"Boss, these fish have started to spawn!" Edward Anderson walked up to Jiang Hai, excitedly opening the net bag in his hand, which contained several lively fish.
"Yangtze River anchovies, have they finally started to spawn?" Seeing these fish, Jiang Hai's previously serious expression relaxed. He quickly ran to the nearby river, and sure enough, a large number of longjaw anchovies were swimming against the current from Jiang Hai's offshore area into the artificial river he had built. They lingered and circled in a specific bend of the river he had specially created. Some fish were looking for spawning grounds, while others were foraging. The spiritual energy here at Jiang Hai's was extremely abundant. Although he intentionally exterminated insects and raised many chickens, insects are very resilient, and Jiang Hai hadn't sprayed any pesticides at all.
Therefore, there were still many insects, both beneficial and harmful, within Jiang Hai's manor. These aquatic insects became an absolute source of nutrients in Jiang Hai's freshwater river. Jiang Hai watched the swarming longjaw anchovies and couldn't help but smile.
In fact, once this type of fish starts to reproduce, it's very difficult to drive them to extinction. Unlike migratory fish such as salmon, these fish don't die after spawning. Instead, they stay in the river for a period before returning to the sea, coming back to spawn next year or the year after, depending on how well their bodies have recovered. This fish can be found all over the world, but it's close to extinction only in China.
It's simply because the demand for this fish far exceeds the supply. In Jiang Hai's eyes, the originally clear river water was now stirred up and murky by these fish, but Jiang Hai kept smiling. Each pair of these fish can produce thirty to forty thousand eggs. This means that after next year, he can confidently start fishing. Thinking about the price of this item in China, Jiang Hai had nothing else to say but smile. Those half-catty longjaw anchovies, in Jiang Hai's eyes, were not just fish; they were clearly swimming gold bricks. Yes, gold bricks, not gold bars, because they were much more expensive than gold bars.
"According to my estimates, of the 100,000 longjaw anchovies we originally stocked, about 90,000 are likely still alive. If all of them migrate back, our river might not be able to handle it. We should catch some, but once we catch them, how do we sell them and where do we sell them, boss, you need to make a decision," Edward Anderson said with a frown, a bit helplessly, watching Jiang Hai squatting there, grinning foolishly.
When this river was built, it was calculated based on 30% of these fish surviving, and it was deliberately made wider to account for any excess. So, it was built to accommodate more than double, or 60,000 fish, migrating back. But who knew that 90,000 fish would flood back all at once? An extra 10,000 is fine, 20,000 is a bit risky, and 30,000 is too dangerous.
Jiang Hai only saw gold bricks, but he didn't notice that these creatures would also disrupt the original ecological balance in the river.
"Haha, is this what they call a happy problem? I'll find a place for them right away!" Hearing Edward Anderson's words, Jiang Hai couldn't help but laugh, then immediately went ashore and called Qi Li.
Jiang Hai and Qi Li called each other almost every day, and sometimes even sent text messages and WeChat messages every one or two days.
It was already getting dark here for Jiang Hai, around six o'clock, but in the capital, it was just seven in the morning.
Qi Li and Du Ning had just woken up. While eating breakfast, Qi Li looked at the financial statement in her hand. This was the report for the previous quarter, meaning January, February, and March. It was only early April, so it was naturally submitted at this time.
Since its integration, Qi's Group had achieved quite good results. Currently, Qi's Group had three long-term industries. First, real estate, which goes without saying. As land acquisition became increasingly difficult, Qi's Group primarily played a leading role and was less involved in real estate. It was no longer the golden age for real estate.
Second, Jiang Hai and Qi Li's four Western restaurants, which provided the most stable income. With Jiang Hai's beef and seafood as their signature, these four Western restaurants were quite famous in the capital. Yes, after the ban on public funds for dining and entertainment, many seafood restaurants in China went out of business. There was nothing they could do; when officials stopped coming, businessmen wouldn't frequent these places either.
This is reality, but for Jiang Hai and Qi Li's Western restaurants, the impact was almost zero, because those officials originally didn't eat Western food anyway. They weren't used to sitting there properly cutting steak and drinking red wine.
So, the people who came to Jiang Hai's restaurants were basically high-level white-collar workers, gold-collar workers, or second-generation rich, celebrities, and the like. These people weren't short on money, and Jiang Hai's restaurant could be said to be the best quality restaurant in China. Of course, this had nothing to do with the chefs; purely in terms of ingredients, Jiang Hai provided the best for this restaurant.
So the income was quite stable, and Jiang Hai was very happy about this. The more this thing earned, the more he earned.
The third item was the electronics industry. Qi's Group had originally acquired some electronics factories and the like for transformation.
However, Qi Li originally only wanted to do some venture capital or buy and resell. But at the end of last year, after Jiang Hai became a 1% shareholder of Google, everything changed. With him leading the way, they could invite some senior Google researchers to those factories to research systems or some high-tech things.
After this period of integration, Qi's electronic technology has now been integrated into a complete subsidiary company, mainly focusing on advertising placement, online software, application software, mobile device planning, and external development for the Android system.
The former might be easier to understand, while the latter might be a bit more difficult. For example, a certain brand of mobile phone in China wants to develop an application system similar to Android but belonging to their own company. However, doing this themselves is too difficult and troublesome. At this point, they can approach Qi's Electronics. They will develop it according to your requirements, and since Android itself belongs to Google, they can also delve into the internal code to make it better and more beautiful. These companies will fully entrust Qi's Electronics to develop and maintain this system, which is also a very good source of income.
