Chapter 208 Two in One
After confirming that another batch of grain would be shipped out, Ding Guo took some time to go around and learn about the current market conditions. She found a time, dressed up as the old lady she was last time, and went to the black market where Mosquito was.
She also thought about changing a client, but it would take some time to find a new target. Besides, she had a good impression of Mosquito from the last transaction. She was someone who was worth her making a big deal.
As soon as I got close, I saw the bored mosquito's eyes suddenly light up, and there was disbelief in his expression when he looked at me.
Mosquito really 'missed' that little old lady.
For a long time after the last transaction, Mosquito kept an eye out for the old lady who appeared in his territory, but he searched everywhere and couldn't find the old lady.
For this purpose, Mosquito reviewed the transaction process between the two several times.
The payment for the goods was not deducted, and there were no violations of transaction rules. No one was arranged to watch or track her afterwards. Why didn't the old lady come to find her?
The boss here asked her several times if she had met that customer again. After all, that batch of goods was good, and the quality of the grain was better than the public grain handed in by the village. They also sold it at a good price, and the buyer also asked them several times.
But what can she do?
People come here with makeup on, and the face they show you is not real, and it is impossible for them to leave any other useful information.
A whole summer passed and the old lady didn't show up again. She had lost hope. Suddenly, she seemed to see that familiar face again. How could she not be excited?
"Sister!" Mosquito ran over in two or three steps, his eyes were burning, and he smiled warmly, "Are you here to buy something or..."
Ding Guo was almost burned by the light in this girl's eyes.
"Hey!" Ding Guo didn't hesitate and directly stated his purpose. "Do you want food? Three thousand kilograms!"
Mosquito nodded quickly: "Yes, yes, yes, the price of wheat nowadays..."
"No wheat, only corn this time."
"Corn, too."
Wheat is more expensive, but corn is also doing well at the moment.
As long as it's food, it's fine.
After the black market was rectified, although the food shortage is more serious than in the summer, the price increase is not as exaggerated as before.
The grain resellers on the black market seemed to have reached some kind of tacit agreement and did not dare to speculate on grain prices as they did last time, fearing that they would be punished again.
According to their gossip, the last crackdown was not only about the private circulation of grain, but was also related to exaggerating prices, which was jointly reported by some people.
"Sister, I believe you have also investigated. The price of corn on the black market is 46 cents per pound now. It is lower than last time, but higher than when there was no shortage of food. Not only in the city, but also in several trading points in the suburbs, the price is the same. No one dares to raise the price too much."
Last time, the price of corn rose to more than 60 cents, and sweet potato flour was almost 50 cents.
The price increases of wheat and rice are even more exaggerated, so it is no wonder that it has caused public outrage.
Mosquito is not revealing his true colors; these are not secrets.
Since they are delivering the goods again, they must have already inspected it. There is nothing we can do about it.
Ding Guo had already thought of his offer before he came: "I'll sell it to you for 45 cents!"
"Sister, let's talk about this." Mosquito smiled bitterly. She also held Ding Guo's arm with one hand, fearing that the old lady would leave again if she disagreed with him.
"This time is different from last time. The price may go up a little bit, but definitely not much. Our profit can be seen at a glance. Please leave some profit for us." Mosquito said with a smile.
Ding Guo believed this, but not completely. Even if the food price rose slowly, it was still possible for it to rise to 50 cents.
Because she owns a shopping mall, her cost can be lower. But if this batch of grain is really collected from the village, she can only make a profit of three or two cents, maybe even less than that.
Selling to mosquitoes at 45 cents may not be profitable at the moment, but in two days the profit may increase. As for the current situation, food will be scarce until the new grain arrives next year.
Even if the price on the black market would not skyrocket, it would certainly be higher, so Ding Guo also tried his best to push for it.
Mosquito was also patient. She kept talking to Ding Guo for half an hour with an enthusiastic smile on her face. Finally, seeing that the girl's face was stiff from smiling, Ding Guo gave in a penny and closed the deal at 4.4 cents.
"Thank you, sis!"
Finally, the price was lowered a bit. Mosquito breathed a sigh of relief, rubbed his cheeks, and said, "Sister, let's do it in the same place and the same way?"
This is not the time to offer discounts for large quantities, so if she could cut a point, Mosquito felt that her commission this month would be stable again.
