Chapter 65 Chapter 65 I Talk Business
Xiaotan Village is closer to the county than Hepingzi. The two villages are located in the north and south of the county respectively.
Kang He and Fan Jing returned to the village for the first time. Unless it was necessary, they would not normally go to other villages outside the county town.
The two of them arrived early, and the water in the old man's house had not yet boiled. The two men who pressed the pigs had just arrived, but there were quite a few women and husbands from the neighborhood who came to watch the fun.
The old man asked Kang He and Fan Jing to sit and play for a while, brought two bowls of hot tea, and a plate of tangerines for them to peel and eat.
"Look how embarrassing! I thought you two wouldn't be doing business so early. I'm sorry to have delayed you."
The old man was very apologetic and took Kang He to take a look at the pigs in the pen.
Kang He followed him inside and said, "Business is good today, so we sold out the pork early. Otherwise, we would have come here at about the same time. It's also my fault for not telling Dad the exact time in advance."
Fan Jing didn't chase after him. He took two sips of hot tea and sat in a corner of the yard peeling oranges. The stir-fried dishes he had eaten at noon had been left overnight and were still hot. They were a bit salty and made him thirsty.
A young man was peeking out from the edge of the yard. He had heard in the fields that Old Man Gan was going to sell a pig today. Before he could come over to inquire about the price, he saw a donkey cart coming in on the village road. The two people driving the cart looked unfamiliar, and he guessed that they were here to buy pigs.
He followed from a distance and came here, wanting to ask about the price of pork, but seeing that Kang He was such a tall and strong man, and was still a stranger, he was afraid and did not dare to come in to ask.
Seeing Kang He follow the old man into the pigpen, he hurried over to ask the boy sitting there, "Are you the butcher hired by Old Man Gan? Is that man your husband?"
When Fan Jing heard the voice, he raised his eyes and glanced at the person in front of him.
The man was wearing a turban, hiding half of his face inside, leaving only his eyes exposed, but he still looked handsome.
He felt that this person was a little strange, but still nodded.
"What's the price for the pigs?"
Fan Jing said, "Eight coins."
The man whispered to him, "Is there nothing else to offer? This is the first time I've seen you in the village. You look like strangers. Old Man Gan has a lot of pigs, and the butcher who used to buy pigs from him is named Bao."
What he meant was that an old pig farmer like Old Man Gan invited strangers over, but didn't call them old friends. He must have been calling them because he had benefits that old friends didn't have.
Fan Jing heard a bunch of questions and coughed slightly.
In the past, Kang He was the one who handled all the business, and ordinary people would naturally seek out Kang He to negotiate. It was really the first time that someone came to ask him something.
He felt that his speech was not fluent, and subconsciously glanced towards the pig shed.
"have."
Seeing that Kang He didn't come out, Fan Jing had no choice but to answer.
The man's eyes lit up with joy, as he had guessed it.
Babaer waited for Fan Jing to speak to him, but he didn't say anything for a long time.
The two of them looked into each other's eyes.
Fan Jing was silent for a moment: "I won't charge you for killing the pig, but I'll give you twenty-eight copper coins."
The man paused after hearing this and said, "If you don't charge for butchering the pig, why do you still have to give copper coins? Doesn't that still count as charging money? But twenty-eight copper coins is definitely more affordable than other butchers."
Seeing that he had misunderstood, Fan Jing said, "We will give the pig farmer 28 copper coins, and he won't have to pay for slaughtering the pig."
"Like that?!"
The husband asked, "Why are you giving money to people when you don't charge for slaughtering the pig?"
"A new shop."
"Shouldn't a newly opened shop be more profitable? Why would it be worth losing money?"
Fan Jing pursed his lips and took a deep breath into his chest.
He looked at the people and said, "Or else, I'd better wait for my husband to come out and tell you in detail."
“No, no!”
The man waved his hands, tugged at the scarf that covered his head, and said to Fan Jing, "I'm afraid of men. I don't dare talk to a man, so I just want to talk to you."
“........”