Although they had only just started and only sold one, it was still a return on investment.
Looking at these reports, Qi Li couldn't help but smile. She felt that the time for her to become a hands-off boss was getting closer.
However, just then, Jiang Hai's call came in. Looking at the photo on the caller ID, Qi Li couldn't help but smile.
"Hello, how did you know I was just thinking of you and called me?" After answering the phone, Qi Li said sweetly to Jiang Hai. In this woman's eyes, the most important thing was to revitalize Qi's Group, and the second most important thing was Jiang Hai. When these two things were tied together, she was happy every day.
"Hehe, I miss you too, and I'm thinking of earning more money for you to spend," Jiang Hai said to Qi Li, casually taking a longjaw anchovy out of the net bag and looking at it.
"Hehe, you know how to talk. Tell me, what's a way to earn more money?" Hearing what Jiang Hai said, Qi Li chuckled. Although Jiang Hai was a bit of a playboy, it wasn't a big deal to Qi Li. She had already accepted it in her heart, so she was quite pleased with Jiang Hai's sweet words.
"The longjaw anchovies have grown," Jiang Hai said, then sent a photo to Qi Li. After receiving the photo, Qi Li's pupils instantly dilated. As the head of Qi's Group, she was naturally very familiar with this item.
She had spent a lot of money on this thing back then, so how could she not be excited to see it alive now?
And most importantly, this was something she was going to use to make money.
Since the ban on public funds for dining and entertainment, the price of longjaw anchovies had been plummeting, from 8,000 yuan per kilogram in 2012 to one or two thousand, and some old frozen fish, for example, fish frozen since 2012, even sold for four or five hundred yuan per kilogram. However, these fish could not be compared to Jiang Hai's fish.
Jiang Hai's fish were live, fresh, and raised by Jiang Hai, containing a small amount of spiritual energy.
Looking at this money, Qi Li felt like her eyes were filled with gold. These fish were not ordinary fish; they were pure gold bricks!
It must be admitted that Jiang Hai and Qi Li, this couple, saw things in a similar way. However, while this item was still valuable, neither of them was entirely sure how much it was worth. After some discussion, Jiang Hai felt it was best to stick to the original price. Originally, Jiang Hai's fish were to be sold at 800 USD per kilogram, which is 5500 RMB per kilogram. Now, they would use this standard, but when selling, they would say it's a new product with a 20% discount, meaning 640 USD per kilogram. Calculated at an exchange rate of 6.9, it would be approximately 4400 RMB per kilogram. After all, they are live fish, air-freighted, and Jiang Hai's farmed fish can be considered even wilder than wild fish. Both the texture and quality are top-notch. They would try selling at this price first.
If people accept it, then they'll raise the price later. If they can't accept it, then they'll lower it again. Anyway, there's always a reason, right? Qi Li was very clear about these things.
"Okay, let's do that for now. How many can you send me?" Qi Li's eyes lit up as she asked Jiang Hai.
"There are 30,000 extra fish in total. I can't send them all to you at once, what if they die? How many do you want?" Hearing Qi Li's words, Jiang Hai knew she had a way to sell this, so he didn't have to worry. (To be continued.)
The Return of the Yangtze River Knife Fish
Chen Bin is an orthopedic surgeon at a hospital in the Imperial Capital. Although he hasn't been promoted to associate chief physician or chief physician, he studied abroad and has excellent surgical skills. So, despite his young age, just over thirty this year, his standing in the department is quite high.
Jiang Hai once mentioned that the income of medical staff in hospitals is incredibly high, and Chen Bin is no exception.
For example, in orthopedics, if a bone is broken and a steel plate is needed, the actual cost of an imported steel plate is 500-800 yuan, but the asking price is over 20,000 or 30,000 yuan, and you can't refuse it. This means for a common imported steel plate, the hospital earns 19,500 yuan. The hospital takes half, 10,000 yuan, and the remaining 9,500 yuan is split: the attending physician gets half, and the anesthesiologist, a few nurses, and others divide the remaining quarter. Therefore, doctors who can perform surgeries have incredibly high incomes.
Performing two surgeries a day means a pure income of 10,000 yuan. If you work twenty days a month and rest ten, that's 200,000 yuan. Add to that the medical subsidies for non-reimbursable medications (money from pharmaceutical companies), your original salary, and hospital bonuses. Honestly, an attending physician at a tertiary hospital earning less than 300,000 yuan a month would truly be looked down upon. With 300,000 yuan a month, plus year-end bonuses, the annual income is over 4 million yuan. This is just the income of a doctor who can perform surgeries and has some connections, and most importantly, it's not even a very busy schedule.
If it's a prominent figure in the department, such as a department head or deputy head, they directly take a percentage of the 50% the hospital earns. Generally, the department head takes 5%, and the deputy head takes 3%. This varies by hospital, but it's common. It might not seem like much, 500 yuan per surgery, but they get a cut from everyone, and most importantly, they also perform surgeries.
How do hospitals make money? This is how! Don't complain about the price; these are nationally set prices. You'll find the same price all over China. So, if a doctor friend complains about being poor, don't believe them—it's all false.
If you become a vice president in charge of hospital construction, your net worth will be in the hundreds of millions.
Chen Bin went abroad at twenty-seven and was assigned here. It has been five years now. He has been the lead surgeon for four years. Except for the first year's money, which was mostly 'donated' to his superiors, he hasn't missed a single cent of the money from the remaining three years.