Ding Guo nodded: "Tonight, at the same time and place. I'll say this in advance. If you guys have any other tricks, the deal will be cancelled."
"Don't worry, sister. We are all doing this business with conscience. We just want to make some money to support our families. We don't think about anything else." Mosquito said.
Ding Guo nodded and prepared to leave. Mosquito thought for a moment and called her back, saying, "Sister, is there anything you want that I can help you keep an eye out for?"
She hopes to have more business dealings with this sister.
Don't let this deal end, or it will be next year when you see her again.
I don’t know if this sister is too cautious or if there are other partners. If it is the latter, she hopes that this sister will pay more attention to them.
Not to mention other things on their side, they definitely don't engage in any robbing or robbery.
Ding Guo thought for a moment and said, "Do you have any live chickens or ducks? If you have any, please buy some for me and bring them over tonight. If you can't buy any, that's fine too."
Mosquito quickly agreed: "Yes, the price on the black market is between one dollar and one dollar. It depends on the seller's price. Do you know it, sister?"
There must be some. Even if they don’t have any for sale today, she will arrange for other brothers to go to other places to buy them, and buy as many as they can.
Ding Guo had also bought chickens and ducks before, so she knew the current market conditions and nodded, "It's settled then."
After watching Ding Guo tiptoe away, Mosquito hurried back to report the news and arranged for people to buy chickens and ducks.
They met at the usual place in the evening. After inspecting the goods and weighing them, Ding Guo received the payment and paid for three chickens and two ducks. The deal was concluded at RMB 1.20 per pound.
Ding Guo didn't pay attention to the specific price paid by the other party, even if it was just some hard-earned money.
She asked Haozi to help report the weight, and it made no difference.
Mosquito whispered, "Old lady, if you need anything from me in the future, just let me know. It doesn't matter if we don't sell food, it's still quite convenient for us to collect some things."
Ding Guo responded with a smile.
Of course she knew Mosquito's intention, but she would not ship out large quantities of grain in the short term, at most one batch a year ago.
As for buying things, she would not ask Mosquito for help alone, but would buy them herself when she had time.
After trading this batch of grain, Ding Guo returned home and quietly opened the door to the west courtyard.
I'm getting ready to wean my two kids off breast milk, so I have to stay away from them tonight.
It wasn't that difficult. The two kids were used to drinking milk powder now. Drinking milk was just to satisfy their cravings, but they were also a bit addictive. After hiding for two days, the two kids made a fuss when they saw her again, but Ding Guo politely rejected their expression. Seeing that their tears and eye accusations were of no use, the two little guys reluctantly believed what their mother said, "It's gone", and turned to Grandma Qiao for milk powder.
Ding Guo successfully stopped breastfeeding, overcame the discomfort of breast engorgement and milk withdrawal, and regained her sense of relief.
Calculating the time, Ding Guo mailed two brightly colored satin quilt covers back to Xiao Hong.
Xiao Hong specifically called Ding Guo's workplace and said a little embarrassedly, "Sister Ding Guo, thank you. This gift is so precious. You don't know that my mother has been looking for satin quilt covers for me since last year, but she couldn't get any. It was only through my uncle's connections that he helped me buy two quilts. I didn't expect you to give me such a valuable gift."
Ding Guo smiled and said, "It doesn't matter if the gift is expensive or not, as long as it suits your taste."
Xiao Hong laughed, "It's just what we wanted, and what our whole family wanted. My mom told me again and again to call you and tell you, thank you so much. I'll send you wedding candy later."
Ding Guo smiled and said, "Okay, I'm waiting to eat the wedding candy."
The dressing table that Xiao Hong gave her when she got married was also very thoughtful. She brought it with her when she came to the capital and has been using it ever since.
At the end of September, I received the wedding candy sent by Xiao Hong. She sent her a pound of White Rabbit milk candy mixed with packaged fruit candies. She also sent her some pickled vegetables made by Xiao Hong's mother and two sets of cotton-padded clothes for the children.
I took it back and gave it to the two little ones to try. It's a size bigger, but a size bigger is the best.
This year, the cotton-padded clothes that Aunt Qiao and her family bought for Dabao and Xiaobao will be a size bigger.
Children grow taller with the wind, so their cotton-padded clothes will be a size larger now, but by the end of this winter, their cotton-padded clothes will be just the right size for them, and they will have to be taken apart and made bigger for next year.
