Starting with vegetable greenhouses in 1988

Chapter 118 Notice
morning.

The living room of the Li family in a Suzhou alley.

Li Zhe sat by the coffee table, drinking tea and scribbling in his notebook.

Wang Jianjun pushed open the door and went straight to the stove to warm himself by the fire: "I told my aunt that we're going over for dinner tonight."

Li Zhe looked up: "Didn't we say we'd treat everyone to dinner out?"

"My aunt said she'd eat at home and that she'd cook for us."

"That works too. Let's go buy some groceries this afternoon. I learned a new dish from a book, and I'll show it off to you tonight."

"Are you really good at cooking? Or are you just all talk? Don't waste the ingredients after all that effort."

"Just hold on tight, I guarantee you'll eat them all without making a sound!"

Wang Jianjun laughed and scolded, "What, did you put a mute drug in my food?"

Li Zhe didn't bother arguing with him; he was determined to win him over with his skills. As a gluttonous old bachelor, Li Zhe's culinary skills were quite good, especially his signature dishes that went well with drinks.

Seeing him writing with his head down, not doing any accounting, Wang Jianjun asked curiously, "Zhezi, what are you studying? You've been sitting here all morning without moving."

Li Zhe didn't answer immediately. He wrote for a while longer before looking up and saying, "Brother, how about we open a restaurant?"

"Why are you making this decision on a whim? Our vegetables are selling just fine, why open a restaurant? We've never done this before, what if we lose money?" Wang Jianjun felt it was too sudden and didn't quite understand.

Li Zhe doesn't plan to tell anyone about the off-season vegetable supply chain for the time being. Even if he did, they might not understand, and even if they did understand, they might not agree. He can only try to explain it in a way that is easier for others to accept.

"Brother, we've planted another 10 mu of land. We'll have even more vegetables to harvest soon, including a lot of the less attractive ones that won't fetch a good price. We can't possibly eat them all ourselves, so we can't just let them go to waste, can we?"

Previously, when Lin Qiaomei came to discuss restaurant cooperation, Wang Jianjun was also present. He roughly understood what Li Zhe meant.

Off-season vegetables are so valuable these days. Even if they're bruised or damaged, they're still edible, and they're all fresh vegetables delivered that day. As long as they can be made into dishes and sold, the restaurant's profits will definitely be substantial.

Wang Jianjun was tempted for a moment, but at the same time he was a little confused: "I've never done this before, I have no experience in running a restaurant, and I always feel unsure about myself."

Li Zhe laughed and said, "Me too. How about this—brother, you go find a restaurant to work and learn from the staff, and I'll make you a manager later!"

Wang Jianjun was stunned, feeling like his brain couldn't keep up: Good heavens, how did it all end up on him in just a few words? So, he's the one who's suffered the most in this restaurant business?

"Haha..." Li Zhe laughed out loud, "I was just kidding. But I do have ideas about opening a restaurant. Could you help me think of something and see if there are any suitable vacant shops around here?"

“Okay, I’ve got it.” Wang Jianjun nodded.

After thinking about it carefully, he realized that this wasn't a bad thing. Regardless of whether it made money or not, it solved the problem of feeding the two brothers.

"Knock knock knock—Is Mr. Li home?" A knock sounded on the door.

Wang Jianjun got up and opened the door, and saw an old lady standing at the door wearing a blue cotton-padded jacket with gold trim. It was the old lady of the Ji family.

He was somewhat surprised: "Auntie, what brings you here?"

Grandma Ji smiled and said, "I've come here today to ask for your help."

Wang Jianjun stepped aside: "It's cold outside, please come in and talk."

Seeing the old lady enter the house, Li Zhe stood up and gestured for her to sit down: "Auntie, please sit down and tell me what's on your mind."

Grandma Ji glanced around the room and sat down opposite Li Zhe. "This room is arranged quite well, it's very nice."