Fan Jing was speechless for a moment, then said, "In short, that's what I just said."
"I still don't quite understand. Giving away such a good profit can't be a scam. Are you only giving this to Old Man Gan, or are you also giving it to all the butchers who come to you?"
After Kang He finished looking after the pigs, he came out of the shed with Old Man Gan.
Old Man Gan had more than ten pigs on hand, four of which were marketable. He had already sold three of them during the New Year holidays when the prices were good. However, the butchers were in short supply that month, so he was unable to sell all the pigs.
The price has dropped nowadays, but the four strong pigs eat a lot and have also raised a litter of piglets. It is too much to feed so many livestock, so they have to be sold at a low price.
Kang He chose a fat and strong pig. Pork can be stored for a long time in spring, so there is no need to worry about not being able to sell all the pigs in one or two days.
Just as I was about to talk to Fan Jing, I saw someone talking to a man.
He was a little surprised, but before he could go forward, Fan Jing looked over and gave him a look of help, asking him to go over.
Kang He was surprised and walked over.
The husband who was talking non-stop with Fan Jing fell silent when he saw Kang He striding towards him, and immediately jumped out of the yard.
"What's going on?"
Fan Jing's eyebrows twitched. Seeing Kang He coming, he seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and said, "I'm here to ask for the price."
Kang He thought, why would he run away to ask the price?
He took two steps toward the outside of the yard and asked kindly, "Do you have any pigs to sell that are ready for slaughter?"
When the man saw him coming, he hid behind him, shook his head repeatedly, and refused to make a sound anymore.
Old Man Gan went to the kitchen and came out saying the water was boiling. Seeing Kang He frightening He Xiaoqiu so much that he hid far away, he went over and said, "Brother Qiu, this is the owner of the Fan family pork shop in Douhuifang. Are you going to sell your pigs?"
The boy named He Xiaoqiu waved his hands and just stood outside without answering Old Man Gan's words.
Old Man Gan knew his temper, so he didn't talk to him any more. He called Kang He in and prepared to slaughter the pig.
"What about the husband?"
Old Man Gan whispered to Kang He, "He's a widower. He's afraid of men and doesn't like talking to them. He even refuses to talk to anyone after giving birth to a boy. Don't blame me."
Kang He was surprised and asked, "How can he get married if he is afraid of men?"
"It was all fine before, but my last boyfriend died, so I'm afraid I won't get married again."
Although Kang He was surprised, he didn't want to keep asking about other people's private affairs, so he just listened to half of the information.
As they were preparing to slaughter the pig, Fan Jing came back to his senses from the unsuccessful business deal he had just negotiated. He opened the knife box and prepared to slaughter the pig.
Gan Lao asked in surprise: "Your husband is butchering a pig?"
"Ai."
Kang He said, "He has good skills. His master is a butcher named Hu from the butcher shop."
Old Man Gan never asked Hu Dasan to kill pigs, but since he was an old pig farmer, he knew who this person was.
He couldn't help but look Fan Jing up and down, and felt that he was indeed more capable than the ordinary guys.
At first, he only thought that Kang He was slaughtering pigs, and didn't think of his husband. But then he thought, if Kang He knew how to slaughter pigs, why would he need to go to people's homes?
Come to think of it, it does seem like the butcher is marrying a daughter-in-law.
After all, it was not a pig to be slaughtered for the New Year, so he was not worried that the butcher would not do a good job of slaughtering it. If the butcher did, it would be the butcher's own fault.
So they got ready to get the pig out and slaughter it.
He Xiaoqiu, who was hiding outside, was so frightened when he saw Fan Jing holding the cold butcher knife and stabbing the pig that had taken four strong men to hold down to death. He almost crashed into the fence.
How can you be so brave, brother?
Thinking of going over to talk to someone, he couldn't help swallowing.
It can be seen that Fan Jing killed a ferocious pig without changing his eyes. He still looked calm and wiped the pig blood off the knife slowly, as if he had not killed the pig.
