Chapter 131: Wood Returns to Original Price

Li Jiaci looked at his brother before him, and for a moment felt a mix of emotions.

In his previous life, he only thought of letting his brothers eat well and stay warm; lacking education and capital, he could only do whatever work earned money.

Zhang Shiqiang brought him into society, relying on his martial arts to find his footing, and he presumptuously dragged his five brothers into this muddy situation as well.

He always thought that being together with his brothers was happiness.

He never considered that a life of fighting and killing was less important than having an education.

With an education comes the chance to climb higher; it's the key to upper‑class society.

It was only when Li Jiaci looked at his brothers' black‑and‑white photos that he realized these truths.

Li Jiaci smiled and rubbed Li Yihu's cheek.

"Huzi, I'll teach you slowly from now on, brother!"

"Don't dwell on the past anymore!"

"We're now walking the right path!"

"Never do anything that breaks the law!"

Hearing this, Li Yihu nodded honestly.

He didn't care whether it was the right or wrong path; as long as his brother decided, he would surely raise both hands in approval.

Li Jiaci found a flashlight amid the mess.

The harsh white light shone on the walls surrounding the office.

Rows of large red‑painted characters came into the brothers' view.

"Paying debts is natural and right!"

Li Yihu clicked his tongue twice: "Living like him, this life would have been wasted!"

Li Jiaci loved hearing that.

It wasn't just because of Zheng Degui's fate, but also because this kid could see the essence through the problem.

Li Jiaci said: "Huzi, why I must bring you all onto the proper path—this is the reason. Zheng Degui's actions are all his own doing; if he had obeyed the law, he could never have ended up like this!"

"Brother, I understand!"

Li Yihu broke into a grin.

Li Jiaci again took the flashlight and looked around.

He had hoped to pick up some usable stuff to bring back, but everywhere he looked was unwanted junk.

Only this factory was still decent.

But after thinking it over, Li Jiaci still waved at Li Yihu and said, "It's too late; let's head back!"

"Okay!"

The two rode their motorcycle back to the factory.

It wasn't that Li Jiaci didn't want the site of Nian Yong Mu Cai Chang; it was just that the time wasn't right yet.

The next day.

Because several warehouses had no wood available, those middlemen again blocked the entrance of Shiqiang Mu Cai Chang, leaving no way through.

The clamor over wood kept rising without letup.

In contrast, the interior of the factory was peaceful and harmonious.

The workers processed the wood in orderly fashion, deaf to the clamor outside.

Li Jiaci glanced at the time—half past ten in the morning.

He told Liu Jiang, "Take a few people to clear the way at the gate!"

"Got it, brother!"

Liu Jiang set down his work and waved to a few nearby workers.

A group went outside the factory to clear the way, driving those middlemen and their vehicles to the roadside.

Not long after, Zhang Chuqiang led the car fleet back.

Watching the mighty convoy, loaded with raw logs, roll into the factory, the middlemen stared wide‑eyed.

"Boss Li, when will you start shipping?"

"The wood in those warehouses has sold out; we're still waiting for delivery today!"

"So why bother doing business with such delays!"

"We've waited all morning; can we start shipping now?"

"Don't push forward, those behind!"

……

Li Jiaci listened to these sounds, the corners of his mouth slightly lifting.

He leisurely came to the factory gate, raised his hand through the door to the middlemen outside, signaling them to be quiet.

After the surroundings grew quiet,

Li Jiaci then said, "Everyone, before I ship, I need to tell you about a change!"

"What change?"

Wang Zong asked impatiently.

The others also exchanged glances, growing somewhat anxious.

"It's like this: starting today, our previous prices no longer count!"

"I will adjust the price back to 600 yuan per cubic meter!"

"If you have no objections, we can start trading now!"

Li Jiaci finished saying all that.

The scene instantly erupted.

Wang Zong pounded on the gate and demanded, "Is there anyone who does business like you? Yesterday it was cabbage price, today it's back to sky‑high price!"

"Exactly, Li Lao Ban, you're too unkind!"

"You sell wood at seventy‑five bucks per cubic—what trash! It's good if anyone buys it at all!"

"That's right—what quality, what price; we're not suckers, paying sky‑high prices for defective goods!"

"Li Lao Ban, open the door—let's talk sense!"

"What's there to say with him?"

"In Pingzhou it's not just him selling wood—shouldn't we compare three suppliers?"

"Right, there's also Nian Yong Mu Cai Chang—their price is one hundred fifty bucks per cubic of wood!"

"Come on, let's go to Nian Yong Mu Cai Chang!"

……

The crowd outside was noisy, clamoring to leave.

But Wang Zong turned around, yet still felt something off, and glanced back at Li Jiaci's expression.

All he saw was that person's smile not fading but growing.

Wang Zong is a shrewd man; he then looked toward the car fleet behind Li Jiaci.

At that moment, Zhang Chuqiang and the others were unloading the raw logs.

The quality of that raw timber was truly good.

It was just like the wood that used to sell for six hundred bucks per cubic.

During this period, the wood sold from Li Jiaci's several warehouses was all junk, just like Nian Yong Mu Cai Chang's.

Wang Zong thought of that, and instantly understood.

Because the timber quality had recovered to its original state, the price was adjusted back.

Moreover, calculating the timber snatched up at low prices during this period, basically half of it is unusable—you can't even make chairs, let alone furniture meant for long‑term use.

Businesspeople, profit as a basis is fine, but only chasing profit isn't a long‑term plan; the defective goods pile up more and more, furniture can't be made, and eventually the furniture factory will be doomed, right?

Wang Zong's eyes rolled; seeing the crowd of peers behind him pile into cars and flee, he felt somewhat relieved.

At that moment, Wang Zong's driver drove the car over, lowered the window, and asked, "Boss, are you leaving or not? If you don't go now, you might miss out on the timber!"

"Wait a moment, don't rush!"

Wang Zong made a shushing gesture.

The driver, seeing that, could only park the car to the side.

Watching the crowd slowly disperse.

Li Jiaci turned around leisurely and walked back.

"Li Lao Ban, wait!"

Hearing this, Li Jiaci paused his steps, turned his head to look at Wang Zong.

He smiled and asked, "Wang Zong, why aren't you going to grab a spot?"

"What position would I go grab there? If I'm going to grab, I'll grab your position!"

"Li Lao Ban, those words just now were me joking—please don't take them to heart!"

"Actually I support your price increase!"

"Your timber is good—I buy it back to make furniture, and customers say it's comfortable to use!"

"Let's still go with the old familiar‑customer price—five hundred fifty bucks per cubic of timber, okay?"