Unexpectedly.
Xiao Zhihai's situation was roughly the same as Li Shuixian's; he had just finalized the purchase agreement with the villagers.
Xiao Cheng turned the tide with just one sentence.
After hearing this, everyone offered Xiao Cheng a toast, ignoring him completely, let alone discussing business with him.
He even gave away the good cigarettes he had previously shared to Xiao Cheng, but Xiao Cheng didn't even like them and just tucked the cigarettes behind his ear.
He doesn't light matches even when someone hands them one.
Xiao Zhihai knew he couldn't count on this group of people, so he could only wait until after the meal to find someone else to buy chestnuts from.
The acquisition terms had to be aligned with those of Xiao Cheng and Bai Lu. It was impossible for them to just pay a deposit and take all the goods away; none of the villagers would agree to that.
After the meal, all the chestnuts in Xiaojia Village found their owners.
The chestnuts that Xiao Zhihai and Li Shuixian bought were all from villagers of the Xiao family who had gone to the town market in recent years and had some interaction or kinship with them. The quantity was vastly different from that of Xiao Cheng and Bai Lu.
The Xiao family in Longcheng, having somehow heard the news, also secretly acquired a considerable amount of goods.
Moreover, they paid in full and came to pick up the goods after the Qingming Festival. Many villagers from the Xiao family sold to them.
However, they had never made roasted chestnuts before, did not have the core technology, and were worried about losing money, so they only paid part of the full amount.
For the rest, a deposit is paid first to reserve the goods, and the final payment is made when the goods are picked up.
Led by their grandparents, Xiao Cheng and Bai Lu met many elders in the clan who had many descendants. Each family had at least tens of thousands of catties of chestnuts, all of which were reserved for them.
With the grandparents' prestige and status in the clan as a guarantee, and some elders even agreeing that the deposit can be paid later, the chestnuts will be reserved for Xiao Cheng and Bai Lu.
You can settle the payment in one lump sum when you come to pick up the goods.
The Xiao family, who had returned from Nanshi, naturally heard about such a large-scale collective purchase of chestnuts.
However, they looked down on these small street businesses, feeling that the sales channels were limited, the prospects were mediocre, there was no technical content, and they would soon be copied by the market, so they were not worth investing in.
They only invest in major projects in the city, which have broad development prospects, unlimited potential, and are sure to make a profit.
After settling everything, the post-meal rest period was over, and it was time to go up the mountain to pay respects at another ancestral tomb.
Bai Lu's foot injury hadn't healed, so Xiao Cheng wouldn't let her go up the mountain and even kept Xiao Wei behind.
They claimed it was to protect her belly.
After sweeping the tombs during the Qingming Festival, Xiao Cheng would come to collect the chestnuts from his grandparents' house and pay for the rice and piglets.
Perhaps because he was so happy that he would soon have piglets to raise, his rheumatic legs no longer hurt, and he walked with exceptional agility. In the afternoon, he also went up the mountain with his wife to pay respects to their ancestors.
While we're at it, we'll scout out a spot with pig feed, and then go up the mountain to cut more feed to feed the piglets when they come back.
Bai Lu, Xiao Wei, Li Hongying, and several other housewives from the Xiao family carried large vegetable baskets to the riverbank at the foot of the mountain to wash vegetables.
Li Hongying also went to the mountain to pay respects to her ancestors in the morning, but didn't go in the afternoon, staying behind to organize some people to prepare dinner.
The mountain roads are rugged and difficult to travel, and it takes a long time to get back to the town, city, or city. Dinner needs to be prepared early so that everyone can finish eating and set off sooner after returning from the ancestral worship.
Try to get on the main road before dark, otherwise the road will be slippery when it rains, and there are no guardrails on the mountain roads, making driving very dangerous.
Li Hongying and the Xiao family housewives were washing Chinese cabbage, lettuce, celery, and white radishes.
As Bailu washed the garlic sprouts, Xiao Wei, who was squatting next to her, took a small knife and helped her peel the roots of the garlic sprouts.
