Chapter 422

Beiping City

【4】

state-owned store generic. grain coupon generic. black market generic. No named.

Li Ping'an

No.

No.

Steel Rolling Mill

No.

I heard that some factories in the south have started laying off workers.

Around here… sooner or later we'll have to…

Security Department, Li Ping'an

Xi Kua Yuan

Lin Xueqing, Red Braised Pork

Chen Jianghe and Li Pingle came.

"Brother, what day is today?" Li Pingle asked with a smile, "You've prepared such a feast."

Li Ping'an lifted his wine cup.

"I asked you all here today because there is a major matter to discuss."

Everyone put down their chopsticks.

"I plan," Li Ping'an said, word by word, "to buy out my work years and go into business."

The room fell silent for a moment.

"What?" Li Pingle was the first to react, "Brother, you're crazy? You're a section chief! In just over ten years you'll retire—what a pension!"

Lin Xueqing also grew anxious: "Ping'an, now our two kids are in university, and Yaoyang just started middle school—how can my salary alone cover it? Going into business? What if we lose money?"

Chen Jianghe frowned: "Brother, the policy says reform and opening-up, but who can guarantee it won't change? What if one day it..."

"It won't change," Li Ping'an interrupted him, his voice steady, "Listen to my analysis."

He set down his wine cup and began counting on his fingers.

"First, the chief designer said that reform and opening-up is a basic state policy, unshakable for a hundred years. Developing the economy is hard truth. These words appear in newspapers every day and are broadcast on the radio every day."

"Second, look at the streets—individual households are increasing, and the southern special zones are booming. What does that show? It shows that a private economy is the future mainstream."

"Third," he paused, "you all know the situation at the Steel Rolling Mill: equipment is aging, products won't sell, benefits are deteriorating. Workers can still draw wages now, but in a few years? Either wait to be laid off, or find your own way out."

Li Ping'an looked at everyone.

"Now is the windfall. Stand at the windfall's edge, even a pig can fly. I don't want to wait until I'm fifty or sixty, only to be forced off the job and scrambling for work."

The room fell silent again.

Only the ticking of the clock on the wall, beat after beat, struck each person's heart.

Chen Jianghe was the first to speak.

"Brother, you're right. After so many years in the Security Section, I've seen it clearly too. The factory really is getting worse day by day. But... what business to go into? Have you thought it through?"

Li Ping'an nodded.

"I've thought it through. Open two shops."

"Two?"

"Right." Li Ping'an held up two fingers, "One an antique shop, one a restaurant."

Li Pingle widened his eyes: "Antiques? Brother, do you know anything about that?"

"I do." Li Ping'an smiled, "I've studied it a lot over the past ten years."

He was telling the truth.

Those years, he often sneaked into the Revolutionary Committee warehouse at night, rescuing countless antiques, which forced him to study appraisal and history. Combined with the keen perception granted by the Spiritual Spring Space, he now appraises antiques with near certainty.

As for the restaurant...

"I want to ask Sha Zhu to be the chef," Li Ping'an said, "His cooking skills, you all know. Building on the Tan family cuisine foundation, he's devised many new dishes over the years."

Chen Jianghe's eyes lit up.

"Brother, if you really go ahead with this, I'll follow you!"

"Have you thought it through?" Li Ping'an looked at him, "You're currently a deputy section chief—an iron rice bowl."

"Even an iron rice bowl can rust." Chen Jianghe raised his wine cup, "Brother, I trust you. Over these years, you've never been wrong."

The two clinked cups and drained them in one gulp.

The next day, Li Ping'an submitted his resignation report.

The Steel Rolling Mill exploded in an uproar.

"Section Chief Li wants to resign? Go into business?"

"Crazy? Giving up a good section chief position to become an individual household?"

"Heard he wants to open a restaurant? Partnering with Sha Zhu?"

"An antique shop? Can that kind of thing make money?"

The discussion surged like a tide, from the factory office to the workshop, from the workshop to the family quarters.

Factory Director Yang Changzhang personally sought out Li Ping'an for a talk.

"Ping'an, think it over again. You're an old veteran of the factory, a combat hero, and the organization has always valued you. Now reform is reform, but the iron rice bowl is still the iron rice bowl!"

Li Ping'an remained calm.

"Factory Director, I've thought it through. The factory is in difficulty now; if I stay, I'm just taking up a spot. It's better to give the opportunity to the young."

Well then... Yang Changzhang sighed, "If you want to come back in the future, you're always welcome."

Thank you, Factory Director.

