Chapter 70 Two million six hundred and thirty-seven thousand eight hundred US dollars: If there's no market, create your own.

From their arrival in Budapest on the evening of November 3rd to their departure on November 7th, not only Ms. Ruan, but even Mr. Fang felt like he had gotten to know Wang Xiao and her companions all over again.

Can you believe it? In just three days and four nights, they not only finalized the flight route, but also secured a multi-million dollar foreign trade deal.

Ahem, that's right, the product name is "Sexy Lingerie".

The designer was Wang Xiao, who also served as the garment-making supervisor, but it was Ruan Xiaomei who actually did the work.

Seriously, poor Ruan Xiaomei's face turned bright red, but she still had to grit her teeth and keep doing her needlework.

There's no way around it, Wang Xiao is all talk and no action. Forget about making sexy lingerie by hand, she can even prick her hand while sewing on a button.

And among those present, besides Ruan Xiaomei, who else could turn lace and silk into sexy lingerie?

Is it Ivanov or Tang Yicheng?

The former, however, knew how to appreciate it and even offered his own opinions and suggestions with great interest.

The latter didn't understand the paper, but when the sample was put on the plastic mannequin, he was so frightened that he ran away, insisting that he could still wander around the streets of Budapest, especially the free market.

Honestly, he felt he gained a lot from visiting the Sihu Market.

Goods from China here have basically passed through two hands, and their prices are at least five or six times higher than in China, but in the overall market, they are still synonymous with cheap.

Why? Because labor is expensive in Hungary.

It's somewhat like China two or three decades after the reform and opening up, well, the protection of workers' rights is much higher.

In terms of labor-intensive industries, it is certainly no match for China at present.

However, to be fair, the Huaxia goods in the wholesale market are generally of mediocre quality, and both their price and quality justify the term "cheap goods."

Tang Yicheng analyzed ambitiously that if the product cost were doubled and shipped by air, the profit from wholesale would be at least 100%.

No one called him out on it. Okay, young man, we know you're just shy and trying to change the subject.

Go on, Pikachu, get back to your market research.

However, Ivanov, who was very interested in lingerie, could not stay any longer; he had to go back to his old profession: making airplanes.

Honestly, he never intended to target the Hungarian planes.

To put it bluntly, the Soviet Union already had enough planes. If he wanted one, he could easily get his hands on one. Why bother coming all the way to Hungary, a place where he knew no one?

Hungarians still hate the Soviet Union so much.

But this business opportunity came knocking on his door, and it was facilitated by a local Chinese businessman in Budapest. He couldn't refuse, so he decided to wait and see.

Wang Xiao prepared a total of five types of sexy lingerie, three of which were Christmas-themed, and the remaining two were lace and see-through styles.

She showed the samples to Sister Fang (the curly-haired woman at the welcome banquet). After one night, Sister Fang finalized the three Christmas themes, each with 10,000 pieces, and the remaining two themes with 5,000 pieces each.

Ruan Xiaomei knew what was going on and secretly told Wang Xiao, "She doubled her money by reselling it."

Take that simplest and cheapest lace cutout, for example. It costs five dollars, but after a quick touch, it's easily ten dollars.

This single deal alone brought them at least $300,000.

It's so enviable!

She was so engrossed in thinking how easy it was for other people to make money that she forgot to lament how ridiculously expensive the sexy lingerie was.

With such a small amount of fabric, it costs five US dollars for one piece.

Good heavens! This price could buy a tracksuit in China. In Moscow, it would only be enough for a fur coat.

That is to say, the amount of fabric used is equivalent to that of a fur coat.

Even though Ruan Xiaomei felt she had seen a lot in the world, she was still deeply shocked by the shock.

Wang Xiao said meaningfully, "The price of clothes is not determined by the amount of fabric used. Mine is already very cheap."

Do you know how much a Victoria's Secret item costs? Where does her allure of Eden fall short?

Starting now, one day she will dominate at least half of the sexy lingerie market.

Fang Jie placed the order, and Wang Xiao certainly couldn't wait until he returned to China to arrange it; that would be too time-consuming.

Other clothes are fine, but Christmas-themed lingerie—isn't that obviously meant for Christmas?

Many factories that received Christmas orders have already delivered their goods, while these factories are only just starting to work. Even a day's delay can be fatal.

Sitting in his villa on Mount Buda, Wang Xiao began remotely controlling the world eastward across thousands of miles.

She made long-distance calls and sent faxes, urging people to contact the contract manufacturer immediately to prepare the raw materials so that production could begin as soon as she brought the samples back.

Once the clothes come off the production line, they are immediately shipped by air.

If the direct flight from Xiaozhou to Budapest hadn't opened yet, then we would have transferred in Moscow.

