Chapter 168
The last time, a batch of frozen meat was shipped because of the generosity of the neighboring residential area. At that time, Qin Huai was still working in the Communications Department and had a quota for internal purchases. At that time, the government price was 30 yuan per catty of meat, which was already ridiculously expensive, but there was no way. There was a severe shortage of meat, and people could not afford a catty, so they would buy a few ounces to satisfy their cravings.
Now they are local pigs. Although there is less transportation cost, the price is still not cheap. According to Xu Ming, it is at least 40 to 50 yuan per pound, and the supply of meat is limited. This time, at most 50 pigs can be released.
There are currently more than five million surviving people in Kangyun, including those from Qinghe and other northern regions who have come here to seek refuge. Theirs is just one of the residential areas. Kangyun is a municipality, unlike other provincial cities which include several cities. Each city has government support to help rebuild it, so the residential areas in Kangyun are relatively scattered. In order to escape from the city center, people lived in all directions: southeast, northwest, and northeast.
Although their area is the most populous due to the protection and reconstruction by the army, the total population does not exceed one million. Among these one million, there are probably less than 100,000 people who can afford pork. Even if we only count the top one-tenth of the rich among the 100,000, there are still 10,000 people. Fifty pigs would not cause even a splash if thrown into the pond.
If the farmers were not afraid of disrupting the market price and being controlled by the higher authorities, they would like to sell pork in an auction mode, so that those who can afford it can eat it and those who can't afford it can just watch. But obviously, this is impossible, and the higher authorities will not allow private farms to do so. Otherwise, if they do this in the future, whether it is meat, rice, flour, grain or oil, 80% of the people in the entire settlement will starve to death.
At this time, Xu Ming had to admire Yu Feng's various connections. Although he was a local, he went to another city for college, and later joined the army. He rarely came back until he was discharged and started working. But in less than half a year since he came back, he had made so many friends. He could be described as doing very well.
Others might fight over a few pounds of meat, but Yu Feng directly got a pig. When Yu Feng asked Xu Ming how many pounds of meat their small yard needed, Xu Ming was shocked.
"Is the farmer related to you?"
Yu Feng held a bald grass root in his mouth and nibbled on it. He was not a heavy smoker, but sometimes he really missed the chance to smoke. However, it was difficult to grow crops now, let alone grow tobacco. So even though he had many channels to get some in-demand goods, he couldn't get cigarettes. He could only chew something to relieve his thirst.
Seeing the rare curiosity on Xu Ming's usually cold face, Yu Feng smiled and said, "Want to know? This is my life-saving skill, how can I say it easily?"
Xu Ming was very familiar with this nonchalant look. He knew with his toes that his next words would not be good.
Sure enough, Yu Feng immediately said, "But if you want to know, that's not impossible. Just call me Brother Feng and let me hear it."
Xu Ming turned and walked away, and Yu Feng hurriedly chased after him, saying, "You won't suffer any loss if you call me brother, I'm older than you anyway. Look how sensible the kids in your courtyard are, calling me Big Brother Yu all the time and even sending me emojis of kneeling to thank you, so cute."
Yu Feng handed him his phone as he spoke. After Xu Ming mentioned pork in the group, they did not directly ask whether they wanted it or not. Instead, they asked about the price first. After all, they were not a very wealthy family. If it was really extremely expensive, one hundred yuan per pound, they really couldn't afford it. How could they agree to buy it without even asking the price?
So Yu Feng simply posted the price of pork to the large group, which included Daniu and the three girls, and later the Cai family joined the group. The pork he got was not expensive, but not cheap either. He did not make money from this, and they were all friends of Xu Ming's courtyard, so he just paid the same price he got, twenty-five yuan per pound, which was five yuan cheaper than the frozen meat distributed by the government before.
As soon as he sent the message to the group, Song Jia and the other kids lined up to send emoticons of kneeling in thanks, calling him "Thank you, Big Brother Yu" one after another in an affectionate manner.
Compared to this little veterinarian, wow.
