At noon, Feng Yu had lunch with his sister, but in the afternoon, he went to the bank to find out the price of treasury bonds in Bingcheng, which was still at par valueβ100 yuan for 100 yuan!
After dinner, Feng Yu and Li Shiqiang got on the train. Both of them had backpacks full of treasury bonds.
Feng Yu kept watch during the first half of the night, letting Li Shiqiang sleep first. When he couldn't stay awake any longer, he woke Li Shiqiang up and went to sleep on the bunk bed.
As a result, he slept until morning, while Li Shiqiang managed to stay awake for over seven hours by smoking, without drinking a drop of water or even going to the toilet.
"Brother Li, why didn't you wake me up?"
"It's fine, you needed the rest. I couldn't sleep anyway," Li Shiqiang said, his eyes bloodshot. With nearly 200,000 yuan worth of treasury bonds in the bag, how could he sleep?
At 8 a.m., the two arrived at the entrance of the Industrial and Commercial Bank. The security guard gave them a second glance when he saw them both carrying backpacks.
"Comrade, does your bank accept treasury bonds?"
The bank staff looked at Feng Yu in surprise. As the first city to open up for the pilot program, the banks had already received notice and were prepared for the trading of treasury bonds. However, they didn't expect the first customer to be a young boy.
"Of course, we have received notice to allow the normal buying and selling of treasury bonds."
"How much is a 100-yuan treasury bond?" Feng Yu asked urgently.
The staff member looked puzzled: "A 100-yuan treasury bond is 100 yuan, of course."
Feng Yu felt as if his heart had shattered.
How could this be? The price of treasury bonds hasn't risen? Could it be because this is the first pilot city, so the price hasn't gone up yet?
"What about 500-yuan, 1,000-yuan, and 5,000-yuan bonds?" Feng Yu asked, unwilling to give up.
"A 500-yuan bond is 500 yuan, a 1,000-yuan bond is 1,000 yuan, and we don't have any 5,000-yuan bonds at the moment."
Feng Yu felt the bank staff looking at him as if he were an idiot. He sat down in a chair, feeling disheartened. Could his memory be wrong? Or did his appearance alter history?
"Xiao Yu, it's fine. If we can't make a profit, we can just hold them for the interest. I've seen that many will be redeemable in a couple of years," Li Shiqiang patted Feng Yu's back, trying to comfort him.
"Brother Li, write down this bank's phone number. Let's go to the Construction Bank!"
Feng Yu refused to believe it. There must be a price difference between banks. He couldn't believe that other banks would have such low prices.
However, when they went to the Construction Bank, the answer was the same.
They wrote down the phone number and moved on to the next bank.
In this era, the state had already begun to focus on the development of commercial banks. Besides the traditional China Bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank, Construction Bank, and Agricultural Bank, other banks like the Bank of Communications, China Merchants Bank, and China Everbright Bank had also opened branches in provincial capitals.
Feng Yu and Li Shiqiang visited each bank, inquiring about the price of treasury bonds.
But without exception, all banks gave the same answer: par value!
After leaving the last bank, Feng Yu and Li Shiqiang sat on the steps, feeling utterly drained.
"Brother Li, give me a cigarette."
"Forget it, Xiao Yu. Let's go back. We've already spent a lot on taxi fares today. Maybe the price will rise in the future?" Li Shiqiang consoled him.
But Feng Yu seemed to be in a daze, constantly pondering whether his memory was wrong or if history had been altered. He couldn't remember when the expert from his previous life started making money, only that it was after all seven pilot cities were open.
Could it be that he acted too early, and the treasury bonds weren't in short supply yet, so the price hadn't risen?
Just then, a few people drove up to the bank.
"I'm telling you, it's better to buy treasury bonds than to deposit money in the bank. The interest is much higher, and it also supports national construction. It's honorable!"
"But didn't they say the treasury bonds were sold out a few days ago? Are they issuing more?"
"That's not the case. But didn't you forget where my son works? The newspaper said that treasury bonds can now be traded normally. If you need money urgently, you can exchange the treasury bonds at the bank. Think about it, many people who need money will come to sell. If there are sellers, there will be buyers! And you don't have to wait long, just one or two years to get five years' worth of interest!"
Feng Yu's eyes followed these people, who were clearly there to buy treasury bonds.
Since buyers and sellers have appeared, wouldn't the price of treasury bonds change? If supply exceeds demand, the price won't change, but if demand exceeds supply?
"Brother Li, let's go eat first, and then come back!"
Li Shiqiang sighed, opening his mouth but saying nothing. Why is he so stubborn? It's normal for teachers to make mistakes. He could hire a few young men to collect treasury bonds and make a decent profit each month.
Li Shiqiang had no appetite, but Feng Yu devoured three large bowls of rice.
Li Shiqiang thought Feng Yu was just talking, but after eating, Feng Yu really went back to the bank to inquire again. The answer was still par value.
However, this time, there was no disappointment in Feng Yu's eyes; his confidence seemed to have returned.
Finding a small store, Feng Yu held the phone and called several banks, still inquiring about the price of treasury bonds.
"Xiao Yu, forget it, let's go back."
"Just a bit longer, I'm almost done."
Feng Yu didn't give up until the last call.
"Xiao Yu, we've been to the China Bank twice today. It's definitely still at par value."
Feng Yu shook his head and resolutely dialed the last number on the paper. In an hour, the bank would close. Please, let the price rise, let it rise!
"Has the price of treasury bonds risen? How much is a 100-yuan bond worth now?"
Li Shiqiang sighed, walked to the side, and lit a cigarette. After he hung up, they would buy tickets and return to Bingcheng, so as not to delay the boy's schooling.
After hanging up, Feng Yu clenched his fist and waved it.
It turned out he hadn't remembered wrong. Treasury bonds did rise by several percentage points later. It must be that it just started, so the price hadn't risen yet. In time, the price would definitely be much higher.
"Brother Li, let's go back to the China Bank!"
The China Bank was the first to adjust the price of treasury bonds. Because there were many buyers and few sellers, the bank leadership sought approval from higher-ups, who said to follow market rules and allowed the price to rise.
When Feng Yu took out nearly 200,000 yuan worth of treasury bonds from his bag, the bank staff were stunned. This young boy actually had so many treasury bonds!