Chapter 12 – The Big Order Arrives
"Just opening an account? A regular savings account?" Even the bank clerk seemed confused.
These days, the people opening accounts at Liu Chong Hing Bank were mainly there for one reason: to earn interest—specifically, 6% monthly interest on fixed deposits. If you weren't doing that, what was the point?
"That's right. Just a regular savings account," Yang Wendong confirmed calmly.
Sure, 6% monthly interest sounded fantastic—but what did it matter to him? Even if the bank doubled his money in a year, starting from just 100 dollars wouldn't take him far.
"Alright, please wait a moment." The clerk didn't ask more questions and began processing the request. Soon, he handed Yang Wendong a passbook with official bank stamps and printed balance figures.
"Thank you," Yang Wendong said, taking the booklet with both hands.
As someone who came from the 21st-century digital age, holding this little book with ink stamps and hand-written ledgers felt almost surreal—like touching a relic from the past.
Now that he had an official bank account and 120 dollars deposited, and with a fledgling business starting to grow, Yang Wendong felt the crushing anxiety that had weighed on him since his arrival begin to lift slightly.
At least for now, he had bought himself some breathing room.
It was time to take a serious look at 1950s Hong Kong and re-evaluate his goals.
In the past, the original owner of this body had occasionally wandered around Hong Kong, but as one of the poorest laborers, walking past fancy shopping streets meant nothing to him. It was like construction workers in modern cities—they might help build skyscrapers but could never afford to live in one.
After they finished at the bank, Su Yiyi and Yang Wendong strolled through the city streets. They had never really explored together.
"Brother Dong, is that Victoria Harbour over there?" Su Yiyi asked, pointing into the distance.
Yang Wendong followed her gaze and nodded. "That's right. And just beyond that is Central, on Hong Kong Island."
"I've never been to the island before," Su Yiyi said. "But I've heard about it so many times."
"Wanna go check it out today?" he offered.
"Better not… I heard you need to take a ferry—and the ticket is expensive," she replied, hesitating.
"It's fine. We may be poor, but we're not so broke that we can't spare a few coins," Yang Wendong said with a laugh.
"But you just said we were poor," Su Yiyi said, giggling.
Yang Wendong shook his head. "That's only true for people who depend on fixed wages. If we want to grow our business, we have to see more of the world. Maybe if we go, we'll discover a new place to sell rat traps."
"…Let's at least check the price first," Su Yiyi said after thinking it over.
"Fair enough," Yang Wendong smiled.
They soon arrived at the ferry terminal and asked around. The price of a one-way trip to the island was just 5 cents.
That was much cheaper than they had expected, so they waited for the next ferry. Half an hour later, they set foot on Hong Kong Island for the very first time.
"The buildings are so tall here," Su Yiyi gasped, looking around like a curious villager entering the big city.
Yang Wendong nodded. "Some of the office buildings here are over twenty stories high."
In the future, even by the 1990s, twenty floors wouldn't seem like much. But in 1958 Hong Kong, these were considered towering giants.
"I wonder when we'll get to go inside one of those," Su Yiyi murmured, still staring upward.
Yang Wendong smiled as he looked at the same buildings. "Maybe sooner than you think."
Even though 1958 felt like an awkward starting point, he knew the massive boom in Hong Kong real estate was coming in just a couple decades. If he could position himself right, maybe he could be part of it—maybe even become one of the city's great tycoons.
After all, at this time, Li Ka-shing was still just a plastic flower manufacturer. If Yang Wendong played his cards right, perhaps he could catch up—or even surpass him.
The hard part would be getting his first pot of gold.
Hong Kong's tycoons often had different starting points, but only a tiny number truly started with nothing. And even those took years, sometimes decades, to get off the ground.
"Let's walk around a bit more," Yang Wendong said. "But don't buy anything. Food here is crazy expensive—five bucks for a rice box with barely any meat."
"Got it," Su Yiyi said, still curious but cautious.
To them, those prices were indeed outrageous. Even after earning a little from traps, they weren't in a position to throw money around.
After wandering for most of the afternoon, they boarded the ferry and returned to Kowloon. The trip was worth it. They now had a better sense of what the city's economic heart looked like.
As they approached the edge of the shantytown, Zhao Liming ran up to greet them.
"Brother Dong! Guess who's back!" he called out with a big grin.
"Haoyu!" Yang Wendong said, spotting their other friend—Lin Haoyu.
"Brother Dong, Sister Yiyi!" Lin Haoyu greeted them warmly. He was a skinny, tanned teenager.
"You're back from the warehouse job already?" Yang Wendong asked.
"Yeah. We worked for about twenty days but didn't make much. One day I dropped a crate and they docked half our pay. Then they said not to come back," Lin Haoyu said, looking frustrated.
"Well, now that you're back, come work with me," Yang Wendong said immediately.
"Sure thing," Lin Haoyu replied. "When I left, you were still sick. I can't believe you've already started a business!"
"Hey, I had to figure out something fast," Yang Wendong said with a laugh.
That night, the group of friends gathered for dinner—now including some precious meat dishes.
They weren't wealthy yet, but thanks to the recent profits, eating meat once in a while wasn't impossible anymore.
In the following days, the group split up into roles: two people to sell traps at the market, and two to stay behind and build new ones.
Sales started picking up steadily.
Then, on February 1st, Yang Wendong saw the person he'd been waiting for—Elena.
"Mr. Yang, I'd like to place an order for 1,000 rat traps," she said directly.
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