Chapter Sixteen: Expansion of Scale

“Grateful to the benefactor who saved my life.”

When Chen Guangliang returned to his quarters in Fangua Alley, the man he had saved the previous night was already able to move and, upon seeing him, was ready to bow in gratitude.

Chen Guangliang caught the man’s arm to prevent him from kneeling and said cheerfully, “The important thing is that you survived. Life is hard, and when you encounter someone in need, you must not turn a blind eye.”

The man stood up and looked at Chen Guangliang, saying, “There aren’t many kind-hearted benefactors like you. If you ever need help in the future, I, Zhou Xinggao, will go through fire and water for you.”

Chen Guangliang waved him off and sat down to chat with Zhou Xinggao.

During their conversation, Zhou did not conceal his background—he revealed he was formerly part of the Beiyang Army. After their defeat by the Northern Expedition forces, he had become separated and ended up wandering into the foreign concessions.

“What are your plans now?” Chen asked.

“I honestly don’t know. I just hope to find some way to make a living here in Shanghai, enough to eat,” Zhou replied.

Chen Guangliang’s expression grew serious. “That can’t be the real you. You’re a Beiyang soldier—are you really content just to eat? Or are you thinking of coming to Hohhot to make a name for yourself and live life with dignity?”

Zhou was momentarily stunned, realizing he couldn’t hide his true feelings from his benefactor. He quickly admitted, “At first, I did have such thoughts, but now I realize that beyond a few years as a soldier, I know nothing else. Just having enough to eat is already a blessing. Besides, Shanghai is full of talented people and tangled interests. It’s not so easy to make it here.”

Chen Guangliang waved his hand again. “I don’t care what you’re thinking inside. But if you want to earn your keep, I have a job for you as a rickshaw puller once you’re well enough. If you want to try to make it out there, I won’t stop you either.”

Zhou stood quickly and bowed. “I want to earn my keep. The rickshaw driver’s job sounds perfect. Please take me in, benefactor.”

No matter how much he yearned for adventure, he was unfamiliar with this new place. It was better to fill one’s stomach first.

“Good. Then rest up and recover.”

That afternoon, during the shift change, Chen Guangliang gathered a few rickshaw drivers and said, “Mr. Li and I are about to launch another round of ‘share subscription’ to purchase new rickshaws and licenses. There’s about 500 taels of subscription left. If anyone is interested, you can prepare funds… Also, if you know other rickshaw drivers, feel free to recommend them. Everyone here knows the benefits—it’s definitely better than just being a driver.”

The loan was expected to be confirmed the next day.

For this second round of stock subscription, Chen planned to raise 1,200 taels of silver to buy four licenses and six new rickshaws. He and Li Chao would contribute 700 taels, which was the loan amount.

This left 500 taels worth of subscriptions available. At 10 taels per share, that meant 50 shares were still open.

He Xiangdong immediately said, “Is it still 10 taels per share? If so, I want to subscribe more shares—this is a great opportunity!”

Chen Guangliang nodded.

Someone laughed, “Ah Dong, you’re too greedy. You already subscribed 40 taels last time. Let others have a chance this time!”

***

He Xiangdong retorted, “Pah! Opportunities like this don’t come often. I have to seize it.”

In truth, He Xiangdong didn’t have the funds; he was just playing along.

But he didn’t need to pretend. Every rickshaw driver hoped to own a rickshaw, but reality made that dream difficult.

Now that there was a chance to ‘buy in as partners,’ any driver with a bit of savvy would flock to it.

Not to mention, the previous round’s success made it all the more reassuring.

After the meeting dispersed, Chen Guangliang turned to Lin Feng, who had been following him, and said, “Ah Feng, this is a rare chance. Even if you don’t have the money, borrow at least 20 taels. Otherwise, you might pull rickshaws your whole life and never earn as much as the dividends from this.”

Lin Feng hurriedly replied, “I understand, Brother Liang. I’ll go borrow the money right away.”

He had been with the Yangtze River Rickshaw Company for nearly a month and had overheard the other partners talking about how profitable this was. The fact that it could pay back in eight months was enough motivation for him to borrow money everywhere.

“Okay, I can lend you 5 taels from my side. The rest you have to figure out yourself.”

“Thank you, Brother Liang.”

Chen nodded. Lin Feng was honest and dependable, and Chen was happy to help him improve his life.

As for himself, he was about to receive a 10-tael salary from the company, enough to cover living expenses, and he could occasionally pull a rickshaw to supplement his income.

***

Three days later, on a vacant lot in Fangua Alley, Chen Guangliang and Li Chao were launching their ‘share subscription campaign.’

Below them stood twenty-seven or twenty-eight rickshaw drivers.

Chen Guangliang began with an inspiring speech: “Our lifelong dream as rickshaw drivers is simply to own a new rickshaw, free from rental fees, living a life where hard work leads to prosperity. But in reality, a rickshaw costs 100 taels, a sum many can never save in their lifetime. More importantly, the licenses in Shanghai are monopolized by large companies. A single license outside can cost over 200 taels… Essentially, your dream of ‘getting rich by hard work’ has been completely blocked.”

“Now, through ‘partnership purchases,’ we can achieve that dream. Our Yangtze River Rickshaw Company plans to buy several rickshaws. We have already raised 700 taels and have 500 taels worth of subscriptions remaining.”

“I’m sure you’ve heard about the previous round. If you invest a sum now, it doubles in eight months… In two or three years, your investment could quadruple or even octuple. For example, investing 20 taels today might yield 200 taels in three years, a tenfold increase. Meanwhile, the company provides job opportunities for shareholders.”

The drivers below were energized and eagerly expressed their willingness to invest.

Though not wealthy, they could each afford to put forward 20 or 30 taels.

Then Li Chao stepped forward and said, “I work in the Traffic Department, and I can provide some conveniences for the Yangtze River Rickshaw Company. In fact, the moment you join as partners, your investment’s value has already increased considerably.”

The drivers applauded enthusiastically. Having someone from the Traffic Department as an ally was a significant advantage.

At this point, Li Chao took the company shares very seriously, almost more than his official job, which was itself vital to the company’s growth.

Not only could Li Chao legitimately resell ‘legal licenses’ to the company, but he could also use his position to obtain some ‘fake licenses’ for them.

Currently, the Yangtze River Rickshaw Company maintained a ratio of 2:1 between genuine and fake licenses.

So with the funds raised, they planned to buy four rickshaws with genuine licenses and two with fake licenses, totaling six rickshaws.

“Those who wish to subscribe, please register with Mr. Li and pay me within two days.”

Soon, everyone lined up to register.

Chen Guangliang had the old shareholders register last, giving newcomers priority since the original shareholders generally lacked the funds to subscribe further.

After registration, the subscriptions exceeded the available amount by 50 taels.

Chen Guangliang decided to reduce some investors’ quotas.

Twenty new shareholders joined, half of whom came from Wang’s Rickshaw Company and the other half from various other companies, all introduced by acquaintances.

Chen regarded the two batches of rickshaws as ‘two separate projects’ with independent financial accounts.

The company planned to rent a base in Fangua Alley soon, and the required funds would be shared between the two projects according to the number of rickshaws.

Even Chen Guangliang’s salary would be split between the two projects.

Of course, all financial matters were controlled by Chen and Li Chao. The drivers only needed to hear each month how much profit was made and how their investments had grown.

After all, the Yangtze River Rickshaw Company aimed to develop into a proper corporation, which would require substantial expenses, leading each project to incur higher costs.