Chapter 1778: Chatting

Ye's father hesitated, "I'll see in a couple days whether I'll go with you—first, set your departure date; everyone's waiting for your notice."

"Nothing important coming up next, right? Let my mother pick a good day first, then check the weather."

Ye's mother chimed in, "Isn't it just the sixth? Still early—if Dongzi doesn't plan to leave so soon, wait until after the Lantern Festival; you can see when the village road repair starts."

"Oh right, the village committee hasn't asked me for money yet—I heard they started collecting donations yesterday."

He'd been going to town every day for socializing, drinking and dining with bosses, leaving early and returning late, often coming home past midnight, barely caring about village affairs.

If anything happened, he'd only hear about it the next afternoon when he woke up and people told him a few words.

"You're not going anywhere—why rush? Your donation of five hundred thousand has spread to every nearby village; when the committee started fundraising yesterday, they even hung a banner at the entrance."

"Is it that big a deal?"

"Five hundred thousand—how could it not be? With you as the role model, how could anyone not support it? It's enough to fix most of the village's main and minor roads; if people donate more, they can even level the ground in front of the Tianhou Temple and widen the roads."

"Fix it all the way to the Tianhou Temple?"

Ye's father replied proudly, "Not all the way to the temple—just level and widen the broken road in front of it. That area's by the beach, and without a seawall built, any repair would be pointless."

"This is what everyone's agreed on these past two days—we've been able to earn safely and smoothly thanks to the protection of the Goddess of the Sea; the main road in front of the Tianhou Temple can't be fixed yet, but the open ground nearby can be leveled and the dirt path widened."

Ye Yaodong nodded vigorously, "I thought they planned a major project—building a seawall and then paving a flat road on top. Widening it a bit's fine, and the ground can be leveled too."

"Building a seawall would mean fixing the entire coastline—what's the point of fixing just a little? A full coastline seawall? That's not something tens of thousands can handle."

He thought the same—fixing the entire coastline would need strong government support; right now, everywhere is pushing infrastructure, and even highways across the country aren't finished; every place needs money, and everything must be prioritized and queued for funding.

So he hadn't even considered fixing the road along the shore.

It would definitely need fixing—but not now; everything must be done step by step—infrastructure must start from the basics.

"So the village committee's been collecting donations these past two days—they'll only ask me for money after they're done."

"You're the big contributor—they'll handle the small stuff first, then come to you for the big sum."

"I've got the money ready; I'm just waiting for them to ask. If everyone donates more, fixing all the village's roads won't be a problem."

"It all depends on what the committee plans—how much they can collect is still uncertain."

Ye Yaodong changed the subject, "Ah Hai and his wife are leaving tomorrow, right?"

"Yes—he says it's hard to get so many days off; his beeper's been ringing nonstop, business comes first. He's already stayed this long, so tomorrow he's heading back to the provincial capital."

"Where is he?"

"He went out for a walk after dinner. By the way, he's been looking for you these past two days—every meal he asks about you, but you've been leaving early and coming back late, always heading out before you meet."

"Why's he looking for me?"

"Who knows? Maybe he's got something to say."

"I'm going out again soon—won't be back for dinner," he thought, picking up his coat, "I'll take a walk."

He stepped outside and ran into Ye Ye Chenghai, who was returning with his child in his arms.

"Third Uncle, rare sight—the sun must've risen in the west! I actually see you during the day."

"You make it sound like I'm afraid of daylight—if you don't see me during the day, do you think you'll see me at night?"

"That's true—it's been hard. Since the New Year, I haven't seen you once."

"What's up? I heard you've been asking about me every day."

"I just want to chat with you."

Ye Ye Chenghai handed his child to his wife to take inside, lit a cigarette, and offered one to Ye Yaodong; they walked out together, talking.

"Third Uncle, that state enterprise reform you mentioned—it's actually happening."

Ye Yaodong flicked ash from between his fingers, "Heard rumors?"

"My father-in-law got word during the New Year—he says reform might really happen after the holiday; everyone inside the system is talking about it—it'll definitely be implemented within a few months."

"Mm."

"Third Uncle, what do you think if I team up with my father-in-law to take over the shipyard?"

"Good idea. Your father-in-law's run the factory for twenty years—he knows the ropes, understands the system. If you can get it, just make minor changes; no big upheaval. It'll benefit the long-term workers, calm their nerves—no new boss, old rules stay, good for everyone above and below."

