Chapter 491: Going to Town to Sell Crayfish

Ye Cheng showed a faint smile, stared at Kong Lao Ban, and asked, "Do you have any now?"

Kong Lao Ban's face stiffened; indeed, there are none now, the season is past.

"A Yong, bring our crayfish over." Ye Cheng turned his head and said to Duan Yong.

Ye Cheng pressed a crayfish from the water tank and took it out, then introduced it in front of Kong Lao Ban,

"Kong Ge, our crayfish are farmed; I know farmed seafood isn't as valuable as wild, but."

Ye Cheng paused heavily in his tone, then continued,

"Since Kong Ge also grew up in the countryside, you naturally know the crayfish's growing environment—stinky ditches, the dirtier the ditch, the more there are, right?"

Kong Lao Ban frowned and nodded; that's indeed the case, but theirs are fine?

"But ours are clean, absolutely no those dirty things—take a look."

Ye Cheng peeled open the crayfish, pointed at its belly, and said,

"Kong Ge, look, our crayfish's belly is white, unlike those from the sewers; theirs are black and may have parasites—ours are absolutely clean."

Kong Lao Ban reached out, took the crayfish, examined it carefully, and indeed it was spotless.

He lowered his head, took a few more from the water tank himself— they were all the same.

After looking, he flopped onto the chair, then began to speak slowly,

"Clean is clean, but I sell seafood; if I sell crayfish, nobody will buy them, and I'll be stuck with them."

Same old trick.

Ye Cheng saw through it; he was moved and began preparing to press the price.

Duan Yong was inexperienced; hearing they wouldn't accept, his face panicked and he looked at Ye Cheng.

Ye Cheng gave him a look, signaling him not to panic.

Then he himself sat down, composed,

"Kong Ge, how could it end up stuck in your hands? It's a one-of-a-kind nationwide; by then, not only will it sell, it might even help move your other goods."

Kong Lao Ban narrowed his eyes, staring at Ye Cheng without speaking.

Ye Cheng also stayed silent; the two old foxes just stared at each other, and the scene instantly became extremely awkward.

Finally, Kong Lao Ban couldn't hold back; he coldly said,

"All the words are yours; if it ends up stuck in my hands later, you won't compensate me."

"We'll guarantee it; any unsold we'll take back."

Hearing Ye Cheng say that, Kong Lao Ban immediately changed his expression and laughed.

"That's fine, Cheng, as long as you guarantee it; you also know business is tough now, and this crayfish has never been sold before."

"Got it, Kong Ge; rest assured, I won't let you lose out."

After the two exchanged insincere understanding, Kong Lao Ban put on a genial smile and asked, "Then what price do you plan to sell at?"

Ye Cheng stretched out his right hand, gestured, "8 per catty."

"8!" Kong Lao Ban startled, reacting the same as Duan Yong upon hearing the price.

"How could this sell? You're not wasting my stall, are you?"

Seeing Kong Lao Ban's startled look, Ye Cheng was unfazed, calm-faced, and said,

"Kong Ge, it's one-of-a-kind and safe; do you think city folks will buy it or not?"

Kong Lao Ban hesitated a moment,

"That's too expensive; before we only sold it for 3."

"Kong Ge, rest assured; we'll try for two days, and if it doesn't work we'll pull back—does that sound okay?"

Kong Lao Ban's shrewd eyes flashed, and he pointed at Ye Cheng, saying,

"Fine, you said it—just sell for two days; if not, you take it back."

Hearing Kong Lao Ban finally agree, Ye Cheng's mouth finally curled up.

"Kong Ge, we do business with integrity; then tomorrow I'll have Duan Yong deliver two hundred catties over?"

Ye Cheng pointed to Duan Yong standing aside.

"Okay, deliver by 3 p. m.; if late I won't have time."

"No problem, I'll definitely deliver before 3."

After settling the time with Kong Lao Ban, Ye Cheng left that half-tank of crayfish there as a sample.

After finishing here, Ye Cheng took Duan Yong to buy another motorcycle; for daily dawn deliveries, we can't just walk, can we?

Back in the village, Duan Yong directly rode the new motorcycle to the farm.

The motorcycle's roar attracted Yuan Jiansheng and He Feiyang; seeing Duan Yong's new bike, the two youths immediately gathered around.

"Holy shit, A Yong, you bought a motorcycle yourself?" Yuan Jiansheng's eyes flashed with envy.

Duan Yong patted the motorcycle seat, smiling, "No way, Cheng Ge bought it for me."

The two turned to look at Ye Cheng, regretting not having gone to town with him today.

Seeing them so happy, Ye Cheng didn't want to dampen their spirits, so he pressed down his hand, signaling them to quiet down a bit.

"Your previous bike was often ridden away by Xiao Hu, so we bought you a new one—but don't get too excited yet; this is for making deliveries."

Upon hearing the words "make deliveries," they realized this was for going to town to discuss business.

"Cheng Ge, did you really settle a buyer?"

"Yeah, 8 per catty, deliver for two days first, then we'll see."

Hearing "two days," their eager faces froze instantly,

"Two days?"

"Let Duan Yong explain the details; tonight we'll first scoop some out, then you three can take turns delivering—don't wear out one person."

Having finished speaking, Ye Cheng let Duan Yong go explain to them.

They hadn't walked far when they heard the three of them repeatedly exclaiming there.

Delivered at 3 a. m., need to set off at 2, and at night have to bring up the lobsters — also a hard job.

Ye Cheng and Duan Yong had returned after lunch; they had thought time would be tight, but now it seems there's enough time.

Ye Cheng called Duan Chunsheng and Xiao Hu, telling them to go out to sea this afternoon to put the fish trap and such, so they can collect the goods tomorrow morning.

He then walked into the village committee with his hands behind his back.

Just as he entered, a stirring opera melody drifted into Ye Cheng's ears.

Chen Jinhai lounged on the recliner, holding a small radio, eyes closed, humming along.

This scene made Ye Cheng's body jerk, and he felt odd.

Hearing the sound, Chen Jinhai opened his eyes, saw it was Ye Cheng, his body tensed involuntarily, then immediately relaxed.

He slowly rose to his feet, calmly looking at Ye Cheng, as if he were just an ordinary villager come to handle business.

"Lao Er's here, what's up?"

"This isn't right."

Ye Cheng's eyes narrowed slightly, his brows furrowed — is this still the village chief who usually fools around with him?

"How come he feels like a monk who's left home?"

"Oh, I came to ask about a piece of land."

"Want to contract it again?"

"Yeah, I want to take a look."

After their brief exchange, Chen Jinhai led Ye Cheng into the office and sat down.

"Go on, which plot — I'll see if anyone's there."