Chapter 461: The Investment Fair

“I can’t believe the Cropped-Hair bandits have quietly built such a small city just outside Guangzhou!” Wu Ming exclaimed.

Huang Binkun said, “I’m afraid it won’t be long before something unbearable happens in Guangzhou.”

Wu Ming nodded, his expression a complex mix of excitement and fear. After staring at the building for a long while, he finally said, “Come on, let’s take care of our little brother’s business first.”

The merchants who had entered through the “Business Recruitment” channel followed the signs towards one of the side wings. A path was roped off with bamboo poles, and no one was allowed to stray. Most of them had smiles they couldn’t suppress, as if they were going in to collect money.

The three of them followed the crowd into the building. Inside was a large, undivided room. The walls had been whitewashed, and the floor was paved with the Australians’ so-called terrazzo. In the center of the entrance was a table with a layered floor plan of the Great World, marked with various colors. The colored blocks were also labeled with the Heavenly Stems, Earthly Branches, and numbers.

Many of the merchants and shopkeepers who had come to the investment fair were crowded around the table. Some were pointing and discussing with the people next to them; others were staring at the map in silence; still others had a confident smile after just a glance.

The wall was also very lively. A large notice was posted on it, with the investment instructions written in large Song-style characters. Huang Binkun had no intention of looking closely, but Wu Ming was very interested and squeezed his way over.

First was the explanation of the colors and numbers on the map. The first phase of investment for the Great World was mainly in the two side wings, which were divided into different areas according to the type of business. Each numbered colored block on the map was a shop. The rent naturally varied according to the size and location of the shop. Huang Binkun saw that the rent unit was marked in “square meters” and couldn’t help but curse the Cropped-Hair bandits for their growing audacity.

Below that were the restrictive clauses for the tenants, such as opening and closing times, employment within the shop, hygiene requirements, and so on. Huang Binkun knew that the Australians had an almost obsessive demand for hygiene and cleanliness, so he didn’t look closely. Further down were the “preferential terms.” It turned out that shops that moved into the Great World could enjoy the first year rent-free, and half rent for the second and third years. This was a considerable incentive! It was no wonder. They were building shops outside the city, and it was still uncertain how many customers would be willing to come.

However, looking at the crowd in the hall, there were quite a few people who were optimistic about this new market. These Australians really had a way of bewitching people!

Zhang Yu followed them and looked for a long time. He saw “Dining Area” on the notice but not the words “Pastry.” He felt a little relieved, but looking at the diagram, there was a category for “Food Shops.” Pastries counted as food, right? Then he thought again, this was an “investment fair,” not a place where the Australians were opening their own shops. What kind of shops they were opening wouldn’t be written here.

He had to ask someone. However, after the senior student and Young Master Huang came in, they just looked around and didn’t seem to be in a hurry to inquire. He was anxious. He looked around and saw the “Negotiation Area” not far away. Behind a long row of tables sat “fake Cropped-Hairs,” explaining things to the people who came to ask, each of them talking animatedly and full of energy.

Zhang Yu saw that they were also speaking Cantonese, so he probably didn’t need this Young Master Huang from Hainan to translate. He was young and rash, after all. Worried, he squeezed his way over by himself.

The line in front of the table was long, and he couldn’t wait. Taking advantage of his small and agile size, Zhang Yu soon popped his head out in front of one of the tables. He had just opened his mouth and said, “Sir—” when he heard a loud shout, “You! Get in line!”

With the shout, a big man with cropped hair and short clothes, with a short club hanging from his waist, walked over and pointed at Zhang Yu’s nose, “No cutting in line!”

“Don’t be so fierce. I just have a few questions to ask, and it’s not related to the investment…”

“You have to line up for any questions!” the big man said uncompromisingly.

If this had been anywhere else, he would have never stood for it, or at least would have gotten in a verbal jab, implying a sexual relationship with the man’s female elders. But this was the Australians’ territory. He quickly slipped out and went to the back of the line.

Wu Ming smiled, “You’re being honest today!”

“A wise man doesn’t fight when the odds are against him. We’re not familiar with this place. If this were in Guangzhou city, I’d give him a piece of my mind,” Zhang Yu said, still trying to sound tough.

Huang Binkun shook his head, “Fortunately, this is Guangzhou, and they still let you talk back. If this were in Lingao, if you dared to say ‘no,’ you’d already be tied to the whipping post with your bottom split open…”

Zhang Yu shivered at this and almost instinctively went to touch his bottom. Suddenly, he saw Chen Shixin flash past in the crowd and quickly called out, “Shixin!”

He saw him holding a hard clipboard, squeezing through the crowd, but the big man didn’t scold him. Hearing his call, Chen Shixin immediately squeezed over.

“What? You’re at the Great World too? Is your family also planning to do business here?”

“I guess so,” Zhang Yu said vaguely. “What are you doing here?”

