1994: Vegetable farmers strike back

Chapter 212 Boss Chen, I'll follow you from now on.

Night had fallen.

The open space in Dongxiang Market was dimly lit, and a group of people were quietly loading vegetables onto trucks.

Chen Jiazhi and Ao Dehai stood at the edge of the dam, looking at the vegetable fields shrouded in darkness.

"Dehai, let's hold off tomorrow." Chen Jiazhi pondered for a moment and said, "220 pieces of bok choy will be enough."

Ao Dehai was surprised: "Boss, there are still quite a lot of dishes left. With this weather, they'll be up in a day or two."

Chen Jiazhi: "There might be more opportunities later, so you can take advantage of these next few days to clear out the land."

Ao Dehai asked, "What should we plant next?"

"I need to think about it first. Let's clear the land out and let it dry in the sun."

The cold wave is expected at the end of the year, around New Year's Day. Even if you plant mid-to-late-season Chinese cabbage now, which takes 60 days to grow, it's still a bit early.

Moreover, he remembered that the most expensive vegetable during that period was snow peas.

Snow peas are also a fast-growing crop.

At the same time, a frame needs to be built; a small arched shed is useless, at least a medium-sized shed is needed to keep warm.

However, the price of green vegetables is not low.

He needs to assess how to maximize his profits.

After briefly explaining the arrangements, Chen Jiazhi told Ao Dehai to go to bed early, and basically left production management to Chen Jiazhi.

His 50 mu of land is much better than Jiangxin Vegetable Market; the small arched sheds and insect-proof nets are facilities that Jiangxin Vegetable Market does not have.

"Boss Chen, the car is loaded!"

"Okay, you've worked hard. You should go and get some rest."

"This car is going to be worth a lot of money!"

Looking at the huge cart full of vegetables, Qi Yongcheng's perception of Chen Jiazhi was once again refreshed. Now he was no longer Chen Xiucai (a scholar), but Boss Chen.

Yi Long was also ready. Together with Chen Jiazhi, they looked around the carriage and were quite troubled by the sight of it full of food.

For the past three or four days, someone has been putting him under intense pressure, which has caused him a lot of suffering.

"Uncle, am I going to be exhausted tonight?"

Chen Jiazhi smiled and said, "If you're too tired, just give up and take it slow. Haven't you seen how many more people are coming to collect their vegetables these past two days?"

"It seems so."

"So, sometimes you can't be too proactive. Now, it's more about customers needing to buy our vegetables. If they're in a hurry, they'll come and get them themselves."

"Uncle, you're quite shrewd!"

Yi Long's eyes lit up: "Then I'll just collect the baskets after each delivery. That way, I'll spend a little more time on the road, and I'll have to make fewer deliveries."

Wow, you're the real shrewd one!

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, the two set off again.

As autumn deepens, although it is still hot during the day, the early morning is quite pleasant.

Perhaps every autumn rain after this will grow colder day by day, but the rain just hasn't fallen yet.

Heaven still reigns supreme over agriculture, and the judge of fate wears his hat firmly.

"Drip~"

With a horn blaring, Mr. Hu, the owner of stall number 57, saw a fully loaded truck drive into stall number 56.

It really was a full truckload.

Yesterday there was only half a truckload!

"Mr. Chen, are you really not going to sell cheap vegetables?"

Chen Jiazhi had just gotten out of the car and was still opening the trunk when he heard a shout from the other side. He turned around and laughed:
"Better luck."

"Your luck is just too good!"

Mr. Hu is so envious.

Vegetable prices plummeted in September, but Mr. Chen, the owner of the stall across the street, didn't sell any vegetables for a single day.

I rested for more than a month.

He watched as the weeds grew day by day in the cracks along the edge of the drainage ditch across the street!

As a result, just a few days into October, vegetable prices began to recover, and Mr. Chen started selling vegetables again.

There aren't many vegetables, only about half a truckload a day, but the price of vegetables is rising every day.

Prices have started to look good again these past couple of days.