Although he currently drives a car worth two or three hundred thousand yuan and lives in an apartment of a few dozen square meters, his parents own no less than three properties in the Imperial Capital, varying in size, some in school districts and some in commercial areas. He can live in these houses whenever he wants, or rent them out when not in use, which is enough to cover the mortgage payments. This is their way of life.
However, Chen Bin, in his early thirties, is not married. It's not that he doesn't want to enjoy married life, but because he hasn't had enough fun yet. Everyone knows the situation in China; there are a few professions that are quite open in that regard.
Firstly, art schools; secondly, nursing schools; and thirdly, flight attendant training programs. Students in these programs are quite open-minded in school, and even more so at work. Jiang Hai's childhood friend, Huang Yunfei, who has been a nurse for a few years, told him that not counting those he met outside, he has been with over twenty nurses just within their hospital.
There were even times he was aggressively pursued in the lounge. Although Chen Bin, for the sake of his reputation, wouldn't go that wild, he wouldn't be soft-hearted either, especially since he's someone who returned from abroad.
Today, his target was a newly recruited young nurse. She was just nineteen, fresh out of nursing school, and appeared very innocent. As for whether she was truly innocent, that remained to be seen.
Chen Bin had been asking her out for a long time, and finally got her to agree today. It was obvious that his goal was to go all the way.
According to Chen Bin's method, the best way to deal with a young girl fresh out of school is to overwhelm her with money. Of course, you can't just hand her money directly; that's asking for trouble. Overwhelming her with money means showcasing your charm through your spending.
For example, booking out a cinema for a movie, going to the best places for dinner, and naturally, going to a high-end hotel in the evening. A standard room at a five-star hotel only costs over a thousand yuan a night; what's so difficult about that?
After the first night, if they want to continue seeing each other, it naturally won't be as extravagant, but by then, the woman won't be as picky. Everything is difficult at the beginning, and Chen Bin understood this very well.
In the evening, he specifically picked up the young nurse after work, and then they went to dinner. The place they went to was none other than the Western restaurant opened by Jiang Hai and Qi Li. Currently, these four Western restaurants in the Imperial Capital have become synonymous with top-tier Western cuisine and luxury.
Some white-collar workers, even if they couldn't afford Jiang Hai's seafood and beef, were willing to spend a little money to eat the more ordinary dishes here, such as Japanese teppanyaki or French set meals. Although it would still cost three or four hundred yuan, it was within their means.
"Mr. Chen, this way please." After parking the car in the lot outside, Chen Bin led his date into the restaurant. As they walked in, a beautiful waitress smiled and greeted him, then led him to his reserved table.
The girl next to him was clearly visiting such a place for the first time, looking around in surprise. Qi Li understood the Chinese mindset well. Originally, Western restaurants would never display seafood outside, but she did, and even placed it in the most prominent spot. As soon as the nurse walked in, her eyes immediately landed on the most conspicuous aquarium there.
She saw lobsters over a meter long, large groupers over a meter long, abalones the size of two fists, all pressed against the glass tank. Giant king crabs also roamed around. It had to be admitted, it was quite stunning.
These were all live specimens specially procured by Qi Li from Jiang Hai, which took a lot of effort, but they truly attracted a lot of attention. If a table of guests ordered these items, the staff would loudly announce which table wanted lobsters, abalones, and so on, while going to retrieve them, which was quite a show of prestige.
"Wow, Teacher Chen, are those fish real? It's my first time seeing such big seafood." Sitting down, the nurse quietly asked Chen Bin, her face full of disbelief.
"Of course they're real, but we're not here for seafood today. Although seafood is good, we're here for something even better." Hearing the girl's words, Chen Bin's vanity swelled. He smiled slightly and pointed to the menu in front of him.
"What? A single steak costs 3899 yuan? Are you robbing people?" Looking at what Chen Bin ordered, the young nurse couldn't help but gasp, speaking with disbelief, while Chen Bin was quite pleased with her reaction.
"Miss, our beef is specially imported from Winthrop, USA. This beef is the best in the world, having won first place for beef cattle in the entire US, first place in the Eastern US, and first place in Texas. The wholesale and retail price is 400 US dollars per jin, which is about 2,500 yuan. Because we use pure chilled beef, after the cattle are slaughtered, they need to be immediately chilled and flown here, with the time not exceeding forty-eight hours. Calculating this, plus shipping, it comes to 3,000 yuan. Add to that the spices we use, the flavors prepared by a top French chef, and the fact that this is a set meal that also includes a soup, a dessert, pasta, and mashed potatoes, 3899 yuan is absolutely excellent value for money." The waitress had clearly heard such comments before, so she responded very professionally.
"That's still too expensive..." Hearing what the waitress said, the young nurse couldn't help but say with some trepidation. A steak nearly four thousand yuan, oh my, is that beef she's biting into? Is she sure she's not biting into gold?
"You don't need to worry about that. The beef here is indeed the best. I tasted it when I went to Boston the year before last, but it's hard to find after coming back. There are only these four restaurants in all of China that sell it. It would truly be a shame not to try it." Seeing the girl's expression, Chen Bin waved his hand casually, speaking indifferently. His demeanor instantly captivated the young nurse a little.
"Mr. Chen, if this lady doesn't like beef, we have a special recommendation today: this fish." Seeing the young nurse still looking a bit conflicted, the waitress smiled, then opened the menu and specifically pointed to a newly added page. Hearing the waitress's words, Chen Bin couldn't help but glance at what kind of fish was being recommended.
But as soon as he looked, his eyebrows raised slightly, because he knew this fish; he had known it since he returned to China.