Xu Ming also knew that Yu Feng was a very nice person. He used his connections to get a pig. Even if the price of a pound of meat increased by ten yuan, a lot of people would still be scrambling to buy it. However, he only gave them the same price without raising a single dollar. This was more than just a gesture of friendship. He couldn't always ignore the other person's kindness just because of his playful smile. He even felt that he was a little ungrateful for always being so cold-hearted.
But when facing Yu Feng, he couldn't remember how long it had been since he had picked up the mask of gentleness and kindness. Just like now, he just wanted to soften himself, at least to show him a smile. People took the trouble to get the pigs and sold them at a low price, but they didn't even get a smile in return. It was as if he owed them eight million. But as soon as he restrained his momentum a little, Yu Feng came over.
"Look, do you also feel that you are too much? Learn from them, how cute! Come on, they call Yu Big Brother and you call Feng Brother. Aren't you touched by the exclusive title given to you?"
The slight sense of guilt that emerged in her heart was completely wiped out by Yu Feng's frivolous teasing, and she even gave him a cold look without any hesitation.
Yu Feng didn't mind being glared at. He continued to come over with a smile and opened the pocket of his work vest: "Do you want to eat millet? I just secretly roasted a pot of it. You can smell it. It's very fragrant. It's especially delicious with the husks on. It's much better than the husked white rice outside. You can try it. Hey, don't go, little veterinarian, do you still want pork?"
It was not until Xu Ming walked into the office building and even his back could not be seen that Yu Feng threw the burnt rice into his mouth and laughed in a particularly annoying way. How could someone be so fun to tease?
After determining the price of pork available from Yu Feng, Mu Nan rushed home. Seeing Qin Huai weeding on the second floor, he said quickly, "Brother, have you checked the group? You can buy pork from Yu Feng now. It's 25 yuan per pound, but you can't buy too much. He asked an acquaintance to get a whole pig and asked us how much we wanted. He estimated that if we couldn't buy all of it, he would sell it at a higher price."
"There are also fish. Song Jia said that a fleet owner asked him to do a video editing. He said he got a batch of fish from a coastal city and even arranged cold chain transportation. But it is also very expensive. A fish weighing one kilogram may cost more than 30 yuan, which is about the same as pork. But pork is pure meat, and fish has gills, scales, and bones. There are only two bites of meat. In comparison, fish is still a little more expensive."
Qin Huai put a bunch of weeds he had dug out into the basket hanging at the door of the rabbit hutch, and then said, "We can all buy some when the time comes. The game just sent over this month's share, which is enough for you to buy a few pounds of meat."
Mu Nan told Song Jia and the others that Qin Huai's game share might be only 100 or 200 yuan a month, but in fact it was not that little. Qin Huai could make as little as 300 yuan a month, and as much as 500 yuan a month. Even though everyone is short of food and drink and on the verge of starvation now, this kind of spiritual food is more addictive at times like this. When the pressure of survival is great, one always has to find a channel to vent.
But he didn't tell others too much, otherwise they would have so much money just by staying at home and doing nothing every day, and it would not be good if the gap in life between them and others was too big, so one or two hundred was just right. Anyway, they raised chickens, rabbits and vegetables, and their quality of life has always been well-known to the public. Occasionally buying some expensive things was also within the normal range.
After dealing with the weeds on the second floor, they checked the time and saw that it was time to move the one-way mirror on the top floor for sunlight, so they went upstairs. Mu Nan followed behind Qin Huai: "But the fish is too expensive, they can't bear to spend it, so I said if they want to eat fish, then we can buy it together and make some tofu fish soup, and everyone can eat a few bites of fish and drink some soup to satisfy their cravings. If we share it this way, it won't cost much."
Qin Huai turned around: "Want to have dinner together again?"
Mu Nan: "Hey, this is just because you are poor. You can't afford to eat a whole fish. It's so pitiful."
Qin Huai pursed his lips and smiled: "That's perfect, you can pick one of your watermelons to harvest."
