Chapter 703: Lu Jiaxin's Side Story 7
Chapter 703: Lu Jiaxin's Side Story 7
After dinner, the family of three strolled in the backyard garden, with Nie Zhan pushing the baby stroller. After a while, he suddenly remembered something he had forgotten to mention, "I bought some things over there and they'll be delivered in a few days."
"What did you buy?"
Nie Zhan suddenly recalled something and said, "I bought some calligraphy, paintings, and jewelry. You can pick what you like first, and I'll choose the rest to give to friends."
Lu Jiaxin nodded. Nie Zhan always brought her gifts whenever he went on a business trip. This time, he returned empty-handed, and she thought he might have been in a hurry and didn't have time to shop.
A week later, the items arrived.
When Lu Jiaxin returned home, she saw eighteen boxes placed in the living room. Nie Zhan had mentioned some items, but she had thought it would be one or two boxes, not eighteen.
She asked the bodyguards to open all the boxes. Lu Jiaxin found that most of the items were jewelry, along with watercolor paintings, oil paintings, carvings, ceramics, and glassware. Among them, what caught Lu Jiaxin's eye the most were two crowns and a queen's tiara, adorned with large gemstones that could dazzle one's eyes.
Lu Jiaxin picked out the items she liked, leaving the rest for Nie Zhan to handle. It was said that in times of chaos, gold and antiques flourished, and in a situation of scarcity, antiques, calligraphy, and artwork were not as valuable. So, it was a good opportunity to acquire more of them.
Lu Jiaxin called Yan Yijun and said, "Contact Li Qing and ask him to help with collecting jewelry, antiques, and calligraphy along with Lao He."
"Okay."
Because Lu Jiaxin liked them, Li Qing and Lao He worked diligently. After more than two months, they received over twenty boxes of jewelry, oil paintings, and ceramics, with jewelry and carvings still making up the majority. Due to the chaotic situation over there, the prices of jewelry and ornaments were heavily discounted, less than half of what they used to be. Of course, Lu Jiaxin wasn't planning to profit from the price difference; she genuinely liked them.
Lu Zhao loved the sparkling jewelry, but Lu Jiaxin didn't dare let her play with them. Firstly, some of the jewelry had sharp edges that could cause injury, and secondly, some pieces were small, and at this age, children liked to put things in their mouths, which could be dangerous.
Before they knew it, summer vacation had arrived, and Zong Shimeng called Lu Jiaxin, "Jiaxin, are you busy these days? If not, let's go to Tai O for a few days."
The villa in Tai O had been built long ago. However, after its completion, Lu Jiaxin became pregnant, and due to the baby's low immunity, she hadn't dared to take her there. So, it had been left unused. Now that the child was over eight months old, they could go and stay for a few days.
Smiling, Lu Jiaxin said, "I'll arrange for someone to clean it, and we'll go there next week."
She had taken Lu Zhao out once when she was over five months old, but upon reaching their destination, the baby developed a fever. The doctor suspected it was due to the change in environment, so now she dared not take the child on trips easily.
Subsequently, Lu Jiaxin called Yu Meitong. Hearing her ask if she was bringing family, Lu Jiaxin smiled and said, "Nie Zhan will be going on a business trip in a couple of days and won't be able to join us. Just bring the kids; there's no need for the husbands."
Yu Meitong returned to work after her maternity leave. She followed Zong Shimeng and Lu Jiaxin's example, and before her child turned one, there was also a babysitter and a housekeeper to take care of the baby. When the child turned one, she felt it wasn't necessary to have two people caring for the baby, so she only kept the housekeeper. Since the housekeeper only needed to take care of the child and nothing else, with a high salary, they were very dedicated.
"My naughty child will be there, so don't be annoyed by him later!"
Because the child was particularly mischievous and had earned the nickname 'Naughty.' Lu Jiaxin smiled and said, "It's fine, there's a babysitter and a housekeeper! They have their ways of handling children."
