One Who Moved Out to Get Rich

While still talking with him, I discover that there is a lawyer's office, next to his showroom on the right-hand side.

Hong is not familiar with Thai real estate issues, despite being a lawyer herself. I want to obtain legal advice about my business.

"If you dare go there, I am going to divorce you".

She bursts out furiously; she insists that I am not going to get proper legal advice because, in her judgment, the lawyer and the developer are the same people. I am still thinking about her reaction.

It has started raining. We use the umbrella I carried with me since I had checked the weather of the day. Hong escorts me to the lawyer's office. Good enough, the young British lawyer does not charge any consultation fee, so I have to explain everything without any worries of being charged hourly.

The lawyer establishes that he would first need to examine whether the contract between the developer and I is legally binding and that all legal correspondence will have to go through him.

Before we go out of the office, Hong picks a leaflet off the shelf from which we notice that the lawyer also deals in real estate, selling apartments and condominiums.

After reading the brochures, Hong suggests that we open a youth hostel in Pattaya, so that we can save accommodation fees, whenever we go there. She says that we will also save money charged by middlemen. It means that we will be on-site for some time, to organize and prepare everything ourselves. We are now going to the city centre to buy tickets for the Travesty show at Tiffany's, and to buy cheap shirts and jeans. I think we have taken the right move. Since her cold is under control, it is wise to wear some of the dresses are going to buy. Usually, theatres and cinema halls get cold because of the air-conditioning system.

During the show, Hong becomes curious, because one of the episodes is about measuring men's penises. I wonder why she is so much interested in this. Does she want to know whether it means erected penises? I cannot not understand a thing. By the time we leave the theatre, it is night. We drive around the illuminated city using a baht, an American converted pickup bus, approved to carry passengers. The name Baht-bus dates back to the time when the fares per person were only one baht, the Thai monetary currency.

After arriving back to the hotel, I am surprised why Hong has changed her moods again. She is complaining that I spend too much time dealing with real estate problems, instead of enjoying the holiday. She demands that I pay for the cost of our trip. To save the situation, I suggest that next time, I will pay for everything. She accepts my suggestion; it helps to resolve the dispute. I tell her, however, that the issue of cost-sharing for future joint holiday packages is over. I have realised that my naive belief of her being a modern woman is wrong. When we return to China, she threatens to divorce me, claiming that she is tired of being exploited by people.

She goes to bed, bursting with anger.

I too go to bed confused; I am trying to figure out what has gone wrong during the holiday. The next morning, I realise that it is mainly about being jealousy. Whenever I am away swimming, Hong uses the opportunity to snatches my phone and look for names of all my contacts. I am surprised to find out that she has a record of all my former girlfriends' text messages. Like a wounded lioness, she roars, accusing me of always looking for a back-up solution.

"I have tried all I can to make you happy; I married you to get happiness. Yes, I admit, as a single man, I used to have girlfriends, but I am now with you, I do not want to cheat on you, never in this relationship. I have always seen myself as an investor; I keep on wondering whether it would be worth investing in you If you were a business".

I speak angrily. This is my first time to talk to her like that.

Sometimes I wonder what's going on in her head. After exposing her jealousy behaviours, she changes the topic back to having children in another country other than in China, insisting that she is doing it for health and safety reasons.

Hong complains that she paid for the entire holiday and therefore she is betrayed. I can’t make a point of that. While booking the holiday, we agreed to visit the property, and she knows it. I decide to keep silent about it to save us from further bickering. We are at the lawyer's office; he is not here yet. He will be busy for another hour. We are going to use the waiting time to walk about the surrounding area. We locate a restaurant on the second floor of one of the buildings here. Everyone in the street can hear the loud noise in the nearby street. We plan that after the meeting with the lawyer, we will come back to the restaurant to get something to eat.

