Chapter 319: The Rising Fame of the Naye Deng Clan

Chapter 319: The Rising Fame of the Naye Deng Clan

After the New Year's Day of 1986, the Naye Deng Clan residential area saw frequent moves into new homes. The speed at which the houses were renovated indicated that most clan members had minimal requirements for interior decoration; a simple renovation was already considered excellent for them.

Every clan member who moved into a new home would inevitably invite relatives and friends to celebrate.

Thus, every now and then, exclamations of amazement could be heard echoing through the Naye Deng Clan residential area. These exclamations were mostly from the clan members' relatives and friends who came from the countryside, who were often left speechless upon seeing such a beautiful residential area for the first time.

As more and more clan members moved into their new homes, their relatives and friends, after broadening their horizons, would inevitably boast about it back in their villages.

After all, having impressive relatives and friends was a source of pride for them.

And as these relatives and friends had their own networks, the news spread from one person to ten, from ten to a hundred, and soon the name of the Naye Deng Clan residential area became known throughout the county. Along with the rising fame of the residential area, the Naye Deng Clan itself also gained prominence.

Now, the Naye Deng Clan was synonymous with unity and wealth!

One should not underestimate the power of such a reputation. In a place like Bobai, where clan culture is deeply rooted, a clan that is both united and wealthy commands significant respect. Clan members might not walk around with a swagger, but at the very least, others would give them some face once they knew they were from the Naye Deng Clan.

Deng Shirong was the most qualified to speak on this matter.

During the 1990s, Bobai witnessed a surge in the number of thugs and even gave rise to many robbers.

He remembered that one day in the 1990s, two hooligans rode a motorcycle past Naye Village and saw a household with many large roosters. The two hooligans stopped their motorcycle, walked into the house, and grabbed three or four large roosters right in front of the owner, then left without a care.

This happened in broad daylight, with the owner at home, yet they still dared to grab the roosters so brazenly.

During this incident, not only did the owner witness it, but other villagers saw it too. Yet, no one dared to make a sound, watching helplessly as the hooligans walked away with the roosters.

This was the result of a lack of unity within the clan. If the Naye Deng Clan had been as united as it was now, even two hundred people would not have dared to walk into the village and take roosters so boldly.

In short, with the Naye Deng Clan's fame spreading throughout the county, such incidents would never happen again.

While the clan members were busy moving into new homes or renovating their houses, the Spring Festival travel rush was approaching, and Tenglong Passenger Transport Company added five more large buses to its fleet.

Previously, the twenty-five large buses were distributed as follows: six each for the Shenzhen and Guangzhou routes, three for Dongguan, and two each for Foshan, Zhuhai, Zhongshan, Jiangmen, and Huizhou.

Another year had passed, and the number of people from the county traveling to Guangdong for work had increased again. After the Spring Festival travel rush, these twenty-five buses would undoubtedly be stretched thin, as Tenglong Passenger Transport Company always adhered to regulations and never overloaded its buses, which meant their capacity was significantly lower compared to other companies that did overload.

Therefore, the only solution was to add more large buses to handle the increasing number of passengers.

It's worth noting that even during the off-season, the transport company's revenue was much higher than before.

Apart from the increase in the number of passengers, another reason was that the company had adjusted its strategy to pick up passengers from the cities along the route from Bobai to Guangdong.

As a result, even during the off-season, the passenger load rate for the company's twenty-five large buses remained between 70% to 75%, which was an excellent performance.

According to Tenglong Passenger Transport Company's rough calculations, maintaining a 15% passenger load rate for long-distance buses in this era was enough to break even. A 70% to 75% load rate meant substantial profits.

The five new large buses were purchased with the profits from this year's off-season, and the company still had several hundred thousand in working capital, indicating just how profitable the company had become.

As the company's operations expanded, its profits would only grow, and it would no longer need to seek loans from banks. The annual profits alone would be sufficient to fund further expansion.

Tenglong Passenger Transport Company had entered a period of positive development.

...

Hepu County.

Shankou Town.

On a bustling street, there was a seafood restaurant called Abao. This restaurant was the first to sell seafood in Shankou Town after the reform and opening-up. The owner, Abao, was a middle-aged man in his mid-forties.

At that moment, Abao was sitting at the entrance of his restaurant, smoking a water pipe, his face clouded with worry, enveloped by the swirling smoke.

Although he was the first to open a seafood restaurant in the town after the reform and opening-up, being the first to do something did not guarantee success. Abao's seafood restaurant had been operating for more than five years, but business had always been mediocre.

