress beautifully to make you proud?"

Ye Fan: "No one in Hong Kong knows me."

"How could that be? Doesn't your partner know you? If he sees me wearing off-season clothes, he will definitely suspect that your company's capital chain is in trouble."

Ye Fan sneered: "You know a lot. It's a pity that he doesn't understand fashion."

"Mom!" Erbao threw himself into her arms. "You are so rich, and you made your money in a fair way. Why don't you spend it? Won't it belong to me and my brother in the future?"

Ye Fan shook his head: "That's not necessarily true. I'll give it to whoever is filial to me and your father in the future."

Dabao turned around, picked up the water on the table and turned it on: "Mom, drink some water!"

Chu Guangming almost choked on his saliva.

Ye Fan raised his head and rolled his eyes.

Dabao: "Mom, you're not thirsty, are you hungry? Mom, what do you want to eat? Egg tarts or fish balls?"

Chu Guangming couldn't bear to watch it: "Dabao, I want to eat egg waffles!"

"Go buy it yourself!" Dabao said bluntly.

Chu Guangming choked and asked again: "Do you want to eat? I'll treat you."

Dabao shook his head: "I don't want to eat!"

Chu Guangming: "What do you want to buy? I'll buy it for you!"

Dabao turned around and glared at him: "Are you rich? Or do you think I have no money?"

"I have money and you have money, why are you still pestering Aunt Ye?" Chu Guangming knew why, so he said this with a speechless look on his face.

Ye Fan: "Eat at the rich man's house."

Erbao shook his head: "Mom is not a rich woman, but she is my favorite mom."

Chu Guangming suddenly felt goosebumps.

Ye Fan: "Dad is also your favorite dad, and I haven't seen you ask him for money."

Erbao blurted out: "Dad has no money!"

The room suddenly fell silent.

Erbao laughed: "Mom heard wrong, I said Dad is not here."

Ye Fan pulled her away: "Three pairs of shoes and three sets of clothes are enough for you and your brother! You can't wear them even if you buy them back."

Erbao subconsciously asked: "Why?"

Chu Guangming said helplessly: "The capital is covered in ice and snow right now. The ice and snow will melt in the second month of the lunar calendar, and you can only wear what you buy now at the end of March. By then, there may be new styles."

Erbao stood up: "That seems to be true. Chu Guangming, put the money away, let's go out and buy something delicious. Brother, you treat us!"

Dabao nodded and drew a big ticket: "Mom, are you going?"

It was dark outside, and Ye Fan was worried about the three immature people going out: "Erbao, ask grandma if she is hungry."

Erbao skipped to the next door.

Ye Fan's forehead was filled with black lines when he saw this. Geng Erbao still thought he was six or seven years old.

Erbao doesn’t feel like he’s almost an adult.

Probably because none of his brothers and sisters were married and no one was urging them to do so, even Geng Leilei, who would be 28 after the Chinese New Year, did not feel that he was an older youth.

By the way, Geng Huihui came back and brought her grandmother a portion of rice noodles and a portion of roast goose legs. Yu Wentao was full, so she didn't ask Ye Fan to bring her own food.

Ye Fan went downstairs with the three children. Chu Guangming saw a computer at the front desk and couldn't help asking, "Aunt Ye, is the computer that Dabao uses expensive?"

Ye Fan: "Where did you put it after you bought it?"

Chu Guangming now lives in a slum. If he brings a computer there, everyone will look at him with suspicion. Chu Guangming sighed, "I still have to buy a house and move out."

Dabao asked: "Will the two rooms you move out become someone else's?"

The compound is owned by the government. Chu Guangming cannot buy, sell or rent it out. If someone else moves in after he leaves, he can't do anything about it. "Maybe."

Dabao asked his mother: "If the compound is to be demolished, will only the residents inside be able to get a house?"

Ye Fan nodded: "If we don't make a fuss, he will be gone. If we make a fuss, it's possible. But it won't be many rooms, at most 60 square meters, or maybe 40 square meters."

Chu Guangming: "They definitely think it's too little and won't move."

Ye Fan smiled and said, "There are few shanty towns over there, so the government can bypass the shanty towns when demolishing the houses."

Dabao couldn't help but ask: "What about places with many slums?"

Ye Fan: "If it's not cost-effective, then don't demolish it. It's not like we can't expand outward. But if others are willing to demolish it, it's useless if one or two families are unwilling to move. They will unite to squeeze those one or two families out, and the government doesn't need to intervene. Also, they're asking for too much, so the leaders in charge of demolition can talk to their leaders."