"You have Yangtze River knife fish here?" Chen Bin asked with some doubt, pointing to the accompanying picture.
"Yes, guaranteed fresh and alive, caught right there on site. We just started selling this fish today, and the quantity is really small. A total of two thousand were brought into China, with only five hundred per store. Currently, there should only be about a hundred left." The waitress said, while checking her iPad and then showing Chen Bin the evening's sales record.
Chen Bin saw that indeed, from noon until this evening, there had already been over a hundred sales records. As he watched, four more were sold.
"What's the price of this?" Looking at the screen, Chen Bin couldn't help but recall the delicious taste he had experienced years ago, and his appetite was piqued. Although this fish had many bones, its delicate flavor was extremely rare.
"This fish is also imported from the United States, guaranteed wild-caught, never fed any feed. Since it's a new product, processing is free. Based on 800 US dollars per kilogram, that's 5500 yuan per kilogram. Because it's a new species, with an additional 20% discount, it's 4400 yuan per kilogram. One kilogram is about four fish, and with side dishes, it should be enough for two of you." The waitress said with a smile, looking at the two people in front of her, but that smile, how could it seem so fake? (To be continued.)
Preparing to Pay Taxes
"Alright, the tender buds are almost gone, and your work for the past few days is finished." Looking at the freshly placed basket of tea leaves, Jiang Hai smiled at Talaga and the others while rubbing the leaves in the wok.
"Ah, the work is over already!" Although they had only worked for a few days, honestly, it would be difficult for Pell-Cercey and Bessie-Oliver to find a job like this again. Picking tea was tiring, but $50 an hour was definitely worth their labor, even exceeding it. Working ten hours a day meant $500, and this was untaxed income. Working here for five days earned them $2,500—a considerable sum for a student.
Just imagine if, during high school, you could earn the equivalent of ten thousand yuan in five days—wouldn't you be ecstatic?
"Talaga, take them to get paid!" Seeing the two girls' reluctance to leave, Jiang Hai chuckled. At least for now, he didn't need any more tea leaves picked; he only drank the tender buds and didn't consume the regular leaves that followed.
"If you have such good work next year, call us again!" Hearing Jiang Hai's words, Talaga led her two classmates toward the main villa, where Qi Jie would naturally be waiting to give them their pay.
"The prerequisite is that you can't have boyfriends," Talaga said with a light laugh upon hearing her friends' request.
"Huh? Why is that?" Pell-Cercey asked, slightly confused by Talaga's statement.
"Because these tea leaves are Jiang Hai's treasures. We have so many beautiful women on the estate, so why did he specifically ask us to pick them? It's because we're still virgins. According to Jiang Hai, good tea leaves cannot be contaminated by mixed energies, so only we can pick them," Talaga explained seriously after hearing Pell's question.
"Oh? There's a saying like that? Does that mean for this $2,500, we have to stay pure?" Hearing Talaga's explanation, Bessie-Oliver couldn't help but smack her forehead, sounding regretful. The star player on the school basketball team had been pursuing her recently, and she had been considering accepting his offer. Now it seemed complicated.
"Hmph, you really think you can pick tea forever? Being able to pick it for these three years of high school is good enough. Come on, let's go get paid." Talaga complained, hitting Bessie-Oliver lightly. These girls were really dreaming big.
After being hit, the other two girls laughed and followed her toward the main house. Walking beside them were Darlena and Marian, moving quietly. Although they had worked together for five days, the two groups clearly didn't socialize much. Darlena and Marian had suffered severe trauma, and it wasn't easy for them to escape their shadows.
Among their peers, they probably only felt comfortable socializing with Talaga because they were genuinely familiar with her. As for the others... Jiang Hai, at this moment, had no idea what the girls were discussing; he was busy continuing to pan-fry the tea.
Jiang Hai had pan-fried his tea himself last year. Although the results weren't great, he had gained experience. When frying this year's batch, he was clearly doing much better. Since Jiang Hai was only frying bud tea, he didn't use the traditional methods—like the "full pot spread," the "second pot vigor," or the "third pot drilling"—which require a broom. Jiang Hai was afraid the broom would damage the appearance of the buds, so he always used his hands, employing a very meticulous process.
Frying the tea must be divided into two stages, with different temperatures and methods. The first stage is generally called the "green pan" process (Qing Guo), primarily used for 'fixing' the tea (killing the enzymes). Naturally, it also removes the first layer of moisture, allowing the grassy aroma of the fresh leaves to evaporate and setting the shape of the tea. For ordinary tea leaves, a broom is used to sweep them, but for the bud tea Jiang Hai was making, he had to use his hands.
Frying tea by hand in a 200-degree wok is something most people couldn't endure, but Jiang Hai didn't mind. While he couldn't exactly ignore the heat or cold, as long as he wasn't asked to leave his hand frying in the 200-degree wok, it wasn't a big problem.
After reducing the moisture content of the tea leaves from the initial 75% down to 25%–30%, the leaves from the green pan must be spread out flat for an hour. Then, they are transferred into the "drying pan" (Hui Guo) for the final shaping and frying.
During this stage, the moisture content must be reduced to just 6%–7%. At that point, the tea leaves are considered perfectly fried.
There are many frying techniques, such as shaking, lifting, folding, pressing, tossing, grabbing, pushing, holding, grinding, and compressing. Jiang Hai's technique certainly wasn't as good as an experienced master's, but he infused some spiritual energy (lingqi) while frying, which was something no one else could match.