Ye Yaodong had originally been interested in state enterprise reform after hearing about it, but now that his own factory was growing strong, state enterprises felt like a half-useful tool to him—nothing compared to the factory he'd built from scratch.

Those small state factories are probably drowning in debt and on the verge of collapse—how could they compare to his thriving business?

If he took one over, he'd likely inherit a mess of bad debts, and the personnel structure would be tangled—hard to manage.

People not originally from the unit wouldn't easily accept him; even if he took over, the veteran workers wouldn't be easy to control.

Better to focus on his own factory—his own factory's future is bright, and becoming big and strong is right before him.

All the staff started with him from the bottom; he knows them all, they all respect him as boss—nothing's easier than managing his own factory.

But for Ah Hai and his father-in-law, state reform is a perfect opportunity—they've spent decades in the system, now they just need to legally make the shipyard private.

He guessed that after state reform ends, the next step will be the joint-stock company system—then policies will allow private companies to be founded.

His Dongsheng Group is already waving at him.

Ye Ye Chenghai said, "So I should try to get as many shares as possible?"

"Sure—but don't exceed your father-in-law's share; he's been in the game for decades, and you're just a son-in-law, not a son—he'll leave the factory to his own son eventually."

"Of course—I just mean I'll try to get as many as possible, just below my father-in-law. As for the other brothers-in-law, it depends on how much they invest—but none of them have much money; how much can they earn working? If my father-in-law really wants to take over the factory, they'll all have to chip in for him."

"Right—you're a son-in-law, not a son; if you put in money, you get shares. His son putting in money is helping out; you have to fight for your own shares."

"I know. If I'm short on cash later, Third Uncle, lend me some, haha."

Ye Yaodong laughed, "You're doing pretty well yourself—your small workshop's thriving, and you even bought a beeper. You must've made good money this year."

"Not bad—it's just starting out. Last year was better, but I only made a few ten thousand. Hope this year brings more."

"Much better than working a job. Earning a few ten thousand in your first year? That's already great."

"Definitely. My brothers-in-law went from not understanding—abandoning their iron rice bowl to do private work—to being jealous once they saw me making money."

"What's respectable? Money's what really matters."

"I hope the policy comes out slowly, giving us some buffer time, so I can save up a bit more money."

"Mm, if it really isn't enough, give me a call then."

"Alright, hearing you say that puts my mind at ease. I'll ask my father first to get some support; if it's still not enough, I'll borrow from you."

Ye Yaodong nodded. "Mm, leaving tomorrow?"

"Yes, so I wanted to find you to chat a bit. Otherwise, I haven't found you to talk since I came back. You're so busy every day; except for the New Year's Eve dinner, I haven't seen you since. You're out early and back late every single day."

"When will you have time to go to Zhou City or Shanghai for a visit? It's been several years, and you haven't been there."

"That's right. I'll definitely go later. Both places have many shipyards, so I can also run some business errands while I'm there. I'll need Third Uncle's help to make introductions then."

"Whoa, you're awesome. I invited you to come play, and you're planning to run business and make money while having fun. You've really made something of yourself now; thinking about making money wherever you go."

Ye Yaodong looked at him, truly feeling he had matured a lot.

The boy who used to sneakily ask him for cigarettes a few years ago had now become a man, with responsibility and a sense of duty.

"Of course I need to make money. If I don't, the whole family will have to drink the northwest wind. I have a family now; I have to support my wife and children."

"It's different once you're married."

"Naturally. Before, I just thought about eating enough to fill my own stomach so the whole family wouldn't starve; just muddling along was fine as long as the wages covered expenses. Now that won't work; I have to support the family. Ye Chenghe earns more than me, so I can't let him surpass me by too much."

Ye Yaodong chuckled. "He's currently a poor beggar with a butt-load of debt. He and Ajiang complain about being poor every day. Ye Chenghu still owes him 200."

Ye Ye Chenghai laughed along. "Investing in a big truck means owing money is normal. Pay it back once we earn the money; later on, it'll all be profit."

"At the start, he was much better off than me. My earliest wages were thirty or forty a month, while he took home several hundred a month. He used to show off in front of me every day. Now the tables have turned."

"But once he earns the money and pays it back, things will be fine later. I owed money at the start too, and now everything is good. With you as his backing, just give him some work to do; he'll only profit and never lose."

"After the New Year, he said he found two cousins. They'll go up with him then. He'll take my cargo exclusively, while the other two cousins drive his truck out to pick up work elsewhere. They'll stagger their schedules so people rest but the truck never stops. His ambition is quite big."