"Thank you for renting the house to us." Li Zhe picked up the teapot and poured water. "If you need anything, just tell me."

Grandma Ji adjusted her teacup: "It's like this, we're planning to sell this house, so I came to let you know in advance. I'm afraid you'll have to find another place to rent. Also, on the day you move out, the remaining rent and deposit will be refunded to you, and we won't charge you a single extra penny."

Li Zhe picked up his teacup, took a sip of water, and then slowly asked, "Auntie, why are you suddenly selling the house? When we were renting it, Boss Ji didn't tell me anything."

“We weren’t planning on selling the house. My daughter recently got her residency in the US and wants to bring us over to reunite with her, but she probably won’t be back for a while. I figured the house is just sitting here anyway, so it’s better to sell it to someone who needs it. Don’t you think that makes sense?”

Hearing that the other party was going abroad, Li Zhe could understand—people of this era had a blind worship of foreign countries, from top to bottom, from the old to the young. "Have you found a buyer yet?"

"To be honest, this was only decided yesterday, and my Hongbin is still not happy about it." Old Mrs. Ji sighed. "Mr. Li, you are in business. If you have any suitable buyers, please help me introduce them."

"Ma'am, I have to ask you something first, is this house for sale?"

“Yes, it can be sold! This is our family’s ancestral home, a private house, with all the necessary paperwork, and it can be transferred.” The old lady added, fearing he wouldn’t believe her, “You can ask the neighbors; our family has lived here since before Liberation.”

Li Zhe was still a little uneasy. He felt something was amiss—shouldn't Ji Hongbin be the one handling this? Why was the old lady coming to talk to him? "Auntie, have you finalized the matter of selling the house? Do Boss Ji and his wife agree?"

“The house is mine, and I make the decisions. Do I need their consent?” The old lady’s tone was calm, yet carried an air of unquestionable authority. “If your friend really wants to buy the house, just bring him to see it and sign the contract with me. Don’t worry about what other people think.”

Li Zhe asked, "How much do you plan to sell it for?"

"4 yuan. I'm selling sincerely and I'm not asking for a high price. Our house is a two-courtyard siheyuan, covering a total area of ​​over 600 square meters. You can search all the hutongs in Suzhou and you won't find another house as good as this!"

Li Zhe shook his head: "Auntie, your house is indeed nice, but the price is too high. Even if my friend wanted to buy a house, he definitely wouldn't be a sucker."

Grandma Ji asked, "Then how much do you think is appropriate?" Li Zhe pondered for a moment and replied, "15000."

"What! Are you kidding me? I'm selling such a nice house for 15000? Isn't that bullying? If your friend isn't sincere, then there's no point in talking!" The old lady couldn't accept it and stood up to leave.

"Auntie, please don't get agitated. Business is about give and take. I still think your asking price of 4 is unreasonable," Li Zhe reassured her, and continued, "You're going abroad to pursue your career, so you won't be short of a few dollars. Let's make it a little cheaper."

The old lady turned around, "39000!"

"16000."

"38000!"

The most important thing in doing business is patience, so Li Zhe wasn't in a hurry and continued to bargain: "16,500."

The old lady gritted her teeth and lowered the price by another 1000: "37000!"

"17000."

The old lady glared at her: "Hey! That's not fair! I lowered it by 1000, and you raised it by 500. Are you taking advantage of my age and hearing?"

"Pfft!" Wang Jianjun, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but laugh.

Li Zhe said, "How about this, so that you're happy and I'm happy too, I'll just give you 2 yuan directly, how about that?"

"No way! We'd lose money selling at this price; it should be at least 3!" After saying that, the old lady suddenly realized something and exclaimed, "Wait a minute, I lowered the price by 1, but you only raised it by 5000?"

"Auntie, why are you in such a hurry again? Here's what I'll do: I'll raise it by another 500—to 20500."

