National Tide 1980

As mentioned before, in order to repay Ning Weimin's second generous donation, he bought back important cultural relics lost overseas and donated them to the Municipal Cultural Relics Bureau free of charge.

The Municipal Cultural Relics Bureau asked Ning Weimin to choose an empty storefront in Liulichang and let him use it for free as a reward.

The specific location of the store chosen by Ning Weimin is opposite Rong Baozhai.

The usable area is more than 200 square meters. It is a small building with a duplex structure, which is quite spacious.

Although in this era, the state has strict price restrictions on store rentals.

If the cultural relics bureau rents out this shop, it will charge a rent of 800 yuan per month at most.

Although this duplex structure has a bad orientation, it is an inverted child's house that is neither warm in winter nor cool in summer.

But after all, such a store is in a relatively advantageous location in a popular business district, so it does not delay business.

It is still not a prosperous shop that ordinary people can get involved in.

Only state-owned units are eligible to apply for leasing, and they must rely on connections.

To be honest, Ning Weimin has not made any progress in the past few years. He is still as greedy and philistine as he was when he was obsessed with the stalls at Xiushui Street and Donghuamen Night Market.

As long as he cuts the shop into small pieces like cutting tofu, and then rents it out as a second landlord, he can earn at least tens of thousands of yuan more in income every month.

It is far more nourishing than those self-employed people who are still racking their brains to find cool things to sell.

Therefore, his good fortune is quite enviable to others.

At the beginning, Ning Weimin really didn't think much about it.

He thought that since there were many foreigners in Liulichang's Ancient Culture Street and the layout of the buildings was similar, he thought of turning this two-story building into a branch of Huiwen Hall.

It's like the bookstore in Roppongi, Tokyo, which attracts customers like a literary cafe and sells high-end products and works of art without showing off.

Such as utensils from Donghua Market, silk figures from Brocade Box Factory, antique porcelain from handicraft factory, handicrafts from Meishi Street, and personal works of students from the sculpture department of art colleges.

It is actually quite appropriate to use these gadgets to "slaughter" the foreign tourists who come here for their reputation.

At the same time, you can also sell coffee and make simple meals, which can make extra money for those "high-class people" who worship foreigners and think coffee is better than tea.

In fact, he has even thought about personnel issues, and there is no need to bother recruiting from the public at all.

Because the impact of the return of educated youth to the city has not yet been fully digested, there are many unemployed young people in Meishi Street. They are all fresh graduates who have graduated from high schools in recent years.

I took this opportunity to help Director Li solve the employment placement problems for several people.

He also has a unique advantage in terms of training. He only needs to recruit a few people from the shops and cafes of Zhai Palace in Tiantan Park to serve as teachers for these young people.

Even the store manager can let people from Zhai Gong take turns in the beginning.

Later, when these new people get used to it and do well, we can then find a seedling worth cultivating among them.

To put it bluntly, he didn't want to worry too much about this store.

In this case, no matter where he is, everyone knows everything about him.

Once he leaves, it would be nice to have them take care of the store like this, and still feel at ease and worry-free?

Not only can he win-win with the street, but he can also make money while lying down.

If you include the unemployed young people who are looking for jobs and those who earn extra money through training, the situation will be even better.

If you can do things like this, you have no choice! Even he wanted to praise himself a few words.

But later, when Ning Weimin came into contact with eight young people recommended by the street, he didn't think so.

Don't look at the fact that these young people all graduated from relatively poor high schools, failed to pass the college entrance examination, and have no social experience or skills.

Many people blushed when they saw strangers in their houses and even said a few words.

No one dared to ask how much the salary was, whether there was labor insurance, or whether there was food subsidy.

For them, as long as they have a job that is not dirty, smelly or tiring, it is already a great blessing.

But three of these eight people subconsciously asked the same question - can they borrow books from the store after get off work?

This surprised Ning Weimin and made him very curious.

He couldn't help but ask a question.

"Do you like reading books so much? Then why don't you go to the library to borrow books?"

The three people were silent, probably thinking that Ning Weimin was unhappy.

Looking at each other, they lost the courage to answer.

It was another person who explained for them.

