In the 90s, you could acquire max-level skills every 14 days.

Zhang Yong rushed home, took out his household registration booklet from the wardrobe, and drove to the nearest branch of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China in Chaoyang District.

Savings offices in 1990 were on a completely different level from those in later years.

The counter was just a long table painted green, with several wooden signs on it indicating three windows: savings, remittance, and loss reporting.

There weren't many people in line, only three.

Zhang Yong took out his household registration booklet from his pocket, turned to his page, and handed it to the woman wearing sleeves behind the counter.

"Hello, comrade, open a current account and also open a one-year fixed deposit account."

The woman took the household registration booklet, glanced at it, and then looked up at him.

So young, and he immediately asked for a fixed deposit.

"How much should I deposit?"

"Three thousand six hundred. Six hundred in current account, three thousand in fixed deposit."

The woman held the household registration booklet in her hand and looked down at the address on it; it was the Jinsong residential area next door.

The children in the cotton mill's residential area deposited 3,000 yuan in a fixed-term deposit.

Without asking any further questions, she opened the drawer, took out the passbook and receipts, and started calculating on the abacus.

"The one-year fixed deposit interest rate is 10.08%. If you deposit 3,000 yuan for one year, the interest at maturity will be 302.4 yuan."

Zhang Yong nodded.

A 10% interest rate is unthinkable in 2026.

But in 1990, this was the standard set by the state.

The passbooks are ready; two books. One for current accounts, and one for fixed deposits.

Zhang Yong flipped through the documents a few times, put the two passbooks and the household registration book together, stuffed them into the inside pocket of his shirt, and then fastened them with a safety pin before leaving the bank.

As he left the savings bank, he saw the newsstand next door, and a brilliant idea flashed in Zhang Yong's mind.

"Sir, one copy each of the Beijing Evening News, Economic Daily, Reference News, and Economic Information Daily."

"Four portions, 24 cents."

Zhang Yong took out some change, rolled up four newspapers into a tube, stuffed it into the canvas bag on the back of the motorcycle, stepped on the starter, and sputtered off towards Jinsong.

……

When Zhang Yong got home after depositing the money, Li Guilan had already started pickling radish strips on the balcony.

Li Guilan was rubbing coarse salt particles when she heard familiar footsteps and immediately asked.

"You're back? Did you sign it?"

"Signed." Zhang Yong placed the two bankbooks on the dining table.

"I've received all the money, three thousand six hundred. I've deposited it all in the bank. Six hundred in a current account and three thousand in a fixed deposit, earning a little over three hundred in interest per year."

Upon hearing this, Li Guilan quickly wiped her hands and came over. She picked up the fixed deposit book, opened it, and saw "3000.00" and a red official seal printed on it. She couldn't stop smiling.

She squinted her eyes into slits, grabbed the bankbook, kissed it twice, and then spun it around in place.

"Wow, my son is amazing! This is the first time I've ever seen such a large bankbook."

"If it weren't for your uncle's outburst a few days ago, we wouldn't have to keep a low profile now." She carefully closed the passbook and placed it back on the table. "I really wish I could throw a few tables and invite all my old girlfriends over for a meal, and tell them all about it one by one."

"Mom, it's better to keep a low profile, so people won't have designs on us. Please keep the household registration book safe."

Zhang Yong took out four newspapers and turned to a page of the Economic Information Daily.

"Also, let me ask you, how many years have you and my father lived in this house?"

"Twelve years." Li Guilan replied without hesitation.

"You forgot? When you were little, you lived with me in the cotton mill dormitory. We were assigned rooms later. Your dad and I only got in line when you started preschool. This was the smallest two-bedroom apartment we got."

"Later, the factory offered a housing subsidy program, but we didn't have the money and missed it."

"Is the factory still offering replacements?"

Li Guilan thought about it.

"Yes, there are. A notice was posted a while ago saying that several large two-bedroom apartments have become available, and long-term employees can sign up to wait in line, but they have to pay the difference in price."

"Your dad has 21 years of service, and I've worked in logistics for 19 years, so we're definitely among the top performers."

"Do you know how much you need to replenish?"

