Chapter 5 Knowledge is Wealth

  For the next three days, Ma Yuxuan had no choice but to rack his brains for ways to raise tuition fees.

  To get rich quickly, there are many ways to do so, such as stealing, robbing, and gambling, which can make one earn a fortune overnight. However, for Ma Yu Xuan, who is "half a university student and half a gangster", this method is absolutely not an option.

  If they followed the usual method, time was far from enough. The standard of living in N city is not high, and the monthly salary of an ordinary worker will not exceed 2,000 yuan at most. Even if Lanhe Wuhu and Ma Yuxuan work together in a factory, working day and night, they cannot earn 10,000 yuan in just three days, let alone that there is no factory with daily wages.

  For a moment, Ma Yuxuan was at a loss for what to do.

  "How can I, the top talent of Red Star Village, drop out of school just because I couldn't pay my tuition?" Ma Yuxuan felt a surge of strong determination in his heart, gritted his teeth and said, "Let's go! We'll head to the city and see if there are any business opportunities!"

  The Blue River Five Tigers accompanied Ma Yu Xuan to the city by car, at this time it was already nightfall, the lights had just come on, and the streets were bustling with people coming and going, crowded and noisy. Everyone stood on the street, looking at the throngs of people, chatting and laughing, but feeling increasingly lost in their hearts.

  Ma Yuxuan wandered aimlessly and unknowingly arrived in front of an abandoned factory, where a group of people were gathered together, all looking up and discussing among themselves.

  "What are these people doing? Are they here to make a scene?" Ma Yu Xuan called out to the crowd, inviting them to gather around and watch.

  Squeezing through the crowd, Ma Yuxuan finally discovered that what was attracting everyone's attention was a notice board hanging high on the wall. The content roughly said: A returned overseas Chinese, Mr. He, had a large sum of money in his hands and didn't know how to spend it. He wanted to invest but couldn't find a suitable project. Now he was putting up a billboard to collect investment projects. As long as the project was creative and profitable, once adopted, the planner would be paid a one-time reward of 10,000 yuan.

  Ma Yuxuan's eyes lit up, and he couldn't stop smiling. "Really? So coincidental again? 10,000 yuan? Haha! Indeed, there's no dead end in the world, brothers. Sometimes making money is still quite easy!"

  Chen Xiaodong listened to him and knew that he had the idea of applying, looking at the crowd around him who were eager to try, excitedly and worriedly asked: "Xuan Xuan, are you sure?"

  Ma Yuxuan patted his chest and said proudly, "Of course! Writing copywriting plans is my specialty. This 10,000 yuan, I've got it in the bag! Let's go to the internet cafe!"

  After finishing, he ignored the crowd and flew to the nearest internet cafe, swiped his membership card, turned on the computer, and dived into the online world, fully focused on finding materials, checking data, writing copy, and revising passages, busy beyond measure.

  The Blue River Five Tigers looked at Ma Yu Xuan's busy appearance, but couldn't help even a little, and could only quietly wait on the side. Time passed minute by minute, and everyone gradually felt sleepy, dozing off in a daze.

  It was unknown how long it took, but Ma Yuxuan laughed and shouted: "Brothers, get up, the time to make money has arrived!"

  Chen Xiaodong opened his eyes with a lack of energy, subconsciously glancing out the window to see that it was already bright outside. It turned out that Ma Yuxuan had stayed up all night, and when he looked at him again, he saw that his eyes were bloodshot and full of red lines, clearly having not slept all night. However, his state was still very good, with a well-written manuscript in hand, looking spirited and energetic.

  "Xuan Xuan, is it done? Just these few pieces of paper can be exchanged for 10,000 yuan?" Zhang Junping was somewhat skeptical.

  Ma Yuxuan's spirit was high, and with a spring breeze on his face, he said: "Dog brother, don't underestimate these few pieces of paper. That overseas Chinese Mr. He wants to make money, but without these few pieces of paper, it's impossible! Let's go!"

  A group of people arrived at a elegant villa in the western suburbs, it was still early, but the applicants came one after another, showing the attractiveness of the 10,000 yuan reward. Several security personnel were standing downstairs, responsible for checking the qualifications of the applicants, and those without documents were not allowed to enter.

  The five tigers of Blue River had to wait outside the door, watching Ma Yu Xuan walk quickly into the villa, with anticipation in their hearts.

  Ma Yuxuan entered the villa, walked through the living room, and looked at the bright and clean conference room. The transparent crystal chandelier hung from the top, and the decoration style showed a European royal style. All the furniture was valuable, and just the decoration cost a lot of money.

  Mr. He sat in the chairman's seat at the round office desk, about 40 years old, with a strong spirit, giving people a sense of being in his prime and mature and capable. On both sides were various applicants, including men and women, mostly young people.

  Ma Yuxuan only then realized what it means to be the early bird that gets the worm. Although he arrived very early, others had arrived even earlier. The large conference room was already packed with people. He could only stand by the wall, quietly waiting for others to speak.

