Chapter 16: Almost Robbed

Huaxia Bank was currently the largest bank in Pengcheng and the only one capable of foreign exchange services, specifically catering to the residents of both Pengcheng and Gangcheng.

Inside the slightly dilapidated bank, several windows had queues of three or four people each.

As soon as Shen Yu stepped inside, her fair skin, beauty, and fashionable attire immediately drew everyone's attention.

Judging solely by her current appearance and temperament, no one present would doubt that she was a young lady from a wealthy family.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Shen Yu walked in with grace and poise.

She scanned her surroundings before walking up to a window labeled "Exchange Counter" and softly asked the clerk sitting inside, "Hello! Excuse me, is gold exchange handled here?"

The clerk looked up at Shen Yu and nodded. "Yes, it is."

Shen Yu smiled and said, "Thank you!"

Seeing two people still in line, she obediently joined the back of the queue.

After waiting for about ten minutes, it was her turn.

Shen Yu took ten large gold bars (Da Huang Yu) out of her large black bag and handed them to the clerk. "Hello! Please help me exchange these for RMB."

The clerk was somewhat shocked to see Shen Yu pull out ten large gold bars so readily.

Each gold bar weighed 312.5 grams, and with the current gold price at 29 yuan per gram, the value of these ten bars was equivalent to 90,625 yuan.

In the early eighties, when "ten-thousand-yuan households" had only just begun to emerge, Shen Yu's move to exchange over ninety thousand yuan worth of gold was enough to stun the clerk and the people at the surrounding windows.

Fortunately, the clerk had encountered many wealthy clients like Shen Yu before and quickly recovered. "Alright, please wait a moment."

After verifying the authenticity of the gold, the clerk asked Shen Yu, "Hello! Would you like to open a passbook? It isn't safe to carry this much cash; it would be safer to keep it in the bank."

Shen Yu remembered that the original owner of her body did not have a passbook. Since she planned to open a shop in the future and would likely need to use the bank for remittances, opening an account now would certainly be useful.

Shen Yu replied with a smile, "Then please help me open an account. I'll deposit ten thousand yuan for now. I need the rest of the money immediately, so I won't be depositing it. Thank you!"

Having secured a client, the clerk smiled warmly and said, "Alright, I'll process that for you right away. Did you bring your letter of introduction?"

Since ID cards had not yet been implemented, one had to rely on a letter of introduction to prove their identity for official business.

Shen Yu took out the letter of introduction previously issued to the original owner and handed it to the clerk for inspection.

After confirming her identity and name, the clerk issued her a passbook with ten thousand yuan in it.

With 80,625 yuan remaining, she handed the cash to Shen Yu.

Since one-hundred-yuan banknotes did not exist yet, the pile of eighty-thousand-plus yuan in cash was extremely conspicuous.

Almost everyone in the bank doing business had their eyes glued to the pile of money.

Shen Yu quickly stuffed the passbook and the eighty-thousand-plus yuan into her large black handbag and said to the clerk, "Thank you! Goodbye!"

The clerk smiled back, "Goodbye!"

In the early eighties, when overall service attitudes were not particularly good, the clerk's attitude became excellent when encountering a wealthy client like Shen Yu.

Shen Yu exited the bank, quickly got into her car, and sped off toward Nanshan Bay Village.

She had already sensed several malicious gazes staring at her just now; leaving immediately was the best course of action.

Looking through her rearview mirror, she saw a man chase out from the bank and join several men outside, likely intending to target her.

What they didn't realize, however, was that Shen Yu had arrived in a car. How could they possibly catch her with just their two legs?

The leader of the thugs could only stomp his feet and curse, "Damn it! Such a big fat sheep, and she just ran off like that!"

He then turned and cursed at the hooligans who had been watching the bank, "You bastards, you're useless! If you had told me sooner, I wouldn't have been caught off guard and let her escape! You idiots, be sharper next time!"

The hooligans hung their heads in reprimand, nodding repeatedly, "Yes, yes, yes..."

Having secured enough money to buy a storefront, Shen Yu was overjoyed.

She had considered many scenarios beforehand—would she be interrogated for bringing out so many gold bars?

She had even prepared excuses, but in the end, they weren't needed; no one asked where her money came from.

However, she would only exchange gold bars for cash this once.

If she hadn't been in such a hurry to buy a storefront, she wouldn't have used the gold bars to get cash.

With this startup capital, once she opened her shop, her subsequent development would accelerate, and her capital turnover would be very fast.

Shen Yu drove back to Nanshan Bay and first took a stroll around the old street.

She saw Granny Wu sitting by her doorstep, fanning herself and watching the passersby.

Shen Yu got out of the car and greeted the elderly woman with a smile, "Hello, Granny Wu!"

As soon as Granny Wu saw Shen Yu, she immediately stood up. "Oh, beautiful girl, you're here! The landlord next door just happened to come back today. I was just thinking of asking you—do you still want to buy his house?"

Shen Yu's eyes lit up. "Yes, as long as the price is right, I'll buy it."

Granny Wu asked with a beaming smile, "Then, about that tea money you mentioned before..."

Shen Yu replied immediately, "As long as you help me close the deal, I'll give you this much for tea money."

Seeing Shen Yu hold up two fingers, Granny Wu asked tentatively, "Twenty yuan?"

Shen Yu nodded with a smile.

Granny Wu was instantly delighted. "Let's go, let's go! I'll take you to find him right now."

With the motivation of money, Granny Wu became very proactive.

She immediately ran to the neighboring gate and knocked loudly. "Ah Cai, Ah Cai, are you in? I have something to discuss with you!"

"Coming, coming..."

The door opened, and a middle-aged man appeared before Shen Yu, wearing a white tank top, black beach shorts, and flip-flops.

Shen Yu chuckled inwardly; this uncle was the quintessential image of an eighties landlord.

Zhang Youcai glanced at Granny Wu standing in front, and when he saw Shen Yu, his eyes brightened. "Oh, Granny Wu, who is this beautiful lady? Why have you brought her to see me?"

Granny Wu said to him with a smile, "Ah Cai, this beautiful lady is interested in buying your house. I brought her over to take a look."

Seeing Shen Yu's poised and elegant appearance, Zhang Youcai could tell she was a wealthy person.

He warmly greeted her, "Beautiful lady, come in, come in and take a look."

Zhang Youcai and Granny Wu accompanied Shen Yu as she inspected the house from top to bottom.

Shen Yu began to point out flaws in the property. "Boss, this house is too old, and there's some water seepage upstairs. If I buy it, I'll have to spend a lot of money on renovations. Don't overcharge me; give me a sincere price. If the price is right, I'll buy it."