Chapter Thirteen: Scheming Expansion

In early June, the Yangtze River Rickshaw Company had been operating for about ten days, and everything was progressing smoothly.

That day, when Li Chao finished work, he saw Chen Guangliang had already called a rickshaw to wait for him, so he quickened his pace.

From the beginning of their partnership, Chen Guangliang never put on airs as an official.

After all, this partner was highly skilled, knowledgeable, and well-educated. Even without pulling a rickshaw, he could certainly change his life. With his English skills and literacy, finding a job at a foreign trading firm would not be difficult.

“Brother Chen,” Li Chao greeted.

“Brother Li, let’s have a simple meal together.”

“Good, please.”

Though called a simple meal, it was truly modest, but at least it was at a small eatery or stir-fry shop.

At that time, there was another kind of dining—without a storefront, vendors carried two baskets on a pole, selling food in alleyways. These meals were very affordable for the lower class, though naturally, sanitation was questionable.

But at first, Chen Guangliang could only afford such meals for lunch.

Now, although he still pulled a rickshaw, earning six or seven dimes a day, he could spend it directly without worrying about saving.

Though the era was chaotic, prices were relatively “cheap”:

Second-grade rice cost eight cents per jin (half a kilogram), and a rickshaw puller’s daily wage could buy five or six jin of rice; pork was twenty-eight cents per jin, something the lower class might eat three or four times a month.

Cotton was 0.48 yuan per jin; coal, 0.14 yuan per dan (about 50 jin); kerosene, 0.06 yuan per jin; soap, 0.05 yuan per bar; cigarettes, 0.036 yuan per pack; tea leaves, 0.23 yuan per jin; live chicken, 0.37 yuan per jin; fresh eggs, 0.027 yuan each; soybean oil, 0.19 yuan per jin; salt, 0.043 yuan per jin; sugar, 0.096 yuan per jin; fine cloth, 0.107 yuan per chi (about one-third of a meter)...

Chen Guangliang now earned six or seven dimes a day (the puller’s wage), plus he had ten silver dollars saved, so he could occasionally enjoy a proper meal.

Pan-fried buns, crab shell pastry, and various snacks cost less than two dimes per meal.

Every day, Chen Guangliang gave Yang Xiuying two dimes for food, covering dinner and breakfast, with the evening meal including a bit of meat.

After all, the monthly food expense for most lower-class people was only about six or seven yuan.

Sitting at a table outdoors, Chen Guangliang and Li Chao ate crab roe buns, soaked rice, and pickled vegetables.

In this era, the poor ate hairy crabs, while the wealthy enjoyed dim sum at tea houses!

“Brother Li, I’ve come up with a way to increase the Yangtze River Rickshaw Company’s income: we could stock some beverages, cigarettes, candies, snacks, matches, and other small goods, then have the rickshaw pullers sell them... What do you think?”

Li Chao replied, “Won’t that annoy the customers?”

Making money was certain.

Chen Guangliang smiled, “That’s why we need to train the pullers to know ‘moderation.’ With simple sales pitches, customers have the right to choose and can enjoy convenience, so it won’t cause annoyance.”

Li Chao then said, “In that case, it’s indeed an innovative idea. After all, sitting in a rickshaw can be quite boring.”

Chen Guangliang nodded and said, “Then it’s settled. I’ll prepare it later.” He added, “Also, I plan to try to get support from a bank for a loan.”

Li Chao said, “We haven’t registered the company, and our total assets are just over seven hundred silver dollars (licenses overvalued). Would a bank be interested?”

Chen Guangliang said, “Where there’s a will... Of course, if we do get a bank loan, it would be in our names. Suppose the bank lends 600 silver dollars, secured by the three rickshaws and the licenses, but the loaners would be the two of us. That way, we can use the funds to invite new partners and buy more vehicles.”

In essence, the collateral is the common property of all, but the loan is taken by just him and Li Chao.

Since other pullers contribute less, it wouldn’t be fair to let them ‘take advantage’ all the time.

Li Chao immediately understood the idea: “That way, the equity of each batch of rickshaws will differ!”

Chen Guangliang nodded, “That’s no problem. We can think of each batch of rickshaws as a big ship, each with different shareholders, which won’t affect the company’s overall development.”

“Impressive, your method is clever. Too bad I don’t know anyone in the bank, but I’ll keep an eye out.”

“Mm.”

Naturally, the ‘real owners’ of the Yangtze River Rickshaw Company were only the two of them.

So Chen Guangliang only needed to discuss most matters with Li Chao.

...

“Professor Zhang, conditions here are poor—dirty and smelly.”

Zhang Qihua came to Panguan Lane for an inspection; Chen Guangliang took him to experience life in the shantytown.

“That’s alright... You are right, without experiencing your life firsthand, how can I write a true novel about your rickshaw pullers?”

More than half a month after acquiring ‘materials,’ Zhang Qihua felt he had a rough idea but still felt something was missing, so he decided to gain a real understanding of the industry.

To his surprise, Chen Guangliang had already partnered to open a rickshaw company and owned three rickshaws.

Of course, this made it easier for him to experience the trade.

Zhang Qihua earnestly said, “I’ll probably be free in July and want to truly understand and experience your life for a month.”

At this point, he valued *Rickshaw Boy* greatly and was determined to complete it as a significant work.

Experiencing a day or two as a ‘puller’ wouldn’t suffice; a whole month would.

As for *Rickshaw Boy’s* setting in Beiping, that wouldn’t affect his writing since he had lived in Beiping before.

Chen Guangliang said, “No problem. We now have nine pullers. Whomever you want to learn from, visit their homes, or have them take you around, it’s all possible. We guarantee you’ll gain real insight.”

Zhang Qihua nodded, patted Chen Guangliang’s shoulder, and exclaimed, “You are remarkable!”

He didn’t feel he was Chen Guangliang’s ‘benefactor,’ since Chen had the materials and could sell them to others.

Chen Guangliang smiled, “Just making a living. When I have money, I want to study more, learn English.”

“That’s good. With that mindset, you’re sure to succeed.”

Seeing the time was ripe, Chen Guangliang asked, “Professor Zhang, do you know anyone in the bank?”

Last time when Zhang helped him get money, Chen noticed Zhang was acquainted with a manager at the Shanghai Savings Bank, so he asked.

Zhang knew Chen’s ambitions were considerable and was happy to help. He said, “I know a deputy manager at Shanghai Savings Bank. I can introduce you, though your small business might not get their support.”

Chen Guangliang said quickly, “Thank you, Professor Zhang. Please introduce me anyway; success or failure doesn’t matter. If it doesn’t work this time, maybe when I grow bigger, it will.”

“Ha ha, that’s reasonable.”

Just then, the rickshaw pullers returned to hand over their shifts. Chen Guangliang arranged for someone to escort Zhang Qihua home.

Zhang took a few glances at the Yangtze River Rickshaw Company team and silently praised them.

What impressed Zhang most was Chen Guangliang’s kindness to the pullers, even allowing them to hold shares.