Because there were children at home and there was no air conditioning at that time, the stove was lit as soon as the temperature dropped. Now the room was not cold, so after trying on clothes, Aunt Qiao changed them.
These two cotton coats are a bit thick and not suitable to wear at this time.
When the first snow of winter fell, Ding Guo received a letter from Taozi.
Zheng Wenfang gave birth to a son, and the old man was overjoyed to have a son in his old age; the cousin's wife gave birth to a daughter, and the cousin was a little disappointed and gave Lu Xiaomei the cold shoulder. Lu Xiaomei, who had just given birth, had a fight with Ding Jianguo because of this.
Ding Tao waited until Lu Xiaomei gave birth before writing the letter.
Ding Jianguo also had two daughters in his previous life. He was full of disgust and always wanted Xiao Hong to continue giving birth to sons. In the end, Xiao Hong divorced Ding Jianguo with her two daughters.
Being his daughter was also unlucky.
In addition, there was a conflict between Ding Jiandang and Ding Xiang.
Ding Jianshe's return gave Ding Jiandang, who had been bullied at home, a backbone. Now he visits Yue Hongmei frequently.
The cooperation between the two people in picking up and selling scraps also ended, and Ding Xiang started to work alone.
For this purpose, Ding Xiang went to find Ding Tao to take the money that she had, took out the part that belonged to Ding Jiandang and gave it to him, and then put her own part back in Ding Tao's place and wrote a new note.
Ding Tao said in the letter: "After Lao Wu took the money and left, Ding Xiang burst into tears in front of me. She was sobbing. I thought she used to regard Ding Jiandang as someone who depended on her for life, but she didn't expect that because of Ding Jiandang, her last spiritual support was gone. It made me cry!"
Ding Xiang was unhappy because Ding Jianshe insisted that she find an opportunity to apologize to Ding Nianjun; similarly, Ding Jianshe did not understand her stubbornness and thought she was an ungrateful person who had learned bad things from Ding Guo.
Now, because Zheng Wenfang had given birth to a child, she had the added job of taking care of her stepmother during her confinement in addition to her daily housework. Ding Jianshe scolded her that she deserved it and that she was born to be a worthless person.
You would rather serve irrelevant people at home than bow your head. Isn't this what you deserve?
I don’t understand how Nianjun offended Dingxiang that made her so stubborn.
Ding Xiang didn't say much to her second brother, because her second brother's understanding of certain things was the same as her mother's, and he couldn't explain Ding Nianjun's affairs to them at all.
As for her insistence on staying at home, it seemed that she had nowhere else to go except for her stubbornness in insisting on occupying her own position.
But if she stayed at home, she would have to temporarily accept her father's arrangements. She did not have Ding Guo's ability and courage to resist, and she was not old enough to resist.
It’s just that because she has to take care of Zheng Wenfang during her confinement period, she has less time to go out.
Also, because Ding Jianshe came back, she had no chance to help Yue Hongmei buy things anymore, and couldn't earn money from her mother. She could only rack her brains to squeeze money from her stepmother and biological father, saving every penny, and when she had enough, she would deposit it with Ding Tao.
Ding Guo wrote back to Ding Tao, talking about some trivial daily life, asking about the situation over there, and once again reminding Ding Tao to take Zhaodi to read more books. At the end, he mentioned Ding Xiang: Let her read more books too!
Ding Tao was very confused when she received the letter. Why did her sister bring this up again? She really didn't want to read.
However, when Ding Xiang came to see her, she mentioned the matter of reading. At the critical moment, Ding Tao still did not mention Ding Guo's name.
Ding Xiang has changed a lot. In Ding Tao's opinion, this change is in the right direction, but it is hard to say how long she can keep it up.
So after thinking about it, I decided not to involve Sister Ding Guo.
Ding Xiang didn't understand why Sister Ding Tao mentioned reading, so Ding Tao had to bring up the theory that Ding Guo had used to persuade her before, and said against her will that she was also reading, thinking of reminding her to read more.
"Learning more knowledge will help you avoid being taken advantage of, and will also help you become more cunning." Ding Tao said, "Neither of us are cunning enough, otherwise when you grow up you won't be able to outsmart your stepmother."
Dingxiang really wanted to say that studying hard doesn’t make one smart. Her older brothers both finished high school and they didn’t seem to be very smart.