The outcome of the meeting is positive. I have managed to sign the contract. At the restaurant, I gulp down glasses of beer at least to celebrate for what has come out of the lawyer's office. Hong treats herself with a glass of juice. What we have archived so far is only to stop further spending. It is not a guarantee for a successful outcome.

Beers are getting a bit warm. I am feeling uncomfortable, so I want to go home. Despite going to bed early, I am feeling weak and sloppy. Could there be anything wrong with the beers? But I didn't take too much of it! We had planned to go to a neighbouring island today, but because I am not feeling well, I decide to go out of the hotel, and instead, relax on the beach.

In the afternoon I go down the hotel reception to ask where I could find a bank nearby. I want to transfer money for the lawyer, with my German credit card, because the interest rate is lower in Thailand, compared to China. Although there are other ways of transferring the money through banks without an account, still that means depositing cash, which would make it much more expensive than using a credit card. The truth is we do not have too much Thai baht on us; otherwise, we would have used cash to pay the lawyer. I

do not believe that withdrawing money using a credit card and then deposit it as cash in the bank is a wise thing to do.

The directions given to us by the receptionist were wrong. After going around in circles, we come across an employee of a foreign exchange bureaux, who tells us that the nearest bank is far from where we were standing right now. After a brief walk through the dirty and busy main road, we decide to take a taxi. We negotiate the fare, and Hong pays, looking at me with critically.

"You are far too soft in negotiating; you will never get rich!" she grumbles.

I ignore her provocations and look at the taxi window. The transfer of money using a credit card is a success. I pay some into Hong's account, at least to stop her from moaning about paying for everything.

We walk around the place and find an ice cream where we could have a brief stop to have some. From there, we go to a busy night market within the vicinity where I see a signpost that catches my eyes. It reads. "Traditional Thai Massage," I tell Hong that I need a massage. She agrees, but on the condition, that she takes photos during the massage, of which I had no problem. We proceed on to the reception to get more information.

A young beautiful Thai woman behind the counter tells us that no cameras are allowed in the massage parlour. Hong frowns in surprise! I go to the massage room. After the session, I am now feeling younger and lighter in weight, but the happiness is, however, short-lived. When I go to the reception to pay, I realise that I had forgotten my wallet in the hotel. Hong always does the spending;

therefore, I did not need my purse. However, this time, she refuses to pay. She claims that it has nothing to do with her.

“…after all, I have been watching a movie upstairs for the entire hour that you spent in the massage parlour”.

I quickly sense that she is jealousy about not knowing what was happening between the masseuse and me in the room. I cannot dismiss her, thinking that I could have had sex with the lady in the room.

"This is ridiculous! Hong, I do not have any money on me here, I did not refuse you from having a massage too," Those are my words.

"Listen, I said I am not going to pay, please find a way of sorting out your bill, if you have no money then go and clean the massage parlour to compensate for the debt.", she says emphatically.

It is going too far; it isn’t funny anymore. I have to compose myself to hold back the embarrassment. When the cashier insists that we are not going anywhere until we sort out the bill, Hong gives in and pays, saving me from further embarrassment. Before taking a baht back to the hotel, we eat a portion of shrimp, tea and fruits. It is a Sunday morning. The skies are bright blue, and the weather is charming. It is a pity that it is the last day of our holiday. Before breakfast, I rush to the pool for a quick swim before other hotel guests could take advantage.

They greeted me with "Dobroe Utro" in Thai, and I answered back cheerfully as if I am one of those many Russians we met in the hotel. Hong and I go to sit down on the table on the hotel terrace overlooking the sea. While enjoying the gentle movements of sea waves, she starts telling me about her conversations with Russian

hotel guests. She realises that I am not paying too much attention to the subject, and abruptly changes the topic.

"We must leave this place early because I want to get VAT refunded for our souvenirs at the airport. We need to allow plenty of time to do this because there are long queues to join".

We take a taxi ride to the bus station. While inside the taxi, I pull out of the bag some of the fruits I bought to have a bite. I am horrified to find them littered with ants, which are also crawling over my laptop. It is disgusting.

