After adding rice, flour, coal briquettes, coal, wild animals and other supplies to the courtyard in the county town, the couple did not dare to waste time and rushed back to Zhangjia Village.
As the car arrived at the village entrance, Aunt Zhang tucked her head in and waved at them vigorously.
"Auntie, why don't you wait at home? It's so windy outside."
Aunt Zhang lifted her thick scarf, revealing her mouth. "Xiaowu, don't go back yet. I have something to talk to you about."
Zhang Guoqing and Zhou Jiao exchanged a glance after hearing this, and without saying anything more, he pointed to the rear door and said, "Auntie, come in first and we'll talk later."
Seeing that the other party couldn't open the door for a while, Zhou Jiao got out of the car and opened it for her.
"My two brothers from my mother's side smoked a lot of bacon and sausages before the New Year. Do you want some?"
Zhang Guoqing didn't answer for a moment. He glanced at Zhou Jiao and said with a smile, "A lot? It's too expensive. I can't afford it."
"You little brat, you're still trying to fool your aunt. You only weigh a hundred or two hundred pounds. I wanted to ask your mother, but didn't you just happen to be back?"
"Thank you. How can I refuse such a good thing since you are thinking of my nephew?" Zhang Guoqing knew that the other party must have prepared these things and planned to sell them at a high price on the black market during the busy farming season next year.
But he had to be clear about the vilification beforehand; it wasn't like he hadn't dealt with the other two brothers before. They were the type who wouldn't release the eagle until they saw the rabbit.
"I don't have much money right now, so I'll buy as much as I can. Is that okay?"
"Okay. You can negotiate the price with them later. Don't worry about your aunt's face. Aren't we all being investigated so strictly now? I'm worried that the two brothers will go back to the black market. Sigh..."
Zhang Guoqing smiled but said nothing. No wonder they came to him. He remembered that when he joined the collective commune, the two brothers had offered him a high price for the two pigs they had secretly raised.
What did they say it was? Bacon for four yuan, and pig for one and a half yuan. Wow, it was almost four times more expensive than the market price.
If it weren't for the food safety guarantee, he wouldn't have been able to close the deal until he had to lower the price by half. He really didn't want to deal with such ruthless people.
This time Zhang Guoqing planned to go over and take a look. If it was too expensive, he would give his aunt three or five pounds for her sake. If she was tactful, he would buy it all. It would be a good opportunity to improve the diet for his three sons when the weather gets hotter.
Aunt Zhang's family was considered the best among the Zhangs. With her two frivolous older brothers, who engaged in speculation and profiteering from time to time, they had a good fortune.
Driving to their village, we could see from afar the large, half-brick, half-adobe courtyard by the river. It was the Gao family, Aunt Zhang's family. Of course, these Gaos weren't descendants of Gao E, the compiler of "Dream of the Red Chamber." They were simply a native farming family, with no ancestors even having a successful student.
However, these two brothers are capable people. Now one drives an ox cart in the team, and the other manages the warehouse in the team.
Zhang Guoqing often suspected that these two brothers had stolen a lot of things from their production team. Although they looked honest, after dealing with them, he truly believed that appearances were not the best guide. Just like his aunt, besides being shrewd and seemingly very sensible, she wouldn't go along with anyone who offered her something cheap.
But...but Zhang Guoqing still remembered that his cousin Qingfeng got drunk one time and boasted to him that his mother had a lot of gold rings and gold bracelets.
Of course, Zhang Guoqing ignored these words afterwards, but they left a lasting impression on him. From then on, saving gold became his dream.
As soon as the car stopped at the Gao family's door, an old lady with a wrinkled face walked out. Her expression changed drastically and she shouted, "Shuanzi, go get your grandfather over here."
Zhang Guoqing gave his aunt an apologetic smile. It was truly terrifying to have two military vehicles suddenly parked at someone's doorstep. If they had known, they would have parked at the village entrance.
"It's okay, I'll get off first."