Earning enough to support his family was not a problem, but hoping to get rich from this seafood restaurant was currently out of the question.

Shankou Town was by the sea, and the customers for a seafood restaurant here were not primarily from the town itself but from other nearby towns. If he had been the only one in the seafood business, he would have made a substantial profit over the years.

Unfortunately, that was impossible. Just six months after he opened his seafood restaurant, competitors started appearing.

Now, there were already five seafood restaurants in Shankou Street. Given such intense competition, he considered it a decent achievement just to earn enough to support his family.

In the past few years, he had not felt much pressure, but now his son was growing up and needed to get married, the family house was old and needed to be rebuilt, and the two younger children were in school, which required money. With expenses piling up everywhere, his stress naturally increased.

To be honest, he had considered moving to another place to run a seafood restaurant, but after so many years here, he was still making a profit. Moving to an unfamiliar place would mean starting from scratch, and whether he could make a profit there was uncertain.

So, after much hesitation, he could not bring himself to make the decision.

While smoking his water pipe, Abao was lost in thought.

Suddenly, the sound of a motorcycle approached. As he looked up, a beautiful motorcycle drove toward him and stopped in front of his restaurant.

Seeing the motorcycle rider, Abao felt a sense of familiarity.

Just as Abao was trying to recall where he had seen the person before, the rider smiled and greeted him, "Boss, it's been a long time!"

Abao suddenly remembered who it was and exclaimed excitedly, "Ah Biao, it's you! I almost didn't recognize you after so many years."

He remembered that this was a super big customer he had encountered in the first year of opening his seafood restaurant.

At the time, this big customer not only bought all the dried seafood like sandworms and squids from his store but also pre-ordered dozens of pounds of flower crabs, large shrimps, and mudworms. It was the biggest order he had received in the years since opening his restaurant, leaving a deep impression.

Seeing that the boss still recognized him, Deng Shirong couldn't help but smile, "Boss, it's been a few years. How's business?"

"Ah, business is tough. I can barely make ends meet."

Abao sighed and then handed over the water pipe, "Ah Biao, have a smoke first."

Deng Shirong took the pipe and sat down on a nearby stool, saying, "Boss, don't worry. People don't have much money now, but in a few years, when more people have money, the seafood business will naturally get better."

Abao smiled, "I hope so, but even if the business improves, the competition here is intense. It's still hard to make money!"

After a few more words of small talk, Deng Shirong, after a few puffs of the pipe, said, "Boss, I'm here to discuss a big deal with you."

Abao knew the big spending habits of this customer. Hearing the words "big deal," his eyes lit up, and he asked, "Ah Biao, how much do you need this time?"

Deng Shirong put the pipe aside and smiled, "Boss, I'll give you two days. For sandworms, shrimp, and squids, I'll take as much as you can get. The same goes for flower crabs, large shrimps, and mudworms. Whatever you can get, I'll take it."

Abao's eyes widened in shock, "Ah Biao, are you serious? Whatever I can get, you'll take it all?"

Deng Shirong nodded, smiling, "Yes, no limit. Whatever you can get, I'll take. As for the price..."

At this, Abao was so excited that his whole body trembled!

A big deal, this was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If he seized this chance, he could have the money for his son's wedding and the new house...

Abao immediately thumped his chest, "Ah Biao, don't worry about the price. I'll give you the best deal!"

"I don't like haggling. Just tell me what kind of discount you can offer. If the price is right, we'll do the deal!"

It was already 1986, and the price of seafood had been rising year by year. Taking advantage of the current relatively reasonable prices, Deng Shirong had specially come to Shankou to stock up on seafood. Whether for his family's consumption or for selling in a few years, it was a good move.

Abao, who had been in the seafood business for a few years, knew his costs well. He offered a very low price, "Ah Biao, I'll give you sandworms at 5 yuan per pound, shrimp at the same price, squids at 5.5 yuan per pound, flower crabs at 0.8 yuan per pound, large shrimps at 1 yuan per pound, and mudworms at 0.4 yuan per pound. What do you think?"

Deng Shirong was quite satisfied. Five years ago, when he had come to buy, sandworms were 3.3 yuan per pound, squids were 3.6 yuan per pound, flower crabs were 0.5 yuan per pound, large shrimps were 0.8 yuan per pound, and mudworms were 0.3 yuan per pound. The prices had risen, but the increase was not too significant.