When we are on holiday, I ask Hong questions about China, and the Chinese culture, to make her proud of how knowledgeable she is. Most of the time, she is dodgy, she tries to play "hide and seek".

She tells me not to disturb her with any questions, until we go back to China, because she is here for a holiday and she wants to enjoy it.

"If you want to know more about China, I will answer only one question a day, until we go back," she says.

"A German husband is then good business for a Chinese woman," I reply ironically. She smiles with a nod, but I am not sure whether the smile is real or not.

"To get rich, we have to do something extraordinary," she suggests that we could design a software application and sell it expensively.

She knows this is only a simple joke because none of us an expert in software engineering. She again comes up with another idea, that we could may be design artificial organs since many Chinese are eating an unhealthy diet. She thinks at least some Chinese somewhere, will need an organ at some point. In China, it is already possible to produce a functional living kidney they are using organic ink and 3D printing. She explains further.

"The Chinese artificial kidney does not contain veins or blood channels, and its life span so far is only four months. There is still a lot to be done. Whether these kidneys will ever function properly, is what is under serious scrutiny. For example, if you need an artificial prototype organ, you must pay money to university professors to make it for you. Other than taking your money, the professors will do nothing much, because most of their publications anyway are just mere translations from the West. Maybe I will have to buy a 3D printer and build a prototype myself." She says jokingly.

I shake my head because I have no idea about this whatsoever. I tell her that I want to live a simple life and prevent diseases from attacking me. "Organs of people executed in China, are removed without anyone's consent. We also know that even Germans who cannot afford high costs, run to China for their organs to be transplanted". She reveals. I am shocked at hearing this.

At the airport back to China, we get our VAT refund. We manage to get away with extra weight on our baggage at the check-in counter. I manage to hide the excess weight in my rack-sack. I, however, crack a joke with the lady at the check-in that slim people like me should be allowed some extra baggage because I do not add much weight on the plane. It is merely a joke; the lady seems not to be bothered either. She looks confused. It is a busy since she is working alone. It is now my turn. She puts, the baggage on the scale, the sticker prints out of the machine, and I give way for the next passenger. I am lucky to get away with some extra weight.

In the waiting lounge, I use the opportunity of free internet to check on emails, but the speed is unbelievably slow. It is now time for boarding. I am getting a bit nervous because Hong is shouting at me to hurry up to join the queue. The passenger's compartment in the plane is small. I am struggling to stretch my legs. I feel uncomfortable. To make it worse, I am sitting near the corridor.

Every time stewards pass by with drinks and food trolleys; I feel nervous.

I try to get a quick nap, but it is not possible. People are talking on top of their voices. Children are screaming running all over the isles. The woman next to me tries to wrap a cloth around her head to have some sleep. I turn on the in-flight entertainment. I can hardly sleep. I am lamenting because cheap things can sometimes turn out to be expensive.

Hong gives me a magazine to read, to make me forget my dissatisfaction. She starts explaining to me about the new French private jet Falcon 5x from the French company Dassault, which has plenty of space for passengers in the business class compartment, and much more, but I am not paying attention to her.

I vowed not to buy low-cost tickets again. I want to reach home and rest. Later, Hong tells me that the Thai Royal family is away on vacation at their summer residence in Hua Hin.

"They are away from the hustle and bustle of city life. The Royal family's home is in the wealthy suburbs of Pattaya, on the other side of the Gulf of Thailand, at the oldest seaside resort in the country.

Chinese want to do business and live a good life, which is why there is a booming market in the real estate business in China and other countries. There are already eleven golf-course resorts in the area near the Thai Royal family's retreat resort, and Shanghai is only a day's drive from day Hua Hin".

"May be we should learn golf and soon jet to Hua Hin with our brand-new Falcon 5x," I say joking with a smile..