Mu Nan's eyes lit up: "Can we collect it now? I'll go take a look."
After saying that, he rushed upstairs. Qin Huai followed slowly. When they reached the top floor, Mu Nan was comparing a whole row of watermelons: "Aren't they a little small? Are they really ripe?"
"When it's ripe, you can keep it for a few more days and you can take it down anytime to treat your friends."
Mu Nan looked at it for a long time, feeling a little reluctant: "I grew it myself, what should I do if I don't want to eat it?"
Qin Huai: "Then you can just take one of the same kind from the space."
Mu Nan quickly shook his head. This wouldn't work. There were no locked doors on either side of their roof, so they could cross at any time. So he was not sure if Jian Chu and the others knew how many melons were planted there. If they had counted them, and one more melon suddenly appeared out of nowhere, it would be too dangerous.
Thinking of this, Mu Nan couldn't help but sigh: "I raised the rabbit myself, so I don't feel any burden when eating it, but I can't bear to eat this watermelon."
Qin Huai adjusted the angle of the refracted light in the room so that the sun would shine directly on the melon field as soon as the sun came out tomorrow. "One is to just let the melons grow freely with some grass, while the other is to give them water and fertilizer carefully and watch them grow little by little. Of course, they are different."
Mu Nan took a picture of a watermelon and posted it to his private circle of friends: I can’t bear to eat it.
Song Jia: I don’t mind being the executioner who cuts the watermelon with a knife.
Jian Chu: Bring it to me and I’ll eat it for you.
Sun Sisi: Ten thousand people signed a petition in blood asking for a piece of watermelon!
Tu Juan: First, gather 10,000 people and show it to me.
Although everyone left comments and joked, they also knew that Mu Nan's watermelons were ripe and could be slaughtered. It was obvious that they were waiting to be taken out for the agreed fish banquet, otherwise Mu Nan would not have posted this on WeChat Moments. Thinking of this, everyone was looking forward to the fish banquet even more. Not only would they have fish, but they could also buy meat. According to Song Jia, the second crop of mushrooms left by the Cai family were about to be harvested, and Mu Nan's cabbage was also ripe.
The three girls discussed it. They had heard Mu Nan say before that he was going to sell a rooster. He had too many roosters at home. The three girls planned to buy a rooster, otherwise they would have nothing else to sell and they couldn't always eat other people's food for free.
The Cai family didn't have anything else to take out. The mushroom bags they planted later didn't grow that quickly. The only things they could take out were the potatoes in the other room that were about to be harvested, so they simply said they would take the potatoes and have as much as they wanted.
However, not the entire Cai family came out. Only Cai Wentao brought Cai Wenwen, Cai Siqi and Xiao Zhu. They were all young people, so the elders would not participate. It would be better to let a group of young people eat and play to their heart's content.
The fish has not arrived yet, but the pork has arrived first. After asking Yu Feng, it is confirmed that they will be given the yard first. They can buy as much as they can. There is no problem with buying it all at once. There is no intention of making money from it a second time. So everyone started thinking about ways to make more money and prepared to buy more. Now they can put it in the refrigerator and freeze it. Just buy more and eat it slowly.
But there was really not much money left, so Song Jia started selling eggs online. With the salary his brother had saved, he bought a few pounds of meat and later invested in some fish, which was just enough.
Jian Chu's family was in a similar situation, but they grew peppers and had just enough to harvest. They couldn't bear to sell the eggs, as they wanted to keep them for Yu Zibai's supplementary needs, so they could only sell the peppers, also by the piece, at 50 cents a pepper, and they sold quite a few peppers from a small basket.
Every day when Mu Nan saw them in the house, they were either selling eggs or chili peppers in the bamboo worm group. He felt sad and funny at the same time: "Everyone worked so hard to eat meat and fish."
Qin Huai stretched out his arms and hugged him: "Eat it once, and you can grit your teeth and endure it for a while."
Qin Huai bought several pounds of meat, and asked for several pounds of pork bones and some pork liver. Although bones cannot be eaten, they can be used to supplement nutrition when made into soup.
