Chapter 1060: No Father and Son in Business; Fraud Cannot Last Long

The volume of goods being purchased wasn't that large, so Chen Hongjun now handled many matters personally.

When sellers arrived, he stood at the counter to register and pay for the stock based on quality; if no one came, he worked alongside his assistants to process the acquired goods.

To make money, one cannot fear hard work; ever since witnessing Li Long's speed in earning profits, and having reaped tangible benefits from these last two sales, Chen Hongjun had become even more diligent.

So when Qin Liguo came to invite him, he was somewhat surprised.

"You've opened a purchasing station too? Excellent, excellent! Where is it located? When does it open?" Regarding his former colleague Qin Liguo starting a purchasing station, Chen Hongjun didn't feel much about it.

Profitable businesses are never easily monopolized by those at the bottom; following trends has instead become a habit.

Actually, it was just that Chen Hongjun's mind was entirely focused on his own purchasing station, paying no attention to others; otherwise, with just a little inquiry, he would have known that Qin Liguo had already planned to start a purchasing station back when Chen made his profit from the first sale.

Qin Liguo was the very colleague Chen Hongjun had chatted with and asked when preparing to open his station; at that time, Qin Liguo had said that if he joined, it would be a partnership. Naturally, Chen Hongjun wanted no part of that; if he provided all the capital and then recruited someone who contributed no money, wouldn't that be simply giving money away for free?

Chen Hongjun ignored this Qin Liguo, but Qin Liguo had been keeping a close watch on Chen's purchasing station. At first, seeing only three or five people coming daily to sell goods at Chen's station, he had secretly mocked him.

But when Chen Hongjun sold his first batch of furs and earned several thousand yuan, Qin Liguo could no longer sit still.

Since they all came from the purchasing station background, they were all clear about its twists and turns; it was simply buying low and selling high.

Several of them held some personal connections, so now that someone had blazed the trail, Qin Liguo naturally wanted to follow; he wasn't following just to sip some broth, but to gnaw on several meaty bones.

Securing a courtyard, handling procedures, and hiring staff—Qin Liguo hired his own cousin's son, thus saving on wages.

Like Chen Hongjun, he had arranged for unpaid leave while retaining his position; anyway, even if the venture failed, he could return to his job. For units like theirs, they actually hoped everyone would take unpaid leave to start businesses, as this would save them a sum of expenses.

Unlike Chen Hongjun, who opened so discreetly, Qin Liguo invited many people to a banquet, and the courtyard of his purchasing station was decorated, creating a lively and bustling atmosphere.

As a former colleague, inviting Chen Hongjun appeared on the surface to be out of politeness; as for whether there were other intentions, that was hard to say.

The banquet was at noon, yet he only came to invite people in the morning; Chen Hongjun understood Qin Liguo's intentions clearly. While sorting Fritillaria, he said to Qin Liguo:

"I wish you a smooth opening and a booming business. I won't be going; as you can see, the shop is quite busy, my small operation hasn't hired many people, and I still have to do the work myself."

Qin Liguo smiled and said, "Very well, I won't disturb you from making money; I also wish your business prosperity!"

After Qin Liguo left, Chen Hongjun didn't take the matter to heart. With Beiting City being so vast, one or two more purchasing stations opening wouldn't have much impact. The key was whether they could get established and grow strong.

Because he could cross the river by feeling Chen Hongjun's stones, Qin Liguo had made considerable preparations beforehand; before the opening, he promoted the station in many places and even set up a large blackboard at the main gate, writing the day's purchase prices on it.

The price he offered for Fritillaria was a full two yuan per kilogram higher than Chen Hongjun's, so immediately after the banquet began, many people came to sell their goods.

Although the Fritillaria these people brought was only in quantities of three to five kilograms each, with many people crowding together, it indeed looked very booming and lively, giving the impression that this business could succeed.

As news spread, many people waited to watch the spectacle, eager to see the showdown between Qin Liguo's shop and Chen Hongjun's shop.

If Chen Hongjun had known everyone had such thoughts, he would have felt quite wronged; he had never thought of competing with anyone, only wishing to run his purchasing station peacefully and steadily.

In the first couple of days after Qin Liguo's purchasing station opened, Chen Hongjun indeed had fewer sellers, but within a few days, those second-hand dealers returned.

Chen Hongjun didn't need to inquire; the dealers themselves brought up the matter.

"That purchasing station opened by the surname Qin shouts slogans loudly, claiming high purchase prices and urging us to sell our Fritillaria there."

"On the surface, the prices are indeed higher than here, but they are extremely picky; if the bulbs are slightly smaller or a bit dirty, they deduct money."

"Moreover, the scale seems somewhat inaccurate; they deduct too much for tare weight and impurities. Calculating all these miscellaneous deductions, it's not as cost-effective as selling to you, Boss Old Chen."

Second-hand dealers care nothing for friendship, only for profit. They come to make money; if you tell them openly they will earn more, but actually deduct the price through other means, who can tolerate that?