Practice makes perfect. Clever Aunt Zhang had already opened the car door and got out of the car while saying, "Mom, it's me."
"Oh, you little bitch..." The old lady was about to scold her daughter while stepping on her bound feet, but suddenly she saw two young men getting off the car. She stopped talking and looked at Zhang Guoqing suspiciously.
"Grandma, you don't recognize me. When I came here with my brother Qingfeng before, you gave me malt sugar..."
Aunt Zhang didn't wait for him to finish and said with a smile, "Mom, this is my second uncle's oldest son, Xiaowu. Do you remember him? The most mischievous one, always following his grandfather..."
"Oh, how could I not recognize him? Your mother is not confused. I haven't seen him for many years. No wonder he looks familiar to me, but I just can't remember him."
"Are you joining the army? How could your mother bear to let you go? This is your wife, right? I remember, I remember everyone said that the Zhang family married a golden child. This girl, right? She's so pretty."
"Xiaowu, come in with Jiaojiao first." Aunt Zhang quickly hugged her mother and went in. If she let her mother continue to talk, it would take until dark to finish.
"Old woman, what are you calling me for?"
"Dad, let's go inside first." After saying this, Aunt Zhang told her nephew Shuanzi to go and call his father and uncle back.
Several people entered the main room, and Gao's eldest daughter-in-law came out from the east wing with great joy. She went into the main room and poured three bowls of sugar water.
At this time, Zhou Jiao deliberately looked at the other person again, with a smile on her face and occasionally frowning. She looked out from time to time and saw that the other person was rubbing his pants with his hands nervously.
This seems a little off.
She believed that Zhang Guoqing would also notice this.
The couple looked at each other, thinking that they were in trouble. However, since Aunt Zhang hadn't mentioned it to them, they wouldn't be so foolish as to expose it.
Before long, their seats were warm, and the eldest Gao ran into the house first, followed by the second Gao, who was a step behind him, and also quickened his pace to run in.
Zhang Guoqing was surprised by the two brothers' hurried movements.
"Nephew, let's go out and talk. Nephew's wife, please sit here for a while. We will be in soon."
Zhou Jiao nodded at Zhang Guoqing.
After a while, the three men loaded three large sacks into the car. Zhang Guoqing said goodbye to the two elderly people, leaving behind Aunt Zhang who was going to visit her parents' home. Zhou Jiao was taken into the car in a daze.
"What's going on?"
"The three staff members of the production team here are very strict. They basically stay in the village all the time, eating and living with the villagers. The Gao brothers are worried that it will be their turn to receive food, and they will lose the goods and are anxious to sell them."
Zhou Jiao knew that he had not finished speaking yet, so she waited quietly for what to say next.
"I heard they say that if you're caught on the black market, whether you're buying or selling, you'll get life imprisonment. They say they don't want to make money, but that's not necessarily true."
"The opening of farmers' markets and bazaars has dealt a heavy blow to the black market. I don't think they can get a high price even on the black market, and with the inspection personnel here, they're scared."
Zhou Jiao nodded in agreement.
"There are over 200 kilograms of bacon here. How many pigs do you think we need? If those two brothers were caught, they would be covered in mouths and they wouldn't be able to explain themselves."
"You're lowering the price?!" Zhou Jiao had no doubt he'd take advantage of the situation. Even if they tried to change, they were still profiteers; some things in their bones couldn't be changed.
Zhang Guoqing smiled and nodded. "I'll take care of it all. I'll definitely lower the price. I've dealt with them before, and they said they'd bargained it down to two. This time, they said two, and I quoted one."
Zhou Jiao laughed so hard that she covered her mouth with her hands.
"Later, I added a dime to my uncle's expense. Actually, I didn't take advantage of them that much. They had just smoked the meat, and when we sell it in the spring, the weight will definitely be much smaller."
Zhou Jiao glanced at him. He was really ungrateful! If she really wanted to sell it, she wouldn't even have to go to the black market. She could just sell it back in Beijing and double the profit.
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