Indeed, having money when having a child meant that aside from worrying about the dangers of pregnancy and childbirth, there were no other concerns. When the child was young, they could hire a babysitter or a nanny, and when they grew older, they could hire a private tutor for one-on-one teaching. Parents only needed to supervise, and there was no need to do everything themselves.
Speaking of this, Yu Meitong hesitated and asked, "Jiaxin, I want to have another one, but I'm afraid it'll be another boy?"
"Lu Jiaxin knew that she wanted a daughter, and every time she saw Yin Yin or Zhao Zhao, she would hold them close and not want to let go. 'Girls aren't necessarily always well-behaved, and boys aren't always mischievous,' she thought."
Yu Meitong had a thought: "Let's take a gamble! If I get my wish for a daughter, it'll be great. If it's still a boy, then it's just not meant to be."
She didn't want to have too many children, as she knew she wouldn't have the energy to manage more than that. Many of her acquaintances had two or three, or even more children, but she wasn't willing to follow suit.
Lu Jiaxin then called Hu Huihui, only to find out that she was pregnant and already experiencing pregnancy symptoms. She had morning sickness, so a trip to Tai O was definitely out of the question.
On Saturday, they agreed to meet up in Tai O. When they met, Lu Jiaxin noticed that Zong Shimeng had come alone: "Why didn't you bring Yin Yin and Xiao Bao with you?"
Zong Shimeng waved her hand and said, "Your brother-in-law made arrangements with the equestrian center last week. They'll be taking the kids there to ride horses this weekend, and I'll finally get some peace and quiet."
Lu Jiaxin felt that she had changed a lot; it was hard to believe that she used to be so untrusting.
They left the children with the babysitter and the housekeeper, and the three women headed to the pool behind the house to swim. After a few laps, Yu Meitong was the first to call it quits and get out of the pool.
Lu Jiaxin swam for half an hour before getting out. It was a hot day, so she didn't bother changing and simply draped a bathrobe over herself as she lay down on the lounge chair.
After chatting for a while, Yu Meitong suddenly said, "Jiaxin, the distorted porcelain you gave me last time inspired me. I showed the design draft to the director, and she said it was very creative. It looks like I'll be getting another bonus."
Lu Jiaxin hadn't expected that a single gift would bring such a reward: "As designers, we can't stay cooped up at home. We need to get out, explore, and see more, so we can have a constant flow of inspiration."
Yu Meitong mentioned that she had already made plans with Tao Yong to take the kids to Hawaii for a vacation next month. Except for the year she was pregnant, no matter how busy she was, she always made time to travel two or three times a year.
Zong Shimeng asked, "Jiaxin, I heard you bought quite a few pieces of jewelry and antiques over there."
Lu Jiaxin didn't deny it and nodded, saying, "You know I love antique pieces. The jewelry and porcelain there are also exquisite, so I bought them for my collection. If you like them, Shimeng, I can ask someone to buy them for you."
Zong Shimeng said, "I heard it's quite chaotic over there now, and going there might mean not coming back."
Lu Jiaxin didn't refute her words: "It is a bit chaotic there, but fortune favors the bold. Many people still take risks for high profits."
If Zong Shimeng also wanted to buy, she could easily find a middleman in Russia. As long as the items were genuine, paying a little extra would be worth it.
Hearing their conversation, Yu Meitong suddenly asked, "Jiaxin, I heard that your branch in Russia provides loans to many mainland businesses. Is that true?"
Lu Jiaxin smiled and nodded, "It's true. But we're a bank, not a charity. To get a loan, you must have a guarantor that the bank trusts, and on top of that, the interest rate is 20%."
This interest rate was quite high, but compared to the auctioned machinery and equipment, it wasn't much. After all, the same machine now cost a tenth or even less of its price before the Soviet Union collapse.
Yu Meitong's eyes lit up at the mention of the 20% interest rate: "With that interest rate, you must have made a fortune!"
Lu Jiaxin smiled but remained silent. Lending to mainland businesses, no matter how high the interest, only earned them a small profit. The real money was made by participating in the privatization of state assets, and Nie Zhan also collaborated with international professional traders to speculate on the ruble.
(End of Chapter)
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