We arrive safely. As expected, Shanghai is still very cold. We call a taxi to drop us at our home in Taicang. When I enter the house, it is a significant relief. I feel as if some weight is loaded off my head. I get a glass of water; it was given to me by my father-in-law.

Both in-laws remained home when we were away on holiday. While gulping down the warm water, I browse through my emails. I remember that I had to change my password.

ALL IS UNDER CONTROL ON THE SINKING SHIP

Today it is raining heavily. We get up to start unpacking our luggage.

I use the opportunity of the lousy weather to prepare presentations for the coming week and to read and reply to my emails. Since HSBC bank in Shanghai blocked my account, I send an email to them to rectify the problem. Hong is meanwhile busy translating our marriage contract from Chinese to the German language to make it easier for me to understand it thoroughly. In the agreement, Hong states that she wants to live independently out of my life. She aims to avoid sharing with me the inheritance of her parent's wealth. I cannot agree with it since we're already married, and above all, she is more conversant with the Chinese law than myself. So, it could end up not working for me.

Interest rates in the bank have gone up. I am going to the bank of Suzhou local branch in Taicang, to finally open a fixed deposit account and get my money transferred from the local ICBC Bank. I am told that it is not possible because of my financial status. I drive to the company headquarters in Shanghai, to fix an appointment with my boss. We discuss the expiry of my probationary period and the evaluation report too. I don't expect too much praising. I know I am good books.

Hong and I go to attend the German Chamber of Commerce GCC meeting in the German Centre. Many things have changed at the office since we were on holiday. My department, for example, was relocated to a floor above. I am upset that despite moving my office much of my furniture was left behind. The meeting is about to begin.

The head of the Human Resource Department, and my boss have already arrived. I observe a strange look from him and the human resource manager. They start by reading the assessment report about me. They interview both my German and Chinese bosses. They say that they are not satisfied with my performance. What follows is not good news at all to me. The evaluation report recommends terminating my contract. I receive a copy. I have to get time to settle down. Without showing any remorse, the human resource manager calculates all my remaining vacation days and deducts them from the current month. I am horrified that it is my last working day today.

I leave the meeting with a threatening remark.

"See you in court!" I say to them.

It is like being in a trance. I don't know what is going on. A security officer asks me to hand over the laptop, my identity card, and a company mobile phone. I am not thinking about what to do next. Everything is unfolding so damn fast. At home, Hong is working on her laptop. I am in another world. I sit next to her and explain what has happened. I am surprised at her reaction. She shows no pity or any concern at all.

"Did you hear what I said to you?" I ask her.

"Yes, I heard you quite alright, but it does not surprise me at all, because after all, you are too expensive for the company. There are many Chinese here who the same job can do you are doing, for lower salaries".

"But Hong wait a minute what happens to the experience I have given to the company? I want to file a case in court about this…".

Before even finishing the sentence, Hong interrupts mercilessly.

"Oh! You are talking about the experience not so? She beckons.

"From today, I want you to understand that cost-cutting is more important to businesses here than what you call your experience. I already knew this would happen to you".

She reveals. I am shocked at hearing this.

"What? You knew I was going to be laid off, and you did not have the guts to tell me about it?" I asked her boiling with anger.

"No, don't' get me wrong, Franz". She answers. "I first guessed it after realising that the company removed the car from the driver after we had that minor accident with a dog. The company promised to take care of the repairs at the end of the month. But the fact is that they wanted to rent it out. The police and insurance were informed, so there was no cause to worry for the company to lease the car".

This time Hong shows pity and sympathy towards me.

After going through all this, I am still wondering why she never told me anything about it, yet she had the information. I am not surprised because chauffeurs get to know much more about such issues. I am disappointed to learn that I am the last person to know about it; I wish I did; I would have prepared myself enough. Women are always more intuitive than men. But on the other hand, I don't have to be upset with Hong. I didn't pay much attention to the car, and therefore I did not talk to the driver about repairs. Maybe if I had, I would have known about it.

