Chapter 5

"Hopeless!"

Zhang Qian said this disdainfully and turned to leave. Su Han and Zhang Lei came over to ask Zhou Ming what had happened. Zhou Ming shook his head and didn't say anything, only asking them how the collection of treasury bonds was going. Su Han and Zhang Lei said they had collected about seven or eight hundred treasury bonds. Checking the time, it was the agreed time with Aunt Wei, so Zhou Ming, along with Su Han and Zhang Lei, returned to Aunt Wei's house.

There were already quite a few people standing at Aunt Wei's doorstep. Seeing Zhou Ming and the others come over, Aunt Wei happily introduced them to her neighbors: "Look, that's the young man who's collecting treasury bonds. I didn't lie to you, did I?"

After saying this, Aunt Wei waved to Zhou Ming and the others: "Young man, you're finally here. We've been waiting for you for a long time."

Hearing Aunt Wei's words, Zhou Ming and Su Han, Zhang Lei pushed their bicycles and ran a few steps over. Zhou Ming said to Aunt Wei: "Sorry, Aunt Wei. I was collecting treasury bonds earlier and got delayed, so I came a bit late. I'm really sorry."

Aunt Wei waved her hand and said: "It's fine. As long as you're here, that's all that matters. I've already called out all the neighbors. You should start collecting now. But the amount might be quite large. Can you handle it?"

"I'll collect as much as I can. If I can't finish today, I'll come back tomorrow, okay?"

Saying this, Zhou Ming started collecting.

At this time, the employee dormitory building didn't have the high population density of modern residential areas. Even though Aunt Wei had called out the neighbors from her building and the adjacent one, there were only about thirty households. However, the treasury bonds in the hands of these people were more than enough to exhaust the ten thousand yuan high-interest loan Zhou Ming had borrowed. After Zhou Ming had collected all the money, there were still four households whose treasury bonds he couldn't afford to buy.

The families who sold their treasury bonds and received money were very happy, while those who didn't sell were disappointed. Seeing the disappointed expressions of the four households, Zhou Ming thought for a moment and said to them: "I'm really sorry, but I don't have enough money. How about this: you give me the treasury bonds, and I'll give you an IOU. I'll definitely return the money by tonight."

Hearing Zhou Ming's words, the four households immediately smiled: "Young man, I know you're also a child of the 760 Factory. This Da Zhuang is even in the same unit as my nephew. And this young girl, I recognize her as the owner of Xiaohan Restaurant. I trust you. No need for an IOU, just remember to bring the money tonight."

"Sure, sure. Thank you, Uncle."

Saying this, Zhou Ming clarified the prices with the remaining four households and put the treasury bonds in Su Han's bag.

"Aunt Wei, if everything goes well, I should be back in two hours to pay the uncles," Zhou Ming said.

"Sure thing! We trust you, young man," Aunt Wei said.

"Alright, I'll be off then. See you later."

Saying this, Zhou Ming got on his bicycle and left with Su Han. The people behind them began to discuss as they watched Zhou Ming leave.

"Little Wei, I didn't expect there to be such a fool to buy these treasury bonds!"

"Right? This thing can't be eaten or used. It's just a way for the factory leaders to cheat us out of our wages, and they even call it supporting national construction."

"Not necessarily. Maybe he just thinks they look pretty."

"What's the use of looking pretty? You can't eat it. Collecting things like this is something capitalists and landlords do. I think he's just been in the big city too long and picked up some bad habits. Look, he spent seven or eight thousand yuan on these treasury bonds! What a waste. I think if Old Zhou knew his son was stealing money from home to buy these treasury bonds, he'd beat him to death."

"Shh! Keep it down. If that fool hears, what if he comes to return them?"

"The money has already been collected. He can't just return them. He's the one who's foolish for coming to buy them. We didn't force him. Even if it goes to the police, we have nothing to fear."

"Is it true he said he'll come back in two hours?"

"I think it's probably true."

"Well, who cares if it's true or not! I'll quickly notify my brother and sister to get their treasury bonds ready. We should sell them before his parents come home and find out."

...

Riding his bicycle, Zhou Ming suddenly heard a chuckle from behind. He turned back and saw Su Han with a mischievous look on her face: "These people are so stupid. They're clearly at a huge disadvantage, giving us money, and they still make fun of us for being fools. I think they're the real fools. I wonder what their faces will look like when they find out treasury bonds can be exchanged for money."

Zhou Ming laughed: "What can you do? They like to take small advantages. If they used their brains, they would realize that there must be something wrong if someone suddenly starts buying things that are usually useless."

"So, you're the smartest, Zhou Ming!" Su Han praised, then changed the subject: "But that Aunt Wei is really something. You gave her ten yuan, and she's still talking about you behind your back. She has no moral底线!"