But Sister Ding Tao was doing this for her own good. Nowadays, there weren't many people who could truly do this for her own good. She couldn't refute such good intentions, so she nodded and said, "Okay, I'll review what I learned before. Sister Ding Tao, do you read the junior high school textbooks? Do you want me to help you find them?"
Ding Tao: ...
No, she doesn't look!
"I'm not in a hurry. I have the book your brother Dayong brought back here. You can read it first and give it to me after you finish reading it."
She just mentioned it, why is Dingxiang so proactive?
Ding Tao felt that her sister Ding Guo had set a trap for her.
In the evening, she received a call from Zhaodi and asked Ding Zhaodi, "If I ask you to read your junior high school textbook again, will you read it?"
Ding Zhaodi: "Why do you want to watch it again?"
Ding Tao breathed a sigh of relief and said that no one wanted to read what they had learned once.
Just as I was thinking this, I heard Zhaodi say, "There's none at home either!"
Ding Tao: ...
"Are you seeing anything?"
"Look, just treat it as a way to relieve boredom."
Ding Zhaodi's grades were better than Ding Tao's when she was in school. She was the type of person who worked very hard and loved to study, but her test scores were always mediocre, ranking in the top ten in the class.
I don't hate learning.
Ding Tao was speechless and couldn't understand.
Even though she didn't understand, she still waited for Dayong to come back from his business trip to borrow the book from him.
But what kind of books could Dayong have? Some were related to car repair. In the past two years, he had bought a lot of them from various channels, a thick stack.
Ding Tao couldn't even read this kind of book.
She felt pressured and was afraid that she wouldn't know what to say the next time Dingxiang asked her.
For the first time ever, Ding Tao borrowed a Chinese textbook for the first grade of junior high school from her colleagues at work. The content was not complete as several articles were missing.
She could barely understand a little bit of Chinese, but Ding Zhaodi was reading with great interest and even recited a passage from the text impromptu, which surprised Ding Tao.
"It's been so long, and you can still memorize this passage?"
Ding Zhaodi smiled shyly: "Because I didn't recite it well, I was punished to stand for a whole class, so I have a deep impression of it."
Ding Tao blinked: "I was punished to stand every other day, squat on the ground or lie on the side of the podium to do homework, and was also beaten with a stick. I have too many memories."
Too many impressions are worthless.
Ding Dayong didn't understand either. Ding Tao finally found someone she could talk to, but she forgot that although Dayong couldn't concentrate on textbooks, he was fascinated by books on mechanics.
But this did not stop her from proudly telling Ding Guo about this matter when she wrote to her again. Not only did she not like to study, but Dayong also did not like to study.
Ding Guo remembered that there were not many books at Fengning's home, so he sorted out the books he had read and sent them back to Ding Tao.
Complete
I have almost completed a complete set of junior high school textbooks.
There were only one or two new ones, the rest were all ones she had bought before, as well as some test papers with blurred handwriting and study notes written by others.
Ding Tao: The sky is falling!
A package was sent from my hometown, which contained small clothes and cotton boots made by Aunt San for the two children. There were two square little tigers embroidered on the front of the boots, which looked very cute.
There was also a letter telling Ding Guo that everything was fine at home and there was enough food.
Although the amount of food distributed to the members was not much, they still got some. Although the harvest of sweet potatoes planted in their private plots was not good, they still produced two bags. Moreover, there were the food that she and Dayong sent back, so they would not starve. They asked Ding Guo not to send them more food out of the blue.
The letter also mentioned that Ding Zhigang wrote a letter back to his hometown.
Even though Ding Dayong told Ding Zhigang that his hometown was also in difficulty, Ding Zhigang still wrote a letter to his hometown, asking if he could buy some food from there.
Both the second and third wives rejected me.
It's hard for him, he hasn't given up after dragging it on for so long.
After putting away the letter, Li Shumei, who was standing next to her, was also "closing up her stall" and putting a pair of old cotton trousers with two patches mended on them into a cloth bag.
"Wow, look how thick the snow is. You should ride slowly on the road later." Li Shumei said.
Ding Guo smiled and said, "Okay Sister Shumei, you too!"
It suddenly started snowing again at noon today. We hadn't heard any snow all afternoon. Now the snow on the road is above our ankles.