Jian Chu thought about it and did the same as Qin Huai and the others, but they only bought two pounds of bones. Bones are a little cheaper because they don’t have meat. They stewed some bone soup and drank it for two days. Later, they could use the bone soup to cook noodles. Life is hard now and the food is too monotonous. If conditions permit, it is better to eat more nutritiously.
Because the edited video was released in advance, with filters and music, people who had not eaten fish for several years became even more greedy. The approximate price was also announced in advance, so that people who saw the video on the forum and wanted to buy it would have an idea. The sales date and address were also announced, and the sale would start as soon as the cold chain truck arrived.
Because of this video, the expectations of the entire residential area were directly mobilized. Even if it was half a month ago, many people would have liked to buy fish but could not afford it when they saw the news of selling fish. But now, many more people can afford it. Through the gold rush in the city center, many people have made some money. They have worked so hard, and now seeing fish for sale, they are determined to grit their teeth and prepare to splurge.
I ate fish this time, but I don’t know when I’ll want to eat it next time.
But some people had other ideas, and even did some calculations in their minds. If they got a cold chain transport vehicle to take a trip to the coastal areas, except for the expenses of manpower and vehicles, fishing in the sea would be completely cost-free income. Just thinking about this makes people unable to sit still and get started.
As everyone was waiting, the fish truck finally arrived. Song Jia had some connections because he had made the short video for others, so he received the news in advance and drove over with Qin Huai, Mu Nan and the others. However, when they arrived, many people were already choosing there, and they were happily picking the bigger ones before more people arrived.
The fish was frozen. In such a hot weather, it would not last long if it was not frozen. They bought three in total, all of which were big ones. After a little bargaining with the owner, they charged a hundred yuan. One fish weighed more than one pound, but because it was frozen, there was also the weight of the ice, so the price was about the same.
I carried three frozen fishes and placed them in a small insulated box that I had found in the ruins business district. The drive back took only ten minutes or so.
As soon as he got in the car, Song Jia sent a message in the group saying that the fish had been obtained. Since fish soup can be made quickly and is not a very time-consuming dish, the little rooster can be put into the pot and cooked.
Xu Ming also replied to the message in the group. He was on his way home and sent a photo of two corns, asking them whether they wanted roasted rooster corn or pork ribs corn. The pork ribs were provided by Yu Feng. Originally, they didn't want Yu Feng's things, but he was a favor by letting them buy such cheap pork through his connections. Why would they ask people to bring extra things when they came to eat?
However, Yu Feng said that he had a big appetite and could eat a lot, so he would feel more confident if he brought some with him, otherwise he would be embarrassed to pick up his chopsticks. Then everyone agreed that two pounds of ribs, if added with corn, would be just enough to make a big pot of stew.
Everyone in the yard also jointly bought two pounds of pork belly. Apart from the ones they bought privately, they bought the ones they planned to eat together. They didn't have enough of the braised pork last time, so they bought two pounds this time. Two pounds is not a lot, but at least everyone can have two pieces this time, which is enough.
Song Jia also sighed: "It feels like it's not easy for us to have the conditions to have a meal together once every six months. Today's meal is so rich that I feel like I'm dreaming."
Jian Chu pinched his face hard, causing Song Jia to hiss.
Jian Chu smiled: "It hurts, right? Then it's not a dream."
Everyone was eager to go home. Today we had fish, meat, peppers, cabbage, and watermelon! The last time we had such a good meal was before the heavy rain before the poisonous fog. It has been almost four years, which is really not easy.
Listening to Song Jia sighing in the back, Mu Nan couldn't help but say to Qin Huai who was driving: "Time flies so fast. I wasn't even 22 back then, and now I'm almost 26. I've survived such difficult days year after year."
Qin Huai freed up one hand and rubbed Mu Nan's head, but didn't say anything else. The words "everything will get better slowly" have become a luxury in the current precarious environment.
