Chapter 1161: Done (Extra Chapter 2 for the Cute and Delicious Alliance Leader)

Fang Jingfu, with his shoulder hooked by him, could only half-resist and half-accommodate as he followed along.

"No, I have urgent matters; I don't have idle time to go to your house for tea..."

"I'm not inviting you for tea either. Come to my place and take a look; aren't you short on a workshop? My house has over 200 square meters."

Fang Jingfu looked at him in surprise. "Are you kidding me? Aren't you from out of town? Where did you get a house?"

"So what if I'm from out of town? Can't people from out of town buy houses here?"

"Ah? Really or fake? You even bought a house here? A single house must cost several thousand..."

"My boat alone cost tens of thousands; what's wrong with me spending a few thousand to buy a house? Besides, I am, after all, the honorable Vice President of the Fishery Association; buying a house locally makes it more convenient for me to come and go, doesn't it?"

Fang Jingfu's eyes lit up. "Not bad, brother; you really have the strength. No wonder an outsider like you could be recommended to become the president. Impressive. I see you aren't much older than me."

"I already have three children."

"Ah, three? How old are you?"

"Twenty-eight."

"Damn, only five years older than me."

The two walked arm-in-arm, chatting as they went; after Ye Yaodong finished his small talk, he began introducing his house to him.

"You just became Vice President, and now you're packing up and leaving; aren't you afraid of being directly kicked out?"

Ye Yaodong patted his shoulder. "Brother, I still have some self-awareness. At most, I'm just hanging a name to occupy a spot; how could it be my place to dictate things? Before I leave, I'll just go to the Association and request a six-month leave; I'll come back next year, and you can tell me what happened then, won't you?"

"Moreover, what could possibly happen in the early stages? At most, there will be matters of recruiting talent and new members. We have the Jellyfish fishing season locally; at most, things get a bit chaotic during the fishing season, and there are a few more relevant policies. I'll just come early then to receive the notifications, won't I?"

"The rest are at most trivial matters. Since it's just established, at most there will be meetings; it makes no difference whether I'm there or not. Anyway, I already said what needed to be said during the big meeting a few days ago."

"I'm just a background character; no need to take myself too seriously. It's impossible for them to kick me out directly. Zeng Ju recommended me; if they kick me out before I've even warmed the seat, where would his face go?"

"Originally, I am a fisherman, and they know I'm from out of town; it's normal for me to fish everywhere. Anyway, just leave a phone number; if anything happens, just call me."

He spoke rapidly and continuously, while Fang Jingfu kept nodding repeatedly.

"You actually have quite a bit of self-awareness; you're quite open-minded."

"Of course. Anyway, with this title, I walk with the wind at my back. Originally, this doesn't carry any actual power; why should I take it so seriously? Aren't you the same? You're just hanging a name to sound good; that lighter workshop is your real job, right?"

"Hehe, I'm partnering with my brother. I don't know what we'll achieve; anyway, let's just start. I'll help him sell, and he'll just focus on production."

"That's good. When brothers unite, their combined strength can break metal. Anyway, since you're just starting out in the early stages and the scale isn't large, my 200 square meters will definitely be enough. The courtyard has no roof overhead; later, you can get a few pieces of thick tarpaulin, string up a few electric wires, and it'll be all set. You can even sleep inside at night; there are four rooms."

"That sounds feasible. My family's small workshop is only twenty or thirty square meters; we don't need that much. Your space is more than sufficient; I'll go take a look."

As they spoke, they arrived at the doorstep. It was nearing noon; those at home were either cooking or picking vegetables.

"Your house looks quite large, and it's right on the street; the location is quite good. Everything is convenient. Where did you find such a bargain?"

"A few months ago, the old landlord was taken abroad; I just happened to encounter the opportunity and bought it. However, if you set up your workshop here, you might also have to worry about someone coming to cause trouble."

"Who dares? Laozi will break his dog legs."

Ye Yaodong explained the matter of his house being occupied while he was away.

"But, no need to worry. Those who should be arrested have already been taken away, and the old and young ones left behind have been warned; probably no one dares to cause trouble anymore."

Fang Jingfu nodded. "If anyone dares to come to the door to pick a fight, just gather the whole family."

"You check first if it's suitable. I'm renting this house to you now; next year, you can continue renting it indefinitely. It's just that if I bring people over, the rooms must be for us to stay in. If I'm not here, you can arrange them however you like."

"That's no problem at all. My own family also set up a small workshop on the first floor, with rooms on the second floor for the family to sleep in. The few workers we hired eat their own food and sleep in their own beds. Your courtyard is even larger than mine; it's enough for us to mess around. At most, my brother will occasionally come over to watch and study, and he'll take a room to rest."

"Then it's settled; we hit it off immediately. I need someone to watch the house, and you need a venue for a workshop. Since the courtyard area here is larger than your home, it's enough for you to mess around; who knows, you might even be able to expand the scale of your small workshop."

"Alright. Getting a few pieces of thick tarpaulin and having someone build a roof to prevent rain is simple. How do you plan to calculate the rent?"

Ye Yaodong waved his hand dismissively. "Oh, why talk about rent? Talking about money hurts feelings. You helping me look after the house counts as helping me anyway. After all, when I come back next year, I can still move in. When your small workshop grows big and strong later, who knows, you might even need to look after me."