Chen Shixin’s father was a painter who made a living by working for others. His family didn’t have a shop, so they naturally wouldn’t be here for the investment fair.

“I heard the Great World is open today, so I came to have a look and do some drawing. The Australian I met last time taught me a new way of drawing and gave me some art supplies. I want to try it out.”

“What kind of drawing? Let me see.” Zhang Yu’s interest was piqued, and he even forgot about lining up.

“Look!” Chen Shixin had actually hidden something from everyone before. He had met that Australian several more times and had learned a lot of “Aussie painting” techniques. He had shown it to his father, who said it wasn’t “Aussie painting” but the “Western painting” of the Franks. Although there were some minor differences, the general method was the same—his father had seen it when he was working for the Franks in Macau one year. But this was a great opportunity for Chen Shixin: who would teach the son of an artisan the art of Frankish painting for free? For an artisan, an extra skill meant an extra source of income.

Zhang Yu opened the clipboard but was greatly disappointed. The drawings on the paper were extremely simple, just a few outlines. Although they depicted the Great World building and the large crane outside, even the sand, stones, and garbage in the square were drawn in, with every detail included. As for the rest, they were all sketches of various people at the fair. Although they were lifelike with just a few strokes, they were not at all beautiful.

“What kind of drawing is this?”

“This is called sketching,” Chen Shixin said seriously. “The chief said this is one of the foundations of painting…”

A thought flashed through Zhang Yu’s mind. He asked, “So you know an Australian in the Great World?”

Chen Shixin nodded, “Yes, his surname is Hong…”

Zhang Yu said urgently, “Could you introduce me to Chief Hong?”

Chen Shixin was surprised, “Brother Zhang, why do you want to see him? You don’t want to learn to paint, and besides, he doesn’t eat walnut pastries…”

Zhang Yu was so anxious he wanted to kneel down to him. He couldn’t do it in public, so he just grabbed his hands and said with utmost sincerity, “I have an urgent matter, and I must trouble you, Brother Chen.”

Chen Shixin was bewildered, but they were good friends, and he couldn’t refuse. He said, “I’ll go and ask for you. If he’s willing to see you, I’ll make the introduction. How about that?”

“Thank you, Brother Chen!” Zhang Yu almost bowed to the ground.

At this moment, Huang Binkun and Wu Ming also came over. Hearing that Chen Shixin could introduce him to an Australian directly, Wu Ming frowned, “It’s still uncertain whether you can see him or not. I think you should just keep lining up here. He’ll be a while anyway. You can ask the fake Cropped-Hairs here first.”

“Yes, senior is right.”

As they were talking, the line had moved forward quite a bit, and it was almost Zhang Yu’s turn. The voices from the front of the line became clearer.

“You want to open a roasted meat shop? This location won’t do. The smoke is too much and will affect others. Either you change to another location or you cook it outside and bring it in to sell.”

“Want to open a raw medicine shop? How many years has this one been open? Twenty years? No. To open a medicine shop in the Great World, you need at least three generations of inheritance.”

“You say your family has a century-old shop? Then you need the account books from all those years as proof. A certificate from the county yamen’s household registration office? You can get one of those for three taels of silver. Useless.”

“I’ve told you how many times, we don’t do the flesh trade here, whether it’s clean or not. It’s not acceptable even if you’re willing to pay more.”

“This shop of yours is good. The chief likes the taste of your shop’s products. The location you want is no problem. Just fill out the form and get ready to sign the contract.”

…

It was Zhang Yu’s turn. Before he could open his mouth, the fake Cropped-Hair sitting behind the table spoke, “What kind of shop are you opening?”

This “fake Cropped-Hair” spoke authentic Guangzhou Cantonese, clearly a local.

“Walnut pastries—” Zhang Yu was caught off guard and blurted out the answer.

“Just selling walnut pastries?” The “fake Cropped-Hair” behind the table frowned. “Can such a small business survive? Don’t you sell other pastries?”

Zhang Yu quickly asked, “Does the Great World have a pastry shop?”

“Of course it does. We can’t let you have a monopoly,” the fake Cropped-Hair said. “Besides, if you only sell walnut pastries, we might not want you here—it’s too monotonous. Why don’t you fill out a form and register first?”

Zhang Yu didn’t care about that. He quickly asked, “Excuse me, are the Cropped—the Australians themselves also opening a pastry shop?”

“I’m not sure about that,” the fake Cropped-Hair suddenly became alert. “Why are you asking this?”

“It’s nothing, nothing.”

“Are you going to register or not? If not, next!” the “fake Croto-Hair” said in a very official tone.

“Let me think about it a…”

Before Zhang Yu could finish, the “fake Cropped-Hair” had already shouted, “Next!”

Zhang Yu squeezed out of the crowd, disappointed. He clearly hadn’t gotten the answer he wanted. As he was pacing around the room helplessly, he suddenly saw Chen Shixin run in from outside, his face full of excitement, “Brother Zhang, the chief is willing to see you!”