Chapter 58: Land Deal

In response to Du Peng's assessment, Zhou Ming just smiled slightly without saying anything. This attitude made Du Peng feel even more that Zhou Ming was extraordinary.

Du Peng thought for a moment and then asked Zhou Ming, "So, are you telling me all this because you want to talk about that batch of cotton?"

Zhou Ming shook his head and said, "Sorry, I don't have a textile factory, so I'm not able to take on that batch of goods. I want to discuss another business with you."

"Another business? What is it?" Du Peng was very curious.

"Land," Zhou Ming uttered a word that was completely unfamiliar to Du Peng. "Do you know about that piece of wasteland near Dongmen Sanyuan?"

Du Peng nodded, indicating he knew. Zhou Ming continued, "How many connections do you have in Nanjiang? Can you buy that piece of land?"

"So the business you're talking about is buying land?" Du Peng was shocked. "Are you crazy? If you were from Hong Kong, I might understand why you'd say that. But you're from the mainland, how dare you talk like this? Land in our country is collectively owned. How can we privately buy and sell it? That's undermining the collective foundation, going back to the ways of feudal landlords! I can pretend I didn't hear what you just said."

But Zhou Ming remained calm. "If I'm not mistaken, the central government has already been researching housing reform policies since the beginning of the year. And last month, didn't the Nanjiang city government already sell a piece of land near Nangang Avenue to an airline company?"

"But that was a collective sale to another collective. We're private individuals; it's not the same," Du Peng argued.

"To borrow your words, if you were really a migrant worker with little education, I could understand why you'd say that. But you're General Du's grandson, someone who can access high-level state policies, so how can you still say this?" Zhou Ming said. "The central government is currently carrying out reforms and opening up. To truly achieve the desired effects of these reforms, old concepts must be broken, and the market economy must take the lead. Land is a crucial aspect of this; you could say that to revitalize the economy, land must be opened up."

Du Peng stared blankly at Zhou Ming. "Your words sound exactly like what those economic experts in the State Council would say. Are you a student of one of them?"

"My family is poor, and my scores weren't good enough at the time, so I didn't have the chance to study in Yanjing," Zhou Ming said.

Du Peng thought for a moment and said, "If the policy really allows it, and that piece of land can indeed be sold, and you have enough money, I might be able to work something out. But are you planning to develop real estate and build residential buildings?"

This time, Zhou Ming's answer shocked Du Peng once again. "Developing real estate is a good idea, and I also believe that in the near future, the housing prices in Nanjiang will experience a crazy surge. Perhaps one day, it might even rise to ten to twenty thousand yuan per square meter."

"Ten to twenty thousand yuan per square meter? That's absolutely impossible! That would be insane, making it impossible for ordinary people to afford housing, pushing them to the brink!" Du Peng flatly denied.

As someone who had witnessed the housing prices in later years, Zhou Ming could only smile. After all, the limitations of the times were clear. It was utterly fantastical to expect someone earning just one or two hundred yuan a month to believe that housing prices could reach ten to twenty thousand yuan per square meter.

"Let's not talk about that. Although I believe that housing prices in Nanjiang will go through a sharp rise in the future, I don't plan to engage in real estate projects because I don't have the time to wait for those buildings to be completed. I want to make money from that piece of land as quickly as possible," Zhou Ming said.

"You're not planning to build anything, so how are you going to make money from the land?" Du Peng was thoroughly confused.

"Sell it directly, at auction," Zhou Ming said.

Du Peng was completely stunned by Zhou Ming's answer. "You mean you're going to sell the land without developing it? Just flip it and make a profit?"

Zhou Ming nodded affirmatively. "Yes. If we're lucky, we could make around two million yuan."

"Two million?"

Du Peng found it hard to believe. Even though he had been involved in reselling goods for a few years, even if he never lost money on a deal, he could only make at most ten thousand yuan. But here Zhou Ming was talking about making two million yuan in one shot—this gap was too big and too hard to accept!

However, Du Peng suddenly thought of another question and asked Zhou Ming, "You're saying we could make two million yuan from flipping the land, but how much do you think we would need to buy it?"

Zhou Ming replied, "That's hard to say, but if it's like how the airline company bought their land, it should be around three to four million yuan."

"Three to four million? Where am I going to get that kind of money?" Du Peng exclaimed.

"You don't have it, but I do," Zhou Ming said. "You provide the connections, and I'll provide the money. That's what it means to be business partners, right? Afterward, we'll split the profits fifty-fifty."

Du Peng suddenly slapped his forehead, finally remembering that he was sitting across from a millionaire. "I can't believe I forgot that."