This year, Jiang Hai harvested about 200 kilograms of tea leaves, or roughly 400 catties. Calculating a ratio of four catties of fresh leaves yielding one catty of finished tea, he should end up with about 100 catties (50 kg), which should be enough for Jiang Hai to drink for a year.
By noon, Jiang Hai had fried about ten catties of tea. Ah Fu La, Qi Jie, and the others would come over to help him package the tea after they finished their morning work in the greenhouses and vineyards. Because Jiang Hai was meticulous, they would carefully select the best leaves for packaging, seal them with a sealer, and then place them into the small containers Jiang Hai had prepared. These were stored in a large refrigerator specifically bought for preservation, ensuring the tea's flavor and quality remained unchanged for at least a year and a half.
However, given Jiang Hai's daily tea drinking habit, it probably wouldn't last a year and a half. Would 100 catties of tea last him about a year and two months? Well, even if it only lasted a year, it would be enough to tide him over until the spring tea harvest next year.
After helping Jiang Hai finish up around noon, the women returned to their respective posts around two o'clock.
There was little work to be done at the vineyard, mostly just pest control and monitoring the vines. Although it was a bit boring and tedious, it wasn't physically strenuous. The vegetable greenhouses were similar. Qi Jie and the others didn't even need to handle pest control because they had chickens, and those birds were excellent at eating bugs. What Qi Jie and the others needed to do was replenish some seeds and watch the chickens to prevent them from damaging the vegetables. It was unclear if this was because Chinese chickens were naturally smart, or if eating the spiritual energy had made them capable of understanding speech.
The chickens Jiang Hai raised, whether Langshan chickens or Nine-Jins Yellows, had all become significantly smarter.
When they first arrived, they still thought vegetables tasted better than insects, but after nearly two years of raising them, the chickens now selectively ate the bugs. Of course, they couldn't distinguish between beneficial and harmful insects, so they ate cabbage worms and aphids, but they also ate the ladybugs (which prey on aphids) and the earthworms (which loosen the soil). Fortunately, the earthworms seemed to have absorbed a lot of spiritual energy, and their numbers were plentiful on Jiang Hai's land, so there was no need to worry about them being eaten completely, leading to soil compaction.
Speaking of ladybugs here: when Jiang Hai was young, he was taught that only the seven-spotted ladybug was beneficial, and the others, called "Flower Sisters" (Hua Dajie), were pests. But that's not true. In fact, only the Flower Sister—the 28-spotted lady beetle—is a pest. All the others—whether seven-spotted, six-striped, multicolored, large tortoise-shell, tortoise-shell, large-shouldered, Australian ladybug, two-spotted, six-spotted, double-seven spotted, nine-spotted, ten-spotted, twelve-spotted, thirteen-spotted, fourteen-spotted, and so on—are beneficial insects.
Besides the 28-spotted one, only the eleven-spotted ladybug is considered a pest. All other types of ladybugs are beneficial.
But the chickens didn't care about those distinctions; they ate whatever they saw. Jiang Hai couldn't do much about it.
Regardless, the vegetables generally didn't have issues, and they were all purely natural, organic produce.
After the women left, Jiang Hai continued frying the tea. He could generally fry twenty catties a day. After finishing today and frying for another morning tomorrow, this year's tea harvest would be complete, so he wasn't in a great hurry.
However, just as he was frying the tea, a slightly unfamiliar car pulled up to the entrance of Jiang Hai's estate.
Then, Moses-Adams stepped out of the car, looking full of energy. He shouted across the distance to Jiang Hai, who was frying tea far away. Seeing him wave, Jiang Hai took the gate remote control from his pocket and pressed it. The gate opened, and Moses-Adams drove in, parking in the lot in front of Jiang Hai's villa before walking over, grinning broadly.
"Yo, what's the happy occasion? You look thrilled, and you even got a new car—a Bentley Mulsanne! You're doing quite well!" Jiang Hai smiled as he looked at Moses-Adams approaching. Hearing Jiang Hai's comment, Moses-Adams waved his hand dismissively.
"Hey, Boss, how can my car compare to yours? You know this car only cost $200,000," he replied. Hearing that, Jiang Hai chuckled. Indeed, there was a significant price difference between cars sold in China and those in the US. The largest difference was found in Bentley and Rolls-Royce, with Bentley's price gap being about four times the US price.
A car like the one Moses-Adams was driving would cost at least five million yuan in China, but in the US, even calculating at a 1:7 exchange rate, it was only 1.4 million yuan. The discrepancy was truly baffling.
For example, the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG driven by the heroine in *Transformers 3* sold for 3.6 million yuan in China, yet it was still only $200,000 in the US—and that was the price found online; buying it in person would likely include a discount. Who could you complain to about that?..."Alright, tell me what you need quickly, I'm busy!" Jiang Hai grabbed a handful of tea leaves, checked the moisture content, and said to Moses-Adams. He genuinely didn't have much time right now.
"Boss, I came to tell you that you need to start preparing for tax payments. We need to figure out how much we can legally avoid." (To be continued.)
So Heavy
"That's right, it's tax time again." Hearing Moses Adams' words, Jiang Hai couldn't help but pat his forehead and said with some emotion. Every year at this time, Jiang Hai felt a sharp pain in his wallet.
To be fair, both the United States and China have their own advantages. If everything follows legal procedures, without any personal favors or private dealings, China is much better than the United States.
Jiang Hai has introduced the taxes in the United States. First, there's the federal tax of 35%, then the state tax. Massachusetts' state tax is not very expensive, but not cheap either, at 5%. There's no local tax, so no need to pay that.