  Mr. He waved his hand and said calmly: "Let's begin!"

  Due to the large number of applicants, each person only had five minutes. In fact, most people didn't even need five minutes, as they simply stated their so-called creative ideas and mostly used colloquial language, such as "Boss, just open a pig farm, it's guaranteed to make money." They lacked professional terminology and seemed unprofessional.

  As for those so-called creative ideas, they are utterly uncreative. Basically, they are suggestions like opening a processing plant, a pig farm, a slaughterhouse, a small appliance factory, a casino, or a cement factory, which are dull and unremarkable, and everyone knows them.

  Such an investment project naturally cannot satisfy Mr. He, he is full of hope and eager to find talent, but unexpectedly the ideas presented are mediocre, the disappointment in his heart is hard to express, at first he still expected the next contestants to bring brilliant speeches, but as it went on, it became more and more unbearable, his patience and confidence were gradually exhausted, and his interest slowly faded away.

  "Is this really the level of creativity and imagination among young people in N City?" Mr. He thought with a frown.

  He wasn't being picky, but the fact was that nothing could satisfy him. Not to mention whether the project was innovative or not, just writing a project proposal, no one met the standard. The proposal should be divided into several sections, it should include what data, it should explain what factors, all of these things, Mr. He thought were the most basic, unfortunately, these people didn't even understand the basics.

  Rumors have it that N City's education level is low and can't cultivate talents. University students are scarce, let alone top-notch students who excel in writing copy. It seems the rumors are true after all. Mr. He, no longer holding any hope, waved his hand impatiently, stood up leisurely and said: "Alright! Today's proposal ends here! I will consider everyone's suggestions. You can leave now!"

  Ma Yuxuan felt anxious and uneasy, earlier he had been observing Mr. He's reaction, from Mr. He's expression it was not difficult to see his disappointment with the previous contestants, he had been preparing for a long time and was about to make a good performance, now that Mr. He said he wanted to leave, wouldn't his efforts be in vain?

  In a moment of urgency, Ma Yuxuan pushed his way to the front and stood in front of Mr. He, saying loudly: "Mr. He, please give me five minutes!"

  Mr. He frowned, he didn't like the young man's rudeness, but the determination and firmness in Ma Yuxuan's eyes made him vaguely see his own shadow when he was young, so he suppressed his dissatisfaction and calmly said: "Young man, what do you think?"

  Ma Yuxuan knew that Mr. He's patience was almost exhausted, and if he couldn't quickly move Mr. He with one sentence, he would probably be rejected immediately. So he decided to get straight to the point and concisely threw out his creative idea: "Mr. He, I think if you open a tableware disinfection company in N City, you can definitely achieve both fame and fortune."

  Mr. He was slightly surprised and said in a daze: "Disinfecting tableware?"

  Someone next to him sneered: "What's the use of disinfecting tableware? It's just washing dishes!"

  Everyone burst into loud laughter, ridiculing Ma Yuxuan's ignorance and foolishness, the calm atmosphere vanished instantly.

  "Haha, kid, you think Mr. He is an idiot? Proposing such a childish proposal!"

  "Come on! You're the idiot, don't treat everyone else like idiots! Mr. He is a dignified returned overseas Chinese, and you want him to open a dishwasher shop? Are you out of your mind?"

  "Haha! Every year there is, but this year is especially many! Losing you are still a college student, actually put forward such a proposal, it's really embarrassing for our N city university students!"

  Ma Yuxuan ignored the cold ridicule of the crowd, sincerely handed over the document and said: "Mr. He, if you still think I'm naive after reading this project plan, I'll leave immediately!"

  Mr. He hesitated for a moment, the idea of disinfecting tableware was strange to him at first, but strange things are always special in some way, which meets the requirements of novelty and creativity, it's just unknown whether it meets the requirement of making money, anyway, let's take a look, taking a look won't cause any loss.

  With this mood, Mr. He took over the document and didn't look at its content, but just from the cover written "Feasibility Study Report on Establishing a Tableware Disinfection and Distribution Center in N City", it can be seen that this is a professional project planning book.

  The proposal is divided into six parts: the introduction of the company, technical feasibility analysis of the project, market feasibility analysis of the product, economic and social benefit analysis, capital structure and financing plan, and appendix.

  Ma Yuxuan knew that Mr. He was most concerned about whether the investment project would make money or not, so he suggested that Mr. He directly turn to the fourth part, and he himself would recite it from memory. In fact, for every part of the document, he had written it with care, and could even recite the data from memory.

  "There is currently no tableware disinfection company in N City. Once Mr. He invests, it will be unprecedented and there will be no competition at all."

  According to incomplete statistics, there are more than 800 large and small restaurants in N city, among which the vast majority of restaurants have self-employed employees washing dishes. The salary of ordinary dishwashers is generally between 1,200 yuan and 1,500 yuan.

