The Lord of the World Begins from the Siheyuan

Lou Xiao'e brought the whole bowl of egg noodles to the sofa table with a chopping board as a cushion.

Li Ming praised: "The appearance looks good, and the taste should not be much different."

"I have also made progress." Lou Xiao'e went back to the kitchen to get the dishes and chopsticks.

"The progress is not small. Reward once."

He rewarded Qin Huairu, and also found reasons to reward Lou Xiao'e, trying to maintain a balance between the two women.

Lou Xiao'e joked: "Thank you, sir, for the reward."

"Wait a minute. Sister Qin is in the east wing."

Li Ming took Qin Huairu into the small world and dragged him here again.

Qin Huairu opened her eyes, "You two are so relaxed."

Lou Xiao'e smiled and said, "Sister Qin, I'll get you a bowl." She didn't mention the identity document.

"No, I've already eaten and I have to go back right away."

"You can have some soup. I deliberately added more water when cooking."

It didn't take long to drink two sips of soup, and Qin Huairu stopped insisting.

"Then I'll try your craft."

"It's quite delicious." Li Ming took a few bites and asked, "Is there something wrong with you coming here so early?"

"Nothing's wrong. We've run out of hot water at home, so I just want to use the hot water in the east wing first."

"Is there nothing going on in the courtyard?"

"The weather is cold, and every household is huddled at home. I haven't heard of anything happening."

Qin Huairu asked again: "The vegetables in the greenhouse are about to be harvested. Have you made arrangements? This is what my mother-in-law asked me."

Li Ming had already planned, "Everything from the No. 95 Siheyuan, our own, and the private partnership between the three procurement departments, will be supplied to the steel rolling mill consumer cooperative."

"With the registration and pre-sale method I used last year, there will be no problem with sales."

The consumer cooperative was established on Li Ming's initiative, and it is now equivalent to a grocery store for daily necessities in the steel rolling mill.

"Xiao'e, I'm really full. Just drink some soup." Qin Huairu stopped Lou Xiao'e who wanted to add noodles to the bowl.

Lou Xiao'e didn't force it, "Okay then."

Qin Huairu took the bowl and said, "All the vegetables from the three families are sold to our factory. Can the factory sell it?"

Li Ming said while eating: "I guess it's not enough to sell. The price of greenhouse vegetables has dropped this winter, and more people can afford it."

"Although the supply of greenhouse vegetables in the wet market has increased significantly, compared with the population of the capital, it is still a drop in the bucket. People in the factory will definitely buy it for relatives, friends and neighbors, and they will probably have to queue up to grab it."

Lou Xiao'e interjected: "Now that the vegetables are on sale, Sister Qin's family will be able to increase their income a lot, and they won't have to worry about the children in the future."

Qin Huairu glanced at the man in front of her with a charming look, "You have to pay back the money to the lord first, and you can't spoil them too much."

There's nothing good to say about paying back money just for show. Lou Xiao'e said about her children, "I've never seen you spoil them."

"You have to be strict with your children."

Li Ming concentrated on finishing the noodles in the bowl and did not interfere with the two women's chat.

After finishing the soup, Qin Huairu said goodbye, "Xiao'e, I'm going back first. I won't be able to come over tonight."

Lou Xiao'e stopped her chopsticks and said, "After I finish eating the noodles, I will go back to the west of the city to live."

Li Ming took Qin Huairu back to the east wing and continued to have dinner.

Qin Huairu carried two thermos bottles out of the room and met Xu Damao who had just returned.

"Sister Qin! Is Xiao Ming at home?"

"Yes, but he was asleep. I thought he was not at home, so I wanted to use his hot water first and then return it when it was boiled. But he was sleeping at home and I didn't dare to wake him up."

Xu Damao echoed: "It's inappropriate to disturb him when he's asleep."

"What? Do you have any trouble with Xiao Ming?" Qin Huairu wondered if she could help reject it in advance.

"Aren't the vegetables in the greenhouse about to be harvested? I also wanted to make some contribution to the courtyard, so I found a way to sell the vegetables."

Qin Huairu walked towards the door of the middle courtyard, "I heard from Xiao Ming that they should be packaged up and sold to the consumer cooperative of the steel rolling mill, and our courtyard can safely collect the money."

Xu Damao followed closely and whispered: "Sister Qin, you may not know. The group from the Third Purchasing Department also secretly built a greenhouse. I guess they also want to sell it to the factory."

"The number of people in our factory who are willing to spend money is limited. There will probably be conflicts when the time comes. I will be prepared in advance."

Qin Huairu thought to herself, I know much better than you.

"Are you selling? Do you plan to sell it to others at a higher price? If there is trouble, everyone will suffer."

"Sister Qin, you are looking down on people. It's not just me, but I really look down on those three melons and two dates."

Xu Damao had offended his boss before and lost points in front of Factory Director Yang. When he approached Yan Bugui to build a greenhouse as a partner, he really planned to make a profit from it.

Now that he is the deputy team leader of the inspection team, Xu Damao wants to use the greenhouse vegetable resources to build relationships and go one step further.