He felt that Fan Jing was extraordinary, and his eyes became bright when he looked at people.
After the pig was slaughtered, there was a burst of praise in the yard, and everyone was praising Fan Jing's good cooking skills.
Kanghe took this opportunity to promote his shop.
Fan Jing silently scraped the pig hair and quickly disassembled the pork.
Nowadays, there are limited ways to weigh animals. If you want to buy and sell large animals like this, instead of pricing them by head, you have to use a scale.
One end was deconstructing the meat, and the other end was getting the meat to weigh. The weight of things like intestines, pig hearts, and livers all had to be calculated.
As for the pig's blood, it is difficult to calculate the amount because it has been mixed with water. When the butcher invites people to help, he will have to prepare a meal, and the pig's blood is usually kept for himself.
But Kanghe wanted to offer some pig blood to his guests, so he bought a basin of pig blood for twenty coins.
After a busy day, the weight came out to be 212 kilograms.
Old Man Gan agreed, so Kang He calculated the cost of the pork at 696 copper coins, and gave him 28 copper coins as a profit for the new shop.
Seeing that they kept their word, had good skills in butchering pigs, and did not argue or shirk their obligations, Old Man Gan felt that he could deal with them and promised to call them next time if there was a suitable opportunity.
Kang and Xie thanked him and asked Old Man Gan to promote their shop to the villagers. While Fan Jing was deconstructing the food, the pig's blood coagulated, so they borrowed Old Man Gan's pot and cooked the pig's blood into cubes of pig's blood tofu.
In this way, when transporting it back, there is no need to worry about the pig blood being shaken apart even if it is bumpy. In addition, pig blood will turn into water if left for a long time, so it must be cooked after it is formed before it can be left overnight.
After all the trouble, it was already late.
Kang He and Fan Jing loaded the car and were ready to leave.
Fan Jing got on the donkey cart and drove out. He Xiaoqiu, who had left earlier, came out from somewhere.
He hunched his back, not letting Kang He, who was sitting next to Fan Jing, look at him, and said to Fan Jing in the car:
"I just heard your husband say outside and learned about the patronage of your shop."
Seeing him, Fan Jing stopped the carriage and frowned slightly: "You haven't left yet."
"I think you're really good at killing pigs."
Kang He looked at He Xiaoqiu and said, "Mr. He, are you going to sell the pig?"
When He Xiaoqiu saw Kang He looking at him, he immediately shrank his neck in fear and squatted down, hiding at Fan Jing's feet. He stopped talking again.
Kang He: "......"
He thought about what Old Man Gan said and figured that he couldn't talk to him. Since people trusted Fan Jing, he would just let him talk.
Kang He leaned close to Fan Jing's ear and whispered, "I'm going to go to the woods to have some fun. You talk to him."
Just as he was about to get up and get out of the car, Fan Jing grabbed the corner of his clothes.
Fan Jing refused to let him go: "I can't explain it clearly, and he can't understand it either."
Kang He: "......"
A moment later, Kang He was still sitting beside Fan Jing, only his head was eight miles away.
"I can't see anyone beside me anymore."
"A Jing, ask him now if he wants to sell the pig."
Fan Jing then repeated the question: "Are you going to sell pigs?"
Seeing this, He Xiaoqiu slowly stood up straight and nodded: "I want to ask you to go slaughter the pigs. We have two strong pigs at home that are ready to be slaughtered."
"Of course, but I won't be able to come for a day or two. I have to sell all the pork that Old Man Gan has collected first."
After listening to Kang He, Fan Jing looked at He Xiaoqiu, and He Xiaoqiu also looked at Fan Jing.
“.......”
Fan Jing thought, since we are so close, how could he not hear clearly?
Kang He tugged at the corner of Fan Jing's clothes, and Fan Jing patiently repeated to He Xiaoqiu what he had just said.
He Xiaoqiu then spoke again: "Okay. Is the patronage still the same as that of Old Man Gan's family?"
Kang He said, "Same. No pig-killing fee, but twenty-eight patronage fees."
