Chapter 412 Zhao Dongmei's Awakening
Having a stroller has indeed made things much more convenient. Song Lubai puts the baby's formula, diapers, and other necessities under the stroller and takes the baby to the workshop every day. Although it can be a bit hectic at times, she feels much more at ease than if the baby isn't in front of her.
Compared to when he was born, the baby cries less now and can sleep for a long time after being fed and watered.
The sight of this little cart made all the women envious.
The four wheels look very stable, and there's space underneath to put things for the child. You don't have to carry them everywhere; you can just push it around. It's so convenient!
Song Lubai told everyone where she got the stroller.
"Comrade Song, how much does it cost to make one of these small carts?"
Song Lubai shook her head and said, "I really don't know. Wei Yang went to the city to find a carpenter to build it. The place is near the military post. If any of you want to build it, go and ask him yourselves."
Outside the crowd, Zhao Dongmei looked at Song Lubai, who was pushing a cart, with a rosy complexion and noticeably fuller figure, and felt envious.
She saw it all. Her daughter was a few months older than Song Lubai's daughter, and Song Lubai's daughter was a twin, but her daughter's size wasn't much bigger than Song Lubai's daughter's.
Other people's children have strollers to lie in, but her child is always hanging on her chest, exposed to the wind and sun with her in the fields.
Once inside, Zhao Dongmei said to Feng Xiaolong, "Get me a little stroller too. When I'm working in the fields, the child can sleep in the stroller. When he gets older, I won't be able to carry him anymore. He'll be rolling around in the fields like a mud-covered person, which is really unseemly."
Feng Xiaolong said impatiently, "You see others have it, so you want it too? You don't even look at our own family's situation!"
Since last year, Zhao Dongmei's temper has grown increasingly worse. Knowing that Zhao Dongmei is not as easy to fool as before, Feng Xiaolong didn't dare to speak too loudly just now.
If a fight breaks out at home, the neighbors living nearby will all side with Zhao Dongmei, and Feng Xiaolong will only be the one who gets scolded.
Zhao Dongmei rubbed her left breast, frowned, and scolded, "You haven't taken care of the child for a single day. I've been the one looking after him, changing his diapers and feeding him. I asked you to get a stroller, and you kept making excuses. If you don't want to get one, I'll go to the city and find someone to get one. Just give me the money."
Feng Xiaolong muttered, "What's the point of getting a little car? It won't even last a year. When I can't hold it anymore, I can just put the child down on the ground. I can carry him around faster every day."
Zhao Dongmei cursed, "You son of a bitch..."
After hurling a string of profanities, Zhao Dongmei said, "We can sell the stroller when the kids can't use it anymore. We won't lose money no matter what. I don't care. If you don't get me one, I'll curse you at the door for three days and three nights without stopping, so everyone can see how our family fares."
Now it was Feng Xiaolong's turn to get angry. He glared at her and said, "How did I end up with a woman like you? You're a shrew now, completely lawless."
Zhao Dongmei glanced at him, then silently carried her daughter out.
Having won once and enjoyed the fruits of victory, Zhao Dongmei knew how to deal with Feng Xiaolong.
Among the neighbors were women's federation cadres, women's directors, and busybodies like Zhao Hongying. The support from others would make Feng Xiaolong hesitant, but the beneficiary would be Zhao Dongmei.
People like Feng Xiaolong don't care if you don't give them a hard time.
Zhao Dongmei feels pretty good now, at least her and her child's situation has improved.
Zhao Dongmei had heard that Tang Xuewen had found another formidable woman. He used to beat up Miao Feng, but now he and his new wife had a very good relationship and had never fought. The neighbors had only ever heard Pang Juan scolding Tang Xuewen.
She had heard of Pang Juan's reputation; she was a formidable woman, capable of storming into other people's homes with a knife.
Men have many flaws, so women have to be assertive; otherwise, they'll be bullied to death.
At the end of March, the food workshop delivered its first batch of pickled vegetables.
The pickled cabbage was started after the New Year, and the fermentation time was sufficient. Because there weren't enough jars, Song Lubai asked Director Liu to borrow thirty more from Song Hai.
The so-called "borrowing" doesn't really count as borrowing, because all thirty jars have to be sent to Song Hai. If the jars rot in their possession, Song Hai will have to bear the loss himself.
The tractors went to work in the fields, so the workshop could only use donkey carts and handcarts to haul jars into the city.
The donkey cart carried only eight jars on its first trip, while the handcart carried six.
This batch produced a total of twenty-seven jars: fifteen jars of cabbage and twelve jars of radish strips. It wasn't enough to finish in one trip, so we had to make another one.
Wei Yang went down to the company, and Song Lubai sent the child to Wei Zhao.
She rode her bicycle and followed the donkey cart all the way to the supply and marketing cooperative in the city.
When Song Hai saw her arrive, he couldn't wait to open the jar and smell the aroma inside.
The pickled cabbage didn't smell as good as the radish strips. Song Hai asked, "How much is it?"
He knew Song Lubai was not easy to deal with and was prepared to be extorted by her.
"Director, this jar is fragile, so please handle it with care when moving it."
Song Hai knew, and he nodded, saying, "Don't worry about that, we won't make any mistakes. Come on, let's go inside and talk about the price. After we've discussed the price, I have another deal to discuss with you."
Song Lubai knew exactly what business Song Hai wanted to discuss with her. Once inside the office, she first instructed, "The sauerkraut must be cooked before eating. We need to make that clear to the customers who buy the cabbage. Each jar contains 27 jin of cabbage, which was weighed before pickling. The amount of water added to each jar is almost the same, so the cabbage is definitely heavier now than before pickling. We'll charge you 5 cents per jin. Even if you sell it for 5 cents, you won't lose money."
The market price of cabbage is similar to that of sweet potatoes and radishes, so five cents for cabbage is indeed not a small amount for Song Lubai.
Before Song Hai could speak, Song Lubai continued, "A jar of radish strips weighs exactly thirty catties. It contains a lot of good ingredients, such as oil, sugar, chili peppers, Sichuan peppercorns, and various spices. We want it for 12 cents a catty. Whether it's worth it or not, you'll know once you taste it."
Song Hai had just thought the pickled cabbage was expensive, but when he heard the price of the radish strips, he was completely dismayed.
"Twelve cents? That's way too expensive."
Song Lubai said, "You tried it last year. It was oily and had sugar and other ingredients in it. It couldn't possibly be cheap!"
“I didn’t overcharge you. I calculated the cost before I gave you this price. If you keep it in a cool, ventilated place, it won’t spoil for months. These months are the time when there are no vegetables to eat, so it’s the perfect time to sell pickled vegetables.”
Song Hai said, "I'll give you 1.3 yuan a jar of pickled cabbage. That's not a low price. Don't try to bargain with me. I've already given you a good price. 3.5 yuan a jar of radishes is also a good price. What do you think?"
Song Lubai said, "I can give you the cabbage, but the radish is made with high-quality ingredients, so I really can't give it to you."
Song Hai was too lazy to argue with her anymore. "Fine, whatever you say goes. Let's talk about the processing for us."
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