Zhou Ming smiled slightly. "Actually, the two million is no big deal. What I really want is to establish mutual trust between us through this business deal, because there are some things I'll need your help with in the future."

With an expression of realization, Du Peng said, "That's probably your real intention, isn't it? As long as it's not anything against the Party or the country, I can help you find a way."

"You've misunderstood. That's not what I meant. I know that there's a factory, Factory 760, in Nanhuang County, Linyang City, Jingchu Province, that's currently undergoing restructuring. I was wondering if you could introduce me to some officials who have the power to make decisions," Zhou Ming said.

This answer surprised Du Peng. "Factory 760? What do they do? Does this factory have the potential to make millions in the future?"

"Not really. I'm not sure if the factory can make money, but I definitely want to buy it because my home is in Linyang, and my parents are workers at that factory. I promised them I would buy the factory and give it to them so they could become the factory directors. Also, there's someone in the factory I really dislike, and I want to fire them," Zhou Ming said. Deep down, Zhou Ming also had another reason: to fulfill a promise he made to Su Han.

Du Peng really didn't know what to say. If Zhou Ming's earlier words had just surprised him, this statement made him feel like his head was about to explode. Du Peng felt as though he and Zhou Ming didn't live in the same world. It was as if Zhou Ming was the true descendant of the red elite, while he was just an ordinary person. Otherwise, how could Zhou Ming's words be so incomprehensible to him?

Du Peng rubbed his temples and said to Zhou Ming, "Governor Xiong of Jingchu Province came to my house during the New Year to pay respects to my grandfather. I remember his phone number. If it's just about buying a factory during restructuring, he should be able to make a call to the Linyang officials, and it shouldn't be a problem."

Zhou Ming nodded. The 760 Factory was just a county-level factory, and for restructuring, the competition would at most involve city-level connections. With the provincial government involved, getting it would be almost guaranteed.

"Which business should we do first? Should I contact Governor Xiong first, or should we focus on the land deal?" Du Peng asked.

"The restructuring of the 760 Factory is still in the early planning stages. It will take some time before it really begins. Let's deal with the business in Nanjiang first, so you can trust me," Zhou Ming said.

From his memory, Zhou Ming knew that the 760 Factory's restructuring started at the end of the year. In his previous life, the intense competition meant it took more than half a year to reach a conclusion, so there was no need to rush. Besides, Zhou Ming had been keeping in touch with his parents and Zhang Lei, and occasionally with Su Han, so he had a general understanding of the situation back home.

"Alright, I'll go to the city government to gather some information. If everything looks good, we can set up a company together," Du Peng said.

"No problem," Zhou Ming agreed.

After exchanging pager numbers with Zhou Ming, Du Peng hurried off to the city government to gather information and make connections.

Watching Du Peng leave, Tang Ran asked, "Brother Ming, can this guy really help you buy that land?"

"You saw what happened in the mall earlier, didn't you? A single phone call brought in the city police department. At the very least, his identity is genuine. Besides, land sales are still in an experimental stage, with little competition, so there shouldn't be any issues," Zhou Ming explained.

"But he seems pretty unreliable," Tang Ran said.

"What makes you think he's unreliable?" Zhou Ming was curious.

"Because he doesn't

 understand what you're talking about! He's so dumb!" Tang Ran said.

Zhou Ming couldn't help but laugh out loud at this answer. "If Du Peng heard you say that, he'd probably cry in the bathroom."

Zhou Ming explained to Tang Ran, "Ranran, you can't use our way of thinking to judge theirs. We can do anything that makes money because we're just ordinary people. But they're different. Although I haven't lived their life, I imagine that before they do anything, they must consider their family's opinion or think about whether the matter can be done. They have to consider what impact it will have on their family, whether it will be used against them, and so on. They can't act recklessly like we can."

Zhou Ming concluded, "So, given all that, Du Peng, as a privileged descendant, can understand things to this extent and is willing to take action. That's already impressive. If you were to switch him out with someone more conservative, no matter how much I talked, they might not understand what I'm saying. Or even if they understood, they wouldn't dare partner with me in this business. Otherwise, with the resources and wealth at the disposal of these privileged descendants, there would be no chance for ordinary people to rise from nothing."

Tang Ran made an understanding sound. "Oh, I see. So, this guy does have some capability."

Zhou Ming could only shake his head helplessly at Tang Ran's evaluation. But he also understood that women have different perspectives and emotions when it comes to judging people, especially someone like Tang Ran, who admired him so much. Even if Du Peng eventually showcased the abilities of a future billionaire entrepreneur, Tang Ran would probably still dismiss him.

Thinking of this, Zhou Ming patted Tang Ran's head and said, "Of course! You may not have confidence in Du Peng, but you should at least have confidence in my judgment!"