Chapter 6: A Smooth Start

Zhang Tong emerged from Su Pingnan’s den under a sky full of stars. The cold wind was biting, but it couldn’t extinguish the fire in his heart.

For a young man his age hanging around the station, the lure of making money was far less enticing than the idea of following Brother Red Robe to make a name for himself.

“Brother Red Robe will pay 2 yuan for every 100 jin transported as labor cost; we move over a thousand jin a day.” After he hammered that line home to his own father, things moved smoothly—Zhang Tong used his father, Zhang Jianguo’s connections, and quickly got in touch with Ertai Town’s freight duty officer, Li Zhiyu.

After getting the go-ahead, Su Pingnan thought for a moment and immediately sent off Su Wenwen and Guo Guangyao—his two handy operatives—both to cement relations quickly and to find a local boss to help find out more about the pine nuts market in Ertai Town.

After settling the two, Su Pingnan signaled Zhang Tong to grab two packs of Hongtashan cigarettes from the station’s general store, wrapped them in newspaper, and headed straight to the freight yard.

Zhao Feng was on duty in the freight office. When he saw Su Pingnan come in, he froze for a moment, then hurriedly greeted him. Though Little Red Robe’s crew lived off the freight yard, Zhao Feng had seen Su Pingnan’s fierce presence from start to finish and spoke to him very politely.

At that time, the railway’s ties with local authorities weren’t tight and some groups did things their own way. Zhao Feng was a young man who often travelled to other places to find a date or to watch a movie. But as a young man, sometimes tempers flared and there were occasional scuffles. Su Pingnan was generous with face, always having Su Wenwen help smooth things over, and over time, the roles between them became somewhat reversed.

“Brother Su, what’s up? Want some tea?” Zhao Feng said, then stood and warmly poured tea.

Su Pingnan didn’t bother with formalities. He tossed the newspaper-wrapped cigarettes into Zhao Feng’s arms and said, “Fengzi, I’m running some goods from Feng City. When they come in a few days, don’t inspect them—just send the boxes straight to the goods depot.”

Zhao Feng fumbled to take the package, opened it and a pleased smile spread across his face. He hurriedly said, “No problem, Brother Su—you’re too kind.”

Su Pingnan patted Zhao Feng on the shoulder and thanked him. He knew this guy—timid, trouble-averse, and stingy—so before leaving he said casually, “One pack for you, the other for the forklift drivers who might need it. For each box you let through I’ll give you an extra ten yuan, counted each time.”

Zhao Feng was stunned! He was a young man who’d only worked a few years and earned less than 70 yuan. He bowed and saw Su Pingnan out of the freight station, then returned grinning.

Su Wenwen and Guo Guangyao had been in Ertai Town for three days now. Su Pingnan ordered anyone with tattoos to wear long sleeves, and since the two listened to everything he said, even when drinking and sweating profusely, they kept themselves fully covered and refused to take the sleeves off.

The contacts between Su Wenwen, Guo Guangyao, and Li Zhiyu went smoothly. After just three days, the three were already arm-in-arm. After Zhang Jianguo had introduced them, they followed Su Pingnan’s instructions to the letter and were found together from breakfast to dinner, almost inseparable. Whatever Li Zhiyu paid for, they insisted on paying instead, making him a bit embarrassed. He even took the initiative to find a local fixer at the Bureau of Industry and Commerce.

The Bureau’s local fixer was a young man named Li Qiang. Young men of that era who were sharp tended to have a bit of a rogue streak. The moment they met, they hit it off. After several rounds of drinking they quickly became close brothers. After following Li Qiang to check out several places and learn the market, Su Wenwen immediately sent Guo Guangyao back.

Su Pingnan hadn’t been idle either. With Yang Qianli and Zhang Tong, he thoroughly probed the pine-nut business. He didn’t even have to run the farmers’ markets himself—during a casual-sounding conversation he mentioned it to a few traders who ran routes to Yungang, and that immediately piqued their interest.

7.2 yuan—that was the price to haul them to Wucheng. One even privately said that with large, steady supply, the price could be a bit higher. Su Pingnan was pleased to hear that. With only 40,000 yuan in capital, he couldn’t make a big move at once, so starting with a resale operation suited him best.

According to the intel Guo Guangyao brought back, first-grade goods in Ertai Town could be bought for around 2.4 yuan. With so much stock coming in, the freight yard wouldn’t have room. They started hunting for suitable storage sites and, after checking several places, he picked out an abandoned factory that used to belong to a now bankrupt company less than 5,000 meters from the station.

Zhang Tong, who still had the simple-mindedness of youth and threw himself into Su Pingnan’s orders, was the one who had literally found this factory while running down the street. The factory had everything: two workshops of over sixty square meters and three offices. Most crucially, it had a separate courtyard with its own gate. Though adjacent to the Subdistrict Administrative Office, it was an independent site, which made it very convenient.

The workshops were dilapidated, with partially collapsed roofs and not a single intact window pane. The interior was piled with fetid garbage and broken tiles. The offices were smaller—at most around fifteen square meters each—and looked even worse than the workshops. Doors and windows had been removed, and human waste was everywhere. Su Pingnan guessed locals had been using it as a toilet.

Ignoring the disgusted looks from others, Su Pingnan was in fact very pleased. When he heard the Subdistrict Administrative Office was willing to sell the factory, he clenched his fist in delight secretly. Su Pingnan knew that with Wucheng’s development in a few years, this spot would become an extremely prosperous commercial street.

He nodded and said to Zhang Tong, “Good job.” It was the first time Zhang Tong had been praised by Su Pingnan and the boy’s joy immediately showed. Yang Qianli also thumped Zhang Tong on the shoulder—he liked this kid’s guileless nature.

Su Pingnan continued, “Set up some desks and beds in the three offices for now; we’ll move in first. With so much stock here, someone has to keep watch.”

Director Zhang of the Subdistrict Administrative Office was a slightly plump woman in her forties. Upon hearing they decided to rent the place, she breathed a sigh of relief—the Subdistrict Administrative Office’s headache was finally solved. After haggling for a while, they agreed on a monthly rent of 180 yuan. But the lease included a harsh clause: if someone bought the property, Su Pingnan’s side would have to vacate.

Su Pingnan was confident in how quickly he could make money and had already mentally claimed the courtyard as his, so he agreed readily. After they returned to the Subdistrict Administrative Office to sign the agreement and received the keys it was nearly evening, so Su Pingnan warmly invited the Subdistrict Administrative Office delegation to a modest restaurant for a meal.

With both intent and luck, Su Pingnan quickly got a full handle on the factory. When he learned the courtyard not only had clear ownership but also a land certificate, he completely regarded it as his own. A land certificate meant you could do whatever you wanted: whatever you built would be legal in principle and you’d only need to apply for a property certificate to tidy things up.