Ningbo is a coastal city whose economy relies primarily on industry.
It has given birth to countless nationally renowned enterprises, as well as many leading companies in niche industries that most people have never heard of.
Migrant workers and businesspeople from all over the country gather here, and various restaurants catering to different tastes have sprung up like mushrooms after rain.
The two brothers found a decent-looking restaurant, ordered a few stir-fried dishes, and two bottles of beer.
This served as their celebration.
There were quite a few diners at this time, so they had to wait a while before all the dishes were ready.
"Cheers!" Zhang Xupeng said with a smile, looking at Tan Jincheng.
"Cheers!" Tan Jincheng responded with a smile as well.
It was clear that both brothers were quite happy.
Their first deal having a high probability of making money was a good start.
Zhang Xupeng confidently downed his drink in one gulp, then looked at Tan Jincheng and asked,
"What do we do next?"
Tan Jincheng, taking a slow sip, said,
"There shouldn't be anything tomorrow. We'll see if the agent calls us to look at houses."
"So should we rent an apartment? Staying in a hotel is quite expensive now. I asked the workers in the workshop today, and a decent room there costs only three to four hundred yuan to rent."
"That's fine, but we shouldn't rent that kind. The three to four hundred yuan ones you mentioned aren't even convenient for showering."
"Oh, I see. Then where should we rent?"
After a day, Zhang Xupeng had already adapted to Tan Jincheng's extensive knowledge of Beicang.
He even knew minor details like Tianrunfa having shuttle buses to pick up people from the surrounding towns.
Anyway, asking Xiao Tan where he got all these strange pieces of information was pointless, as he wouldn't tell, so Zhang Xupeng just stopped asking.
"Let's just live around here. It's convenient to go anywhere from here, and convenient for shopping. Plus, there's a university here, which will make it easier for us to find part-time staff in the future."
The living conditions there were relatively poor, and most of the people encountered in daily life were elderly residents and migrant workers.
If they were still running a fast-food business like in his previous life, living there wouldn't matter; being closer to their business demographic would actually be better.
Now that the two were in the foreign trade business, there was no need to live in an environment like an urban village.
Living here, they could go shopping and check out popular styles in their free time.
Even living in the company would be better than living in Xixi Village.
Saving expenses was good, but there was no need to save in this area.
As someone with experience, Tan Jincheng always believed that young people fresh out of college, when renting, should choose an area that suits their lifestyle rather than just blindly going for the cheapest option.
"Then let's live here. Lots of college students around, hehe."
"What does a lot of college students have to do with you? Talk about it when you get rich."
"Spoilsport, can't I even think about it? Drink up, you're so slow, I wonder when you'll finish one bottle of beer."
"Alright, alright, you can think about it then."
The night was fading, and after dinner, the two were in no hurry to return.
They walked slowly along the street, aiding digestion, feeling quite good.
If it wasn't a burly, dark-skinned man beside him, but a woman instead, it would be even better.
The night passed without incident, and the next day, the two slept in.
After getting up, Tan Jincheng first called home to report on the situation over the past two days and reassure his family.
Having been here for two days and only focusing on work, he hadn't called home yet, so he was inevitably scolded again.
Calculating the time, his mother's due date was probably just over a month away.
In his previous life, Tan Jinyue's birthday was November 26th, the same day as his father's birthday.
He just didn't know if it would be the same this time.
On his side, Zhang Xupeng was also calling home, reporting on the past two days' situation with excitement in his voice.
There was indeed nothing important to do today, so after thinking it over, Tan Jincheng decided to go with Zhang Xupeng to rent an apartment.
He remembered an apartment complex opposite Ningbo Vocational College where houses were often for rent.
After Zhang Xupeng finished his call, Tan Jincheng took him to an agent's office near the complex to inquire.
Upon inquiring, they found there were indeed listings.
In an era when housing prices hadn't soared, monthly rents weren't expensive.
A two-bedroom, one-living room apartment, depending on the size, would cost around 700-800 yuan to 1500 yuan per month.
Size didn't matter, as long as the basic facilities were complete.
They chose a unit with a monthly rent of 1200 yuan, and the contract could be signed that very day.
The rent was paid quarterly.
Including the deposit and agency fee, the total cost was 6000 yuan, 3000 yuan per person, and they got the keys.
Immediately after, the two cleaned the room again.
Barring any surprises, this would be their home for a long time to come.
"Tomorrow we'll go buy some daily necessities, and then we can pretty much move in. We'll check out of the hotel then, haha."
In two days, this efficiency was quite good, and Tan Jincheng was very satisfied.
"That's right, we'll get ourselves settled these two days, and in a few days, I'll go to Yangcheng. You need to familiarize yourself with this area as soon as possible, as this side will be handed over to you from now on."
"No problem. I'll wander around, memorize the main roads here, and get familiar with the topography."
"Mm, the roads here are easy to remember too. Besides the small paths, for the main roads, just remember that horizontal ones are 'water' and vertical ones are 'mountain'."
"What do you mean?"
"This road we're on now, Lushan Road, has 'mountain' in its name, right? When you reach the end, where it intersects with Lushan Road, that road is called Zhonghe Road, which has 'river' (water) in its name, right?"
"Yeah, that's right. Are most of the main roads designed this way?"
"Yes, except for certain roads in Dagan like Renmin Road and Xinda Road, most other main roads are designed this way, with mountains and rivers intertwined. If you remember this, it will be easier to navigate."
"So that's how it is. You're quite clever, kid, to have discovered this pattern."
If you stay here for over a decade, it'll be hard not to notice.
"By the way, when are you going to Yangcheng?"
Seeing Xiao Tan just smile without speaking, Zhang Xupeng continued to ask.
"The sooner the better. I plan to get the samples, and if there are no issues with them, I'll depart. If the office space comes through by then, you'll be responsible for overseeing it."
"Alright, but I haven't done this before. I'm afraid they might trick us."
"We rented an apartment today, and the process is similar. The location shouldn't be too far from where we live now; cheap is fine, and a little smaller is okay."
"Alright then. By the way, do you have enough money? You're going to Yangcheng. How about I give you your share of the rent money first? It's better to be well-off when traveling."
"I still have over ten thousand yuan, that's enough. I'm not staying there indefinitely, so how could I spend over ten thousand yuan?"
"I saw news online that it seems less safe over there than here. Are you okay going alone?"
"I'm going for an exhibition. What could happen staying in a hotel? Besides, if something feels off, I'll just run,"
Tan Jincheng said nonchalantly.
In reality, he was still a bit apprehensive.
News reports suggested that the environment there wasn't very friendly during that era.
And neither in his previous life nor this one had he been there in the early 2000s, so he didn't know what the specific situation was like, and whether something might happen was also unknown.
(End of chapter)
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