Well, with her arrangement, it's not Xiang Dong who's going crazy.

Having been in the foreign trade business for about half a year, frequently dealing with middlemen and traders, he is now extremely used to taking urgent orders.

A garment that has never been produced before can be completed in half a month from the customer's request to shipment. This is not a state of war, but the norm.

But the fact that he's alright doesn't mean that the Jiangbei Province can remain calm.

The Xiaozhou municipal government is on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

They didn't expect that after just three international flights, another one would arrive, this time heading straight for Europe.

Wait, do they have that many planes flying?

That's really not a problem.

Aircraft can be scheduled according to flight missions, and besides, Ivanov only went to the aircraft factory once and had already chosen an aircraft.

The plane was originally intended to be purchased by Mr. Li, a Chinese businessman who acted as an intermediary and sourced the goods from China himself, through barter.

But halfway through the talks, the aircraft factory changed its mind and wanted money.

The plane isn't expensive; the asking price is $4 million, but it's negotiable.

Because in the last deal Mr. Li handled, for a similar aircraft, the price he asked for was only enough for winter clothing and food for the 20,000 employees of the aircraft manufacturing plant.

Although it took almost half a year to transfer the goods from China, he only spent a little over 1 million US dollars in total.

So the two sides went through a tug-of-war, and finally agreed on a price of 3 million US dollars.

Logically speaking, Mr. Li could have taken it over; making over a million yuan in profit wouldn't have been a problem.

Tragically, he was betrayed by his brother-in-law.

His brother-in-law is a gambler.

In Budapest, there are many Chinese gamblers. Even the locals can't understand why Chinese people are so hardworking and desperate when they want to make money, even going so far as to skimp on food and drink, yet they are willing to throw away large sums of their hard-earned money in casinos.

The brother-in-law caught Mr. Li having an affair in Budapest (a situation known locally as "keeping a mistress") and threatened to tell his wife.

In order to maintain stability at his headquarters—

Of course, according to Ruan Xiaomei's inside information, he dared not mention divorce, nor did he need to, because his wife controlled his financial lifeline in China and had his son with her.

He had no choice but to put up with his brother-in-law, not only keeping him around to do things but also arranging for him to live in his own home.

But gamblers are like poisonous insects, never caring about chivalry or basic morality. His brother-in-law saw an opportunity, pried open his safe, robbed it of all the cash, and then sent it to the casino.

What can be said now that things have come to this point?

Even Wang Xiao had to admit that keeping large sums of cash on hand is really dangerous; it's too easy for something to go wrong.

The Chinese businessman had already finalized the deal with the aircraft factory, but he didn't want to offend them because he planned to continue recycling their production machinery later.

The profits here are substantial.

When he heard that the Chinese Chamber of Commerce in Budapest was hosting a welcome dinner for the owner of Five Continents Air Transport Company, he forgot all about his brother-in-law in the casino and immediately came to find a new client.

He didn't have any other requests; all he wanted was a referral fee of $5,000 for this deal.

If it were anyone else, the aircraft manufacturer would never offer such a low price.

The current turmoil in Hungary is a top-down crisis. While the aircraft factory's leadership has lost existing orders, they are unsure whether the factory will continue production.

If they're still in the same old business, they certainly can't openly sell their planes at a bargain price. Because if prices fall, it'll be difficult for them to rise again later.

This is similar to how, during the Great Depression, capitalists would rather dump oranges and milk into the sea than lower prices to sell their products.

Ivanov agreed to raise the referral fee to $10,000, but he wanted to continue negotiating.

The final transaction price was US$2.5 million.

For this price, a new plane, even though it can only carry about thirty tons of cargo, is still acceptable.

Ivanov even joked with Wang Xiao, saying that they should paint the plane pink and use it specifically to transport sexy lingerie.

Then, as soon as he finished speaking, the two looked at each other.

If it weren't for the overpowering scent of his perfume, Wang Xiao would have hugged him on the spot!

Yes, that's exactly what advertising should be done with airplanes!

When she bought lingerie before she entered the book, her biggest regret was not that she didn't capture the largest market share, but that her product brand had low added value.

To be precise, none of the domestically produced lingerie brands have truly made a name for themselves, let alone rivaled Victoria's Secret.

But now she has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to use airplanes to advertise "The Temptation of Eden".

Even thirty years from now, in an era where budget flights are plentiful, being able to take a plane ride will still be an experience that many Chinese people have been unable to realize.

What's more, now?

Looking at the whole world, flying is a synonym for high-end and luxurious.

The "temptation of Eden" that is tied to it has naturally seen its value skyrocket.

Yes, yes, this is a big business, we have to do it well.

It's unrealistic to find a seasoned lingerie designer in China in a short time, so she'll just take on the role herself.

