Rebirth of the 1980s: The Military Industry Empire

This was a golden opportunity! He was just worrying about how to get involved with this woman who had foreign trade connections. He didn't expect a few small-time thugs to appear, offering him a perfect chance for a hero to save the beauty.

At his age, he was long past the stage where hormones would cloud his judgment and make him reckless. He didn't have any noble intentions either; he just wanted to make the first pot of gold for his company.

"Yo, look who's not afraid of death?" The three thugs laughed, and then with a 'swish, swish, swish' sound, they pulled steel pipes from their waistbands.

There's an art to fighting and brawling. Carrying a triangular bayonet is certainly intimidating, but that's a deadly weapon! If something really happened, you'd definitely face serious consequences. But these steel pipes are different. We three brothers are plumbers; isn't it normal to carry a steel pipe?

Why is one end of the steel pipe pointed? Of course, it's for convenient construction! How else would you connect steel pipes and plastic pipes together? Wouldn't you still need this pipe with a sharpened end?

With a simple diagonal cut, the steel pipe creates a beveled edge. This thing can easily pierce flesh, and the hollow inside can act as a bloodletting groove. Usually, you can use it to scare people. Besides stabbing, you can also smash with it, making it even more useful than a triangular bayonet.

At this moment, seeing the stance the three men were taking, Liu Gong instantly wanted to back down. A wise man doesn't fight when the odds are against him. He was here to make money, not to risk his life.

He wanted to leave, but the three men were quick, and in the blink of an eye, they were already in front of him.

"Hit him!" one of them shouted, and then the steel pipe in his hand swung down.

Bang!

The steel pipe slammed heavily on Liu Gong's head. Intense pain surged through him, and a sticky substance oozed out. Before Liu Gong could even cry out in pain, he was kicked in the stomach. He fell to the ground, clutching his head, bracing himself for the next round of punches and kicks.

"I, I, I'm okay." He had already been beaten, and the people had run away. Now he had to act. Liu Gong said in a dying tone, "Miss, are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine, sir. Are you, are you okay?"

Liu Gong's vision went black, and he knew nothing more.

When he woke up again, he was already in the hospital. The IV drip was working steadily, and someone was watching over him. His blurry vision gradually cleared, and Liu Gong finally saw the woman's figure: "Miss, thank you for bringing me here."

"Well, you saved me. How could I leave you alone?" the woman said. "I don't know your workplace or home address, so I could only stay here and watch over you. By the way, my name is Miao Cuihua. What's yours?"

"My name is Liu Chuanzhi," Liu Gong said. "I used to be with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, but now I've started a company. I, I…" After speaking, he felt a pain in his forehead again and couldn't help but reach out to touch it. It was wrapped in thick bandages.

"A scientist going into business," the woman said. "Talented people like you are gold. You'll shine wherever you go."

"Alas, not really. The company is just starting, and I don't know how to develop it. I don't have any projects," Liu Gong said. "Even if I could just trade in some household appliances and earn some interest, that would be good."

"You want to trade in household appliances? That's easy. I have connections," the woman said. "I recently got two hundred 20-inch Hitachi TVs from Japan. If you want them, I'll give them all to you. My price is 1,500 yuan each."

Liu Gong felt a surge of emotion. He had been beaten, but fortunately, he had made the acquaintance of Miao Cuihua. This person could handle import and export trade, and he would need her connections to import chips in the future.

Moreover, Hitachi TVs were hot commodities. The market price was 1,800 yuan each, but the supply was scarce, and almost all of them were consumed internally. If ordinary people wanted to buy them, they would have to find connections, which would cost them 2,000 yuan each. These two hundred TVs would be 400,000 yuan. The purchase price was 300,000 yuan, and he could earn 100,000 yuan with a simple resale.

"But I only have 200,000 yuan on hand," Liu Gong said.

"It doesn't matter. Give me these 200,000 yuan first, and you can owe me the rest," the woman said. "Wait until you sell the goods and make money, then give it to me."

"Okay." Liu Gong said, looking at the needle on the back of his hand: "Take this thing off, and I'll take you back to get the money."

"No need. You should stay here and rest. Your company has more than just you, right? I can go find someone else, or we can use the hospital's phone and you can make a call?"

Liu Gong thought for a moment and then nodded: "Okay."

He had been out for a day, and it was almost dark now. Wang Gong and Zhang Gong at the company were very worried. They were relieved to hear that he was in the hospital and planned to come and see him. Later, when they heard Liu Gong talking about cooperation, they quickly brought the checkbook.

In this era, there weren't many ways to make large transactions. Since the largest denomination of cash was only ten yuan, a bundle of one hundred bills was only one thousand yuan. Ten thousand would be ten bundles, and one hundred thousand would be one hundred bundles. It was inconvenient to carry and use, and what if there were a few counterfeit bills mixed in?

Electronic payment methods were also limited to telegraphic transfers and mail transfers, which were very inconvenient. Checks became the most common method.

Liu Gong wrote a check for 200,000 yuan and handed it to the woman, his eyes full of anticipation: "When will the goods arrive?"

"A ship will dock in three days, and the goods will arrive. When that time comes, I'll take you to pick them up together."

"Okay."

Liu Gong was full of anticipation.

"I still need to find my uncle to get a few hundred more. With your 200,000 yuan check, I can just deposit it with him, and he shouldn't have anything to say," the woman said. "I'll give you these few hundred to sell as well, just as a way of repaying you."

"Okay, okay, no need, no need. I'll give you half of the money I earn then."

Liu Gong smiled and sent the woman away. At this time, he was obviously unaware of the dangers of the world and how deep the waters of business were.

The next day, he happily ran to contact the downstream clients. He took care of these things within three days and waited for the ship to arrive, but when he waited and waited, he couldn't find the woman.

This woman named Miao Cuihua had actually disappeared into thin air?

Liu Gong was anxious. He ran to the import and export unit to inquire, but no ships had docked recently, and none of their leaders had a niece named Miao Cuihua.

Liu Gong had been cheated, thoroughly cheated. His 200,000 yuan, the start-up capital borrowed from the bank, had gone down the drain.

For Liu Gong, the sky had fallen. He ran to find the director, crying his eyes out.

"Director, you must help me. After all, I came from the institute."

"How can I help? That's 200,000 yuan!"

"The institute should first help me fill this hole, and I'll pay it back when I earn money in the future."

"Impossible."

"The institute should come forward to help me borrow another 200,000 yuan. I will make a comeback."

"Also impossible."