'Haha, I told you, if you give someone a gift, you must want something in return. Go ahead, tell me what you want to buy, and even if you don't have any money, Dad will find a way to get it for you.' Zheng Boxun did not directly answer his daughter's question.
In fact, Zheng Jiayi didn't care about how much money the family had, and her parents didn't seem like they would tell her the truth. 'Does our family have any US dollar savings?'
'Why do you ask? Did a classmate who is studying abroad ask you to lend them money?'
'No, I need it,'
'What do you need US dollars for?'
'Dad, I can tell you, but I can only tell you, and you must never tell anyone else, not even Mum. Comrade Zheng, can you do that?' Since she was little, her father had spent more time looking after her, and Zheng Jiayi was closer to him.
'Oh, so serious, what is it?'
'Just tell me if you can promise!'
'Okay, I promise not to tell a third person, this is a secret between you and me.'
'You must keep your word!'
'Of course. Do you not trust your father's word?'
'Okay, here's the thing,' Zheng Jiayi told Zheng Boshan about what Feng Yiping had told her.
'Is that really the case?' Zheng Boshan stopped drinking and became serious.
'Yes, aren't you all wondering where his funds come from? They all come from the financial market,' Zheng Jiayi said with a hint of pride.
'Amazing, amazing,' Zheng Boxun praised twice, and these words from his daughter have dispelled some of the doubts his wife and he had before. They knew about Feng Yiping's family's investments everywhere, and they never could figure out where they got so much money from. And a lot of it was foreign exchange. Now the mystery has finally been solved.
But it was 1997, and he was only seventeen or eighteen at the time, and he actually had such a keen eye.
'But he believes he's right, and you trust him so much?'
'Yes, although to be honest, we don't interact much, but I trust him.'
Hearing her daughter's words, Zheng Bosong suddenly felt a hint of jealousy.
'And, for the sake of his mother, he would never say anything he wasn't sure about.'
This made sense. Feng Yiping's good intentions would ultimately fall on his wife's shoulders. As soon as her daughter mentioned this, Zheng Bosong understood the meaning.
'Okay, I'll trust your judgment, but don't expect too much. Don't put too much pressure on him. I know the stock market better than you do, and there are a lot of people who have fallen through the cracks.'
'I know.'
After dinner, Zheng Jiayi obediently cleaned up in the kitchen while Zheng Boxun prepared to go out with his briefcase. 'You wait for me at home.'
'Dad, where are you going? Don't tell anyone about this.'
'I know, don't worry.'
After about forty minutes, Zheng Boxun finally returned, took out a large kraft paper envelope from his briefcase, and then took out a bundle of green banknotes wrapped in plastic from inside. He smiled and waved them at his daughter, 'Look, what is this?'
'Huh? Is it US dollars?' Zheng Jiayi saw the foreigner's head on the banknote.
'Yes, US dollars, 160,000 in total. I originally planned to save it for when you went abroad to study, but now I'll give it all to you. You give it to Feng Yiping in private and ask him to write a receipt. No, you don't need to write a receipt. When the time comes, whether you lose or make a profit, you should open an account with UBS.' Feng Yiping would never steal from his family, and it would be bad to leave a receipt behind.
'These are US dollars,' Zheng Jiayi said with a hint of curiosity, picking up a stack and flipping through it, then feeling it.
'Okay, put it away so no one else sees it.'
'Okay,' Zheng Jiayi put all of it in her backpack and turned to go.
'Leaving already? Not staying at home?'
'I'd better go. I don't want to see the faces of those people who come to the door with gifts!'
'You're so childish,' Zheng Boyong said as he saw his daughter get into the car and buckle her seat belt. "Drive carefully on the road. And," he leaned over the window and lowered his voice, 'remember to find a place where there are only the two of you to give it to him.'
'I know, Dad.'
Feng Yiping and the others didn't buy anything afterwards. Although Huang Jingping said she wanted to, it wasn't appropriate to buy clothes for Zhang Yan. As for jewellery, Feng Yiping would definitely buy only the best, and the same went for cosmetics. In the end, she had to buy some small ornaments and other knick-knacks that girls like. It added up to quite a lot, but she didn't spend much money in total.
'Do you really need all this?' Feng Yiping looked at the various hair clips, hair bands, hairpins, rings made from handicrafts, earrings, etc.
