Chapter 33 The Thirty-Third Day of Not Running Away The Thirty-Third Day of Not Running Away...
Thanks to the lax security checks of that era, Jiang Zihan easily brought two knives to Shanghai.
After landing, Wen Chan took the initiative to book a hotel near the exchange. The landlady, Zhao Dan, initially intended to pay, but Wen Chan stopped her.
Wen Chan said, "Sister Zhao, don't rush. I know you're generous. How about this, after we've made some money, you can treat us then. It's not too late."
Zhao Dan smiled and said, "Then I look forward to your kind words."
The hotel they stayed in was actually quite high-class; after all, Shanghai is a place of extravagance and luxury, with a rich cultural heritage.
This was also Zhao Dan and his group's first time in Shanghai. Although they came to trade stocks, the stock exchange wasn't open yet, so they weren't in a hurry.
Wen Chan instructed Fatty to go to the black market with Zhao Dan's cousin, Lin Mo, to inquire about the current stock prices.
Currently, there are only eight stocks listed in Shanghai: Feilo Acoustics, Founder Technology, Vacuum Electronics, and five other stocks.
The fat man was very meticulous. He found out the price and par value of every stock clearly and even wrote it down in a table.
After receiving the information, Wen Chan read it through and had a general idea of what was going on.
Zhao Dan, who knew nothing about stocks, looked at the list with a puzzled expression and said to Wen Chan, "Girl, there are only eight stocks in total. Which one do you want to trade? How do we make money? Can we just buy them and make money?"
Seeing that the others also looked confused, Wen Chan explained, "Stock trading is like doing business. You buy a stock at a low price and sell it at a high price, and the difference is your profit. Of course, you can also try short selling, buying at a high price and selling at a low price."
Lin Mo laughed when he heard this.
"Buy high and sell low, isn't that foolish?"
Zhao Dan glared at Lin Mo, "How dare you talk like that, Lin Mo!"
Wen Chan scoffed, laughing, "If that's how it's understood, then doing it that way is indeed foolish. Short selling usually works like this..."
She picked up the apples she had bought from the table, pointed at them, and said, “It’s like apples. Right now, they cost five yuan each. I’ll borrow an apple from you, and then I’ll try to make the price of apples drop, say to ten cents each, and then I’ll buy more apples and give them back to you. In the meantime, I’ll make a profit from the price difference.”
Zhao Dan's mouth gaped open slightly. "You can play it like that?"
Wen Chan said, "The stock market is a deep and complex place with many ways to play it. If ordinary people don't understand it, they have to be cautious. For ordinary people, the most suitable way to play it is long-term investment. Choose a stock with good fundamentals and hold it for a long time."
"Hey girl, slow down, what are fundamentals?"
Zhao Dan quickly took out paper and pen.
In China, there is currently virtually no information about stock trading.
Wen Chan then explained what the fundamentals were, the reasons for issuing shares, and how to read the company's financial statements. She said, "Whether a stock can rise or not, apart from external factors such as manipulation by speculators, ultimately depends on the company's management capabilities. If a company's managers are good at management, the profit margin is high, the cost is low, and it has a certain position in the industry, then the company's stock is worth holding for the long term."
"Oh, now I understand. I've always wondered why those stocks suddenly went up for no reason. So that's how it is."
Zhao Dan suddenly realized, slapped her thigh, and said happily, "It's all thanks to your explanation, sister. This trip wasn't a waste. Now, let me ask you, if our Hongxia Garment Factory also issues stocks, can we buy them?"
Wen Chan looked at Zhao Dan and smiled: "Sister Zhao, do you want me to tell the truth?"
“Of course it’s the truth, why would I lie?” Zhao Dan said. “Just tell me, I just want to know.”
Wen Chan said, "Then I'll be blunt: your garment factory has absolutely no chance of issuing stocks."
Wen Chan's words were truly merciless.
Jiang Zihan and Fatty were listening with great interest, but when they heard Wen Chan's words, they broke out in a cold sweat.
Fatty winked at Wen Chan and said to Zhao Dan, "Sister, our sister-in-law is just joking with you."
Zhao Dan was both amused and exasperated. She initially felt a little embarrassed, but as someone who had been in the workforce for many years, she had seen all sorts of things and people, so she wouldn't get angry over something like this.
"I'm fine, girl, can you tell me why?"
Zhao Dan was very interested in the function of stock fundraising. She was very perceptive; after Wen Chan talked about so much, she remembered how to read financial statements and the role of stock issuance.
Zhao Dan and her husband have made a lot of money in the past few years. Seeing that the foreign trade clothing industry is becoming more and more popular, the couple wants to expand and grow their business, but they are hampered by a lack of capital.
It's not that they don't have money, it's that the equipment and factory buildings are too expensive.
The price of housing in Shenzhen has now reached 1,000 yuan per square meter, and the price of renting factory buildings is also not low.
Wen Chan laughed and said, "Because you're overthinking it. Even if stocks are issued now, only state-owned enterprises are qualified and have the conditions to issue them. Private enterprises cannot obtain this qualification."
Zhao Dan was wondering what the reason was when she heard this and suddenly understood. She sighed and said, "Isn't that how it is? The government says it supports our private enterprises, but we have to beg for loans. We never get any good opportunities, yet we have to pay more than state-owned enterprises."
