Chapter 2238
No Opportunity to Insert
Who were the first people to get rich after the reform and opening up?
Is it intelligence or boldness?
Those who achieve long-term success must possess all three essential qualities.
To go far on the road to wealth, one needs both intelligence and courage, as well as constant vigilance.
Xiao Lan currently possesses all the qualities required for success.
Yan Jiekuang, however, was not up to the task.
He thinks things through very well every day.
I'm thinking of going to the area outside the Great Wall to witness the real orchid craze, and hopefully make one or two like-minded friends.
Then he could collect flowers in Beijing and deliver them to the Northeast, thus earning a lot of money.
But all these beautiful things only exist in his imagination.
To this day, he hasn't even found a chance to go beyond the Great Wall.
There was no other reason; he simply couldn't find a place to get a letter of introduction.
In this respect, he was inherently lacking.
He can't compare to Xiao Lan, who is, after all, a university teacher and has connections in foreign trade.
Putting aside other matters, several factories outside the Great Wall have received his help in importing machinery.
Even if it's just translating some documents from their daily lives or explaining their business practices.
This also greatly benefited the leaders of those factories.
If it weren't for his wife being too materialistic and making a fuss too much...
Xiao Lan spent a few years honing her skills and focusing on research.
He might actually become an expert in a certain field.
Of course, all of that is no longer possible.
Comrade Xiao Lan has unknowingly chosen a different path.
But for them, doing these things is all smooth sailing.
He could go to the area beyond the Great Wall with just a phone call or a telegram.
If the factory sends an invitation letter to the school, he can then obtain a letter of introduction to go to the area outside the Great Wall.
Yan Jiekuang could only leave Beijing secretly, for fear of being caught.
In this day and age, it's not like you can travel all over the country with just an ID card.
These days, the crackdown on vagrants is particularly strict.
Anyway, Yan Jiekuang definitely wouldn't dare to go to the street office to get a letter of introduction.
Therefore, he ran into trouble right from the very first step.
Another day passed, and Yan Jiekuang walked into courtyard number 95 dejectedly.
Standing at the gate of the courtyard, Liu Guangtian saw the dejected look on Yan Jiekuang's face and quickly asked with a smile, "Jiekuang, where have you been coming from?"
This is a new, quirky hobby that Liu Guangtian has recently developed.
He loved to stay at the gate of the courtyard, waiting for changes to occur in the Yan family.
According to his speculation, Yan Jiekuang must have had a fight with his family after returning home.
There has been no progress so far.
This greatly disappointed Liu Guangtian, who had hoped to see some excitement.
Life has become quite boring for him.
He dared not cause any more trouble.
They have elderly parents to care for and young children to raise, and everyone depends on him.
He has no shortage of money, so he has no motivation to strive.
So, watching his neighbors have a good time is what he loves to do most now.
"It's nothing, I just took a stroll outside Deshengmen." Yan Jiekuang perked up, forced a fake smile, and answered casually.
He wasn't lying; he really did go to Deshengmen.
Due to the geographical environment, various small vendors gather near the old city wall and in the reed beds outside the city.
It turns out to be one of the larger pigeon markets in Beijing.
Of course, with the opening up of society, it has now become one of the larger exchange markets in Beijing. Some people who like to keep birds and flowers often 'exchange' there.
Since they don't mention money, the city management can't do anything about it.
But in reality, in any market, how can you not talk about money?
Yan Jiekuang saw a lot of strange and unusual things there, and people were buying and selling them.
Things like birdcages, cricket jars, and various flowers.
A woman with two teenagers, wearing headscarves, sold five pots of orchids and earned a hundred yuan.
These things made him envious.
He felt that was a waste of resources.
Because his family grew these kinds of plants from a young age, he also knows a little about the quality of flowers.
In his opinion, the few potted plants that the woman went to sell were all of pretty good quality.
It's at least better than the orchid that the man from outside the Great Wall he met on the train was protecting like a treasure.
Although he didn't know the exact price, he was certain it was more than twenty-one pots.
This is normal; it's still due to information asymmetry.
Now is not the peak season for orchids outside the Great Wall.
It can only be said that the prices currently on the market are still quite cautious.
These kinds of businesses are all about blind buying and selling, making a living by relying on your eyesight.
Basically, whether buying or selling, most people can make money.
This is also a market, a sign that a bull market has begun.
Yan Jiekuang, despite his keen insight and knowledge of the channels, was trapped and died in Beijing.
It would be strange if he had any energy.
"Relieve me, don't rush."
Take your time finding a job. If all else fails, you can get a small car and sell food in the square.
"At least I can keep Hu the Bald company." Liu Guangtian's words were quite insidious.
They always bring up the most sensitive topics.
"You're busy, I'll go home first." But Yan Jiekuang was in no mood to talk about anything else right now.
He simply lowered his head, casually echoed a comment, and then walked into the courtyard.
Instead, it left Liu Guangtian completely bewildered.
When Yan Jiekuang returned home, his dejected appearance told his parents that he had wasted his time again.
Now, Yan Jiekuang pays fifteen yuan a month for the elderly couple's food expenses.
But seeing him doing nothing every day, the elderly couple were also anxious.
"Ahem... Third brother, tell me, what exactly do you want to do?"
You don't want to go to the boss's restaurant?
You wouldn't even go to Xiushui Street.
You can't be an old man who does nothing all day and has no income. How can you expect to start a family and build a career?
"What girl would be blind to fall for someone like you?" Yan Bugui's words carried a hint of anger at his son's lack of ambition.
Even if he was calculating, he was still hoping that his sons could have a better life.
"That's right, your dad is right."
Even if you really have nothing to do, you can earn a few cents by making a few matchboxes for me at home.” Yang Ruihua chimed in from the side.
This is also a characteristic of parents; they can't stand seeing their children resting for too long.
They also can't stand seeing their children do things they don't understand.
Even if Yan Jiekuang were to remain bedridden, he would still earn more in a year than most people could with a regular job.
Yan Bugui and the others still had something to say about it.
It's not just the Yan family; it's more like all parents.
This is similar to how children in later generations, whether they are in school or working, return to their parents' side during holidays.
For the first two or three days, parents are full of love and wish they could hold their children in the palm of their hands.
After three to five days, they'll find it unbearable to look at.
Yan Jiekuang frowned deeply, feeling a buzzing sensation, as if hundreds of flies were buzzing around in his brain.
He sat down on the bench, picking at his nails, without making a sound.
He didn't listen to a word the old couple said.
What he was really thinking about was finding an opportunity to get involved in the orchid trading market. (End of Chapter)