Who told her to sell lingerie before she even got into the book? The design drafts in her head should be enough to last her for a while.

Once we've established a foothold, we can continue recruiting.

By the way, we'll be opening a specialty store eventually, starting in Europe, where we can hire local fashion designers.

They will eventually be found all over the world.

╯^╰, that's how lofty her ideals are.

Ivanov chuckled beside him, thinking that opening a chain of stores in Europe seemed like a great idea.

Tang Yicheng was dumbfounded. After a long while, he finally found his tongue and stammered, "So...so...this, you'd send a plane just to transport it? That...that...that wouldn't be full. It can carry over thirty tons in one trip."

Without hesitation, Wang Xiao replied, "If you can't get enough to eat, fill the gap with toys."

Oh my god!

Tang Yicheng felt that he not only had no eyes to see, but also no ears to hear.

Toys? Wouldn't it be a complete mess to have children's toys placed together with these strips of cloth?

Wang Xiao was both amused and exasperated: "Adult toys, specially made for adults."

Tang Yi grew up under the red flag and has not been corrupted by capitalism so far. He is still a simple and honest young man and doesn't understand what's going on at all.

He had only ever heard of girls who, even when they were all grown up, still slept with dolls, but this didn't seem to fit with that at all.

It was only after Wang Xiao explained it to him carefully that he finally understood, and then his face turned as red as a Hungarian chili pepper, completely losing his ability to speak.

Just as embarrassed as him was Ruan Xiaomei. She felt that all she had done was pick someone up, yet her entire worldview had been reshaped.

Ivanov couldn't understand what they were saying and kept asking questions. After Wang Xiao explained it to him, he burst out laughing and almost rolled off the sofa.

Tang Yicheng tried to regain his speech, and after several attempts, he finally managed to say, "This, this won't sell, will it? Who would buy it?"

Anyway, he had never seen these things in China.

Ivanov waved his hand, and with great difficulty managed to say, "Yes, they sell them in Moscow."

Of course, there were no sex shops in Moscow, or even anywhere else in the Soviet Union.

This decadent Western way of life is suitable for socialist countries.

However, the equipment department of pharmacies sells products called "facial and neck massagers" or "vitality and muscle tension massagers".

As for how to use these things, the product manual will certainly not say so; the buyer must figure it out for themselves.

For example, there's a product manual for what's called a "travel massager"... well, it's still a massager, but the manual shows a simple drawing of a young woman with her eyes closed in bliss, pulling the massager lower and lower.

Well, it's something that can only be understood intuitively, not explained in words.

How could Ivanov, a grown man, know so much?

Because when he was a teenager, he saw his aunt spend 20 rubles to buy a massager (which was a lot of money at the time), and he really thought it was for massaging the neck, so he tried it out himself.

Without a doubt, he got beaten up.

Later he realized what it was used for.

Wang Xiao asked with great interest, "Were these produced in large quantities in the Soviet Union?"

"No, no, no, it's mainly produced in Poland, not much of it, it's a scarce electronic product."

When the words "electronic products" were mentioned, he burst into laughter again, almost unable to breathe.

Tang Yicheng wished he could dig a hole and disappear, but his competitive spirit and national pride forced him to feign composure and he even analyzed the situation seriously: "I don't think these things will sell. They can't be eaten or worn as clothes. Right now, what the people here need is something that will allow them to survive."

If you really want to sell these things, you have to sell them to real capitalism, to wealthy capitalism.

Wang Xiao waved his hand: "No, no, no, that's a misconception. It's the opposite of what you think. The worse the economy is, the more popular sex toys become."

Why?

Because the cost of a perfect real-life sexual relationship is high; it's something that only high-income, high-spending groups can afford.

In contrast, sex toys are cheap and safe, making them the least costly way to satisfy desires.

Therefore, its main consumer group is actually the low-income group.

Currently, both the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe are basically mired in economic difficulties.

For the local people, sex toys are definitely a good companion in life.

Sex toys fall under the categories of light industrial products and small electronic products, which are also weak links in the industrial chain of the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe.

Tang Yicheng felt he was struggling to hold on, and could only weakly say, "But nobody in our country makes this. Think about it, out of all the factories our International Trade City has connections with, which one makes this? Even if we asked them to, they wouldn't know how."

Wang Xiao didn't take it seriously at all: "If you don't know how, you can learn. You can import the technology and the production line."

Young people, you probably can't imagine that in thirty years, according to sexologist Li Yinhe's estimate, at least 70 percent of the world's adult products will be made in China.

But Tang Yicheng still couldn't accept it. Why spend precious foreign exchange to import this technology when there were so many other options? It's just...

Seeing his conflicted expression, Wang Xiao found it amusing and immediately cleared his throat, solemnly elevating the so-called significance of what he had done: "Comrade Tang Yicheng, how can you have such a narrow-minded view?"