Then there's property tax and land tax, which are collected based on the value of the house and land, so they are naturally not included in the total. However, these two items alone account for 40%. Fortunately, Jiang Hai doesn't pay social security, pension insurance, or medical insurance here, otherwise, he would have to pay an additional 8%. Eight percent of Jiang Hai's earnings, haha, he could open many hospitals himself.
Although the land in China is not yours, the taxes are very low. If it's normal income, not commercial tax or lottery winnings, the tax rate is generally between 10% and 12%. For example, if Jiang Hai earns ten billion yuan from raising cattle and fish, as he does now, the tax paid would be around 1.1 billion yuan. However, the land is not yours, but leased to you by the state, and you only have sixty years of usage rights.
Of course, you also have to consider many things, such as whether someone will see you making money here and then try to consolidate land through various means.
Your land might be directly used for building, or developed for other purposes, or directly subleased to others. Or, people from the village might come to steal your fish or kill your cattle. If you decide to quit, the local people might compensate you at a price of a few hundred yuan per mu, and you wouldn't know what to do, because a few hundred yuan per mu is set by the state and has legal regulations.
If you don't comply, you become a 'nail house' and then forced demolition, assaults, and other things are hard to predict.
Although he pays four times the taxes in the United States, at least Jiang Hai doesn't have to worry about this problem.
After finishing the tea processing, Jiang Hai returned to his villa with Moses Adams, where he used his computer to calculate his total income for the past year. Although the US collects a lot, it also offers tax refunds. However, before that, you have to pay all the taxes, and then after they've reviewed everything, they will refund the taxes. Jiang Hai now needs to figure out how much he has to pay and how much he can get back. He's not a professional accountant, but he at least needs to know an approximate figure.
From April last year to April this year, Jiang Hai's income from beef cattle was 2,584,196,300 USD, from fish was 2,494,304,800 USD, from red wine was 160,000,000 USD, and from selling grass was 1,784,520,000 USD. Domestic taxes are handled by Qi Li and the domestic team, and are not related to Jiang Hai. Jiang Hai only calculates the money earned by his own estate, which totals 7,023,021,100 USD.
The federal tax of thirty-five percent must be paid, which amounts to 2,458,057,385 USD. However, Jiang Hai can get some tax refunds. For example, since he raises cattle and fish, there's a 2% government subsidy for fish fry, a 2% government subsidy for grass seeds, a 1.3% government subsidy for cattle, and a 0.7% government subsidy for labor. Because he hired Harryman Fells and Connorsen Peters, he gets an additional 1% reduction per person. This means Jiang Hai can get an 8% refund in total, so he only needs to pay 27%, which is 1,896,215,697 USD. Of course, the original amount must be paid in full first, and then they will refund the difference.
In addition to federal tax, there is also a five percent state tax, amounting to 351,151,055 USD. However, because Jiang Hai bought the ocean and land last year, the state government exempted him from seafood tax for three years. This means Jiang Hai only needs to pay tax on the money from selling cattle, grass, and red wine on land, which is 226,435,815 USD.
Simply put, it's 2.1 billion. Looking at this money, to be honest, Jiang Hai felt a bit of a sting, but there was nothing he could do. This had to be paid, otherwise, the American government would have an excuse to reclaim his property.
Compared to these large sums, the taxes on the fishery, land, house, and cars, including the plane and boat Jiang Hai bought, were much smaller, totaling less than 60 million USD. All in all, Jiang Hai might have to pay a total of 2.2 billion in taxes this year. Thinking of this, Jiang Hai couldn't help but sigh. This money, it really hurts to pay... "Alright, when you go back, call a few accountants to calculate it for me, and then I'll come to your place next Monday to pay the taxes." Rubbing his temples, Jiang Hai said helplessly. These taxes really are annoying.
"Haha, boss, there's nothing we can do. This is why America is so lenient towards capitalists, because they rely on you to survive!" Hearing what Jiang Hai said, Moses Adams also laughed, and then immediately contacted an accounting firm, emphasizing the need to calculate the tax rate accurately, as this concerned Jiang Hai's future.
In the evening, after having dinner at Jiang Hai's place, Moses Adams drove back. He was paid for helping Jiang Hai. When there was nothing to do, he received his regular salary, and when there was work, Jiang Hai gave him bonuses. Since following Jiang Hai, he had earned nearly ten million from him, including the money for helping Jiang Hai acquire those companies.
Of course, everything was clear on the books, but when he helped Jiang Hai acquire those companies and then sell them at a higher price, he would naturally receive a commission. Besides Jiang Hai's principal, he would get twenty percent. For example, if he helped Jiang Hai buy a company for ten million and sold it for thirteen million, twenty percent of that three million was his.
So he really earned a lot, and the expansion of his company now is also inseparable from Jiang Hai's money.
Precisely because of this, even if it was just for profit, he would honestly act as Jiang Hai's lackey, because Jiang Hai was too powerful.
"Is there enough money to pay taxes? You've spent a lot this year, with the shares in Qi's and Google." After Moses Adams left, Jiang Hai and the others also went back to rest. Since they had been very tired these past few days, they didn't play any tricks. Today, it was just the standard setup: four girls accompanied him—Qi Jie, Qi Ya, Avella, and Diana. After their intimate moments, Jiang Hai, holding Qi Jie and Qi Ya, while Avella and Diana helped him clean up the battlefield, Qi Jie, in Jiang Hai's arms, asked him with some concern, knowing how terrifying the IRS was.