The Chinese, who had been transferred to Germany as a General Manager just before Christmas, will be replacing me. Hong tells me that she had heard from a colleague that they were going to dissolve the whole company.

"Usually, the boss lays off his employees first to leave himself until the end. You don't have to worry much about it; I will support you since I am a lawyer. You will get free legal assistance from me."

She promises. I did not believe it, though, because it is typical of her to change what she promises.

I remember how she reacted on holiday, complaining about taking care of me by financing everything. But I will give her the benefit of the doubt. Anyway, the company still owes me money for the many expenses I incurred on their behalf. On our way to the GCC meeting, we get caught up in a traffic jam, and as a result, we arrive late. I will not bother to distribute my business cards since it is my last day in the company. I instead other business cards from my previous company in Germany.

My company offers training and consultancy services. Hong is ready with her business cards too. In China, it is always essential to have a business card on you. If you do not have any, you are a nobody. We registered our company in China, with a logo and a trademark. By the time of the meeting, we were still working on building a website for it. It is a company in which Hong, and I will put all our efforts into developing. However, we will need revenue to do that. On our way home after the meeting, I receive a phone call from my British HSBC bank in Shanghai. They acknowledge receipt of my details but are requesting me to include my new address before they proceed further because it is missing.

The money transfer request was not carried out. Since I moved to Taicang, all along communication with my bank has been mainly through emails. In Germany, all personal details, including your address, are required during the registration process. I wonder how I have been making all the transactions without blocking my account.

I feel that British banks here are probably not much customer-driven, but more of security-oriented. I thank the bank for providing the information. I ask them whether I can give them my details on the phone, they tell me that it is not possible. I am instead referred to a hotline number to call, but it is not going through. I have tried many times; it is almost a non-existent one. I consider terminating the service, as soon as I gain a foothold in the Chinese banking system.

At the dinner table this evening, we discuss what will happen.

Next, it is then that Hong changes the topic and starts talking about children.

"I prefer our children to grow up in the USA, Germany, or any other country, other than here in China, and also pursuing a doctorate in law is still included in my future". She says.

I tell her that it would make sense to build up a secure source of income. Otherwise, our children would grow up in poverty which would certainly not be in their interest.

"Therefore, I propose to register my Germany company in China to make it public. After we have done that, I could lie on the beach, eat crabs and write books".

"And hunt for women too, don't forget that". She adds. Whether she is sarcastic or jealousy, I remind her of the story of a man who was looking for jobs, but always being turned down, until he one day discovered his talent. He used his ability to become successful.

Hong turns the story the other way around. She compares it to a field where only specific plants grow for others to enter. She claims to mean that I should try all jobs until I become successful, but honestly, I cannot make sense of what she is saying. I know she is sarcastically referring me to dating other women.

Having a simple breakfast of oatmeal and water has left our fridge empty, we have to stock it up again. I open my laptop and browse through the British bank account. I am trying to access my new address and my mobile number, unfortunately, it will not be active, until the following week. It is trouble again; I don't know what to do. Hong sets out to go and buy vegetables. I start cleaning my home office to sort out a backlog of documents that had accumulated during the period when we were away on holiday. The decision made by my employers to terminate the contract, is still fresh in my mind, still ringing in the back of my ears. We all need to learn to tighten our little belts when wen we are at work.

After the anger subsides, I decide to send my ex-boss an email, which I think is legitimate. The mail includes among others the reimbursement of my unpaid travel expenses, my books which were still in Taicang office, and variable salary shares. In my opinion, I have done an excellent job, and therefore I am entitled to such remunerations. I can still not come to terms with the termination of my contract and what they meant by "bad reviews". I had never had any single complaint against me or criticism from any of my bosses.

Maybe if there were any, I would have had a fair chance to make corrections. I am not sure about legal implications on this, but I am trying to demand what I think is due to me.