  "For restaurant owners, dishwashers have a chicken rib nature, that is, they are tasteless when eaten and cannot be abandoned. Not hiring a dishwasher is not feasible; hiring a dishwasher has a low cost-effectiveness ratio. Dishwashers have nothing to do during idle times and are busy with other tasks during peak hours. In this case, outsourcing the tedious task of washing dishes to a professional tableware disinfection company becomes an excellent choice."

  "A hood-type dishwasher can wash 120 baskets of dishes per hour, which is about 1,200 dishes. At a cost of 1 yuan (about $0.15 USD) per dish, that's 120 yuan ($18 USD). After deducting electricity and machine depreciation costs, each machine can generate at least 100 yuan ($15 USD) in pure profit per hour. With 10 machines running for an hour, the profit is 1,000 yuan ($150 USD), and if they run all day, the daily profit would be 8,000 yuan ($1,200 USD). Annual income could exceed 2 million yuan ($300,000 USD)."

  "At current market prices, opening a tableware disinfection company, including purchasing machines and decorating the store, will not exceed 500,000 yuan in investment. With an investment of 500,000 yuan and a return of 2 million yuan, such a high rate of return, I think Mr. He would not refuse."

  The more Mr. He looked down, the more surprised he was, and at the same time, the more excited he became. This project plan was rich in pictures and texts, with detailed data, sufficient arguments, reasonable judgment, and finally attached with a map of N city and a distribution map of restaurants. It was almost a complete project plan that couldn't be more complete.

  More importantly, the plan book also mentioned the expansion prospects of tableware disinfection companies. Once the company is on the right track, it can not only quickly open up the market and win word-of-mouth, but also quickly recover funds, expand branches, and seize market share in neighboring cities.

  Mr. He nodded constantly, his inner admiration overflowing from his words, those who were just mocking and ridiculing earlier, their expressions changing from disdain to surprise to shock, to admiration.

  Ma Yuxuan elaborated while carefully observing Mr. He's reaction, knowing he had succeeded. Seizing the opportunity while Mr. He was moved, he decided to strike while the iron was hot and threw out the last olive branch: "Opening a tableware disinfection company not only makes money but also hires middle-aged women as dishwashers, solving the employment problem of older rural women. As an returned overseas Chinese, the city government will certainly honor Mr. He as an honorary citizen, and may even confer a noble philanthropist title, at which point Mr. He will truly gain both fame and wealth!"

  Mr. He nodded his head in approval with a smile, and without any hesitation, patted Ma Yuxuan's shoulder and said: "Young man, your proposal is great! I've finally found a suitable investment project! To show my gratitude, I've decided to add another 10,000 yuan as a bonus!"

  Ma Yuxuan's heart was filled with joy and gratitude, he thanked them a thousand times, bowed his head and waist to receive the money.

  As soon as they came out of the gate, the Blue River Five Tigers had been waiting impatiently and swarmed over together, asking in unison: "Xuan Xuan, how was it?"

  Ma Yuxuan was in a great mood and wanted to joke with his brothers, so he intentionally turned serious and looked depressed, sighing repeatedly, saying: "Ah! The boss doesn't keep his word, said it would be 10,000 but it's not 10,000..."

  Chen Xiaodong also guessed roughly from his expression, this was the last chance, missing it would be a pity, but he also knew that Ma Yuxuan had done his best, so he comforted him: "Xuan Xuan, don't worry, we can think of another way."

  Zhang Jinhua said in a low voice, "Yes! Heaven will not cut off a man's path, Xuanxuan, don't worry, I won't let you drop out of school. Even if I have to borrow from usury, I'll still pay your tuition!"

  Ma Yuxuan looked at the crowd's worried faces and couldn't help but laugh, doubling over with laughter. He then pulled out 20,000 yuan in cash from his pocket and waved it around, saying "Haha! I haven't even finished speaking yet! The boss said he'd give us 10,000, but it turns out it's not 10,000, it's 20,000!"

  Everyone only felt that their mood was like a roller coaster, from the bottom of the valley to the top of the cloud. The joy in their hearts was truly beyond words. Only then did they realize that Ma Yuxuan had fooled them. In unison, they burst out laughing: "Xuan Xuan, you can go act now, and you'll definitely win an Oscar!"

  Ma Yuxuan laughed heartily, this time he used his wisdom to prove that knowledge is wealth. Now he just wants to go back and take a hot bath, then sleep in comfortably.

  "I've finally saved up enough tuition! Now I can buy a train ticket to the provincial city with peace of mind!" Ma Yuxuan said comfortably.

  Just as Xuan was overjoyed, Zhang Junping smiled slyly and said something even more sly: "Hehe, Xuanxuan, before we go to the provincial capital, you must come with us to Huaguo Mountain. You're almost 20 years old and still a virgin, aren't you ashamed? This time, no matter what, we'll make sure you...!"

  The five tigers of the Blue River burst into a loud and unbridled laughter.

  Ma Yuxuan broke out in a cold sweat, sweated profusely, and was drenched in sweat, like Genghis Khan.