How is this technology meaningless?

I ask you, when the economy is bad, is there a lot of crime in society, especially sex crimes?

Human desires will not disappear, so there must be ways to release them.

Cultivating refined hobbies or diverting attention is futile; the actual effect is practically zero.

Otherwise, there wouldn't be so many tragedies caused by severe sexual repression.

In this context, the emergence of sex toys has actually saved countless men and women who might have been victimized.

Potential criminals who might have committed sex crimes abandon their criminal activities because their desires have been satisfied.

The saying goes, "A sage does not treat illness that has already manifested, but rather prevents it from manifesting; he does not quell chaos that has already occurred, but rather prevents chaos from occurring." That's the principle at hand.

Preventing crime is more effective than combating crime in maintaining social security and order, and reducing loss of life and property for the people.

Tang Yicheng was speechless; he couldn't argue with her anyway.

He even felt that if he continued to oppose this, any future sexual crimes in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union would be his fault.

Seriously, in the short time he was lost in thought, Wang Xiao started rambling again: "Besides, without buying and selling, there would be no harm. If they have sex toys, their desires can be satisfied, and then the behavior of buying sex will be greatly reduced."

When market demand ceases, market supply disappears as well. Those innocent women and men will no longer be trafficked to red-light districts and forced into miserable sex slavery.

Wang Xiao was moved by his own words: "How could such a meritorious act that benefits humanity and society be considered base and meaningless?"

Tang Yicheng wished he could disappear on the spot, and weakly emphasized, "I don't object."

Whether he opposes it or not is actually not important.

Because Wang Xiao had already decided that he absolutely had to make it into a humane product.

On the one hand, this market is huge, and it's a typical example of making a fortune quietly.

On the other hand, she also has her own needs.

Resentment.

At least she's in the prime of her youth, with normal hormone levels, and she'd actually be happy to find a younger guy to have some fun with.

But the problem is that given the current social environment, if she gets involved with some guy and has no interest in marrying him or maintaining a long-term relationship, then she's a typical female hooligan who's likely to get into trouble.

More importantly—

Men are rather peculiar creatures; they often believe that the shortcut to a woman's soul is through the vagina.

Therefore, when a man sleeps with a woman, he will subconsciously believe that he can make decisions for that woman.

Wang Xiao is someone who has never bothered to change others.

Rather than causing such trouble, it would be more in line with her needs to simply get a set of satisfactory sex toys.

However, she only wants to know this personal privacy herself and has no interest in sharing it with anyone.

Ruan Xiaomei felt she needed some fresh air, so she quickly got up and said, "I'll get you a pot of tea next time."

Wang Xiao turned to Ivanov and said, "We can't leave the other 65 planes empty; we can use them for advertising."

Good heavens, the thought of wasting so much precious airplane advertising space for so long made her heart ache.

She must have gotten too cocky, wasting such a lucrative opportunity right in front of her. She really has let down the God of Wealth.

Ivanov and Tang Yicheng exchanged a glance; her change of topic was smoother than European chocolate.

Even Ivanov had to clear his throat before he could get to the point: "So, what kind of advertising should we do?"

Because of the unique nature of the routes, the passengers are mostly middlemen and their hired porters. They are essentially the only target audience for advertising.

Oh, and maybe we could also add someone going to the airport to catch a plane.

Despite its large size, the advertisements on the aircraft's fuselage are quite eye-catching.

After discussing it back and forth, the group decided to start by advertising their own business.

Firstly, they don't know much about other partners, and if they make a mistake, the trouble will be too great, and they might even create a competitor for themselves.

Secondly, they need more middlemen to purchase goods from the International Trade City, so that when they think of sources of goods, the International Trade City should be their first choice.

Ruan Xiaomei went upstairs again. This time, because she was carrying fruit tea, she didn't close the door immediately, so the voices from downstairs could be heard coming up.

"No, they're really going too far now; they've taken all our money."

Wang Xiao asked curiously, "What are they discussing?"

Who are they? They are small vendors who set up stalls at the Budapest Free Market.

Why would they come to Mr. Fang's villa? They usually rent apartments in the city center, which are quite a distance from Buda Mountain.

Because Mr. Fang is one of the important members of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce.

In fact, joining the chamber of commerce and becoming a key member is completely contrary to Mr. Fang's previous principles. After all, he is a computer professional.

But in his words, he learned an important lesson from Wang Xiao: one cannot be alone; one must actively integrate into society and build one's own network of relationships.

Wang Xiao has her own investment promotion meetings, and he doesn't have the ability to organize one himself, so he takes the initiative to join in.