Fan Jing repeated it again.
Then they asked about He Xiaoqiu's home address, whether the donkey cart could be driven to the yard, and so on. The three of them were exhausted, and finally they said the deal was done. They said goodbye to Fan Jing and went home.
When Kang He waited for everyone to leave, he didn't even get a clear look at what He Xiaoqiu looked like.
On the way back, Kang He couldn't help but make fun of Fan Jing.
"You're so popular nowadays. There are people who only talk to you and won't talk to me. Next time you come, you have to talk to him."
Fan Jing said: "You are right here, just like today."
Kang He teased, "Aren't you afraid that people will think the three of us are not smart? Who will be willing to do business with us in the future?"
"It wasn't very effective before."
Kang He was rebuked and had nothing to say in reply. Well, he was taught a lesson and found his weakness.
Kang He and Fan Jing sold the nearly 200 kilograms of pork they recycled for more than two days. The profit from each pig was more than one yuan, which was not much more than what they had earned from the two pigs they had bought before.
But the extra income from raising pigs at home is not included in the cost of feeding them. If you really calculate it one by one, the cost is not low.
To have this kind of profit in two or three days is not bad.
After the morning market that day, Kang He and Fan Jing went to Xiaotan Village to slaughter pigs again.
Then he went to He Xiaoqiu's house.
Unexpectedly, He Xiaoqiu's family is well-off and they live in a tiled house.
As the donkey cart drove past, a group of white geese that were resting in the grass field were frightened and ran away, flapping their wings and cawing.
Kang He looked at the big goose. It had broad feet and a round, plump body. It was two times bigger than a duck and was really plump.
"I haven't seen many families raising geese in my village."
As the two were talking, He Xiaoqiu's family heard the noise and came out to greet them.
A woman was busy with her hands, with a kind and happy smile on her face.
Kang He and Fan Jingwei were a little surprised that no one spoke. Then He Xiaoqiu came out and made two gestures to the woman. The woman nodded and went into the house.
The two of them then realized that she was actually a mute woman.
He Xiaoqiu was still the same, with a headscarf wrapped around her head, but the color was different from the previous one.
When he saw Fan Jing, he happily went up to greet him and asked him to go upstairs and sit down.
He Xiaoqiu glanced at Kang He and whispered to Fan Jing, "You should also ask your husband to come in for tea. The water is already boiling here."
Fan Jing said, "He can hear it."
After saying this, he saw that there was no one else in the yard, so he asked again, "Has the pig handler come yet?"
"When you get here, my mother will go and call them. They are all from nearby families, so it won't take more than a quarter of an hour."
Fan Jing fell silent.
When I entered the house, I found that He Xiaoqiu's house not only had a tiled roof, but also a bluestone floor.
A plate of pears and a plate of candied fruit were already placed on the table in the main room.
He Xiaoqiu poured tea for the two of them, then went to the kitchen and brought out four cooked eggs.
The egg was actually the size of a fist.
"You'll be slaughtering a pig later, which is a tough job. Eat two goose eggs first to fill your stomach."
He Xiaoqiu said to Fan Jing, "Call your husband to eat too."
Kang He said: "Ask He Fulang if the geese in his field are raised by his family."
Fan Jing took the goose egg stuffed into his arms, crushed the shell, and as he peeled it open he asked, "Do you raise geese at home?"
"I have over thirty goose eggs, and they lay a lot of them every day. Try them, and if they taste good, I'll pick some for you to take home and let your family try them too."
Kang He thought that although He Xiaoqiu's personality was a little different from that of ordinary people, he was very generous and enthusiastic.
"Brother, is the butcher here?"
As this person was speaking, a hoarse voice came from inside the room.
He Xiaoqiu said to Fan Jing, "It's my father. Have some tea first."
After saying that, he went into the house, and after a while, he came out supporting a man who was about the same age as Father Fan.
He Dad was wearing a thick cotton-padded jacket and had obviously just gotten up from the bed. His back was slightly hunched, his face was sallow, and his lips were pale.