There was no obstruction, Qin Huairu said casually: "I don't care, you can discuss it with the people in the courtyard as you wish."

"I have also become more aware and want to do what I can for everyone."

If he wants to cause trouble, Xu Damao really has to discuss it with the people in the courtyard first, just in case Silly Zhu objects to bad things.

Thinking of this, Xu Damao wanted to complain that Li Ming required the whole compound to participate, and even if he had no money to help advance money, he asked every household to participate.

He, Xu Damao, would one day make money in partnership with Silly Zhu.

Pooh!
Passing by the main room in the middle courtyard, Xu Damao became more and more unhappy when he thought that Sha Zhu was going to have a child soon.

three days later.

1 month 6 day.

Xiaohan solar term.

Heavy snow fell in the sky over the capital.

Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill held a meeting to study "Ten Thoughts".

'1. In the face of major issues of right and wrong, we must think about who are our enemies and who are our friends. '

'2. When there is a conflict between personal interests and collective interests, we must think about serving the people wholeheartedly. '

'9. When you see others in trouble, think about not benefiting yourself but only benefiting others. '

'10. When helping less advanced comrades, think in two. '

The person who proposed these is "the great mentor and good worker" Wei Fengying, a model worker for decades and the most beautiful striver.

In 1953, only five months after Wei Fengying entered the factory, she completed her first innovation - automatic clamps, which increased output by 5%.

'The iron girl who never walks, always runs. '

There are many female compatriots like Wei Fengying who devote themselves wholeheartedly to their work and have made great achievements.

Unfortunately, in January of 67, everyone couldn't be diligent even if they wanted to.

The entire environment is not a production environment.

There is something to learn.

After the meeting, Li Ming returned to the security department and asked deputy section chief Jin Tianshun to preside over the meeting and study.

Then he slipped away.

Over in Hong Kong City, he wanted to bring a lawyer to sign an agreement to rent a warehouse.

Yesterday, broker Huang Fuyi took him to see several warehouses.

After reading them all, he selected two places and made an appointment to sign the contract today.

After a busy day, he had to take Lou Xiaoe to take the ferry to Central to meet her parents.Also yesterday, there was a response to the missing person notice posted.

Lou Bancheng took the initiative to call Huang Fuyi and left his contact information.

Lou Xiao'e called the number, and the two parties got in touch, because the Lou family's residence was Central on Hong Kong Island, and they agreed to meet in Central today.

Central is the area with one of the highest incomes in Hong Kong.

The headquarters of major banks, trust companies, insurance companies and other financial institutions, the headquarters of foreign banks, most law firms, major departments of the Hong Kong government, and high-end shopping venues are located here.

Lou Bancheng can live in such a wealthy place, and he probably brought a lot of money with him when he ran away.

Central Ferry Terminal.

Wind and sunshine.

The cold air from the north has a relatively weak impact here.

Li Ming is wearing a suit, shirt, trousers and leather shoes, and has sharp eyes, otherwise he could be the young master of some family.

Lou Xiao'e was wearing a light blue turtleneck sweater, paired with a long dark gray woolen skirt and black low-heeled pointed-toe leather shoes.

A pair of handsome men and beautiful women are very conspicuous.

The Lou family waiting at the pier soon spotted the two of them.

Seeing the glowing Lou Xiao'e, Lou's father and Lou's mother knew that their daughter was not suffering without asking.

After a warm greeting, Lou's mother grabbed Lou Xiao'e's hand and looked up and down carefully.

"Neither fat nor thin."

Lou Xiao'e's excitement eased slightly, "Although I heard you say everything was fine in Hong Kong City last night, I still felt relieved after seeing it."

Father Lou's words seemed to be reproachful, "Dad, I have even experienced warlord melees, just in this small port city. What do you have to worry about?"

"I heard from Xiao Ming that gangs are rampant here. We also encountered a group of gangsters looking for us in the street two days ago."

Lou's mother was surprised, "Ah!"

Lou Xiao'e quickly comforted them: "Mom, it's okay! Xiao Ming beat each of them with a stick, and within two strokes, seven or eight of them were lying on the ground."

I knew that my son-in-law was very good at fighting, but I didn't know he was so good at fighting.

Father Lou frowned slightly: "Most of the gang members here are from the same hometown, and they are relatively united. If you fight the young ones, it will be easy to get the old ones. We can try not to provoke them as much as possible."

Lou Xiao'e explained: "Xiao Ming and I were drinking herbal tea in front of the herbal tea shop, and they took the initiative to harass us."

Lou's mother thought that her daughter was getting more and more beautiful, and it was really a big trouble for her to walk, so she could only work hard for her son-in-law.

"Kowloon is a bit chaotic, how about you move here to Hong Kong Island?"

Lou Xiao'e looked at Li Ming and said, "Let's talk about it later."

Li Ming smiled and said: "We don't stay in Hong Kong often, so we will settle in Kowloon first."

The elder brother-in-law urged: "Second uncle and the others are waiting at the hotel. Should we rush there first to meet up?"

Father Lou agreed: "Then let's go."

