boyutpedia Chapter 48 Market Limitations
Chapter 48 Market Limitations
"Dequan, are you telling the truth? Eels, you're buying them for two cents a pound? And you need them every day?"
Zhang Dequan nodded as he looked at the surprised Zhao Weidong and Wang Dahai.
"However, I'm making it clear that these eels must be at least as thick as a finger; the small ones are not acceptable."
Zhao Weidong thought for a moment and decided to catch the biggest ones from among them.
With three children in the family, they can easily catch at least 20 to 30 kilograms of food in one night, which adds up to five or six yuan a day.
A monthly income of at least 150 yuan, plus the income of three children doing odd jobs in their spare time, is almost equivalent to the monthly income of two city workers!
Wang Dahai was also completely bewildered, not understanding why someone would actually pay to buy this unwanted item.
"Dequan, you're not kidding me, are you?"
Zhang Dequan pursed his lips and gave him a disgruntled look.
"Why would I lie to you? If you don't believe me, go ask around. Yesterday, Da Hu and Er Hu from Old Sun's family delivered thirty catties of eels, and they paid more than six yuan on the spot. If you think I'm lying to you, you don't have to do it, and I'll find another one."
Seeing that he was getting a little angry, Wang Dahai quickly tried to smooth things over by taking out a cigarette from his pocket and offering it to him.
"Hey... Dequan, don't be angry, don't be angry. I'm just a little slow on the uptake."
After saying that, Wang Dahai offered Zhao Weidong another cigarette.
Zhao Weidong took the cigarette and asked a question hesitantly.
"Dequan, what if we catch too many eels and Xiaochuan doesn't want them anymore?"
Zhang Dequan waved his hand, his tone resolute.
"Xiao Chuan said that his friend is in the seafood business and can easily eat a hundred or so kilograms. If you're worried, you can try catching a small amount; it's paid immediately, so you don't have to pay upfront."
"Okay, I'll do it. I'll have the three boys in my family catch it tonight."
These words were so true that Wang Dahai was tempted.
He has five children. The eldest is in junior high school in town, and the other four are in elementary school. If he could catch eels at night to exchange for money, life would be much easier.
"Okay, then I'll let the kids try it tonight too."
Zhang Dequan nodded and gave further instructions.
"Weidong, Dahai, the three of us have some connections. Let me make this clear: when you catch the eels, you have to keep them in clean water overnight. Any that are dead or wilted are not acceptable."
"Don't worry, I understand." Zhao Weidong smiled knowingly, glancing at him with a hint of envy. "I'll remember this favor."
Although Zhang Beichuan was in charge of the eel business and provided the money, it was Zhang Dequan who arranged which family would help catch them.
It's obvious that Zhang Beichuan handed over the benefits of winning everyone over to his third brother, Zhang Dequan.
From now on, as long as Zhang Beichuan continues to collect, every family that participates in catching eels will speak highly of Zhang Dequan.
"This kid's got some skills," Zhao Weidong muttered to himself.
"Yes, yes, Dequan, it's really kind of you to think of us when something like this happens."
Zhang Dequan smiled, chatted with the two for a few minutes, then rode his bicycle home leisurely, preparing to go to the county town.
.......
With the addition of Zhao Weidong and Wang Dahai's children, the number of eels caught each day increased from about 80 or 90 jin in the first two days to about 100 jin.
Thanks to Zhang Beichuan's work at the county market in 1986, the number of free-range chickens has gradually increased in the past few days, with about seven or eight a day.
"Brother Xiaochuan, you're here? Let me lend you a hand."
As soon as Zhang Beichuan parked his car and got out, he heard the crayfish vendor's cheerful voice.
"Brother Huang, is this taking up too much of your time?"
"No delay, no delay."
"Alright, thank you for your trouble."
The two quickly unloaded the eels from the trunk, filling four large buckets.
Zhang Beichuan watched him rubbing his hands excitedly and said with a smile.
"Brother Huang, how about I give you another fifty catties today?"
Upon hearing that there would still be fifty jin today, the stall owner surnamed Huang immediately beamed with joy.