"I heard from your dad that a 70-square-meter apartment would cost around 4,000 yuan." Li Guilan clenched her fists. "If it weren't for your dad borrowing money recklessly..."

"Mom, this isn't urgent," Zhang Yong interrupted her thoughts.

"I'm just getting a feel for things first. Could you please find out for me when the deadline for the spots is? If there's a room available, we'll definitely take it."

Li Guilan nodded and brought out a bowl of boiled peanuts in salt water from the kitchen.

"Okay, I'll go to the logistics office and ask tomorrow. It's not lunchtime yet, let's have some peanuts to tide us over."

Zhang Yong quickly took it, peeled one open, and put it in his mouth. It was delicious.

He ate while flipping through the Economic Information Daily in his hand.

An inconspicuous piece of news was squeezed into a small square in the bottom right corner of the page.

The title is: "Pilot Reform of Housing Commercialization in Shenzhen Special Economic Zone Progresses".

The text was short, but a few numbers greatly shocked him.

"The average price of residential properties in Futian District is approximately 280 to 380 yuan per square meter; in Nanshan District, due to lagging infrastructure development, some properties are priced as low as below 200 yuan per square meter..."

Zhang Yong stared intently at the few lines of printed text, his eyes wide with amazement.

He had no idea that the price per square meter in the core area of ​​Shenzhen was 200 yuan.

In 2026, the price of luxury homes in Xiangmihu, Futian District, Shenzhen reached 490,000 yuan per square meter, which actually made the news.

From two million to four hundred thousand.

That's two thousand four hundred and fifty times more.

He currently has over 6,000 yuan in cash on hand, and more than 6,000 yuan in cash that hasn't arrived yet. At 200 yuan per square meter in Shenzhen, that's enough to buy 30 square meters. If he saves up 10,000 yuan, he can buy 50 square meters. 20,000 yuan, he can buy 100 square meters.

Leave it for thirty-six years.

One hundred square meters multiplied by forty-nine hundred thousand.

Zhang Yong stopped calculating because the numbers were meaningless; they were all astronomical figures.

But he wasn't in such a hurry. Before 1992, almost no one was buying houses in Shenzhen.

Following Deng Xiaoping's Southern Tour speech, the song "The Story of Spring" became a hit across the country, and Shenzhen's housing prices experienced their first surge.

It is the summer of 1990.

He has a year and a half to save money.

You need to prepare at least 3 yuan yourself, as the royalties alone may not be enough.

Zhang Yong put away the newspaper, carefully collected all the bankbooks, and tucked them into the book "Principles of Internal Combustion Engines" at the bottom of the bookshelf.

Li Guilan also picked up a newspaper and started reading it.

"Shenzhen Special Economic Zone? You don't actually want to go and support the Special Economic Zone, do you?"

"I was just curious, so I wanted to take a look."

"What's so interesting about it? It's a desolate place with nothing to its name; even ghosts wouldn't go there."

Zhang Yong smiled but didn't reply.

He then casually flipped through the Beijing Evening News, which published recent news about commercial housing in Beijing.

Fangzhuang residential area, 3200 yuan per square meter.

Asian Games Village, 3800 yuan per square meter.

In Huwei Beili, east of Jinsong, the developer is quoting 2800 yuan per square meter.

At the cheapest price of 2,800 yuan, a 60-square-meter two-bedroom apartment in Beijing would cost 168,000 yuan.

With the few thousand yuan he had, he couldn't even afford a toilet.

"Alright," Zhang Yong muttered to himself, closing the newspaper. "Let's use the cotton mill's welfare benefits first."

The cotton mill's welfare housing replacement program offered a price difference of three to four thousand yuan.

This is a genuine benefit earned through Zhang Defa and Li Guilan's forty years of service.

Make good use of this policy; the right thing to do is for the whole family to move from this 50-square-meter area to a 70-square-meter one first.

As for commercial housing, that's a matter for later.

The most important thing now is to straighten out the issues at hand.

We need to start writing about energy topics.

The debt owed by my uncle needs to be recovered through civil mediation.

The district team scrimmage will be held next Thursday.

I also need to call Director Meng at the coal plant first.

……