1994: Vegetable farmers strike back

Chapter 281 is over, another one has gone mad.

Hong Kong.

The wholesale market was just as noisy in the early morning, filled with the smell of sweat and vegetable leaves.

Xia Youche, the owner of Tongxingtai Vegetable Market, was busy at work.

An old customer rushed over.

"Old Xia, do me a favor, help me find 300 jin of snow peas, the price is negotiable!"

Xia Youche raised an eyebrow, looked up and saw that the person who came was a purchasing agent from a large restaurant.

He shook his head. "I haven't sold snow peas for over a month. Can I use other vegetables instead?"

The restaurant's purchasing agent sighed, "If there were a substitute, would I have come to you? I've searched the entire market and haven't found any suitable snow peas. We're so short of them this year."

Actually, there are snow peas on the market, imported from Taiwan, but they are in high demand and have long been pre-ordered by people who need them regularly.

It's difficult for others to get the goods.

"Well, I can't help you with that. Would you like the other dishes?"

Do you have green bell peppers?

"No."

"That's it."

After everyone had walked away, Xia Youche kicked the plastic basket hard, making a creaking sound.

"Dad, what's wrong?"

"Someone else has come to ask for snow peas."

“That mainland bastard deserves to die! In just over a month, we’ve lost at least a million dollars. Dad, I’m taking some men to take care of him,” Xia Yang said fiercely.

"What are you thinking? You're not allowed to cause trouble in the mainland. This is a very sensitive time." Xia Youche was angry, but he hadn't gone crazy yet.

"Also, how could it be a loss of over a million yuan? The snow peas at Jiangxin Market have been harvested for a long time and should have been taken off the shelves long ago. Otherwise, do you think the mainland guy would be so tough?"

“That’s true. We only make a few hundred yuan a month. Even if we only pay an extra two cents, if we sell more snow peas for another month, that’s seventy or eighty thousand yuan,” Xia Yang said.

This was the only explanation Xia Youche could think of.

For more than a month, not only did that mainland boy not contact them, but neither did Xu and Huang contact any other vegetable stalls!

If there really were still snow peas, he didn't believe that a young man from a remote area would be willing to give up a profit of 70,000 to 80,000 yuan just to save face!
Xia Youche remembered something, "Oh right, Yangyang, someone asked about sweet peppers again today, why don't you go check the market prices?"

"OK..."

Xia Yang was about to leave when he stopped in surprise. "Dad, shouldn't the sweet peppers from the mainland boy be ready by now?"

"Go and take a look first, then we'll talk."

Both father and son felt uneasy.

They don't sell bell peppers much at Xingtai, nor do they have a high opinion of the bell peppers at Jiangxin Market, so they haven't mentioned this issue much in the past month except for making sarcastic remarks.

However, recently, bell peppers seem to be mentioned more frequently in the market.

After a while,

Xia Yang returned looking constipated.

"Dad, green peppers are in high demand lately; people are snapping them up very quickly."

"price?"

"6 to 7 pieces."

"Sigh~"

Xia Youche felt a slight pain in her cheek.

Jiangxin vegetable market seems to have 300 acres of sweet peppers. The last time I went there was in mid-to-late March, and they were already in bloom.

It's the fruiting season now!

This is different from the late pod-forming stage of snow peas; this is during peak production, and there hasn't been any extreme weather recently.
Jiangxin Market is likely to have a large quantity of green peppers recently!
After making this deduction, Xia Youche felt a mix of surprise, joy, and discomfort.

Xia Yang also felt embarrassed, but he still forced himself to say, "Dad, even the mainland boy might not be able to grow green peppers!"
Green peppers have been selling well lately, so they've probably suffered some kind of disaster again. The Jiangxin vegetable market might be in the same boat.

Xia Youche said, "What disaster could possibly happen? It's only the end of April, and Huacheng hasn't had any decent rain at all."
Putting everything else aside, this mainland guy is really good at growing vegetables!

Xia Yang also admitted that this was true; last year, so many vegetables, including a crop of extremely profitable snow peas, were grown by mainlanders.

"Dad, what should we do now?"

"I'll call them and ask."

"Isn't that incredibly embarrassing?"

"What's there to be ashamed of!" Xia Youche said with a look of disappointment, "As long as there's money to be made, you have to be willing to put aside your pride. That's what makes a qualified businessman!"

Unlike snow peas, which had already been harvested for over 80 days, Xia Youche was certain that the harvest wouldn't last much longer, so he didn't back down at all.

We've already made a killing, so a small loss is enough to teach the mainlanders a lesson. It's a win-win situation!
But bell peppers are different now.

The market is just starting to pick up, and it's in its peak season. If the deal goes well, there could be tens of thousands of yuan in profit every day!

Moreover, it can last for a long time, and it might easily generate millions in profit!

Such an opportunity is rare, occurring only once every few years.

He had already made a killing in the first half of the year, earning three to four million yuan by trading Dutch beans!

It was hundreds of thousands of yuan more than what he paid to Jiangxin Vegetable Market, and the profit margin was even greater!

This was an absolutely insane feast!

He had a lot of complaints about the mainlanders, simply because the mainlanders wanted to rebel and seize the profits that belonged to him.

This is what led to the two sides becoming sworn enemies.

However, this guy has probably grown another amazing batch of green peppers.

Thinking of the profits from the beginning of the year, Xia Youche licked his lips. If only he could do it again…

As soon as it was light, Xia Youche couldn't wait to start dialing the Jiangxin vegetable market.

No one answered.

I waited a while and called again. Someone answered, but all I got was a message that the manager had gone to sell vegetables and I should call again in the afternoon.

"Selling vegetables? What kind of vegetables?"

