A century-old wealthy family that rose from Shanghai

Chapter 4 Foreigners and Women

The weather in late April is already a bit warm.

At noon, some rickshaw pullers would choose to take a nap next to their rickshaws.

Although a rickshaw puller's shift is about ten hours, in reality, who can really pull the rickshaw for that long? Most of the time, they are waiting for business to come and resting.

And even if you are given so much business, how many people can handle it physically?

In the previous life, the story of "Camel Xiangzi" tells a story that a rickshaw driver in Beijing needs to save money for three years to buy a rickshaw, but Xiangzi is in good health and frugal, so it only takes him two years.

Having a good body is better than anything else when working in this field.

Chen Guangliang had been traveling through time for almost a week, and he was convinced that his body was undergoing a second growth phase, with his appetite increasing by nearly a third. So, to avoid delaying this growth phase, he ruthlessly increased his living expenses.

The increase in the cost of living also means that Chen Guangliang needs to attract more business so that he can save up "thirty dollars" as soon as possible to plan the "partnership for buying a car".

While waiting for the bus, many people choose to rest, or even gather together to gamble and brag.

Obviously, Chen Guangliang would not do this. He usually only does two things:

The first thing he did was to read the newspaper. Not only did he learn about the information of the time, but he also gestured some traditional Chinese characters on the ground. Fortunately, he had a foundation in simplified Chinese characters and knew most of the traditional Chinese characters, so it was not difficult for him to learn, and it could even be said to be simple.

The second thing is to clean the rickshaw. Chen Guangliang not only pays attention to his own hygiene, but also pays attention to the hygiene of the rickshaw. When he goes to the river, he will get a bucket of water to wipe his body and wet the towel.

Developing good habits will help you achieve great things.

"Hello, By Car?"

When Chen Guangliang opened his mouth, he not only shocked several rickshaw pullers, but also surprised a foreigner.

What a fuss! After all, I went to college in my previous life. What's wrong with knowing a few words in the CET-4?
The foreigner decisively chose to take Chen Guangliang's rickshaw.

"British American Tobacco Company, you know?"

The foreigner took out a pack of "Robber" cigarettes and gestured, fearing that Chen Guangliang didn't understand.

In the 20s, there were many smokers in Shanghai, and the types of cigarettes were also varied. Among them, there were six brands with the largest market share. The most famous one was Lao Dao brand, which smokers used to call "Robber Brand" because the picture on its cigarette box was a ferocious pirate with a knife; followed by red tin pack (commonly known as "British Brand"), green tin pack (commonly known as "Three Forts"), and white tin pack (commonly known as "Capstan Brand" or "Blue Fort". The so-called red tin pack is taken from the pink cigarette box with tin foil lining, and the green tin pack and white tin pack are similar. The above four are all high-end cigarettes, smoked by wealthy people. The mid-range cigarette is Qianmen, and the low-end cigarette is Hardmen.

All six of these best-selling cigarettes come from the same company - British American Tobacco.

"Huangpu. South. Suzhou Road?"

"OK"

The foreigner happily lit a cigarette and prepared to give one to Chen Guangliang.

But Chen Guangliang refused because he doesn't smoke.

This was not the first time that Chen Guangliang had brought in foreigners, but he always liked to communicate with them along the way to improve his poor English.

Although foreigners also look down on rickshaw pullers, they will not make things difficult for someone who knows a little bit of their language.

Even after pulling it to the local area, the foreigners can give you a few more cents.

I've heard that after 7 p.m., you could pick up foreigners heading to the Paramount Ballroom in the French Concession. They'd wear stylish Western clothes and overalls, chatting cheerfully in foreign languages ​​as they sat on their rickshaws. Some would give the rickshaws a few extra coins when they got off, a fact that delighted the rickshaw pullers immensely.

Chen Guangliang has never worked the night shift, but he has met a few foreign clients, and it is normal for them to give him a few more cents.

"Chen, Study English, GO Foreign Firm WorkWork, Understand?"

