Chapter 88
"Little Daddy and Big Daddy are going to the city to do business today. Dabao and Erbao have to stay at home and listen to Wenzi. Do you understand?"
Xu He got up early today, even before the time when the two children usually get up.
I haven't been to the city for a long time. I spent most of my time at home taking care of the two kids. Today I'm going out without them. If I leave while they are still sleeping, they will definitely cry if I don't see me in the morning.
Previously, when Zhang Fangyuan had to go out to discuss business, he left early. When the children woke up and saw that their father was not at home, they would ask about it. When they found out that their father had gone out without informing them in advance, they would get angry and ignore them. However, if they had told the children in advance, they would not do that.
For this reason, Xu He woke up the child before he woke up.
Ruijin and Ruili thought the weather was really good this morning. As soon as they opened their eyes, their little daddy was by the bed and was helping them to dress. However, they knew that they were a little unhappy about such treatment because their little daddy was going out. The two energetic kids suddenly clung to Xu He's body like boneless caterpillars.
"Why can't Erbao and his brother go together?" Ruili yawned, his eyes half closed, and let Xu He fiddle with his clothes while he put them on.
"If both Dabao and Erbao go, Daddy will have to take care of Dabao and Erbao, and Daddy won't be able to do anything."
Xu He grabbed the child's arm and put the clothes on him. When he held Ruili, he found that this guy seemed to be a little heavier: "If Daddy is not busy with business, he won't be able to raise Dabao and Erbao."
"Well, then little daddy needs to come back soon."
"You two will be back almost immediately after lunch when you wake up."
Wu Zi came back this morning and carried vegetables to the tea shed. He also helped his boss to harness the horses. Zhang Fangyuan then walked into the two children's room with empty hands.
The two chubby children who had just gotten up looked like steamed buns just out of the oven. Their round, milky white faces made people want to kiss them. Zhang Fangyuan naturally did not miss such an opportunity.
Ruili put on his clothes first and was taken away first. Ruijin looked at his brother's face which was kissed into a deformed dough by his father. His hands and feet were resisting and he refused to leave Xu He even after changing his clothes. But he still couldn't escape the clutches and was grabbed and kissed a few more times.
With his grey beard like a halberd, the two little kids yelled, "Little Daddy, come back soon, Big Daddy, whatever you want!"
Xu He laughed so hard that his shoulders trembled. He pushed Zhang Fangyuan and said, "Okay, let's go."
The two of them brought two buns to eat on the way. The summer morning breeze was refreshing, passing through the dirt road of the village. The breeze blew over the fish pond, and there was a faint fishy smell in the wind.
The branches and leaves of the mulberry tree are lush and many cicadas hide among them. In the morning, the noise is still small and weak, but at noon it becomes very loud.
Xu He thought that maybe there would be a harvest next year. Although the villagers complained, the mulberry trees had been planted and many families had started raising silkworms.
He looked back at the jarred vegetables and preserved eggs loaded on the cart, hoping to find a suitable merchant to do business with today, which would temporarily alleviate the villagers' urgent needs.
It was still early when they arrived in the city, so they drove the carriage to the shop. The big restaurants in the city were not like ordinary small restaurants that always opened early. They only opened at noon in the morning. At this time, usually only the waiters were cleaning and the person in charge had not arrived at the store yet.
The couple came into the city from time to time, and the two hired shop assistants were relatively honest. Zhang Fangyuan never noticed that the shop was open late every time he came back, which made the couple very satisfied.
The guys have been working in their shop for more than a year and have been working diligently. This time Xu He came and talked to the two guys and told them that if they continue to work so well, their wages can be increased at the end of the year.
The clerk was very happy to hear this. It was not easy to have a stable job in the city. The boss was kind and did not fire him and was willing to increase his wages. The clerk was grateful profusely and worked more efficiently.
"Boss, Boss Song sent a letter yesterday."
Zhang Fangyuan took the letter after hearing that. Xu He glanced at it but could not recognize a few words. He just waited for Zhang Fangyuan to tell him the content of the letter after he finished reading it.
"Song Yong said in his letter that he will come to Siyang in the fall of this year. He will come to our shop to get the goods, just like before."
Three boxes of toothbrushes, three boxes of tooth powder, and half a box of tooth incense chips.
Song Yong comes to pick up goods twice a year, but he always gets a lot each time, so he is considered a big customer of theirs.
Nowadays, toothbrushes and toothpaste in the city can no longer be sold at a very high price. The price has been falling again and again, and it has gradually lost the stunning appeal it had when it first came out, and has slowly become a simple washing item.
Zhang Fangyuan knew this would be the result, and he was not disappointed. Lowering the price has its advantages. Ordinary people can afford it, and the customer base has become wider. Moreover, after two years, most people in the city have developed the habit of brushing and washing their teeth. Those who don't use it will be laughed at for being unclean, which makes it very cheap for merchants like them who do this business.
Linglong Shop is able to maintain its business now, firstly because it supplies goods to other people, and secondly because it has the precious tooth incense chips.
This tooth incense chip is a combination of a toothbrush and tooth powder. It is made of spices and medicinal materials. It is shaped like a toothbrush, but much smaller and more delicate than a toothbrush. It can be hung around the waist in a cloth bag the size of a sachet. After meals, you can take it out directly to clean your teeth. Wash it with clean water after each use. It can be reused many times, which is very convenient.