It's a bit of a delicate matter. In Hungary, people from Hong Kong and Taiwan and mainland China are clearly separated. They don't fight each other, but they also don't cooperate seamlessly.

Mr. Fang, however, didn't mind. He had made his first fortune in mainland China. Now, he was still making money there, so he was naturally willing to interact more with merchants from the mainland.

In Hungary, Hong Kong and Taiwanese businessmen are highly regarded by officials because they are wealthy and willing to spend money. When they intervene, difficult issues are more easily resolved.

Therefore, although Mr. Fang has been in Hungary for less than a year, he is already a well-known figure in the local Chinese business community.

He was also generous, opening the living room of his villa to the chamber of commerce members and their friends every week, where they would talk about the difficulties they faced and discuss solutions.

For example, today they were discussing the increasingly worse attitude of the authorities.

Starting from the first of this month, all extensions have been suspended, whether for passports, yellow cards, or white cards (equivalent to temporary residence permits with varying durations). People are being asked to leave as soon as their time is up.

People felt uneasy. Some thought that if things got really bad, they should just stay and work illegally, while others thought that if this place didn't want them, there would be other places that would, so they might as well just leave.

"Romania is good. There are few Chinese people and goods there, and they don't give us the cold shoulder."

Another person laughed: "A year ago, the Hungarians didn't even give us the time of day, but now they complain that there are too many of us."

The person who suggested going to Romania got anxious: "What's the point of talking about the past? The key is now! There are extortionists everywhere! Seriously, Romania is great."

He enthusiastically promoted the idea, saying, "They only need $500 to register a company, and you can have unlimited shares. Any shareholder can get a grey card, which is a Romanian residence permit; the cover is grey."

He spoke with great enthusiasm: "A friend of mine is over there, and the Romanians are really nice. You don't even need to look for a free market; you can just stand on the street, set up a stall, and hang your things out to sell. A bunch of people will come and buy. Unlike the old Russians in the Soviet Union, they're very orderly. Everyone queues up obediently, and when there are too many people, even the police will come over to maintain order."

Laughter erupted from the crowd, with someone joking, "Aren't the police here to confiscate the goods?"

“Really!” the man exclaimed anxiously. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! No matter what happens to Romania later, we need to get there as soon as possible and get some status. It’s better than being chased by dogs here. With a grey card, we can go back and forth to pick up goods repeatedly without worrying about not being able to get back. Seriously, my buddy took the wrong train and ended up in Romania. Now he says it wasn’t a mistake, but that his ancestors for eight generations corrected it for him!”

Those who had been busy joking around shut up, and everyone started whispering with their closer friends about whether or not to go to Romania.

Due to historical factors, relations between China and Romania have been relatively good. Specifically, in the 1960s, both countries opposed Soviet great-power chauvinism (referred to domestically as Soviet revisionism), and in the 1970s, they reached a consensus on their policies towards the United States.

Therefore, in the 1960s and 70s, when it was difficult for Chinese people to see foreign films, films from Romania such as "Waves of the Danube," "Boiling Life," and "Ciprian Polumbescu" were repeatedly shown on mainland screens.

Don't underestimate the influence of film culture; it gives people a natural sense of affinity for Romania.

The people there are definitely not as rich as the Hungarians; here, a bottle of Tiger Balm can sell for a dollar.

But being poor has its advantages; if they're not poor and don't lack things, they won't be willing to spend high prices to buy Chinese goods.

After a round of discussion, the issue centered on how to get the money out of Hungary.

Without money, how can they get supplies? Without supplies, they want to go to Romania to make a living, but even the most skilled cook can't cook without rice.

Wang Xiao called out to them, drawing them out of the room, and couldn't help but listen with great interest.

Initially, she wanted to suggest that if people planned to stay and develop their careers in Hungary, they shouldn't hide their earnings but should use them to buy a house.

Mainland Chinese aren't currently aware of the importance of investing in real estate. But Mr. Fang is right here; you can ask him if people from Hong Kong and Taiwan also like to invest in real estate.

Not only is it convenient for me to live there, but if the property appreciates in value in the future, I can really make money while lying down.

Even if the property doesn't appreciate in value in the short term, owning a house means you can still rent it out. If you can't find tenants for long-term rentals, you can rent it out for short-term rentals.

Hungary is a tourist country, and Budapest is a famous tourist city.

Last year, the number of foreign tourists received nationwide reached twice the number of the national population, and judging from the performance of this year's peak tourist season, reaching seven times that number is not a problem.

With so many people flooding into Hungary, are there enough hotels?

What if there aren't enough? We can't let people sleep on the streets.

This is where short-term rental family hotels come in handy.

Seriously, buying a house now is a very profitable business.

But she really didn't understand Hungary's policies. Obviously, foreigners here don't receive preferential treatment, and they don't care much about international repercussions.