"Don't worry, when have we ever worried about money?" Jiang Hai gently kissed Qi Jie's forehead and said with a smile. He always liked to plan for the worst in everything, so last year, after buying Google shares, he had already prepared for a rainy day. Now he had about 3.5 billion in cash in his bank, all of which was money he had earned back in recent months by increasing market supply. No matter what, he wouldn't let anyone find fault with him because of taxes.
"Then I'm relieved!" Hearing Jiang Hai's words, Qi Jie also smiled, then found a comfortable position, and soon a soft snore could be heard. Avella and Diana also finished cleaning Jiang Hai's unmentionable parts, brushed their teeth in the bathroom, used mouthwash, and then returned, falling asleep next to Qi Jie and Qi Ya.
And Jiang Hai, listening to the steady breathing of the four girls beside him, gradually drifted into dreamland.
The next morning, after finishing the last batch of tea, he called Qi Li to ask about the sales of the Yangtze River knife, also known as the long-jawed anchovy. When he asked about this, Qi Li was very happy, because the effect of this product was indeed quite good.
Since Jiang Hai started selling the long-jawed anchovy, almost 1,700 to 1,800 pieces were sold on the first day.
Subsequently, just when Qi Li was mentally preparing for a low tide, two thousand pieces were suddenly sold on the second day. If it weren't for the lack of stock, even more might have been sold, because the Yangtze River knife was indeed a very important food for many influential figures. Since public funds for dining were no longer allowed, buying it for personal consumption would surely not draw any objections.
Therefore, many businessmen would cater to their preferences, sending some or inviting these influential figures to dinner at home, serving the Yangtze River knife, which no one could control. Thus, Jiang Hai's Yangtze River knife was being rapidly consumed.
The first batch of six thousand pieces Jiang Hai shipped was gone in three days. After learning of this situation, Jiang Hai shipped another five thousand pieces. There are now about eighty thousand long-jawed anchovies that have spawned in the river. The pressure from this number is much less than a few days ago, but Jiang Hai knows that soon these fish will feel the space getting larger and larger, because other fish will also disappear.
Thus, another two days passed, and after a weekend, Jiang Hai had breakfast this morning, inspected his territory, and then drove towards Boston, because today was his tax day.
As the car drove out of the estate, Jiang Hai clearly felt that spring had arrived. Since Jiang Hai's estate was planted with pasture, there were no trees or flowers, but once outside, Jiang Hai could clearly see that the wild flowers by the roadside were already in full bloom, and the trees were covered with new shoots. The scent of spring wafted over, which was very pleasant.
However, halfway through, Jiang Hai suddenly saw a girl slowly riding a bicycle on the highway. (To be continued.)
An Old Friend
"Hey, Kama, what are you doing here?" Jiang Hai asked, somewhat puzzled, as his car slowly passed the girl who was riding a bicycle and listening to music. They were almost at the airport, which was quite a distance from Winthrop.
"Hey, Jiang, I'm going to school!" Kama said with a smile, seeing Jiang Hai roll down his window.
"School? Today's already Monday." Hearing her, Jiang Hai chuckled. She must have misread the calendar.
"I don't have classes today. I just need to get there before dinner." Kama shrugged, responding to Jiang Hai's words.
"Do you want to get there faster? If so, get in. If you're exercising, then keep going." Jiang Hai smiled at what she said. The freedom Americans had regarding school was beyond Jiang Hai's comprehension, so he could only purse his lips, indicating he understood, and then asked her. Clearly, Americans weren't that passionate about the environment either. After hearing Jiang Hai's offer, she immediately stopped her bike and waited with a grin for Jiang Hai to pull over. She then put her bicycle in the back of Jiang Hai's War Shield, and she herself sat in the passenger seat. Americans are very self-aware; as soon as she got in the passenger seat, she buckled her seatbelt. Jiang Hai used to hate buckling up the most, feeling it was too tight, but in America, it had become a habit. After getting in and buckling his seatbelt, Jiang Hai started the engine and headed towards Boston.
"Why did your family let you ride a bicycle to school by yourself? That's a bit too dangerous!" Jiang Hai asked Kama-Cleve, looking at her with some doubt. Although the East Coast wasn't as sparsely populated as the West or Central U.S., it was still somewhat dangerous. Even for cultivating a child's independence, this seemed excessive.
"Hey, I've been riding this route for over a year. I used to have a small car, but not anymore. Sigh, it's a shame. My sister's beat-up car was totaled less than a year after I got it, and getting a new one isn't easy." Kama-Cleve said, looking exasperated, after hearing Jiang Hai's words.
In America, it's very common and normal for parents to buy cars for their children.
Because basically, if a child graduates high school successfully, they've already obtained a driver's license. America also has ID cards, just like China's, with chips inside, meaning wherever you go, a scan of your ID can track you.
While Chinese people feel this is no different, to Americans, it's an invasion of privacy, and an extremely sensitive one. Over ninety percent of Americans oppose this law, and some are even demonstrating in front of Congress to abolish ID cards. However, America has been extremely sensitive since 9/11, and this issue is non-negotiable.
So, the public came up with other methods: anyone with a driver's license simply wouldn't carry an ID card.
In America, if a police officer stops someone and that person produces a driver's license, it proves they are a local. If they produce an ID card, there might be some issues, or they might be recent immigrants.
Kama-Cleve naturally had a driver's license, so before going to college, she inherited her sister's small car.
Originally, Cindy-Cleve had a small car, which Jiang Hai knew about. This car was for her commute to work; it was a used car. Later, after Cindy-Cleve started working in town and earned a higher salary, she bought a new one, and this third-hand car was given to Kama-Cleve.
