Chapter 134: Decadent Merchant
Chu Lingyun wanted his parents to move to Chongqing, but it would definitely not work if he went to ask them on his own.
He needed to find a way to save the situation in a roundabout way and make the couple go there willingly.
This method actually works. The couple are both high-level intellectuals and are very kind-hearted. What they hate most is children from poor families who cannot afford to go to school. Whenever they meet such students, they will use their salary to subsidize them.
If it weren't for this, Chu Lingyun could barely be considered a wealthy second-generation when he was a child, after all, both of them had high incomes.
If you want them to leave Ningcheng, you have to attack their weak spots.
The information Wang Sheng brought was very detailed. It included many foreign businessmen, including those from Britain and the United States, as well as businessmen from some European countries.
Without Japan, Wang Sheng knew clearly Chu Lingyun's attitude towards the Japanese.
After looking through the information for more than an hour and finishing reading all the information of everyone, three of them caught Chu Lingyun's attention.
The first one is an American named Allen Smith. Smith came to China five years ago and has been engaged in the medical device business. He is one of the four largest foreign medical device suppliers in Nanjing.
Unfortunately, the business was not doing well, and Smith did not have a good understanding of China's national conditions. In the past five years, he not only failed to make any money, but also lost a lot.
His company went bankrupt three months ago and is still in Nanjing.
"Wang Sheng did a good job."
Chu Lingyun smiled. It seemed that he had put in a lot of effort to get such detailed information.
Smith is a bankrupt businessman, which makes him a perfect fit for Chu Lingyun's next plan.
The information contained Smith's address and phone number. Chu Lingyun picked up the phone and dialed the number.
"The phone was cancelled?"
Chu Lingyun frowned. The call didn't go through. After asking the telephone company, he found out that the phone number had been cancelled half a month ago, so naturally the call couldn't go through.
Without a phone, I can only visit.
Following the address in the information, Chu Lingyun came to Shanxi Road. The houses here are nice, mostly two- or three-story villas. Many foreigners doing business in Nanjing live here.
"Moved away?"
After knocking on Smith's door, Chu Lingyun received another piece of bad news. Smith had moved out half a month ago, and a German couple was currently living there.
Is Smith really in such a miserable state that he not only lost his phone but also his place to live?
The new move-in didn't know where Smith was, but kindly reminded Chu Lingyun that he could go to the police station to inquire. No matter where Smith moved, foreign businessmen like him needed to register.
Through Wang Sheng, Chu Lingyun finally found Smith's residence, which was in an ordinary residential area in the south of the city. The house was not big, with only a main room and a side room, and the furniture inside was also very simple.
Smith himself was disheveled, with an untidy beard, and looked completely listless. It took him three minutes after Chu Lingyun knocked on the door before he came out to open it, and he smelled strongly of alcohol.
"Are you Smith?" His appearance made Chu Lingyun very disappointed. This was not the person he needed.
"Who are you?"
Smith can speak Chinese, but his voice is very stiff. It is not easy for foreigners to speak Chinese in this era, and there are not many who can speak Chinese fluently.
"Sorry to bother you." Chu Lingyun apologized with a smile and turned to leave with his men.
"Wait a minute, how did you find me? What do you want from me?"
Smith called out to Chu Lingyun. He'd been having a tough time lately. After his business went bankrupt, all his former friends had deserted him. Now, he couldn't even afford a boat ticket back home. He sent a telegram to his friends back home, asking for help, but received no response.
Now he is trapped in China.
"I'm sorry, I must have found the wrong person."
Chu Lingyun turned his head to look at Smith and sighed again. He had no way of deceiving his parents in this state. He was afraid that when he saw his parents, they would think he was a foreign liar.
"Don't be in such a hurry to leave. Do you have something to talk to me about? Is there anything you want to talk about?"
Seeing Chu Lingyun leave, Smith shouted hurriedly. Now he only had a dozen or so French francs left on him. If he had no more source of income, he would not even be able to live here and would probably become a beggar.
Although Chu Lingyun was young, he looked very imposing and was accompanied by bodyguards. No matter why he came to him, Smith was unwilling to give up. He wanted to find out clearly and see if it could bring him any benefits.
Chu Lingyun turned around and looked at Smith carefully.
Smith is a typical white man with slightly yellow hair, a high nose, and a tall stature. He is thirty-five years old, but looks like he is in his forties at this moment.
"Can you clean yourself up and let me see what you really look like?"
Judging from appearance alone, Smith was undoubtedly qualified, but his decadent look made Chu Lingyun very dissatisfied.
"No problem, please wait."
Smith agreed immediately and invited Chu Lingyun and others into the room. He also closed the outer door, fearing that Chu Lingyun would sneak away while he was changing clothes.
Not long after, Smith came into the living room after tidying up.
His appearance brightened Chu Lingyun's eyes slightly. Smith, wearing a well-fitting suit, with his hair trimmed and beard shaved, really looked like a successful businessman, but his decadence was still obvious.
"What's your name, sir?"
Smith also boiled water to make a cup of coffee for Chu Lingyun. Even in this state, he still wanted coffee.
"My last name is Chu."
"Hello, Mr. Chu, is there anything you need? As long as I can do it, it's no problem, but we need to discuss the compensation."
Smith's stiff Chinese sounded a bit awkward to Chu Lingyun, but fortunately he could understand it.
This Smith is quite smart. He knows that he has something to ask for.
"I do have a need, but before that I want to know how you ended up like this. Even if your business fails, with your status and abilities, it shouldn't be difficult to find a job, right?"
Chu Lingyun did not directly state his purpose. He had no intention of being frank with the other person when they met. Since it concerned the safety of his parents, Chu Lingyun would never be careless.
"I'm looking for a job, of course it's easy."
Smith raised his head and spoke proudly, but soon lost his temper. "The Chinese who need me can't even offer me the minimum wage I demand. The only ones who can afford to hire me are my former business rivals. I'd rather starve to death than let them trample on my dignity."
When he said this, Chu Lingyun instantly understood that this was an American with a proud personality.
He has ended up in this state. He doesn't want to work because the salary is too low, and he doesn't want to work for his former rival, so he ended up in this situation now.
"If that's the case, why don't you return to your country?" Chu Lingyun asked again.
Smith looked embarrassed, but still said, "I want to go back, but I don't have enough money left to buy a boat ticket back home."
Thanks to friend Sily33 for the reward of 100 Qidian coins.