If they actually listened to her and bought a house here, and then got evicted, it's really hard to say who the house will be registered under.

So Wang Xiao obediently shut his mouth and didn't say a word.

When it comes to hiding money, everyone keeps quiet. It's their livelihood, their only means of making a living; they can't just casually reveal it.

If a secret is known by a second person, it is no longer a secret.

Wang Xiao was observing with great interest when suddenly someone excitedly waved to her: "Teacher Wang, you're here!"

That's a foul!

Little girl, there's no reason why you don't call me "sister." Even if you call me "Boss Wang," I'll just smile.

You call me "teacher," and I can't quite handle it.

Wang Xiao nodded to her and smiled, "You're in Budapest too? Didn't you and your mother go to visit your relatives?"

The girl, whom she had met briefly on the train to Budapest, ran over excitedly: "My mom ran into Uncle Feng, so we weren't in a hurry to leave."

The plump middle-aged man who had been standing next to her bowed slightly to Wang Xiao and thanked her, saying, "Thank you for taking care of Xiaoyue and her mother."

That tone...tsk, it makes one's imagination run wild.

Xiaoyue's mother also awkwardly thanked Wang Xiao. Perhaps it was more comfortable getting off the train than being jostled around on it, because she looked much better.

Xiaoyue chattered away to Wang Xiao, acting as if she were one of them, eagerly recounting her experiences with her mother since they parted ways at the train station.

What a coincidence! On their way to the Eurasia Hotel, they ran into Mom's former colleague and decided to go with her to set up a stall at the free market.

She really made a lot of money; she'd never seen so much money in her entire life.

They originally intended to stay in Budapest, but Uncle Feng heard that the situation was not good, so he brought them along to inquire about the situation.

Xiaoyue, at least, knew to speak softly, and asked worriedly, "Teacher Wang, how do we get the money to Romania?"

Hiding it in your shoes won't work; Hungarian border control is very thorough and checks extremely strictly.

Wang Xiao thought to himself, "This is too easy."

Since border control specifically targets Chinese people, why not just find a trustworthy Hungarian local to help bring the money over?

Of course, the risks are significant.

As the saying goes, money can corrupt people's hearts; even trusted friends can become untrustworthy in the face of money.

She just smiled and said, "If you don't want to, then just exchange the money for something and take it with you."

"I can't take it with me," Xiaoyue said worriedly. "The Hungarians are checking too strictly."

The guy who first called for a trip to Romania was still emphasizing urgently: "We have to go there to see what it means to be a foreign guest. My brother is just an ordinary citizen, but he only got to experience foreign guest treatment when he got to Romania. He was queuing up to buy things in stores, and the sales clerks and people in line all insisted that he go first. They said that we Chinese are their good friends and there's no need for us to queue."

My goodness, this treatment struck a chord with the Chinese businessmen who considered themselves second-class citizens in Budapest.

Several people stated that they were determined to take the money to Romania.

The flowers bloom in Romania, not in Hungary.

So the conversation circled back to the question of how to take the money out of the country.

Interspersed among this was the factual explanation from the instigator that living conditions in Romania are by no means bad.

Their medical care and education are completely free, regardless of your status, you don't have to pay a single penny.

Public transportation was fully subsidized by the government; a bus ride cost only five cents.

The houses we lived in were all state-allocated apartments, with bathrooms and showers, and hot water and natural gas available 24 hours a day.

Every household owns a car.

The food sold in the store is unbelievably cheap. A big loaf of bread weighing one pound only costs five cents.

This is what communist life is all about.

So everyone went off-topic again, wondering how things could be so good, yet suddenly everything seemed to be missing?

I just don't understand, I really don't understand these countries.

Oh well, I can't worry about that now, I'll just go make some money first.

Wang Xiao was ushered towards the center of the reception room, and finally, after a round of people persuaded him, he spoke up: "Actually, it's not impossible. First, let me ask, are you planning to set up a stall there?"

The noisy reception room fell silent instantly, and almost everyone's eyes "whooshed" onto her face as if they could hear.

If the middle-aged man, referred to as Brother Dong, asks, "How do I do it?"

Wang Xiao called upstairs, "Tang Yicheng, bring down our booklet."

She distributed the leaflets one by one, calling out to everyone, "Choose for yourselves, see which goods you want, and estimate how much you can afford. Buy at twice the price listed here. There are two places to pick up the goods, one is Moscow and the other is Kyiv, Ukraine. You can choose the pick-up location yourself."

Tang Yicheng looked at her in surprise; she was going to cultivate her first batch of clients in Romania.

Excluding the previous Roman smuggling operations, their activities were mainly concentrated in Moscow, and then distributed downwards.

