Chapter 497 - 484: Nouveau Riche Li Zhi

Gu’er heard Li Zhi say that Zheng Changsheng was lucky.

’Luck was a funny thing,’ she thought. ’Li Zhi said Zheng Changsheng was lucky, but really, all of them were. Compared to her past life, compared to those who toiled in the fields their whole lives yet never had enough to eat or warm clothes to wear, the comfortable life they lived now meant they had all hit the jackpot.’

"Uncle Zheng, you have connections, don’t you? Can you still buy them? Help me get one—no, two, Dingzi needs one. Wait, that’s not enough... Let’s see, Gu’er and Jia Ming need one each. And I have to get one for my dad. Uncle Lin needs one too, right? And that guy Liu Yuan. My little sister will get jealous when she sees it, and then there’s Feng Ling... Good grief, a quick count comes out to eight of them! I’m afraid two hundred thousand is probably gone."

Li Zhi felt a pang of regret at the cost, but he slapped his thigh and said, "Whatever, money is meant to be spent! I’m buying them! We’ll go out and show them off, make everyone jealous."

Gu’er stared at Li Zhi in shock. ’So this is what people in the future would call a "big spender," huh? Wanting to buy a brick phone, and asking for eight of them right off the bat... just how much of a big spender do you have to be to do something like that?’

Zheng Changsheng was also dumbfounded. This young man before him was just... just... he was at a loss for words. Other people would agonize for half a day over buying just one. But this guy? He opens his mouth and asks for eight. ’Does he have too much money to burn or something?’

"I can get them, but... young man, are you sure you want that many?"

Zheng Changsheng thought it was unnecessary.

"We don’t need them."

Before Li Zhi could even speak, Gu’er cut in. It wasn’t that she was being rude; it was just completely unnecessary. ’Spending nearly two hundred thousand on eight brick phones is crazy. These things will be useless in two years. It’s so much money, my heart aches just thinking about it.’

"Li Zhi, just buy one for yourself. If Dingzi needs one, he can get one too. But Jia Ming and I don’t need one, and neither does my dad. And if you’re thinking of buying them for Uncle Li and Li Ting, I think you should wait. Things are developing so fast now. In a year or two, something new will come out and this will be obsolete. Over twenty thousand yuan a piece... it’s just not worth it."

Gu’er tried to persuade Li Zhi.

Sun Jiaming glanced at Gu’er. Since getting pregnant, Gu’er had rarely gone out, let alone to Harbin or on any long trips. ’For her to know about brick phones, she must have seen them in her dreams. In that case, what she said must be true—it’ll be obsolete in a couple of years when something new comes along. Spending the money would be meaningless.’

"Li Zhi, I think Gu’er is right. Just buy one or two. They aren’t that useful, really, other than for showing off. We can all share it. Whoever needs it when they go out can just come and grab it."

Sun Jiaming added his opinion, agreeing with Gu’er on this point. Money was meant to be spent, but it should be spent meaningfully. Buying a house would be better than buying this. ’Spending so much money on a few things that will be obsolete in two years, and that don’t even have a major use, is a total waste.’

"I don’t need one,"

Dingzi also voiced his opinion. If he needed one when he went out, he could just come here and borrow it. If he really wanted one, he could just buy it later.

"You guys... Here I am, offering to spend all this money out of the goodness of my heart, and you’re not even grateful. Fine, have it your way. We’ll buy one for now, just to see how well it works. We’ll figure out the rest later."

Li Zhi knew they were just looking out for him. Since they all felt this way, if he stubbornly insisted on buying them all, he’d just look like a fool.

"Alright, one is easy. Don’t worry, I guarantee you’ll have it in half a month at most."

Zheng Changsheng nodded magnanimously, feeling relieved. ’Although I could get eight of them, it’s not like before when they were impossible to find. Still, buying eight... that seemed a bit reckless.’

"Then I’ll have to trouble you, Uncle Zheng. I’ll treat you to drinks tomorrow."

Li Zhi was thrilled. He picked up the brick phone again and said, "Gu’er, Jia Ming, I’m taking this for now. Even if it doesn’t work, I can still show it off. I guarantee everyone will be green with envy when they see it. I’ll handle getting it connected to the network. Once it’s set up and working, let me use it for a couple of days. When mine arrives, I’ll give it back to you."

"Nope, it’s ours."

Sun Jiaming teased Li Zhi. In reality, he didn’t care much about the brick phone. ’It’s just a phone, after all. It doesn’t matter whether I have one or not.’

"Too bad, I’m taking it even if you say no. I don’t care. You’re the one who called me over here. If you don’t give it to me, I’ll just camp out here."

Li Zhi put on a shameless act, bantering with Sun Jiaming.

"You want to camp out here? Dingzi, throw him out."

Gu’er called to Dingzi.

Before Dingzi could say anything, Marina, who had just walked over, chimed in, "Throw him where? What are we throwing?"

Hearing Marina’s words, everyone burst out laughing. Dingzi walked over to Li Zhi and pretended he was going to hoist him up and throw him out. Li Zhi fell back on the sofa, clinging to Sun Jiaming and refusing to let go, all while shouting that Dingzi wasn’t being a true friend. For a moment, the living room was filled with laughter.

Zheng Changsheng hadn’t expected to witness such a scene. He could tell that these young people were incredibly close. Even siblings in most families didn’t have such a good, harmonious relationship. ’How did they all meet, and how did they become so close?’

After the group had been fooling around for a while, Jiji started crying from the other room, likely because he was hungry. Gu’er hurried over to hold the baby, while Sun Jiaming, Dingzi, and Li Zhi stayed and chatted with Zheng Changsheng.

Once Jiji was asleep again, the group began to disperse. Zheng Changsheng was taken to Li Zhi’s house, as Li Zhi had a spare room. Although Gu’er also had a spare room, Lin Shuying was staying there. If Zheng Changsheng, a man, were to stay over, it might cause unpleasant gossip if outsiders found out.

The next day, Sun Jiaming, Li Zhi, Dingzi, and Gu’er all gathered at Li Zhi’s place. They were going to talk with Zheng Changsheng about a business partnership.

"My storefront over there isn’t large, but I have a factory I partner with. I give them the designs, and they manufacture them for me. Then I provide the goods to customers who want them. If they like the style, they’ll buy it. If not, they’ll go elsewhere. How should I put it... with this business, if your designs are good, they’ll be very popular. You can sell a lot, and the profit margin is high. But if your designs are bad and the goods don’t sell, you could lose money. So, having a good eye is crucial. I can send you the most fashionable clothing styles from over there. You don’t have to worry about quality. It won’t be like some clothes where the seams come apart after a few wears. We can choose the materials ourselves. High-end ones are pricier, while mid-range ones are a good value. As for low-end materials, they’re just for show and don’t last. I’m afraid that would damage your reputation, so I suggest we don’t use the cheap stuff. If you’re interested, I can send you a few sample designs to look at first. We can discuss the rest after that."

Zheng Changsheng didn’t hide anything, laying out the situation clearly for them.

Gu’er had heard something about this in her past life. ’In Guang City, some people opened up their own stalls. If they got lucky and their clothing designs were a hit, making a few hundred thousand or even a million wasn’t a problem. But there were also those whose designs didn’t sell and who lost a fortune. Everything depended on having a good eye. While it wasn’t exactly the same as Zheng Changsheng’s business, there were similarities.’

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Thank you to Sidney Liu for the He Shi Bi; I’m very grateful. Thank you to Hai Feng’s baby060219 for the monthly pass, and thank you all for your support. As for the extra Chapter, I’ll see when I have time and will make it up then.