pertwk Chapter 5: Making a Small Profit
Chapter 5: Making a Small Profit
Xu Chunsheng smiled and obediently lowered his head, letting Xu Yaomei's small hands clumsily wipe his forehead and cheeks. However, his eyes couldn't help but well up with tears, and he thought to himself, "I absolutely cannot let my sister marry far away in this lifetime!"
Mr. Xu, Mrs. Xu, and his sister, who were standing nearby, couldn't help but laugh and chimed in, "You only wipe it for my brother, but not for us?"
……
"Ah~" Xu Chunsheng stretched, estimated the time, and lit the gas lamp in the dark. He wiped his face vigorously, held the lamp and walked out. When he passed the main room, he glanced at the clock in the center of the cabinet—five o'clock.
Seeing the clock, Xu Chunsheng couldn't help but smile, feeling a pang of nostalgia. In his past life, his father often mentioned that this clock was part of the dowry for marrying Tao Hong, and it held great significance. His mother had also cherished it dearly...
In the courtyard, under the dim light, Xu Chunsheng quickly rinsed his mouth, washed his face, and then put the dried Ophiopogon japonicus roots he had left out the night before into a bag and placed it in his "backpack".
The wild lilyturf seedlings from last night are still soaking in the water. These are the seedlings that my family is going to plant today. The earlier they are planted, the easier it is for the lilyturf seedlings to survive. These things cannot be delayed.
After packing everything up, Xu Chunsheng went to the stove, grabbed two corn cakes and a few roasted sweet potatoes, stuffed them into his pocket, locked the door, and headed towards town alone.
These days, every household likes to boil a few sweet potatoes the night before, cut them into chunks, and put them on the stove to bake them with the residual heat. They taste softer and more glutinous than dried sweet potatoes, and are easier to carry than wet sweet potatoes. If you don't have time to eat breakfast in the morning, taking a few chunks with you will keep you full.
Xu Chunsheng carried Ophiopogon japonicus on his back, chewed on a sweet potato, and walked briskly towards the town.
It's about 40 to 50 kilometers from the town to the county seat. You need to get up early to catch the "air-powered bus" around 7 a.m., and by the time you arrive in the county seat, it's almost 9 a.m.
"One of the eighteen oddities on the street: a car with a bag on its back."
This refers to the old-fashioned bus in front of Xu Chunsheng. The square-headed bus has a sturdy look typical of country folk. The military green body is covered with scratches, and there are spots of rust where the paint has chipped off. A bulging black rubber air tank is mounted on the roof, and a rubber hose runs down the side from the windshield to the engine to refuel it.
Because it bounces and sways when you run, the air in the bag will decrease over time, causing it to deflate and stick softly to the roof of the car. That's why people jokingly say: "One of the eighteen oddities on the street: a bag on a car."
It wasn't even six o'clock yet, and several people who were going to the county were already standing by the car. They didn't gather together and each kept their own things safe. Xu Chunsheng was no exception.
"Brother, please make way, please make way."
At this moment, the driver raised his hand to signal the man standing next to the car door to move so that he could open the car door.
A ticket seller carrying an old cloth bag followed closely behind the driver.
"Come on, come on, get on the bus, we'll be leaving in two more minutes," the ticket seller called out from inside the bus.
In those days, buses didn't depart at fixed times or locations; they mostly ran at approximate times, and would leisurely set off once the number of passengers had increased.
It's the busy farming season, so there are fewer people going to the county town. The driver estimated the time and set off, not wanting to wait too long. It's better to leave early and maybe, if we're lucky, pick up a few passengers on the way.
Xu Chunsheng also put on his "backpack" and chose a middle seat by the window. He stuffed his things under the seat and started staring blankly outside.
The train traveled along the route, stopping and starting, with passengers getting on and off. Amidst the calls of the ticket seller, the items at the front of the carriage gradually increased and then decreased...
"Oh my, we're finally here! My bones are aching from all the shaking."
"Where are my vegetables? Which scoundrel stole my vegetables?"
……
Xu Chunsheng snapped out of his daze amidst the commotion, and looking at the bustling crowd in the car, he realized with a start that they had arrived in the county town. He then took out his backpack, lifted it, and started to get off the car.
After getting off the bus, carrying his backpack, Xu Chunsheng felt a little lost. The county town was so different from the one he remembered that he didn't even know how to get around.
I picked up two one-cent fruit candies from a roadside stall and asked the owner for directions to the market and the supply and marketing cooperative.
Xu Chunsheng, carrying a backpack, squeezed through the crowd for a long time before finally finding a fixed stall selling medicinal herbs in a corner of the farmers' market. He found a corner, folded the bag containing Ophiopogon japonicus a few times, and placed it in front of him.
The old man next door, who sells dried dandelions, saw what was in Xu Chunsheng's bag and laughed, "Young man, is this your first time selling Ophiopogon japonicus? It's still very young, you might have to lower the price."
"Is anyone buying them? What's the price?"
"There are people who buy them. There's a boss who comes to buy them every two days. I don't know if he'll come today. Just wait a bit."
Xu Chunsheng chatted casually with the old man, asking him if anyone was buying Ophiopogon japonicus. His eyes darted around, and he had a general idea of the prices of various medicinal herbs.