He also had a bit of trouble finding ingredients again.

Then, suddenly, Mr. Chen brought a whole truckload of vegetables!

That night, just like last month when he watched the weeds slowly grow across the street, Mr. Hu would sometimes watch as layers of goods were unloaded across the street, and he would wish that the busy, handsome young man was him.

Hey, not only is he handsome, but he's also incredibly skilled at selling vegetables. To use the words of that handsome delivery guy, he's absolutely intimidating!
With a flourish of his pen, Chen Jiazhi completed another order. He paused for a moment, looking at his hands, which had turned slightly whiter.

No wonder several older women looked at him with such gentle expressions earlier.

He's back to being handsome again!
Good food goes with good looks, and good looks bring out good food. Chen Jiazhi felt even more excited when he received the money.

"Mr. Chen, don't you have any kale or mustard greens?"

"No, it will be in a few days."

"Get them and sell them sooner rather than later?"

"hold on."

Another customer came to ask about Chinese kale; I've lost count of how many times they've asked.

Chen Jiazhi still has ten mu of kale in his field, but he plans to leave it for a while longer, hoping that these batches of kale can generate more 'money'.

"Chop~ Chop~" Yi Long dragged back another stack of vegetable baskets.

Chen Jiazhi called out, "Xiaolong, take a rest for a while, don't overwork yourself."

Yi Long gave a wicked smile: "Don't worry, Uncle, I'm very shrewd. Didn't you notice? It took me half an hour this time~"

Chen Jiazhi laughed heartily: "You're amazing! You're almost mastering your old man's skills!"

Yi Long chuckled again, "Wrong, I learned it from you, Uncle. You think I didn't know you were sleeping in the office?"

Chen Jiazhi: “…”

They said they were slacking off, but they were actually making the best of a bad situation. Even with reduced delivery volume, it wasn't easy for the two of them to handle 290 orders of vegetables.

Just constantly climbing onto the truck to unload the goods is enough to make you drenched in sweat. The price hasn't gone up today, it's still 55 yuan per item. The speed at which the produce is served isn't exactly lightning fast, but it's basically non-stop.

In the end, we still didn't have enough vegetables to go around.

Chen Jiazhi looked at the persistent older woman in front of him and said, "Sister, this really won't work!"

"How can such a handsome young man like you say he can't do it!"

"No, no, it's not impossible." Chen Jiazhi almost fell over. "It's really sold out. These dozen or so dishes are just left because we haven't had time to deliver them yet. Why don't you go and check other places?"

"It's not easy to find these days. I walked all the way here and only saw you with bok choy!"

Chen Jiazhi's heart skipped a beat. "Great, I can raise the price again tomorrow."

"I really can't give it to you, I've already taken the money. Why don't you go check the stalls in the back? Go early, you might still be able to find something!"

"Ding Ding Dong~"

The tricycle bell rang, and from twenty or thirty meters away, Curly Hair shouted, "Chen Cai Nong, save some vegetables for me!"

Chen Jiazhi was still a little unaccustomed to hearing "Chen the Vegetable Farmer".

"Boss Juan, you're finally here! If you had been any later, you almost wouldn't have been able to save these dishes."

Mao Liangcai didn't care about the title "General Manager Juan," or perhaps he didn't hear it clearly. He stopped the tricycle and started loading vegetables with a clattering sound, only stopping when the older woman was ready to take the vegetables.

There were 16 items in total, and it took Mr. Mao two trips to get the vegetables to go.

Chen Jiazhi felt that if things continued to develop for another month or two, Curly would also need to hire help.

No sooner had Curly Hair left than Yi Long returned. Chen Jiazhi asked, "Little Long, did you time your return perfectly?"

“I’ve been watching him for a while,” Yi Long chuckled. “He deliberately delayed coming back.”

Chen Jiazhi gave him a thumbs up.

Yi Long blinked: "You taught me, Uncle."

Having a talkative and funny person accompany you while you sell vegetables adds an extra layer of enjoyment.