These people are the merchants who are about to set foot on Romanian soil and settle down there to make a living.

She recalled what Wang Xiao had once said: If you don't have sales channels, cultivate your own; if you don't have customers, cultivate your own customers.

As long as there is market demand, business can be done no matter what.

Even when there is no demand, a market can be cultivated.

A buzzing sound suddenly filled the reception room. Everyone was like students who had just received their exam papers, both excited and at a loss.

Someone mustered up the courage to ask, "Is your product any good? What if it isn't?"

"If it's a quality issue, you can refuse to accept the package, and I will replace it for you."

"Can you guarantee the quality of the goods?"

Mr. Fang laughed: "She has two international trade cities. A lot of the goods shipped from Moscow and Kyiv are from her. The redhead at Moscow Airport and the scarred man at Kyiv are both frequent flyers to her place to pick up goods."

These are big-time dealers; some people in the living room are taking the goods directly from them.

The buzzing in the reception room grew even louder.

Xiaoyue excitedly marked things on the list, constantly asking her mother, "Mom, is this one okay? It's pretty, foreigners like pretty things."

Her mother neither said anything nor stopped her daughter.

Some people kept clearing their throats like they had pharyngitis, and finally blurted out, "I...I...can I send some money home?"

Wang Xiao nodded: "Give me your address and contact information. It must be accurate. If it's wrong, then I can't help you. I can give you the exchange rate published by the government."

As is widely known, the official exchange rate is relatively low.

But if she could really give the money to their family, that would be a good deal. The difference would be considered a handling fee, and everyone would be happy to accept it.

Someone defiantly gave an address: "I live over there, can you wire us some money?"

How much to transfer?

Five thousand US dollars.

As he spoke, he actually took out his waist belt, inside which were neatly stacked five thousand US dollars.

Wang Xiao really didn't know what to say.

Brother, you're really something else!

Five thousand US dollars, on the streets of Budapest in 1991, just walking around with it like that? You really aren't afraid of being robbed.

She nodded: "Okay, 5.4, that's 27,000. I know your family, the towel factory, right? Wait a minute—"

As she spoke, she directly called Wang Tiejun at the Jiangdong Steel Plant in front of everyone: "Dad, could you call the Hongqi Towel Factory in Beijing and ask... hey, which department is your dad in? Oh, ask them to have the factory's finance department give him 27,000 yuan first. Then you can transfer the money to the factory."

Wang Tiejun looked a little confused: "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing, just helping a friend with a small favor."

"Okay, okay—" the old father readily agreed, "I'll call right away."

Wang Xiao put down the phone and smiled at the young man with curly hair: "The remittance takes time, I'm afraid you can't wait. In half an hour, call your dad to ask if he's received the money."

Wow--

The reception room instantly became as lively as a market, leaving everyone speechless.

Wang Xiao smiled slightly: "Don't worry, my dad is the deputy director of the Jiangdong Steel Plant, and my mom is the chairman of the factory's trade union. This little thing is not something we can't handle."

Mr. Fang was taken aback; he hadn't heard of this when he left Jiangdong.

So it turns out she really is from a cadre family; no wonder she's so capable.

The crowd whispered among themselves, their eyes constantly scanning Wang Xiao.

After thinking for a long time, someone finally asked, "What if the goods can't be delivered?"

This is their hard-earned money, earned through countless hours of toil in Budapest.

Wang Xiao asked Mr. Fang with a smile, "Mr. Fang, would you be willing to act as my guarantor?"

Mr. Fang almost burst out laughing, nodding frantically: "It's an honor, I'm very happy to. I never thought I would be qualified to vouch for you."

In reality, he could have chosen not to get involved, but unless he's out of his mind, he would never let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Wang Xiao was doing this to build goodwill, but she wouldn't be staying in Eastern Europe for long, so he could easily gain that goodwill by simply reaching out.

This is crucial for him to improve his standing within the Warsaw community in the future.

Moreover, Romania is still a hotbed of development for Chinese businesses, and these people would become veterans if they went there immediately.

It's equivalent to a company's initial public offering (IPO) shares.

Holding it now guarantees a profit.

His statement only made the buzzing in the room grow louder.

Many people went outside to talk.

Wang Xiao and Mr. Fang exchanged a glance, stood up in perfect unison, and left the meeting room to give everyone more space.

Unfortunately, Chinese people do tend to speak loudly.

Even though they had moved outside the door, they could still hear it clearly.

"Alright, with Mr. Fang's guarantee, what's there to doubt? He's Taiwanese, rich, a big boss, living in a big villa. Taiwanese people are trustworthy."

Mr. Fang was even thinking of imitating Chu Liuxiang by touching his nose. If he were to say that he was a big boss in front of Wang Xiao, he would be humiliating himself.