'How would you know?' Huang Jingping gave him a cold stare.
Seeing that Huang Jingping was going to pick up the bracelet that cost a few dollars a string, Feng Yiping simply stepped aside. He had no sense of aesthetics when it came to these things, but seeing that Huang Jingping was calm and a little happy about the bargain, he was also very happy. It seemed that Huang Jingping's starting point was really to see Zhang Yan.
The phone vibrated in his pocket. He picked it up and saw that it was his auntie. 'Yiping, where are you?' She immediately heard the music in the background. 'You're shopping in the mall, and we're all busy! Let me tell you, a lot of the people who came to the meeting were asking about furniture and cabinets. Some asked about agency rights, some directly asked about prices, and one, after seeing the mahogany furniture on display, has already decided to buy it,'
He is the owner of a snack food factory. He liked the set displayed in the shop when he visited, and not only was the material and workmanship good, but the style was also top notch.
'Did he bargain?'
'Of course, he asked us to make a discount, but you already said that furniture like this will increase in value after you buy it back. I insisted that it was not for sale. Later, he didn't feel comfortable bargaining, but we will bear the shipping costs.'
Feng Yiping said, 'How did something like this happen to me? It seems that Cai Hong has made a lot of money and is bragging about it to everyone, saying, 'Well, I see. I'll make sure your father gives you a bigger bonus.
'That's not what I meant. I was thinking, can we increase our efforts in this area and do more? Selling one of these sets is equivalent to selling many ordinary sets.'
This is how it is with luxury goods, of course. 'I think it's a good idea. You discuss it with Comrade Cai and ask him to improve relations with the southwest and import more good raw materials.'
'So you, the boss, agree?'
'Of course. It's a good idea.'
'I'll call them now.'
After hanging up the phone, Feng Yiping felt a little amused. Originally, whether in terms of age or seniority, it should be him who wanted to gain the recognition of Cai Hong and the others, but now the situation had reversed, and they all wanted to gain the recognition of Feng Yiping, the junior.
However, this was indeed good news. He had always been taking money from them to buy goods, but today, he finally saw a return.
'What's wrong? You seem so happy.' Huang Jingping came back with several more knick-knacks.
'Of course I'm happy. My sister-in-law just reported good news. I sold a set of mahogany furniture to a customer who came to the meeting.'
'Needless to say, judging from your expression, you must have made a lot of money,'
'Yes, in terms of profit margin, it's similar to Zhitong's software. Let's go and buy a two-dollar steamed bun to celebrate.'
Huang Jingping tapped him lightly, 'A two-dollar steamed bun and celebrate?'
As soon as she said this, the phone in Feng Yiping's hand vibrated again. He looked at the caller ID and saw that it must be someone else who was bringing him money.
Zheng Jiayi had asked him to meet her by a lake. This place was quite a nice place to go in spring and summer, but it was a bit too cold now. Feng Yiping wrapped his jacket tightly around himself, walked over to Zheng Jiayi, who was standing by the car, and said with a serious face, 'Heavenly King covers the earth tiger,'
'What?' Zheng Jiayi looked surprised.
'The password. You asked me to meet you here, didn't you? Comrade, be serious. What should you say to the password, 'Heavenly King covers the earth tiger'?'
Zheng Jiayi handed him a large kraft envelope without any good will, 'Pagoda Town you demon, this is the study abroad fund that my family prepared for, and now it's all yours.'
'Don't worry, at least you won't lose money. How much is it?'
'Sixteen,' said Zheng Jiayi, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed when she said this. She knew that with her parents' salaries, they would not have saved so much, and it was still in US dollars in cash. Feng Yiping would definitely be able to guess where it came from.
'Okay, then hurry up and leave! It's so cool here, and we'll go for another meal tonight. By the way, I have some news for you. That Shi Lu has been sent to the west by his company. He will surely make a difference in the vast world of the west.'
Although Feng Yiping was also thinking about the saying, 'Three years as a prefect, how much silver!' his face did not show it at all.
To be honest, sometimes, you can't blame the people in power. It's like later, when doctors stopped taking red envelopes from family members before surgery, but the family members didn't know what to think. It's similar now. If some official promises you something and doesn't take your red envelope, you probably won't feel at ease and will insist that he does.