Despite Hong's warnings about high levels of smog reported for today, I will go jogging along the river. Afterwards, I will prepare a notice for the afternoon speech at the GCC meeting. Where I will be introducing our new company as follows.

"Many of you present in GCC meeting know that I am Franz Übermut and that I have been working in the Chinese business for over twenty years. I have forty years, worth of experience in many well-known international companies. I have been working in the Asia-Pacific region over the years. It is now time for me to take another path. My wife and I will open up a consulting and training company, in the names of ECOCUT in Suzhou. ECOCUT stands for "Efficient Cost-Cutting". We shall specialise in supporting companies on how to deal with cost-reduction, for example, in price negotiations with suppliers, or sales discussions with customers.

That is the way to do it because I believe that success will only come through determination, courage and self-confidence. We shall be guiding customers into self-employment, and how to make right contacts, that is why I am exchanging my business cards with you today. You will be surprised about the potential you have, and how much you can increase your profit. I thank you very much".

That is my speech due for presentation at the GCC meeting. I am aware of the irony of having once been a "victim" of Cost-Cutting myself, and of promoting it even further in China, but this is about business, not a consideration.

Around two o'clock in the afternoon, we drive to Shanghai to meet with my friend Liu Meng, in Pudong district, as we had agreed.

We will be with him to the Hotel Shangri-La, where the GCC

meeting will take place. Liu Meng is my age mate. He studied in China, and worked at Daimler in Germany, before going back to China to be self-employed, with an import and export-licensed trading company. While we are in the hotel café, Liu says that he has in recent years been carrying out his business exclusively through circles of friends, without contracts. To me, this suggests getting low earnings, so I decided that I will instead stick to Germany treaties drawn up in details, as it is the case now.

While in a meeting with Liu, a Germany businessman that we had met with Hong sometime back, walks towards us. I present him to Liu Meng and explain to him the similarities between their companies. They both deal in "fasteners", which is how screws and other small parts are used to connect objects, but with high-quality standards for the industry. In 2009, Sarkozy introduced an anti-dumping law, to sell fasteners from China, with 80% tariffs in Europe. The Chinese government was very upset about this. As a result, it retaliated by imposing a fine of almost 30% on European fasteners, with a diameter of more than six millimetres. It is not good news to Liu Meng. His business and that of my German friend are both going to be severely affected.

After paying the bill for the drinks, we say goodbye to each other and proceed on to the GCC meeting. Guests have already arrived; they are waiting at the entrance. The keynote speaker today is Luxembourg's Ruppert Hoogewerf, the author of the so-called "Hurun Report", on all wealthy Chinese. Hong got a book signed by Ruppert. I managed to snap a picture of the two together. After paying the entrance fee for both of us, we got to the buffet. I start with a dessert because there is no queue yet. The main course follows at the end. I treat myself to the appetizer. After eating, I start reciting my speech.

After the keynote speaker goes off the stage, Hong follows to present her speech of which she gets loud applause. The level of awareness in the German business community in Shanghai, simplifies the work to distribute our new business cards. We only have to explain what we do and how we do it. For this, people have praised the success of our business. A professor of a famous European Chinese EMBA school thinks that without EMBA knowledge, no one will far with a company such as ours. Hong notes that it is only intended to advertise the professor's high school.

"We have been observing that most of the wealthy Chinese are participating in EMBA courses. They have been supporting each other in business for years. You can also become rich when you have crazy ideas and the courage to implement them." She adds.

Hong believes the professor only want to advertise his school.

Outside, it is raining cats and dogs. I read on the internet that the Chinese Chamber of Commerce and industry opened a branch in Europe, specifically in Berlin. The chapter will represent all Chinese companies in Germany. The president of this new Chamber of Commerce is none other than the general manager of the Chinese ICBC, the world largest bank. As I am still scribbling through an article about the Ukraine conflict on the Crimea peninsular, Hong suddenly stumbles into the room with an angry expression on her face.