When paying for the goods, the general manager said, "Brother Dong, there's something I've wanted to discuss with you for a while. You know, plates and bowls aren't sold very well in the county town; 80% of the stock goes to farmers. People in our area are very poor; every household is broke. But this is all flat land with fertile soil, and the crops yield good harvests. Everyone has surplus grain, and they exchange soybeans and wheat for plates and bowls. However, nobody wants the soybeans and wheat we get in exchange in our area. The small vendors who wholesale porcelain from me have reported the same thing: they want to sell them to our wholesale department at the price they exchanged for, but we dare not take them. Taking them would mean losing money, and even if we sell them at a loss, nobody wants them."
Dong Qing asked, "What are the prices of wheat and soybeans in your area?"
The general manager said, "Soybeans and wheat are the same price. They traded plates and bowls for 15 cents a pound. If you want them, they can be loaded onto the truck tomorrow."
Food is scarce in my hometown's mountainous area. The price has now risen to more than 30 cents a pound. But in this era, state-run grain stores don't want it. Apart from state-run grain stores, there are no private grain purchasing points. If you bring it back, there's nowhere to sell it. How much can ordinary people sell? A truckload of grain will be sold elsewhere when it arrives, and people will still be turning gray.
City dwellers all had grain coupons. With grain coupons, you could buy flour for less than two cents a pound. Nobody in the city wanted grain, let alone farmers. They had enough fine grains and coarse grains to eat at home. Who could they sell it to if they brought it back? No matter how big the price difference was between grain here and back home, there was always the same problem: they couldn't sell it no matter how expensive or cheap it was.
The most important thing is whether a family has the money to buy wheat to eat; even if they eat black grain for half the year, no one will buy it.
Dong Qing said, "Wait a moment, I'll go out and discuss it."
The general manager couldn't figure out who he could consult with without Li Yuzhu present. Was a female tractor driver really in charge? He said, "Fine, go discuss it with her."
Dong Qing walked to the tractor, where Su Wei was waiting. Seeing Dong Qing come out of the office, she asked, "Have you paid for the goods?"
"No, I have a question for you." Dong Qing finished speaking and got into the car, sitting in the back berth. He asked, "I know that 90% of the farmers in your village make tofu. What price do they pay for the soybeans?"
Su Wei said, "In my hometown, soybeans are not commonly grown; they are mostly green beans. Green bean yields are very low. Last year, there was too much rain in my hometown, and all the green beans were ruined by the rain. Now, even if people make tofu, they can't get enough beans for four cents a pound."
Those who work in a particular industry know its own secrets; Dong Qing genuinely didn't know soybeans were so expensive until Su Wei told him. He asked, "How many soybeans can your village sell?"
Su Wei said, "The tofu from our village is all sold in the city. Many tofu shops have closed down because they can't buy enough soybeans. To put it simply, you can't even buy soybeans for 50 cents a pound now."
Dong Qing asked, "What's the price of wheat?"
Su Wei said, "I know what you're trying to do. You're taking the grain here back to your hometown. You can't take the wheat no matter how much it costs per kilogram. In recent years, farmers have been able to eat both coarse and refined grains, but they still don't have money. No one will want it if you take it back. The state-run grain stores won't accept your grain, so where will you sell it? The residents of the county town have grain coupons and can eat cheap flour, so no one will want your wheat. Only soybeans are a cash crop that you can take home."
In his previous life, Dong Qing owned a large bean product factory. His bean products were sold all over the country, and he had extensive experience in this field. With this advantage, he thought he could open a bean product factory in the future. Thinking of this, he said, "Now that you mention it, I have a better idea. Let's take a truckload of soybeans back this time."
After Dong Qing finished speaking, he got out of the car and walked towards his office.
The general manager asked, "Have you reached an agreement? Do you want it?"
Dongqing said, "I don't want wheat, but could you fill the truck with soybeans?"
The general manager asked, "How many soybeans can your truck carry?"
Dong Qing said, "My truck can carry more than 20 tons. Is there any problem with you helping me collect 50,000 jin of soybeans?"
The general manager said, "If we include wheat, we can easily harvest a truckload. But if we only want the yellow color, I'm afraid it won't be enough. Fifty thousand catties of soybeans is too much; it will be difficult for you to get a whole truckload at once."
Dong Qing said, "How about this, take whatever you can get. I'll go to the next place, unload the goods, and load some soybeans. I can't estimate how much soybeans your two counties have. If you really can't load them all, I'll bring them to you on my next trip."
Dong Qing said that the general manager was sure there was no problem with it, and said yes. Then he settled 20,000 yuan for Dong Qing, and the remaining few thousand yuan would be settled tomorrow.
The general manager was worried that Dongqing might change his mind and refuse to take the soybeans tomorrow, and that he would lose credibility in their eyes. Dongqing was well aware of this, which was normal; everyone in business would keep something in reserve.
Dongqing took the 20,000 yuan payment to the next supplier.
We arrived at the next store around 8 p.m. and didn't finish unloading the goods until after 11 p.m.
The second supplier usually can't settle the payment on the same day, so they'll wait until the next day to withdraw the money from the bank to settle the account.
The general manager arranged two guest rooms for Dong Qing and Su Wei, and said, "You two rest, I'm going back."
Dong Qing stopped the general manager, invited him into the room to sit down, and told him about the soybean purchase.
The general manager was very pleased to hear this. He said, "This is common practice here. People can't exchange grain for money, so they use soybeans and wheat to exchange for plates and bowls. If your hometown needs them, we can supply them long-term. You don't need to go down to collect them. The soybeans that the small vendors get from exchanging plates and bowls are enough for you to transport. I'll send someone out tomorrow morning to notify those small vendors, and they'll deliver them to you after eight o'clock in the morning."
The general manager finished speaking and left.
We've been so busy that we haven't eaten yet. I wonder if we'll be able to buy some food by now.
Dong Qing walked to Su Wei's door and knocked. The door opened instantly, and he said, "It's so late, I don't know if there's any food available outside. Let's go out and see if we can find anything to eat."
In those days, there were still restaurants in the county town that were open 24 hours a day. They walked to the gate and asked the gatekeeper where they could buy food at this time.
The security guard said, "Go out the gate and turn left. Walk about a kilometer, and you'll find two restaurants near the bus station that are open 24/7."
Dong Qing said thank you and walked out the gate with Su Wei towards the bus station.
In those days, the streets of the county town were very quiet at around 11 o'clock. Occasionally, a person would pass by on a bicycle, and there were very few people to be seen along the way.
When they arrived at the bus station, there were indeed two restaurants open day and night.
The two went into the restaurant, and Dongqing ordered two bowls of meat slice soup. Food at the bus station was relatively expensive. A bowl of meat slice soup cost eight mao (0.8 yuan), and eight mao could buy a jin (0.5 catties) of meat. The owner was lucky if he could put four liang (200 grams) of meat in a bowl of meat slice soup, so he could make a 50% profit.
Running a sports car isn't easy, especially with Su Wei along. Dong Qing always prepares excellent meals, and in the end, they ordered a braised pork dish and a vegetable dish. That's enough for two people, and the meal shouldn't cost more than five yuan.
The owner first brought the braised pork to the table. Dongqing didn't allow any seasonings, saying the braised pork tasted better with its original flavor. He then said, "Boss, bring two bottles of beer."
Su Wei used to not drink alcohol, but in the past few months, she has been able to drink a little alcohol while following Dong Qing, and she drinks a little alcohol at night to relax before going to sleep.
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