The next morning, they went to the small commodities market and bought twenty stalls, ten for Lu Mo and ten for Ye Qingqing. They also received two more contracts. The manager personally received them and treated them like VIPs, being extremely attentive and never straightening his back the whole time.
At this time, Wucheng was not fully developed, but the prototype of what would later become the world's largest wholesale base for small commodities could already be seen. There were even foreigners walking around on the streets, all of whom were here to do business.
By this time, Wucheng already had many small commodity workshops, many of which would later become powerful conglomerates, or even go public. In a word, Wucheng could be considered one of the most hardworking people in the country.
Zhejiang Province, when considered in the context of the whole country, does not have any other geographical advantages except for its proximity to overseas. Its land area is also very small, and its mineral resources are extremely scarce. Many resources need to be purchased from other provinces. However, Zhejiang merchants are famous all over the world, which is inseparable from their diligence.
Among them, the people of Wucheng represent the pinnacle of Zhejiang merchants.
Because of its geographical location, Wucheng is an inconspicuous small city in Zhejiang Province. It is not near the sea and has no marine resources. It is surrounded by mountains and has very little usable land. Unlike major grain-producing provinces where farmland is calculated in tens of acres, here each person can only get a few acres of land, and even those are small, fragmented plots.
The famous story of trading chicken feathers for sugar originated in Wucheng.
In the old days, people from Wucheng would carry loads to neighboring cities to exchange chicken feathers during the off-season. The feathers of one chicken could be exchanged for a piece of malt candy. The "clanging" sound of the candy was crisp and pleasant, and it also had a sweet aroma. Children would watch with longing eyes and ask for more.
Most shop owners would happily grant the child's request, knocking off a small extra piece. The child was happy, and the people of Wucheng were happy too, because they got a lot of chicken feathers in return. Of course, these chicken feathers weren't used to make feather dusters. Many people mistakenly believe that the people of Wucheng were exchanging chicken feathers to make dusters, but that's not the case.
They did it to fertilize the fields. (In the early days, chicken feathers were indeed used to fertilize the fields.)
Because the family was allocated too little land and had no other sideline businesses, they tried every means to increase the yield of the land. Even if it was just a few dozen more kilograms per mu, it would be good. Someone discovered that chicken feathers could fertilize the land. They shredded the chicken feathers and mixed them into the fields, which could increase the yield by about 100 kilograms per mu. For these 100 kilograms of grain, the people of Wucheng went through all kinds of hardships, walking nearly 100 li a day to exchange for chicken feathers. Their perseverance and determination in enduring hardship are why Wucheng later became the world's number one in small commodities.
Of course, people in Wucheng wouldn't trade chicken feathers now. In the early days of reform and opening up, people in Wucheng stopped doing such low-return jobs. They started side businesses and did them very well.
After buying the stall, Ye Qingqing also bought some local specialty snacks from Wucheng—brown sugar twisted dough sticks.
The twisted dough sticks are a bit sticky, made with brown sugar and flour. They're good for women as they can help replenish blood, and they taste pretty good too. Ye Qingqing bought over ten kilograms, and she can share them with her neighbors when she gets home.
On the way back, Ye Qingqing took out the contract again to admire it, unable to stop smiling, as if she could see countless gold bars beckoning to her.
"We'll have forty stalls in total. Even if we raise a spendthrift son, we won't have to worry. The rent from one stall a day will be enough to live on." Ye Qingqing's thoughts were quite beautiful, but also quite far-fetched. She was happily to herself.
Lu Mo was focused on driving when he heard this and his ears burned. The child... this girl is thinking really far ahead.
but--
"Kill that good-for-nothing!" Lu Mo said coldly.
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