Even just the price difference can yield a profit of 200 yuan.
Furthermore, with the added benefit of bundling, people who buy eels are likely to also buy some crayfish, which could lead to the sale of even more crayfish.
Anyway, he had already tasted the benefits of it a couple of days ago.
"Really? That's wonderful..."
Seeing his excited expression, Zhang Beichuan chuckled and pointed to the two large iron barrels next to him.
"I weighed these two buckets at home, and they weigh about 52.3 jin (21.5 kg). Let's say 52 jin (21.5 kg), how about that?"
"Won't this...don't this put you at a disadvantage? Or maybe we should just do what we're supposed to do!"
Seeing that he was quite straightforward, Zhang Beichuan smiled and said, "Brother Huang is a straightforward person, and so am I. Let's do it my way!"
"Okay, I'll transfer the money to you."
The stall owner, surnamed Huang, picked up his phone, calculated the amount, and transferred 1872 yuan. He then made a phone call, asking his wife, who sold crayfish in the market, to bring the eels inside to sell.
To avoid both companies selling in the same market and competing for business.
The two chatted briefly before getting back to their respective businesses.
With the experience gained over the past few days, and word-of-mouth recommendations from regular customers who passed by the stalls when shopping at the market, we were able to get our supplies.
Soon, a large crowd gathered in front of Zhang Beichuan's stall.
"Let me make this clear first, I don't know this young man at all. The chicken I bought from him last time, when I stewed it at home, it smelled absolutely amazing. It tasted exactly like the free-range chickens we used to raise! It must have been raised on grain!"
A woman, around forty years old, listened to the old man's exaggerated description and carefully examined the rooster on the ground with its bright feathers and sharp claws.
"Young man, did this chicken really grow up eating grain?"
While deftly weighing eels for another customer, Zhang Beichuan replied with a smile.
"Sister, I collected these chickens piecemeal from the surrounding villages. I had to plead with the local elders a lot to get these few. Why don't you buy them and make some soup or braise them? If you don't like the taste, come back to me tomorrow!"
Seeing Zhang Beichuan's sincere tone and open eyes, she looked at the chicken, then at the lively eels in the bucket, and made up her mind.
"Okay, I'll trust you this time! Pick me a plump hen, and two pounds of eels too."
"Okay!"
Zhang Beichuan deftly picked out a hen for her, while the crayfish vendor next to him, seeing that he was a bit overwhelmed, also helped weigh the eels.
"The chicken weighs 4.2 jin and costs 210 yuan; the eel weighs 2.1 jin and costs 84 yuan, for a total of 294 yuan. Here you go."
The woman took the item he offered, weighed it in her hand, and nodded in satisfaction.
"If it's really as good as the old man says, I'll come again next time. If you're lying to me, I'll come looking for you later!"
An old man watching the commotion chuckled and chimed in, "Don't worry, young lady, I guarantee you'll want more after you try it!"
With this live streamer, even more people came to the stall.
Some people bought eels, some bought chickens, and some were regular customers who had bought from them a few days ago and came back specifically to buy again.
A hundred or so pounds of eels and eight chickens were sold out in less than an hour.
"Brother Huang, thank you so much for today!"
"You're welcome. Come again tomorrow, and I'll help you out again!"
Zhang Beichuan smiled awkwardly. The eels and free-range chickens were indeed selling well at the market, and there were also kind old men and stall owners helping to help out.
Based on his observations over the past few days, the market can only sell a maximum of 200 jin (100 catties) of eels per day.
Because of their robust build, a free-range chicken costs around two hundred yuan.
If it weren't for the popularity of eels, these chickens would sell even slower, at most ten free-range chickens a day.
This market is full of people from the surrounding neighborhoods. At first, everyone was just trying it out and buying some to take home and try.
But after a while, you can't eat even the best food every day, right?
Business here will decline soon.
Furthermore, the revenue from selling local products in 2026 will only be 60% of the revenue from a single day's sale of Beichuan Department Store in 1986, which could be converted into gold and brought back for cash – the process is far too slow.
Zhang Beichuan knew it was time to consider moving to a different location.