"Manager, the bigger libraries are far away. Where can we find them in the south? You would have to break your legs even if you go for a bike ride. Not to mention that the barriers to entry in those places are quite high. University libraries are only open to teachers and students at the university. Open. The National Library and the municipal library ignore us and only accept senior intellectuals who ask for letters of introduction from their work units. Who can borrow books from people like us?…"

"Oh..." Ning Weimin asked again, "What about the library in the district? Isn't there a cultural station in the district? The threshold shouldn't be so high, right?"

However, all the young people laughed this time, as if Ning Weimin had told a big joke.

The same person continued to explain, "You are right, you can borrow books in the district. But the procedure for applying for a library card is extremely troublesome, and it is even stricter than joining the Party. I wish I had to negotiate the situation of three generations of my ancestors and fill out several forms. Not only the form, but also a photo and a ten-yuan deposit are required. Look at us, eating and drinking from home, but not taking the wine from home? How dare we ask for money from home to read some idle books?"

This wasn't over yet. As soon as he finished speaking, others couldn't help but complain.

It was probably the long-simmering indignation that finally made them put aside their cowardice.

"Oh, that's it. The key is that the district library opens at odd hours. Sometimes it can be closed for ten and a half days. It's even more closed during holidays. Even if it's open, it's only open for a short time every day. , three or four hours at most. That little time is not enough for me to look for books. Moreover, the books there are old and there are almost no new books. Many of them are from before the 1960s, and there are still many missing pages..."

"That's right, and the people in the cultural center are unreasonable, especially Sun Tzu! When you go to borrow books, it's like begging them. They all tend to ignore them, and they will be scolded if they bother you a little bit. One of my classmates has Once, I had a boy blackmail me. When I borrowed the book, there were missing pages, but when I returned the book, my classmate from the district cultural station unjustly accused him and fined him 50 cents. So I blamed these people, district I can't even go to the library..."

"Manager, it's really not that easy for us to read books. When I was in school, everyone would pass the book around to read it. Once it was confiscated by the teacher, it was all gone. It would be okay if you have relatives working in a big factory. You can borrow books from the trade union's library, but the books are limited and the borrowing time is short. You don't want to bother relatives all the time. When you go to Xinhua Bookstore to read a book, after a few glances, someone will kick you out and ask you if you can buy it. Buy? I’m not even welcome at home. My parents get angry whenever they see me touching each other at night. They dislike me for wasting electricity and purposely trying to squeeze people out. You said you love reading so much, why can’t you get into college..."

"Manager, just promise us. Thank you. We promise not to damage the books..."

"Yes, as long as you agree, we will be careful and ensure that going to work will not delay the work in the store..."

After hearing this, Ning Weimin truly realized how unrealistic his question just now was.

Unexpectedly, I accidentally became the person who asked "why not eat minced meat".

Nothing to say, facing the eager faces and extremely fervent pleadings of these young people.

Ning Weimin, who originally felt that this request was not too much, certainly couldn't bear to disappoint them, so he nodded in agreement.

However, what he didn't expect was that these young people's reactions were extremely exaggerated.

I was simply overjoyed, as if I had received some extremely precious gift.

And this also made him feel even more pity for these young people.

After returning home that day, Ning Weimin felt restless and unable to sleep again.

Lying in bed, he thought about this matter for a long time.

There is no doubt that as a traveler who has seen the future world, he can appreciate the value and significance of culture better than anyone else.

Although for him personally, he feels that the information and knowledge gained through dealing with people is more practical and effective than holding a book.

But he cannot deny that books are the most convenient and common channel for most people to obtain knowledge.

As a crosstalk actor said, a person can not have a diploma, but he cannot be without culture.

He deeply feels that mastering necessary knowledge and information is indispensable and should not be lacking for everyone who wants to make a difference in modern society.

Read more and read miscellaneous books. Although it may not help a person find a good job immediately, it will immediately bring him actual economic benefits.

But it can broaden a person's mind and horizons, and gain creativity and imagination.

It is also easier for people to choose the right direction at important crossroads, successfully pass the test of life, and obtain true happiness.

It is a good thing for the country and the people, as well as for others and ourselves.

Especially in this era, young people have a universal and huge thirst for all kinds of knowledge, new ideas and concepts.

What a rare thing this is.

Not everyone has the opportunity to go to college, but everyone should continue to enrich themselves and improve themselves.

Books are the best channel and the best tool.