Of course, Deng Shirong understood that if he hadn't mentioned buying in unlimited quantities, the boss wouldn't have offered such a low price.

Therefore, Deng Shirong didn't haggle and directly nodded, saying, "Alright, then let's go with this price. But you must ensure the best quality."

The quality of seafood is highly important. For example, high-quality dried sandworms are usually as thick as a thumb, though this might be a slight exaggeration, but they are generally as thick as a pen and as long as a finger. Low-quality sandworms, on the other hand, are often smaller and shorter than a pencil.

The same goes for dried squids. High-quality squids are large and thick, while low-quality squids are small and thin.

Thus, the price difference between high-quality and low-quality seafood can be significant.

For instance, with dried sandworms, the larger they are, the more valuable they become. Many seafood stores categorize them into large, medium, and small sizes. To maximize profits, merchants often mix some medium-quality sandworms with the high-quality ones and some low-quality ones with the medium-quality ones.

If the mixing isn't too obvious and the customers aren't knowledgeable about seafood, the merchants can make double the profit.

If you don't know the trade, you might be cheated without even realizing it.

However, this trick worked only in the 1980s and 1990s. In later years, customers became more savvy. Those who could afford to buy seafood priced at hundreds or even thousands of yuan per pound were well-informed, making it difficult to deceive them. Doing so could even harm their reputation.

Abao nodded repeatedly, saying, "Don't worry, Ah Biao. We've done business before, and I'll definitely give you the best quality."

"Alright, it's settled then!"

Deng Shirong took out twenty large bills and handed them over, saying, "Boss, this is the deposit. I'll come back to pick up the goods the day after tomorrow."

Abao took the money, feeling a weight lift off his shoulders. He smiled broadly, "Alright, Ah Biao. I'll have everything ready for you."

"Okay, I'll be on my way then!"

"Alright, take care, Ah Biao!"

...

Two days later.

Deng Shirong rode his motorcycle back to Abao's seafood store.

At this time, Abao's entire family and many relatives were there. The store was piled high with various dried and fresh seafood, the quantity of which was staggering.

Seeing Deng Shirong arrive, Abao handed him the water pipe with a smile, saying, "Ah Biao, have a smoke first. The goods you ordered are all here!"

Deng Shirong took the pipe and immediately used the system space's perspective to observe the seafood in the store. He found that it was all of good quality and was very satisfied. He asked, "Boss, how much seafood do you have here in total?"

Abao replied without hesitation, "832 pounds of sandworms, 1358 pounds of squids, 635 pounds of shrimp, 1844 pounds of flower crabs, 2231 pounds of large shrimps, and 3670 pounds of mudworms."

To gather this much, he had put in a lot of effort over the past two days, mobilizing his relatives and friends and even going door-to-door in other villages to buy dried seafood.

Deng Shirong puffed on the pipe a few times and said, "Alright, calculate the total cost."

Abao had all the numbers memorized and replied directly, "Ah Biao, 4160 yuan for sandworms, 7469 yuan for squids, 3175 yuan for shrimp, 1475 yuan for flower crabs, 2231 yuan for large shrimps, and 1468 yuan for mudworms. The total is 19,978 yuan."

When Abao announced this figure, his family and relatives were still in a daze.

"Even now, spending 20,000 yuan on seafood at once would be a huge deal, let alone in this era. It completely redefined their perception of luxury."

For Deng Shirong now, 10,000 to 20,000 yuan wasn't much, and with this much seafood, his family would have enough to eat for a long time.

After paying, Deng Shirong said, "Boss, please have the goods delivered to the intersection for me."

Abao agreed readily, "No problem!"

So, the entire family and relatives set to work, transporting the dried and fresh seafood to the intersection over a kilometer away.

The dried seafood was easy to transport, and the flower crabs and mudworms were manageable. The only tricky part was the large shrimps, which needed to be kept in seawater to stay alive. If they were out of water for too long, they would die.

Currently, over a ton of large shrimps were being kept in buckets and basins. The ones in buckets were easier to transport, but the ones in basins were more troublesome.

In the end, Deng Shirong paid for ten pairs of wooden buckets to be bought, and the shrimps in the basins were transferred to the wooden buckets, solving the problem.

Soon, there was no need for further discussion. The location chosen by Deng Shirong was at the intersection of the future Shan Kou Expressway. If one were to travel from Bobai to Nanning, they could also take this route. The place was convenient for transportation, but in this era, there were no houses built around it yet. Apart from the occasional passing vehicles, it could be described as sparsely populated.