"Snow peas and green peppers, I guess."

Xu Yao's casual remark dealt a heavy blow to Xia Youche, nearly causing him to spit out a mouthful of blood.

Besides green peppers, there were even snow peas?

It's been almost four months since the harvest season started, hasn't it?!

Another night of hard work and activity; on the first day of May, stall number 63 sold 19 tons of vegetables.

Among them, there were 17.6 tons of green peppers and 1.4 tons of bok choy.

Green peppers have stabilized at 2 yuan per jin, while bok choy has climbed to 1 yuan per jin.

One night's sales can reach over 7 yuan. If this can be maintained for a month, the sales volume will definitely exceed two million yuan.

Chen Jiazhi believes this is not impossible.

The price of green peppers will remain stable, depending on the weather. It shouldn't be worse than last year, right?

Last April, the plum rains came early, and the torrential rains and floods in May also occurred on May 25th.

If we calculate based on last year's timeframe, there are still more than 20 days of safe period left, during which time we could make a fortune.

By now, the cost of the green peppers has been recovered, and any additional batch of green peppers produced will generate additional profits.

"knock off!"

"get off work!"

Chen Jiazhi is used to working with great enthusiasm; he believes that he must first ignite his own passion before he can ignite the passion of his subordinates.

Just like Yi Dinggan, after winning the green pepper picking competition, he smiled more in the market, gained confidence, and the workers became more motivated.

In fact, since the supply to Hong Kong ended, the atmosphere in the market has been somewhat dull and gloomy.

Such a large market, with such high wages, often relies on high profits to sustain itself.

Yi Dinggan raised the issue of excessively high labor costs.

Chen Jiazhi didn't touch the salaries or commissions, but he did set requirements for the quality of the vegetable workers, and Yi Dinggan subsequently laid off a group of them.

This has caused more people to worry about the operation of the farmers' market.

However, as the passionate month of April passed, this dullness and gloom were dispelled.

With a bumper harvest of green peppers, prices have surged, and vegetable prices have skyrocketed, with sales in April once again exceeding one million yuan.

In February, sales reached 54.

In March, sales reached 53.

The sales in April were 107.6 million, which is exactly the sum of February and March!
Are labor costs too high?

This is not a problem.

Moreover, this high cost is due to the workers' excessive enthusiasm, and much of it is commission-based.

This is acceptable to Chen Jiazhi; if he does it quickly and well, he should get more money.

Moreover, the team's confidence was boosted by this battle.

So what if we can't supply Hong Kong?
As long as you follow him, you'll still eat well and drink well!
After taking stock of the accounts at the distribution center, reviewing the situation in April, and considering future plans, Chen Jiazhi and Li Cai drove back.

With the signing of the agreement with Hongzhong Friendship Agricultural Supplies, Chen Jiazhi also received three real weapons.

The most frequently seen weapon in Hong Kong gangster films is the Black Star pistol, also known as the Type 54 pistol.

He gave one to his father, Chen Shaochang, Chen Zhengxu took one, and kept one for himself in his bag.

With stall number 63 running smoothly and Jiangxin Market transitioning steadily, Chen Jiazhi plans to go out to find a stable source of goods, and a gun is his safety guarantee.

A stable supply of goods does not necessarily require building your own base. It is equally feasible to cooperate with professional vegetable growers or villages and towns.

This is a common business model for large wholesalers in the future. Another model is to sell on consignment and earn commission.

However, the first option is more suitable now.

When we got home, it was still before 6 a.m., but it was already light outside. Apart from the two students, the whole family was already up.

Yi Dinggan was sitting at the door smoking when he asked as soon as the car stopped, "How did the vegetables sell last night?"

"Making a fortune!"

"Could you use a different word?"

"Earn money with blood!"

"..."

The whole family was amused by Chen Jiazhi. Yi Ding chuckled and scolded, "The snow peas are all gone, and Director Chen's fire is still burning!"

"You can't put it out, so I'm going to set this fire burning for you too!"

"I do not believe."

"The cost of the green peppers has already been recovered."

"Really?"

"See, didn't I just set this fire on your head?"

"Stop dawdling and tell me what happened."

Li Xiu and Chen Jiafang also looked at him expectantly, and Chen Jiazhi smiled smugly.

"You're neither smoking nor drinking, your mouth tastes bland!"

"Damn, they're still keeping us in suspense." Yi Dinggan was very dissatisfied, but he still offered out two cigarettes.

"As of this morning, we've sold a total of 63.96 yuan worth of green peppers. That should cover our costs, right?!"

"That's enough, that's enough, definitely enough." Yi Dinggan was pleasantly surprised: "If we sell for one more day, we'll really make a net profit of seventy or eighty thousand!"

"Jiazhi, you have to give me a big red envelope!"

"They don't call him 'field manager' anymore?"

"I haven't started work yet, so I won't accept a small red envelope. Only God knows how I've gotten through this period."

Chen Jiazhi remained silent.

"You don't have to make things too difficult for me. Let me be a man who earns 10,000 a month again!"

"You're underestimating me too much," Chen Jiazhi said with a laugh, then added, "Besides your salary and bonuses, how about I give you a share of the profits from the vegetable market?"

"If you dare to give, I dare to take!"

Yi Dinggan glanced at Li Cai beside him, then at Chen Jiafang in the kitchen, and felt himself truly burning with passion.

All day long, Yi Dinggan was excited, like a burning flame, a rushing river, or a soaring eagle.
In the afternoon, Li Cai arrived at the market first and shook his head as he watched Yi Dinggan shouting in the market.

Oh no, another one has gone mad.

He actually really wants to go crazy just once.
(End of this chapter)