Compared with people thirty years later who are obsessed with the Internet every day, and even college students love those nutritious "nipple fun", the youth of this era have a huge need for knowledge and information. There is a huge difference.

And isn’t this the foundation of our country’s strong hope and development?

Unfortunately, the current society cannot meet the spiritual needs of young people, and public cultural facilities such as libraries are seriously inadequate.

I don’t know how many aspiring young people will be delayed and how many talented people will be restricted by this situation.

So after much deliberation, Ning Weimin felt that he could actually do it, and he also wanted to do something for society in this regard.

In his opinion, if it can meet the reading needs of young people throughout the capital, it can help these young people obtain more knowledge and information.

It is very likely that it is more valuable to the country and the capital than him earning trillions of yen in wealth from Japan to subsidize his hometown.

Just imagine, when the Japanese are collectively crazy about money and trapped in materialistic desires.

However, young people in China are keen on reading, absorbing spiritual nourishment and constantly improving their quality.

The impact and consequences of this trade-off are definitely worth looking forward to.

So after this night, Ning Weimin's decision-making changed significantly.

He decided to give up the business model that could have made huge profits.

Instead, the semicolon of Huiwentang Bookstore was changed to a reading institution that is open to the public, has a public welfare nature, and is similar to a small library.

Moreover, he is not satisfied with just opening this one store, and plans to adopt a chain store model.

A preliminary decision was made to open one in each of the eight districts in the capital within at least two to three years.

If conditions permit in the future, he will continue to expand the scale and head towards Tianjin.

If it can still be tolerated in the future, it may open to Shanghai, Huacheng, or even all over the country, who knows.

To put it bluntly, from now on, he does not plan to make any more money from the Huiwentang branch he opened in China, as long as he does not lose too much.

"One yuan a month can read all the books." This was the slogan he came up with for the non-profit Huiwen Hall.

As for the specific method, those who love to study are registered with their ID number or household registration book, and then a deposit of 12 yuan is collected. This allows the reader to become a member of Huiwentang and freely select their favorite reading materials from the existing books in Huiwentang Bookstore.

It's up to you to decide when to return them, but you can only borrow up to five books at a time.

And the membership card issued is only valid for one year.

The deposit of twelve yuan collected in advance is equivalent to the annual borrowing fee of the reader.

After the membership card expires, if the reader does not renew it, it will automatically become invalid, which is equivalent to a monthly charge of one yuan for one year during the validity period.

Compared with public libraries, the biggest advantage of Ning Weimin's bookstore is that the procedures are simple and the deposit is small.

And there are no holidays. As long as it opens, there will be people on duty every day throughout the year, making it convenient for readers to borrow and return.

And he will definitely buy a batch of popular reading materials to fill the library, which will never be like the public library.

The books inside are almost more than ten years different from the real world.

I wish they were all outdated novels like "Golden Avenue" and "Sunny Day".

Of course, if you do this, you will definitely lose money.

Because even if the bookstore in Liulichang does not require rent and has 1,000 members after opening, it will only charge 12,000 yuan in one year.

This amount of money is barely enough to cover the expenses of the employees. Even water and electricity bills have to be figured out separately, let alone the cost of additional reading materials.

So there is no other way, Ning Weimin still has to sell some extra tea, coffee, pastries, stationery, and handicrafts in the store to subsidize the main business.

However, the prices and grades of these things must be down to earth.

At most, they can earn a few small bucks while providing convenient services.

But then again, Ning Weimin is not an ordinary person after all.

If he were to open such a non-profit reading institution, he would still have a huge advantage over others. At least he would be able to save a lot on costs.

why?

Because first of all, he has been planning events for Pierre Cardin Company and Temple of Heaven Park in the past.

Especially the summer book fair, which allowed him to establish good relationships with many publishing houses.

If he needs it, no matter which publisher will give him the books in stock at the lowest discount.

If it really has been unsaleable for several years, he might have given it to him for nothing in order to clear the inventory and sell it as a favor.

Secondly, Sun Wufu went around the streets collecting used goods for him. Over the years, he had collected tens of thousands of used goods for people of all ages.

Yet old books, old newspapers, old magazines, old photos, old pictures, and more.

Some of these things were sold, but what was left was enough for two rooms and at least 20,000 books.

Originally, Ning Weimin planned to open a library in Nanshenchu. Later, Nanshenchu ​​used it to raise money for the Journey to the West crew and hold an exhibition.