In his past life, Chen Jiazhi spent many nights alone, tending his cart, selling vegetables, collecting money, and delivering goods. When there were no customers, he would smoke alone.
This life is completely different.

Buying a car early on not only changed the fate of my family, but also the fate of many relatives, friends and strangers.

Don't slack off, handsome!
After giving himself a pep talk, Chen Jiazhi began cleaning up the mess, keeping his satchel close at hand, which was already stuffed full of banknotes.

After tidying up, Yi Long, who had gone to buy breakfast, returned with steamed buns and soy milk.

Go home.

After eating three meat buns and drinking a cup of soy milk, Yi Long closed his eyes to rest, but when he passed a rural school, he opened his eyes and stared blankly at it.

The new semester has been going on for over a month now.

Watching the students carrying their schoolbags, skipping and jumping in groups of three or five as they chased each other into the school gate, Yi Long muttered, "It's definitely better to study."

“Then I’ll read it carefully from now on,” Chen Jiazhi said. For several days in a row, Yi Long had been looking at him with such longing as he passed by.

"Hmm~"

After returning to the dormitory, Yi Long went to take a shower, while Chen Jiazhi locked the door, took out some money from his bag, and roughly counted it.

Today's income is 15,950 yuan!

He doesn't actually enjoy counting money, but stacks of cash still bring a smile to his face.

...

In busy days, time always flies by, and in the blink of an eye, another four days have passed, with the market becoming more and more heated each day.

Both the Jiangxin vegetable market and Chen Jiazhi's base in Dongxiang have entered a state of passionate activity.

Pinch off the vegetables, pinch off the vegetables, pinch off the vegetables!

Keep pinching!

The fighting never ends!

It was as if the ground was planted with gold, not vegetables!
What's planted in the ground is indeed a vegetable.

But when bok choy and water spinach hit the market at Jiangxin Vegetable Market, daily sales reached 28 yuan for two consecutive days, and cumulative sales reached 113 million yuan in 10 days, the commission agreement was finalized.

Not only the team leaders, but also the vegetable collectors have had their commissions secured.

That day, Chen Jiazhi took the lead in distributing the commissions to Ao Deliang and Li Mingkun's groups.

This has given Jiangxin Market an unprecedented burst of vitality!
Especially for the six group leaders, earning 10,000 yuan a month may be difficult, but earning 5,000 yuan a month is within reach!
No, it's readily available!

For these migrant workers, this is an income that would motivate them to work their hardest!

In the eyes of Yi Dinggan, Ao Deliang, Qi Yongfeng, Li Mingkun, Guo Mancang, and others, Chen Jiazhi's image was elevated once again.

They all knew that Chen Jiazhi's monthly salary was 1200 yuan. He didn't get any commission from selling the produce, but he did receive profit sharing, which was tiered. The higher the net profit, the higher his income.

This time, the commission-based payout is essentially cutting off his own flesh. He might miss out on a 5% bonus just because of a few tens of thousands of yuan in profit.

Chen Jiazhi said, "I just helped you get what you deserved."

On the evening of the 15th, after another summary and learning meeting, the usually silent man Ao Deliang shouted, "Boss Chen, I'll follow you from now on!"

Li Mingkun also said, "Me too."

"And I!"

"I!"

"..."

Chen Jiazhi waved his hand without turning his head and went downstairs back to his dormitory.

Yi Dinggan followed him back to the dormitory, shouting, "Boss Chen, I'm going with you too!"

Chen Jiazhi looked at him seriously, "Are you serious?"

Yi Dinggan silently took out a cigarette, took a deep drag, and was just about to have a hearty brotherly moment when he heard a sound from next door.

"Boss Chen, if he won't bet, I will!"

"You brat, go back to your studies next year and bring honor to the family!" Yi Ding cursed. "I don't need you to make money!"

So, are you going to go with me or not?

"with!"

"What are you following? I'm not involved in organized crime."

Hearty laughter echoed through the night.

(End of this chapter)