Chen Hongjun merely smiled upon hearing this; he would not speak ill of others, focusing instead on doing his own work well and earning his own money.

Before he even thought of seeking out Qin Liguo, unexpectedly, in mid-May, Qin Liguo came to find him instead.

When Qin Liguo arrived, Chen Hongjun was evaluating a seller's Fritillaria:

"Your Fritillaria is a mix of dry and fresh. There are dried goods and fresh goods; it's difficult for me to set a price like this. How about this: we shake the bag to mix it evenly, then grab a large handful to check the ratio of fresh to dried goods inside."

"For dried Fritillaria, I'll give you eighty yuan per kilogram; for fresh Fritillaria, fifteen yuan per kilogram. I won't even mention the impurities in here; after calculating the ratio of fresh to dried, I'll give you a unified price, how about that?"

The dealer knew clearly the condition of his own Fritillaria, so since Chen Hongjun explained it so plainly, he naturally had no objection.

Chen Hongjun shook the bag evenly, then grabbed a large handful of Fritillaria from inside; after sorting through it, dried Fritillaria accounted for one-third, and fresh Fritillaria for two-thirds. Thus, the average price was calculated.

Weighing the goods, calculating the account, and showing it to the dealer, who had no objection.

Just as Chen Hongjun was preparing to pay, Qin Liguo walked into the courtyard; regardless of what Chen was doing, he spoke directly:

"Old Chen, seeing your business is doing well, I've come to discuss something with you?"

"Wait a moment; I need to pay this person first." Chen Hongjun had his own rules for business; after paying the dealer, he finished purchasing the goods from the next two or three people in line, and only then looked at Qin Liguo.

At this point, Qin Liguo was somewhat impatient, but he restrained himself, neither leaving nor losing his temper.

"Old Qin, just say what's on your mind." Chen Hongjun wiped his hands with the Mao Jin nearby, instructed his assistant to take the purchased Fritillaria to the backyard for processing, and since no one else remained by the purchasing counter, Chen's meaning was clear: whatever you have to say, go ahead and say it.

"It's like this; I want to ask what your selling price for the Fritillaria is?" The question Qin Liguo opened with made Chen Hongjun somewhat unhappy; he shook his head and said, "Prices follow the market; how much someone pays for goods certainly depends on the quality; I cannot tell you this."

"Old Chen, I'm not trying to pry into your trade secrets; I just want to say, let's cooperate. I'll sell the Fritillaria to you at five yuan less than your purchase price; this way, you earn a five-yuan difference, and it's more convenient for me to offload my stock, how about that?"

"Not good at all." Chen Hongjun immediately guessed that the goods Qin Liguo had purchased probably had some issues; currently, his own buyer, Shang Jia Tianlong, hadn't arrived yet, but he knew Qin Liguo also had his own contacts on that side.

The fact that Qin Liguo could say such things indicated that others might not accept his goods; as for why, Chen Hongjun didn't want to know; he only wanted to conduct his business properly and regularity, without getting involved in others' troubles.

"Five yuan is quite a lot! In these past few days, I've also purchased over a hundred kilograms of Fritillaria; if you buy it all and immediately resell it to them, that's an income of over five hundred yuan! How much was your salary originally? This amounts to half a year's wages for you!" Qin Liguo hadn't expected Chen Hongjun to ignore his proposal; becoming slightly anxious, he said.

"Then why don't you sell it yourself?" Chen Hongjun countered, "Isn't it better for you to pocket those five hundred yuan yourself? Don't tell me you can't find a place to sell. Regarding those years working at the state-run purchasing station, selling Fritillaria privately—surely I don't need to say more about such things?"

Upon Chen Hongjun saying this, Qin Liguo's face immediately turned red. Back when they were at the state-run purchasing station, certain individuals had indeed engaged in some private dealings, colluding with dealers to withhold Fritillaria and then secretly resell it to purchasers to earn the difference.

At that time, Chen Hongjun had not yet become the station master, so naturally, he didn't intervene much. Later, when he became station master, he standardized the procurement of materials, and some purchasers stopped coming.

Qin Liguo's face flushed red then turned pale; naturally, he couldn't tell Chen Hongjun that some of the Fritillaria he had purchased was adulterated with other substances; the purchasers were knowledgeable, spotting the problem at a glance.

Qin Liguo was effectively on the other party's blacklist. It was also his own fault for being too eager for success; knowing Chen Hongjun made money selling Fritillaria, he wanted to quickly get a share of the meat himself. Adulteration, if done well, would likely go unnoticed by most, allowing one to muddle through—

Actually, it was his family members who took the initiative to do it; by the time he found out, it was already too late.

He didn't attach much importance to it, thinking that since it had happened, they might as well proceed this way.

But encountering those shrewd buyers ruined his reputation.

Qin Liguo didn't know that those purchasers were connected, divided their own territories, and shared information; he admitted that the first time, he was blinded by greed, and later, when he tried to be more regular, they collaborated to put him on the blacklist.