The aunt next to him praised Xiao Wei for being diligent: "He's so capable at such a young age. Our little rascal runs all over the mountains like a wild horse as soon as he has a holiday. Knowing that everyone will come back to pay respects to their ancestors during Qingming Festival, he was so excited that he couldn't sleep all night. This morning, he came to the square early with a hoe to gather."
"He was running too fast down the mountain and tripped and fell, scraping both his knees. We didn't let him go up the mountain in the afternoon, but he couldn't stay still. He limped over to the orchard on the other side of the river to pick plums and jujubes to eat."
"Why don't you come and pick some fruit to eat?" The aunt asked her son to call Xiao Wei, but Xiao Wei refused.
Xiao Wei was just like Xiao Cheng in temperament, taciturn and rarely interacted with his neighbors. His aunt's long-winded explanation only earned him four words: "I don't like to eat it."
"I don't like plums and green dates, but there are sand pears over there. Sand pears are very sweet and delicious."
Li Hongying pointed to the upper right of the river and said, "There's a small wooden bridge over there. It's very close to the other side if you walk across."
Xiao Wei, who was bending down to peel the roots of garlic sprouts, answered with the same four words: "I don't like to eat them."
Li Hongying and her aunts were a little embarrassed after their good intentions were repeatedly rejected. They thought that perhaps the fruit from the countryside was not as good as that from the town, and that Xiao Wei was looking down on it.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Bai Lu washed a bunch of garlic sprouts and gave them to Xiao Wei, explaining with a smile, "Xiao Wei's personality is just like Xiao Cheng's. He doesn't like to talk much, and he doesn't say what he likes to eat. Usually, I just buy them and put them on the table, and he can take whatever he likes to eat."
"He and Xiao Cheng rarely chat with others. They usually don't talk much with me. After school, they go back to their rooms to do their homework and rarely go out to play with others."
It turns out it was due to personality, not dislike.
Li Hongying and her aunts were immediately relieved, their faces lit up with smiles again, and they continued chatting and laughing.
It became much more natural for me to strike up a conversation with Bailu.
Everyone felt that as a boss who went to the countryside to buy chestnuts, she not only had no arrogant attitude, but also had a particularly good personality and temper, and was very good at speaking.
Unlike previous years when the bosses who came to the mountains to buy star anise were arrogant and rude, throwing star anise around carelessly while picking it up, always complaining about how bad it was, and then demanding that everyone split the travel expenses when they left.
When Li Shuixian presented the acquisition terms, her tone was full of condescension and disdain, and her face was full of arrogance.
It's not that they don't understand; it's just that they have to swallow their bitterness and flatter others for the sake of survival.
Fortunately, the elders in their family reserved the chestnuts for Bailu in the end, and everyone was happy.
Li Hongying's family has tens of thousands of kilograms of chestnuts, but Xiao Guofu keeps dragging his feet and won't make a decision.
And then there's this talk of being caught in a dilemma.
Li Hongying was too lazy to get involved, but her thoughts changed at this moment; she wanted to sell the chestnuts to Bai Lu.
If Xiao Guofu disagrees, let him talk to his grandfather. His grandparents will teach him a lesson.
Chinese cabbage, lettuce, and radishes are easy to wash, and with so many people, they can finish washing them quickly. Li Hongying said to Bailu, "This amount of greens might not be enough. We can pick some bok choy from the vegetable garden. You guys start washing first. If you need anything, just call me. The vegetable garden isn't far, I can hear you."
Bai Lu responded with an "okay".
Li Hongying and her aunts went upstream. Her family's vegetable garden was upstream, separated by layers of ridges.
It's not very high; you can see it as soon as you stand up.
"What's this?"
Xiao Wei stared at the little creature slowly crawling in the river, and for the first time showed a curious expression, asking Bai Lu.
He saw it when he arrived and thought it was a small stone. But after peeling the garlic sprouts for a while, the small stone moved further away and was clearly moving. It wasn't a small stone.
It just climbed very, very slowly.
99mk.info99mk.info
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