However, because it is made directly from spices and medicinal herbs, it uses many ingredients and has a complicated production process, so the price is also high. The cost price alone costs hundreds of coins to make a tooth incense chip, and the price is even more staggering when it is sold in a shop.
Zhang Fangyuan sold them at the shop for six hundred coins each, doubling his profit. He treated them as valuables and did not expect to sell a lot quickly. The production process was complicated and took a long time, and if he sold them at a high price, ordinary people would not buy them. He eliminated the common people and targeted the wealthy, and many people did buy them.
Ever since the sale of tooth incense chips began, Song Yong would come every time to get a large quantity. Zhang Fangyuan did not even supply the goods to the merchants in the city, but he still gave them to Song Yong. On the one hand, they had some kind of friendship since they often came to do business together, and on the other hand, Song Yong's business in other places would not get in his way.
"I have everything else, but I still need to go to the store to ask them to stock up on more incense chips. There aren't many in the warehouse to begin with."
The guy nodded: "I'll go right away."
Zhang Fangyuan saw that it was getting late and the restaurant next door had opened. The relationship between the two families had never been good, so Zhang Fangyuan and Xu He tacitly agreed not to go to their house to sell their products. Instead, they took their goods to the north of the city first.
Zhang Fangyuan knew many merchants in the city. When they were having a drink earlier, he had mentioned that he wanted to bring some local specialties to show the merchants who run restaurants. So when he came to their homes this time, he had some excuses so that it wouldn't seem abrupt or rude.
"They are made from eggs laid by poultry raised with grain in the village. Duck eggs are very large."
Xu He took out the preserved eggs that he had cleaned off the dirt early in the morning, peeled them and showed them to the restaurant owner.
Good quality Songhua eggs have solidified, soft, elastic and full egg whites, with clear pine flower patterns on the egg body, as if carved by a skilled craftsman. It is very beautiful. When you peel off the egg white, it does not stick to the eggshell, and the whole egg is crystal clear and complete.
The restaurant owner also praised: "The duck eggs are huge, really good. I wonder how much they cost?"
"Market price." Three cents for one, five cents for two.
In recent years, preserved eggs are still a common food in the city, and there are many ways to cook them. They can be made into porridge, soup, and cold dishes, and they are often available in restaurants. The method of making preserved eggs is not difficult, and many small restaurants make some themselves.
However, it is difficult to quantify this thing. If you make too much and no one orders, the eggs will go bad after being left for a long time. If you make too little, they will be sold out quickly and there will be no left when customers order them. Preserved eggs need about a month to be edible, so it is common to buy them outside.
“Home delivery maybe?”
"Boss Wang, of course we can." Seeing the restaurant owner was so polite, Xu He added, "In addition to chicken and duck eggs, we also have fish, silver carp, carp, and crucian carp. It's just that we didn't bring any today. Boss Wang, if your restaurant is short of fish, you can come to our village to choose, and we can also deliver it directly."
The restaurant owner laughed and looked back at Zhang Fangyuan: "Boss Zhang has a wide range of business opportunities. If you need anything, I will definitely look for Boss Zhang first."
Xu He saw that the restaurant owner had a satisfied look on his face, but he did not directly agree to the deal. He just said that he would think about it. The two of them did not insist on getting a yes right away, but just politely said goodbye and left.
Then go to the second house.
I went to more than ten restaurants in the morning and made reservations at three of them. One of them directly asked for raw eggs, but four of them asked for fish.
The two of them kept peeling the basket of eggs for the restaurant owner to taste, but after the morning, there were only a few left.
"Are you tired?"
The couple found a long stone staircase and sat down as if no one was around. They didn't look like shop owners at all, but more like villagers who came to the city for the first time to sell eggs.
Zhang Fangyuan wiped the sweat off Xu He's forehead with his sleeve and said, "There's a store selling sour plum juice in front. Can I buy you a cup?"
"No need."
Xu He sorted out the chicken and duck eggs. This was the first time he went out to seek business. It was different from hawking on the street before, but Xu He felt that it was similar. In the end, it was all sales, just going door to door and selling on the street. The essence remained the same.
Although he didn't negotiate with many merchants as expected, he was very satisfied. If Zhang Fangyuan didn't know these merchants or had not met them once, if ordinary people came to sell things, they would not even pay attention to you, let alone talk to you in a nice way. The doormen wouldn't even let you in, so there would be no chance for him to negotiate business with the owner.
Fortunately, they have earned some wealth, so others give them some respect. In fact, this is the case for many businessmen who are starting out. They can succeed more easily only after they have established connections.
Xu He didn't feel tired, instead a smile appeared on his face: "I have negotiated with a few families who want fish, now I can appease some villagers."
"You seem happier to negotiate the villagers' business than to negotiate your own business."
Xu He pursed his lips. Of course he was happy. The villagers made noises every now and then. If they were not appeased, there would be a lot of trouble in the future. Although he really did it for the villagers' sake in the beginning, it was also true that their family wanted to make money from this, and Xu He wanted peace of mind.
He had a simple idea, but Zhang Fangyuan didn't think so. He knew in his heart that if he wanted the villagers to support him and listen to him, he had to let people see that they could only make money by following him. Once people had common interests, things would be different.
It doesn't matter if he suffers a little more now. He stood up and went to lead Xu He: "Let's go, let's talk about the closing of two more businesses. There are many customers in the restaurant at noon. If it's later, they won't have time to take care of us."
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