After leaving the Factory Director's office, the corridor was full of people.

The Security Department's brothers all had red eyes.

Section Chief, are you really leaving?

Section Chief, take us with you!

Li Ping'an patted their shoulders.

Work hard. If anything comes up, come find me anytime.

In the Siheyuan, the reaction was even more intense.

Sha Zhu was the first to rush into Xi Kua Yuan.

Ping'an bro, you really want to open a restaurant? Let me be the chef?

Yes." Li Ping'an nodded, "Are you willing?"

Willing! So willing!" Sha Zhu rubbed his hands excitedly, "In the canteen it's just big pot meals, the skills haven't improved much; I've long wanted to do it myself! But... I just don't have the capital."

I'll provide the capital." Li Ping'an said, "You contribute the skills, we'll partner. The split is three for you, seven for me.

Thirty percent?" Sha Zhu's eyes widened, "Enough! Enough!"

Ma Dongmei pulled his sleeve from behind: "Zhuzi, think again..."

What's there to think about!" Sha Zhu shook her off, "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!"

Jia Zhangshi pursed her lips at her own doorstep.

Why give up a good Section Chief job to become a cook? Li Ping'an is just getting more and more backwards.

Bang Geng muttered from the side: "Grandma, opening a restaurant can make money now. The new place just opened across the front door is packed every day."

You also need the ability!" Jia Zhangshi glared, "You think money is so easy to earn?"

At Liu Haizhong's house, Er Da Ma and the neighbors were gossiping.

I heard Li Ping'an took out all his family's money and even wants to borrow. If he loses, the whole family will be drinking northwest wind.

Yan Bu Gui came back from sweeping the street, heard this, and shook his head.

Li Ping'an isn't impulsive. Since he dares to do it, he must have confidence.

Xu Damao listened to the outside discussion inside the house, smirking.

Go into business?

Just wait to drown!

In the coming days, Li Ping'an was busy to the point of not touching the ground.

First stop, Liuli Chang.

Blue stone slab road, antique-style shops, the air filled with the scent of ink and old books.

Li Ping'an went shop by shop, looking and asking.

Some shopkeepers, seeing his ordinary attire, gave half-hearted replies. He wasn't annoyed, just quietly looked, occasionally picking up an item and saying a couple of words.

The shopkeepers' eyes grew wider and wider as he spoke.

Comrade, you... you know your stuff?

A little.

Leaving Liuli Chang, he then went to Panjiayuan.

It was even livelier here, with stalls lined up and secondhand goods piled high. Shouts, haggling, and noisy chatter filled the air.

Li Ping'an squatted in front of a stall, picking up a porcelain bowl.

Republic of China era, imitation Qianlong. The craftsmanship is decent, worth fifty.

The stall owner froze: "You... you how do you know?"

Look at the body, the glaze, the mark." Li Ping'an set down the bowl and walked away.

After going around, he had a clear idea in mind.

Finding a shop took half a month.

Finally, near Wangfujing he found a street-facing shop. Two stories, blue bricks and gray tiles, it used to be a teahouse, later closed.

The landlord was an elderly lady, her son abroad, wanting to take her away.

This shop has been passed down from my grandfather's generation." The old lady wiped her tears, "If it weren't for my son insisting I leave, I really wouldn't want to sell.

Li Ping'an looked at the house.

The structure is solid, the location good. Just the interior is a bit run-down; it needs renovation.

Name your price.

The old lady held up three fingers.

Thirty thousand?

Not bad." The old lady said, "This location, this area, it's worth that price.

Thirty thousand.

In 1982, this was an astronomical sum.

Ordinary workers' monthly wages were only a few dozen yuan; a ten-thousand-yuan household was a big rich family.

But Li Ping'an didn't even blink.

Alright. We'll handle the paperwork tomorrow.

The old lady was stunned.

You... you're not going to haggle anymore?

"No need," Li Ping'an said, "it's worth this price."

During the renovation, Li Ping'an did another big thing.

He bought an independent Siheyuan near Houhai.

The courtyard wasn't large, but it was well maintained. Blue bricks paved the ground, there was a covered walking corridor, three main rooms, two side rooms, and an Old Locust Tree in the yard whose shade could cover half of it.

The owners were a pair of elderly professors, whose son was in the United States, and they wanted to bring him over for a reunion.

"This Siheyuan has housed four generations," the old professor stroked the doorframe, "every blade of grass and every tree has its own sentiment."

"Rest assured," Li Ping'an said, "I will take good care of it."