"Ah? Really or fake? No, no, no. One thing is one thing; paying for a rented house is only natural." Fang Jingfu was pleasantly surprised, but immediately realized he shouldn't take it for granted.

"This rent won't be much money in the short term. Your small workshop will definitely get better and better later. My place definitely won't be enough for you to mess around in for two years before you have to switch to a larger factory building; so why charge money then?"

"You're so confident? I'm not even as confident as you."

"Definitely. The quality of your lighters is good; they don't lose to imported goods. You said a couple of days ago that you made them very cheaply, so it's normal to knock out these foreign goods. Our country is lacking in everything right now; your workshop will definitely be a huge hit. Later, there will definitely be a bunch of copycats."

Fang Jingfu was extremely happy after being flattered like this. "Haha, I borrow your auspicious words. I said we were compatible; once we started chatting during the meeting, we couldn't stop. You really know your stuff and understand goods. Fortunately, I didn't look down on fishermen with dog eyes. Indeed, fishermen are not all the same; I see you don't look like a fisherman."

Ye Yaodong felt extremely comfortable after being spoken to like that. "Hehe..."

"Ah Dong naturally doesn't look like a fisherman. He is the Boat King Dong; he has plenty of boats and shops..."

The boatman picking vegetables nearby had been washing his ears and listening curiously since they entered; now he couldn't help but interject, his expression showing a sense of shared glory.

His broken Mandarin, mixed with local dialect, was still barely understandable to about half.

"What Boat King Dong? You have many boats and shops? Really or fake? That boat at your dock; do you really have a whole bunch? Damn, that's too awesome. Don't tell me you have a fishery company in your hometown?"

Ye Yaodong chuckled. "Listen to him brag... just a dozen or so smaller boats... a few shops..."

"There are also two workshops, plus a motorcycle, a tractor, and a bunch of workers listening to him. He is a prominent figure in our hometown; no one within ten miles knows him. From eighty-year-old elders down to three-year-old children, everyone knows Salted Fish... no, wait, Boat King Dong."

Fang Jingfu was stunned, his eyes wide open. "Your background is so huge!"

"No, no..."

Ye Yaodong felt extremely comfortable inside, thinking the old man at home was quite good at speaking; he hadn't raised them to eat idle food for nothing. Indeed, the salt he had eaten was more than the rice Ye Yaodong had eaten; he was just good at reading the room.

"I always thought that boat of yours was a partnership with someone else, or your father's, and you were just helping out. Are all those assets in your family yours alone? Don't you have brothers or sisters?"

"Yes, they each have their own boats; we brothers each do our own thing."

"Your brothers also have such large boats like you? And each does their own thing? That's too amazing. How many families work together as a unit?"

"Strength doesn't allow it. One boat doesn't cost much money. Everyone doing their own thing is quite good; if there's a need, we just help each other out."

Fang Jingfu's mouth twitched, cursing a few times in his heart: TMD, strength doesn't allow it...

"Tens of thousands of yuan for one boat, and you say it doesn't cost much money? How much money must you have?"

"Talking about money? I really don't have much money. I've already converted it all into these production tools. I'm just a bit better than ordinary fishermen; how can I compare to those overseas Chinese returning home, entrepreneurs, and big bosses? It's just that the environment has been good these past few years, and I've earned some money from fishing."

"That's still extraordinary! You actually make a living by fishing? Can fishing really earn that much? You have a boat, a shop, and even a workshop. And you're only twenty-eight years old."

Fang Jingfu was truly shocked. He had really thought Ye Yaodong's boat belonged to his father; at the time, he had only struck up a conversation because Ye Yaodong looked presentable, and Fang Jingfu himself was the type who could chat with anyone.

But once they started talking, they couldn't stop. He felt Ye Yaodong didn't seem inexperienced, so his curiosity about this person grew, prompting him to continue the conversation.

"I can only say it's not as good as the best, but better than the rest."

"Look at what you're saying. Do you look like an uneducated fisherman?"

"Who says all fishermen are uneducated? No one has ever ruled that fishermen cannot be educated."

"Fine, fine, fine. I admit I misjudged you. I thought you were just an ordinary fisherman. My eyes were blinded by cannon fire. Fortunately, I didn't look down on you."

"Haha, let's go. Write a lease contract. Even though it's free, we still need to go through the proper procedures. Let's write a slip for a free lease."

Fang Jingfu was moved again. He hadn't expected Ye Yaodong to be so thoughtful. He was afraid that once the workshop was set up and became profitable, the two parties might argue over rent, so he had proactively prepared a proof to avoid disputes and put Fang Jingfu at ease.

Ye Yaodong: You're overthinking it.

He was simply thinking of drawing up a lease contract to prevent locals from occupying the place for most of the year and then seizing the house outright.

Besides, he was a second-generation elite; if officials protected each other back then, who could he turn to for justice?

Having a lease contract meant having one more proof.

Fang Jingfu watched as he took out paper and pen and wrote immediately, which made him look at Ye Yaodong with new respect. He hadn't expected him to be truly educated and capable of writing a lease contract.

"Hey, how do you write the two characters for 'lease'..."

"I thought you would..."

"There are always characters one forgets. Never mind, you do it."