Wen Chan said, "Sister, if you really want to expand or anything, you might as well save more money. It's true that state-owned enterprises receive government support, but most of them are on their last legs. Even if stocks can help raise funds, they are powerless to do so. I've seen that in a year or two, bankrupt state-owned enterprises will be rampant. If you have money on hand, you can buy whatever factory or equipment you want. Maybe they'll even help you get a loan."
Zhao Dan's eyes widened: "No way, it can't be that exaggerated?"
Wen Chan told her to ask the fat man.
The fat man is from Northeast China. As the saying goes, "ducks are the first to know when the river warms in spring," and the rise and fall of state-owned enterprises also first began to emerge from the Northeast.
He said, "When I sent money home before, many friends called to ask if we needed anyone. Some factories in Beijing are also unable to pay wages."
Zhao Dan found it hard to believe.
Shenzhen is a port city, and people here can still get jobs in state-owned enterprises. Only people from other places are willing to work in private enterprises.
If Zhao Dan and his wife hadn't been poor and both were from rural areas, they would never have had the opportunity to work for a state-owned enterprise and would never have ventured out to make a living.
Wen Chan had finished speaking. Seeing that everyone was a bit tired, she told them to go back. When Jiang Zihan was about to leave, Wen Chan stopped her, "There's nothing to do tomorrow. Why don't you go home by yourself, or will Fatty go with you?"
"I can go by myself," Jiang Zihan said quickly, blushing.
Wen Chan said "Oh," and told her to wait a moment. Then she took out a thousand yuan from her handbag and handed it to her. "Here's your salary for this month. You're going home for a visit, so you should at least give me something to put your family at ease."
Jiang Zihan blushed and accepted it.
She left home in a huff and hasn't contacted her family much in recent years. Her parents are still angry with her. Jiang Zihan wants to leave some money for her family because they are really struggling. She was born in 1972, before the one-child policy. There are three children in her family, and she is the youngest. She has an older brother and an older sister. Her father is a permanent employee, while her mother is a temporary worker who has not been able to get a permanent position for many years. Her family paid for her older brother and sister's weddings. When they have nephews and nieces, the expenses will be even greater.
When she left home, eight people lived in a ten-square-meter room. Her sister's factory was close to their home, and her sister and brother-in-law had not yet been allocated a house, so they could only live at her parents' house.
The whole family lived in a tiny place, so small that there wasn't even a place to fart. They were constantly clashing and making a ruckus.
Jiang Zihan was beautiful from a young age, and her parents had high hopes for her, expecting her to marry into a good family and bring prosperity to the whole family.
People from Shanghai have high standards; even beautiful girls need to excel in their studies to marry well.
Unfortunately, Jiang Zihan wasn't particularly bright. After graduating from high school, she didn't get into university. Her parents were furious and anxious, so they asked Jiang Zihan's uncle to find her a job. But when they went to his house, her uncle and his family were sarcastic and said the most unpleasant things they could say.
Especially her cousin, who was jealous of her good looks since childhood. Relatives and friends like to compare her with her peers. Although her cousin's family was the best, she was the least attractive in her generation. She was only able to get into vocational school because of family connections.
After graduation, her father arranged a respectable job for her, and she got a job at the tax bureau.
Since then, they've been trembling with arrogance. Now that they hear Jiang Zihan failed her college entrance exam and is even asking her family to find her a job, they're full of sarcasm and contempt, practically pointing their fingers at her and saying she's all looks and no brains.
Jiang Zihan was so angry about this that she ran away to Beijing hoping to become an extra and make a name for herself.
The next day.
Jiang Zihan greeted Wen Chan and then went home with the gifts.
She lived in a shantytown in a remote corner of the city.
Walking into the alley, the rain from yesterday was like a vast ocean. Jiang Zihan deliberately chose where to walk, but her boots still got dirty.
She frowned at the boots, then looked up. Above her in the alley were clothes hanging from every household, like flags of all nations. The sky was gray and gloomy, and the air was filled with a mixture of smells: food, soap, and toilets.
This place definitely smells awful.
Jiang Zihan was dressed smartly, wearing a wool coat and high-heeled boots, and carrying large and small bags, which had already attracted the attention of the neighbors when she came in.
Most of the people in the alley are old neighbors. After all, these days everyone is allocated housing, and it's rare for people in the lower-class areas to move. For them, moving away is as difficult as climbing to the sky.
People earn a meager amount of money every day, and they don't dare to hope that they can buy a house and move out. At most, they hope to save more money to upgrade their houses.
"Oh my, isn't this the little girl from the Jiang family?" An old lady came out to fetch water and saw Jiang Zihan. At first, she didn't dare to recognize her, but after looking at her carefully, she dared to greet her.
Jiang Zihan has a good memory and recognized the old woman: "Aunt Zhang, it's me. Is my mom home?"
Jiang Zihan's mother had already given her temporary job to her eldest daughter-in-law, who had followed her son back to the city from the countryside. She stayed at home to cook, take care of the children, and do odd jobs, such as pasting matchboxes. She worked herself to the bone for only a few dozen yuan a month to buy groceries.
"Hey, Sister Jiang, Sister Jiang, your little girl is back!" Aunt Zhang's voice was like a loudspeaker; as soon as she opened her mouth, everyone in the alley knew.
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Author's Note: "Lower-class areas" is a Shanghai dialect term specifically referring to places where people with poor environments, average incomes, and little money live. It used to refer to Zhabei, Putuo, and Pudong districts.
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