As soon as the car drove into the yard, they heard Xiaozhu screaming and laughing in the house. There was an inexplicable atmosphere of family happiness during the New Year.
However, some unexpected changes occurred during what was supposed to be a joyous meal.
Fortunately, the person who discovered it was Mu Nan. After getting off the car, he picked up the thermal box. He originally wanted to see if the fish inside had completely melted, but he smelled a fishy odor. He subconsciously closed the thermal box and then instinctively looked towards Qin Huai.
Qin Huai immediately realized that something must have gone wrong, so he said to Jian Chu and the others, "You go and help first. We'll put the incubator back and get some things. We'll bring the fish over later."
Although Jian Chu thought it was a bit strange, he thought it would be the same if he just took the incubator over and took it home after dinner. However, people's reactions are sometimes not that quick, and by the time he felt strange, he had already said "OK".
After Song Jia and Jian Chu left the garage, Mu Nan quickly opened the box and showed it to Qin Huai: "Smell it, does it smell wrong?"
When they bought the fish, it was still frozen but not completely frozen. There were already signs of thawing. In today's weather, it would be almost completely thawed in a few minutes. However, with the insulated box, it shouldn't have thawed so quickly. It took fifteen minutes on the way back, and there is still a layer of cold air in the insulated box. It is impossible that the ice melted in fifteen minutes and then the fish went bad. That would be too exaggerated.
So either the fish was originally a dead and smelly fish and was frozen, and the strong sea smell of the fish in the truck covered up the stink, and now that the fish is almost all thawed, the smell is coming out.
"What should we do? Should we go back to find them? It's a hundred dollars."
Qin Huai pinched the fish and easily picked out a piece of soft, mud-like meat. This was definitely not the state of fish meat after a live fish was thawed.
Qin Huai asked: "Is there such fish in the space?"
Mu Nan nodded: "Yes, there are freshly killed ones and frozen ones."
Qin Huai: "Take out three frozen ones and put them in the space first." However, before Mu Nan put them into the space, Qin Huai took a few photos of the dead fish.
Mu Nan followed his instructions, but since the incubator had already held a dead fish, it was impossible to put the good fish in it, so he simply put it on a plate: "Brother, don't you want to ruin everyone's mood for the dinner? But this feels like a loss, it's a hundred dollars."
Qin Huai shook his head: "I just don't want to get involved in trouble. We went early and were the first to pick. The fact that we could buy dead fish proves that the whole truckload of fish was probably in the same condition. This means that this matter will definitely become a big deal. Just as you thought, it's at least a hundred yuan. They definitely don't want to suffer this loss and will definitely come after us. In the best case, they will admit it and return the money. Otherwise, they will say that it broke on the way home. If they don't admit it, since they can sell dead fish, they will definitely not return the money easily. They may just make a quick buck and run away. But with so many people buying fish, they will naturally not be willing to accept this. The incident will definitely escalate later, and then we will ruin the mood of the dinner party and feel bad for nothing. We may even get involved in a dispute."
"Instead, the three fish can eat happily and end the day happily, or you will have to deal with troubles for at least a few days afterwards, and maybe you will be angry about these three fish for a month. Which one do you choose?"
Mu Nan sighed when he heard this: "Okay, then we will bear all the troubles and let's all be happy."
Qin Huai smiled, put the incubator aside, and took the plate from Mu Nan: "Bring out a pot of milk tea. I told you to go home and get something. How can I not get something?"
A pot of iced milk tea appeared out of thin air in Mu Nan's hand. As he followed Qin Huai out, he asked, "Will someone be reluctant to part with it and eat it even though they know it's a dead fish?"
Qin Huai: "Maybe, but we are all adults, and it is up to us to make our own decisions. I know what you are thinking. Don't worry, I have sent a message to Shi Yuanfei. The forces that can get the cold chain truck are definitely not small forces. We can leave this matter to professionals."
Hearing Qin Huai say this, Mu Nan immediately breathed a sigh of relief. His brother was indeed smart. If something was difficult to solve, he would just throw it to others to solve!
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