Chapter 13: Making a Big Profit

I am not a person with low self-esteem! I have never been a person with low self-esteem! I am now a state cadre; I have no reason to have low self-esteem in front of a little woman! I puffed out my chest; I felt this action was very necessary. I said: "Not necessarily! I'm not afraid of you."

"Enough nonsense. Tell me, how much is this per pound?" She pointed to the cart of monkey head mushrooms and asked me.

I said without thinking: "Five yuan." Actually, I had bought them for a little over one yuan per pound.

"Good! Then I'll give you ten yuan per pound," Wu Qian waved her hand and said: "I paid for the transport first, and I bought the plastic boxes for loading. If we average that out, it's two yuan per pound. If I buy them back at eight yuan per pound, what do you think?"

I didn't speak. Hongyan, who was standing to the side, subconsciously gripped my hand tightly.

Wu Qian probably saw Hongyan's action. She smiled and asked Hongyan: "Little sister Hongyan, do you think it's appropriate?"

Hongyan nodded vigorously. I knew that when Hongyan came, she was still full of worries. She didn't know what the outside world had become. According to her, these things that were originally worth nothing had become so expensive in the city.

"Then it's settled." Wu Qian waved to the group behind her: "You all watch, the price is fifteen yuan per pound. If it's less than fifty pounds, I'm not selling."

The motorcycle riders swarmed up as soon as they heard, blocking my car tightly.

Less than an hour after Wu Qian appeared, the cart of mushrooms was divided up.

Wu Qian chuckled and said to me: "Chen Feng, take Hongyan to the hotel to rest. I'll come find you to settle the account when I'm done."

I said: "Why don't I stay here and help you? Aunt can take Hongyan."

Hongyan looked at me and said: "I'll stay here too. It's almost dawn, and hotels cost so much money; there's no need."

I said: "You'd better go sleep; I'll come find you at the hotel when the goods are sent out."

My aunt yawned and said: "How about this, I'll take Hongyan home. Chen Feng, come to the house when you're done with the goods. We'll have a meal together at noon. You're a government boss now, so you should treat us. Since Hongyan is here, I, as the aunt, should fulfill the duties of a host."

The monkey head mushroom business made me a big profit. I deposited all the money into the rural foundation; the interest of the foundation was high, far exceeding the rural credit cooperative. As soon as I returned, Old Li found me and insisted that I deposit the money into the foundation, because Old Li's son was the director of the foundation.

Suxi Township didn't have much income, and the villagers lived a self-sufficient life. When the foundation was first established, the county allocated thirty thousand yuan as the principal. After a few years, the principal hadn't even doubled.

I basically had no concept of depositing money. Old Li came to me several times, and even had his daughter-in-law send me chicken soup several times. Old Li's son smiled at me from afar every time he saw me, asking about my well-being with special enthusiasm. Therefore, when Old Li's daughter-in-law came to send chicken soup again, I spoke.

"Sister-in-law Jinling, you should have your husband come over today," I said. I already knew her name was Jinling. She had sent me chicken soup several times, and we were familiar with each other. But we hadn't communicated; her pretty, fair, small face was always lowered, and every time she saw me finish drinking, she would quickly clean up and leave without looking back.

Jinling glanced at me, took the bowl and chopsticks from my hand, and said: "He's not at home."

"Is your father-in-law at home?" I said with a smile: "I can't be ungrateful for your family's chicken soup."

"They both went to the county," Jinling said: "They won't be back until tomorrow."

Jinling's mother-in-law had passed away early. Old Li had raised his son alone, hadn't remarried, and had sent his son to study accounting in a secondary vocational school, helping him marry a daughter-in-law. Jinling's figure was curvaceous, having both the plumpness of a young woman and the wateriness of a young girl. Unfortunately, her belly hadn't shown any movement since she married over; she had been married for four years without having a son or daughter.

"Come to my house for dinner tonight!" Jinling said: "I bought a wild rabbit from Man Dad today, it's still alive. Come help me kill the rabbit; I'm afraid of killing."

"Okay!" I said excitedly.

I had been in Suxi Township for three months, and the one thing I couldn't get tired of eating was wild rabbit meat. Stir-fried wild rabbit meat in tea oil was a delicacy under heaven. Of course, whether it was red-braised or stewed in soup, the one who made it best was Jinling. She handled the gamey smell of the wild rabbit meat cleanly and completely, which no other woman in the entire Suxi Township could do, even Old Wang from the cafeteria had no way to do it.

I agreed to Jinling's invitation without thinking. Jinling pursed her lips and smiled, cleaned up the bowl and chopsticks, and floated out the door. As she went out, she looked back and smiled: "Secretary Chen, sister will prepare some good wine for you to drink."

I laughed and nodded.

This young wife was pretty, didn't talk much, and was diligent. She was the second woman I had formally contacted since coming to Suxi Township. I knew her because Old Li asked her to help me purchase monkey head mushrooms. Compared to Liu Hongyan, who was as green as an unripe persimmon, Jinling was like a ripe peach, making one have infinite reveries.

Liu Hongyan was my most trusted friend. I had never thought of her as someone I could get close to, not only because of her greenness, but the key was Zheng Gang, the man who often took the holster off his waist and placed it in front of me, who had been full of hostility since I arrived.

As the sun set, I prepared to go to Jinling's house. I suddenly felt excited tonight. This inexplicable excitement seemed to have appeared between me and Wu Qian. It was the excitement I felt when I took off Wu Qian's clothes and saw her fair, smooth body. I hoped something would happen tonight... ===== CHAPTER 14 =====