Chapter 1016: Sun Benchuan Also Came Prepared: Information Asymmetry Is Where the Big Money Lies

In the guesthouse, Luo Liwei brought hot water for Sun Benchuan, brewed him a cup of fine tea, and asked as he poured:

"Mr. Sun, do you think this Li Long will agree to your suggestion and sell that piece of jade?"

"He will." At this moment, Sun Benchuan had shed the humility and caution he had shown in Li Long's courtyard; sitting in a chair, he accepted the tea Luo Liwei had brewed, took a small sip, and sighed, "Now this is tea. What I drank at that purchasing station was simply like muddy water."

After taking another sip, he set down his teacup and continued:

"With so much beef and mutton, relying solely on Li Long's own connections, he could never possibly dispose of it all. However, we must not let our guard down; at most, it will take a week for news of that matter to reach here."

"I gave Li Long one day to consider, precisely to pressure him into panic; once he panics, our opportunity will arrive."

Speaking thus, Sun Benchuan thought of that piece of jade and praised:

"I have seen so many exquisite jades, including many naturally shaped and extremely beautiful ones, yet none can compare to this one! I must obtain it!"

Luo Liwei curled his lips in a barely perceptible sneer; he did not understand why his boss was so obsessed with jade and antiques. In his view, if one had money, buying apartment buildings, villas, Simmons mattresses, cameras, and automobiles was the proper business.

He had even felt how unfair the world was upon hearing that Li Long owned a Jeep; here he was, a distinguished university graduate, yet somehow inferior to a farmer who hadn't even finished junior high!

Sun Benchuan did own a car, a Crown sedan no less. But with his monthly salary of just over one hundred yuan, at current car prices, even going without food or drink for ten years would only buy a minivan, let alone a sedan!

Because of this, Luo Liwei harbored deep resentment toward Li Long; he hoped Sun Benchuan would achieve his goal, causing Li Long to lose something he cherished, for if Li Long suffered, he himself would feel better.

"I'll go ask the front desk whether Li Long has called," Luo Liwei said after a moment's thought. "Perhaps a call came and we missed it."

"Impossible." Sun Benchuan shook his head. "When I returned yesterday, I instructed the front desk to come find me immediately upon receiving any call for me. The fact that no call has come yet indicates that Li Long is quite capable of holding out."

"Then should I go urge them to check?" Luo Liwei asked.

"No need. As we saw at the purchasing station yesterday, he is now receiving over a hundred head of cattle and sheep daily. With such volume, the pressure on both cash flow and inventory is immense; the solution I proposed should be his only possible way out of these difficulties."

"If he does not want those cattle and sheep to spoil in his warehouse, he can only listen to me... of course, this presupposes he does not know that news. I imagine it is highly unlikely he knows such news."

Yet by noon, Sun Benchuan had still received no call from Li Long. From time to time, the telephone at the attendant's desk would ring, but whenever Sun Benchuan and Luo Liwei pricked up their ears, they heard the attendant calling for other rooms.

Near mealtime, Luo Liwei could no longer contain himself; he went to the service counter and asked earnestly. The attendant was quite polite and showed him the call register; indeed, there were no calls for them.

"Could it be that Li Long is truly stubborn enough to persist in not contacting us? Is he even indifferent to those unsellable cattle and sheep?" Luo Liwei said to Sun Benchuan.

"Do not worry; is there not still the entire afternoon?" Sun Benchuan himself was growing somewhat anxious, but before Luo Liwei he had to maintain composure, appearing as though he held all the answers. "Most likely, by tomorrow morning he will call. It matters not; his not calling is actually convenient. Let us go out for a stroll and sample some of the local delicacies."

The two put on their coats and left; upon departing, Luo Liwei specifically told the front desk attendant to take note of any calls for the two of them, record the numbers, and that he would call back upon his return.

Sun Benchuan expressed great satisfaction with Luo Liwei's meticulous thoughtfulness.

They asked around upon going out, then walked to the Tuanfeng Tower for their meal.

When the food was served, Sun Benchuan asked the attendant if she knew Li Long; unexpectedly, the people there did know him, and their assessment of him was quite favorable.

After the attendant left, Sun Benchuan shook his head and said:

"It seems Li Long's standing among the masses is very strong; making him yield will truly not be easy. I have decided: if he still has not called by tomorrow morning, I will take the initiative to seek him out and may appropriately raise the purchase price somewhat."

