Chapter 8: Scouting the Provincial Capital

Pingchuan, the capital of Jiangbei Province.

In his previous life, Li Dong had lived in this city for twelve years—four years during university and eight years working.

Nearly half of his thirty-year life was spent in this city; Pingchuan was his second hometown.

DP County was about two hundred kilometers away from Pingchuan, roughly a three-hour drive.

Li Dong caught the early bus and set foot on this familiar land again around nine in the morning.

Feeling the change in his pocket, Li Dong quietly rejoiced that the fare hadn't increased yet, just enough for a round trip. Otherwise, he might not even have money for the ride.

He dropped a coin into the fare box and boarded a bus to the nearest vegetable market, gazing out the window at the familiar yet strange scenery in a daze.

...

Vegetable markets, no matter where they are, are always bustling with noise, and the mix of various odors can make one frown.

Li Dong had long gotten used to this scene. As a child, with his parents busy, he often spent entire days at the market, playing by himself.

Following the crowd, Li Dong quickly found the seafood section. The South Gate Market was much larger than the Dongping market, with many more vendors.

Unlike Dongping's small stalls, here the seafood area had storefronts for each vendor. It was much cleaner compared to the chaotic and dirty small markets.

Li Dong immediately noticed the red crayfish, with plenty of vendors selling them.

Although it wasn't the peak season for crayfish yet, Pingchuan's demand for them was rising.

Feeling a bit relieved, Li Dong wandered around and chose a slightly larger store to stop at.

"Boss, how much are the crayfish?"

The busy shop owner, without looking up, shouted, "Small ones are 8 yuan, big ones are 10 yuan."

Li Dong squatted down to take a look. They were all red-shelled crayfish. The small ones were fine, and the big ones weighed about two liang each.

After a moment of estimation, Li Dong felt reassured. The retail price in the market was not low. Comparing it with his profit margin, the purchase price was around five to six yuan per jin.

He didn't speak further and waited until the big-bearded owner finished his work before talking to him.

"Boss, it's only April, how are the crayfish selling?"

"It's alright. The weather's been hot this year, so many people are eating them. Mainly, the big barbecue stalls and restaurants are buying. You should buy some to try; the taste is quite good."

Li Dong took out a pack of Yuxi cigarettes, which his father had bought for decoration during the New Year and he hadn't smoked yet. He had taken it with him this morning.

He handed one to the owner, who took it, lit it, and smiled, "You look unfamiliar, are you running your own shop?"

Li Dong took a puff and shook his head, "My family has contracted a few hundred mu of lakes in the southern suburbs. There's a lot of crayfish this year, so I'm thinking of finding a way to sell them. The price offered by the collectors was a bit low, so I came to see for myself."

"Oh!"

The owner nodded in understanding. It was common for collectors to pressure prices, and some fish farmers went out themselves to find better deals.

The southern suburbs of Pingchuan had many lakes, and a lot of the local seafood came from there.

"Are you interested in my store?"

The big-bearded owner, grinning menacingly, said, "Don't be fooled by my prices. I don't sell that much daily. Besides, I have to offer lower prices to restaurants. If you have goods, I can buy some, but don't expect too much…"

Successful business people were often shrewd. Before Li Dong even spoke, the owner knew what he was hinting at and started bargaining.

"No, Boss Chen, you're too modest. I just saw that you've probably sold over a hundred jin in a short time."

"You know me?" The owner was surprised that Li Dong knew his name. As for how much he sold, Li Dong had observed it and had no need to deny.

Li Dong smiled and pointed to the shop's sign, which displayed the owner's name and phone number.

The owner chuckled, turned to his wife to handle the customers, and pulled Li Dong aside, saying, "To be honest, I haven't seen the goods yet and don't know their quality. Besides, I usually buy from familiar sources; it's convenient and cheap. If the supply is short, talking about these things is meaningless. We do business for the long run."

Li Dong nodded. No matter what business one was in, longevity and convenience were key. As someone in the business himself, he understood this well.

But making money was the fundamental truth. As long as he was slightly cheaper than wholesalers, these people would be eager to buy from him.

"Boss Chen, let's skip the pleasantries. I'm here to inquire. If you can give me a good price, I can supply you with ten thousand jin a day."

"Haha, you're joking. I can't handle that much. Two thousand jin a day: three yuan for the small ones, five for the large ones."

Li Dong turned to leave. If the price for two thousand jin of crayfish was that low, he might as well find a barbecue stall to sell them.

"Don't be hasty, little brother. What price are you offering?"

The owner quickly stopped Li Dong. Negotiating a small deal wasn't like a big company negotiation; face and rules were secondary to making money.

"Mixed sizes, six yuan per jin, with more large ones." Li Dong had seen the crayfish market in Dongping earlier; they were divided into red and blue shells but not by size.