The group of people rushed to a nearby restaurant for dinner.

After lunch, they said goodbye to their second uncle and other relatives, and Li Ming and his wife returned to the residence of Lou Xiao'e's parents, which was a four-story tenement building.

Tanglou also has names such as arcades and shophouses.

It is very common in various parts of South China and Southeast Asia, each with its own local characteristics.

To put it simply, shops can be built on the first floor along the street, and people will start living on the second floor. The first floor will be retracted by a large section, leaving a spacious public corridor for pedestrians to pass.

There is more rain in the south, which makes it convenient for customers to go shopping without worrying about being exposed to the sun and rain. It is also cooler in the summer.

The old tenement buildings in Hong Kong City at this time were generally 3-5 floors, and a whole tenement house cost more than 20 Hong Kong dollars.

The population increased significantly. At this time, new houses were built higher and higher. New tenement buildings with 6-8 floors were also common, and the prices became increasingly outrageous.

It was the first time for Li Ming and Lou Xiaoe to visit the place upstairs and downstairs.

It was just a place to live, with nothing to see. The family soon gathered on the roof to drink tea and bask in the sun.

While chatting, Lou Xiao'e asked about her father's business: "Dad, what's your business now?"

Father Lou was quite pleased with himself: "After a long period of research, I have just partnered with someone to set up a factory to produce plastic toys."

Lou Xiao'e didn't understand and asked: "What plastic toy?"

Father Lou explained: "We help customers produce toys. We produce whatever toys the customers want."

The toy industry is one of the three pillar industries of textile, clothing and toys on Hong Kong Island.

At this time, there are nearly 2000 plastic and toy factories in Hong Kong, employing more than 6 people, affecting tens of thousands of families and the livelihoods of tens of millions of people.

Plastic flowers, which were very popular in the 50s, are becoming increasingly unavailable. Many factories specializing in the production of plastic flowers have closed down in Hong Kong City. For example, Zunino Altman (ZA), once the world's largest plastic flower factory, will also close its doors in May this year.

Many factories began to switch to producing toys.

In 1964, Li Chaoren's Yangtze River Company Plastic Factory had an annual export volume of more than HK$5000 million, not including plastic flowers, and toys alone, with a profit of nearly HK$1000 million.The total export volume of various industries in the entire port city is only 44.28 billion yuan.

Li Chaoren made his fortune in industry and became a super rich man because he had his eye on the market, and he also had his eye on the market when he became the richest man in real estate. No matter what, he is always one step ahead.

Lou Xiao'e's father is also a successful businessman. It may not be possible to develop an industry, but it is still possible to follow the trend of a popular industry.

By 1972, Hong Kong City had become the largest toy exporter in the world. It was indeed a good project to start making toys in 67.

Lou Xiao'e is now also a small business owner, "Where are the customers? Are the orders stable?"

Lou's mother, who happened to be bringing the fruit, asked curiously: "Xiao'e, do you know how to do business?"

Lou Xiao'e also wanted to show off, "Xiao Ming and I not only have a greenhouse in Beijing to make money, but also built a cannery and a furniture factory. Especially for the furniture factory, orders are scheduled for more than three months."

"Xiao Ming has to work in the factory, and I am in charge of everything in the factory."

“I built the buildings and warehouses of the cannery and furniture factory with my own hands.”

Lou's mother asked doubtfully: "Is there no problem with this? Hong Kong newspapers also have news from the mainland. The newspapers say that it is very chaotic now, and everyone doing business is in bad luck."

Li Ming smiled and said: "No one cares about our petty quarrels."

"These factories are covered with a layer of skin and run in the name of production groups."

"Except for factories and warehouses, there are no other fixed assets. Even if they are confiscated, the losses will be very small."

"The main purpose of setting up the factory is to find something for Xiao'e to do and to pass her time."

The elder brother-in-law said with envy: "Xiao'e can now take charge of her own business."

Father Lou said angrily: "You should pay more attention to the factory. I am getting older, and you will definitely have to take care of the plastic factory."

The eldest brother-in-law and the second brother-in-law quickly expressed their stance: "Don't worry, we are working hard."

Li Ming didn't say much. He didn't intend to have any business interactions with the Lou family.

Before the phone call yesterday, he told Lou Xiaoe to deceive her parents and vaguely hinted at his identity, making the Lou family think that he came to Hong Kong City to do secret work.

Port City, a city where spies gather.

Not only are people from the island and people from the mainland fighting here, there are also people from countries in the world that think they have a loud voice.

In order to avoid unnecessary trouble, the Lou family asked less about their affairs in Hong Kong City.

The effect is not bad.

Until today's meeting, no one in the Lou family has asked about their stay in Hong Kong City.

Only Lou's mother suggested that the security of Hong Kong Island is better than that of Kowloon. Lou's father reminded him not to provoke gangsters. Parents' concern was always unnaturally revealed.

Compared with the cases of children betraying their parents, the cases of parents betraying their children are very rare.

Lou Xiao'e was left to reunite with her family, and Li Ming said goodbye first. (End of chapter)