“I know I know”

At British American Tobacco, John, the foreigner, did not forget to give Chen Guangliang some "tutoring," suggesting that he learn more English so that he could work for a foreign company instead of being a rickshaw driver. Chen Guangliang actually wanted to become a "comprador" for the company, as it would expand his business and network, but it wasn't feasible at the moment.

However, John's words made Chen Guangliang more convinced of the importance of learning English. Although he knew a lot of words, it was difficult for him to communicate normally.

Watching John enter a European-style office building, Chen Guangliang was thoughtful.

Currently, British American Tobacco holds 80% of the Chinese cigarette market, and is exempt from paying taxes. However, with the Northern Expedition's victory, the Nationalist government must collect taxes from British American Tobacco, otherwise, where would the military funds come from?

According to Chen Guangliang's historical knowledge, collecting taxes from British American Tobacco was a series of "struggles," and the great powers were not easily subdued. In this struggle, Du Yuesheng seemed to have played a significant role behind the scenes, supporting strikes by his followers and bringing in funds from the Nanyang Cigarette Factory, among others. His tactics were quite shrewd.

Although Chen Guangliang knew this history, he was just a small figure, so he shook his head and left the scene.

On the way back, try not to wait for passengers in unfamiliar places. You can wait for passengers while walking. This is a rule of thumb. Some police officers may come up to check the rickshaw pullers' license plates when they see unfamiliar faces.

Of course, checking the cards is fake, but asking for money is real, and usually you have to pay one cent to pass.

The salary of the concession police was only 13 to 16 oceans a month, and they could only make a fortune by extorting the lower classes of society.

So Chen Guangliang drove the empty cart, keeping his eyes and ears open, always on the lookout for any passengers who needed a cart.

He always felt that he had a "golden finger", such as sharper eyes and ears, greater strength, etc. This is a very good thing. Not to mention that pulling a rickshaw can make more money, it can also give it a try at the critical moment.

Making money through illegal means is the last resort.

Along the way, some rickshaw drivers would honk their horns frantically, and some patrolmen would yell at rickshaw drivers. In short, this is a lowly job.

"Red Man"

When you hear this word, you don't feel angry, but run quickly towards the sound, like a dog chasing a bone.

Got another order!
A woman and a child about ten years old got on the bus together.

As early as the beginning of the 20th century, rickshaws could carry two adults. Later, the government felt that it was immoral - women sitting on men's laps, and it was too harmful to rickshaw drivers; therefore, only one adult was allowed to ride in rickshaws.

A fat woman and a ten-year-old child were still much heavier than an adult man, but Chen Guangliang didn't show any concern. However, when he got there, he was undoubtedly uncomfortable being haggled over by the fat woman.

Before leaving, the fat woman did not forget to say: "Little naked man, I see that you have some strength. Do you want to come to my house to pull a private car?"

"no need"

"Ignorance of promotion"

The fat woman walked into the apartment with a look of disdain, pulling the child.

Chen Guangliang drove away, cursing the woman in his heart, but soon forgot about her.

In this era, private cars were exclusive to the top wealthy people, and taxis and buses were not yet very popular, so the middle class and even the upper class in Shanghai basically relied on rickshaws.

Rickshaws are also divided into 'private cars' and 'public cars'. Privately owned rickshaws are different from rickshaws and are painted black. Although they are the same type as public rickshaws, they are easy to distinguish.

The public rickshaws are not only painted yellow but also look dirty and worn, although they rarely break down along the way.

Private chartered vehicles have a shiny appearance, with spotless white double seats, clean plaid cloth spread on the passengers' knees, and wide rainproof cloth to protect passengers on rainy days.

The advantage of driving a private car is "stability", but whether the owner is difficult to serve is an unknown.

Don't think that you are just taking the male master to and from get off work. You may also need to take the female master to buy groceries and entertain guests, and take the young masters and young ladies to and from school. You may even have to do housework. There is not much difference between you and a slave.

Therefore, pulling a bus is the best option. At least the current rickshaw market is not as bad as it will be in five years.

(End of this chapter)