On the way home from get off work, Ding Guo took out a chicken from the space and hung it on the handlebars when there was no one around him, then rode back slowly.
Aunt Qiao saw Ding Guo bought a chicken and hurriedly took it over, saying, "Boil some water and freeze it. Then make half of it into soup and the other half into stir-fry tomorrow night?"
I have been living in Dingguo for so long that the standard of food at home is no longer surprising.
Even if Ding Guo didn't buy it, the old man would have people send it home. Ding Guo's eldest sister-in-law would also send some things from time to time, as well as Ding Guo's Aunt Yu. Speaking of Yu Shaofen, Aunt Qiao smiled and said, "Your Aunt Yu made two cotton cloaks for the two children. They were sent over at noon. They were made very well. The hood is made deep, and there is a baffle in the front. When it is fully wrapped, only the eyes are exposed."
Aunt Qiao raised her hand and gestured: "There are two little balls on the top of the hat. It looks so pretty!"
Ding Guo smiled and said, "I'll go take a look."
As for how to cook the chicken, it’s all up to Aunt Qiao and the others to decide.
Wang Chunhua was in the room watching over two children who were becoming more and more energetic. Both the older and younger children were still awake. They were sitting on the kang and playing. The kang was filled with toys.
Seeing Ding Guo come in, two pairs of little arms stretched out towards her, shouting "Ah ...
Wang Chunhua smiled and teased them: "Mom is back, you don't want Aunt Chunhua anymore, right?"
Ding Guo smiled and picked them up one by one and kissed them.
Although Wang Chunhua was used to seeing Ding Guo holding two babies at the same time, she couldn't help but admire him when she saw him again.
She tried, but couldn't hold out for long.
She had obviously held the baby for longer than Ding Guo, so why didn’t she develop the strength?
Ding Guo can hold two children and play with them for half a day at the same time.
"You play with Dabao and Xiaobao, I'll go cook with Aunt Qiao." Wang Chunhua said, "I just changed their diapers not long ago."
This is to remind Ding Guo that he can sit on the kang and play for a while after changing his diaper.
If she doesn't want to hold the child anymore, she can put him on the kang.
Ding Guo smiled and nodded, responding vaguely.
At this moment, two children are playing with her mouth, and I don’t know what this hobby is.
After kissing the two children enough, Ding Guo put them on the kang, and then he had time to look at the cloak that Aunt Yu had sent.
Two pieces of cloth with the same pattern, one is blue with white floral patterns, the other is red with white floral patterns.
The hat is indeed very deep, with a mask that opens to one side and sewn buttons at the front.
Ding Guo picked up Dabao and put the hat on him to try. He buttoned up the part covering his mouth and nose, but in fact, even his eyes could not be seen because the hat was deep and the brim naturally tilted forward, so Dabao had to tilt his little head back slightly to put it on.
But the brim of the hat can be folded up, just the right amount.
"Not bad, not bad. Let Grandma Qiao and Aunt Chunhua take you to the yard to see the snow tomorrow."
The milk powder that the two babies drink has always been made from well water, and with the jade pendants protecting their bodies, their body resistance is very strong.
Wear something thicker, wrap it tightly, and it won’t be a problem to take it out to play.
I have to go out to bask in the winter sun at noon.
Dabao felt uncomfortable being wrapped by his mother and struggled by waving his little hands. Ding Guo quickly untied him, put the cloak aside, and continued to play with the two little ones.
This year's New Year's Day fell on a Saturday, which was also the time when Pei Che came back. While the family was having dinner, the old man asked whether the military academy would arrange any training tasks during the winter vacation.
Ding Guo paused while eating.
Only then did I remember that the man was now in school and would have winter vacation.
Listening to Pei Che and Grandpa chatting, she had already started planning in her mind. Since she was planning to ship out another batch of grain at the end of the year, she couldn't wait until the end of the year. She had to ship out the grain before Pei Che went on winter vacation.
Otherwise, when Pei Che stayed at home every day, it would be inconvenient for her to go out.
I also have to get some other things done at home before then.
In mid-January, Ding Dayong came to the capital.
I just went to Northeast China with a convoy and came back last week.
I won’t be traveling long distances before the New Year, so I can go on short trips.
This time he came here to deliver goods near the capital, and he took a detour to deliver things to his sister and the money he earned in the past six months.
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