"Let it go. Let them say what they want. We'll just quietly make a fortune," Zhou Ming said. "Alright, Su Han, don't talk anymore. The treasury bonds you have are worth over ten thousand yuan. Hold them tightly."

Saying this, Zhou Ming pedaled harder toward the county bank. About ten minutes later, Zhou Ming, Su Han, and Zhang Lei arrived at the county agricultural bank. After parking the bicycles, Zhou Ming noticed that Su Han was still tightly holding the bag with the treasury bonds. He smiled and teased her: "Alright, Su Han, don't be so nervous. Look, if you hold it too tightly, you might damage the treasury bonds."

Su Han gasped in fright and quickly loosened her grip on the bag, but then carefully placed her hand back on it, explaining softly: "I... I was afraid the wind would blow them away."

Hearing this, Zhou Ming was taken aback. He didn't expect Su Han to take his casual remark so seriously.

"Don't worry, silly girl. The wind won't blow them away. Let's go into the bank."

Zhou Ming gently said this to Su Han, then led her to the counter. He said to the lady inside: "Hello, I'm here to exchange treasury bonds. Five-year and three-year bonds from 1984, three-year bonds from 1985, and five-year and three-year bonds from before 1984."

"It's you again. How much do you want to exchange this time?" the lady asked.

Zhou Ming took the bag from Su Han and placed it on the counter: "Ten thousand yuan."

The lady was momentarily stunned, then she looked at Zhou Ming with an incredulous expression. While others might not know, as a bank teller, she was very clear that ten thousand yuan face value of treasury bonds, even if all were three-year bonds, could be exchanged for at least thirteen thousand yuan. This amount was equivalent to her seven or eight years' salary! To see a young man casually bring out such a large sum was truly shocking.

Su Han was delighted by the teller's expression. After all, this was much better than the mocking looks from the factory. She was also proud and honored that Zhou Ming had come up with the idea of making money by buying and selling treasury bonds.

Zhou Ming wanted to collect more treasury bonds today and didn't have time to watch the teller's reaction, so he urged her: "Miss, I need to exchange this now. If this amount is inconvenient for you, you can consult your supervisor. I appreciate your help."

Hearing this, the teller snapped out of her daze. She instinctively felt that Zhou Ming, who could bring out so many treasury bonds at once, must be someone important, so she immediately went to consult the bank manager.

Soon, a middle-aged man came out and said to Zhou Ming: "Comrade, I'm the manager of the Nanhui County Agricultural Bank. My name is Dai Zhenjiang."

"Hello, Manager Dai," Zhou Ming said.

Manager Dai nodded and said: "Since you're exchanging such a large amount of treasury bonds, we've never handled such a big transaction before. Could you please come inside with me?"

"Sure, no problem."

Zhou Ming, Su Han, and Zhang Lei followed Manager Dai into the bank and sat down in a reception room. A bank staff member served them three cups of tea.

"Could you show me the treasury bonds you want to exchange?" Manager Dai asked.

"Of course."

Since they were in the county agricultural bank, Zhou Ming wasn't worried about anything bad happening, so he opened the bag. Manager Dai had the bank staff check, count, and sort the treasury bonds.

At this point, Manager Dai asked Zhou Ming: "Young comrade, where do you work? Since the amount of treasury bonds you want to exchange is quite large, we need to contact your workplace."

"Manager Dai, is that really necessary?" Zhou Ming asked, puzzled.

"I'm sorry, but that's our policy. Without contacting your workplace, we can't proceed," Manager Dai said.

Zhou Ming sighed inwardly. He knew that Manager Dai had probably never encountered such a situation before, so he was taking the most conservative approach. If anything went wrong later, he could blame it on the workplace. This was typical of bank officials in remote areas before the market and financial economies had developed, as they had little understanding of financial and treasury bond transactions.

Zhou Ming didn't want to argue, so he said: "Manager Dai, my friend works at the 760 Factory, and all our treasury bonds are from the 760 Factory. We are all children of the 760 Factory. You can verify this."

Manager Dai nodded and had the staff call to verify. Soon, the verification was complete, and the counting and checking were also done.

"You have 7,386 five-year treasury bonds and 2,819 three-year treasury bonds. The total principal and interest is 15,334.58 yuan. Please check."

Manager Dai handed the list to Zhou Ming, who took it and calculated with a calculator. The amount wasn't exactly ten thousand yuan because Zhou Ming, like Aunt Wei, had deducted some for being worn out when collecting the treasury bonds, so there was an extra two hundred yuan in face value. After checking, Zhou Ming nodded and said to Manager Dai: "That's correct. Can we get the money now?"

"Of course. Do you want to open an account here? That way, you can deposit the money directly," Manager Dai said.

Zhou Ming shook his head: "No, thank you, Manager Dai. I need to use this money."

"Alright then." Manager Dai then had the bank staff get the money.