"Raise it again? Twenty thousand US dollars!" Luo Liwei was nearly driven mad; twenty thousand US dollars, at the current black-market exchange rate, could be exchanged for over a hundred thousand yuan—it felt like an amount he might never earn in his entire life!

"If I get my hands on this piece of jade and manipulate things slightly, I can sell it for at least one hundred thousand US dollars—do you not find that fellow's story extremely compelling?"

Luo Liwei was not yet married, but he was confident in his abilities, so he did not consider having children a difficult task.

Therefore, he did not find that story particularly compelling.

But since Sun Benchuan had already made his decision, it would be improper for him to object further.

While they were dining at Tuanfeng Tower, Li Long and his family were also eating in the large courtyard.

Upon hearing Li Long recount the details regarding the phone call, Gu Gu Bo Yuan breathed a sigh of relief and said with sudden realization:

"No wonder that fellow was so brazen; so that's how things stand! He truly wants to earn our money, acquire your piece of jade, and gain credit for doing a favor all at once!"

"Thus, making money truly relies on information asymmetry. You see, I suspect this Sun Benchuan must have known this news long ago, which is why he rushed over; ostensibly he is here to help solve our difficulties, but in reality he intends to exploit this information gap to profit from me, and before I learn the exact news, I might even have to thank him for solving my troubles."

"What a villain!" Gu Gu Xiaoxia said resentfully. "I most detest people who have eight hundred schemes in their hearts yet never apply them to good purposes."

Since the situation had taken a turn for resolution, the whole family relaxed; during the meal, the food tasted far more delicious than it had in recent times, utterly delightful.

The entire family was happy; no one suspected any issue with the source of this information.

After all, the call had come from over there.

At the purchasing station, after eating lunch at noon, Gu Gu Bo Yuan resumed purchasing beef and mutton. Previously he had been selective, but now he made no distinctions whatsoever; as long as the animals had been slaughtered recently, whether old sheep or lambs, he bought them all, though with price differences, which was necessary.

Whether Sun Jia Qiang, Liang Shuang Cheng, or the secondary traders coming to sell cattle and sheep, all perceived the change in Gu Gu Bo Yuan's attitude toward purchasing; although they did not know the reason and dared not ask, each of them was quite pleased.

It indicated that the situation had taken a turn for the better.

With matters easily resolved, Li Long spent the afternoon accompanying Mingming and Haohao playing in the snow in the courtyard. When the knocking sound arose, Li Long was being attacked by snowballs thrown by Mingming and Haohao; from time to time he deliberately pretended to be clumsy and allowed himself to be hit, satisfying the two children's sense of accomplishment.

"Come in!" Li Long called out. "The door isn't locked."

Those who entered were He Yuqing and Meng Hai.

Only then did Li Long realize that earlier he had vaguely heard the sound of a tractor outside; it must have been them arriving.

Since he was accompanying Mingming and Haohao at play, he had not paid attention.

After all, several years had passed since the Reform and Opening-up; in Ma County, more and more people could afford tractors, so seeing a tractor on the streets in the dead of winter was no longer anything rare. It would only be rare if a passing vehicle were a car honking its horn.

"Comrade Li Long, accompanying the children at play, I see?" Meng Hai said with a smile. "We came to see you; we brought some chicken and fish, all prepared this morning."

"Coming is enough; why bring gifts?" Li Long said with a laugh. "Come, let's go inside for tea."

"Very well." Meng Hai and He Yuqing followed Li Long into the house together. Mingming and Haohao had not yet tired of playing; with Li Long absent, the two became little tyrants, pinching small snowballs and beginning to attack the dogs and lambs in the courtyard.

Little Black and the lambs born this year were also excited to compete with Mingming and Haohao. In their small minds, they knew these two children were their masters and must not be harmed, otherwise they would be done for.

"Comrade Li Long, we heard you have purchased quite a lot of beef and mutton; with the New Year approaching, what do you think about us buying some from you?"

Upon He Yuqing saying this, Li Long immediately understood.

He said with a smile:

"Have you heard something and come to rescue me from my predicament? Hahaha, rest assured, no need, no need. I can dispose of this beef and mutton; if I truly cannot, I will seek you out."

Li Long guessed correctly; Meng Hai and He Yuqing had heard that Li Long had purchased large quantities of beef and mutton. Someone had come to their village to purchase hides, and that trader had recounted the matter as gossip, which the hide sellers then told Meng Hai.