"No way! The price is still too low. I definitely won't sell it for less than 3!" This time, the old lady was smart and didn't lower the price any further.

Seeing that Li Zhe wanted to say something more, the old lady stood up and said, "If your friend is sincere, let him bring the money to see the house. There's no such thing as 'bargaining' and trying to lower the price before even seeing the house or meeting the person! You're busy, I'll be going now." The old lady turned and left the house.

Li Zhe escorted her to the door. "Grandma, if my friend comes with the money today, can we reserve this house?"

"I have something to do today, let him come tomorrow." The old lady walked away without turning her head.

"Zhezi, why are you teasing that old lady for no reason? Look how upset you've made her." Wang Jianjun poured out the water from the old lady's teacup and rinsed the cup.

After considering it in his mind for a moment, Li Zhe said, "Brother, what do you think about me buying this house?"

"Pfft—" Wang Jianjun had just taken a sip of tea when he heard this and immediately spat it out. "You want to buy this courtyard house?!"

Wang Jianjun wiped his mouth, looking incredulous.

Four months ago, they were just poor boys toiling in the fields. He had never considered himself a Beijing resident, nor had he ever thought about buying a house in the capital. He knew Li Zhe was rich now, but some of his mindset and ways of thinking were hard to change in a short time.

After a while, he said, "Zhezi, you're not joking, are you really planning to buy this courtyard house?"

Which person from the area surrounding Beijing doesn't want to buy a house in Beijing?

The 90s are just around the corner, a period of rapid economic development, and housing prices are expected to skyrocket. As long as Li Zhe acquires this courtyard house, his livelihood will be secure for the rest of his life. Even if his off-season ecological industrial chain fails, this house will guarantee him a comfortable life.

Moreover, private courtyard houses with clear property rights like these are rare in Beijing; once this opportunity is gone, it's gone forever.

“That’s right, I want to buy this courtyard house.” Li Zhe rubbed his hands together, a hint of eagerness in his eyes.

However, buying a house in this era was different from later generations, and a courtyard house was different from ordinary real estate. Before purchasing, Li Zhe had to do his research to avoid being scammed or leaving any hidden dangers.

Li Zhe didn't even have time for lunch and went straight to the Housing Management Bureau.

Upon arrival, Li Zhe inquired with the staff and learned that private houses with clear property rights and complete procedures could be traded on the market, and there were no restrictions on out-of-towners buying houses. Li Zhe was immediately relieved of his worries.

After leaving the Housing Management Bureau, Li Zhe rode his bicycle straight to Friendship Store. When he arrived, he saw Wang Jianjun already waiting at the door on his tricycle.

This tricycle was bought with extra money from the previous rickshaw. Li Zhe bought the rickshaw because Wang Jianjun was delivering vegetables alone, and they were worried someone would steal cucumbers from him. Now that trucks are used for delivering vegetables, the rickshaw was too cumbersome to carry small items occasionally, so they simply switched to the tricycle.

"Brother, when did you get here?"

"I just arrived too. How's the housing situation going?"

Li Zhe laughed and said, "Hehe, let's talk about it when we get home."

Seeing his expression, Wang Jianjun knew it must be good news.

After entering the Friendship Store, the two first bought some ingredients for dinner, then a case of Coke, a case of Moutai, two packs of Marlboro cigarettes, a set of women's skincare products, and a silk scarf. Director Wei had helped settle things with "Cleaver Liu," doing Li Zhe a great favor.

These gifts were all prepared for Director Wei. Wang Jianjun and Director Wei were legitimate relatives, so regardless of whether the other party accepted them or not, Li Zhe couldn't refuse to give them.

After buying the goods, Li Zhe packed the cigarettes and alcohol into his travel bag and rode his bicycle and tricycle to the Jianguomen Police Station's residential compound. Once there, the two carried their belongings upstairs and knocked on the door.

"Creak..." The door opened, and a young girl stood beside it.

(End of this chapter)