Just as Xu Chunsheng was getting restless and preparing to pack his things to try his luck at the supply and marketing cooperative, an old man next to him nudged him and pointed to a man in front, saying, "Young man, he's here, that's the guy."
Xu Chunsheng followed the old man's hand and saw a vendor in his early thirties picking at a piece of cinnamon bark, haggling with someone. After that, the bark was weighed, a receipt was given, and someone was asked to deliver it to the market entrance, where someone settled the payment. There was no delay at all.
The man looked to be in his early thirties, with a dark complexion. He was wearing a faded gray long-sleeved shirt with the cuffs half-rolled up, his trousers were dusty, and his canvas shoes were badly worn.
A short while later, the man squatted down in front of Xu Chunsheng and reached out to look through the Ophiopogon japonicus in the bag.
"Small in size, dark in color, wild?" he said, picking up a small piece of broken Ophiopogon japonicus and tasting it.
The vendor smacked his lips and said to Xu Chunsheng, "One yuan eighty cents a pound, I'll buy them all, young man."
Xu Chunsheng shook his head. He didn't know when the price would go up, but he knew that the quantity of wild Ophiopogon japonicus was low and the price was high this month, so he directly quoted a price of "two yuan and fifty cents".
The man then took a closer look at Xu Chunsheng. At sixteen or seventeen years old, his eyes showed a maturity beyond his years. The man had initially thought that Xu Chunsheng was young and wanted to negotiate a lower price, but after looking into his eyes, he realized that he had judged him by his appearance.
"Two dollars and two jiao." The vendor didn't waste any more time and directly quoted his price: "I'll add forty cents. If you still have any, call this number, and I'll still buy it at this price."
After saying that, he wrote a note and handed it to Xu Chunsheng. It was a landline number. "This is our brigade's phone number. When you get through, just say you're looking for Li Da Dongxi. Tell me where to pick it up, and I'll know."
The two weighed the Ophiopogon japonicus, removed the bag, and Li Da gave Xu Chunsheng eighteen yuan and ninety cents directly.
Seeing that it was almost the end of the market, Li Da told Xu Chunsheng to carry his things and follow him, saying he had something to say to him.
The two arrived at the public restroom, and Li Da offered Xu Chunsheng a cigarette.
"Cough cough!" Xu Chunsheng took it and took a puff.
"Haha, never smoked before?" The man didn't care about the dirt on the wall and leaned against it, exhaling smoke.
Xu Chunsheng had smoked in his past life, but he hadn't smoked in this one. He had forgotten that the cigarettes he smoked now were of poor quality and harsh on the throat. He took a big drag and was caught off guard and choked.
Li Da said, "To be honest, I think the price of Ophiopogon japonicus is going to rise."
Xu Chunsheng couldn't help but glance at Li Dagao a few times. He himself had the advantage of being reborn, which was why he knew that the price of Ophiopogon japonicus would rise. This man in front of him had indeed managed to sense the price increase on his own.
"You told me you're not afraid I'll steal your business?" Xu Chunsheng asked.
"Hey, there are so many! How are you going to rob them? Do you dare abandon your family's work to go around collecting them, or do you dare bet that this stuff will definitely go up in price?"
Xu Chunsheng thought to himself that he was really willing to take a gamble, but he didn't want to travel all over the country in his life. He wanted to spend more time with his family, so reselling was not his first choice.
"Okay, then I'll go back and plant them, and wait for you to come and harvest them." Xu Chunsheng answered readily. He had taken a liking to Li Da's business acumen, and befriending him would only bring benefits.
Li Da was starting to doubt his own judgment again. This kid in front of him seemed a bit muddle-headed.
After saying that, the two parted ways.
Xu Chunsheng handed a dime to the old man at the toilet entrance, walked straight in, and found a stall in the corner to stand in.
"Shh~" Xu Chunsheng whistled, looking at the pale yellow water line, then shook it off and slowly settled his little brother in place.
Then he pulled up his waistband, rummaged through his pockets and carefully put the money he had just earned into it, keeping only a few dollars on his person.
At the entrance of the county's No. 1 Middle School, Xu Chunsheng said something to the gatekeeper and went inside.
Looking at the words "Special Recruitment Class" hanging at the classroom door, Xu Chunsheng couldn't help but feel proud.
Xu Chunfeng had always been the top student in his class since elementary school, and he even ranked first in the town in the entrance exam, so he was specially admitted to the county middle school.
In his previous life, due to his own reasons, his third brother dropped out of school before finishing his studies and started working.
Xu Chunsheng looked at the patches on his younger brother's clothes, his hand holding the pen had to shake it after writing a few words before he could continue writing, his eyes were sore, he really had done too many things to let his family down in his past life...
"Ding—ding—ding—"
The clear school bell rang, and the whole school came alive instantly. Children of all ages rushed out of the classrooms, some going home for lunch, and others rushing to the cafeteria to find their lunchboxes.
Only Xu Chunfeng sat motionless in his seat, staring at the pen in his hand.
At that moment, a brand new fountain pen appeared in front of him.
Xu Chunfeng turned around, his eyes lighting up.
"elder brother!"