This batch of books has not been put to any use, but now it is good enough for Ning Weimin to support two or three chain stores.

Let's put it this way, if someone else wants to open such a bookstore, if the cost is 40,000 to 50,000 yuan, then for Ning Weimin, 4,000 to 5,000 yuan is enough.

Tables, chairs, benches, bookshelves, furniture, and lamps are all included.

How suitable would you say he is?

As for the last thing that gave Ning Weimin a headache, there was only one.

Although such a shop does not make money, it is a good thing and is very important to the people of the capital.

Losing money is a small thing, but you must not go astray, otherwise a good thing will turn into a bad thing.

So Ning Weimin didn't dare to leave it to others to take care of him.

He had to find someone who was capable, worthy of trust, and could develop and expand the bookstore according to his plan without losing track.

After much deliberation, there really was no one else, and Zhang Shihui was the most suitable candidate.

Not only did the two of them have common interests in business, but Zhang Shihui, as his agent, managed the Zhai Palace for him.

Now also responsible for organizing events and media contacts.

So he could only ask Zhang Shihui for help to do one more thing for him.

Zhang Shihui was also happy that Ning Weimin suddenly found him such a money-losing deal.

Although I was extremely surprised, it would not be an exaggeration to say that I was shocked.

But now he is no longer what he used to be, and he can no longer spend all the money he earned from following Ning Weimin.

This made him feel very comfortable that Ning Weimin trusted him so much.

What's more, he also thinks this is a good deed. He feels that it is worth doing and should be done just like the donation of toilets to the streets last time.

The only thing that worried him was that the rules formulated by Ning Weimin seemed to have loopholes - what if someone borrowed a book and refused to return it in the last month?

Should I charge an extra twelve yuan to be safe?

Regarding his doubts, Ning Weimin said this, "Don't always worry about such accidental events. After all, the membership card requires an ID card or household registration book. Don't most people worry about accountability? If you think about it again I would like to know if there are any cases of lost books in Xinhua Bookstore? In my opinion, it is because young people are eager to study and lack money and convenient channels, which leads to this phenomenon of book theft. So what we have to do is Let people who want to read books obtain knowledge at the lowest cost. I believe that there are still many good people around us, and most people have basic moral integrity. Even if there are still people who like to take advantage, the situation you mentioned cannot be avoided. But our books The source cost is very low, and we can afford such a loss. But if you charge twelve yuan more, many people from poor families may really be reluctant to watch it, which is contrary to our original intention. In short, I am willing to bear this kind of risk."

Zhang Shihui was so convinced that he stopped talking nonsense and nodded after thinking for a while.

However, he was also a little selfish, so he put forward an additional condition, requiring that the store have to be renamed.

What he meant was that since he was involved, let's not call it Hui Wen Tang.

Just go to a hotel called "Huimin Reading Club".

To put it bluntly, he felt that it was okay not to make money, but it couldn’t be done in vain. He had to earn some reputation along the way.

As long as Ning Weimin agreed to this, he was even willing to personally invest 50,000 yuan to help Ning Weimin share some of the losses.

For Ning Weimin, this is of course a good thing.

When he thought about it, yes.

Huiwentang is a Japanese bookstore anyway. If it gains a reputation in the future, wouldn't it mean that the Japanese will benefit from it?

Those who don’t know may have misunderstood it, and they will remember the Japanese as good.

Come on, let’s satisfy Zhang Shihui’s vanity.

So I agreed without saying a word.

And the next day I went to the industrial and commercial office to say hello and changed the name of the store where I applied for a license.

After this matter was completed, Zhang Shihui officially joined the business, and his 50,000 yuan was quickly received and became the principal of the store.

Including Ning Weimin's own initial investment of 50,000 yuan, the total principal is 100,000 yuan.

In addition, to prevent accidents, Ning Weimin also gave Jiang Hui's contact information to Zhang Shihui.

Tell him that after he returns to Japan, if one day the book club finds a good location and wants to open a branch, the money will not be enough.

He gave his name and asked Jiang Hui for a loan.

At this time, Ning Weimin thought of the encounters in the first few days again, and couldn't help but feel a magical feeling in his heart.

I felt that maybe it was God's will that I met Jiang Hui that day.

No, Jiang Hui has become a safety net for the book club. (End of chapter)