Unfortunately, Kama-Cleve wasn't an experienced driver, and women aren't particularly knowledgeable about cars, nor do they care for them much. So, the car broke down recently after a year of use. Although Kama-Cleve wanted to buy a new one, even a used one would do, the problem was that not everyone disregards money like Jiang Hai. The Cleve family had to wait until after filing their taxes to see how much spare cash they had to search for a car in the used market.
"I can't help you with that, but if you need to come back on Sunday, I can give you a call and you can hitch a ride." Hearing Kama-Cleve's explanation, Jiang Hai shrugged. If he were her brother-in-law, let alone a used car, he could afford a Lamborghini. But he wasn't. Even if he were to act out of kindness, it would only be to introduce her to Valentina and the others. After all, they returned from Boston every week, and an extra passenger probably wouldn't be an issue.
"Phew, I wish you were my brother-in-law. By the way, weren't you and my sister getting along well? Why is there no news?" Hearing Jiang Hai's words, Kama-Cleve also sighed, then rested her chin on her hand and looked at Jiang Hai, asking.
"You know my family situation. I do have relationships with those girls at home, so it's understandable that your sister couldn't accept it. She made her choice, it's that simple." Hearing Kama-Cleve's words, Jiang Hai knew he was a scoundrel. Since he already had what was in his pot, there was no need to look at what was in others' bowls.
"Even Dalianna and Marianne…" Hearing Jiang Hai so readily admit his scoundrel ways, Kama-Cleve asked, somewhat puzzled. But hearing her words, Jiang Hai flicked her forehead.
"What are you thinking? Those are my daughters." After Jiang Hai flicked her, Kama-Cleve couldn't help but smile. She figured Jiang Hai probably wasn't so desperate, but from what she knew of her sister, there probably wasn't any chance.
Then, the two in the car wisely changed the subject. Jiang Hai asked her about her college life, and she asked Jiang Hai about the situation at the manor. She also mentioned that the last time she stopped Jiang Hai, she wanted to ask if she could bring friends to Jiang Hai's beach for a party, but her sister had stopped her. Jiang Hai, however, was indifferent to this.
If they wanted to come and play, Jiang Hai wouldn't refuse, but he wouldn't invite them either if they didn't. That was his personality.
The two chatted and laughed, and before long, they arrived in Boston. After dropping Kama-Cleve off at her school, Jiang Hai drove directly to the IRS. For someone like Jiang Hai, going there naturally meant VVVVVVVVVVIP treatment.
A deputy director there personally received Jiang Hai. After Jiang Hai submitted his tax assessment and receipts, he paid all his taxes in one go. These amounts were to be recorded, and after they were processed, any refunds would be deposited into Jiang Hai's card.
What would have been a troublesome tax issue for others, Jiang Hai resolved quickly and efficiently. There was no other way; in Massachusetts, Jiang Hai was a crucial person. Even with a three-year exemption on fishing taxes, Jiang Hai still paid over 200 million US dollars. Although this wasn't a huge sum for the entire state, it certainly wasn't small.
Currently, Massachusetts' total GDP is around 300 billion US dollars. At a 5% tax rate, the state collects about 15 billion US dollars. With nearly seven million people in the state, that averages to over 2,000 US dollars per person. Jiang Hai, paying over 200 million, is a hundred thousand times more than the average, making him undeniably a major taxpayer.
After paying his taxes promptly and receiving his tax clearance certificate, Jiang Hai left. Although the process was quick, it still took him over an hour, nearly two hours. When he looked at his Patek Philippe, it was already 11:15. Looking at the sky, it was noon. Jiang Hai had originally planned to visit Tenglong Company in the afternoon, but it was lunchtime now, and going there would only disturb them. So, Jiang Hai decided to get lunch on his own and go to the company at 1:30 PM when everyone would be back at work, and he could check things then. But what to eat was the question.
As he thought, he suddenly looked back at the tea he had stored there, and an idea came to Jiang Hai. Since he didn't know what to eat, he might as well go and scrounge a meal. Anyway, he had planned to visit Old Man Zhang Dehai this time. When he first arrived here, Jiang Hai had received a lot of help from him and had also "extorted" quite a bit of tea from him. Now that his own tea was processed, he naturally wanted to give some to the old man. Too much was impossible to satisfy, but bringing a can, three or five taels, was something Jiang Hai could do.
With that thought, he got into his car and headed towards the supermarket where Old Man Zhang usually stayed.
When his car arrived, he saw Old Man Zhang's shop surrounded by a group of hooligans. Old Man Zhang was trembling, pointing his right hand at the man leading them, cursing something, but the man didn't care at all.
Seeing this, Jiang Hai frowned. He was very protective, especially in this small corner of Boston, no one dared to disrespect him. Moreover, Old Man Zhang had considerable influence, so why would some ignorant hooligans come looking for trouble?
So, with that in mind, Jiang Hai drove his car straight over. Seeing a car charging towards them, the hooligans immediately cleared a path, cursing under their breath. However, seeing that the car looked quite luxurious, and more importantly, this was in front of Haishang Supermarket, they didn't dare do anything more than curse. At this point, Jiang Hai also got out of the car. He glanced at the hooligans and immediately knew they weren't carrying guns. Would Jiang Hai be afraid of them if they didn't have guns? What a joke.
"Uncle Zhang, what's going on here?" Jiang Hai walked directly into the supermarket through the path the men had cleared and asked Zhang Dehai. (To be continued.)