He looked sick, and there was a faint herbal smell on his body.
Someone helped He Xiaoqiu sit down on the chair.
Kang greeted his comrades and expressed his concern for their health.
He Dad said: "This is an old problem of mine. It looks serious, but it's actually not a big deal."
"I'm sorry for the poor hospitality at home. I haven't been feeling well these past few days, my wife is mute, and my brother isn't very sociable. It's a relief that the master didn't mind and was willing to come to my place to butcher the pig."
Kang He thought that at least there was someone he could talk to, otherwise it would be difficult to get a word out.
I went to many people's homes to slaughter pigs before the New Year, but this is the first time I have done business with such people.
When going back, he was the one who negotiated and Fan Jing did the work.
The two of them cooperated well and it became a habit. When they ran into He Xiaoqiu like this, Fan Jing was no longer able to do it.
Kang He smiled and said, "It's because Mr. He and my husband are on the same page. Otherwise, our newly opened shop wouldn't have the chance to do this business."
He also praised the He family for their ability to raise pigs and so many big geese, no wonder they could live in a big brick house in the village.
Seeing that Kang He was friendly and talkative, He Dad also talked to him for a few more words.
"I'm not very useful. My brother and my wife have taken care of me. When I was well, I did a little food business in the city. I raised these geese at home, slaughtered them, and stewed them. I could get a few customers in the city, so I could make a good living."
"I'm not in good health right now. I can't do business, and I'm also taking medicine, which is a burden to the family. So, for my medical treatment, you should sell the pig to free up your finances."
Kang He also found it difficult to listen to this, so he comforted the man and said, "Can the doctors in the city take care of it?"
He's father said, "I've seen several doctors. They've charged a lot of money, but they can't cure my illness. There was a doctor named Zhu who was very kind and helped me get better after taking his medicine. It's a pity that his clinic closed last year."
Kang He heard this and asked, "Are you talking about the clinic of Doctor Zhu Ping in Miaoerfang?"
"Master, you also know?"
Kang He laughed and said, "Of course I don't know. Doctor Zhu is now living in our village."
He Dad was delighted when he heard this. "Really? Doctor Zhu's clinic closed suddenly last year. I finished my medicine and said I'd go get more, but I heard it was already closed. I don't know where it went. I'm afraid he left the county."
"Hearing this news, I was really sad."
Kang He said, "Last year, Doctor Zhu got into a lawsuit and was bullied by the powerful. He felt wronged and wanted to leave for another village. Fortunately, the squire of our village invited him to live in the village. Now he can treat all the sick people in the surrounding villages."
"If old man wants to ask Doctor Zhu to see him, I'll go back and tell him. I'll take him to the city tomorrow and ask him to go to the city gate and ask him to get an ox and donkey cart to bring him over."
"This, this is too much trouble for you!"
"What's the trouble? I'll be back soon. If you go to see Doctor Zhu on your own, it's cold outside in early spring, and if you're seriously ill, wouldn't Doctor Zhu be worried? He's kind-hearted, and he'll be glad to hear that the previous patient is looking for him again. Everyone in our village praises him.
Dad, just relax and wait for Doctor Zhu to come tomorrow."
He Dad was very grateful to hear Kang He was so kind-hearted.
The He family was very happy to hear the news about Doctor Zhu and to be able to invite him.
Fan Jing watched silently, and seeing how well Kang He talked with this family, he immediately felt closer to them, and thought that they still needed his help.
Forget it, the pig was slaughtered and weighed, and it was about 150 kilograms. The He family raised geese well, but their fellow villager Gan Laodi was better at taking care of pigs.
"That makes one thousand two hundred and thirty-eight copper coins."
Kang He took out the copper coins and asked Fan Jing to give them to He Xiaoqiu.
"Brother Jing, you guys are helping my family like this. We are lucky to have such a good butcher like you. I can't take your patronage money."
He Xiaoqiu said to Fan Jing: "We should give you the money from the pig slaughter. We can't let you run around for nothing."