However, Wang Xiao smiled and said, "This shows that Taiwan's economy is doing well, and you are highly regarded. Everyone feels that Taiwanese people are trustworthy."

Mr. Fang became awkward: "Don't you feel uncomfortable listening to this?"

“What’s there to be uncomfortable about?” Wang Xiao’s smile deepened. “I’m overjoyed that my family is doing well.”

Mr. Fang nodded, as if he had made a great decision: "Alright, you can have the name of the Taiwan Hotel."

Wang Xiao was taken aback, then burst into laughter.

When the two returned to the reception room, everyone in the room had reached an agreement.

People kept asking to use the restroom, and when they came out, they were carrying thick wads of US dollars.

Even Wang Xiao, who considered himself well-informed, was completely dumbfounded.

Ladies and gentlemen, you have such big hearts!

Who gave you the courage to carry thousands of dollars in cash on your person? If you were robbed, you would truly be left with nothing.

Not only her, but Mr. Fang, who had been in Hungary for more than half a year, was also dumbfounded.

No, gentlemen, you all seem so unassuming, yet you suddenly pull out thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars. You're treating your pockets like banks!

As he watched the banknote detector check the money, sweat gradually increased on his back.

A total of 52 people came to his house for a party today, and they pulled out $730,000 on the spot. This is definitely only a portion of the total.

No wonder the Hungarians couldn't stand it.

Even he couldn't accept that foreigners are so rich in Taiwan.

Tang Yicheng kept looking at Wang Xiao, completely bewildered.

What would they need so many US dollars for? Border control wouldn't make an exception for them either; if they tried to cross customs with the money, it would be confiscated anyway.

"Is there any more?" Wang Xiao asked, looking at the banknotes on the table. "I'm leaving tomorrow, so if there's any more cash, bring it over today. I can't help you if it's too late."

The group exchanged glances.

The young man who had taken out $5,000 to bring home used the villa's phone to call back home: "Hey—Dad... It's okay, I have money. I'll come back as soon as I get my Romanian grey card."

He hung up the phone and immediately turned around: "I'm going back to get the money."

The remaining people looked at each other in bewilderment, and then with a whoosh, everyone ran out the door.

When they returned, the amount of US dollars on the table had increased to two million six hundred and thirty-seven thousand eight hundred US dollars.

It's terrifying! A group of small vendors raised a staggering million US dollars in just a few hours.

Mr. Fang was completely numb.

Even if you asked a large Taiwanese company to immediately come up with over 2.6 million US dollars in cash, it would still leave the company owner scrambling.

But this is really not surprising, because it's normal for hardworking Chinese street vendors to earn a hundred US dollars a day, working from morning till night. On busy days before Christmas, they can even earn thousands of US dollars.

Tang Yicheng had seen too much money in the International Trade City; a few million US dollars wouldn't move him.

His only concern was what to do with so much cash. He saw that the Hungarians didn't have much goodwill towards the Soviets, so how would this group of people successfully take such a huge sum of money out of Hungary?

He didn't want to let the Hungarian border control officers get away with it for nothing.

Mr. Fang also craned his neck curiously, wanting to see what unique tricks he had up his sleeve so he could learn from them in the future.

Seriously, if she had managed to smuggle a large sum of US dollars out of Hungary in the winter of 1991, she would have been an absolute god to all Chinese businessmen.

Wang Xiao looked at the mountain of banknotes on the table with a smile.

Truly, no matter how many times she looks at it, she still believes that banknotes are the most beautiful works of art in the world.

All countries' banknotes are the same, except for the Zimbabwean dollar.

As she gestured for Mr. Fang to put the money into the safe, she said with a smile, "Who said I was going to take it out of Hungary? I'll just spend it here in Hungary, won't I?"

Two million six hundred thousand US dollars! Are you a super shopaholic? How are you going to spend it?

Aren't you being a bit too reckless? We're spending so much money just to cultivate our first batch of Romanian clients!

Wang Xiao beckoned to Ivanov, who was staring intently at the banknotes, and said, "Alright, we don't need to write checks for the plane; we'll just use cash."

My God!

Ivanov nearly fell over on the spot.

He swore that he was a legitimate businessman, even though he was undermining socialism and engaging in illegal buying and selling, disrupting the socialist market economy order.

He is not a member of the Mafia or any organized crime group.

Honestly, carrying a suitcase full of cash to the airport to make a transaction, it feels so much like an American movie.

Just thinking about it makes my adrenaline surge, it feels so good!

————————

Haha, Xiaoxiao's dream, Ajin didn't dare write it in the caption, for fear of being banned.

Happy last day of November, everyone! Has your nutrient solution expired?

Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2023-11-27 22:46:05 and 2023-11-29 17:43:31!

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Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!