"Six yuan! That's too expensive. I can get it cheaper from others!" The owner exclaimed, indicating he couldn't accept that price.

As for mixing sizes, he had no problem with that; he mixed sizes himself when buying. However, the market had its own divisions.

"You're asking too little. It's not cost-effective for me to deliver at this price. It's better to sell directly to fish vendors."

Li Dong shrugged, showing his helplessness. After all, he wasn't the only one in the market. If this deal didn't work out, Pingchuan had plenty of other markets, so he wasn't worried about a failed negotiation.

The owner hesitated for a moment and then said, "If I can buy more, how much cheaper can you offer?"

"How much do you need?"

"Ten thousand jin a day!"

Li Dong frowned. That was a huge amount, and the owner's shop couldn't handle it. He didn't want to deal with a broken deal in a few days and waste his time.

Seeing Li Dong's hesitation, the owner smiled and said quietly, "Not to hide it from you, other crayfish sellers in the Pingchuan market are all from my family. If one store can't handle it, five or six can."

Li Dong rolled his eyes, another family monopoly.

This was common. His own father's business was similar, with other seafood sellers in the market being close relatives.

These guys would join forces to squeeze out others, often preferring not to make money together rather than letting outsiders in.

Only after driving others out would they raise prices, and by then, with no competitors, they'd set the prices as they pleased.

When his family's stall started, it almost went out of business due to being squeezed out, but his parents' persistence eventually led to establishing their place.

Li Dong had no mood to sympathize with others. That's how society was. If one lacked skills, one could only work honestly. If one wanted to do business, they had to be prepared for losses.

"Alright, if it's ten thousand jin a day, I'll give you a discount of fifty cents per jin…"

"Don't. I don't want you to lose out. Five yuan per jin, cash on delivery. I won't be picky as long as they're not dead!"

Glancing at the owner, Li Dong judged that this was probably his bottom line.

Comparing it in his mind, the owner likely got crayfish from wholesalers at around six to seven yuan per jin. With less risk due to small quantities.

Now, with ten thousand jin daily, the risk was high, and he wasn't willing to pay too much.

After a moment of thought, Li Dong nodded, "Alright, I'll deliver the first batch of goods the day after tomorrow. You can check the quality. If it's acceptable, we can continue. If not, at least we'll have this first deal. How does that sound?"

The owner hesitated. Ten thousand jin was a significant amount, worth fifty thousand yuan—enough to buy a small house in Pingchuan's suburbs in 2004.

After a moment's thought, he said, "Let's write a note. Dead ones can't exceed five hundred jin, and those less than one liang five cannot exceed half!"

Li Dong breathed a sigh of relief. Although he knew this note had no legal effect, it was important in small trades.

He agreed, "Alright, but Boss Chen, just writing a note isn't enough. If I deliver the goods and you refuse them, I won't know where to go for redress. I'm unfamiliar with the place, and if I can't sell the crayfish, I won't have anyone to argue with. Maybe you should pay a deposit first…"

Seeing the owner's hesitation, Li Dong quickly added, "I

'll leave my ID with you. This way, we'll both be at ease."

"Alright, how about five hundred?"

Li Dong rolled his eyes, "This is fifty thousand yuan worth of goods, Boss Chen. Five hundred won't even cover my transport and labor costs."

"Ha, I was too stingy. Let's start with three thousand. I'll deduct it from the payment for the goods later." The owner laughed, clearly in a good mood.

He hadn't considered that Li Dong might run off with the three thousand yuan. Business people had some level of judgment.

Besides, in the provincial capital's market, with family monopolies, the conditions weren't too bad. Even if the three thousand yuan was lost, it wouldn't be a huge blow.

With Li Dong's ID, he didn't believe he couldn't find him. He'd make sure this young man faced consequences.

The two quickly wrote up the note, and Li Dong received the three thousand yuan advance, feeling even happier.

The ID was left with the owner, with the agreement to return it when Li Dong delivered the goods the day after tomorrow. As for the address on the ID, neither of them cared. After all, weren't all those struggling in the provincial capital from Pingchuan?

...

Leaving the market, Li Dong was hungry and sweating profusely.

He grabbed a bite from a nearby stall and felt better. He realized that he needed to find people to source the crayfish before he could deliver them, so he had more work ahead.

Wanting to contact Old Wang, he found it inconvenient without a phone. Nowadays, mobile phones were still a luxury for ordinary people, and not having one was quite troublesome.

Thinking it over, Li Dong decided to head to a place he remembered selling second-hand goods. Phones updated quickly, so buying a new one wasn't cost-effective.

Moreover, the three thousand yuan in hand was urgently needed, so he couldn't waste it.

As long as the second-hand phone could make calls, it was good enough. He could consider a better one when he earned more money.