Therefore, once everyone had left, Deng Shirong had no qualms about putting all the seafood into the system space and then riding his motorcycle away with a carefree demeanor.

...

Before long, the Spring Festival travel rush of 1986 officially began.

Before the travel rush started, universities across the country had already let out for the holiday, and large buses in various regions began to fill up with passengers.

When the travel rush officially arrived, factories across the country began to close for the holiday, and large buses nationwide started to overflow with passengers. The thirty large buses of Tenglong Passenger Transport Company were no exception, with all the buses returning from Guangdong fully loaded.

Unfortunately, the number of passengers traveling from Bobai to Guangdong during this period was not high, and it was common for buses to run empty to Guangdong. Otherwise, if they were full both ways, the passenger transport company would have been making a fortune!

...

Naye Deng Clan Residential Area.

Deng Shirong's house was under renovation. Initially, they had planned to start the renovation after the New Year, but their eldest daughter had decided to register her marriage after the New Year, and no one knew when the wedding banquet would be held. Therefore, the house allocated to her had to be renovated first.

According to the local customs in Bobai, the house allocation was as follows: the eldest brother on the first floor, the second brother on the second floor, the third brother on the third floor, and so on.

Deng Shirong did not intend to break this tradition. However, in his family's house allocation, he included his daughters as well, deciding to assign the floors based on age. The eldest son on the first floor, the eldest daughter on the second floor, the second son on the third floor, the youngest daughter on the fourth floor, the third son on the fifth floor, the fourth son on the sixth floor, and the youngest son on the seventh floor.

Therefore, the second floor, which was allocated to the eldest daughter, was currently being renovated.

Deng Shirong chose a European style for his eldest daughter's room, which was the most fashionable and trendy at the time. Although this style would likely become outdated in a decade or so, it was undoubtedly very impressive for the next few years.

If it became outdated in the future, they could always renovate it again, as the family certainly had the means to do so.

The main reason for choosing the European style was that this style of renovation was relatively quick, unlike the traditional Chinese style, which required a lot of time to achieve the desired effect.

...

Now that Yongjia Supermarket was running smoothly, Zhang Xiuping had more free time and no longer needed to stay at the supermarket every day.

Therefore, during this period, Zhang Xiuping, having nothing much to do, would often bring her children to visit the Ou sisters' clothing store to chat about daily life.

One day, Zhang Xiuping brought Xiao Dong with her.

After a few minutes of casual chat with the sisters, Zhang Xiuping asked, "Afang, Ahua, when do you plan to close the store and go back for the New Year?"

Ou Guofang smiled and said, "We can go back after selling this batch of goods. When do you plan to return, Sister Ping?"

Zhang Xiuping replied, "In previous years, whether we were working in state-owned enterprises or running businesses, we were always busy around the New Year, and the restaurants had little business. So, we would usually return early. But this year, with the supermarket, things are different. The supermarket does its best business around the New Year, so we can only return around the 27th or 28th of the lunar month."

Ou Guohua nodded, "Around the New Year, everyone is busy preparing for the holiday, so the supermarket indeed does the best business at this time."

Ou Guofang sighed, "We had originally planned to return with you, Sister Ping, but if you can only return around the 27th or 28th, we will have to go back earlier!"

Zhang Xiuping smiled, "Go back first, there's no need to wait for us. You have a lot to do when you return, especially Ahua. You have your own household now, and you have to take care of everything. It's not like before!"

Ou Guohua agreed, "Yes, after returning, I need to clean the house, make glutinous rice cakes, and prepare offerings for the ancestors. Additionally, my youngest child is still with his maternal grandparents, so I need to go and bring him back for the New Year. It's indeed very busy."

Zhang Xiuping said, "It's fine to be busy. Being in charge of your own household has its advantages. This year, with the clothing store, you've made a lot of money, and you can keep it all. You don't have to hand it over to your mother-in-law like before."

Mentioning this, Ou Guohua's smile couldn't be hidden.

This year, their clothing store had a total profit of over 20,000 yuan, and each of them could keep over 10,000 yuan. Having such a large sum of money under their control meant they could spend it as they wished, unlike the past when even buying fruits or snacks would invite scolding from their mother-in-law.

Ou Guohua smiled warmly, "Yes, life now is truly full of hope."

Hearing this, Zhang Xiuping and Ou Guofang exchanged a smile.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end