The price was forty thousand.

Li Ping'an directly took out several gold bars from the space— all sourced from the Lou Ban City villa, and they were of excellent purity.

The old professor had never seen so much gold; his hands trembled.

"This… this…"

"Just point to what you want," Li Ping'an said, "if it's not enough, we can add more."

The old professor invited a bank official to appraise it, confirming it was real gold with sufficient purity.

The deal was closed.

Holding the property deed as he left the housing bureau, Li Ping'an stood by Houhai, watching the glittering ripples.

He recalled a news story from his previous life.

Someone sold a Siheyuan in the 1980s to go abroad, worked for thirty years, saved a million dollars, returned, and discovered their Siheyuan was worth over a hundred million.

That kind of regret, that kind of absurdity.

Now, he wouldn't let that happen.

He opened the antique shop first.

He named it "Shi Gu Zhai".

It had two floors: the first displayed ordinary antiques, the four treasures of the study, porcelain and jade; the second floor was a boutique area, serving only regular customers.

The renovation was personally designed by Li Ping'an.

Redwood antique shelves, blue‑brick flooring, antique palace lamps. A few calligraphy and paintings hung on the walls— all selected from the space, not the finest, but of decent quality.

On opening day, there was no ceremony; they just set off hanging firecrackers.

But experts from the Liuli Factory and Panjiayuan came at the scent of news.

Seeing the items in the shop, they all gasped.

"This blue‑and‑white… Ming Yongle?"

"These characters… Wen Zhengming's authentic work?"

"Boss Li, where did you get all these items?"

Li Ping'an smiled.

"They were passed down from my ancestors; I didn't dare bring them out before. Now the policies are better, so I can finally show them to the light."

The words were half‑true, half‑false.

But no one probed further.

Nowadays there are many scattered antiques among the people; who doesn't have a few treasured pieces hidden away?

The restaurant opened a month later.

He named it "Tan Jia Lao Wei".

Sha Zhu personally took charge of the kitchen, with two apprentices. Ma Dongmei handled the accounts, and He Xiaodong served as assistant chef.

Li Ping'an hired a designer from the south; the renovation was elegant yet retained an ancient charm. The first floor had scattered tables, the second floor had private rooms.

The menu was set jointly by Li Ping'an and Sha Zhu.

The main dishes were Tan Family cuisine, plus innovative dishes Sha Zhu had refined over the years, and a few signature dishes that Li Ping'an "tuned" based on memories from his previous life.

For the first three days after opening, there was a 20% discount.

On the first day, the place was fully seated.

Sha Zhu was sweating profusely in the kitchen, yet his mouth was beaming with joy.

"Right, right, right! Heat! The heat must be sufficient!"

"This dish must be simmered in stock!"

"Serve the dish! Quickly!"

Ma Dongmei was tallying the accounts at the counter, the abacus clicking loudly.

"Zhuzi, today we… sold over three thousand one hundred!"

Sha Zhu's hand twitched, and the ladle almost fell into the pot.

"How much?"

"Over three thousand!"

In a single day, it exceeded his annual salary by over a year.

After closing for the night, Sha Zhu came looking for Li Ping'an, carrying two bottles of beer.

The two sat on the second floor of Shi Gu Zhai, watching the night view outside the window.

"Li Chief, no, Ping'an brother," Sha Zhu grinned, "I'm happy today… I'm happy today!"

"This is just the beginning," Li Ping'an clinked glasses with him, "it will get better from now on."

"I believe it!" Sha Zhu tilted his head and gulped a big mouthful, "Ping'an brother, I, Sha Zhu, this life, I'm set on you!"

Li Ping'an smiled, saying nothing.

He looked out the window.

On Wangfujing Avenue, the decorative lamps were just lit, and the flow of people was like woven fabric.

This is an era full of opportunities.

It is also an era full of risks.

But he is not afraid.

There is Spiritual Spring Space, there are memories of a past life, and there are decades of experience.

More importantly, he has courage.

The courage to resign from his post and go into the sea of business in his forties.

The courage to hold to his own view amid everyone's doubts.

The courage to be a trendsetter in this magnificent era.

"Zhuzi," Li Ping'an raised his glass, "to the new era."

"To the new era!"

The glasses clinked, producing a crisp sound.

Like a horn, like a war drum.

On this spring night, three middle‑aged men opened the second act of their lives.

Outside the window, the lights of Beiping City shone brilliantly.

The story belonging to them had only just begun.

The story of this era was also drawing back the curtain.