"No, just take what you need."
Fan Jing stopped He Xiaoqiu from giving him the copper coins.
"Mr. He, we've been making friends with farmers since we opened our shop. We treat everyone the same. If we only take the larger amount from you, it would be a violation of our shop's rules."
When He Xiaoqiu first heard that Kang He was going to bring Doctor Zhu with his father, she thought he had a good heart and was not as afraid of him as she had been when they first met.
After hearing what he said this time, Fan Jing didn't ask him to beat around the bush again, but he still didn't speak to him directly.
He said to Fan Jing, "Since you don't want copper coins, I'll give you a braised goose to take home with you when you leave. I made it myself and it tastes pretty good. Don't refuse it."
Fan Jing rarely received such kindness from his brother, and he felt a little uncomfortable.
But he still hummed.
He Xiaoqiu was very happy to see that he agreed. She taught him how to deconstruct the pork slowly and boiled hot water in the pot for them to cook pig blood tofu later.
He didn't teach Kang Heyang about this matter. He said to Fan Jing: "I see how much He Ge admires you and treats us very attentively."
Later, Kang He and Fan Jing packed up and left. He Xiaoqiu gave them a wrapped big goose and a basket of big goose eggs.
Kang He felt a little embarrassed. Seeing that he refused to take it, He's mother kept stuffing the basket onto the cart.
After trying to push it away, he had no choice but to accept it.
After returning to the city, he unloaded the pork and placed it in the shop before driving home.
I went to Xu's house first and told Doctor Zhu about the He family's affairs.
When talking about the He family in Xiaotan Village, Doctor Zhu, who had treated so many patients, still remembered this family and praised their braised goose as being extremely delicious.
Every time He Dad went to the upper bunk to take medicine, he would always give him a packet. Both the master and the apprentice loved him very much.
This made Kang He want to try what the braised goose tasted like.
If he hadn't come alone, Fan Jing would have pulled the cart and the goose back first, and he would have shared some with Doctor Zhu to argue with him.
When she got home, Chen Sanfang had already seen the braised goose and goose eggs. When she asked Fan Jing, he said they were sent by the butcher. She then waited to ask Kang He.
"How can you be so generous to give us so many things? There are twenty big goose eggs here, and look at this braised goose, it weighs four or five pounds. If I put it in the city, it would sell for a hundred yuan, right?"
Kang He said, "Who told that family's young man to like our Da Jing? I begged him to accept it."
Chen Sanfang heard the sound and looked at Fan Jing who was sitting by the fire: "Is this true?"
"Everything is here, how can I fake it?"
Of course, they had goose for dinner at night. Chen Sanfang had originally planned to stir-fry some bacon with onions. Now that he had the braised goose, he threw the washed bacon into the cupboard.
After peeling off the oil paper, the braised goose was cold, but its aroma still spread all at once.
The skin was braised until it was golden brown and greasy. Chen Sanfang couldn't help swallowing his saliva while chopping the goose meat.
The skin of the braised goose was broken, but the meat inside was still juicy and looked very tender.
I chopped off half of it and it was enough to fill a whole basin.
He Xiaoqiu was really thoughtful. He gave away the braised goose intestines and goose liver as well.
Chen Sanfang even cut a whole plate of offal.
Before the food was served, each family member took a piece and tasted it.
The brine is salty, fragrant and fresh, and the goose meat is not dry at all. It tastes even better than it smells!
Qiao'erxiang's fingers.
"Sanlang, it's not that I don't speak up for my family, but this braised goose is even more delicious than the pig's head you braised earlier."
Kang He also felt that He Jia'er's braised goose was delicious and much better than his own braised dishes.
He picked up another piece of goose meat from the basin and put it into Fan Jing's mouth: "No wonder Doctor Zhu kept saying that. This tastes really good."
The He family's financial situation must have been earned from this business. The taste of this braised goose is enough to make them profitable.
What they didn't know was that because of this skill, the He family had become enemies with their in-laws.
At night, the whole family had a delicious meal of braised goose.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
