Dongqing and his wife returned to his second sister's house, where his second sister was cooking after getting off work.
Dong Ermei said, "You're back. Sit down and rest for a bit. Dinner will be ready soon."
Just then, my second brother-in-law came home from get off work, and Dong Ermei said, "You're back just in time! Go out and buy some steamed buns!"
The husband said "okay" and turned to leave the house.
Li Yuzhu went to the kitchen to help her second sister cook, while Dong Qing went to the sofa in the living room to lie down and rest, feeling more at ease at her sister's house.
Li Yuzhu and Dong Ermei were cooking in the kitchen, and they didn't mention her husband's investment in the wholesale market. She believed that Dong Qing would bring it up after dinner.
After dinner, Dong Ermei handed her younger brother four orders, saying, "These are the four orders I received over the past few days. You can load the goods tomorrow."
"I won't be shipping for now; I have some other things to take care of tomorrow." Dongqing paused for a moment and asked, "Second Sister, could you help me get an interest-free loan?"
Dong Ermei said, "You shouldn't be short of money now, right? Interest-free loans are still loans, and you have to repay them on time when the deadline arrives. There's a certain risk involved. What do you need the loan for?"
Dong Qing told his second sister about his idea. Dong Ermei and her husband were equally surprised. Dong Ermei said, "I don't object to your investment in a bean product factory. You have the ability now. Investing in a department store wholesale market with a loan is no small matter. Have you thought about what will happen if you can't attract merchants? Even if you do attract merchants, what if there's no customer traffic? If there's no business, will the merchants stay here? Have you thought about this?"
How could Dong Qing not have thought of these things? His investment in developing the Zonghui Department Store Wholesale Market was not a spur-of-the-moment decision. In the early 1990s of his previous life, a foreign businessman set up a large-scale comprehensive department store wholesale market near Sucun and recruited merchants from all over the country. That wholesale market later became very successful, and the stall fees and rents collected each year generated considerable income. At the same time, it also boosted the economic development of the entire city. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to describe it as making a fortune every day.
However, these things are difficult to explain clearly. He couldn't very well claim to be a reborn being who could foresee future events, and even if he did, who would believe him? He said, "In our Central Plains region, there isn't a single large-scale department store wholesale market yet. Our county is a railway and highway transportation hub, giving us a transportation advantage. When we open, we'll waive six months' stall fees and storefront rent, posing no risk to the merchants. I'm confident in attracting them."
Dong Ermei picked up her teacup and took a sip of water. She asked, "Now that you're all grown up, if you insist on being the second sister and I don't object, how much loan are you planning to take out?"
Dong Qing said, "15 million."
Upon hearing this, Dong Ermei was greatly surprised. The teacup slipped from her hand without her noticing, fell to the ground and shattered, spilling water everywhere.
Dong Ermei didn't even look at the ground, and said in a trembling voice, "Are you crazy? How big of a wholesale market did you invest in? You're playing with fire, don't you understand, my silly brother!"
Dong Ermei's reaction was even stronger than Li Yuzhu's; she absolutely would not allow her brother to do such a thing.
In Dong Ermei's view, her younger brother could only borrow a maximum of 1 million, but he asked for a loan of 15 million. Who could tolerate such a thing?
It's the 1980s now, and although both parents work, Dong Ermei couldn't even come up with 2,000 yuan in savings. She never dreamed her younger brother would play such a big game.
Dong Qing said, "I'm not crazy, just tell me if you can help me borrow this much money?"
“Don’t say I can’t, even if I could, I wouldn’t help you get a loan. Because you’re crazy, your second sister isn’t. I won’t go crazy with you. That’s 15 million! If the investment fails, your life will be over. Do you understand, my silly brother?” Dong Ermei paused for a moment and said, “Talk to your wife. If she agrees, your second sister won’t interfere. On the contrary, I will help you. If she doesn’t agree, then let’s leave it at that.”
Dong Ermei believed that her younger brother and sister-in-law would not agree. Not only would they not agree, but no one would agree to her doing this. To be precise, no one had the guts, and no one was crazy.
That's why Dong Ermei dared to say that. To put it bluntly, she was just passing the buck. Li Yuzhu had passed the buck to her second sister on her way back, and now her second sister had passed it back. The result was the same: to prevent Dong Qing from giving up this investment project.
What does a loan of 15 million mean? It's an astronomical figure, it's playing with fire, something that ordinary merchants wouldn't even dare to dream of back then.
After listening to his second sister's words, Dongqing looked at his wife. He knew there was no hope with his wife, but he still wanted to ask for her opinion. If she disagreed, things would be really difficult.
"Dongqing, we're not in a dire situation right now, please don't take such a huge risk. Your wife is begging you, just give up."
Li Yuzhu broke down in tears at the end. She would support her husband in any way, but she really couldn't agree with this. Such a large investment project was too risky. Just as her second sister had said, if the investment failed, his life would be over. Such a large investment was no joke; no one could accept it.
Dong Qing raised his hand and gently patted his wife's shoulder twice, saying, "You can trust me."
Li Yuzhu said, "How can I trust you with such a huge investment project? Don't say anything more. No matter what happens, I won't let you do this unless I'm dead. After I'm dead, you can do whatever you want with me."
Li Yuzhu's words left no room for negotiation; she was determined to stop her husband from doing this.
Dongqing's heart sank completely after hearing his wife's words. He knew that his second sister and wife wouldn't help him, and his eldest and third sisters would also oppose it. No one in the family supported him in doing this. He said, "Whether you agree or not, I'm going to do it. I believe I will succeed."
With tears in her eyes, Li Yuzhu said, "Is Tie Xin really going against your wife?"
Dong Qing did not deny it, but nodded in agreement.
Li Yuzhu said, "Fine, I know I can't reason with you. If you insist on doing this, I won't go crazy with you. Let's get a divorce tomorrow. After the divorce, you can do whatever you want. Is that okay?"
Dong Qing asked, "Are you serious about what you said?"
With tears in her eyes, Li Yuzhu said, "Do I look like I'm joking? Are you determined to destroy yourself and this family before you're satisfied? If you insist on doing this, we must get a divorce. There's no room for discussion. I'll say it again: you're crazy, but I'm not. I can't go crazy with you."
Li Yuzhu's only recourse now is to force her husband to give up the investment through divorce.
However, she was wrong. Dong Qing foresaw the future developments and knew he wouldn't miss this investment opportunity. Missing it would be a lifelong regret for him, and he wouldn't easily change his mind.
Furthermore, prices are low now, making it the best time to invest. Prices will generally rise after 1987, and building a wholesale market at that time will require several times, or even 10 times, more investment. The extra expenses will be a completely different matter compared to a loan of 10 million now.
Even if his wife really divorces him this time, he can't give up. He can always find another opportunity to remarry her in the future. But once an investment opportunity is missed, can it ever be recovered?
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