Chapter 18: A Net Profit of Three Thousand Seven? A Sleepless Night...

Hearing Old Dao agree, Li Junsheng was overjoyed, though he kept his excitement hidden. He had gambled and won! After his rebirth, his first deal was finally struck. Yet he dared not be too elated, for this was only the beginning—the agreement was merely a tentative stroke.

Old Dao smiled and patted Li Junsheng on the shoulder, and Li Junsheng, with a hint of excitement, shook hands with him.

“We’ve made friends today as well. Next time you come to the black market, remember to wear a mask. There are plenty of people here, and if someone who holds a grudge against you sees you, they’ll definitely report you.”

Li Junsheng nodded. It was his first time at the black market, and he had indeed overlooked some of the finer points and rules. Old Dao’s warning was for his own good. If Chen Dazhu happened to come to the black market and saw him, he certainly wouldn’t let him off in private.

After agreeing on the place for their next rendezvous, Li Junsheng had a sack pulled over his head and was escorted out of the black market.

When he returned home, he found the house empty. Li Guojun and Wang Xiuhua hadn’t come back, and Chen Dazhu and Ma Yulian were nowhere to be seen. Li Junsheng relished the quiet.

He went to his own room and found the bedding somewhat messy, and the wardrobe too—obviously, Ma Yulian and Chen Dazhu had searched for his money after he left.

They would never have guessed that the money had already been spent on the electrolytic copper scraps from Section Chief Zhou. Navigating the factory’s personal connections had cost him only eight yuan.

At midnight, Li Junsheng dressed in black and slipped out, successfully meeting up with Old Dao at a street corner.

Old Dao had brought a car and a few reliable associates. Li Junsheng helped them weigh and load all the copper scraps that Section Chief Zhou had stockpiled at home onto the vehicle, emptying the place completely.

Section Chief Zhou didn’t show up during the transaction; to avoid suspicion, he and his wife had gone to her mother’s home, leaving only a key for Li Junsheng.

Old Dao’s men were thorough, with someone specifically tasked with scouting. The entire group worked meticulously.

Old Dao and his associates were wrapped up tightly, their features obscured, and Li Junsheng was no different. Clad in black, he moved through the night unseen.

He and Old Dao’s men swiftly loaded everything onto the car. Old Dao then pulled Li Junsheng inside, and they sped away from the scene.

They drove until they reached a deserted, unlit area before coming to a stop.

“You saw how much the goods weighed. I’ll pay you at three yuan per pound. In a moment, you’ll get out and head home on your own,” Old Dao said, counting out four thousand five hundred yuan and handing it to Li Junsheng.

A thick wad of cash was pressed into Li Junsheng’s arms.

“Count it.”

“No need—I trust you,” Li Junsheng replied, shaking his head. He straightened the bills and quickly stashed them in his pocket. In these times, such a sum was enough to drive others mad with envy.

Old Dao smiled, gripping the steering wheel. “If you get more goods, contact my associate. We’ll make money together!”

“Alright, I won’t keep you any longer. Take advantage of the darkness and go,” Li Junsheng said, stepping out of the car.

He stood aside, watching Old Dao and his companions drive off into the night.

With more than four thousand yuan in his pocket, Li Junsheng dared not linger outside. He hurried home and made sure to lock the door behind him.

At dinner, Ma Yulian returned from outside. Yet she and Li Junsheng exchanged barely a word, each sleeping in their own room. She was sleeping soundly when Li Junsheng quietly returned to his small room, cautiously locking the door.

He dared not let Ma Yulian know about the money he now possessed; otherwise, she would stop at nothing to take it from him.

He didn’t dare turn on the light. Instead, he grabbed the flashlight from his bedside, pulled the blanket over his head, and secretly counted the money beneath the covers.

He moistened his thumb and forefinger and carefully counted, shining the flashlight to check for counterfeit bills.

Fortunately, there was not a single bill missing, nor any fake notes. Old Dao had been honest with him.

With more than four thousand yuan tucked under his blanket, Li Junsheng lay atop the money, his gaze vacant, lost in a brief daze.

Such a fortune—he had never even dared to dream he could possess it!

Subtracting the seven hundred fifty yuan cost for Section Chief Zhou’s copper scraps, he had netted three thousand seven hundred fifty yuan in one night.

Three thousand seven hundred—how many people could earn that in a lifetime?

Take Chen Dazhu, for instance: at his age, he had barely a thousand in savings. If he needed two hundred more, he’d rack his brains to scrape it together.

Even Li Junsheng himself, a worker at a state-owned factory—already a good job by most standards—had never seen three thousand yuan.

“A man shouldn’t be too honest…”

Li Junsheng murmured, recalling his past life—he’d been honest all his life, always the good man. And what had come of it?

He hadn’t met a good end. Ma Yulian and Chen Dazhu had conspired against him, costing him his job and turning father and son against each other.

In the end, his son was unfilial; he dragged his sick body along, only to be killed by Chen Dazhu and Ma Yulian.

This lifetime, he vowed never to repeat the same mistakes!

Li Junsheng felt he was finally on the right path. The profit from today’s deal strengthened his resolve.

Having been given a second chance at life, he would dare to be bold; the business would continue. He wanted to grow it, to achieve something remarkable.

Tonight was destined to be a sleepless one.

The thrill of earning three thousand seven hundred in one go, and the determination to build a real enterprise, made Li Junsheng feel invigorated, as though injected with new life.

He found a safe place to stash the money and lay in bed, gradually calming down.

Business must be done, money must be earned, but everything had to be legal.

Otherwise, no matter how much money he made, no matter how big his business grew, he would end up with nothing.

Li Junsheng lay in bed, hands behind his head. Even in the darkness, his eyes shone bright—no longer dull and lifeless as before, like a walking corpse.

Through careful thought, Li Junsheng formed a rough plan for conducting business legally.

First, copper scraps like today’s belonged to surplus, off-plan waste material. The section chief had approval authority; Li Junsheng just needed a legal identity to purchase them from Section Chief Zhou.

Officially, it would be recycling and reuse—then reselling. That would be reasonable and legal, and no one would suspect him.

As long as he drew no suspicion, he need not worry where the goods were sold.

The first step now was to figure out how to obtain a legitimate identity. Otherwise, no matter how clever his plans, they would be useless.

With a legal identity, Section Chief Zhou would surely be willing to cooperate. Once approved, selling to him would be far safer than taking risks and selling through intermediaries to the black market.

On this point, Section Chief Zhou would surely see reason.