Erbao: "Even if I can only get a 40-square-meter apartment, it's worth it."

Ye Fan shook his head, "You can't calculate it that way. Erbao, if Guangming has nothing, it's more cost-effective to wait for the demolition. If it's demolished in five years, he will have to stay in a dirty and messy environment for five years just for a small house, and he can't even buy a computer—" He stopped here, "Guangming, you can go to the new house during the day and live in the slum at night."

Chu Guangming's mind moved: "Yes. The temperature is low in winter, and there is no strange smell in the slum. In winter, we live in the slum. In summer, when it's hot and there are many mosquitoes, we live in the new house." He paused, "I'll talk to my childhood friend later and ask him to move in. If the house can be demolished, with two of us living in it, others who want to take our share won't dare to throw us out."

Ye Fan shook his head: "It's impossible to divide it by the number of people. It's possible that each household will have one set. By the way, does it mean two rooms per family?"

Chu Guangming nodded: "In the beginning, it was one house with two rooms. The compound had a large yard, and some people built kitchens and other things in the yard, so the number of houses increased."

Ye Fan: "The additional ones don't count. Otherwise, we could have built more than a dozen more rooms in our new home."

Chu Guangming heard this and said, "Then it is fairest to divide it by household."

Ye Fan stopped and Dabao looked at the night food stall not far away: "Mom, do you want to take it away or eat here?"

Erbao: "Let's go. It will be cold when we pack up and go to the hotel."

Ye Fan saw a few long-haired guys sitting at a table and felt that something was going to happen. But he saw that there were four of them on his side, and Dabao also knew some martial arts, "Let's go and eat."

Maybe Dabao is tall, so the others looked at him and then looked away. Erbao sat down, and the others looked up at him. Ye Fan turned his head and stared at them expressionlessly, and they looked away again.

Chu Guangming followed Ye Fan's line of sight and felt that those people had a strange temperament. He asked in a low voice: "Aunt Ye, Young and Dangerous?"

Ye Fan nodded: "It's possible!"

Chu Guangming was puzzled: "Why are there so many hooligans in Hong Kong?"

Ye Fan: "Don't you know Young and Dangerous?"

Chu Guangming: "I saw it on TV and thought it was an artistic exaggeration."

Ye Fan didn't know what to say for a moment. On the way back, Ye Fan looked at the tall buildings and thought: "Many modern films in Hong Kong have prototypes."

Erbao hugged his mother when he heard this: "Do those wealthy families have them too?"

Ye Fan nodded.

Chu Guangming: "How about several wives?"

Ye Fan nodded again.

Chu Guangming suddenly felt torn: "Aunt Ye, isn't this a developed area? Why is this like a feudal society? Maybe it happens in the mainland too, but no one dares to do it openly. Otherwise, there are so many people in the compound and there are so many gossips, it is impossible that I have never heard of it."

Ye Fan: "How should I put it? Every place has its own local characteristics."

Dabao rolled his eyes in front, his mother is really good at talking.

The next morning, Ye Fan said goodbye to her partners, and in the afternoon she bought some things that were not available in the mainland but that she needed. The next morning, she checked her luggage, and in the evening, everyone boarded the train to the north.

Ye Fan had just moved there and didn't know anyone, so no neighbors stopped her to ask where she had been doing these days.

After returning home to rest for a day, Ye Fan went to the company to ask the employees to calm down, then went to the office, and then to the store. In the afternoon, Ye Fan went to Chang Guangrong's house with some souvenirs.

Chang Guangrong saw Ye Fan chatting for a while, then said, "I'll ask someone about it. The endorsement fees of celebrities are high, and TV advertising is also expensive. I don't think it's worth it."

Ye Fan: "I have an idea. Find someone to buy a script about high school or freshman students, and make it into a TV series. The students will wear your clothes to school every day. If the filming is good, the TV station will give you money in return."

Chang Guangrong thought about it carefully, and the more he thought about it, the better he thought this was. "Students need to find young actors, and young actors are cheaper."

Ye Fan: "You don't need to find someone too famous for roles like teachers or parents, just someone who looks familiar to you. Students can go to the film academy to find one. A few dozen dollars a day will be enough. Maybe even less."

Chang Guangrong: “Just do it!”

Ye Fan thought again: "You can also ask your friends if they are interested in this industry. You can set up a company with them and let them be the legal representative. Sign contracts with the actors you like. When the show is finished, use your connections to help them find jobs and you can earn commissions."

Chang Guangrong's wife couldn't help but say, "Sister Fan, what's wrong with your brain?"

(End of this chapter)